The entire Fish-Man Island was plunged into a heavy, suffocating silence, as if even the air had frozen solid.
The sky abruptly darkened, and all the colors of the world seemed to drain away.
In Daren's vision, black and red lightning streaked across the heavens in the blink of an eye. Even the void itself trembled violently under the overwhelming, world-crushing pressure, distorting into a blur.
Thousands of black and red lightning bolts flickered and danced, sometimes like roaring dragons, sometimes like indestructible chains... wrapping around and imprisoning the Marine Vice Admiral.
Daren's expression shifted slightly. His brows furrowed tightly, and a surge of shock welled up in his chest.
In that instant, he realized—he couldn't move!
The "Dragon's Breath" that was about to explode and blast Kozuki Oden's head into a mist of blood was forcefully suppressed by that impossibly immense aura.
Especially his right hand, the one gripping Kozuki Oden—it tingled uncontrollably, as if all strength had been sapped from it.
Was this the sensation Ryokugyu had felt in the original Wano storyline?
This nearly suffocating sense of lethal threat was simply unbelievable...
The aura of the future Pirate King!
Bang!
Kozuki Oden slipped heavily from Daren's hand and collapsed onto the ground.
He gasped desperately for breath, his eyes still clouded with the terror of facing death, his complexion pale as a sheet.
But Daren didn't spare him another glance. Instead, a cold smile tugged at his lips as he stiffly turned his head.
"So, in the end, you couldn't just sit back either... Roger."
His mocking gaze locked onto the man cloaked in overwhelming Haki, black and red lightning crackling wildly around him.
"I thought everyone was supposed to have their own moment to shine?"
Facing the crushing pressure of the future Pirate King, Daren could feel every pore on his body standing on edge. He no longer had any attention to spare for Kozuki Oden.
Roger's sword hilt was now half drawn, revealing a chilling blade.
The fierce wind whipped his black hair and the blood-red captain's cloak wildly, and the lightning swirling around him made him look like a god of war descending to earth.
"Yeah, and now it's my turn."
Roger smiled broadly, completely unfazed by the mockery in Daren's tone.
"Oden is a seedling of the new era. I can't just let you pluck him out."
Daren let out a cold laugh.
"If I'm not mistaken, that guy's actually a few years older than me, isn't he?"
Roger stiffened slightly at the words, a flicker of awkwardness flashing across his face.
There was no refuting it.
The monster-like Marine standing before him was at most twenty-two or twenty-three years old—clearly younger than Oden. In Roger's eyes, he was undeniably part of the so-called "new era."
But to call him a "seedling" was absurd.
The strength, the body, the resolve this brat had shown... he was already a towering giant that could pierce the heavens!
"Daren, you've improved too fast... Even I have to admit, you've already surpassed Oden's level. Letting him continue fighting you is meaningless."
Roger's eyes locked onto Daren with a blazing intensity, a powerful fighting spirit rising from the depths of his pupils.
He slowly drew the Meito blade from his side, the sword surging with black and red lightning.
One of the 12 Supreme Grade Blades... Ace!
"Next, let me be your opponent!"
Daren sneered.
"In the end, you just didn't want Kozuki Oden to die by my hands, right?"
"What was the point of all that pointless preaching before?"
"When you're winning, you say 'everyone has their own path.' When you're losing, it's 'we can't cut down the seedlings of the new era'... How hypocritical, Gol D. Roger."
Roger's face darkened. He stammered, but couldn't get a word out.
His face flushed bright red, then he gritted his teeth and barked,
"Enough talking, brat! I still haven't settled the score with you for pulling down my pants last time!"
As soon as the words left his mouth, he shot forward, charging straight ahead.
Clearly, he was pissed.
"Now that's more like it... Enough with the noble speeches."
Feeling the surge of pressure crashing toward him, Daren's mouth curled into a wild, feral grin.
"The strong devour the weak. That's the iron law of this sea!"
He threw his arms open, laughing madly, his cloak snapping wildly behind him.
"Same old rule—the winner is justice!!"
As his words fell, there was a sharp whoosh, and a strange red-and-black glow burst from the center of the Marine Vice Admiral's forehead, spreading across his whole body like flowing water.
A terrifying aura, blending hellish fury with his monstrous vitality, erupted from him, twisting into a violent maelstrom.
Boom!!
A crimson tide of Conqueror's Haki swept outward, forming a distorted vortex that wrapped tightly around Daren, holding firm against Roger's overwhelming Haki.
"What... is that? Devil Form!?"
"Impossible!!"
"That was a technique Bullet developed through grueling training!"
"..."
The members of Roger's crew turned pale, feeling Daren's overwhelming, demonic aura descend like the apocalypse. They could hardly believe their eyes.
Devil Form!
By unleashing an immense volume of Haki, it drastically amplified strength, speed, and explosive force. When activated, it was as if a devil had descended to massacre all living beings!
It was a technique Bullet had developed through extraordinary hardship. Mastering it required an inhuman body and stamina just to withstand the sheer strain.
In fact, apart from Bullet himself, even Rayleigh—Roger Pirates's own "sensei"—had failed to master it.
And yet now, this Marine... had achieved Devil Form!?
How could this be...
"Wahahaha!! Looks like you've crossed paths with that brat Bullet! Perfect! Let's see what you're really made of, Daren!!"
Roger roared with laughter as he leapt high into the air, gripping his sword with both hands and bringing it crashing down!
It was like he was dragging a thunderstorm with him—this single stroke tore the air apart, sending shockwaves exploding outward!
A strike to make demons and gods retreat!
Daren, his fighting spirit ablaze, laughed wildly in return. His own burst of Conqueror's Haki had broken Roger's suppression, and a strange red light whirled in his pupils.
Observation Haki: Magnetic Field Sensing!
Armament Haki: Devil Form!
Indestructible Body, Soru's Godspeed, Giant's Strength...
Every ounce of strength and technique he had mastered, fused together with his fully focused spirit.
"Come on!"
He laughed, his voice fierce and excited.
Explosive gales wrapped around his tightly clenched fists.
The memory of that day when Roger had nearly cut him in half just after he set sail from North Blue... was completely wiped away in this moment.
Today, I, Rogers Daren... finally have the strength to stand before you!
At that moment, two men, burning with overwhelming battle spirit, locked eyes—and countless bolts of lightning burst across the sky.
A sword came crashing down!
A fist roared upward!
"Kamusari!!"
"Devil: Blue Hole!!"
They clashed violently!
Everyone's eyes widened in shock.
The world froze for a breath.
Boom!!
An earth-shattering storm exploded outward, filled with roaring lightning, tearing the heavens apart.
All of Fish-Man Island shook violently, buildings swaying and collapsing like an earthquake had struck.
Countless soldiers of Ryugu Castle were blasted into the air, entire structures uprooted, the ground split open... and then waves like the rising sea swept across the land.
The next second—
The blood-soaked figure of the Vice Admiral was hurled from the heart of the storm, soaring hundreds of meters through the air before crashing to the ground, skidding along one knee and one hand, carving a deep trench.
Blood streamed from his right arm, the wound clearly carved open by Roger's blade.
But under the stunned, horrified gazes of Roger's crew, the Marine paid no mind to his injuries, his crimson eyes burning with madness as he laughed wildly, overcome with exhilaration.
Conqueror's Haki +1.04!
...
(40 Chapters Ahead)
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