The Sky God flew at top speed. A golden flash of light pursued it through the sky. Kizaru appeared in the air and fired a countless barrage of laser beams, opening with a powerful attack in an attempt to sink the ship.
Enel and Wiper quickly appeared at the stern. They shot a dense web of lightning from their hands, which formed a massive net in the air, blocking all of the laser beams.
"Garp, don't let them escape!" Sengoku roared, his face twisted with rage.
"Right," Garp said. He suddenly stopped in mid-air, stamping his foot on the air itself. His right arm bulged, and he grabbed Sengoku's clothes. With a low roar, he threw the Fleet Admiral forward.
Sengoku shot out like a rocket, instantly overtaking Kizaru and catching up to the Sky God.
To be able to perform such a maneuver in mid-air and throw someone with such terrifying speed... only Garp, a master of physical techniques, was capable of such a feat.
In a few short breaths, Sengoku crossed a thousand meters and caught up to the Sky God. An infinite golden light emanated from his body, and he transformed into a giant golden Buddha.
"Capone Bege, prepare to die!" Sengoku slammed his palm toward the Sky God, and a massive shockwave of compressed air hurtled toward the ship.
Bege leaped into the air in a flash. A strong killing intent shot from his eyes, and the very sky trembled under his will. He drew his sword and slashed at the shockwave, cutting the astonishing blast of force in two.
At the same time, the space around Sengoku surged like a tidal wave, pressing in on his body and immobilizing him.
Sengoku's expression changed drastically. The golden light from his body surged outwards, and the surrounding space began to collapse.
Bege appeared above Sengoku as if he had teleported. A towering, bloody aura erupted from the cursed sword Hannya, and a terrifyingly vicious sword intent burst forth.
"Beast God!"
Bege used his most powerful sword technique. A hundred-meter-long, blood-red slash appeared out of thin air, cutting through the atmosphere as it shot toward Sengoku at an incredible speed.
Sengoku was shocked. He thrust both hands forward, unleashing another powerful shockwave. The blood-red slash struck the shockwave, instantly cutting it in two. The slash then hit Sengoku's hands. Sparks flew as the Haki-clad Buddha hands resisted the incredibly sharp blade. In an instant, he was sent flying like a meteor, streaking across the sky and crashing into the ruins of Enies Lobby, shattering a thousand-meter-wide chunk of land.
In the newly formed crater, Sengoku climbed out of the rubble, his hands dripping with blood from the massive gashes that had been cut into them.
His face was ashen and ferocious, his chest heaving with rage. He leaped into the air and shot back into the sky.
He is an Admiral-level fighter, after all. It's not likely I can seriously injure him, Bege thought, looking down at the ascending Sengoku.
At the same time, Garp and Kizaru were rapidly approaching.
Bege landed back on the deck of the Sky God. He pressed his hands down on the air, and the powerful, awakened ability of his Devil Fruit allowed him to instantly control a thousand-meter radius of space. The sky churned, and a massive tidal wave of space rushed toward Garp and Kizaru.
The two of them were shocked by the bizarre sight. As the spatial wave rolled toward them, Kizaru quickly retreated.
Garp threw a punch at the wave. The powerful force of the blow shattered it, piercing through and causing a large section of space to collapse.
Bege's face paled slightly, and his eyes sharpened. The shattered space swirled again and rushed toward Garp and Kizaru, sending them flying.
Garp swung his fists, and a flurry of punches shattered the collapsing space, quickly stabilizing it.
He kicked off the air, running wildly in pursuit of the Sky God. The space around him rippled again, pressing in on his body and instantly slowing him down. It prevented him from using Moon Walk, and he began to fall.
But Garp was a super-powerhouse at the peak of physical prowess. With a burst of strength, he shattered the compressing space and leaped back into the air.
Just then, two claps of thunder echoed across the sky. Two thick bolts of lightning shot from the Sky God, striking Garp and sending him flying back.
He caught the lightning bolts in his hands and was pushed back dozens of meters. He then squeezed his fists, crushing the two balls of lightning.
Kizaru was also forced back by two bolts of lightning, retreating to Garp's side.
"We can't catch them," Kizaru said, his face grim.
"Capone Bege has become even more troublesome after his Devil Fruit awakened," Garp said, his own expression dark and ugly.
"I've checked the historical records of the Castle-Castle Fruit users. No one has ever developed the fruit to such a bizarre degree," Sengoku said, flying over. His face was so ashen it looked like it might drip water, and his fists were clenched so tightly that blood dripped from his knuckles.
"There are no useless Devil Fruits, only useless users," Garp said in a low voice. "Every Devil Fruit can be developed to have powerful abilities. The fact that Capone Bege was able to develop the Castle-Castle Fruit to the point of awakening and create such bizarre attacks shows just how talented he is."
Sengoku nodded grimly. Although he hated Bege, he had to admit the man's terrifying talent.
He looked down at the shattered remains of Enies Lobby, and his face grew even uglier.
"Now the World Government is going to give me trouble again. Damn you, Capone Bege."
Bege returned directly to the sky island and arranged for Jessica to stay there, leaving her in Viola's care.
The destruction of Enies Lobby could not be hidden, and soon the entire world knew. The judicial island, a symbol of Marine justice and the face of the World Government, had been destroyed. It was a resounding slap in the face to the World Government and the Marines, delivered in front of the entire world.
Their authority had been trampled. The World Government was furious, and the Marines had no choice but to raise Bege's bounty.
His previous bounty had been 2.2 billion. After the destruction of Enies Lobby, it was increased by a full 600 million, bringing it to 2.8 billion, the same as the Demon Lord of Fear, Andrew.
Of course, in the eyes of most people, this was the bounty Bege deserved. He had defeated Andrew in a head-on battle, so his strength was naturally greater. His bounty should be higher than Andrew's.
Therefore, most people had no problem with Bege's 2.8 billion bounty.
With the increase in his bounty, the enthusiasm of pirates was once again ignited. Countless young people across the seas began to idolize Bege, all of them wanting to join his crew.
Many pirates in the New World began to flock to Bege's territory, seeking a chance to join his ranks.
Enel and Wiper, who had also taken part in the destruction of Enies Lobby, also had their bounties increased by 200 million each.
Enel's previous bounty had been 850 million. With the new increase, it broke the one billion mark, making him the third member of Bege's crew to have a bounty of over a billion.
Wiper's bounty also reached 930 million, just slightly less than Modi's.