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Chapter 56: Sabo Faces the Celestial Dragon Alone
The night sky was torn apart by a cyan stream of light, like a sword stabbing into the heart of the darkness!
Sabo spread his Wings of Gliding.
With a desperate and tragic resolve, he charged straight for the massive ship that symbolized the source of the world's evil.
The cold sea wind blasted into his mouth and nose, but it ignited the world-burning rage in his chest.
Closer!
The ship's silhouette grew rapidly in his vision. It was gaudy, bloated, and ugly!
The "Hoof of the Soaring Dragon" insignia on its bow was a giant, festering sore on the face of the world, emitting a nauseating stench.
It was this trash, who called themselves "gods," who were about to burn the tens of thousands of innocent people in the trash heap to cinders!
Unforgivable!
"Get... back!!!"
Sabo let out a roar that didn't belong to a child, furious and filled with hatred!
He stopped abruptly in mid-air, his arms flinging wide.
Voom!
An invisible gale gathered around him, letting out a sharp howl.
The air twisted, the sea's surface was torn, and a visible vortex of air rapidly formed in front of him!
"Wind! Hear my call!"
"Blow... this ship... away!!!"
He thrust his arms forward!
"BOOM!!!"
A terrifying pillar of wind, over thirty meters in diameter, transformed into a roaring dragon. It tore through the night and slammed into the Celestial Dragon's massive ship!
The ship groaned, its huge hull listing violently. It was forcefully pushed back dozens of meters!
On deck, the fat Saint Jalmack rolled like a meatball, his crystal helmet knocked askew. His attendants screamed in chaos.
Meanwhile, twenty nautical miles away, on the ghostly black ship.
Ivankov's giant head snapped up, his exaggerated false eyelashes fluttering.
"M-hm?! Dragon-boy! Look!"
He didn't need the reminder. Dragon's pupils had already shrunk to pinpoints.
He saw it.
The boy, commanding the gale.
The boy, who, with his own power, had shaken the massive, custom-built Marine Headquarters ship.
"Wind..."
Dragon's Adam's apple bobbed. The word he uttered held a tremor that even he didn't notice.
This power, this will...
Isn't this... the "wind of freedom"... that he had always dreamed of, the wind that would blow away the dark clouds of the World Government?!
Goa Kingdom, on a lounge chair by the coast.
Blake let out a lazy yawn, not even bothering to open his eyes.
The wind... brought all the sights and sounds to his ear.
"Oh? Only pushed it back a few dozen meters."
"Looks like this kid's control over his power... is still pretty raw."
A playful smile touched his lips.
"But... it should be about time."
"The Celestial Dragon's 'dogs'... should be off their leashes."
As expected.
The moment Sabo's mind wavered, because his first strike hadn't capsized the ship.
Two pure white shadows shot up from the chaotic deck like ghosts!
They had no wings, yet they flickered in the air, stepping on invisible stairs. They crossed hundreds of meters in an instant, sealing off all of Sabo's escape routes!
What?!
Sabo's mind went blank.
Two killing-puppets, in pure white suits and wearing emotionless masks. The pressure they emitted made his breathing stop.
"Threat target locked. Level: Beta-Minus."
"Possesses special abilities. Recommendation: Direct elimination."
"Execute."
The emotionless, synthetic voice fell. The white-suited man on the right vanished!
Rokushiki: Shave!
Sabo's Observation Haki screamed. Without thinking, he flapped his Wings of Gliding, shooting backward!
Psh!
A hand, covered in black Armament Haki, stabbed the exact spot he had just been, shrieking as it tore the air!
Rokushiki: Finger Pistol!
The attack missed. The man didn't pause, stomping his right foot on the air, using "Moonwalk" to follow like a shadow!
"Bastard!"
Sabo was shocked and furious. He swiped back, and a solid, cyan wind blade slashed out!
Facing the wind blade, the man didn't dodge. His body just swayed, light as a piece of paper.
Rokushiki: Paper Art!
The wind blade grazed his body, cutting only a corner of his suit.
But in that instant, a fierce light flashed in Sabo's eyes!
"Explode!"
The wind blade that had just missed the man... suddenly exploded, turning into countless tiny wind needles that covered the surrounding area!
For the first time, the man in white showed surprise. He was instantly pierced by the needles, and his white suit was dotted with blood!
Though they were only shallow wounds, it had broken his perfect rhythm!
"Not bad, kid."
A complimentary chuckle sounded in Blake's mind.
"He's learned to hide a second stage in his attacks."
In the sky, the second man in white had appeared above Sabo. His right leg became a white blur as it chopped down!
Rokushiki: Storm Leg!
A massive, pale-green slashing wave fell on him!
"Damn it!"
Sabo cursed. He had no time to dodge. He could only cross his wings in front of him, pushing his Anemo power to its limit!
Boom!
The slash struck the wind shield, exploding!
A massive force struck him. Sabo was smashed from the sky, hurtling toward the sea!
They're too strong!
Their technique, their experience, their teamwork... they crush me!
"No... I can't get tied down!"
The instant before he hit the water, Sabo forced himself to stabilize. His Wings of Gliding beat again, and he shot back into the sky!
His only advantage... was his mobility in the air!
"Trying to run?"
The two CP0 agents, like maggots, used Moonwalk to flank him again!
This time, their assault was even more ferocious!
Finger Pistols like rain, Storm Legs like a forest!
An inescapable net was woven in an instant!
Sabo was completely suppressed. He could only dodge miserably, using his Anemo power to glide, accelerate, and make sharp turns.
Several times, the Finger Pistols, strong enough to pierce steel, grazed his heart, the wind raising welts on his skin!
But the fire in his eyes... burned hotter!
"You government lackeys! Get lost!"
The only answer... was an even fiercer attack.
"Eliminate the threat."
"Mission is paramount."
On the ship, Saint Jalmack's features were twisted in rage. He was shrieking.
"A low-class peasant... dares to fly higher than I?!?"
"Unforgivable! Kill him! Knock that insect out of the sky! Crush him! Burn him to ash!!!"
At the moment he roared, Sabo, cornered, suddenly stopped all evasive maneuvers.
He hovered, letting the two CP0's deadly attacks close in.
He closed his eyes.
He gave up on seeing, on hearing.
He immersed his entire being... in the power that flowed in his blood, the gift from a god.
"Wind..."
He whispered.
"I... am... the wind!"
Voom!
A completely different airflow... exploded from Sabo!
It wasn't a violent hurricane. It was... a soft, invisible, yet omnipresent... domain!
The pupils of the two CP0 agents shrank!
Their "Finger Pistols" and "Storm Legs," the instant they entered the three-meter area around Sabo, were strangely... deflected... by an unseen force, flying harmlessly past his body!
The wind... had changed the trajectory of their attacks!