At the same time, Saturn's form flickered and vanished.
No way, already losing his patience?
An instant later, his spider-like appendages whistled through the air, the pointed tip darting straight for Kael's brow.
Fast to the extreme. Deadly to the extreme.
But just as Saturn launched his strike, Kael's body surged forward instead of retreating. He twisted the black-and-gold naginata in his hands, slamming the heavy shaft into the ground.
"Seismic Roar: Earthquake Wave!"
Boom!!!
The earth beneath Kael's feet ceased to be solid. It rolled and cracked like an enraged ocean.
In a fan-shaped radius, the ground heaved, split, and surged upward. Dust and debris exploded dozens of meters high like a beast opening its jaws to devour everything.
The sudden upheaval disrupted Saturn's flawless strike.
Now!
The dust choked the air, blotting out all sight.
Saturn didn't care. He could still "feel" Kael's presence ahead, as clear as ever.
His appendage lunged forward again, cutting through the haze and stabbing clean through the silhouette of his target.
No blood. No scream.
The "Kael" he pierced dissolved like smoke in the wind, scattering into countless fading motes of light.
An illusion.
Kael: Gotcha, old man.
For the first time, a flicker of surprise crossed Saturn's eyes.
His Observation Haki normally infallible had been deceived? Was it the seismic blast interfering, or did this man's ability itself have the power to fool perception?
He slowly withdrew his appendage, scanning the surroundings.
The thick haze settled. The forest returned to silence.
Kael was gone.
Not just Kael Bartholomew Kuma and the unconscious Ivankov had vanished as well.
Escaped.
In front of one of the Five Elders, not only had they retreated intact, but they'd also taken the target with them.
Saturn's face darkened, his expression cold enough to freeze water. His killing intent became almost tangible.
He would remember this pirate.
…
Once he was sure they'd shaken pursuit, Kael dumped the unconscious Ivankov onto the ground, leaned against a tree, and drew in several deep breaths.
What looked like a clean escape had been perilous to the extreme.
The moment he'd seen Saturn's pentagram in the sky, Kael knew this was not someone he could fight head-on at his current level.
His Conqueror's Haki wasn't yet strong enough to break the Elder's seemingly immortal body. Standard Armament Haki wasn't even scratching him barely a tickle.
That one "Silent Piercing Thrust" had been taken head-on. The shock alone still left Kael's palms throbbing. That said it all.
A little trash talk, maximum stress if nothing else, it broke the old man's composure.
So from the very first second, Kael's goal wasn't to kill, but to save lives… and run.
Can't beat the boss? Then retreat, regroup, and come back to take his head off later.
"You…"
A hoarse voice interrupted his thoughts.
Kuma was looking at him with a complicated expression: gratitude, awe, and deep confusion.
"Who… are you really?"
Kael lifted his head. The tension drained from his face, replaced by his usual playful smirk. His white teeth gleamed.
"We meet again. I'm Kael. Just a passing little pirate of justice."
Kuma clearly didn't believe the words but didn't know how to ask further.
This man had saved them from Charlotte Linlin. And again, from that incomprehensible monster.
"Why did you save us?" Kuma finally voiced the question buried deepest in his heart. "We're just… slaves."
At the word "slaves," Kael's smile faded.
He looked at the towering boy before him still with traces of youth in his face and thought of the tragic, twisted life of Bartholomew Kuma.
A man so gentle he should have turned monstrous, but bore pain for others instead. A man branded a tyrant, yet kind to his last breath.
Kael fell silent for a moment. Then, instead of answering, he asked, "You said you want to be like Nika a hero who saves others?"
Kuma froze, then nodded firmly.
"Good." Kael rose, walking to stand over him. "But what if I told you there is no savior in this world? That Nika is just a legend, a hope people cling to?"
"No! I…" Kuma hesitated, his eyes wavering.
"The only one who can save you is yourself. Or rather, everyone can be their own Nika." Kael's voice turned serious, a gleam of gold flickering in his eyes. "You asked why I saved you. Here's my answer."
"Because I saw defiance in you. Refusal to be a slave. Refusal to be butchered. Refusal to accept this rotten world."
"So keep running, Kuma."
Kael reached out and tapped his finger against Kuma's chest.
"Don't stop. Use your feet to cross the earth. Use your eyes to see the world. Use your strength to push away pain and sorrow. Run. Fight. Resist."
"Fight for every shred of beauty and happiness still worth protecting in this world!"
Kael's words struck Kuma's heart like a hammer.
He thought of his father's dying message. Ginny's smile. His comrades' desperate eyes.
He realized resistance wasn't about becoming someone else. It was about becoming himself.
Power wasn't for destruction. It was for protection.
Kuma slowly raised his head. In those eyes, once clouded by fear and shame, burned the fire of conviction for the first time.
"I understand." His voice was quiet but unwavering.
He stood, walked to the unconscious Ivankov, and hoisted him over his shoulder the way Kael had.
Then he extended his right hand. A soft pink paw bloomed in his palm.
A strange sensation welled up.
It felt like… he could do anything.
"Thank you, big brother." Kuma turned and gave Kael a long, deep look, as if carving his face into his soul. "I'm going to save my friends now."
Kael leaned lazily against the wall, waving his hand. "Go. Run fast."
Kuma said no more. He pressed his paw gently to himself and Ivankov.
Fwoosh!
The two vanished in a streak of light.
"Convenient power."
Kael chuckled at the empty cave.
He hefted his black-and-gold naginata, stretched, and his joints crackled like firecrackers.