Roya raised Flowing Blade Like Raging Fire high, the pinnacle of swordsmanship manifesting in this moment.
Without any superfluous movement, he simply swung his Soul Slayer Sword downward.
A single slash.
A tempest erupted.
The blade split the air, its shriek piercing the battlefield.
Flames that distorted reality voraciously consumed the surrounding heat.
In an instant—
The world inverted.
The fiery clouds vanished, devoured by this heaven-rending slash.
Every magma fist that touched Roya's attack became fuel for its destruction.
Hiss—
The slash tore across the ocean, vaporizing vast quantities of seawater.
Like a crescent moon, it raced toward Akainu.
This dazzling, razor-sharp attack drained the color from every onlooker's face.
Marines on the ships stared dumbfounded at the approaching slash.
Only now did they feel the overwhelming, soul-crushing pressure.
Their bodies turned rigid as stone.
And this was merely the attack's residual aura.
Akainu experienced it most intensely.
Every cell in his body felt suppressed.
Watching his ultimate technique get dismantled in an instant, Akainu's heart plunged into despair.
No chance of victory!
He stood no match against Roya!
Only death awaited!
Akainu clenched his fists—given another chance, he'd have trained even more brutally to grow stronger!
But no second chances remained.
"BOOM!"
A thunderous impact.
Roya's slash struck Akainu directly.
The extreme heat proved unbearable even for the Magma Fruit user, impossible to counteract.He could even sense that his own fruit power was utterly ineffective against this slash.
It was as if he had encountered the suppression of a superior fruit.
"Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh~"
The aftermath of the explosion stirred up violent winds that swept across the ocean waves, even forming a terrifying tsunami!
"Hurry! Hurry! Turn the rudder, push the engines to full power, don't let the tsunami catch us!!"
"But what about Vice Admiral Akainu!"
"What about him? Who do you think I should ask? If he hadn't ignored orders and charged out without testing the waters, this wouldn't have happened!"
"Right now, let's just focus on saving our own lives!"
...
Above Ohara.
The fierce winds howled against Roya's fluttering cloak.
Slowly, he sheathed Flowing Blade Like Raging Fire.
Then Roya softly uttered: "Burning City Walls."
As his words fell, the form of the slash instantly transformed.
A massive fireball materialized before everyone's eyes.
This fireball pressed downward relentlessly—onto the tsunami waves towering dozens of meters high, onto the fleeing warships.
Tens of thousands of tons of seawater evaporated instantly!
The only ones unharmed by this attack were the people on Ohara.
Robin and Olvia watched as the sea turned into a sea of flames, their faces filled with indescribable shock.
After what felt like an eternity, the flames gradually dissipated.
Only the empty ocean remained.
Stars sparkled in Robin's eyes as she excitedly turned to Roya, saying, "Brother Roya, you're so strong! I want to become as strong as you someday!"
Robin had already set her sights on Roya as the goal she would chase for the rest of her life—in every possible way.
Roya observed Robin and thought to himself: Kids grow up so fast. Just a few days, and she already resembles her future self a little.
"Robin, work hard. Did you see those flaming clouds covering the sky earlier? That's one form of a Devil Fruit's awakened power. If you can awaken your own abilities, not only the Four Seas, but even the Grand Line and the New World will recognize you as a true powerhouse!"
Hearing Roya's words, Robin nodded vigorously. "I'll train even harder! I'll strive to awaken my powers as soon as possible!"
Roya smiled approvingly and nodded before turning to Olvia. "I'll leave Weevil with you. If there's any danger, just send him out. But remember to make him a cloak to wear."
"I understand. Roya, are you leaving now?"
"Yes, time is tight. I'll come back to visit when I can, or you can come find me on the sea!"
"Brother Roya, I'll awaken my powers soon and come find you on the sea!"
After bidding farewell to Olvia and Robin, Roya activated his Talisman ability and flew toward Marineford.
However, Roya couldn't just fly all the way back. About a day later, he found an island, purchased a ship, and prepared to continue his journey.
But even Roya himself didn't expect what he would see when he reached the shore—Akainu, battered and bruised, lying face-down on the beach!
Akainu was covered in severe burns, his body already showing large patches of festering, whitened flesh.
His face was deathly pale, blood seeping slightly from his wounds. Yet despite everything, he showed no signs of dying.Roya approached Akainu and crouched down in front of him, using his peak medical skills to examine the injuries on Akainu's body.
"Akainu, Akainu, should I save you or not?"
At this moment, Roya found himself in a dilemma.
Sitting cross-legged on the beach, he figured Akainu wouldn't die anytime soon, so he decided to take his time to think it over.
In the blink of an eye, more than half an hour passed, and Roya opened his eyes from a nap.
That's right—he had accidentally dozed off.
Stretching lazily, Roya stood up from the sand, brushed the dust off his pants, and flashed a mischievous grin.
"Akainu, I hope you don't end up getting played to death by me in the future!"
With that thought, Roya smiled warmly, then dragged Akainu onto the ship he had just purchased.
He applied his peak medical skills again, but this time, Roya showed no mercy.
He delivered a series of punches and kicks targeting Akainu's pressure points.
The intense pain once again assaulted Akainu's brain.
"Ack—!" Akainu suddenly vomited thick, black blood.
This was the stagnant blood that had accumulated in his body.
After expelling the clotted blood, Akainu slowly opened his eyes.
When he saw Roya, a look of relief flickered across his face.
Summoning his strength, he weakly turned his head to gaze up at Roya and murmured, "Roya... so you're alive. Did you... save me?"
"Who else? No one but me could've pulled it off. But I have to admit, surviving such severe injuries—you're tough, I'll give you that."
Roya gave Akainu a thumbs-up.
Gratitude flashed in Akainu's eyes.
"This time... thank... thank you."
It was clearly Akainu's first time apologizing, and he was far from smooth.
But if he knew that Roya was the one who had inflicted these injuries in the first place, he might just drop dead from rage on the spot!
At this thought, a sly glint appeared in Roya's eyes.
"Rest up. We're heading back to Marineford soon. If we don't return, they'll probably think I'm really dead..."