Deep in the forest, far from the main battlefield, another life-saving rescue was quietly underway.
The young Kuma, who had only recently acquired the powers of the Paw-Paw Fruit, was working hard to understand and utilize this sudden surge of strength.
Before him stood dozens of scarred Slaves and civilians, their eyes reignited with hope.
He gently pressed his palm, which had transformed into a pink bear paw, against the back of a frail woman, the paw pad sinking in slightly.
The next moment, with a startled cry, the woman's body turned into a blurred streak of light, shooting away from God Valley toward the horizon at an incredible speed, vanishing into the sky in an instant.
"Th-thank you! Thank you so much!!"
"Move quickly! Next!" Kuma's voice remained honest and simple, yet it carried an undeniable urgency.
Beads of sweat covered his forehead; using his ability continuously was a massive burden, but he did not stop.
An elderly slave grasped his hand, tears streaming down his face: "As long as we can leave this hell... anywhere else is heaven!"
Another young man choked out: "We... we had already given up, thinking it would be fine to die here... thank you... thank you for giving us a chance to live!"
Amidst cries of gratitude mixed with hope, one figure after another was sent away by those gentle yet powerful paw-palms.
They flew toward an unknown distance; their future might be uncertain, but at least they had escaped this slaughterhouse designated by the 'gods'.
In his most simple way, Kuma was practicing the oath of liberation established in his young heart, much like the legendary Sun God Nika.
Beside him, little Ginny watched this scene, looking at Kuma's focused and determined profile and the people flying toward freedom, as tears silently slid down her soot-stained cheeks.
It wasn't sadness, but tears of joy from a successful plan, struck by the purest kindness, a mix of emotion and pride... On the other side of the island, the 'game' prize storage area.
"Hey! Everyone, come look! I found treasure~~!!"
Gaban's excited shout drew the members of the Roger Pirates over.
They had broken into the'Second Warehouse' that the Celestial Dragons hadn't had time to relocate.
Inside was a dazzling array of gold, silver, jewelry, antique artworks, and several ornate treasure boxes—undoubtedly containing precious Devil Fruits.
"Wow! I've never seen so much! This level of treasure is enough for us to throw countless banquets!" Spencer's eyes gleamed.
"There are several Devil Fruits too! Quick, take it all! Leave nothing behind!" The other Crew members were also eager to get started.
For pirates, this was undoubtedly the sweetest moment of spoils in a nightmarish day.
However, joy is always fleeting.
"Hand over the goods, you Roger Pirates bastards~~!"
Accompanied by a strange cry, a 'Booger Bomb' whistled through the air, aimed straight for the back of Gaban's head!
Without even turning around, Gaban swung his axe back, precisely deflecting the disgusting explosive into a corner of the warehouse, causing a small explosion.
Everyone turned to see Byrnndi World, an executive of the Rocks Pirates, leading a group of subordinates and blocking the warehouse entrance, greed flashing in his eyes.
Almost simultaneously, the roar of Marines came from the other side of the passage:
"Don't let these pirates leave the island with the treasure! Reclaim the property of the Celestial Dragon lords!"
A Navy Vice Admiral arrived, leading a force with his blade drawn.
The warehouse instantly descended into a small-scale chaotic battle between the Roger Pirates, a portion of the Rocks forces, and the Marine, all fighting over the treasure and fruits... The coastline.
A group of civilians and scarred Slaves, who had luckily escaped the hunt and broken through layers of obstacles in the chaos, finally stumbled onto the shore.
They saw the Marine warships anchored in the shallows; those pure white sails and the fluttering Seagull flags seemed like arks of salvation to them at this moment.
"Marine lords of the World Government! We beg of you!"
A slave who had lost an arm screamed with all his might, his face a mess of blood and humble pleading:
"Let us board! Take us away from this island of hell! I beg you! We haven't done anything wrong!"
Behind him were dozens of faces similarly filled with fear, exhaustion, and a final sliver of hope—the elderly, women, and children.
However, what met them was not a lowered gangway or reaching hands of rescue.
BOOM—!!!
A cannon fired, and a searing shell landed among the crowd.
A Marine officer stood by the railing and said coldly:
"According to the 'Regulations on the Relationship between World Government Member and Non-Member States' and the Special Military Operation Code of Conduct for this mission, God Valley, as a non-World Government member territory, its residents do not fall within the scope of regular Marine rescue. Therefore, they are not within our rescue range."
Hope was crushed in an instant by a deeper despair.
They had escaped the 'hunters' only to die under the fire of the 'protectors'... Meanwhile, an indescribably powerful aura swept across every inch of God Valley.
All the powerhouses currently fighting, fleeing, or competing froze in their tracks.
"Boss! Look over there! It's Rocks and the others!" a pirate lackey exclaimed, pointing at Charlotte Linlin's distant silhouette.
Roger looked solemnly toward the area where that aura was coming from and tightened his grip on the hilt of Ace:
"Now is not the time to worry about Rocks! Can you feel it... something incredible... has come out!"
...Rocks' main battlefield.
Rocks held his blade with one hand, leaning on it as he stood, panting heavily.
His body was covered in small wounds, but his presence remained like that of a wounded lion, his ferocity undiminished.
Around him lay over a dozen corpses of the davy clan who had completely lost their vitality and reverted to human form, as well as two Gods Knights—they lay in pools of blood, their bodies twisted, clearly having lost the ability to fight, with terror still lingering in their eyes.
Not far from Rocks was a battered Galin Saint.
The ornate clothing of this God's Knights commander was already tattered, and the gashes on his forehead and body were deep enough to see bone. Although the black energy was still trying to repair them, the speed was extremely slow under the influence of Rocks' powerful Haki.
He lay on the ground, his face covered in blood, his previous arrogance and composure completely gone, leaving only unbelievable frustration as he roared inwardly:
'Damn it...! This monster... is actually strong to this extent?!'
Rocks slowly raised his head, his eyes Burning with a rage that could destroy everything as he looked at the corpses of his kin:
"How dare you... turn my precious family... into this..."
"Rather than letting scum like you kill them..."
"I will—personally, send them to their rest!!!"
Just then, heavy footsteps approached from the side and rear.
"Gurararara... It seems things are quite lively on your end too, Rocks."
Newgate arrived, shouldering Murakumogiri, his presence still as steady as a mountain after his fight with Roger. He glanced at the tragic battlefield and grinned.
Rocks didn't turn his head, but his tensed muscles seemed to relax slightly:
"Are you here to help me? Newgate, there's no profit in this."
"Don't worry about that," Newgate stood beside Rocks, facing the monster emerging from the forest with him.
"After all, I've been freeloading your sake all this time!"
"Wororororor!!!!"
A sky-shaking cheer approached from afar, and a massive indigo shadow swept across the sky, appearing above the left side of Rocks.
Kaido, in his Azure Dragon form, felt the vast power of the legendary creature 'Azure Dragon' surging within him, unable to contain his excitement:
"Hey! You two! Look! I've gained an 'ability' too! Worororo! This power... is amazing! I really want to test it out!"
Looking at Kaido, who was clearly in a state of euphoria after obtaining the power he had dreamed of, Rocks showed his first hearty and ferocious smile since the battle began:
"Well done, Kaido! As far as I know, this is the happiest you've ever been, kid?! Muhahaha!"
Newgate's gaze did not linger on Kaido; he looked straight ahead and asked in a deep voice:
"While it's a happy occasion worth celebrating... can I ask something first?"
He gripped Murakumogiri tightly, pointing toward the center of that extremely unsettling darkness.
"What exactly is that 'thing'?"
As if in response to his question, that distorted darkness suddenly boiled and expanded!
Thump! Thump! Thump!
Heavy footsteps sounded, and a massive silhouette slowly stepped out from the darkness.
It was a strange creature; a humanoid silhouette in a long robe appeared atop a massive Gyūki head. Though its face was unclear, the 'weight' of its presence allowed every living being who saw it to feel its power and strangeness.
The 'Gyūki'... or rather, the avatar carrying Imu's will, descended upon the center of the battlefield!
An unprecedentedly terrifying aura erupted with it as the center, sweeping away everything!
"Sa-Saturn Saint?! That form... just what..."
In the distance, a Marine general who recognized that some characteristics of the monster originated from Gorosei Saturn cried out in shock.
In the distant dense forest, Roger's eyes widened. Far from feeling fear, he burst with a Burning brilliance, laughing as his voice pierced through the oppressive atmosphere:
"How grand! What an incredible day of adventure! I really am still so ignorant!"
Charlotte Linlin, who had arrived from behind the trio of Rocks, already had three swords gripped in her hands and whispered: "Is that Imu possessing Saturn? He doesn't feel human at all."
Rocks took a deep breath. He looked at the monster and said to the solemn-faced Newgate beside him:
"You were just asking 'what is that', right?"
Newgate tightened his hold on Murakumogiri, his gaze locked onto the approaching terrifying giant shadow, and said deeply: "Yeah. In any case..."
Rocks slowly split his mouth into a wild, ferocious grin and announced in a voice loud enough for the few people present to hear:
"That is—!"
He paused for a moment, as if to brand this word into the heart of every powerhouse present,
"The 'World'!!!!"
The true final battle began with Rocks' declaration.
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