"My my, kid, you actually blocked my kick. What kind of ability is that?"
Borsalino's curiosity was genuine. His light-speed kick almost never met resistance.
Yet his full-strength strike had failed to crack that invisible shell.
Boom.
Magma roared in from the flank. The molten fist met the swirling Repulsion Storm around Rakuya with a furious hiss, steam billowing where fire touched the field. Sakazuki's punch could not advance an inch. Everything was kept outside.
His face went dark. One blow, cleanly stopped.
If Sakazuki was grim, Borsalino was stunned for a different reason.
That barrier had stopped his elemental body.
Outside of Armament Haki hardening, only seastone or seawater could reliably catch a Logia. The shell hadn't blackened, so it wasn't Armament. It clearly wasn't seastone, and it certainly wasn't water.
"Brat, what is that power? To grab a fluid body and blunt a fluid strike… I am very curious."
The photons drew together into a man again. Kizaru cocked his head.
"No comment."
Rakuya lifted his hand, voice calm.
"Hmph."
The clipped reply wiped the lazy smile from Borsalino's lips. The kid's attitude irked him.
"Borsalino, stop wasting time and finish him," Sakazuki said, brim pulled low, eyes like knives beneath the cap.
"Now now, Sakazuki. I want a round with him first. You and I are both monsters, remember? We still don't have a proper result between us. How about we use this kid as the punching bag and settle it?"
Before Sakazuki could answer, Zephyr cut in.
"No. He is strong. Stronger than you think. You must not fight him alone. Fall back. I will take point."
"Absolutely not, Instructor. You are a pillar of the Navy. Leave a small matter like this to me."
"You will die," Zephyr snapped.
Borsalino ignored the warning and smiled at Sakazuki. "Today, you and I decide it with his two hands."
His body burst into light. As long as he moved, he believed, the boy would never track him.
It was confidence born from the Pika Pika no Mi.
"Light-speed Kick."
Whoosh.
A streak of gold tore across the air. You could not catch it with the naked eye unless you had Observation Haki. Rakuya had never trained the three colors.
Thud.
The photons knit back together at a blind angle. Kizaru hung upside down for a heartbeat as his heel slammed into the thinnest point of the barrier.
Crack.
A hairline fracture spread across the repulsive shell.
"Heh. Borsalino really will be a future Admiral. At this age he already wields his fruit this well."
Rakuya read the feedback running through the field and couldn't help but be intrigued.
This was only a lazy, partial Repulsion Storm. Compared to his full power, it was a candle to the sun.
If he released repulsion at its maximum, he was certain: even if every powerhouse in this sea attacked together, they would not mar it by so much as a scratch.
For now, the shell was nothing more than a gauge for Borsalino.
"Hey."
Seeing that fine spiderweb line, Borsalino's confidence surged. "You'd better pray that shell lasts, kid. Otherwise, I can't promise my kick won't kill you."
"Shameless boast."
Rakuya didn't bother to look at him. He actually yawned.
"Light-speed Kick."
Cold light flashed. Borsalino drove his heel down with everything he had.
Boom.
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