Watching Perona's enormous bomb‑ghost swallow Nami's body and erupt in a violent crimson blast, every marine turned pale with shock.
Over these past days, living and fighting alongside Nami had made the entire naval force see her as family.
What was more, in the grim grind of war, Nami's very presence was like a splash of exotic color, bringing warmth and cheer to all of them.
Rear Admiral Hina in particular treated her as a true younger sister.
So when the terrifying explosion went off, everyone was struck by horror and grief.
Yet…
A faint smile tugged at the corner of Chiyu's mouth.
He had already foreseen how this would end.
Nami would not die so easily.
Sure enough, in the very next instant—
Buzzzzzz—
Nami recomposed from a blurred after‑image, drenched in cold sweat and deathly pale but otherwise unscathed.
Rear Admiral Hina and the rest were overjoyed.
"Nami! Are you all right?!"
Still wiping sweat from her brow, Nami nodded. "I'm fine…
"At the last second I triggered my Slip‑Slip‑Fruit, turned the soles of my feet completely friction‑free, and paired that with my half‑baked Navy 'Soru.' Slid right out—otherwise…
"I'd have been dead for sure!"
Perona gasped.
"How can that be…
"You actually escaped the blast of my Ghost Bomb?!"
The Slip‑Slip‑Fruit nullifies friction, letting Nami push her speed to its extreme.
After days of drilling with the marines she'd picked up a rudimentary Soru; combining the two had barely saved her life.
She had put Soru at the top of her training list precisely so she could flee if needed.
If she couldn't help Lord Chiyu, she could at least avoid dragging him down—
that was Nami's resolve.
Perona flew into a rage. "Let's see how many times you can run!"
At her gesture, more bomb‑ghosts squeezed out of her body and hurtled after Nami.
But Nami, now alert, refused to be baited a second time.
She invoked the move she herself had developed:
"Slip‑Slip power merged with the Navy's Six Forms—
Zero‑Friction Dash!"
In a blink, she became a streaking after‑image again, too fast for the naked eye, vanishing from her original spot and dodging every bomb.
"Damn!"
Perona fumed, yet her ghosts either could not touch Nami or could not match her speed; they were useless.
Worse still, Nami was now sliding toward her like an ice skater, iron staff swinging to kill!
Perona's Devil Fruit was brokenly strong, but she was hopeless in close combat; the sight made her heart lurch with fear.
"Ahh—!"
She ringed herself with ghosts; if Nami wanted to rush her, she'd have to touch them.
This, too, was the Ghost‑Ghost‑Fruit's trick—defensive deployment.
But Nami still skimmed forward, body gleaming friction‑free, sliding every ghost aside and racing straight for Perona's true body.
Then—
The iron staff came down hard!
CRACK—
It hit empty air.
Perona's body turned ghostly as well, and the staff passed right through…
"What's going on?!"
Before Nami could react, Perona drifted upward, laughing mockingly.
"Hororororo…
"Little girl, did you think the Ghost‑Ghost‑Fruit ended with those parlor tricks?
"Your immunity to ghosts is annoying, but beating me by force? Daydreaming!"
Staring at Perona's spirit form, Nami suddenly understood.
"That, too, is the Ghost‑Ghost‑Fruit?
"Astral projection, huh…
"Which means a real body exists somewhere—weak and undefended!
"Find the body and I win!"
Perona panicked. "Y‑You brat—how did you know that?!"
Nami giggled. "Didn't—until just now."
Flushing with anger, Perona screamed, "You tricked me!"
She unleashed more ghosts to block Nami, but Nami was already skating full tilt into Thorn‑Bark's inner structure.
Perona, frantic, gave chase in spirit form.
"Stop!
"M‑My body isn't that way!"
Rear Admiral Hina exhaled in relief.
So the kid's grown sharper as well as stronger…
After killing Absalom herself, Nami had plunged into the zombie horde, used her powers to seize swathes of enemies, then, working in perfect sync with her unit, cut the zombies down.
Even so—
This was Moria's stronghold; the zombies were endless, and among them loomed Captain John, Wind‑Swordsman Gojiro, Swordmaster Ryuma—monsters all. Total victory would be no easy feat.
Right now Brook was dueling Ryuma's zombie.
Ryuma carried Brook's shadow and thus Brook's fencing style—yet the instinct of a legendary swordsman remained, and in strength, speed, technique, every facet, he overpowered Brook.
Blade‑wielder Braid was crossing swords with another zombie master, Wind‑Swordsman Gojiro.
Though Gojiro had once been great, the owner of the shadow animating him was weaker than Brook, and Braid quickly took the upper hand.
Giraffe‑Fruit user Box was locked with General Zombie Tarara—
a hulking ape‑spider hybrid whose silk was so tough it was nearly uncuttable.
Bubble‑Fruit user Barbara tangled with a wild‑boar zombie named Lola.
Franky rampaged through the menagerie of monster and beast zombies.
Chiyu's marines were not weaker than Moria's forces, but zombies, already dead, were devilishly hard to kill again, so the fighting was brutal.
Just then—
A new group burst into Thriller Bark.
"We're all victims of Gecko Moria! We've formed a Victims' Alliance to reclaim our shadows and settle the score with that bastard!"
The newcomers were a motley crowd from every walk of life, yet united in hatred of Moria. They immediately sided with the navy, joining the melee.
They had done their homework: each carried salt rounds. One shot into a zombie's mouth, and its shadow flew free—often straight back to its owner.
The marines had heard this from Chiyu but had no time to stockpile salt. Seeing the tactic, they borrowed ammunition from the alliance and joined in.
With these reinforcements the battle swiftly tilted their way.
At that moment Brook succumbed again.
He was simply no match for Ryuma.
Chiyu's interest stirred.
Turning to lightning, he flashed before Brook and blocked Ryuma.
Ryuma brandished Wano's national treasure, Shusui.
"And who are you?"
He still retained a shred of self.
"Uchiha Chiyu."
Ryuma nodded. "Good. I sense a warrior's will in you.
Come!"
Chiyu drew his twin swords—
Yamaoroshi and Kashu.
Ryuma glanced at them. "Fine blades indeed—
still beneath my Shusui."
Chiyu knew: his four swords—Yamaoroshi, Kashu, Yubashiri—were all among the Grade‑50 skillful blades, while Sandai Kitetsu was below even that.
Shusui, however, ranked among the 21 Great Grade blades—superior to all of his.
Even so—
"A sword is only a tool."
Ryuma chuckled. "Well said!"
He struck without warning.
"Dawn Prelude—True Thrust!"
Because his zombie body held Brook's shadow, he was limited to Brook's techniques—but raw power, blistering speed, and immaculate skill elevated them beyond Brook's reach.
Chiyu met him head‑on, Hana‑shū flashing to a razor point.
Chiyu's kenjutsu blended Uchiha style, Rankyaku slicing force, and the Rumble‑Rumble fruit's lightning—its hallmark, blistering straight‑line speed that left opponents no time to react.
Even if they saw it, they couldn't keep up.
RUMBLE‑RUMBLE—
BOOOOM!
Their blades crashed, fissuring Thriller Bark's deck.
Sword‑energy laced the ground like a spider‑web.
Brook gaped.
"A‑Amazing…"
Chiyu wished to test swords only, so he withheld ninjutsu, hand‑to‑hand skills, lightning powers—fighting purely in sword fighting.
Their blinding exchange soon sharpened into a hunt for a single fatal opening.
CLANG‑CLANG‑CLANG—
CRASH!
To onlookers, only two blurs streaked past, steel clashing in staccato. Light flared, shockwaves billowed, and earth, walls, buildings shattered into rubble.
Such a duel between grand masters was once‑in‑a‑lifetime.
Every swordsman present—Brook, Braid, Gojiro—stared, wide‑eyed and awestruck.
"Prelude! Blade‑Tap Assault!"
Shusui vibrated violently, hammering Kashu and Yamaoroshi.
The move could destroy an opponent's weapon.
In Ryuma's hands its power redoubled; the fearsome tremor made Chiyu's twin blades quiver in sympathy.
Shusui was a Black Blade—forged black through years of Armament‑Haki. Though Ryuma was long dead, the color remained, enough to wound even Logia users.
Chiyu dared not slacken.
His twin swords carved the air like twin lightning bolts, slipping past the strike and whipping two arcs around toward Ryuma's back.
"Splendid!"
Ryuma laughed, exhilarated at meeting a worthy foe.
"Cask Waltz—Retreat!"
A step back turned to a burst of thrusts—too fast to see—Shusui splitting into countless gleams that showered down.
Their powers slammed together once more.
No longer at his living peak, Ryuma was hurled away by Chiyu's blow, plummeting like a cannonball—BOOM!—into the ground.
The outcome was set.
Yet Ryuma refused to yield. As Chiyu swooped in, he unleashed a final technique:
"Three Humming Style—Arrow like Feather Slash!"