"You two, come together."
Ace's confident declaration sent ripples through the battlefield. Kaido and Charlotte Linlin's faces darkened as they processed his challenge. Ace intended to fight both of them alone, a bold move that underscored his confidence and the strength of the Flame Emperor.
Despite the current stalemate, the Entei Pirates only needed their cadres to take action to decisively defeat the alliance of the Beasts Pirates and the Big Mom Pirates. The alliance's gross underestimation of the Entei Pirates' strength and the lack of accurate intelligence had cost them dearly. Their defeat seemed inevitable.
But the looming defeat didn't mean Kaido and Charlotte Linlin could tolerate the affront to their dignity. Seeing Ace challenge the two of them alone filled their eyes with rage and contempt.
Seeing Ace step forward, intent on facing them alone, filled them with rage. It was one thing to plan a joint attack on Ace, but it was entirely different for Ace to invite such a fight, clearly underestimating them.
They were the Four Emperors, rulers of the New World! No one had ever dared to look down on them to such an extent. This was an unforgivable insult to their honor and reputation.
"You are so courageous, Flame Emperor!" Kaido laughed, his eyes burning with fury.
"Boy, you will regret saying that," Charlotte Linlin snarled, her bloodshot eyes and ferocious demeanor resembling a beast ready to devour its prey.
The air around them crackled with tension as the two Yonko prepared to unleash their full fury on Ace. They were determined to make him pay for his audacity and reclaim their pride as the feared emperors of the New World.
"Fight if you want! You've said too much."
Ace's laughter boomed across the battlefield, a stark contrast to the dark, terrifying glint in his eyes. Suddenly, a massive surge of Conqueror's Haki erupted from him, sending out violent gusts of wind that swept across the area like a storm.
"Boom!!!"
The raw power of Ace's Haki was overwhelming, and even Kaido and Charlotte Linlin were momentarily stunned, their faces twisted in a mixture of anger and surprise. They wrapped their own Conqueror's Haki around themselves, trying to resist the force of Ace's power.
"This guy's Haki has gotten even stronger since back then!" Kaido thought, gritting his teeth as he fought against the intense pressure.
"Mama!" screamed Zeus, Prometheus, and Napoleon, Charlotte Linlin's three Homies. The anthropomorphic beings, created by the power of the Soul-Soul Fruit, were nearly blown away by the fierce winds generated by Ace's Haki. Their cries for help echoed in the chaos.
Homies, given life and wisdom by Charlotte Linlin's Devil Fruit power, were vulnerable to the overwhelming force of Conqueror's Haki. The sheer power of Ace's Haki was rendering them almost powerless, stripping away the Soul-Soul Fruit's influence.
As the roaring wind intensified, Charlotte Linlin herself struggled to maintain her ground, unable to spare any energy to aid her Homies. In a moment of utter desperation, Prometheus and Napoleon vanished with a sharp, echoing sound. The power of the Soul-Soul Fruit had been completely overpowered, reducing them to mere fragments of Charlotte Linlin's soul.
"Prometheus! Napoleon!" Zeus screamed in horror, witnessing the dissolution of his companions. For Homies, reverting to soul form meant death—a fate they had just suffered.
Charlotte Linlin's eyes burned with rage and sorrow as the realization hit. The loss of Prometheus and Napoleon was not just a blow to her power but also a personal agony, a part of her very soul stripped away.
"You'll pay for this, Ace!" she roared, her voice a mixture of fury and pain, echoing through the battlefield as she prepared to unleash her full wrath upon the Flame Emperor.
Zeus had died under the terrifying roar of the Flame Emperor's Conqueror's Haki. Now, caught in the violent wind generated by Ace's Haki, he feared he might meet the same fate at any moment. His anthropomorphic eyes filled with terror as he screamed repeatedly.
"Come here," Ace commanded, his mouth curling into a slight smile.
In the next moment, Ace controlled the violent wind, blowing Zeus into Nami's hand amidst his screams.
"Thundercloud?" Nami's eyes lit up with excitement.
During the battle, Nami had noticed Zeus's potential. As a thundercloud, Zeus's thunder was much stronger than the one Nami could create with her Thunder Fruit ability. Using Zeus as a medium could significantly enhance her powers.
"You, what are you going to do?!" Zeus looked at Nami in horror.
Shrunken by Ace's Haki, Zeus was now small enough for Nami to grasp. For a thundercloud Homie created by Charlotte Linlin's Soul-Soul Fruit, being captured by a Thunder Fruit user was terrifying.
"Nami, do you like this gift?" Ace retracted his Haki, his smile widening.
Zeus wasn't weak. As a thundercloud, he could serve as an excellent medium for Nami's Thunder Fruit abilities, significantly amplifying her power. It was the perfect gift for her.
"I like it. Zeus, you will be my slave from now on," Nami said, initially surprised but quickly smiling at Ace.
She then turned to Zeus, her expression darkening. Her Conqueror's Haki seemed to turn golden, sending chills down Zeus's spine.
Zeus looked at Nami in horror. He was caught between a rock and a hard place—betray his mother and die, or face an equally terrifying fate with Nami.
"Don't worry. Charlotte Linlin will not exist in this sea from today onwards. Just be my slave, and I will let you live," Nami said, her voice calm and confident.
As a thundercloud, Zeus could sense Nami's sincerity through her amplified Observation Haki. She then raised her weather stick, creating a small thunder bubble.
"Yummy!" Zeus's eyes lit up, and he instinctively ate the bubble in one bite.
"Good, delicious!" he exclaimed, intoxicated by the taste.
"What a hard life you must have had before," Nami said, her red lips curling into a smile. "How about being my slave? There will be countless thunderclouds for you to eat."
"Yeah, yeah! I want to eat more!" Zeus nodded fervently.
"Zeus!!!" Charlotte Linlin's eyes blazed with fury as she saw Zeus's betrayal.
"Mama?!!!" Zeus instinctively recoiled, looking at Charlotte Linlin in horror.
"Don't be afraid, come in here," Nami said, grabbing Zeus and stuffing him into her weather stick.
"The ability of the Soul-Soul Fruit is quite fascinating," Ace remarked, his eyes blazing as he looked at Charlotte Linlin, a slight smile playing on his lips.
"Boring tricks, Flame Emperor! If you want to fight, come on!"
Kaido's eyes were red with fury as he watched Ace waste Haki to take away Charlotte Linlin's Homies before the battle. How much did this bastard despise them? He had actually wasted Conqueror's Haki so wantonly just to please a woman.
"Swoosh!"
Faced with Kaido's roar, Ace didn't respond immediately. Instead, he raised his right hand, causing several light spots to appear in the atmosphere. These light spots quickly merged into the bodies of Kaya, Hancock, Nami, and Gion.
"Bang!"
Several slightly red bubbles were ejected from the women's bodies. Among them, the bubble ejected from Kaya was the most exaggerated, with a diameter of several meters. As the bubble was ejected, Kaya's slightly furrowed brows relaxed.
The ability of the Paw-Paw Fruit had ejected the pain from her.
"The ability of the Paw-Paw Fruit..." Kaido muttered, his face darkening.
Although it wasn't the first time he had seen it, every time he witnessed Ace using all the Devil Fruit abilities so wantonly, it felt incredible and made his scalp tingle. On the other side, Charlotte Linlin saw Ace's ability for the first time with her own eyes, her cheeks twitching slightly.
Monster!
Both Kaido and Charlotte Linlin cursed in their hearts simultaneously.
However, they did not plan to fight Ace immediately. The cadres of the Entei Pirates had all arrived, and at this point, Ace didn't even need to take action. His cadres alone were enough to defeat them. Since this man was arrogant and wanted to fight them alone, they would let him pay the price for his arrogance.
"It's really a bit messy, Kaya," Ace said, his eyes full of love and concern.
Using Black Flash twice in a row had taken a terrible toll on Kaya, but she smiled brightly at Ace, her beautiful eyes filled with determination. For Ace, she could bear any pain.
"Then, Jack will bear it," Ace continued, raising his hand. At his feet appeared Jack, who had lost consciousness. The pain ejected by the Paw-Paw Fruit wouldn't disappear on its own. If no one bore it, the pain would eventually return to the body from which it was ejected. Jack, unconscious and already gravely injured, would serve his final purpose.
"Swish!"
Ace raised his hand, and all the slightly red bubbles of pain merged into Jack's body. The next moment, blood bursts out suddenly from Jack. The already critically injured and unconscious Jack could not bear so much pain simultaneously. The last breath of life, barely sustained by the Elephant Fruit-Ancient Species-Mammoth Form, quickly dissipated.
Jack the Drought, one of the three disasters, died.
"Buzz!"
Ace placed a banana in his palm and activated the power of the enlightenment field. He quickly captured the demon factor of the Elephant Fruit-Ancient Species-Mammoth Form that was dissipating from Jack's body. The banana transformed into a special fruit with two sharp tusks.
Elephant Fruit-Ancient Species-Mammoth Form! As an ancient species, the power of this Devil Fruit was significantly stronger than the average Zoan. It was perfect for equipping the Devil Fruit Corps under Ace's command.
"Gion, take it," Ace said, raising his right hand and giving the transformed Elephant Fruit to Gion. Gion swiftly took it and kept it secure. As the captain of the Devil Fruit Corps of the Entei Pirates, she was responsible for this valuable fruit.
Not far away, Kaido's eyes were dark with fury. Jack had been killed before his eyes, and his Devil Fruit ability had been taken. Now, Kaido was completely enraged.
"Flame Emperor!!!!" Kaido roared, his Conqueror's Haki surging violently around him.
Ace looked at Kaido and Charlotte Linlin, his eyes flashing with determination. "You wanted a fight, and now you have one. Let's start this."
Kaido's massive frame tensed, and Charlotte Linlin's eyes blazed with fury as they prepared for the battle ahead. The stage was set for an epic confrontation between some of the most powerful beings in the world. The air crackled with tension, and the ground trembled beneath the weight of their combined Haki. The fate of the New World hung in the balance, and neither side was willing to back down.
Ace stood tall, his presence dominating the battlefield. "Come on, then. Show me what the so-called Emperors of the Sea can do."
Ace, unphased, looked at Kaido and Charlotte Linlin. "Let me show you my new form," he said, a confident smile curling on his lips as the power around him began to boil.
The battlefield was set for a climactic showdown, the tension in the air almost tangible as Ace prepared to unleash his full power against the furious Kaido and Charlotte Linlin.