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Boom! Boom! Boom!
On a floating island suspended high in the clouds, Golden Lion Shiki slammed his fists against the throne beneath him again and again. The ground trembled with every strike.
"Impossible! Absolutely impossible!" he roared, his golden mane whipping like wildfire in the wind. The ship's rudder lodged in his head rose and fell with his anger, creaking with every furious breath.
"My rival Gol D. Roger! The Pirate King himself!" His voice cracked, raw with disbelief. "There's no way that man could've been captured! What kind of sick joke is this?!"
His eyes blazed like twin suns as suspicion crept across his face.
"Unless… the Navy is using Roger's name to manipulate the world? No. I need to know the truth myself."
Without hesitation, Shiki spread his arms. The island beneath his feet groaned and shifted, the clouds swirling as his Devil Fruit power surged.
"Let's go! To Marineford!"
The island lurched forward, slicing through the sky like a meteor heading straight for the Navy's heart.
Inside Marineford, Ezra D. Vale sat across from Fleet Admiral Sengoku, staring him down with dead-fish eyes that could've melted stone.
"Sengoku," Ezra said flatly. "Stop looking at me like that."
The admiral coughed, shuffling a few papers nervously. "Ezra, I told you already the promotion paperwork's been submitted."
Smack!
Ezra slammed his palm against the armrest of his chair, hard enough to make the whole office shake.
"So tell me," he said through gritted teeth, "why are you promoting me again?!"
Being a commodore had been comfortable. A few missions here and there, plenty of free time to nap or train at his own pace. But now Sengoku wanted to make him a rear admiral after barely a month?
"Does your promotion system just run on impulse?!" Ezra groaned, dragging a hand down his face. "This is absurd!"
Sengoku cleared his throat, maintaining that calm, infuriating tone of his.
"I understand your doubts. But you've accomplished quite a lot recently."
"Oh, really?" Ezra muttered. "Enlighten me."
Sengoku raised a finger, listing one achievement after another.
"You captured a pirate worth over a hundred million berries, eliminated several lieutenants worth tens of millions, fought Whitebeard to a draw"
"Which was exaggerated!" Ezra interrupted, face darkening.
"—and, most importantly," Sengoku continued smoothly, "you were present during Roger's capture."
Ezra shot to his feet. "He surrendered himself! Do you even understand what self-surrender means?!"
The older man ignored him completely.
"In fact," Sengoku went on, "I originally planned to report directly to the Five Elders and recommend you for admiral."
Ezra froze, jaw dropping. "So what, am I supposed to thank you for your generosity now?"
Sengoku smiled lightly. "That won't be necessary. But I wouldn't reject it either."
Ezra stared at him in disbelief. "How did I never realize you were such a shameless old man?"
Eventually, after a long moment of exasperated silence, Ezra sighed and accepted his fate. The higher his rank, the less time he had to slack off. It was tragic, really.
But before he could even step out of the office, a furious voice thundered across the entire base.
"Sengoku! Where is Roger?!"
The ground quaked under the sheer force of the shout. Ezra's head snapped up, his brow furrowing.
That voice didn't belong to any ordinary man.
Outside, the sky darkened. A shadow blotted out the sun as a massive floating island descended toward Marineford, casting the harbor into chaos.
Behind him, the door to the office burst open. Sengoku appeared at his side, his face grim.
"That airborne bastard…"
All across Marineford, alarms blared.
"Enemy attack! Enemy attack!"
Marines scrambled into formation as the colossal shadow above grew larger by the second.
"An island?! It's descending straight toward us!"
"This ability… is it him?"
Ezra's eyes narrowed. "The Sky Pirate?"
Sengoku gave a tight nod. "Yes. Bounty: one billion, eight hundred and fifty million berries. Golden Lion Shiki."
Ezra's lips curled into a fierce grin. "Perfect. I've been in a bad mood all day."
He rolled his shoulders and cracked his knuckles. "Old man, leave him to me."
Sengoku blinked in surprise. "You? Are you confident enough to face him alone?"
Ezra scoffed. "A mere pirate dares to invade Marineford? He's already signing his death warrant."
Marineford was his territory his peaceful, lazy haven and Ezra wasn't about to let anyone ruin it.
"Don't be reckless," Sengoku warned. "Just stall him until I arrive with Garp."
Ezra swirled his cloak behind him and smirked. "That won't be necessary. I'm enough."
And with a single step, he vanished.
Flash Step.
In an instant, Ezra reappeared in the open sky, facing the enormous floating island. Shiki stood atop it, arms folded, his coat billowing dramatically in the wind.
When his gaze fell on Ezra, a flicker of surprise crossed his eyes. That speed no ordinary marine could move like that.
"Kid," he said coldly, "who the hell are you?"
Ezra's expression didn't change. His voice was like steel.
"The one who's going to kill you."
Shiki blinked, then burst out laughing, wild and loud enough to shake the clouds.
"Kill me? Hahahaha! Boy, you're a thousand years too early to be saying that!"
Ezra didn't bother to reply. His hand fell to the sword at his waist, and with one smooth motion, he drew Ryūjin Jakka.
The blade ignited instantly.
"Flame Slash."
A blazing wave of fire shot toward Shiki, the heat warping the very air.
"Nani?!" Shiki's grin faltered for a split second. His instincts screamed danger.
Reacting on pure reflex, he unsheathed his twin blades, Oto and Kogarashi, crossing them before him.
"Slash Wave!"
A surge of golden sword energy collided with Ezra's flame slash.
Boom!
The explosion split the sky. Fire and shockwaves ripped through the air, scattering clouds for miles.
When the smoke cleared, both men hovered in the air, unscathed but burning with battle fury.
Shiki sneered. "Not bad, brat. You've got some bite."
But before he could finish his sentence, Ezra vanished again.
A flash of light. A blur of movement.
Suddenly, he was there right beside Shiki.
"I told you," Ezra growled, "I'm in a bad mood today."
His right fist tightened, flames coiling around it.
"One Bone Strike!"
Boom!
His punch smashed into Shiki's abdomen like a cannon blast. The impact rippled outward, shaking the very island.
Shiki's eyes bulged as he was sent hurtling down like a meteor.
Crash!
He slammed into Marineford with earth-shattering force, carving a massive crater into the ground.
Dust and smoke billowed upward as marines gaped in disbelief.
"Did… did he just send the Golden Lion crashing down from the sky?"
"Who is that guy?!"
Ezra hovered above, sword still blazing, eyes locked on the crater below.
"This is Marineford," he said quietly, voice carrying over the roaring wind. "No one tramples it while I'm here."
The flames around him flickered brighter, painting the clouds red like a burning sky.
Below, the legend of Ezra D. Vale, the Navy's "Crimson Inferno," had just scorched its next name into history.
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