Roger gripped the hilt of Ace tightly, a surge of boldness rising in his chest. With a mighty swing, he forced Akainu back and let out a hearty laugh.
"With my son by my side, I lack nothing now!!"
His booming voice caught Carl's attention, reminding him of a certain villain from a cartoon back on Earth.
In his memory, that villain ended up getting betrayed by his own son—literally thrown into a pit.
Roger infused powerful Haki into the blade formed by Ace's transformed body. The blade trembled violently, letting out a sharp, metallic clang under the pressure of the Haki.
He slashed forward, unleashing several arcs of sword aura toward Akainu. Calm and composed, Akainu countered with a massive burst of flame, clashing with the sword aura. The next instant, his body morphed into erupting magma, surging toward Roger.
Whoosh!
Flames suddenly ignited on Ace's blade, intertwining with Haki. Roger swung the burning sword at Akainu, but the latter only smirked and, using his magma-elementalized hand, grabbed Ace directly.
The moment Ace's blade touched the magma, the once-roaring flames were snuffed out with a hiss—and Ace's scream rang out instantly.
Roger's face darkened at the sound. He hurriedly poured strength into his arms, yanking Ace out of Akainu's magma.
Thick black smoke rose from the blade, accompanied by a sizzling crackle. This sword—his own son's transformed body—was in agony. The sight made Roger feel like his heart was bleeding.
But what baffled him even more was this: Ace was a Logia-type user of the Flame-Flame Fruit. If he was fire, then why was he being overwhelmed by Akainu's magma? Even Ace couldn't understand it.
And it wasn't just them. In the original timeline, Ace had been just as confused—until Akainu made it clear: his fire was an "inferior flame," naturally weaker than the Magma-Magma Fruit.
As if fated, Akainu now answered that same question again. He shook his arm, casting off clumps of magma, and said coolly:
"It's just ordinary fire. What gave you the courage to challenge magma, which burns at far higher temperatures?"
Roger froze, then his expression turned grim. How could he continue to wield Ace against Akainu now?
He felt deeply guilty toward Ace and didn't want to let his son suffer even a bit more pain.
But then, a weak voice came from the blade.
"Father, I'm fine. With Haki protecting me, I can endure it. Please… use me freely!"
Before Roger could respond, Akainu lunged at him again. Forced into action, Roger swung Ace to meet the attack, pouring even more Haki into every strike.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Explosions echoed non-stop. The clothes formed by Nika's power on Roger's body evaporated into steam under the searing heat. Meanwhile, Akainu's body bore gaping magma fissures—yet they wiggled and healed almost instantly.
Even against powerful users of Haki, the elemental transformation of Logia-types wasn't rendered completely useless. With sharp Observation Haki and agile body control, a Logia user could still evade damage mid-combat without compromising movement.
And magma, as a semi-solid element with tremendous offensive power, was one of the deadliest among Logia types. Not only could Akainu dodge attacks with his magma form, but the lava that erupted from his body also packed a brutal punch—forcing Roger into a hard fight.
...
Elsewhere, a green whirlwind darted through the skies, with thick vines trailing like serpents behind it.
Aramaki stood on the ground, arms spread and split into countless writhing vines. He bellowed with laughter:
"Dragon, you're still just as quick to run! Hahaha!"
The whirlwind suddenly halted in the air, forming the stern face of Dragon. In his palm, he gathered a swirling mass of wind, and from it burst countless green wind blades—shredding the chasing vines into a rain of wooden shrapnel.
But instead of retaliating, Dragon turned away and elementalized again, darting toward the battlefield where Garp was fighting.
He wasn't afraid of Aramaki—he just didn't want to waste time fighting him. He needed to help Garp defeat Kuzan first.
After all, Garp was now merely a puppet, unable to fight at his full strength. Against the peak-form Aokiji, he was at a severe disadvantage.
As a "filial son," how could Dragon just stand by and watch his father take a beating?
But Aramaki wasn't about to let him go. He'd disliked Dragon since their first day in the Marines, and during their academy years, they'd clashed more than once.
Though they once shared a dorm, not even a sliver of camaraderie had formed. On the contrary, Aramaki grew more disgusted with Dragon the longer they spent together.
There was no way he would go easy on Dragon just because they were former classmates.
Seeing Dragon try to flee again, Aramaki narrowed his eyes, then launched himself into the air using Geppo, the sky reverberating with the blast of his ascent.
His right arm morphed into a thick, conical tree spike. With Armament Haki coiling around it, the spike turned pitch black, gleaming with a deadly metallic shine.
Violent Tree Spear!
The hardened tree spike pierced toward the wind current that was Dragon. As a fellow Logia-type user with sharp Observation Haki, Aramaki precisely locked onto Dragon's true body within the wind. Dragon had nowhere to run.
Aramaki's attack angle was devilishly sharp. If it landed, the outcome would be… not pretty.
Dragon stopped holding back. Manifesting his physical form, he lashed out with a claw, roaring,
"Aramaki! Don't push your luck!"
He unleashed his self-developed martial art—Dragon's Claw. His jet-black hand, wrapped in countless micro wind blades, clashed with Aramaki's Violent Tree Spear, crushing it with a surge of inner force.
Crack! Crack! Crack!
The spike shattered under the pressure of Dragon's blow, revealing Aramaki's arm—he'd already shifted his real body elsewhere.
Even though his attack had failed, Aramaki looked completely unfazed. He scoffed.
"Oh? Not running anymore? I knew it. After all, it's been so long since us old classmates met—we had to catch up, didn't we?"
Dragon glared coldly at him.
"There's nothing between us worth remembering. But if you're set on dying today, I'll grant your wish!"
"Hah! Still talking big after all these years? Come on then—show me what you're made of!"
...
Their long-standing grudge erupted into full-blown combat, as hurricane met forest in the skies above.
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+150 chapters on p@treon/tambeerg