If it had been Akainu Sakazuki, this battle wouldn't have ended like this, and he wouldn't have run away halfway through.
But for Kizaru, it was reasonable.
Cyrus was stunned by Kizaru's sudden departure.
But when he thought about the kinds of things Kizaru was capable of in his memories, it wasn't that surprising.
However, Cyrus didn't let his guard down in the slightest.
After a good while, he finally landed on the island below, which was damaged beyond recognition.
Among the three Admirals, Akainu, whether in personality or style, was more like a truly ruthless Navy officer.
But aside from the Buster Call on Ohara and the Summit War, that guy Akainu rarely seemed to take action.
On the contrary, it was the unmotivated Aokiji and the slacker Kizaru who acted more often.
After landing, Cyrus recalled what he knew about the three Admirals.
Kicking down Supernovas one by one, killing his own teacher Zephyr, and even the battle to capture Vegapunk later on.
As Cyrus thought about this, he walked to the armory that had been reduced to ruins.
A slash descended, splitting open the pile of charred rubble.
The passage leading underground was revealed.
"Let's go!" Cyrus called out.
A good while later, the sound of footsteps echoed from within the passage, and Robin walked out.
"Who were you fighting?"
This was the first thing Robin asked when she came out.
The scorching smell in the air was still intense.
For Cyrus to be pushed to this extent, his opponent this time must have been very strong.
"Kizaru. I went a bit too far in the North Blue this time, so the Navy sent him to stop me!"
Robin froze, then her eyes widened in shock.
"Admiral Kizaru?"
"Is it that surprising? Didn't I fight Aokiji before?" Cyrus retorted, seeing Robin's expression.
"The Navy has a total of three Admirals, and you've fought two of them now?" Robin looked at Cyrus in amazement.
Moreover, Kizaru had come, they had a huge battle, and Cyrus was completely unscathed.
"That guy wasn't serious either. He probably just came to go through the motions," Cyrus said with a wave of his hand.
His health hadn't dropped much from the fight with Kizaru this time; most of the loss was self-inflicted from his own all-out attacks.
Although this kind of explosive offensive power and Haki allowed him to fight top-tier powerhouses, the consumption was too great.
He still needed to quickly improve his own foundation.
Cyrus gained a lot from every battle, and this time was no exception.
At the very least, he had gained considerable insight into the use of his Devil Fruit Ability and Haki.
Once he mastered these gains, his strength would likely increase again.
"What about us?" Robin asked about their next plan.
Now that even a Navy Admiral had been dispatched, what they had done this time had indeed caused quite a stir.
"We continue, of course. We've already started, anyway," Cyrus said as if it were the most natural thing in the world.
"If we continue, the Navy might send someone else!" Robin said with some worry.
"Then let's finish things as quickly as possible."
Cyrus made his decision. Although Robin was worried, she didn't try to persuade him further.
"By the way, there's someone still in the underground factory. He's badly injured," Robin said, turning to look at the passage below.
"One of Doflamingo's men. He's really lucky to be alive," Cyrus said, shaking his head slightly before turning to look toward the shore.
"Should we dispose of him?" Robin had guessed as much, so she asked directly.
After all, during this time, whenever they encountered Doflamingo's subordinates, aside from Violet, the others were basically dealt with.
"Let's leave this place first."
Cyrus waved his hand and turned to walk toward the shore.
Robin followed behind him.
The island had been completely transformed by the aftershocks of the battle.
"The ship is destroyed!"
When they reached the shore, their ship had completely vanished.
"Let's find an island to rest and buy a new ship!"
Cyrus raised his arm and wrapped it around Robin as Flames surged and shot into the sky.
Robin wrapped her arms around Cyrus's neck, feeling the fierce wind against her face.
The Flames streaked across the sky, quickly disappearing into the distance.
...
Aboard Germa 66's Den Den Mushi Battleship.
"Kizaru left?"
Kizaru hadn't shown up for the negotiations this time, which naturally made Judge curious.
He sent people to investigate, only to find out Kizaru was not on the ship.
"Perhaps he left. After all, a Navy Admiral can't just do nothing and stay here all the time," Reiju speculated.
This was a good thing.
Judge was naturally very wary of Kizaru.
None of the three Navy Admirals were pushovers. Now that he was gone, the upcoming negotiations might be able to speed up.
If the World Government still intended to snatch away his power, then there was no need for these negotiations.
The World Government had no sincerity at all.
They just wanted to recruit the Germa Kingdom as their enforcers, with no real intention of letting them become a World Government-affiliated nation.
Or rather, even if they did, it would only be in name.
His power had to remain in his own hands.
Judge wasn't stupid; on the contrary, he was very clever.
He could easily figure out that the World Government was only negotiating with him because he currently possessed power they desired.
If that power disappeared, he would completely lose his voice in front of the World Government, and he wouldn't even have a chance to protect himself.
For the ambitious Judge, this was absolutely unacceptable.
"Go, inform those bastards that today's negotiations will start early. Also, tell them that this is the final negotiation. If they have no sincerity, the Germa Kingdom is not prepared to talk anymore."
"Yes, Father!" Reiju nodded and left.
However, not long after, Reiju returned in a hurry.
"Father, Kizaru is back."
This single sentence stunned Judge, who had just made up his mind.
"He didn't leave?"
"He did go out, but he has now returned," Reiju replied, her expression also a little puzzled.
"That guy..."
Judge's expression was uncertain, his recent resolve wavering again.
If he had a direct falling out with the World Government, it might lead to a direct conflict with Kizaru.
"Do you know what he went to do?" Judge asked after frowning in thought.
"Father, perhaps it's related to that person. The one who attacked Doflamingo's armories," Reiju offered a guess.
"You're saying Kizaru went out to capture this person? He came back so quickly, does that mean he caught him?" Judge was startled by this and voiced his speculation.
He had originally thought about trying to make contact, but if Kizaru had taken action, then this person might have already been captured by the Navy.
Thinking of this, Judge felt a little regretful.
"It's very likely!" Reiju nodded.
"Forget it, let's deal with the matter at hand first. The negotiations will continue."
Judge took a deep breath, waved his hand for Reiju to leave, and then frowned, contemplating his strategy.
...
Meanwhile, the newly returned Kizaru took out a Den Den Mushi and contacted Sengoku at Headquarters.
"How did it go? Where's the guy?"
"Fleet Admiral Sengoku, this young man is no simple matter. I couldn't take him down," Kizaru said into the Den Den Mushi, crossing his legs and pouting.