Shiki emerged ready to make a bold statement. But honestly, he was stunned by Diarmuid's powerful attack.
Shiki thought he had mastered his Float-Float Fruit, casually dropping islands on people. And while the power of dropping an island might have been comparable to Diarmuid's last attack, it was a few degrees short in terms of sheer intimidation.
Anyone could understand dropping an island, but Diarmuid had pulled a meteorite out of the sky with the naked eye. Who could even comprehend that?
The sheer force of that thing falling was far more terrifying than him dropping an island from miles up. At least an island didn't spontaneously combust on its way down!
His mind raced, but only an instant had passed. Shiki opened his mouth to speak. Sengoku was lightning-fast. The gigantic golden Buddha swung a hand in a sweeping motion, unleashing a powerful shockwave directly at Shiki.
The pirate overlord's words got stuck in his throat. It was incredibly frustrating that he was the only one getting beaten. Both Diarmuid and Sengoku had barely a scratch on them, which was a clear wake-up call for Shiki.
He couldn't win this. He had already realized his recklessness. If he hadn't had to fight Diarmuid, he might have had a better outcome, but Diarmuid and his ability had made him miserable! The thought of retreating had already crossed his mind.
He swung both of his swords, creating powerful slashes that cut through Sengoku's shockwave. Once the idea of retreat took root, Shiki started preparing to flee.
Frankly, if he stirred up a big mess in Marineford and then escaped, he wouldn't lose face. Even if he were more seriously injured, the Marines would still be the ones to look like fools.
On the contrary, his reputation would skyrocket. Not just anyone had the guts to challenge Marineford alone, and even fewer could leave after causing a ruckus. He wouldn't lose anything by leaving now.
But before Shiki could act, Diarmuid moved again. A Gravity Blade shot out, flying toward Shiki with incredible speed.
Shiki's eyes flashed with ruthlessness. He swung his sword, immediately dissipating Diarmuid's attack. No longer hesitating, he flew straight up into the sky, trying to put more distance between them.
"Diarmuid, he's running away!" Sengoku noticed Shiki's intention immediately and roared in anger. If he let this bastard escape from Marineford, his face and the Marines' sense of justice would be trampled underfoot by Shiki. And Shiki would twist his feet into it just for good measure.
The Marines had just captured Roger and were about to execute him. It was a perfect time for their authority to grow. If Shiki pulled a stunt like this, the Marines would be left without any dignity. Roger's execution might not even have its intended effect. Today, no matter what, they could not let Shiki get away!
Sengoku's shout was a warning for Diarmuid to quickly restrain Shiki and limit his movements. But Diarmuid was stunned for a moment, then he aimed his palm at Sengoku. He hadn't expected this.
From what he remembered, Shiki had fought Garp and Sengoku until a third of Marineford was destroyed, yet he hadn't fled. Now, he was trying to run? Was his presence not as motivating as Garp's?
He thought this, but Diarmuid didn't slow down. He didn't try to forcefully restrain Shiki, mostly because he was too exhausted. He would need to rest before he could control Shiki again.
He was a little regretful now. He shouldn't have shown off with "Tengai Shinsei." It was useless and had drained most of his energy. But then he thought, if he hadn't gone all out and used that move, he might never have been able to use it again.
Many things required a perfect moment to become a reality. If he had stopped then, he probably would have needed a lot of time to find that feeling again. Now that he had successfully performed it once and had the experience, a second time would be much easier.
Sengoku was confused when Diarmuid pointed his hand at him. Is this kid trying to betray justice? What is he doing? Is he going to attack me?
But before Sengoku could think more, he felt himself become weightless and float into the air. He instantly understood what Diarmuid was doing. The kid had used his last bit of energy on the meteorite and needed time to recover his power and stamina. He couldn't effectively control Shiki anymore, but he could make Sengoku lose his weight and float.
No longer hesitating, Sengoku took a Soru step toward Shiki. Without the invisible bonds of gravity, Sengoku's Soru was so fast that even he was surprised. He almost couldn't stop!
But an Admiral was an Admiral, and his control over his body was unquestionable. After a few more steps in the air, Sengoku had mastered his new state and had already caught up to Shiki.
"Shiki, what do you think Marineford is? You can come and go as you please!?" Sengoku roared, throwing a punch.
Shiki, floating in the air, met his punch with his own, cursing, "Who do you think can stop me when I want to leave?"
The two of them continued their verbal barbs and fought in the air. Perhaps because of Shiki's injuries, Sengoku actually had the upper hand in the aerial battle, completely overpowering Shiki and preventing him from escaping.
Meanwhile, Diarmuid had calmed himself down. He tore off his t-shirt, revealing his muscular upper body, and stretched. He said to Gion, "Gion, Shiki is trying to run. No matter what, we can't let that happen. Otherwise, what good is our face and the Marines' justice?"
"Yes!" Gion replied, her voice serious.
"I was hoping for a team fight, thinking we could wear him down, but it seems we have to find a way to deal him a serious blow and create an opportunity for Admiral Sengoku to finish him off!" Diarmuid said, his voice low.
"Are you suggesting…?" Gion's eyes widened in surprise.
"I'll go first, you follow up. I'll go and tie up Shiki. When it's time to strike, don't hesitate for a second!" Diarmuid's eyes flashed with ruthlessness as he gave her the order.
Gion's face froze. She knew exactly what he meant. But…
"A soldier must not hesitate, or all will be lost, Gion. We are soldiers!" Diarmuid said, looking at her with a deep gaze.
If he hadn't messed around, the Marines would have definitely captured Shiki. But because of his own recklessness, Shiki might now escape. This was something Diarmuid could not accept!
As soon as he said that, Diarmuid didn't give Gion time to think. He made his body weightless and took a Soru step, flying into the air. He then used several Geppo steps to rush toward Shiki with incredible speed.
Shiki, who was fighting Sengoku, caught sight of the rapidly approaching Diarmuid out of the corner of his eye. He turned around and kicked him with immense force.
Diarmuid wasn't fazed. He crossed his arms, wrapped them in Armament Haki, and blocked Shiki's kick. The powerful force shot through his arms, pushing his body backward. But Diarmuid released a repulsive gravity field behind him, which stopped his momentum.
However, he was now trapped between two forces. Under normal circumstances, he would have just absorbed Shiki's kick and wouldn't have been injured at all. But now, he was taking a direct hit, and he had his own repulsive gravity field pushing against him. His chest swelled, and a little blood seeped from the corner of his mouth.
Shiki was shocked. This savage fighting style was new to him. Shiki, with all his experience, immediately saw the intent. 'Is this kid trying to risk his life?'
If it were anyone else, Shiki might have thought it was a conspiracy. But with Diarmuid, he had no doubt. Even when the kid was a rookie in the North Blue, he wasn't afraid to risk his life. There was no reason for him to be scared now!
A purple light flashed in Diarmuid's eyes, and an invisible gravity was instantly applied to Shiki, causing him to falter. At the same time, Diarmuid reached out and accurately locked onto Shiki's wrist.
Shiki was shocked and tried to struggle, but Sengoku's fist had already landed on his chest. With a loud bang!, Shiki's body froze, and he spat out another mouthful of blood.
Diarmuid pulled him in, wrapping his arm around Shiki's waist in a tight embrace.
Shiki was incredibly quick to react. He immediately threw his two swords, Kogarashi and Oto. The two famous blades spun in the air with the help of his power. Kogarashi forced Sengoku back, and the other, Oto, flew behind him, stabbing directly toward Diarmuid.
Diarmuid didn't even try to dodge. A look of determination flashed in his eyes. He covered his waist with Armament Haki and held Shiki firmly in place.
"Gion!" Diarmuid roared.
In the next moment, blood splattered. Shiki's Oto stabbed into Diarmuid's abdomen, and blood gushed out. Gion had appeared in front of Shiki. Meeting Shiki's terrified gaze, she stabbed her sword, Konpira, toward his heart.
In that moment of life and death, Shiki's power suddenly broke through its limits. Several bloody lines burst from the spot where the ship's wheel was stuck to his head. A powerful aura burst from his body—Conqueror's Haki!
Shiki was one of the few people who could coat his body with Conqueror's Haki, not just use it to knock out weaklings. But because of the wheel, he had rarely used Conqueror's Haki since the Edd War. Whenever he used it, he would be plagued by a splitting headache.
Now, just releasing it was a struggle, not to mention using it to attack. But the aura was still useful and affected Gion's blade. Konpira, which was meant to pierce Shiki's heart, was deflected slightly and pierced through his chest, injuring his lung, just as Diarmuid was wounded in the North Blue all those years ago.
"Gah…" Diarmuid coughed up a mouthful of blood. The blade had not only gone through Shiki but had also pierced Diarmuid's chest. Luckily, Gion was careful and didn't push the sword all the way through.
Gion had needed Diarmuid's words to steel her resolve. Sengoku, however, didn't need any words at all. From the moment Diarmuid took the full force of the blow to restrain Shiki, Sengoku understood his intentions.
A golden light enveloped Gion, Shiki, and Diarmuid. All three heard Sengoku's roar.
"Netherworld Buddha!"
Up until now, Sengoku's attacks had always been filled with righteous golden light, making him look like a Buddha descended from the heavens. But this time, his hand was pitch-black, as if filled with the eerie power of a ghost realm. Despite this, his whole body was still emitting a blinding golden light.
Bang!
When the palm struck, neither Diarmuid, Gion, nor Shiki could escape. The blades in both Diarmuid and Shiki were forced out by the shockwave. Gion was the first to be sent flying by the powerful, destructive force. Then, Diarmuid's arm gave way, and Shiki was finally freed, spitting blood as he fell from the sky. Diarmuid also fell to the ground.
That single palm strike from Sengoku felt like it had taken out all three of them.
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