Torrential rain poured down onto the sea surface, sizzling as it neared the girl's body.
Beside her, the tall Giant's lion-like, orange fur was soaked by the storm, appearing somewhat pitiful as it clung damply to him.
Though he was already wearing a Marine's uniform, the Justice Cloak behind him had long since slipped onto the icy surface.
The Giant stood tall and straight, just as he had when he first joined the Marine and swore to fight for justice, staring intently at the legendary figure of the Marines before him.
"Tsuru-san, I... I'm quitting the Marines!"
"Saul, this isn't something you can say so lightly!"
Tsuru gritted her teeth, rejecting Saul's rebellious declaration.
As the Great Staff Officer of the Marine Headquarters, she was one of the few people in the world who could see the truth about the government.
But having chosen to join the Marines and uphold the world's order and peace, she was now advanced in years.
How could she, at this point, blame these young people whose passionate hearts had not yet been extinguished?
Tsuru heaved a deep sigh. The tattered but still fluttering cloak behind her seemed to grow unbearably heavy, pressing down on her until she could hardly breathe.
'Order requires sacrifice. It has always been so.'
"This is the law! Do you truly intend to make an enemy of the World Government?"
Tsuru decisively tore off the Justice Cloak behind her. With a hand empowered by her Devil Fruit's Ability, she pressed against her own body, washing away her injuries and the stains she had incurred.
The extraordinary mastery of her Devil Fruit's Ability, far beyond that of an average person, was fully displayed at this moment by this veteran Marine Vice Admiral. Combined with her two types of Haki, honed over decades, it could be said she had almost no weaknesses.
"A law this cruel... I can't do it!"
"I'm sorry, Tsuru-san. I must fight for the justice in my heart!"
Saul's massive body erupted with astonishing power, his spirit subtly rising.
The weapon that embodied his will, Haki, emitted a deafening hum now that his conviction had been clarified.
"Ahahahaha, that's it! Let's cause some real trouble together!!!"
Standing beside Saul, Sakura raised her clenched fists high, a bold and hearty laugh blooming on her face.
At her current strength, facing someone of Tsuru's caliber was still too difficult. Having Saul as an ally was naturally a great help.
'Besides, you're a giant, and I'm practically a giant too when you round up. We're all buddies here, so isn't it great to fight the Marines together?'
"Who wants to join you, you wicked pirate? Dereshishishi!"
The forgetful Saul once again tried to poke Sakura's head with his finger, only to get scorched by the high heat again.
Crying out in pain, he hastily stuffed his finger into the ice beneath him, a wisp of smoke rising from it.
"Tch, this is troublesome. Have the troublesome ones formed an alliance?"
Tsuru rolled up her sleeves, Armament Haki blackening her fists and arms.
In an instant, Haki roared as if the world were crumbling. Within her not particularly robust body lay hidden immense power as she threw a fierce punch toward Sakura and Saul.
The assault was swift, the offensive fierce, nearly lightning-like.
Abandoning any intention of holding back, Tsuru now faced not children or colleagues she wished to reclaim, but enemies.
Naturally, as a high-ranking member of the World Government's violent apparatus, she would exhibit the cold indifference appropriate to such an apparatus.
All for the sake of order!
"Bring it on!"
With an excited look on her face, Sakura leaped high into the air. Black lightning crackled in the void, and dancing flames surged upward from her petite frame.
The water vapor created by Chakra evaporated, the steam spreading through the torrential rain and forming jet boosters behind Sakura.
This unleashed ten thousand kilograms of force from a fist already filled with the monstrous strength of the Giant Royalty's physique, driving it forward in a thunderous strike aimed at Tsuru.
Boom!
After the two fists collided, the impact of tremendous strength clashing with Haki exploded outward. Sakura flew backward head over heels.
"Tss! The Haki... it's drilling into my bones?"
Using Geppo to adjust her posture, Sakura's body crashed into the iceberg she herself had created.
Her right hand, the one that had just clashed with Tsuru, was throbbing with a faint stinging sensation, especially deep within the bones, which felt full of a sore, swollen ache.
For the first time, Sakura experienced what Rayleigh had mentioned before: what it felt like to be at a disadvantage in a clash of wills.
Clearly, her physical strength far surpassed the opponent's, yet her fist instinctively relaxed the moment it made contact with the Haki, directly causing her subsequent force to falter abnormally, leading to her being overpowered.
'Is Armament Haki a powerful force that emerges when willpower overcomes the body's instinct for self-preservation?'
'No wonder Uncle Rayleigh said children shouldn't be exposed to this kind of Haki too early!'
Sakura looked up unwillingly, watching Saul in the distance using his broad palms to block Tsuru's punches.
'Was it truly impossible to fight against the strong fighters on the sea without Haki?'
'No, it couldn't be just that. I still had the power called Chakra.'
'The number of Jutsu I've mastered is too small now. I must find an opportunity to extort that old man severely later!'
Tiger - Bird - Hare
[Water Release: Great Waterfall Technique!]
The surrounding seawater began to rotate rapidly under Sakura's manipulation. The infusion of Chakra made the previously disordered seawater move along a set trajectory.
"Hey, Saul, hold your breath!"
Hearing Sakura's shout, Saul, who was engaged in combat with Tsuru, released his guard and covered his mouth and nose with both hands, even taking several hits from Tsuru for his trouble.
But the spiraling whirlpool of seawater around them surged into the sky, arced through the curtain of rain, and came crashing down with immense force.
"The same technique won't work on me a second time!"
Not relaxing for a moment, Tsuru, who had been monitoring Sakura with Observation Haki, lowered her stance. Using Geppo, she ran at high speed along the pressurized downward current.
She quickly broke away from the battlefield, nimbly landing on a nearby battleship.
"Ugh... Gurgle gurgle!"
Saul was washed by the falling current right next to Sakura. He forcefully pushed his head out of the water, gasping for air.
Struggling to support his body, his clothes torn and blood flowing from his temple, Saul said, "What are you doing, Sakura-chan? I worked so hard to pin down Tsuru-san! Now that she's created distance, she'll be even harder to deal with!"
"Eh? Really? I didn't know that!"
A dumbfounded Sakura whipped her head around, staring blankly at Saul.
"She's just too young after all!"
On the battleship, Tsuru placed her hand on the deck. The power of her Woshu Woshu no Mi spread out, cleansing the negative status effects from the soldiers affected by Sakura's Conqueror's Haki.
"Bunch of lazy louts! How long are you going to make this old woman fight alone?"
"Prepare the artillery!"
Under Tsuru's command, the sixteen state-of-the-art cannons mounted on the sixty-meter-class battleship designated for Vice Admirals were mobilized, aimed at Sakura and Saul on the distant ice floe.
"A Vice Admiral's battleship firing at full capacity can destroy a town in an instant."
"I'll cover your retreat, Sakura-chan! You escape using your abilities!"
Saul straightened up, using his massive frame to shield Sakura behind him.
Even if Sakura was a pirate, such a young child had no reason to face certain death on this cruel sea.
So, following the justice in his heart, Saul proudly puffed out his chest, prepared to fight for his beliefs until the very end.
"Shut up!"
The intense heat around Sakura's body gradually subsided. Her right hand transformed into ice, reinforcing the ground beneath her feet.
The system's crossing button was right before her eyes. If she wanted, she could leave this sea at any moment and escape back to the safe Ninja World.
But... would that really be okay?
The bold declarations she made before Roger and the others, the yearning that rose in her heart when faced with the magnificent ocean and its stories...
If she took even one step back, it would all vanish into nothingness!
Therefore, she could not run. She absolutely would not run, even if it meant dying on this path pursuing her dream!
"I'm the one who brought you here. So I absolutely... absolutely will not let you die!"
Sakura swung her left hand horizontally. A thick layer of frost spread from her hand, instantly coalescing into a gigantic sword of ice.
Gripping the sword with both hands and raising it behind her, dark lightning surged violently around her.
"The Spear of Elbaf? But you didn't succeed before, did you?"
Saul paused for a moment, raising a hand to try and dissuade her.
But Sakura had no time to pay attention to Saul now. She closed her eyes, recalling every detail she had seen on the mural.
In this perilous moment, it instead made her heart grow calmer.
Drip!
The falling rain caused ripples in the lake of her heart. Sakura saw that tall giant swinging the great spear that shook the world towards the sea.
'Will... Haki... forging a path forward!!!'
"I see. I understand now."
A light shone in Sakura's beautiful emerald-green eyes. Her calm voice held no impassioned tone.
Yet, somehow... it made one's heart surge with excitement.
Rising from the depths of her heart was an unparalleled anticipation for the future about to be forged.
The instant she comprehended that will, a smile naturally appeared on Sakura's face.
'So exhilarating.'
The only thing she could do was respond to this emotion with the sword in her hands.
In the distance, on the battleship, a rainbow-like light flashed through Tsuru's pupils. Her Observation Haki, honed through years of life-and-death battles, screamed a frantic warning.
"Not good! Evade!"
Tsuru wanted to give the order, but it was already too late.
The lightning of Conqueror's Haki ran rampant through the void. The girl's clear voice resounded across the entire sea.
"Carve out my future for me… Spear of Elbaf: Ikoku Sovereignty!!!"
In that instant, an endless, sprawling shockwave erupted from Sakura's gigantic ice sword. It connected with the swirling storm and curtain of rain, the ferocious, savage rainbow light appearing like a colossal pillar connecting sky and sea.
Sakura so arrogantly declared her will to the entire sea, without the slightest concealment.
And just as everyone was still reeling from the young conqueror freely surging Conqueror's Haki, a world-shaking thunderous roar erupted from the blade of the great sword.
Rain, waves, even the sea itself… every obstacle in Sakura's path was personally shattered by her.
Suddenly, everything… shattered and crumbled-!
The shockwave, like a mighty torrent, swept away everything. Countless waves were thrown into turmoil, pushing towards the two ships as one unified force.
Boom!!!