With the propellers roaring to life, the ship accelerated across the sea and finally lifted off, shooting skyward like an arrow!
"Whoo-hoo! We're flying!" Leno cheered.
"Ooh~ super invincible, Franky!"
"Amazing—so amazing!"
"The president is incredible—he built a ship that can fly!"
"Long live the president! Long live Galley-La Company!" the shipwrights shouted.
'Hmm, the speed is pretty fast! Oh? I can even increase the altitude? How exciting!' Leno thought as he messed with the controls in the cockpit. He was truly enjoying the novel experience of exploring the sea and sky on the ship.
"Oh? We've reached Reverse Mountain? Huh—pirate ships? Wow, that's tragic—the ships are smashed to pieces!" Leaving a clone to pilot, Leno himself sat atop the bull-headed figurehead, peering down.
"What miserable pirates… Eh? They're waving at me in the water—hey! Keep at it!" Seeing the many pirates frantically waving, Leno waved back enthusiastically.
The pirates: …
After passing Reverse Mountain, Leno muttered, "…emmmm. I think I, um, forgot to buy the little brat a present. Lucky I've still got Sky Island snacks and specialties in the inventory—let's add a Sea King for good measure. The little one loves meat."
He banked the ship toward the Calm Belt, Observation Haki filtering for a suitable Sea King—when Leno suddenly looked up.
"Sky Island?! No… the Golden Lion?!"
"Captain, there's a… a flying ship ahead!" Indigo wheezed as he waddled in.
"Oh? A flying ship? Jyahahaha… interesting!" The Golden Lion bit down on his cigar, rose under the care of two attendants, and laughed. "Let's go have a look."
"A ship that flies?!" Shiki floated forward, stopping before Leno's vessel.
"Brat, your ship is interesting. Join my Golden Lion Pirates. Contribute your technology, and I'll make you an officer. How about it?"
"Not happening. Can't you see the 'Adventure' flag? I'm not interested in being a pirate," Leno said righteously, Wind Rift in hand.
'Damn. This won't end peacefully. The Golden Lion is a real pirate—unrestrained, pillaging, slaughtering, even wiping out nations. Not like Whitebeard or Red-Hair. This guy has no scruples…'
Sure enough—
"Brat, I'm informing you, not asking your opinion. You don't have the right to refuse!" Shiki's eyes turned feral.
There was no backing down now. With a wave, Leno stored the ship and stood in midair opposite the Golden Lion.
"Oh? Another trick? A Devil Fruit ability? Jyahahaha… Brat, I like you. I'll give you one more chance—join my crew." Shiki's eyes flashed.
"Join you? And rot away in this remote corner of the East Blue?"
"You're asking for your demise!" Shiki's face went dark.
"The one courting death is you!" Leno drew Wind Rift and slashed.
"Jyahahaha… Slash Wave!" Shiki's blade shattered the slash, the counter-cut whistling past Leno's side.
"Jyahahaha… Kid, you're still a long way from my level."
"This is just the beginning. Today, let me taste power at the peak." As he spoke, Leno's body swelled taller, reaching five meters. Purple-pink scales rippled over his skin; twin horns crowned his head as he glared at Shiki.
"An ability like Kaido's? Hey, brat—what's your relationship with Kaido? Don't tell me you're his son." Shiki frowned—the resemblance was uncanny.
"He can never be my father. Dragon Power—Basic Slash!" Leno snarled, cleaving down at Shiki's crown.
Clang! Sparks burst; shockwaves rolled. The screech of grinding steel rang out as Leno locked blades, eyes fixed on Shiki.
"Kid, you've got some power," Shiki hissed, forced back a step, face gloomy.
"You've grown old, Golden Lion." The calm words hit a sore spot. Shiki went berserk.
"Jyahahaha… I'm the Golden Lion! Die, brat—Lion—Thousand-Cut Valley!"
"Shff! Shff! Shff!"
A storm of slashes sealed every path of retreat—"Cling! Cling! Cling!…"
Leno parried, sent flying. Gashes striped his chest, arms, and legs; blood drenched him, then, "zzz—" white steam rose as the wounds slowly knit.
"I can work with this." Leno stood, eyes burning into Shiki.
Watching the speed of Leno's recovery, Shiki's face darkened. This kid's physique was just like that bastard Kaido.
"Let's finish this!" Leno said, charging at Shiki.
"Cling-cling! Clang-clang!" Steel rang in a rapid, furious rhythm. The two fighters moved faster and faster until their figures vanished—only sparks and the crash of blades gave away the ferocity of their duel.
"Who is that kid, to fight Old Man Shiki to a standstill like this?"
"Yeah… that Devil Fruit looks a bit like the power they say Kaido has."
"Don't worry. Captain Shiki won't lose. He's the strongest," Scarlet said confidently. He was the one who knew Shiki's strength the best. "He's just a mere kid. Nothing to be afraid of."
"Let's get farther away. They're coming this way."
"Go, go—back up!" The pirates scrambled; none of them wanted to be killed by their own captain.
"Shff! Shff!" Two figures flashed onto a floating island.
"Viper!" Shiki landed and swept out a "Leg Sword." Stones, deadwood, and scattered blades all around tore free of the ground and rushed at Leno in a black wave.
"Boom! Boom-boom—!" A massive Slash Wave followed, ripping into the smoke.
Leno twisted aside; the gargantuan cut plowed a hundred-meter trench into the ground behind him.
"Lion Menace: Govern Place Earth Coiling!" Five huge lion heads of packed earth erupted around Leno, swallowing him whole. A heartbeat later—"Shff! Shff! Shff!"—several slashes ripped up through the dirt. Leno burst free, battered. 'No—can't let the Golden Lion run the show.'
Blade in hand, Leno flashed to Shiki. "Thunder Power—Heavy Basic!" Lightning crawled over the blade, a colossal arc of thunder cleaving down.
Shiki's body seized for an instant; numbness shot through him. He looked up, teeth bared at Leno.
"Bad, kid." He floated up again; Leno pursued. A thunderous slash screamed past, and Leno pressed in—one stroke, then another, faster and faster.
"Cling! Cling! Clang!" Steel sang as two blurred figures weaved, feinted, and crashed together, left then right, never staying still.
"Boom! Boom! Boom!" The ground scored with gouges, trees ripped up by the roots, shockwaves rolling out in relentless rings.