"There are levels even among flames. Your fire may be strong, but compared to this old man's, it still isn't enough. Fire-based attacks are ineffective against me!"
kane wasn't lying.
The reason a god-tier Devil Fruit was called god-tier was because of the sheer power it granted.
If a fruit worth ten billion berries were that underwhelming, there was no way it could give him the power to clash head-on with someone like Mihawk.
Back then, Mihawk had even used Conqueror's Haki coating.
And yet kane had still endured his attacks and only been injured. Didn't that already say enough?
Ace's expression darkened.
Anyone would be upset after being belittled like that.
But kane had no interest in caring about his feelings.
"All right. If this is all the strength you have, then you'd better hurry and have Whitebeard prepare the ransom!"
Ace's pupils shrank.
"In your dreams! There's no way I'd bring trouble to Pops!"
kane only revealed a disdainful expression.
It was precisely because Ace always acted on his own that the Summit War had broken out in the original timeline.
Even if he had his reasons for this action, in this world, a wrong decision still had to be paid for.
"Cross Fire."
Ace crossed two fingers, and flames burst forth, finally forming a flaming cross that shot toward kane.
"Looks like it's necessary to make you understand the gap in strength between us. I already told you—fire is useless against me!"
The blazing cross charged straight at kane.
But this time, kane neither dodged nor avoided it.
At the same time, flames erupted from kane's body as well.
The fire shot straight into the sky.
The terrifying heat instantly melted the sand beneath his feet.
The flaming cross vanished completely the moment it reached kane.
It was assimilated—and even extinguished—by that ultimate heat in an instant.
Ace's pupils contracted.
He could also achieve temperatures at that level, but only by becoming serious and focusing his power. There was no way he could do it as casually as the Marine in front of him.
The people watching nearby were equally shaken
Even though they had already retreated far enough away, they could still feel the astonishing heatwave.
Faced with such terrifying pressure, Ace's expression became extremely grave.
But very quickly, a resolute look appeared on his face.
"Pops hasn't become King yet. How can I lose here?!"
At the same time, equally powerful flames erupted from Ace's body.
From afar, it looked like two towering pillars of fire pushing against each other.
But it was obvious that Ace's side was being suppressed.
Ace naturally felt it too.
His expression sank, and then he unleashed his strongest move.
"Great Flame Commandment: Flame Emperor!"
Ace bent low, while streams of fire spiraled upward and gathered around him.
The intense heat was already enough to rival the flames surrounding kane.
Then a gigantic sphere of fire rose above Ace's head.
The enormous fireball he condensed had already turned white.
That represented heat taken to the extreme.
Everyone watching stared in stunned disbelief.
"Move! Everyone move! Damn it, are those two trying to destroy this whole town?!" Smoker suddenly roared.
His shout drew everyone's attention.
"Captain Smoker!" Tashigi cried out.
"Tashigi, evacuate the civilians immediately. That attack is too dangerous," Smoker ordered directly.
Tashigi froze.
"Understood, Captain Smoker."
"All Marines, listen up! Evacuate the civilians immediately!"
"Yes, Commander Tashigi!"
All the Marines moved at once.
Even Smoker himself was profoundly shaken.
By the time the battle had reached this stage, he finally understood just how far below them his own strength really was.
And yet he still showed an unyielding expression.
"Even so, I still won't acknowledge your justice!"
On the other side—
"Luffy, your brother is that strong?!" Usopp said in disbelief.
The others wore the same stunned expressions.
Only Vivi's thoughts were on the town now.
Because she was the princess of this country.
"Yeah! Ace is really strong!" Luffy's face was serious.
Because he had an instinct for battle far sharper than ordinary people.
He could tell that Ace was not kane's opponent.
Zoro, standing nearby, also noticed Luffy's expression, then revealed a determined look.
"So that's your ultimate move, huh? It really is dangerous. Since that's the case, I've got one about the same level too!"
After saying that, powerful flames burst from both of kane's hands.
Then he brought them together, and a blazing light suddenly appeared, slowly growing larger, until a gigantic fireball formed in front of him as well.
"Dragon Emperor's Blazing Flame."
The two massive fireballs collided head-on.
A deafening explosion rang out.
At the same time, a terrifying storm of fire spread in all directions, and the shockwave directly hurled giant rocks into the air.
Smoker's eyes shook.
But his shock quickly turned into anger.
"Damn it, what is that old man thinking? Does he not know there are still civilians here?!"
Because everything had happened too suddenly, the people in the town hadn't fully evacuated yet.
They were just about to be swallowed by the flames.
Smoker had already pushed his Devil Fruit power to the limit, turning into dense smoke in an attempt to block the shockwave.
But he also knew very well that he could only stop part of it.
Just as Smoker braced himself to face the storm head-on—
At the edge of the town, an old man wearing a coat of justice appeared.
Then he took a deep breath.
"Fire Dragon's Roar!"
A spiraling wave of dragon fire tore across the side of the town.
The shockwave generated by the explosion was completely canceled out.
The powerful roar cut across the entire town and landed in the distant sea.
Even Smoker could feel the destructive force within it.
Everyone stared at the scene before them in shock.
"It's Vice Admiral kane!" one of the Marines cried out as he spotted him.
"So Vice Admiral kane saved us!"
"Long live Vice Admiral kane!"
The townspeople quickly understood as well.
Then they started shouting along with the Marines.
Excitement also appeared on Tashigi's face.
kane, however, felt none of the emotion of becoming a hero.
He simply did not want innocent people to suffer because of his battle.
As the flames dispersed, the place where the two had previously stood had become like a living hell.
The gigantic crater was unfathomably deep, and at its edge stood a single figure.
Though there were no obvious wounds on his body, he had already dropped to one knee, breathing heavily.
kane was not surprised.
His own attacks were powerful, but the other side was also nearly immune to flame-based attacks.
Achieving this much with fire alone was already enough to satisfy him.
"Shave!"
kane vanished from where he stood.
When he appeared again, he was already right in front of Ace.
"Weren't you the one who said we should have some fun? Well? Are you having fun yet?"
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