~ Thank You for 2,400 Powerstones, Here's Your Bonus Chapter!
~ 18 Advanced Chapters Available on my Patreon
<><><><><><><><>
Even the Rear Admirals and Commodores had grasped the horrifying implication—how could Yamakaji, a Vice Admiral, not see it?
Despite unleashing his full strength—swordsmanship, Haki, Six Powers—he couldn't gain any ground against Black Leg in a one-on-one fight!
Black Leg—already possessed Vice Admiral level combat power.
Add to that the even stronger Straw Hat Luffy.
And Pirate Hunter Zoro and Desert Princess Vivi, who had just defeated Vice Admiral Onigumo together. Plus Cat Burglar Nami, Devil Child Nico Robin, Sniper Usopp, Sky Sovereign Rowen's pet Chopper, and that cyborg Franky.
Though fewer in number, this was practically the configuration of a complete Emperor crew.
The Straw Hat Pirates now posed a threat equal to, perhaps even greater than, a full Emperor crew!
And this crew... had only been active for less than a year.
Even against Whitebeard's crew, led by the World's Strongest Man himself, they wouldn't have suffered such devastating losses so quickly...
Sky Sovereign Rowen's bizarre abilities were endless.
That Awakened Door-Door Fruit ability, appearing so suddenly had caught them all completely off guard.
With Rowen at the helm—who could confidently claim this crew was any less threatening than a full Emperor's force??
Emperor crews didn't have the Rumble-Rumble Fruit's terrifying sensory range, nor the Ultimate Human strategic intellect of the Human-Human Fruit, nor the Awakened Door-Door Fruit ability that nullified all long-range attacks.
And they certainly lacked Sky Sovereign Rowen's endless supply of unexpected, devastating tactics and his uncanny ability to outmaneuver Marine HQ's intelligence.
And Straw Hat, Pirate Hunter, even Black Leg before him—were clearly still in their rapid growth phase!
Straw Hat and Pirate Hunter both possessed Conqueror's Haki...
To have such Haki and strength less than a year after setting sail—with Rowen's guidance, mastering Haōshoku Coating was only a matter of time.
If they truly mastered Haōshoku Coating, then the Straw Hat Pirates would have three super-powerhouses with Emperor-level strength!
Though Black Leg Sanji didn't have Conqueror's Haki, he had undoubtedly shown the potential to reach Admiral-level strength... At the very least, achieving the strength of his former teacher, Zephyr, was highly probable!
And with the Sand-Sand Fruit user, Desert Princess Vivi, and the others...
Thinking of all this, Yamakaji felt cold sweat trickling down his back.
If these people were allowed to fully mature—combined with Sky Sovereign Rowen's power...
Even the Roger Pirates back then weren't this monstrously strong, were they??
<><><><><><><><>
"Still not enough?"
While Yamakaji fought with growing trepidation—Sanji felt his own power was still insufficient.
What was the point of fighting this Vice Admiral to a standstill??
That moss-head had already defeated the Eight-Sword Style Vice Admiral—though Vivi's assistance certainly helped, and he himself had Nami's Rumble-Rumble powered Clima-Tact support earlier.
Now, with his strength massively amplified, taking down this Vice Admiral was Sanji's only goal!
With a powerful side kick, Sanji created some distance between himself and Yamakaji.
"Hah!"
Sanji exhaled sharply, his eyes narrowing in intense concentration.
Whirl! Whirl! Whirl!
He spun at an even greater speed, the friction with the air generating incredible heat. His awakened Exoskeleton allowed his body to withstand these extreme temperatures.
"ARMAMENT——!" Sanji roared.
FWOOSH!
Under Yamakaji's shocked gaze, the flames normally coating Sanji's right leg transformed—
—into blazing blue fire!
"Ifrit Jambe—!"
An upgraded version of Diable Jambe—even hotter flames—combined with his Exoskeleton and Armament Haki!
Ifrit Jambe—Sanji's current Strongest Ability!
"HAAAH!" Having just awakened his Exoskeleton, using this technique placed an immense strain on Sanji's body.
Wasting no time, Sanji, propelled by the terrifying speed granted by his modified Lineage Factor, shot towards Yamakaji!
"Moonwalk?? And Shave in mid-air??" Yamakaji's face paled upon seeing Sanji's movements.
Moonwalk and Shave both placed immense strain on the legs; combining them created a terrifying burden even a Vice Admiral's physique couldn't handle!
Because it was pure physical strain—Haki and other powers couldn't assist! Only a special modified human like Black Leg could withstand such a horrifying burden with their physique!
<><><><><><><><>
"I'LL TAKE THIS ATTACK HEAD-ON!!" Yamakaji roared.
Sanji's speed now surpassed his own—facing this attack, Yamakaji's only option was to block head-on!
And as a Vice Admiral who had mastered the Six Powers to an extreme—his strongest defensive method was, of course, the combination of Armament Haki and Tekkai!
"Armament——! Tekkai——! Go (Steel)——!"
Yamakaji braced himself, coating his entire body in dense Armament Haki, then activated his strongest Tekkai!
<><><><><><><><>
"Première Hachis——! Deuxième Hachis——! Troisième Hachis——! Quatrième——! Cinquième——! Sixième——! Septième——! Huitième——!"
Sanji instantly appeared before Yamakaji, his Ifrit Jambe unleashing a relentless barrage of kicks targeting every part of Yamakaji's body!
Each kick made Yamakaji's face contort in pain!
The Ifrit Jambe, with its blue flames, Armament Haki, and Exoskeleton power—even Armament Haki combined with the strongest Tekkai was struggling to hold!
His Armament Haki was being rapidly depleted; his strongest Tekkai was gradually breaking down!
"Ifrit Jambe—! Boeuf Burst——!!!" Sanji roared, unleashing his strongest kick!
FWOOSH! CRACKLE!
Accompanied by a burst of fire and explosive lightning—Ifrit Jambe's finishing move slammed heavily into Yamakaji's abdomen!
CRACK!
His Armament Haki and strongest Tekkai shattered simultaneously!
Yamakaji sprayed out a mouthful of blood, his eyes rolling white.
THUD!
Yamakaji's body crashed heavily to the ground, unconscious!
"VICE ADMIRAL YAMAKAJI!" The surrounding Marine elites yelled in horror.
Vice Admiral Yamakaji—defeated!
Marine HQ Vice Admiral Yamakaji VS. Black Leg Sanji—
Victor: Black Leg Sanji!
<><><><><><><><>
"Hah... hah..."
Thud!
Sanji, having retracted his Ifrit Jambe, collapsed to the ground, gasping for breath. Using that power for the first time had nearly exhausted all his stamina.
"Not bad, Pervy Cook," Zoro commented, having defeated Onigumo, his own stamina and Haki also at their limit. He pulled off his green bandana, smiling at Sanji.
"Hmph. Goes without saying, Moss-head," Sanji grinned back.
Then, Sanji and Zoro's gazes both turned towards the center of Enies Lobby's main island.
Their battles here were won—but the most important fight was far from over.
The battle between Rowen and Akainu...
Zoro and Sanji's expressions turned grim.
Their Observation Haki could sense something unusual there.
<><><><><><><><>
"Hm? So the Exoskeleton finally awakened?"
Rowen, of course, had noticed the situation on Sanji and Zoro's battlefields. He smiled upon seeing Sanji's Exoskeleton awaken.
With it awakened, Sanji's combat power leaped to Pale Gold tier—Vice Admiral level. Even on these vast seas, he could now be considered a truly strong fighter.
Ifrit Jambe's power was astonishing.
The Exoskeleton even allowed Sanji to wield blue flames, whose temperatures surpassed the limits of the Flare-Flare Fruit. Sanji's Ifrit Jambe was easily comparable to the power boost of a T1 level Devil Fruit.
And Rowen—could also grant Sanji Conqueror's Haki.
Ifrit Jambe combined with Armament Haki was already incredibly powerful—if they added Haōshoku Coating and the Exoskeleton's enhanced physique?
Sanji reaching Emperor-level strength was not a pipe dream!
And more importantly—with Sanji's Exoskeleton awakened, the Modified Exoskeleton Trait's status had also updated for Rowen.
Once equipped, Rowen would instantly gain the Awakened Modified Exoskeleton Trait!
Its combat potential was evident through Sanji's current performance—astonishingly powerful!
The Exoskeleton Trait itself acted as a strength multiplier—the stronger the user, the stronger the Exoskeleton's amplifying effect.
With Rowen's current physique and power, combined with the Exoskeleton Trait—it could more than compensate for his own lack of formal martial arts training!
'I wonder how it would compare to Big Mom's monstrously tough body...' Rowen smiled inwardly.
But now wasn't the time for such thoughts...
Rowen, with his Human-Human Fruit enhanced intellect, processed all these thoughts in an instant, his gaze now fixed intently on the dissipating energy storm at the center of the battlefield.
<><><><><><><><>
"Gurgle..."
Akainu's figure had completely vanished.
That entire area was now a sea of magma, churning and bubbling like a living volcano.
Gurgle!
With a surge of boiling magma, a figure composed entirely of magma climbed out from the bottom of the magma world.
HISS!
The intense heat from the magma made contact with the atmosphere, producing a hissing sound. Akainu's figure slowly reformed.
His face was incredibly grim.
Akainu now looked somewhat battered—Blood trickled from his forehead and the corner of his mouth.
But his body—still stood firm, like an active volcano.
<><><><><><><><>
"Monster!" Both Akainu and Rowen simultaneously cursed inwardly, looking at each other.
Akainu's thought was: That frightening attack posed a significant threat, especially that final Explosive Lightning. Its destructive power exceeded the supposed limits of the Rumble-Rumble Fruit. No wonder Aokiji was so thoroughly defeated by this brat!
Even 'he' had suffered injuries despite using his Magma-Magma Fruit to temporarily immerse himself in the magma pool below, creating a localized magma world to mitigate the initial impact.
Rowen's thought was: 'The Magma-Magma Fruit is really annoying. To instantly submerge himself in a magma world like that to avoid damage... as long as there's solid ground beneath him, he can create one anywhere!'
And Akainu's durability. it truly was as monstrous as in the original story!
A tank—an absolute tank!
Even after taking Rowen's Flying Raijin and the initial blast from the exploding Thunder Serpent, Akainu only shed some blood.
After recovering for a moment in the magma world, his aura hadn't weakened at all. Just like his performance in the Summit War—a virtually unkillable super-tank!
His long-range attacks alone couldn't kill this guy.
Rowen's attacks had landed so cleanly only because Akainu, enraged, had lost his cool and prematurely unleashed Meigo.
Rowen used that opening for his Flying Raijin, breaking Akainu's defenses, which created the opportunity to launch his Thunder Serpent - King Cobra.
Using similar attacks now would be a waste of energy—Akainu would simply submerge himself in the magma
<><><><><><><><>
"Your subordinates... seem to have been routed," Rowen commented calmly, looking at Akainu.
"Hmph! As long as I eliminate you—the Navy will prevail," Akainu retorted coldly, his voice completely devoid of emotion.
For Akainu, achieving victory justified any sacrifice.
Iron-blooded Justice—that was Akainu's way!
Though Onigumo and Yamakaji were defeated, Pirate Hunter and Black Leg were also likely at their limit in terms of stamina and Haki.
"The Door-Door Fruit combined with the Rumble-Rumble Fruit... certainly irritating. But how many times can you sustain those attacks??" Akainu sneered, a cruel smile playing on his lips.
Rowen didn't deny it.
The Flying Raijin technique combined the Door-Door Fruit, Rumble-Rumble Fruit, and Haōshoku Coating.
Using two Devil Fruits, plus Haki, unleashed simultaneously in dozens of full-power attacks. Even with the Rumble-Rumble's Awakened stamina recovery and the Human-Human Fruit's enhanced physique—the consumption of both stamina and Haki was immense...
Besides, his earlier attacks had already shown that simply using Flying Raijin against Akainu, while effective against Akainu, weren't decisive.
Akainu's physique was just too damn durable, and he could immerse himself in magma world to recover...
Ultimately, Rowen's Haki wasn't yet strong enough to deliver a fatal blow to Akainu.
But—
"Hah... Why don't you test out... my new power?" Rowen asked, taking a deep breath, looking at Akainu.
"WHAT??" Hearing that, Akainu's pupils constricted sharply. 'New power?! Does this brat have more tricks up his sleeve?!'
He couldn't dismiss Rowen's words now.
Bloody experience had taught him how incredibly dangerous and versatile this brat was!
——
—[Asura Aura (Special)—equipping complete!]—
——
A bizarre purple-black light erupted from Rowen's eyes.
The Asura Aura Trait, started back in Shells Town from Zoro—had now, finally, been fully loaded!
WHOOSH!
Asura Aura—activated!
<><><><><><><><>
~ 18 Advanced Chapters Available on my Patreon!
https://p-atreon.com/dragonnx
(Just remove the hyphen to access Patreon normally.)
<><><><><><><><>
~# Keep the chapters coming — Support with Power Stones!
~# Every 300 Power Stones = Bonus Chapter