After the "friendly sparring" with Garp and the "polite greeting" from Newgate, the Oro Jackson finally enjoyed a few days of peace on the open sea.
The excitement from the battle with Whitebeard lingered on the Oro Jackson for days. The crew, especially the newcomers like Ellio, couldn't stop talking about the thrilling duel, their eyes still shining with shock and awe.
Meanwhile, Kyle was in his room, carefully cleaning the black-and-gold naginata he had carried for years. He replayed every moment of his encounter with Newgate in his mind, analyzing every detail.
Pure Haki and raw strength. It was a direct and overwhelming power, completely different from any Devil Fruit ability. "Still not enough," Kyle muttered to himself, his hand gliding over the cold steel of the blade.
The day was cloudless, and the sea and sky blended together at the horizon—a rare day of good weather on the Grand Line.
"Fleet spotted ahead!" Dolinger's urgent voice came from the crow's nest. "Five ships! They're approaching fast!"
"Five ships?" Jabba set down his dumbbells and walked over to the ship's rail. Squinting at the horizon, he asked, "Who would need a fleet that big just to say hello?"
Rayleigh walked to the bow, raising a telescope to his eye. A moment later, a playful smirk touched his lips. "Well, well. So it's him."
Everyone on deck stopped what they were doing and turned to look. Five black dots on the horizon grew steadily larger, soon revealing themselves to be a fleet of massive pirate ships. They were moving to surround the Oro Jackson, and their sails all bore the same prominent flag: the head of a wide-eyed lion.
A man stood at the bow of the lead ship. Even from a distance, you could feel the raw arrogance and ambition rolling off him. He had a wild mane of long, golden hair and a predatory grin plastered on his face. In his hands, he held his two famous swords, Oto and Kogarashi.
It was the Golden Lion, Shiki. 1
Kyle crossed his arms, an internal monologue of pure sarcasm running through his head. Well, here he is. The Pirate King's number one fanboy, the golden-haired loser himself. Right now, he's all talk about killing us, but give it a few years, and he'll be begging Roger to join his crew so they can rule the world together. And when Roger was executed? The guy stormed Marineford all by himself just to demand answers. It's so tragic it's almost romantic... what a classic tsundere.
Kyle mentally shook his head. Seriously, Shiki. This "I'm going to murder your entire family" look you've got going on doesn't exactly match your future "I've lost the love of my life" drama. If someone made a movie about it, it'd win awards for best tragedy... Ahem.
"Oh? More guests?" Roger strolled out from the cabin, a half-empty bottle of wine still in his hand. When he saw the massive fleet approaching, the smile on his face only grew wider. "They're certainly putting on a show!"
Before Roger could say another word, Shiki's thunderous laugh boomed across the water. "Gyahahahaha! Roger! I've finally found you!" His voice was wild and full of domineering arrogance. "Stop this boring little adventure of yours! Your crew, your treasures—they'll all become the foundation for my new world! I'll walk over your corpse to become the one true King of the Seas!"
Seeing no immediate reaction from the Oro Jackson, Shiki's laughter grew even louder. "Gyahahaha! What's wrong, Roger? Is my fleet enough to scare you speechless?"
Roger took a final, deep swig from his bottle before casually tossing it into the sea. He drew Ace, the sword at his hip, and a wide grin spread across his face. "You're a noisy one, aren't you, Lion-face?" His own hearty laugh was just as loud as Shiki's. "You want to be King? Then come and prove you're worthy!"
"All hands, prepare for battle!" Rayleigh commanded, his own longsword already drawn. The rest of the Roger Pirates drew their weapons, their faces filled with fighting spirit. Even when outnumbered five to one, the word "retreat" simply wasn't in their vocabulary.
"That's more like it!" Shiki laughed maniacally. He plunged his twin swords into the deck of his ship and slammed his palms down beside them. "Lion's Threat: Earth Bind!"
In an instant, an invisible force shot out from Shiki's ship. The surrounding sea began to churn violently, as if stirred by a giant, unseen hand. A moment later, the water around his fleet ripped itself apart and rose into the air, forming five gigantic lions made entirely of seawater. With deafening roars, they leaped toward the Oro Jackson!
"That's... a Devil Fruit power!" Ellio gasped in disbelief. "Are you kidding me? He can control the ocean itself?!"
"Don't panic!" Kyle shouted. He stepped forward, spreading his hands out towards the five charging sea lions. "Tidal Roar Ripple!"
Invisible ripples shot out from Kyle's palms, colliding with the five giant lions. There was no massive explosion, only a strange shimmering in the air. A second later, the menacing lions lost their shape, as if their bones had been pulled right out of them. They collapsed in mid-air, turning back into a massive torrent of water that crashed back into the ocean, sending huge waves across the surface.
Heh. A bit too weak, Shiki, Kyle thought with a smirk.
"Oh?" The smile on Shiki's face faltered for a second. He stared with interest at the black-haired young man who had just effortlessly dismantled his attack. "Interesting... but the game has only just begun!"
He slammed his hands onto the deck again, and this time, the very air seemed to tremble. "Gyahahahaha! Let me show you what true supremacy looks like! Float!"
To everyone's astonishment, Shiki's entire fleet of five massive ships began to rise from the water. Alongside them, several small, nearby islands were also lifted into the air, floating as if they weighed nothing! The five aerial battleships blotted out the sun, casting an enormous shadow. The oppressive feeling that washed over the Oro Jackson's deck was a hundred times more terrifying than facing the fleet on the water.
"Roger! Do you see this?!" Shiki roared from the bow of his flagship, which now hovered high above them. He spread his arms wide, like a god looking down on mere mortals. "This sky belongs to me now! This whole world will be my territory!"
"The ships... they're flying..." Ellio's voice trembled. The faces of the new crewmates were pale. They had never seen such an absurd Devil Fruit ability before.
"Kuhahaha! That guy still loves his flashy tricks!" Roger, however, just threw his head back and laughed. There wasn't a trace of fear in his voice, only the burning flame of excitement in his eyes.
"This is a problem. It's not easy to fight an enemy in the sky," Jabba muttered, rotating his wrists. He rested his massive twin axes on his shoulders, his brow furrowed in concentration.
"Then we'll just have to go up there and meet them," a calm voice replied. It was Kyle. He took a step forward, planting himself at the very front of the bow, staring up at the five warships that hung in the sky like mountains.
He closed his eyes, his usual golden pupils seemingly receding as he focused on a deeper perception. The invisible ripples of his power moved downwards, reaching deep into the boundless ocean beneath his feet. The sea itself began to respond to his call.
Rayleigh's eyes widened in understanding. He knew exactly what Kyle was planning. "Everyone!" he roared. "Hold on to the rails! Grab a rope! Brace yourselves!"
Seeing the crew scramble, Shiki assumed they were giving up. The arrogant smirk on his face grew wider. "What's this? Getting ready to surrender, Roger? If you kneel now, I might just let you..."
His taunt died in his throat.
The sea below them was beginning to rise. Not in waves, and not like the tide. The entire section of the ocean was lifting upwards, as if a colossal, invisible hand was raising it from the seabed. It formed a steep, slanting wall of blue that grew higher and higher!
"Tidal Roar Ripple: Skyfall!" Kyle's eyes snapped open as he thrust his hands forward.
BOOM!
With a deafening roar, the massive wall of water surged even higher, transforming into a monstrous tidal wave unlike any the world had ever seen. The wave was so tall that it towered over Shiki's flying fleet, its crest as sharp as a divine blade. Carried on the very peak of this impossible tsunami, the Oro Jackson shot forward, charging directly at the airborne ships with the force to shatter the world.
"What—?!" The wild laughter froze on Shiki's face. He had never imagined, not even for a second, that someone could attack his flying fleet like this. They were using the sea to attack the sky!
The wave crest slammed into the two foremost ships of Shiki's fleet, smashing them to pieces in an instant. "Damn it!" Shiki roared, pushing his Float-Float Fruit ability to its absolute limit. His own flagship and the remaining two warships shot upwards, climbing to a higher altitude at incredible speed. In moments, they were just black dots on the horizon, fleeing in complete disarray.
The giant wave collapsed back into the ocean, leaving behind a mess of splintered wreckage and hundreds of Golden Lion's pirates struggling to stay afloat. The Oro Jackson settled gently back onto the sea's surface. The water gradually calmed, and soon it was as if the world-shaking battle between sea and sky had never happened.
A stunned silence fell over the deck. Ellio and the other newcomers could only stand there, their mouths hanging open as they stared at the aftermath. Their minds were completely blank. It's... over? Just like that? they wondered. That was the Golden Lion Shiki, a pirate whose name shook the entire world, and he had come with a massive fleet. 2
Roger landed back on the deck and sheathed his sword. He glanced in the direction Shiki had fled and let out a dissatisfied "Tch." "How boring. He runs faster than a seagull."
His eyes then scanned the water, taking in all the "trophies" floundering about. A wide grin split his face.
"Alright!" he shouted, clapping his hands together. "What are you all standing around for? Let's get to work! Haul these guys out of the water! We'll keep anyone with a decent bounty, and we can tie up the rest and leave them as a present for the next Marine base we pass! And after that... we party!"
"YEAH!" the crew roared in unison.
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