Indeed, the explosion unleashed a heaven-alarming wave, and on the edge of the island, Rayleigh was pushed forward by the waves and then slammed onto the beach.
"Cough, cough, impressive!"
The burning sensation on his back made Rayleigh feel dizzy, and he gasped for air heavily.
He never imagined that during his secret conversation with Shanks, the Marines had planted such a terrifying bomb in the surrounding sea!
In a moment of crisis, if it weren't for his superb Haki defense, being torn to pieces would have been the only outcome.
However, even though he narrowly escaped death, Rayleigh was not in good shape.
His body was extensively burnt, his skin charred and peeling off, and his muscles exposed to the air like semi-cooked meat, emitting a strange meaty smell.
The center of the explosion, with temperatures high enough to instantly melt steel, even if just a residual wave hit him, the consequences were quite terrifying.
At the same time, apart from the severe burns, the intense pressure generated at that moment also inflicted secondary damage on Rayleigh. The terrifying shockwave, capable of shattering the atmosphere like Whitebeard's Tremor-Tremor Fruit, spoke volumes about its power.
"This style... doesn't seem like Kizaru's, nor... Akainu's!"
Dragging himself onto the beach, Rayleigh seemed to have an epiphany.
"So the government is involved too? It's indeed very dangerous..."
"Gungnir!"
Suddenly, a cold voice echoed between heaven and earth. Rowen raised his hand, endless lightning converging in his palm, rapidly forming into a massive meteor gun.
Whoosh!
The moment he heard the sound, without hesitation, Rayleigh leaped up and immediately began running in a distant direction.
Boom!
As expected, almost the instant he left his original position, the meteor gun plunged into the ground, causing a powerful explosion.
However, this was not the end...
"Have you... ever been kicked at the speed of light?"
Shua!
Dressed in a casual yellow suit, Kizaru materialized from light particles and appeared next to Rayleigh opportunistically. Light particles converged on his feet, shining like the midday sun.
Rayleigh, in his running posture, had no time to defend himself. The next moment, his chest suffered a violent blow.
Lightspeed Kick!
"Ugh!"
Immediately, Rayleigh's rushing figure went from motion to stillness, then immediately from stillness to motion again, swiftly flying backward.
Thunder Cloud...
Qilin!
Boom!
At some point, a dark cloud had gathered in the sky. At this moment, the murky cloud burst open, and white lightning illuminated the sky. With a roar, the Thunder Dragon strode forward, heading straight for Rayleigh.
Zi zi zi... Boom!
As Qilin landed, everything disintegrated! The accumulated lightning lasted less than a second, then exploded like a balloon, with the towering waves generated by the Tremor spreading in all directions from the unnamed small island.
"How was that?"
After releasing Qilin, Rowen regulated his breathing calmly and took off the thunder Dragon crescent-sided halberd, scanning his surroundings continuously with his eyes.
It wasn't a premonition, but Rayleigh was certain that he hadn't died.
Suddenly...
Whoosh!
Surrounded by lightning, Rayleigh's silver hair danced in the wind, his expression on his face somewhat ambiguous. In his hand, he held an ordinary samurai sword, abundant in the seas.
This sword had been hanging from Rayleigh's waist before. It was just an ordinary weapon, probably borrowed from Red Hair Shanks, and neither of them had paid much attention to it.
What was really worth noting was Rayleigh's target at this moment...
"Ama no Murakumo!"
As Kizaru, enveloped in a yellow casual suit, advanced, his eyes flashed with anger behind his sunglasses. A dazzling sword, entirely made up of light particles, appeared in his hand.
Ding!
The blades clashed, and a sharp metallic clang erupted in the air.
Before the sparks from the collision could dissipate, Rayleigh pulled back his sword, and in an instant, made another horizontal slash.
Clang!
"Let's be reasonable, Kizaru. Close combat shouldn't be your forte, right?"
Rowen blinked playfully, expressing his satisfaction with Rayleigh's choice. Although he was inferior to Kizaru in some aspects, he had not formed a weakness. On the contrary, his advantage was quite evident.
"Hah!"
At this moment, Rayleigh, who had been engaged in successive clashes, stimulated his Conqueror's Haki. A strong sense of oppression squeezed Kizaru's heart, causing his movements to slow for a moment.
"Now's the time!"
In a battle between experts, a hair's breadth difference could mean a thousand miles. Rayleigh naturally wouldn't let such an obvious loophole pass by. With a slight turn of his blade's edge, it intersected with Ama no Murakumo, drawing out a spray of sparks. Seizing the opportunity, he crouched down and invaded Kizaru's opening, aiming the blade at his chest.
It wasn't that he didn't want to aim for the neck... The height difference between the two was there, and Rayleigh's attack range could only reach this far.
However, at this moment...
Heaven-resisting Thunder Cry·Second Style·Azure Dragon's Roar!
Swoosh!
A cyan silhouette tore through the void, passing between the two.
At the critical moment, Rayleigh quickly pulled back, but his wrist muscles were still cut open.
Among all the powerhouses, Rowen's defensive strength was considered average, neither strong nor weak. However, Rayleigh didn't possess Rowen's monstrous physique. Being primarily an offensive swordsman, even he fell short compared to Rowen, making his defensive capabilities bottom-tier.
Puchi...!
As blood vessels ruptured, blood-spattered into the air, forming a line like a leaking pipe.
Without time to stop the bleeding, Rayleigh quickly retracted his weapon, holding it horizontally in front of his face.
Ding!
It was Kizaru seizing the opportunity to attempt a fatal blow, thrusting Ama no Murakumo towards him.
Heaven-resisting Thunder Cry·Third Style·Cloud Dragon's Kill!
One strike wasn't enough; there was a second blow!
When the two top-level speed experts in the world teamed up, they might not be invincible, but to most people, including Rayleigh, who was once a proud pirate among many, it was deadly enough!
Puchi!
The spearhead was exceptionally sharp, piercing Rayleigh's abdomen, and blood gushed out. Rayleigh forcefully pushed Kizaru away, and suddenly, his Haki surged.
"Oh no, this move is..."
Rowen's eyes widened instantly.
He had fought Rayleigh before, and this move had almost cost him dearly.
Boom!
Rowen heard a gunshot in his ears, but he couldn't guarantee that the sound existed in reality.
After all, within his range of Kenbunshoku Haki (Observation Haki), there were no bullets, and no bullets could enter his range without being detected by him.
Haki Awakening!
Rowen instantly thought of that legendary technique.
Sure enough, when his mind focused due to shock, a completely transparent dot appeared within his sensing range.
Time seemed to freeze as the dot cut through the air, speeding towards his head.
Death Perception!
Without being on the brink of death, it wouldn't break through; it was the inherent limit of the human body!
Rowen's soul trembled instantly. He wanted to dodge, but in this state, only his thought speed was enhanced, not his physical movements. By the time he began to shift his weight, the dot was already inches away from him.
Less than ten centimeters away!
Lightspeed Kick...
Boom!
A golden light struck Rowen, sending him flying instantly. Kizaru engaged in a sword clash with Rayleigh several times, then took the opportunity to disengage from Rayleigh's onslaught, and panting slightly, approached Rowen.
"Did you forget what I told you, Rowen... If you don't want to die, focus your Kenbunshoku Haki (Observation Haki) around you!"
Kizaru's tone was unusually stern, evidently displeased with Rowen's repeated mistakes.
If Rowen lost his combat effectiveness, he alone wouldn't be able to delay until Zero... Baldy arrived.
"So what exactly is this ability? Using Haki like bullets!"
With lingering fear, Rowen nodded and swallowed his saliva after standing up.
This was the second time he had seen Rayleigh exhibit this strange ability, but he couldn't understand how simple Haki could give him such a tremendous sense of crisis.
"That's called Haki Awakening! Like Devil Fruit Awakening, it's vastly different from ordinary Haki."
Kizaru quickly responded, making sure Rowen was okay before reminding him again.
"Let's discuss the specifics after completing the mission... Rayleigh has just touched the surface of it, it's nothing significant. He's just targeting your habit of habitually dispersing your attention. Just be careful."
Due to the extensive range of the Heart Network, Rowen's attention was forced to remain in a scattered state. But facing Rayleigh, this happened to be a loophole that could be exploited.
Swish!
Grasping the Thunder Dragon crescent-sided halberd, Rowen nodded solemnly. "Understood!"
(End of this chapter)
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