Zephyr locked his gaze on the man who called himself "Zero." The man looked like he wasn't guarding at all, full of openings, yet for some reason he gave off a strange sense of overwhelming strength.
Maybe…
This man might be even more dangerous than the rampaging Nine-Tails!
But behind him stood justice! Those two words would never let him back down! As long as he was still standing, the place behind him would be the safest place in the world!
"I see…"
In his eyes, Zero still hadn't changed that careless, full-of-openings look. Genichi gave a short laugh. "As expected of the World Government that has ruled for eight hundred years… such arrogance is only natural. But…"
His tone shifted, and suddenly a strange energy burst out from his body. It couldn't be seen with the naked eye—only Observation Haki could make out its shape.
Haki? No, it didn't feel like Haki. Was this his Devil Fruit ability?
Genichi smiled, and the next moment his entire body seemed to twist.
No, not twist!
Zephyr's pupils widened instantly. He… he was entering the monster's body that had floated out behind him?
"Stop! Who are you people!"
Zephyr rushed forward, Armament Haki covering one of his arms, reaching Genichi in almost an instant. But by then, Genichi had already gone fully into the subspace miasma, which was now shrinking as well.
Zephyr never imagined the miasma itself would vanish. He roared, "So this is your declaration of war?! Running away like this?!"
"Zephyr, your arrogance ends here."
The miasma's body had completely slipped into the dark space, and Genichi's voice came from within the hollow. "I declare war on the world on behalf of the Invisible Empire empire. But that doesn't mean war will break out right now. Maybe decades from now, maybe years, months, or even days later. Maybe the very next moment we'll strike Mary Geoise or Marineford—you never know."
Already deep inside the dark space, Genichi spoke in a relaxed tone while facing Zephyr's attack. "Live with the fear of what's to come… and accept this gift of the Nine-Tails."
Boom!
A massive explosion suddenly tore through the Sabaody Archipelago. The blast lit up the sky so bright it looked like there were two suns. Zephyr froze for an instant, then quickly swung his fist, but by the time it landed, the last black hole ahead of him had already disappeared!
His heavy punch struck only empty air, sending a shockwave across the sea and carving a massive trench into the water—but Genichi was nowhere to be found!
"The Invisible empire…"
Zephyr clenched his teeth, his mind replaying what "Zero" had said about the group backing them. What exactly was this Invisible Empire? Did it mean invisible to the eye? That you had to sense it with Observation Haki? Like that monster behind him?
Could it be that the space Genichi entered was where this Invisible Empire exists? And that monster was the tool they used to enter it?
Zephyr's mind raced. The next moment, he shouted at the Marines on the battleship, "Protect the civilians!"
The enemy might not be gone for good. But Zephyr decided it was best to first help Sengoku and Garp deal with the Nine-Tails. If the enemy really came to declare war, they couldn't waste too much time being stalled here.
Zero's ability was strange. At first glance, his weak posture seemed full of openings, not strong at all. But somehow it gave off a deep sense of danger. And then there was that monster that swallowed him whole—what on earth was it?
Zephyr shot forward like a cannonball fired from a battleship—no, even faster—straight toward the Sabaody Archipelago. There, the massive Nine-Tails was rampaging, unleashing its power wildly, while two figures fought it in an earth-shaking battle.
Garp and Sengoku, the old partners, were showing their combined strength. Later, they would defeat Shiki the Golden Lion together, and also Bullet. It wasn't wrong to call Garp the "partner king."
But this time, a third had joined in—Zephyr!
"Why are you so slow?!"
Garp's cloak was long gone, no one knew where. He was now in a pitch-black battle suit, blood flowing from many parts of his body, staining the dark fabric a deep red.
When he saw Zephyr arrive, he felt a bit of relief, but still complained, "If you came any later, I would've already taken care of this big fox myself."
"I ran into someone tricky. Anyway, it's complicated. Let's deal with the Nine-Tails first."
Zephyr glanced at Sengoku and saw that even Sengoku's golden form looked dim. While he was talking with "Zero," these two had been locked in a fierce battle.
But...
So had the Nine-Tails.
Compared to the beginning, the Nine-Tails wasn't as huge anymore.
"This monster doesn't seem to get tired. Until its stamina is truly gone, it can keep fighting. Be careful." Garp, who had already been fighting the Nine-Tails for a while, finished speaking and then shot forward like a storm. At the same time, Sengoku was knocked back by the beast's raw power. Zephyr caught the golden Buddha before it fell and then rushed forward along with Garp.
Boom!
Garp's punch knocked the Nine-Tails back two steps, but it immediately countered. Its strength was beyond belief. Without even using Haki, just relying on brute force, it slammed Garp from the sky into the ground.
Zephyr's kick landed on the fox's head. Looking into its giant eyes, he saw only endless destruction and rage. The Nine-Tails roared, flung Zephyr away, and then formed another Tailed Beast Bomb in its mouth.
And...
It wasn't just one!
"That thing… is it planning to destroy Mary Geoise?!"
In an instant, countless black spheres appeared inside the Nine-Tails' mouth, each packed with terrifying energy. If they exploded, the result would be unthinkable.
Now, every single one of those bombs was aimed straight at the Holy Land of Mary Geoise!
Was the Nine-Tails set on destroying the World Government's sacred ground?!
"They declared war on the World Government in the first place. Doing this isn't surprising!" Zephyr said sharply. "But we can't let it succeed. If Mary Geoise is destroyed, the world will spiral out of control! The whole world will turn into hell!"
He grabbed the white cloak with "Justice" written on it from his shoulder and tossed it aside. Standing shoulder to shoulder with Garp and Sengoku, he glared at the Nine-Tails as it prepared to destroy Mary Geoise.
"This fight isn't just about 'justice' anymore. It's about the order of the entire world!"