"How should we arrange this?" Issho asked softly.
Ortoren rolled his shoulders. The motion tugged at his wounds, drawing fresh blood, but he didn't care in the slightest. With a ferocious grin, he said,
"Leave that Red-Haired bastard to me. You two can split the rest."
"Ochoku and Silver Axe aren't easy opponents," Gion said, her hand resting on the hilt of Konpira. "And on top of that, there's the Red-Haired Pirates' vice captain. That won't be simple."
Ortoren's earlier display might have looked overwhelmingly dominant, even taking on three or four people without falling behind.
That was because he truly broke the mold. He could attack, endure, move fast, and had terrifying stamina. A perfect all-rounder.
Even so, the injuries on his body were no joke. Ortoren himself could endure them, but Gion and Issho might not fare as well under that kind of damage.
"Relax," Ortoren said confidently. "It won't take long to deal with that guy."
Was Shanks strong?
Absolutely. But only to that extent.
In the original course of events, it wasn't until around 1516 that he truly reached the level of a Yonkō and claimed his place in the New World. Now, after years of pressure from Ortoren, he might be a bit stronger than he would have been at this stage, but he still hadn't reached his peak.
Compared to him, Ortoren was far ahead.
Earlier, when Ortoren had gone completely berserk, if no one had stepped in to help, Shanks might already have been beaten to a pulp.
The distance between the two sides wasn't far, and Ortoren had no intention of hiding his plans. Ochoku and the others heard everything clearly.
A calculating glint flashed through Ochoku's eyes as he spoke quickly,
"This is a good opportunity for us too. Red-Haired, do everything you can to keep that guy tied down. We'll deal with those two Marines as fast as possible. Once they're taken out, we'll free up our hands and take on Ortoren together. This is where everything gets decided!"
Shanks felt a dull ache in his teeth listening to that. At this moment, he was already feeling a bit of regret, thinking he shouldn't have intervened back then.
But that was only how he felt right now.
If he were given the chance again, he knew he would still make the same move.
He wanted to rise in the New World too. But the pie was only so big. With Ortoren becoming a Marine Admiral, it was obvious that the Navy would only keep squeezing the remaining space available to other pirates. And the Red-Haired Pirates were firmly counted among those "other pirates."
Even if he hadn't acted today, as long as he wanted to survive in the New World, he would eventually run into Ortoren again.
And next time, there wouldn't be Ochoku or Silver Axe to help him.
If he hadn't acted now, it would only have meant a slower death later.
He had thought about this long ago. That was why he came to Hachinosu in the first place. He wanted to step on Ochoku and climb higher, to see if relying on Hachinosu could change that inevitable decline.
Now, all he could say was that plans never keep up with reality.
Though a trace of regret lingered, Shanks wasn't the kind of person who clung to it. He cut the thought off quickly, tightened his grip on his sword, and said,
"Since it's come to this, all we can do is go all out!"
The moment his words fell, Gion and Issho moved.
They burst out simultaneously from Ortoren's left and right. Issho, confident in his own strength, raised his hand and unleashed crushing gravity, instantly enveloping Ochoku and Beckman.
Gion's gaze sharpened as she charged straight at Silver Axe.
In the next instant, Ochoku, Beckman, Silver Axe, and the others scattered, each engaging Gion and Issho in fierce combat.
...
On the other side, Ortoren didn't rush to attack. He looked at Shanks and said,
"Thinking about it, we've known each other for a long time. I thought there was at least some goodwill between us. I didn't expect you to make this choice."
Shanks replied with a hint of helplessness,
"If it were possible, I'd have liked to be friends with you. But there was never a good opportunity… and after thinking it over, I realized we really couldn't be friends after all."
Ortoren shrugged.
"There's no point talking about that now. Since you chose to attack me, be prepared to die here."
As he finished speaking, lightning began surging out from within Ortoren's body. It seeped through his skin, condensing into dense lightning energy that rapidly formed into an armored layer, clinging tightly to his body.
Shanks wasn't foolish enough to just stand there and watch Ortoren power up. The moment lightning started spilling across Ortoren's surface, he moved.
But the lightning armor was simply too fast.
It took shape in the blink of an eye.
The moment the Lightning Armor solidified, Shanks' slash reached Ortoren's front.
Without hesitation, Ortoren unleashed a burst of Haki from his fist, shattering Shanks' strike with a single blow. This strike marked the resumption of their fierce battle.
A savage grin appeared on Ortoren's face as his eyes flashed with a crimson gleam. His Observation Haki had already locked onto Shanks.
With a crackling sound of electricity, the ground kicked up dust as Ortoren charged toward Shanks.
Shanks' own Observation Haki locked onto Ortoren as well, and with a burst of speed, he quickly retreated. The spot where he had been just moments before erupted in dust, the ground trembling from the shockwave as Ortoren's fist dug deep into the earth!
Shanks had no intention of facing Ortoren head-on. He didn't even think about how to defeat him, knowing full well he couldn't win. His regular slashes couldn't break Ortoren's defenses, and in a one-on-one fight, Ortoren would easily avoid any of Shanks' more advanced techniques, like Kamusari.
From the very beginning, Shanks' only thought was to stall for time. The outcome of this battle depended entirely on whether Ochoku and Beckman could free themselves in time!
"I just need to stall with all my might... I should be able to manage that, right?" Shanks thought to himself.
Before that thought could even fully settle in his mind, dozens of lightning pillars shot through the dust, charging straight for him.
The sheer number and wide spread of these bolts made evasion impossible. Shanks quickly raised his Gryphon sword, swinging it in a series of quick slashes, cutting down every lightning pillar aimed at him with sharp, crackling precision.
As the last bolt was cleaved apart, Ortoren was already in front of him.
Ortoren pressed his palms together, fingers splayed like claws, as if preparing to unleash something devastating. A brilliant flash of lightning mixed with Haki swirled in his palms. The moment Shanks saw him, Ortoren thrust his arms forward with a violent push, sending the combined power of lightning and Haki crashing toward Shanks.
"Day Tiger!!!"
The distance was too close, and Shanks couldn't avoid it. A cold, determined look flashed across his face. He wasn't planning to defend—his Gryphon sword remained unsheathed as he swung it through the air in a graceful arc. Overwhelming Conqueror's Haki coated the blade!
"Kamusari!!!" Shanks shouted!
His slash tore through the air, striking the Day Tiger head-on.
The collision between the slash and the lightning energy expanded in an instant. But before it could be decided, Ortoren turned into a bolt of lightning, appearing behind Shanks.
"Lightning Kick!" A sweeping roundhouse kick aimed straight for Shanks' throat.
Shanks' heart skipped a beat. Had he underestimated the Day Tiger, thinking it was just a distraction?
With no time to dodge, he channeled Conqueror's Haki into his arm, blocking the kick at the side of his neck.
In the next instant, Ortoren's powerful kick slammed into Shanks' arm. The thick Haki shattered with a loud crack. A flash of pain crossed Shanks' face as his footing faltered. He lost his grip on the ground, and Ortoren's kick sent him flying.
Simultaneously, Ortoren stretched his arms wide, unleashing another powerful burst of lightning. He stomped the ground, rocketing upward like a meteor, trailing lightning as he closed in on Shanks.
Shanks, now hovering half a meter above the ground, couldn't adjust his posture in time. As Ortoren appeared overhead, Shanks jabbed his Gryphon sword into the earth, anchoring himself and carving a deep trench dozens of meters long as he tried to regain control.
Before Shanks could steady himself, Ortoren came down from above, swinging his leg in a vicious war-axe-style downward strike.
"Righteous Lightning's Wrathful Thunder Axe!!!"
Shanks, throwing aside all dignity, lunged to the side like a cornered animal, desperate to evade.
The next moment, a powerful gust of wind whipped past his waist and abdomen. Even though it didn't make direct contact, the sheer force of the strike caved in his stomach, tearing through flesh and bone!
With a deafening crash, the ground shattered beneath him. Shanks hit the ground hard, but he ignored the pain from the debris raining down on him. Rolling forward without hesitation, he launched himself into a powerful leap, not looking back.
Sure enough, the next moment, Ortoren's heavy fist slammed into the spot where Shanks had just rolled.
But just as Shanks thought he had evaded the blow, two solid laser beams shot from Ortoren's eyes. With a high-pitched whine, they struck Shanks' back, instantly piercing through him, spraying crimson blood into the air.