The male giant Noyer had mentioned scratched his head and said honestly, "Reporting to our benefactor, we are warriors from Elbaph. My name is Nielf, and this is my sister Manelf."
Giant warriors from Elbaph?
Noyer nodded with pleasant surprise and greeted them. Giants were rare, and the most famous place among giant communities was the Warland Kingdom of Elbaph — renowned for producing mighty warriors.
Noyer shifted his gaze to Nielf's sister. Manelf quickly hid shyly behind her brother. A muscular female giant hiding behind an even stronger giant — the scene looked frightening no matter how you looked at it.
He scratched his head. If the giant sister was this shy, wouldn't her combat ability be rather weak?
Less than a minute later, Manelf used her actions to slap Noyer hard in the face. He witnessed with his own eyes as she pulled up a guard watchtower at its base and used it like a staff to sweep in all directions.
Countless guards went flying while crying for their parents. Everyone stared at Manelf with their mouths agape in shock. Her face turned red again as she ducked behind her brother, sneaking glances at the little people at her feet.
Nielf said somewhat embarrassedly, "Don't let my sister's shyness fool you. She's one of the most gifted children in Elbaph, far more capable than me."
Noyer nodded. Internet friends don't lie to me — girls really can't be judged by their appearance.
With the two giants clearing the way, his army became even more unstoppable. But the Marines' reinforcements kept arriving in an endless stream. Everyone was dragging bodies that had been enslaved for years. Despite the strong will supporting them, injuries and even casualties began to appear.
Seeing the situation turning bad, Noyer quickly stepped forward and shouted loudly, "Retreat! Our people can't keep charging!"
A burly man said unwillingly, "But benefactor, there are still many comrades…"
Before Noyer could speak, the dignified elder Fish-man from earlier sternly shouted, "Silence! Are you questioning our benefactor?"
The burly man quickly shook his head and explained, "Of course not, it's just that we're unwilling…"
Noyer sighed, "We're in too poor a condition. Fighting on will only cause more casualties. Leave immediately!"
"Yes!" everyone responded in unison.
Protecting the elderly, weak, women, and children in the middle, with the giants clearing the way, Noyer and Wyper at the front, and all the men with weapons on the perimeter, everyone bore the assault and turned to fight their way out.
The rebel army, relying on their tenacious will, withstood the pursuit of the Marines and government guards, breaking through the encirclement layer by layer.
Gradually, they advanced closer and closer to the escape route Noyer had prepared. Just as everyone's faces showed joy, a blinding flash attacked.
BOOM!!
A laser beam exploded in front of the two giants, sending their massive bodies flying.
Everyone quickly stopped in their tracks as Noyer looked solemnly at the newcomer. In the deep crater blasted by the beam, dots of golden light energy slowly gathered together, forming the shape of a person.
Kizaru's face appeared, his tone dripping with mockery, "Oh my — long time no see, Mr. Demon."
"Indeed, it's been 'a long time'. I've really missed you." Noyer gripped his sword tightly, his tone deceptively relaxed.
Behind him, fear crept back into the slaves' eyes. A Marine Admiral had come in person. Had Headquarters dispatched their highest combat power because they truly saw these people as less than human — disposable?
Kizaru extended his index finger, a rotating laser slowly charging at its tip, "After this time, I'm afraid I won't be seeing you again."
He seemed to have forgotten his role as an actor. The laser shot instantly from his fingertip, streaking straight toward Noyer and his group.
Just when everyone thought their time was up, despair flooding their faces, Noyer appeared before them once more. He swung his arm, using lightning speed to catch up with the flash just in time, slashing horizontally to meet the dazzling beam head-on.
BOOM! BOOM!
Rasetsuō held steady before him. The beam split in two the instant it struck the blade, exploding into empty spots on either side of the group.
The saved crowd cheered as the massive explosion faded. Kizaru looked at him with surprise.
"Using lightning's power for acceleration — you've caught up with my speed?"
Noyer ignored his muttering and turned to Wyper, "Take them away. I'll hold him off and catch up with you later."
Wyper and the freed slaves looked worried, but they treated his words as sacred orders, "Yes!" they responded in unison.
Wyper transformed into a pterosaur and led everyone past Kizaru without looking back.
Kizaru's eyes narrowed. His lower leg glowed, his form vanished, and he reappeared in front of the group, delivering a light-speed kick. Noyer transformed into lightning, barely matching his speed, blocking the attack with his blade held horizontally.
Seizing the opportunity, Wyper led the people to break through the encirclement.
Kizaru glanced at Noyer without concern, "Well, never mind. After Mr. Demon dies, catching up with them won't be difficult."
Noyer sneered, "Who knows who will die."
Kizaru stopped talking. He brought his arms together before his chest, and with intense flashing, drew out the long Ama no Murakumo sword. Rasetsuō and Ama no Murakumo clashed wildly, spraying countless sparks that lit up the area.
Kizaru flickered in rapid bursts, his sword swinging continuously at Noyer's vital points.
Noyer's lightning body could match Kizaru's speed in short bursts. But for sustained high-speed movement, he still couldn't match someone who specialized in it.
But he had more than just this one ability.
Kizaru knocked Noyer back again. Using the momentum, Noyer fell toward the ground and disappeared into the soil.
Kizaru stopped, suspicious. Where did he copy this ability from?
Unable to figure out Noyer's powers, Kizaru stood cautiously in place. His Observation Haki worked hard to sense changes in the surroundings. Suddenly, his shadow on the ground squirmed — a hand emerged from within it.
Kizaru's heart jumped. He leaped into the air, and the hand's owner jumped out from the shadow.
A slight smile appeared at the corner of Noyer's mouth. Seeing he hadn't touched Kizaru, he used Rasetsuō to release a flying slash.
Kizaru elementalized and flashed away just in time, but his golden checkered suit still had a corner cut off by the sharp sword energy.
Noyer returned to the ground. Kizaru's expression gradually became serious as he said, "You copied Moria's Kage Kage no Mi?"
Though it was a question, his tone was already certain.
Noyer didn't answer. Instead, he smiled and said, "Where there is light, there are shadows. Wherever you are, there are shadows. No matter how fast you are, can you shake off the shadow behind you?"
Kizaru sighed. He tapped his right foot lightly on the ground, and his slow tone unexpectedly gained some inflection as he smiled crookedly.
"Well… I can try."
◇◆◈◆◇
The magnificent Mary Geoise, holy land of the Celestial Dragons, lay scorched. Its beautiful jade-brick ground was now blackened by fire, with flashes of lightning and laser beams exploding intermittently.
Kizaru's form kept appearing and disappearing in the air while Noyer relentlessly clung to his shadow, pursuing him with a flurry of slashes.
After narrowly dodging Noyer's hands, Kizaru finally grew irritated. His body glowed brilliantly as he floated into the air. His shadow remained on the ground, and Noyer had no way to pursue him.
Kizaru gathered golden light, floating like the sun, unleashing a meteor shower of laser beams.
◆ Pika Pika no Mi: Yasakani no Magatama ⥤ Comma Jewel of Eight Shaku ◆
Noyer's heart jumped. He quickly dove into the shadows to take cover.
Jokes aside, Kizaru's strength as an Admiral was beyond question. The rain of light beams from his attack grew increasingly fierce. If Noyer hadn't dodged so quickly, he would have been shot full of holes.
Compared to Luffy, his own status was indeed closer to being the dear grand-nephew…
Noyer emerged from the shadows. The black substance beneath his feet wrapped around him like a shadow box, blocking all the light beams. At the same time, several black spears extended from the vast shadows, thrusting toward Kizaru in the air.
Kizaru twisted his body to dodge the shadow spears. The Ama no Murakumo sword in his hand shone even brighter, the light blade elongating into a massive blade.
The giant light sword slashed toward the shadow box, carrying the power to split the sky. The dark purple shadow box split in two, and a figure wrapped in black shadow streams charged forward. Noyer's entire eyes turned pure black, his speed surpassing what it had been.
Kizaru deliberately left an opening, luring Noyer to slash down with his sword. Then he activated his light-speed kick, instantly striking Noyer's head.
"Hm?"
Something felt wrong. Kizaru looked up in surprise to see that the head of the "Noyer" he had kicked had turned into incorporeal shadow.
At the same time, his hands were thrust firmly into the ground — right where Kizaru's shadow lay!
"Noyer's" body began to melt, transforming into purple fluid that merged with the ground, connecting to Kizaru's shadow. At the other end of that connection was Noyer himself, emerging from the shattered shadow box.
"Since the Shadow Clone is another me, it can use my mimicry ability. Quite useful for dealing with enemies."
While contemplating the technique's practicality, Noyer charged toward Kizaru. He knew restraining the Light Man through shadows had limited effect.
Seeing him charge recklessly, Kizaru transformed completely into light to escape the shadow restraint.
Just as he was about to flash away, Noyer's fingers extended in time, barely making contact. Kizaru reappeared on the other side, his expression increasingly grim.
The bad thing had finally happened.
Having succeeded, Noyer opened the system and quickly copied the Golden Rank 〔Devil's Dwelling · Pika-Pika〕, replacing Robin's 〔Ohara Scholar〕.
He straightened up, his gaze fixed on Kizaru, unable to suppress his smile any longer!
I'm laughing with pride, I'm laughing with pride~
Kizaru had toyed with him for so long, relying on his speed. Now Noyer would let him taste what it felt like to be toyed with by his own ability!
Kizaru's exaggerated features sank slightly. He activated elementalization almost simultaneously with Noyer.
The already devastated battlefield became even more unfortunate.
Two golden lights crisscrossed continuously, punching, kicking, and clashing with slashes — truly achieving "speed is power". Tremendous sounds echoed over Mary Geoise.
Their speed grew faster and faster, far beyond what the naked eye could track. Only their Observation Haki, probing each other, supported their attacks.
Nimble light rippled through the air. Noyer pressed his hand to the ground, and shadows from nearby buildings flowed out from the darkness. Amplified by the light, these shadow streams he created were massive, crashing toward Kizaru in waves like ocean swells.
Kizaru was caught off guard by the sudden change in combat style. For a moment, the giant shadow waves restrained him.
Noyer's eyes grew fierce. Using the shadows as cover, he flashed in close, his gaze glinting with murderous intent. If he could just kill Kizaru, he would obtain the complete Pika Pika no Mi!
In an instant, earth fire and heavenly thunder surged simultaneously, and the shadow waves covered a vast area of the battlefield like a canopy.
Kizaru was thoroughly annoyed by Noyer's constantly shifting abilities. Sensing his killing intent, Kizaru's heart jumped. With his ability copied, his one-on-one advantage was gone.
He had to retreat!
His body transformed into light and escaped the bombardment of multiple elements, the laser trajectory bouncing and leaping as he flashed away.
Seeing Kizaru fleeing, Noyer was about to chase after him, but he suddenly stopped. Lightly touching his face, his height and appearance changed, transforming him into a tall, sleazy-looking man.
Noyer imitated Kizaru by stroking his chin and giving a cunning laugh before activating his light to give chase.
◇◆◈◆◇
Meanwhile, the other Admiral, Aokiji, who was in charge of rescuing the Celestial Dragons, also encountered resistance.
Lucci, Enel, and the others had hijacked a warship and brought dozens of Celestial Dragons aboard.
Although this was atop the Red Line, with Wyper's flying ability — plus the fact that both Noyer and Enel could fly — transporting several warships down wasn't a problem.
But when Lucci saw the slave army that Wyper had brought back, he was completely stunned.
What on earth was this captain playing at?! Rescuing this many slaves was what he called a "minor matter"?
Nearly two thousand liberated slaves, at the edge of the holy land, had hijacked several more warships before they finally had the means to escape.
But what made Lucci even more desperate was that Marine Admiral Aokiji had already arrived in pursuit with his forces. He continuously emitted cold air, and in just one encounter, he froze the bottom of the warship carrying the slaves solid.
That bone-chilling temperature mirrored the hearts of all the slaves at that moment. But having come this far, with freedom just one step away, how could there be any reason to give up?!
Just as everyone hesitated, not knowing what to do, a massive figure jumped down without hesitation.
The giant Nielf swung his mountain-sized fists, eyes red as he roared, "Smash this ice! Follow our benefactor back to the sea!"
Everyone was reinvigorated by the giant's desperate actions. Their sick and disabled bodies squeezed out one last bit of potential, and batch after batch threw themselves down recklessly, following the giant.
With freedom right before their eyes, their conviction grew stronger. Disregarding the cold and sharpness of the ice spikes, they smashed down with their bare hands, chipping away at the ice bit by bit.
Watching this group of frail slaves carving an escape route with their own flesh and blood, Lucci was deeply moved.
So conviction really was such a powerful thing…
Blood stained the hard ice, but everyone seemed possessed. Despite their shattered bones and mangled flesh, they didn't stop. Ramming with their bodies, gnawing with their teeth, even bashing with their heads, the slaves encouraged each other, roaring with defiance to cheer themselves on.
"Smash this ice! Leave this place!"
"You Marine dogs, no one can stop us!"
"We promised our benefactor! We'll repay him on the sea!"
Aokiji silently raised his hand, cold air spreading all around, but he never brought down the freezing ability that would end everyone.
The slaves vented the resentment they had accumulated over the years, shouting their yearning for freedom.
As the rousing shouts continued, everyone's consciousness began to grow hazy, but the passionate voices slowly converged into one simple, clear phrase:
"We, we want to go home together! Return to that sea and be human again!"
After a long while, compassion appeared in the eyes of the Marine soldiers who had surrounded them, and even the guns they had raised were involuntarily lowered.
Finally, Aokiji, as the highest-ranking officer, let out a long sigh and said in a low voice, "I'm sorry, but I have my duty…"
◈◈◈
T/N: Comment, give me Power Stones, like and favorite, it all supports me and makes me go foward with this. Appreciate my other stories as well, I guarantee the good work!
If you want 20 chapters ahead of this novel for just $5 or enjoy a large catalog of good novels with excellent translations (free or starting at $1.5): MrBlackWing (you know where to search)
Take a look at the new books I'm translating on my profile, Cyberpunk 2077: A God-Level Skill Every Day and Infinite Worlds: Building the Strongest Harem! They are also on my website for $5 and $1.5, respectively!
That's it and happy reading! (-‿◦)