As soon as Akainu's voice fell, the black sea suddenly began to churn. At its center, a white vortex emerged, shining dazzlingly against the darkness.
Aramaki's face darkened when he saw this. Gritting his teeth, he growled,
"That Joy Boy... he's like a cockroach. Still not dead?"
Buzz!
A sword of light particles—Ama no Murakumo—materialized in Borsalino's hand. He pushed up his glasses and said calmly,
"Looks like it won't be that easy. Everyone, get ready for battle."
Akainu glanced at Aramaki and said in a low voice,
"Aramaki, Aokiji's abilities won't work well here. You need to shape the battlefield for us."
Aramaki respected Akainu deeply. Hearing that, he nodded slightly. Stretching out his arms, he released a dense cloud of spores behind him that quickly spread into the air.
The moment those spores touched the atmosphere, they grew rapidly, transforming into enormous dandelions. In no time, a floating sea of massive blossoms formed—a sight both surreal and breathtaking.
The others quickly abandoned the floating ice Aokiji had painstakingly crafted and leaped onto the dandelions instead.
Though the dandelions were soft to the touch, they remained stable in the air. Even the tall, heavy Admirals stood atop them without the slightest tilt or tremor.
Aokiji followed suit, landing lightly on a dandelion. He rolled his wrists and grumbled to Aramaki,
"Seriously, Aramaki? You had a move like this and didn't use it earlier? I was struggling down there!"
Aramaki snorted.
"I just can't stand the way you slack off. A little hardship is good for you!"
...
As they exchanged words, the white vortex at the sea's center suddenly exploded. A monstrous wave surged up as Joy Boy soared into the sky atop Zunesha.
Borsalino squinted slightly behind his lenses and raised a finger—
A laser beam shot from his fingertip toward Joy Boy.
Zunesha roared, swinging its trunk to create a circular barrier. The laser struck it with a loud blast before dispersing into fading particles.
Carl turned to glance at Akainu and the others, nodding slightly in acknowledgment. Then he turned his gaze upward toward Joy Boy, who had ascended high into the air. Raising his hand, he unleashed Universal Pull.
From Carl's palm, a vortex of dark energy spiraled outward—a massive, invisible force that clutched Joy Boy and Zunesha in its grip, violently dragging them downward.
Joy Boy laughed heartily, exhaling a dense cloud of black mist. It was the residue of the dark energy from Carl's earlier attack. Now it was finally being expelled from his body.
But the internal damage was already done. Though most of the dark energy had been purged, he could feel the flow of Nika's power becoming sluggish.
As he fell, Joy Boy steadied his breathing. With a few sweeping motions of his hands through the air, he redirected his momentum and broke free from the gravitational pull.
Then he looked toward the distant sea of dandelions and the people standing atop it. He grinned.
"Carl, your subordinates have arrived. Gotta say... they're not bad. They could stand toe-to-toe with those twenty kings from eight hundred years ago."
Carl crossed his arms, the cursed blade Muramasa hovering in front of him. His voice was calm.
"Oh? Envious? Don't you have a loyal companion too? Oh, I'm talking about that one between your legs."
Joy Boy reached up and took off his straw hat.
"I've said it more than once—Zunesha is my comrade, not my subordinate."
He paused, then looked Carl straight in the eyes. A strange glint flickered in his gaze.
"And Zunesha isn't my only comrade."
Carl raised a brow, letting his arms fall slowly. He sent out a silent shockwave, scanning thousands of meters in every direction. Aside from the dying remnants of the Giants and Minks clinging to life with the ancient weapon Pluton, he sensed nothing worth noting.
Joy Boy seemed to pick up on Carl's intentions. Smiling faintly, he ran a hand over his straw hat. When his fingers brushed against a small hole, his smile faltered for a moment, but quickly returned.
He lifted his gaze.
"Don't bother looking. My comrades are already here."
Carl didn't reply. He simply stared at Joy Boy, waiting to see what trick he would pull next.
The straw hat in Joy Boy's hand began to glow with a soft, milky-white aura. The light pulsed outward in expanding rings. Then, with a flick of his wrist, he tossed the hat into the air.
It spun rapidly, releasing blinding light. At that moment, his eyes flared white as he shouted,
"Liberation: The Shadow of D!"
The light exploded from the hat, scattering into multiple glowing orbs.
These orbs landed on newly-formed white flame clouds, each beginning to stretch into humanoid forms. As the light faded, Carl's expression changed—shock and disbelief overtook him.
Even the Admirals standing behind him were stunned. Akainu, rarely shaken, exclaimed,
"How... how is this possible?!"
On those white clouds stood familiar faces.
Ace, Teach, Dragon, Garp, Roger...
The Revolutionary Army's leader, the Marine hero, the Pirate King... Among such titans, Ace almost looked out of place.
The D clan, long thought dead, had returned to the world!
And standing atop the highest cloud was a figure of overwhelming presence and power. The Admirals didn't recognize him, but Carl did.
It was Rocks D. Xebec—the Pirate Overlord from the Valley of Gods era.
In addition to the six familiar figures, there were a dozen others Carl didn't know. But on Mary Geoise, four elders stared in horror.
Even the usually unshakable Nusjuro nearly dropped the hilt of his blade as his face contorted in dread.
Those were the D clan warriors who had shone throughout the last 800 years.
Some of them had even fought alongside Joy Boy against the original Twenty Kings.
...
High above, Joy Boy caught his returning straw hat. He looked at the rip in its brim and sighed.
"A shame... there should have been more among the D clan..."
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+150 chapters on p@treon/tambeerg