The mushroom cloud from the explosion over there distracted him momentarily, and then he was punched in the face by Hichugiskhan.
"Don't get distracted, you idiot. Does that young man frighten you that much?"
"Your information is really outdated. People overseas don't even know who you, this so-called king, are. His reputation of lightning is far more resounding than yours."
"Is that so? Then this old man must work harder. Can't let the young ones look down on me."
In the battle, the most difficult were not Hatch and his group. Though the Store-Store Fruit was troublesome, it was merely a contest of brute strength. Hichugiskhan was the most pressured among the Fur Race, facing a Logia-type with not weak Observation Haki, his chances were slim.
The thunderclouds heavily impacted Hichugiskhan, turning him nearly into a black goat. However, when it came to pure physical combat, the people from the World Government were truly not a match for Hichugiskhan. In his nearly desperate battle, he managed to keep them at bay.
At that time, they overall still had the advantage. By holding back Hichugiskhan, the "strongest combat force" of the Fur Race, his goal was achieved.
Now, it was not so easy for him to leave. Although the Cloud-Cloud Fruit gave him the ability to fly, the speed of cloud flight depended entirely on the wind. Zeraora could also fly, and he couldn't shake off Zeraora.
In that brief moment, Zeraora had already reached in front of him. However, with a single claw swipe, it hit nothing, just like the avatar he struck earlier; it was just another stand, but this time made of clouds.
"Let me take care of this here as well."
"I'm getting old, a few years younger and I would have taken him down."
Hichugiskhan was also quite exhausted, finding it very troublesome to face this flying opponent.
"Young people have no respect for the king at all. This guy is a pirate, you know, be careful of being overthrown."
He could see that Zeraora didn't have much respect for Hichugiskhan, just treating him as an older person, so he attempted to sow discord.
"Don't be naive, human. We're different. I'm already old. Your arrival also signifies this. It seems I can no longer protect this country. If there are strong young people, giving them a chance is the right thing to do."
Time is the greatest enemy of life. No matter how strong a person is, they appear powerless in the face of time. Hichugiskhan seemed to admit he was growing old.
Though he failed to sow discord, it didn't disrupt his plan. He dispersed the rope cloud, having captured enough test subjects. Besides the original second plan, he had a hidden third plan—to escape with the test subjects himself.
Although he treated his subordinates fairly well, in such a situation, he would still choose to retreat alone. He released a large amount of black cloud, lacking electric flashes, but covering a much wider area, gradually enveloping the entire Fluffy Kingdom.
Then, just like before, cloud clones split from his body and scattered within the dark cloud.
He knew the opponent had mastered Observation Haki. Being a New World cadre, Dual Haki was basically the entry point. However, people's Haki varied. These cloud clones had the same aura as his elementalization, aimed at confusing the opponent's perception.
As long as he could reach his ship, amidst the vast sea, the opponent couldn't possibly find their tracks, unless someone they captured had a Life Card left on Zou, but that was a matter of probability, not part of the plan.
However, in the night sky, a pink glow flickered.
It was Salt-Salt, which had noticed the clouds when he captured the Fur Race. It tried to break the clouds, but its strength could do nothing.
In the end, it just held the captured Fur Race and got taken along. When it noticed this person had flown, it released a magical flare to mark the direction.
Although it caused no effective damage, it released a signal in the cloud, allowing Zeraora to directly lock onto the target.
When he noticed his abdomen glowing, he immediately felt something was wrong. He wanted to get the thing out, but it was too late. Zeraora's speed could rival Borsalino, let alone mere clouds.
Several thunderclaps echoed in the sky. Accompanied by the sound of thunder, Zeraora, stepping on lightning, appeared before him. With the electric light flashing, the two engaged in a fierce aerial battle.
As Zeraora delivered a powerful flying kick to his neck, he was sent flying backward. However, Zeraora didn't continue attacking because the opponent was holding a Fur Race member in each hand.
"Zeraora, I advise you to consider the consequences of your actions. I am no match for you, but if you continue attacking, I'm confident I can snap their necks before you take me down!"
The Fur Race members intended as test subjects became his hostages, but Zeraora didn't stop. Instead, he unleashed stronger currents, causing the clouds to also roar.
"If they live, you can die peacefully. If they die, you will understand what cruelty means."
"That is not negotiating. If I'm to die regardless of what you think, don't blame me for going down with a fight."
He realized he was no match, hence using hostages to threaten the opponent, not expecting that the opponent didn't even pretend to acknowledge it. All his energy focused on Zeraora, whose speed was too fast; a moment's distraction could bring devastation.
In his view, Zeraora might be impervious to bribes with his words, but was cautious in his actions. However, what he didn't foresee was, as a thunderbolt echoed through the clouds, his shoulder was pierced by an arrow.
"Se... Seastone?!" A sense of powerlessness surged from the wound, and the Cloud-Cloud Fruit's ability began to falter. The people he had stored inside started to fall out.
Salt-Salt fell out too, once again signaling below the Thousand-Year Dragon, guiding their direction, landing on the wide dragon's back.
In the clouds, Yoru's bow-wielding silhouette emerged. She too mastered Electromagnetic Floating, possessing the power of flight, and the seastone arrowhead was specially crafted for her by the artisans of Wano Kuni. Outside of Wano Kuni, no one can process seastone into fine arrowheads.
This was her weapon specifically to counter ability users.
The agent's attention had shifted entirely to Zeraora, not noticing Yoru following, while the thunderstorm Zeraora conjured was to further conceal Yoru's existence.
"Fool, this is Zou, our nation. How could your enemy be just one person?"