A massive island, cloaked in deep shadows, descended from the sky.
The sheer force of its fall sent visible shockwaves rippling through the air beneath its base and along its edges.
Every person on the streets and within the towering structures, upon witnessing this surreal spectacle, stood frozen in place, as if trapped in a dream.
Even though the island was still some distance away in the sky, an overwhelming sense of suffocation gripped their chests, making it hard to breathe.
"An... island?!"
"Why... why is an island falling from the sky?!"
"Run for your lives!!!"
In less than two seconds, panic swept through the city streets, sending people fleeing in all directions.
The colossal shadow cast by the descending island plunged them into darkness.
Above the island.
A pair of bat-like shadow wings extended from Maude's back, keeping him effortlessly aloft in the sky.
Tendrils of black energy pulsed along the edges of his wings, flowing like an unending stream before gathering at his face, neck, and chest—like flickering black flames.
On either side of him hovered Lafitte, wings spread wide, and Brook, who tread the air effortlessly using Moonwalk.
The three of them watched from above as the island plunged toward the city plaza of Pangaea Castle.
Had Gaya's ability been more refined, they might have been able to drop an even larger island.
But even a small island of this scale was enough to cover half the city streets of Pangaea Castle.
"Still too much commotion..."
Arms crossed, Maude looked down, sensing the presence of numerous powerful auras converging below.
Dropping an entire island onto Pangaea Castle was bound to draw immediate attention from the elite guards stationed here—it was an unavoidable consequence.
After all, this was the Holy Land.
"A shame we had to move so quickly... If only Sabo were here to assist..."
"If he could cloak the island in invisibility, it would delay their reaction time. And if we combined that with the Calm-Calm Fruit's ability..."
As Maude's Observation Haki tracked the powerful presences rushing toward the island's impact point, ideas flashed through his mind.
Shaking his head slightly, he shifted his gaze toward the Celestial Dragon estate near the Room of Authority.
"We'll split up. If you see any Celestial Dragons..."
A glint flickered in Maude's eyes as he said coldly, "Capture as many as you can. And if you run into strong enemies, don't get bogged down in battle. This is the Holy Land, after all. Their defenses won't be weak."
"Understood."
"Yohohoho..."
"Then let's move. Make full use of the chaos caused by the island."
As soon as Maude finished speaking, he spread his wings and shot toward the Celestial Dragon estate like a streak of black light.
Lafitte and Brook immediately veered off in separate directions.
Their movements were masked by the overwhelming spectacle of the falling island.
At that moment.
Powerful guards were converging at high speed from all directions.
Among them were numerous CP agents clad in black suits and sunglasses, as well as a handful of CP0 members donning white robes and featureless masks.
"The Float-Float Fruit ability of Golden Lion...?"
A CP0 agent wearing a green-faced mask immediately recalled information about the Float-Float Fruit as he watched the descending island.
Using that power to hurl islands from the sky was Golden Lion's signature move in the Summit War of Marineford.
But Golden Lion was already dead.
So who had obtained the Float-Float Fruit so quickly—and was now using it to attack the Holy Land?
The thought barely had time to take root before reality demanded immediate attention.
With the island hurtling toward them, the CP0 agents had no time for speculation. They leapt onto rooftops, slashing through the air with Shigan-kicks, sending out powerful Rankyaku blades toward the island's base.
Crescent-shaped slashes of compressed air flew through the sky, striking the island's underside and triggering violent explosions.
"Focus all attacks on the island! We need to break it apart before it lands!"
Following CP0's lead, a relentless barrage of Rankyaku and flying sword slashes rained down upon the island's base.
The island's underside lit up with countless bursts of blue energy, resembling a sky filled with fireworks.
The sheer force of the coordinated attacks was enough to slow the island's descent.
Encouraged by the effectiveness of their assault, most of the guards showed relief. But the CP0 members, along with a few others, remained tense.
Even if they managed to shatter the island midair, there was no guarantee they could stop all the debris from raining down onto the city.
No matter what, parts of Pangaea Castle's streets and buildings would be damaged—and civilian casualties would be unavoidable.
"Who in the world is behind this...?!"
The green-masked CP0 agent's sharp eyes narrowed as he pondered.
Shing—!
In the midst of the chaos, a single, blinding slash cut straight through the island at a speed beyond comprehension.
Like a fine white thread slicing through tofu.
In an instant—
The massive island was split cleanly in two, the cut unnervingly smooth.
"Huh?!"
The guards and CP members, still mid-attack, stared in shock as the island separated into halves.
Before they could even turn to see who had struck the blow, two additional flying slashes shot toward the island's divided halves.
BOOM!!!
The two halves of the island exploded into countless fragments of rock.
"While you're cleaning up, don't forget to deal with the rats that slipped in amid the chaos."
A cold, aged voice rang out, silencing everything else around it.
Finally, the guards and CP agents managed to catch a glimpse of the one responsible—
A man clad in a white Taoist robe, glasses perched on his face, gripping a blade emanating an eerie aura.
One of the Five Elders.
"Rats..."
The CP0 agents immediately understood.
Leaving the cleanup to the lesser guards, they changed course, heading straight for the Celestial Dragon estate.
With the intervention of the Five Elders, the Holy Land's defenses had been given a crucial reprieve.
Having already landed within the Celestial Dragon estate, Maude, Lafitte, and Brook instantly felt the powerful presence of the Five Elders sweeping across the entire Holy Land as he made his move.
Maude smirked.
"Not a bad stroke of luck."
Maude paid no heed to the powerful presence approaching from behind. Instead, he lightly stepped onto the rooftop of a spire-like structure within the courtyard, gazing down at the three Celestial Dragons standing in the cloister below.
Fate had led him here.
The very same Celestial Dragon family that Luffy had attacked in the Sabaody Archipelago was now before him.
Among them, the woman with the towering hairstyle—Saint Shalria—was someone Maude had briefly crossed paths with back in Sabaody.
"I-It's you! How are you here!?"
Saint Shalria's eyes widened in shock, staring at Maude, who stood atop the decorative spire.
Compared to her hysterical reaction, her father, Saint Rosward, and her brother, Saint Charlos, were seething with rage at the sight of this intruder in their residence.
Even with death standing before them, they showed no hint of fear.
It was as if their very existence lacked the ability to recognize danger.
Just as the two men were about to erupt in fury, Maude simply placed a finger against his lips—a silent gesture commanding quiet.
Of course, there was no way that alone would shut them up.
Maude knew that all too well.
That's why his shadow had already crept behind them, unseen.
Crack! Clatter—
The sound of their protective masks shattering echoed through the air.
Thud—
The heavy collapse of unconscious bodies followed.
Boom—
A massive chunk of debris from the floating island crashed into the city streets below.
Whoosh—
A piercing sound cut through the air—an airborne Shigan bullet hurtling straight for Maude.
With a slight tilt of his head, Maude effortlessly dodged the projectile aimed at his face.
His gaze shifted toward the figure emerging from the shadows of the cloister.
A tall individual, roughly two meters in height, cloaked entirely in white robes with a full-face mask marked by black patterns.
"CP0... You're quicker than I expected."
"Bacardi Maude!"
A hoarse female voice echoed from beneath the mask, tinged with unmistakable shock.
"A woman, huh…"
Hearing that raspy voice, Maude placed his right hand on the hilt of his blade, Shusui. With a sharp stomp, he launched himself forward.
Crash!
With a single step, the decorative spire beneath him crumbled to dust.
The force of the impact propelled Maude forward like an arrow released from a bow, shooting straight toward the CP0 agent.
"Rankyaku—Swarm!"
Aiseia's nerves tensed as she swiftly kicked out a Rankyaku attack.
A sharp blue energy slash flew toward Maude but shattered mid-air, fragmenting into hundreds of thumb-sized diamond-shaped blades, forming an inescapable net of slashes.
"Tch… I didn't know Rankyaku could be used like this."
Maude's eyes reflected the countless glimmers of blue light. Without hesitation, he swapped places with his shadow clone.
In an instant—
The clone took the full brunt of the attack, torn to shreds.
Meanwhile—
Maude reappeared at Aiseia's flank, blade drawn.
Aiseia's eyes gleamed red as she twisted her body with unnatural agility, evading Maude's strike by a hair's breadth.
Slash—
However, her loose-fitting robe was not as fortunate, shredded by the residual energy of the attack, the fabric fluttering to the ground.
Revealed beneath was Aiseia's lithe yet toned figure, clad in a tight-fitting bodysuit.
Soru!
Feeling the overwhelming pressure from Maude, Aiseia wasted no time. She used Soru, retreating into the shadows at top speed.
"Planning to strike from the shadows? That's a bad habit in front of me."
Maude watched as Aiseia disappeared into the darkness, her fingers poised to unleash another Shigan.
Aiseia, maintaining her Kenbunshoku Haki, suddenly felt a chill crawl up her spine.
The surrounding shadows twisted and writhed, morphing into jet-black spears.
Whoosh whoosh—!
Without warning, the spears shot toward Aiseia from all directions.
"Life Return—Paper Art: Wind Chime!"
Her expression shifted as she swiftly retracted her Shigan stance. Her body moved like a wind chime swaying in the breeze.
The gusts generated by the incoming spears adjusted her movements instinctively, allowing her to narrowly dodge each attack.
One by one, the shadow spears embedded themselves into the ground, forming a jagged enclosure around her.
Though unscathed, Aiseia was now completely trapped.
"Impressive. Both your mastery of Rokushiki and Life Return are exceptional."
Maude observed her calmly. Had she not executed such an advanced Paper Art technique, those spears would have turned her body into a pincushion.
Aiseia remained silent, struggling to break free from the confinement, but her efforts were futile.
"Stop struggling. The moment you stepped into my shadow, this battle was over."
Maude slowly sheathed Shusui.
"You—"
Aiseia's face changed, but before she could finish, darkness consumed her consciousness.
Maude's shadow clone had mercilessly severed her shadow.
Now, with her shadow in his possession, he could later use it to reap the benefits of her physical prowess and combat skills.
With Aiseia unconscious, Maude dispersed the shadow spears.
Her limp body collapsed onto the ground.
In a swift motion, Maude retrieved her shadow from his clone and stored it within his Shadow Casket.
Lifting her mask, he studied her face briefly before replacing it.
Once he had a clear image of her, he could later implant her shadow into a corpse and extract her name and techniques, fulfilling the conditions for harvesting her abilities.
Tap, tap…
The sounds of hurried footsteps drew closer.
Maude dismissed his shadow clone and conjured a shadow rope, binding Saint Shalria and her family together.
"I wonder how Lafitte and Brook are doing."
He muttered to himself.
His Observation Haki sensed multiple strong presences converging from a distance.
"Even if they come up empty-handed, these three will do."
Ignoring the approaching enemies, Maude hoisted the bound Celestial Dragons onto his back. With a beat of his black wings, he soared into the sky.
From above, he surveyed the wreckage of the town below, shrouded in smoke and dust from falling debris.
It looked as though it had been bombarded.
His gaze shifted—several figures were using Geppo to close in on him.
"Got what I came for. Time to leave."
He spoke to himself.
Lafitte, also airborne, held a Celestial Dragon in one hand while aiming a transponder snail camera at Maude with the other.
Adjusting the angle slightly, Lafitte framed Maude against the backdrop of the burning city and the swarm of pursuers closing in.
Click!
The Den Den Mushi's eyes flashed, capturing this moment—one destined to be recorded in history.
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