Bang!! Bang!!
Bang!!
Gusts of astral wind erupted in midair, blasting outward with every loud crash.
Rayleigh's figure moved at high speed across the battlefield, engaging in a fierce pursuit with the invisible Allen. It looked as if he were fighting thin air.
Sentomaru's eyes darted back and forth, dazzled by the sight.
Flashes of sword light were unleashed from Rayleigh's blade one after another. Whenever they struck the ground, they easily carved out deep trenches.
"These two guys are absolute monsters..."
Sentomaru sighed with a grave tone.
He had heard many tales about the Warlord Allen recently. Although he had expected the guy to be strong, he never imagined Allen could actually trade blows evenly with the legendary Dark King Rayleigh.
To reach this level before even entering the New World... such a growth rate was simply unheard of.
Schwing!!
Suddenly.
A massive blade of light erupted from the sky, cleaving down toward the earth with unrivaled momentum and violently carving out a massive trench tens of meters long.
Within that trench, a spray of blood splattered outward. The distorted air gradually revealed Allen's battered figure lying on the ground, a bleeding slash mark across his arm and chest.
Before he could even get up, Rayleigh's gaze sharpened in the air. Trailing his longsword, he dove down, plummeting at extreme speed like a white comet.
Without a single second to catch his breath, Allen pressed his hands against the ground and executed a kip-up, pushing off with all his might to flip backward and leap away.
Boom!!
Rayleigh's feet slammed heavily into the ground. Using the momentum to crouch, he kicked off fiercely, rapidly pursuing the retreating Allen!
Seeing this, Allen hastily flapped his wings to accelerate and widen the distance. At the same time, he raised a hand, wiped a handful of blood from his chest, and forcefully flung it forward!
The blood, mixed with the secretions of the Explosion Ladybug, transformed into over a dozen scarlet missiles.
Faced with this rapid and dense barrage, Rayleigh narrowed his eyes, locked onto their trajectories, and slightly turned his body to dodge.
However, just as he was about to weave through the blood bullets, his expression suddenly changed.
"Blood Explosion!!"
Boom!! Boom!! Boom!!
Following Allen's explosive shout, the blood bullets surrounding Rayleigh suddenly detonated, blasting out shockwaves of wind pressure and splattering high-temperature slime!
Rayleigh's figure was instantly swallowed by the explosions.
Allen didn't let his guard down in the slightest. With a flap of his black wings, he halted his backward flight. With a mere thought, a cluster of flames ignited fiercely on his back and rapidly expanded.
Sure enough.
In the next instant, Rayleigh's figure shot out from the explosion at top speed. His clothes were stained with drops of high-temperature blood, sizzling and emitting white smoke. However, his skin was coated in a layer of Armament Haki, blocking the corrosive heat.
"Sonic Soul: Flare Burst Punch!!"
Allen roared as violent flames coated his fist, continuously compressing. The moment Rayleigh arrived in front of him, he unleashed a fierce Sonic Punch wreathed in high-temperature flames!
Bang!!
A scorching wave of air rushed at his face. Rayleigh immediately raised his sword to block. That pure, brutal force transmitted through the blade into his hands, jarring his grip with a stinging pain.
The next second, the flames clinging to Allen's fist erupted ferociously!
Boom!!
Rayleigh's eyes widened in surprise. Before he could react, the surging eruption of flames instantly engulfed his entire body!
Allen's eyes gleamed with ferocity. The muscles in his arm bulged as his fist exerted force once more, sending Rayleigh flying away along with his sword.
Without waiting for his opponent to land, Allen willed the flames on his back to expand drastically, burning ever more vigorously. Amidst the dancing firelight, they rapidly condensed into six hideous, crimson dragons!
"Flame Dragon Emperor!!"
Boom!!
A scorching shockwave rippled outward with Allen at the center. With an explosive shout, the six massive flame dragons lunged forward viciously!
Watching the ferocious fire dragons pursuing him from all directions, the rapidly backward-flying Rayleigh narrowed his eyes, revealing a serious expression. He unleashed his powerful Haki without holding anything back!
A rich, pitch-black hue rapidly coated his blade like flowing water, and dark red lightning faintly crackled in the air.
"To force me to use this kind of technique... as a rookie, your performance is indeed worthy of praise."
The corners of Rayleigh's mouth curled up. His feet touched back down on the ground, sliding back over a dozen meters before coming to a halt. He raised his hand, holding his longsword horizontally at his side.
Facing the six crimson fire dragons radiating terrifying heat, he took a heavy step forward, twisted his wrist, and swung his sword with blinding speed!
Schwing!!
A cold gleam flashed! A massive Flying Slash was unleashed from the blade, imbued with berserk Haki. It tore forward at extreme speed, effortlessly slicing all the fire dragons apart with overwhelming force!
Boom!! Boom!! Boom!!
The fire dragons, condensed from compressed flames, violently detonated, but the slash continued toward Allen with undiminished momentum!
Faced with this terrifying attack, Allen hastily threw up both arms to block. He tensed his muscles, pushed his Armament Haki to its absolute limit, and kept the flames on his back burning fiercely, utilizing every possible technique to bolster his defense!
The Flying Slash arrived in an instant! The moment it struck Allen's arms, the berserk Haki contained within erupted completely!
Bang!!
Allen was instantly swept away by the slash, his body flying backward at extreme speed like a kite with a snapped string. His back smashed heavily into the trunk of a Yarukiman Mangrove over a hundred meters away!
"Gah—!!"
Allen opened his mouth and spewed a large mouthful of blood, his face twisted in extreme agony.
The residual force of the slash passed right through his body, directly snapping the mangrove behind him in half. The upper section of the trunk tilted diagonally from the smooth cut and crashed down onto the earth!
Boom!!
The ground trembled violently, kicking up billowing clouds of dust and smoke that filled the air.
After sensing the presence within the dust cloud, Rayleigh dropped his stance and slowly sheathed his longsword.
"My, my."
A voice suddenly rang out from overhead.
Rayleigh instinctively looked up, only to see a beam of golden light descend from the sky. It landed on a tree branch and rapidly materialized into Kizaru's figure.
Kizaru stood on the branch with his hands in his pockets. Wearing his signature sleazy expression, he looked down at Rayleigh with a teasing gaze.
"Chopping down a precious Yarukiman Mangrove just like that... Don't you think you went a little overboard, Dark King Rayleigh...?"
"First a Warlord, and now a Marine Admiral? Give me a break. My old bones can't handle all this tossing about," Rayleigh chuckled and sighed.
Seeing Kizaru appear, Sentomaru couldn't help but complain angrily, "Uncle! What took you so long?!"
"My, my... Sorry, sorry. You've worked hard."
Kizaru waved his hand nonchalantly and asked, "So, where are the Straw Hat kid and his crew?"
"They headed toward Grove 41!" Sentomaru replied loudly, raising a hand to point in a direction.
"Grove 41... That's over by the coast..."
Kizaru stroked his chin and turned to look toward the coast. Then, his body elementalized into a beam of light and shot straight out.
However.
"Hey, hey, hey. Isn't it a bit impolite to just ignore an old man like this?"
In the split second before Kizaru moved, Rayleigh suddenly accelerated and dashed forward. Arriving at a predicted spot, he slashed his sword down right onto the path of light.
The struck mass of light scattered into particles, retreating over a dozen meters away before reforming into Kizaru's body.
The corners of Rayleigh's mouth curled up. He raised his hand, pointing the tip of his sword at Kizaru. "Unfortunately, I have no intention of letting you pass just yet."