Chapter 195: What the Hell Are You Talking About?
The voice boomed like thunder, resonating across the air and echoing throughout Grove 27 before spreading outward to the surrounding areas.
"..."
Kizaru's expression darkened considerably.
He resisted the overwhelming urge to turn back and blast Rhodes. The yellow light gathering in his palm rapidly extended into the distance, reaching the horizon in the blink of an eye.
Rhodes recognized this technique of Kizaru's, but had no way to prevent it. If he were closer, he might have managed to interrupt the Admiral, but the distance was simply too great. In the end, he could only strike with Spectre with all his strength.
Whoosh!
Azure sword energy tore through the air at speeds nearly exceeding human visual processing—but it missed entirely. Kizaru had already vanished.
"Damn it..."
Rhodes felt genuinely annoyed, but there was nothing more he could do. Against a speed-focused opponent like Kizaru who genuinely wanted to disengage, preventing escape was nearly impossible.
So Rhodes sheathed Spectre and began recalling where Luffy and the others should be.
"If I remember correctly... Grove 12."
Rhodes slowly descended to ground level and stretched his shoulders.
He deliberately chose not to use the Doa Doa no Mi's dimensional travel to accelerate his journey—after all, far too many eyes were watching this location.
How long could he keep that particular escape ability secret if he revealed it publicly?
However, to prevent any unfortunate developments, Rhodes still accelerated toward Grove 12 at high speed.
Wherever he passed, people could only perceive a flash of silver light before being blown backward by the powerful gust of wind, leaving the streets in absolute chaos.
The affected civilians felt both annoyed and genuinely terrified.
That yellow light had been Admiral Kizaru. Could this silver light belong to the same person who'd just battled him to a standstill?
Had these two monstrous beings not satisfied themselves destroying Grove 27? Were they planning to devastate other areas as well?
As people complained bitterly, panic grew exponentially, and they fled in every direction.
Fortunately, the Marine forces stationed throughout the archipelago had already mobilized, following orders from their superiors to evacuate all civilians.
Just as Rhodes was approaching Grove 12, he encountered someone familiar.
"What a coincidence, Rhodes! Were you the one fighting Kizaru just now?"
Rayleigh smiled warmly as Rhodes came to a stop before him.
"That's right. I was just getting warmed up when Kizaru slipped away. Now I need to rush over and continue where we left off," Rhodes complained with obvious frustration.
Rayleigh couldn't help but reveal a hint of genuine surprise at this confirmation.
Although he'd suspected it earlier, that had merely been conjecture. Now that it was verified, Rayleigh still felt astonished.
To fight Admiral Kizaru to such an extent—this young man before him clearly possessed the strength to traverse the seas freely and potentially reach the absolute pinnacle.
"In that case, I'll provide support from the shadows if needed."
Rayleigh said with an easygoing smile. He was getting old, so it was better to avoid unnecessary exertion when possible. Besides, he had important matters to handle in the coming days, so conserving energy seemed wise.
Rhodes nodded and was about to depart when something occurred to him.
"Bartholomew Kuma is a friend. Don't interfere with him."
Without waiting for Rayleigh's response, Rhodes continued toward Grove 12 at full speed.
Moments later, Rhodes arrived to witness Zoro lying collapsed on the ground, with Kizaru's foot raised high—glowing with intensely brilliant yellow light—clearly preparing to execute the swordsman then and there.
Seeing this scene, Luffy, Nami, and the others all displayed expressions of absolute desperation.
But never surrendering to fate, they rushed toward Kizaru anyway, determined to stop him despite the impossibility.
Unfortunately, willpower and determination alone couldn't bridge such an overwhelming power gap. The Straw Hat Pirates, having not yet mastered Armament Haki, stood virtually no chance of victory against an Admiral.
"That's quite a distance..."
Rhodes muttered, calculating the range. In the same instant, the pale silver lightning crackling across his body suddenly intensified, gathering power for electromagnetic propulsion.
Almost instantaneously—
Rhodes stomped his foot hard against the ground.
BOOM!
Like a localized earthquake, the street surface shattered beneath Rhodes's kick, revealing a massive crater.
Rhodes launched forward like a human cannonball, leaving behind a trail of white vapor several hundred meters long.
"Such incredible speed..." Rayleigh, following from a distance, marveled at the display.
Several hundred meters—at speeds exceeding sound—were traversed instantaneously.
Before Kizaru's foot could even descend, his Observation Haki began vibrating urgently, warning him that extreme danger was rapidly approaching.
His reaction speed was equally impressive, but Rhodes was simply too fast.
Kizaru barely completed his elemental transformation before being sent flying by Rhodes's devastating kick.
BOOM!
Only at that moment did the sound of Rhodes breaking the sound barrier arrive, resounding like thunderclaps.
Powerful shockwaves blasted outward in all directions, forcing everyone to shield their eyes against the debris.
Dust filled the air completely.
Luffy and the others ignored everything else, straining their eyes to peer through the obscuring cloud, desperately hoping Zoro was alright.
When the smoke finally cleared, Luffy, Nami, and the rest breathed collective sighs of profound relief upon seeing a composed figure standing protectively over Zoro, who remained alive nearby.
"Thank god! Rhodes-aniki is here!"
Nami cried tears of genuine joy, as if witnessing salvation itself materialize.
Kizaru's strength was undeniably overwhelming—a foe the Straw Hat Pirates absolutely could not withstand at their current level.
But in her heart, Rhodes was equally invincible. As long as he was present, they would be safe!
"Hey, Zoro. Can you still stand?"
Rhodes glanced down at the swordsman, only to find him too severely injured to speak. Zoro could only manage a pained grin directed at Rhodes before coughing up several mouthfuls of blood—clearly having sustained serious damage.
Yet a glimmer of relief shone in his eyes. He wasn't afraid of death itself; he'd simply been worried about his crewmates.
Kizaru's power was simply too overwhelming for the Straw Hat Pirates to handle.
The realization filled Zoro with bitter frustration—he could only blame himself for not being strong enough.
"Ohhh looks like you've caught up to me again How troublesome~"
Countless particles of light coalesced near Rhodes, revealing Kizaru's characteristically inscrutable expression—though he didn't appear entirely unscathed.
It seemed that although he'd reacted to Rhodes's attack and employed elemental dispersion to evade it, he'd still sustained noticeable injuries.
Of course, for a being of Kizaru's caliber, such wounds were relatively minor—he'd recover completely within a day or two.
"Your legs must be getting tired from all that posing. I thought I'd help you rest them."
Rhodes responded with casual mockery.
"Well it certainly appears you're determined to obstruct me today"
Kizaru rubbed his chin with obvious annoyance. "If that happens, the Marines' standing with the Celestial Dragons will be... problematic~"
"Celestial Dragons? You mean those worthless pieces of trash?"
Rhodes unsheathed Spectre with complete nonchalance.
"My my that's rather dangerous thinking you're expressing there"
Kizaru narrowed his eyes and regarded Rhodes with genuine surprise before his expression hardened. "What the hell are you talking about?!"
"Let's continue our unfinished battle."
Rhodes stood with blade ready.
At this critical moment, Luffy finally demonstrated his growth as a captain and immediately shouted:
"Usopp! Brook! Grab Zoro and get him out of here, now!"
Brook froze momentarily in surprise, but the usually cowardly Usopp was actually first to react—quickly running to Zoro's side and hoisting him up despite the weight.
"Everyone, just focus on escaping! We're no match for these monsters right now!"
At this crucial juncture, Luffy proved himself quite competent as captain, recognizing the harsh reality and voicing words he'd never imagined saying before.
The Straw Hat Pirates immediately sprang into coordinated action. Even Nami instinctively obeyed her captain's orders, understanding that her presence would only distract Rhodes.
Before retreating, Franky utilized his advanced technology to convert all his remaining cola into kinetic energy, sending a Pacifista flying backward with a devastating Wind Cannon blast.
"Giving up so easily How frustrating"
Kizaru observed with obvious irritation and decided to employ his signature pursuit technique—using Yata no Kagami to give chase.
A tunnel of brilliant orange-yellow light extended forward.
However, the very next instant, it was severed cleanly by Rhodes's blade.
"You really think I'd let the same trick work twice?"
Rhodes spoke calmly, observing Kizaru stumble slightly due to the sudden interruption of his technique.
(End of Chapter)
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