Grand Line, Baldigo.
After the warship docked at the harbor, all the CP agents immediately began moving into action, but every one of them had fear written across their faces.
If not for the presence of this lord beside them, that earlier barrage of bullets raining down from the sky would have turned them into pincushions on the spot.
Saturn Saint stepped off the ship and looked toward the desolate island. White rocky ground stretched everywhere, without a single trace of green vegetation.
Finally, his gaze settled on a building in the distance. It was the only sign of civilization on the entire island.
"To think they can remain this composed even at a time like this. The Revolutionary Army really is frightening."
Borsalino looked in the same direction. "Bullets capable of restraining Devil Fruit users, along with machinery that can attack automatically. These people have hidden themselves far too deeply."
Saturn's eyes narrowed slightly as he connected with the other four Five Elders in his mind.
"Baldigo is still covered in white soil, with only a single building in the center of the island. Given the circumstances, this doesn't seem to be the Revolutionary Army's headquarters."
"But the technological power we witnessed earlier, the firearms capable of sustained fire, those rapid-firing cannons, and so on... Could all of that merely be a facade?"
"Has Borsalino confirmed that no one has left the island?"
"The speed and power of the Glint-Glint Fruit, combined with his Observation Haki, means that no one could escape his detection within such a short period..."
"However... so far, he truly hasn't sensed..."
Their communication had yet to finish when a loud explosion snapped Saturn back to reality.
He looked over and saw a CP agent who had been cautiously advancing get blasted into the air.
Immediately afterward, a buzzing sound rang out.
"Bang! Bang! Bang!"
Flying machines resembling toys swept through the sky. Gun barrels protruded from them, mowing down the lives of the people below and leaving corpses scattered across the ground.
"Borsalino."
Saturn issued a low command.
In the next instant, streaks of light shot into the sky, destroying most of the flying machines.
"How frightening..."
Borsalino muttered in admiration, but when he noticed Saturn's grim expression, he wisely fell silent.
At that moment, after a portion of the CP agents had been wiped out, a figure emerged from behind the white-soil hills.
"Long time no see, Saint Jaygarcia Saturn."
Rowan stood above them, holding a long blade in his hand. His face was still the same one he had used in Loguetown.
"Can you tell me how you found this place?"
The moment his voice fell, the remaining CP agents at the harbor immediately became tense. Their hands gripping their weapons were trembling uncontrollably.
Saturn's eyes narrowed as well.
That question revealed two things.
First, it seemed the other side still didn't know about the marker placed on the Door-Door Fruit user's body.
Second, this might really be one of the Revolutionary Army's bases. Otherwise, with the Cloaked Man's teleportation ability, he could simply leave.
Saturn asked in a deep voice, "You're trying to stall for time? Your teleportation ability can indeed transport people away, but judging from the intelligence we've gathered from the Revolutionary Army's previous operations, there should be a significant limit to the number of people you can transport."
As he spoke, Saturn looked toward Borsalino beside him.
"After we notified you to come here, did anyone leave Baldigo?"
Borsalino shook his head slightly. "Although there's no way for me to monitor this gentleman's teleportation ability, aside from that, no living creature has left Baldigo."
At this moment, the building in the center of Baldigo seemed to stir.
One robot after another appeared to be carrying something, rushing toward the opposite side of the island.
Seeing this, Saturn became certain of his deduction.
"If you're not leaving, then stalling for time won't work."
In an instant, Saturn's entire body suddenly expanded.
His body transformed into that of a gigantic spider, with sharp spider legs supporting a torso that still retained a human-like appearance.
"Borsalino!"
At the command, Borsalino's body transformed into light and shot forward, intending to head toward the building behind Rowan.
However.
Shing!
"Zangetsu..."
The Shallow Blade was drawn, the sound of steel sliding from its sheath seemingly merging into a single note.
A flash of cold light swept across the battlefield. The streak of light was struck by that terrifying speed, and a spray of blood scattered through the air as Borsalino was slashed back.
After landing, Borsalino, who had always maintained a lazy and carefree demeanor, looked at the wound on his shoulder. The composure he had shown moments ago was completely gone.
"The speed of a sword-drawing technique can actually surpass light?"
Rowan let out a mocking laugh. Holding the Shallow Blade in one hand, his Conqueror's Haki began spreading outward.
Crimson lightning filled the surroundings. The aura emanating from his body was as terrifying as that of a prehistoric beast. An almost tangible pressure descended upon everyone present.
The CP agents around the battlefield all swallowed nervously. It felt as though their hearts were being crushed by an invisible force.
Conqueror's Haki had actually reached such a terrifying level.
These agents weren't inexperienced nobodies who had never seen the world. To operate in the New World, Armament Haki was the most basic requirement.
Yet even so, their entire bodies were trembling uncontrollably.
"This... this kind of monster... h-how can someone like this even exist?"
"And... and there's also one of the Five Elders... Is that a Mythical Zoan Devil Fruit?"
"Shut... shut up, you bastard!"
One of the Five Elders, one of the five highest authorities in the world, and a Navy admiral candidate.
The presence of these two people meant that no matter how terrified these agents were, they still didn't dare turn around and flee back to the ship.
At this moment, Rowan looked at Borsalino with a hint of mockery.
"I remember I already said this at Sabaody Archipelago. The Glint-Glint Fruit can indeed turn its user into light, but that doesn't mean you can actually possess the speed of light."
"Ah!"
A black shadow suddenly lunged forward. Rowan simultaneously swung his blade, and the edge instantly collided with a pitch-black spider leg.
Boom!
A shockwave spread outward, cracking the white hard ground beneath Rowan's feet.
"Trying to stall for time is meaningless. The moment this Revolutionary Army base was discovered, the outcome was already decided."
Black clouds of smoke surrounded Saturn's body, and another terrifying pressure descended upon the battlefield.
The collision of their forces erupted like thunder. The pressure created by their confrontation made the CP agents suffer even more. Some of the weaker ones were even forced to collapse onto the ground, completely unable to move.
No, even the stronger ones were barely able to move.
This was suppression originating from their very levels of existence.
Saturn paid no attention to them. After all, he had more than just one spider leg.
Whoosh.
In an instant, eight razor-sharp limbs shot toward Rowan's face.
Boom!
The ground exploded.
Rowan's figure had vanished from the deep crater.
"Now that was dangerous."
Rowan appeared beside one of the agents. At the same moment, a streak of light suddenly shot toward him.
He sidestepped!
The laser pierced straight through the agent beside him. Borsalino withdrew his hand and said regretfully, "Your Observation Haki's reactions are really fast. But even if I'm not moving at the actual speed of light, this state of yours is really looking down on me."
Saturn Saint also looked over. "According to the intelligence, you fought Whitebeard before, and the entire sea was even evaporated into steam. If you don't use that kind of flaming blade power, then you're practically asking to die."
At that moment, taking advantage of the opportunity, Borsalino once again transformed into light and sped toward the center of the island.
"Hm!"
Rowan disappeared and reappeared once more, only to find Borsalino's Blade of Light waiting for him.
"I've been waiting for you!"
"Wh..."
BOOM!!
The light sword collided with the Shallow Blade, crimson lightning wrapping around the two weapons. A tremendous force sent Borsalino flying backward.
The tactic of forcing the enemy to come to the rescue had indeed succeeded in making Rowan intercept him, but Rowan's strength today was already on an entirely different level from what it had been at Sabaody Archipelago.
Saturn Saint watched the entire scene.
The Cloaked Man's growth is too astonishing.
Even without using that high-temperature flame state, relying solely on his teleportation and Haki, he was already able to suppress Borsalino completely.
Rowan looked at him calmly. "You won't be able to get through this way. Perhaps you should try retreating and approaching from the sky."
Hearing this, Borsalino, still in the middle of being sent flying, transformed into a beam of light and retreated once again, simultaneously shooting upward into the sky.
"Bang bang bang..."
BOOM!
Countless P-material bullets fired indiscriminately, along with fragments from the resulting explosions, shot through the air in all directions.
The bullets were fired by the flying machines, while the explosions were caused by two of the machines self-destructing.
Borsalino returned to the ground, his entire shoulder stained red with blood. His expression was helpless as he said, "So this is your preparation? It almost seems like you prepared it specifically for me."
"What else?"
Rowan replied, "The moment you were first detected by the weapons, information about your infiltration was recorded and transmitted to the central terminal. Do you really think we'd consider your arrival a coincidence?"
As he spoke, Saturn Saint's attack came once again.
Black, razor-sharp limbs pierced through the ground. Relying on his Observation Haki and Flying Thunder God, Rowan continuously evaded Saturn's attacks, while successfully avoiding Borsalino's lasers as well.
The instantaneous movement of Flying Thunder God was almost immediately detected whenever Rowan appeared in front of these two top-tier Observation Haki users.
Ten minutes later, the two sides finally stopped their fierce attacks.
Saturn Saint was still leaning on his cane, his gaze fixed on the center of the island.
The building there was still continuously transporting things outside.
People or objects?
No.
None of that mattered.
Judging from how desperately the other side was evacuating, it was obvious they didn't know why their location had been discovered. Borsalino's arrival had also made it impossible for them to use that floating method of evacuation.
And now...
It was even more impossible.
In his mind, Saturn Saint established a connection with the Room of Authority in Mary Geoise.
"The Cloaked Man's growth is far too rapid."
"Right now, the Cloaked Man is blocking me and Borsalino at Baldigo, but we can clearly see robots continuously carrying things out of the building at the center of the island."
"Because we can't get close, we don't know exactly what they're transporting."
"And he still hasn't used the flame power mentioned in the intelligence, the one he used when fighting Whitebeard."
Nasukuro Saint replied, "So do we need all of us to mobilize now? If we can kill the Cloaked Man, it's certainly worth considering."
Saint Topman Warcury hesitated for a moment before asking, "Even with Borsalino's speed, he can't break through?"
Saturn Saint replied, "The level of intelligence on the island is extremely high. There are robots and flying machines, and the weapons seem to have been enhanced with P-Material, so even when Borsalino attempts to break through from the sky, he gets driven back."
Saint Peter said, "If that's the case, then having all of us mobilize isn't out of the question."
Saint Mars said, "Compared to reporting this to Lord Imu and consuming the energy of that thing, our own deployment is far more worthwhile. If that's the case, I agree to the teleportation."
After the communication ended, Saturn Saint looked toward the Cloaked Man, who was still fighting Borsalino on equal terms.
The next moment, a strange pattern appeared on the ground not far away.
In an instant, the clouds above Baldigo began to churn and transform, with black lightning spreading across the entire sky.
The sea, which had been clear and cloudless moments ago, now became as dark as though the apocalypse had descended. An almost tangible pressure caused waves to surge across the ocean, as if nature itself were resisting this force.
"If you want to protect these insects and help them escape, then you'll have to pay the price."
Saturn Saint muttered to himself. He assumed that there might be people among the things being concealed. A base like this couldn't possibly contain only the Cloaked Man.
Bang!
The Shallow Blade swung violently, forcing Borsalino back. Rowan retreated, his expression solemn as he looked at the strange teleportation formation.
In this world, aside from his own Flying Thunder God, there were very few abilities capable of enabling long-distance movement.
The Door-Door Fruit and the Warp-Warp Fruit could accomplish it, but the limited range of the Warp-Warp Fruit and the activation delay of the Door-Door Fruit were both significant weaknesses.
And beyond those abilities came the Five Elders' grand summoning technique.
In his memories, this scene had happened more than ten years later.
Yet now it had appeared ahead of schedule, all because of the threat Rowan himself posed to Mary Geoise.
BOOM!!
Thunder exploded.
A flash of white streaked across the darkened skies of Baldigo.
Immediately afterward, a long blade suddenly descended from the sky. Rowan swung his sword and collided with it.
BOOM!
The violent impact shattered the ground beneath Rowan's feet once again.
In terms of strength, Rowan had won, but he had lost the advantage of the terrain.
BOOM!
The rubble collapsed, and Rowan instantly disappeared.
However, the moment he reappeared, a giant sandworm suddenly burst from beneath the ground. Its enormous mouth was filled with vicious, jagged teeth, and it swallowed Rowan in one bite.
But this time, Rowan wasn't a clone.
His release incantation was instantly recited.
"Let all the sins of this world return to ashes. Ryujin Jakka!"
Shin'ei!
Flames erupted like a blazing tornado, surging toward the creature's mouth below. The scorching heat filled its entire body, while the resulting recoil sent Rowan shooting out.
"Roar!"
A furious roar rang out as a gigantic boar-like head with enormous tusks charged straight toward him.
"Ah."
Even Rowan, whose defensive power was astonishing, instantly disappeared.
Yet the moment he reappeared, a beam of light descended from the sky.
"Fire Shield!"
BOOM!!
Flames exploded in midair.
A vast inferno erupted with terrifying force. The extreme heat and explosion blocked the beam of light and continued spreading upward, directly toward the enormous bird high in the sky.
"Vmmm..."
Amid a deep buzzing sound, a pair of wings swept down like blades, while powerful Haki dyed the entire sky.
"Bang..."
The flames were blocked, exploding across the sky like fireworks.
But at that moment, eight razor-sharp blades descended straight from above, heading directly for Rowan's head.
"Condensed Slash!"
The 6,000-degree flames suddenly contracted around the blade. This technique was clearly similar to the Zanka no Tachi, East: Kyokujitsujin technique after Bankai, and even though it was only the 6,000-degree flames of Shikai, Rowan still couldn't control them perfectly.
Strands of compressed flames continuously leaked and spilled out from the blade.
Rowan swung his sword horizontally, directly carving a massive gash into Saturn Saint's body.
Yet even after suffering such an injury, Saturn seemed to feel no pain whatsoever. His blades retracted before suddenly striking downward again, like a series of venomous black spears.
"Bang! Bang! Bang!"
The power and Haki contained within the spider legs were astonishing. In their direct clashes, Saturn was inferior to Rowan in terms of strength, but the eight constantly descending razor-sharp limbs possessed an absolute advantage in numbers.
The next moment, that enormous tiger-striped creature also charged over.
Rowan disappeared again, but after reappearing, he found that the boar had come charging toward him once more.
"You really think I'm afraid of you, pig head!?"
Rowan swung Ryujin Jakka, terrifying Conqueror's Haki surging into the blade with almost tangible force.
"Hell of Scorching Flames!"
Explosive flames reaching 6,000 degrees surged outward. Across Baldigo's land, pillar after pillar of blazing fire surrounded the boar, towering columns of flames erupting into the sky as explosions thundered from within.
BOOM!!
In an instant, the entire island began shaking as though struck by an earthquake. The scorching heat produced by the pillars of flame caused the temperature of the nearby sea to skyrocket, while steam enveloped the entire island.
A half-human, half-horse creature formed from white bones charged forward. Nasjuro Saint swung the blade in his hand, unleashing the frigid chill of the underworld toward the pillars of flame, but it had little effect.
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