Luffy bounced forward, fists glowing with Haki. Luffy attacks Doflamingo with Gum-Gum king Kong Gun but Doflamingo threads blocked the attack.
Doflamingo grinned. "Not bad… but you can't break my Bird Cage!" He lashed his strings like whips, aiming at Luffy from every side.
Luffy bounced off the walls, and fired rapid punches at the thread tearing some of them apart.
Doflamingo spin kich with the threads beneathhis shoes, cutting building in half and pushing Luffy back.
"You think you can escape me?"
Luffy took a deep breath.
"I won't lose!"
Luffy fired another flurry of king kong gun at Doflamingo.
Luffy vanished from Doflamingo's sight.
Doflamingo's eyes widened slightly. "Where did he go?" Doflamingo muttered.
Suddenly, Luffy's foot slammed into Doflamingo's face.
"Gum-Gum… Rhino Schneider!"
Doflamingo blasted backward, bouncing across the ground several times before crashing into a wall.
He got up instantly, eyes blazing. "Time to end this!" He unleashed his most powerful attack.
"16 Holy Bullets!"
"I will defeat you, Mingo… for everything!" Luffy shouted.
His right hand grew massive, like a giant's, and he covered it in Armament Haki.
"Gum Gum Giant King Kong Gun!" Luffy shout, striking directly at Doflamingo.
The two attacks collided. Sparks flew, shockwaves tearing through the air. At first, it seemed like Doflamingo was winning.
"I… won't… lose… Mingoooo!" Luffy screamed, pushing every ounce of his strength.
Slowly, he overpowered Doflamingo. His punch smashed through, shaking the entire island.
Doflamingo fell to the ground, defeated and unconscious.
Luffy's Fourth Gear flickered away, and he collapsed to the ground, too exhausted to move.
[Meanwhile, elsewhere]
Zoro's blade cut through Pica at last, defeating him. His Haki had nullified Pica's regeneration ability.
Blip ⚡️
Zoro turned. "Where were you hiding?" he asked.
"No, I was destroying the SMILE factory," Law replied. "Anyway, bad news...a Marine Admiral is here."
"Which one?" Zoro asked.
"Fujitora," Law replied. "And he's coming with a massive wave of Marines."
[Meanwhile]
"It seems that Straw Hat defeated Doflamingo," Cavendish said.
Bartolomeo cried with joy. "I knew he could do it, Luffy-sama!"
"Does that mean Dressrosa is finally free?" Rebecca asked, tears filling from her eyes.
"I'm not sure," Cavendish replied. He pointed at the sky.
Bartolomeo, Rebecca, and Don Chinjao looked up.
"What's going on up there?" Bartolomeo asked.
"I have no idea," Cavendish replied, "but it seems like the fight isn't over yet."
[ELSEWHERE]
Noah's eyes slowly opened. Air rushed into his lungs.
He leaned up.
"Noah!"
Emma threw her arms around him, holding him tight like if she let go, he'd disappear again. Her hands trembled against his back.
Tears fell onto his shoulder.
"You… you weren't breathing…" her voice cracked. "Your heart… it stopped…"
Noah blinked, still trying to focus. He could feel her shaking.
"…I'm sorry," Noah said softly.
Emma pulled back just enough to look at him, her eyes red.
"Sorry?" she whispered, hurt in her voice. "You think 'sorry' fixes that?"
Noah looked down.
"I thought I lost you…" she said, her voice breaking again. "Do you know what that felt like?"
Noah clenched his jaw.
"It's not like i wanted to die," he said. "I was fighting… I just… couldn't hold on anymore."
Emma grabbed his shirt tighter.
"Then don't," she said. "Don't die. Don't leave me behind....Don't leave us…"
For a moment, neither of them spoke.
Just the sound of the wind and distant explosions in the sky.
Noah lifted his hand and gently wiped a tear from her cheek.
"I'm still here," Noah replied. "I promise… I'm not going anywhere."
Emma shook her head slightly, more tears falling.
"You can't promise that…" she whispered. "Not in a world like this…"
Noah gave a faint, tired smile.
"…Then I'll fight to keep that promise."
She stared at him for a second… then rested her forehead against his.
"…Idiot," she murmured, but her voice softened. "You scared me…"
Noah exhaled slowly.
"…Yeah," he replied. "I scared myself too."
Emma let out a small, shaky laugh.
BOOM!
The sky cracked with another explosion.
Noah's expression changed.
He gently pulled away and stood up, his body still aching but steady.
His eyes lifted to the sky.
Amy and Alice were still fighting, pushing themselves against Ocea, barely holding on.
Noah's gaze hardened.
"…I can't believe that those two are this strong."
The air around him started to shift.
Suddenly.
BOOM!
Amy and Alice came crashing down from the sky, slamming into the ground.
Dust exploded outward. The smoke slowly cleared.
Amy and Alice were on the ground, breathing hard. Their transformations flickered… then faded away completely, leaving them back in their normal forms.
Noah's eyes widened slightly.
He stepped forward.
"Are you two alright?" Noah asked.
Amy let out a tired laugh.
"Alright?" Amy said between breaths. "We were getting destroyed up there…"
Alice groaned, pushing herself up.
"That monster isn't playing around…" Alice muttered. "We barely held on."
Emma rushed over, kneeling beside them.
"You're both badly hurt…"
"I'll live," Amy replied, waving it off.
Alice glanced up at Noah, studying him.
"…You're not dead," she said.
Noah nodded.
"Yeah."
There was a brief pause.
Then Amy smirked slightly despite everything.
"Good," Amy said. "Because we were fighting like crazy just to revenge you."
Emma crossed her arms.
"Hopefully he doesn't do anything life threatening again," she said.
Alice slowly stood up, brushing dust off her clothes, then walked towards Noah.
She stopped right in front of him.
"…You almost died," she said plainly.
Noah scratched the back of his head.
"…Yeah. My bad."
Amy snorted.
"'My bad,' he says," she muttered.
Emma shot Noah a look.
"Not funny."
Alice stared at him for another second… then sighed.
"…Just remember, Noah. "We're engaged."
Noah blinked.
"…Right."
"That means," Alice said, crossing her arms, "you don't get to die without my permission."
Noah gave a slight nod.
"…Yes, miss."
Amy burst out laughing despite the situation.
Emma shook her head, but a faint smile slipped through.
Alice turned slightly, trying to hide the tiny bit of relief in her expression.