Before this moment, everyone had been watching the spectacular duel with relaxed enjoyment. After all, aside from Enel himself, the entire divine army—from priests to common soldiers—had been thoroughly defeated.
But when that strange, booming voice echoed from high above, Jerry instantly snapped out of his leisurely observation. His Observation Haki flared to life with urgent intensity.
In a split second, Jerry sensed the overwhelming aura of the newcomer and the deadly threat that accompanied it. This wasn't just another Sky Island inhabitant—this was something far more dangerous.
Without hesitation, he spun around and launched himself toward Deuce and the others at lightning speed, his instincts screaming warnings.
Suddenly, an enormous lion's head burst forth from the junction where the massive vine met the ground, its jaws gaping wide as it lunged viciously toward Deuce's group with crushing force.
"Everyone get down!" Jerry shouted while racing across the battlefield.
In the blink of an eye, he reached his friends just as the lion's head was about to engulf them.
"Water God: Rising Leviathan!"
A colossal azure water dragon surged forward with Jerry's devastating punch, colliding violently with the unexpected earthen predator. Jerry clenched his fist tighter, channeling more power into the technique as he shattered the attacking lion's head with a single strike and sent his water dragon spiraling high into the sky.
The ascending dragon's massive form blocked the figure descending from the vine's peak, revealing their mysterious attacker.
"Oh? How interesting," the voice commented with casual amusement.
A crescent-shaped cutting wave suddenly appeared in everyone's field of vision. The sword energy cleaved Jerry's water dragon cleanly in half, transforming it into countless droplets that scattered in all directions. The attack continued its path without losing momentum, aimed directly at Jerry.
"Water Blade: Sky-Render!"
Jerry quickly drew his fishing rod and launched a swift counterattack, his own cutting wave meeting the incoming strike. Then he kicked off the ground and rocketed toward the airborne enemy.
When the massive lion's head had erupted from the vine, Carrot and Kotatsu—who was carrying Carina—had been positioned quite far from the main group. Thanks to their exceptional reflexes and Jerry's timely warning, the rabbit and cat had leaped to safety just in time, narrowly avoiding the surprise assault.
After witnessing Jerry destroy the lion's head and charge skyward, Carrot and Carina rushed to help the injured crew members struggling to their feet.
"Deuce! Are you okay?" Carrot asked anxiously.
"Cough... fortunately, nothing too serious," Deuce replied, gingerly testing his injuries while trying to reassure the worried rabbit.
When they'd been caught in that devastating technique's range, crushing pressure had been about to overwhelm them completely. If Jerry hadn't intervened at the crucial moment, the consequences would have been catastrophic.
"I thought I was going to die just then! I was so frightened my soul nearly left my body—though of course, it already has! Yohohoho!" Brook laughed nervously, patting his ribcage.
Skull, Cavendish, and Wyper all took shaky breaths as they slowly stood up. Cavendish muttered curses under his breath about his ruined appearance.
When the group finally gathered together and looked up at the sky, Skull's eyes went wide with shock.
"That's... the Golden Lion Shiki!" he shouted in recognition.
The others initially looked confused, but once they understood who the Golden Lion was, their expressions turned grave. This was no ordinary opponent—this was a legendary pirate from the era of Gol D. Roger himself.
Jerry's figure appeared in the sky within moments, intercepting the intruder. He studied the man floating before him—taking in the broken legs fitted with famous swords Oto and Kogarashi, the flowing golden hair, and that unmistakable aura of absolute confidence.
"Shiki the Golden Lion?" Jerry asked with a frown.
"Jihahahaha! You know my name, brat! That's 'Golden Lion' Shiki to you!"
The legendary pirate floated effortlessly in the air, his laughter booming across the ruins. He seemed pleased that this young upstart recognized his notorious reputation, even if the kid clearly didn't understand the full weight of what that name meant.
"In that case," Jerry said, glancing pointedly at the distinctive bald patch in the middle of Shiki's otherwise magnificent mane, "shouldn't I call you 'Golden Lion Baldy'?"
Jerry couldn't help but notice the bizarre hair pattern—completely bald in the center where a ship's wheel had once been embedded, while thick, flowing golden locks surrounded the bare spot like a leonine crown.
"Boy, you've got some nerve," Shiki said, crossing his arms with amusement rather than anger. "You know who I am, yet you still dare to mock me?"
The Golden Lion didn't seem particularly bothered by comments about his unusual hairstyle. After living with a ship's rudder stuck in his skull for years, he'd grown accustomed to jokes about his appearance.
With casual indifference, Shiki waved his hand as if shooing away an annoying insect.
"Don't get in my way, kid. That Golden Bell down there—and if I'm not mistaken, there's a Poneglyph under that bell tower, isn't there? Today's my lucky day! They're both mine now! Jahahaha!"
Earlier that day, Golden Lion had been following his usual routine—controlling his floating island while drifting through the sky, enjoying himself with his subordinate Dr. Indigo. They'd been performing their typical entertainment: Indigo doing pantomime while Shiki danced and twisted his body, both thoroughly enjoying their absurd partnership.
They'd also been discussing the "IQ" they'd spent twenty years developing together, along with their plans for the Flying Pirates' grand comeback. The scheme involved releasing animals from the floating island—creatures that had become violently aggressive after consuming Stimulant IQ—into the East Blue to wreak havoc and demonstrate their fearsome power of revenge.
While passing through this area of sky, Shiki had casually activated his incredibly wide-range Observation Haki and detected intense battle fluctuations below. After directing his floating island to a safe distance from the so-called Kingdom of God, he'd come alone to investigate.
He'd quickly discovered two Logia users engaged in fierce combat, but more importantly, his keen pirate instincts had spotted something gleaming with golden light high above. True to his nature as a legendary plunderer, Shiki wanted to claim it without hesitation.
After observing the two fighters below and the group of spectators nearby, he'd decided that since he was making a move anyway, he might as well follow his usual style—either eliminate everyone or recruit the worthy ones for his crew.
Jerry stepped through the air using his mastery of Moonwalk, speaking in a deliberately mocking tone:
"What's this 'yours' and 'mine' business? Please form an orderly line and watch your step! Do you understand the concept of 'first come, first served'? I was here first! Obviously I arrived before you did!"
Of course, Jerry knew about the golden bell tower gleaming on the white clouds near the massive vine. That structure was the heart of the Shandora ruins, and there was indeed a conspicuous Poneglyph positioned beneath the bell tower.
Jerry had originally planned to examine it after the battle concluded, but he certainly hadn't expected this particular interruption.
"Little brat, if you don't move aside immediately, prepare to die!" Shiki snarled.
The Golden Lion flew forward aggressively, raising his right leg—fitted with the famous blade Oto—and launching a devastating aerial slash directly at Jerry.
"Heh! Don't blame me for not respecting my elders," Jerry retorted with a fierce grin. "But this time, I was definitely here first!"
Jerry launched himself upward and swung his fishing rod with tremendous force, meeting the legendary pirate's sword strike head-on. The collision sent shockwaves through the air as their weapons clashed.
When his initial attack was blocked, Shiki immediately spun and struck with his left leg, the famous sword Kogarashi whistling toward Jerry's head with the force of wind and thunder.
"Old bastard, are you serious?" Jerry's eyes hardened as he faced the enemy's fluid combination of speed and devastating power. "Going straight for the face, are you?"
A violently spinning azure water sphere materialized in Jerry's left palm, rushing to intercept the Golden Lion's sword strike.
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