"Bins, how's the situation on your end?" Rosinante asked gravely, pulling out a Den Den Mushi.
"All's clear, Your Majesty. When the magma struck earlier, the library had just about finished being evacuated. A massive tree blocked most of the impact, so no one was hurt. We're currently retreating at full speed!" Bins reported.
"Good. Pull back imdiately. This island is about to collapse," Rosinante warned as he turned his gaze toward Sakazuki, who was slowly descending.
"Your ability really complents mine. That blast just now—half its power ca from you," Sakazuki sneered, landing gracefully with Geppo.
He was quite satisfied with his teor Volcano. It had rained down like a cataclysm, engulfing all of Ohara in an inferno.
"You bastard… I knew I didn't like you the mont I saw you," Rosinante said coldly.
Without a sound, he vanished from sight.
"That trick won't work on anymore!" Sakazuki swung his arm defensively, just in ti to block Rosinante's sudden kick.
After their previous clash, when he had been unable to sense Rosinante's presence with Observation Haki, Sakazuki had trained relentlessly, honing his combat intuition. It wasn't as all-seeing as Observation Haki, but it allowed his body to react instinctively to danger—making it the perfect counter to Rosinante's silent assaults.
"My attacks aren't that easy to block! Limit Breaker—Modified: Heavenfall!" Rosinante growled.
A violent shockwave erupted from his foot. The ground split open, and Sakazuki was kicked straight into it with bone-crushing force.
This was Limit Breaker 03—delivered through the leg. Even more devastating than before.
"Ice Age!" Aokiji suddenly appeared like a ghost, swinging a palm straight at Rosinante.
Rosinante's expression darkened.
"Shadow Flight!" He boosted his speed to the max, instantly retreating.
But Aokiji's attack wasn't just a simple strike. An unbearably cold aura shot from his palm, freezing the air itself. The frost condensed into a tangible ice spike and launched toward Rosinante like a guided missile.
If it pierced him, the freezing energy of Ice Age would envelop his entire body—this was the kind of cold that could freeze the entire ocean.
Rosinante's Shadow Flight was fast, insanely fast, but even so, the chill nipped at his heels. Wherever he had retreated, ice claid the ground behind him. The earth was entombed in a thick sheet of frost.
In re seconds, the entire island of Ohara was frozen solid.
"That's Admiral Aokiji's power!" Seeing Ohara completely locked in ice, the Marines halted their bombardnt in shock.
But just as they ceased firing at the island, a Marine warship abruptly aid at one of the evacuation boats—and fired.
BOOM!
The boat exploded and quickly began sinking into the sea.
"What the hell?! Who just fired on the evacuees?!"
"It ca from Vice Admiral Sakazuki's ship!"
Rosinante kept retreating until the icy barrage finally ceased. Even he could sense the lethal danger of that freezing aura. He hovered in the air, finally clear of the attack zone.
Looking around, he saw everything around him frozen stiff. Saul hadn't dodged in ti—he was trapped in ice.
"He's Robin's friend. If you freeze to death like this, she'll cry for sure," Rosinante muttered as he flashed beside Saul. He pressed a palm against the giant's frozen body, and monts later, the ice cracked and lted away.
"Bastard!" A searing heat surged from the ground where Sakazuki had fallen. Though the entire island was frozen, only that one spot continued spewing molten magma, glowing like a volcano ready to erupt.
A furious roar echoed from within the magma—rage so fierce it warped the very air.
"You Marines really went that far?" Rosinante said, looking at the sinking refugee ship near the coastline.
He had assud that with his presence, and with Sakazuki on-site, the Marines wouldn't dare target evacuees. He never expected them to fire anyway.
"Sakazuki, you bastard!" Even Aokiji was stunned.
What Rosinante didn't know was that Sakazuki had already received a call from the Gorosei. He had quietly instructed his second-in-command: if the battle turned into a stalemate, fire on the evacuation boats.
This way, even if the scholars escaped and Ohara was destroyed, no one would live to tell the tale. Every cri could be pinned on Rosinante.
At that mont, Sakazuki erged slowly from the magma, his body dripping with molten lava. Blood trickled down his forehead.
He looked enraged beyond reason. Never since gaining power had he suffered like this. Now, his fury boiled over, his magma flaring with renewed intensity.
"Rosinante!" he bellowed, his entire form turning into a lava monster. He threw a punch—Volcanic Eruption! The blazing magma erupted outward, incinerating everything in its path.
Rosinante's expression tightened. Earlier, Sakazuki's power had only been at the level of a Vice Admiral. Now, it was clear—he had fully stepped into Admiral-class strength. That oppressive force couldn't be ignored.
"Gravity Silence!" Rosinante grabbed Saul and hurled him far into the distance with a mighty toss. This battle was far beyond anything Saul could handle. With his huge fra, he was an easy target.
Just as he flung Saul away, Sakazuki's magma surge enveloped Rosinante.
Because of that slight delay, Rosinante failed to dodge completely.
"Body Limit Release: Silence!" ca a voice from within the magma.
A violet energy exploded outward, dispelling the lava around him. Rosinante stood revealed beneath the magma's remnants.
His clothes were almost completely burned away. If not for the fact that he had instinctively armored his lower half with Haki to avoid exposing himself, he would've been stark naked.
"Sakazuki, I may despise your character, but I acknowledge your strength. Let return the favor—with a real Limit Breaker," Rosinante declared.
"Rosinante!!" Sakazuki roared, maddened.
To Sakazuki, Rosinante's words were a greater insult than any wound. His pride, his dignity—completely trampled.
"Infernal River Eruption!" Sakazuki scread in rage. A titanic magma fist surged forward, threatening to burn the sky itself.
"Release—Limit Breaker!" Rosinante unleashed his counterattack.
He threw a punch as well.
His fist burned red-hot—the power of the magma he had just endured was condensed into this strike. Combined with the energy he had gathered in his Body Limit Release: Silence mode, this Limit Breaker was beyond anything he had previously unleashed.
The sheer force twisted the air into a spiraling column shaped like a giant fist.
The fist-shaped shockwave tore through Sakazuki's magma punch like a divine spear, cutting a blazing path straight toward him.
Using Limit Breaker while in Body Limit Release mode was vastly different from using it in a normal state.
Normally, the Limit Breaker fused Rosinante's silent limit-release and explosive power into a montary burst. But in this state, he could stockpile power for far longer, pushing his strength to monstrous levels—so long as his body didn't tear itself apart in the process.
Of course, that ca with a heavy toll on his body—but the resulting power was also magnified several tis over. The longer he charged, the more devastating the final strike.
Originally, Limit Breaker could only be used in close range, where its power burst outward from his fist. But after his battle with Kaido and six months of Aikido training on Ohara, Rosinante had evolved.
Not only had he reached Admiral-level strength, his control over power had reached a new harmony. Now, even after the energy left his fist, it remained condensed, forming a massive, cohesive shockwave in the shape of a fist.
"Don't think you'll take down!" Sakazuki roared, pouring every ounce of energy into his magma.
He knew Rosinante's attacks were all about explosive force. If he could endure that initial burst, he might turn the tide.
Endure the first strike?
Sakazuki was too optimistic.
Yes, Rosinante's strength lay in his explosive power. Whether it was the Breaker Punch or Limit Breaker, both relied on building up energy to unleash terrifying force. After the first impact, the power usually dropped off.
But that first impact… was several tis—dozens of tis—stronger than Rosinante's base strength. Unless Sakazuki's power exceeded his by that much, there was no surviving it.
Unfortunately for Sakazuki, he wasn't that much stronger—even as an Admiral. Despite pouring every ounce of magma fruit energy into defense, the massive fist-shaped shockwave broke through his attack layer by layer until it finally struck him dead-on.
BOOM!
A thunderous explosion rocked the island. The impact was like a nuclear blast, and the air pressure ford a towering mushroom cloud.
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