---
Rob Lucci's expression shifted between confusion, fear, and anger before finally settling into his usual cold resolve.
"Uchiha Akira, you're strong, but don't underestimate me. Any evil will always fail before my justice!" he declared, charging at Akira with renewed ferocity.
Akira remained unfazed, easily deflecting and countering each of Lucci's attacks. Under the gaze of his Sharingan, Lucci's movements were clear and predictable, and Akira's counters landed again and again, opening fresh wounds. Though Lucci fought with the fervor of a protagonist, Akira stood over him like an immovable villain.
"Justice will never lose to evil!!"
In a final desperate move, Lucci invoked Iron Body Empty Tree and braced himself. But in response, a blue-white sphere of swirling energy appeared in Akira's hand—a Rasengan.
Boom!
The Rasengan drilled into Lucci's chest, sending him crashing to the ground as blood sprayed from his mouth.
"What… is this…?" Lucci gasped, feeling as if his insides had been crushed. His vision blurred, and Akira's figure became an indistinct shape above him.
"Idiot! Stop adding drama to yourself," Akira muttered, his voice laced with disdain.
With that final strike, Lucci's consciousness slipped away. His battered body lay sprawled on the ground, broken from the relentless assault. Akira cast a casual glance at Lucci before walking away, slightly annoyed at the persistent resistance.
---
The scene left Luffy, his crew, and the foremen in shock. The CP9 members had put up a fight, but the sheer force of Akira and his comrades had wiped them out. Rob Lucci, the strongest of CP9, had fallen like a defeated sparring partner.
"What just happened…?" Paulie muttered, dazed.
"Everyone! Snap out of it!" Robin's voice cut through the stunned silence. "The Buster Call is coming!"
The very mention of it filled her with a deep, familiar fear. They had already wasted precious time watching the battle, and now they had barely twenty minutes before the Navy would arrive to unleash destruction.
"Let's go! The Buster Call will be here soon!" Robin urged, her voice growing anxious.
The Straw Hats quickly sprang into action. But as they began their retreat, Robin noticed that Akira, Shisui, and Itachi hadn't moved.
"Why are you still standing there? The Marines are coming!" she called.
Akira smiled, a hint of amusement in his eyes. "You all go on ahead. After all, I was the one who activated the Buster Call. We'll stick around a little longer to handle things here."
Robin's face went pale as she processed his words. "Stop joking! You don't know what the Buster Call is—no one can stop that disaster!"
Akira's expression remained calm. "Don't worry. We value our lives too. We'll leave once we've had our fill, and we have ways to escape."
Seeing his casual demeanor, Robin gave up trying to persuade him.
Luffy, meanwhile, stomped his foot defiantly. "Then we're staying too! We're companions, right? We don't just leave our friends behind!"
Akira blinked, surprised by Luffy's declaration. *When did we become companions?*
Zoro grinned, his hand resting on his sword. "I wouldn't mind seeing what the Buster Call is all about."
Sanji nodded, determination in his eyes. "If it's something that haunts Miss Robin, then it's up to us to break that fear."
Robin's eyes filled with panic as she watched her crewmates' resolve harden. "You don't understand what you're saying! The Buster Call will reduce Enies Lobby to ashes!"
Luffy simply shrugged. "Then we'll just smash anyone who tries!"
Robin clenched her fists, frustration and desperation warring within her. The Buster Call was her nightmare, one that had robbed her of her peace since childhood. But her friends stood by her, determined to face that nightmare.
Seeing this, Nami placed a gentle hand on Robin's shoulder. "Look, Miss Robin, we don't want you to keep running. If we run now, there'll just be another Buster Call later. Let's end this fear for good."
At those words, Robin's tears finally spilled over. She had been running from this horror her whole life, but now she had people willing to stand by her side.
Watching the Straw Hats rally around Robin, Akira felt a pang of nostalgia. Once, he had watched these scenes from the outside, just a reader. Now, he was a part of this world, witnessing their loyalty firsthand.
"Fine. Stay if you want, but don't interfere. Just stay clear of our fight and keep yourselves safe," Akira instructed.
"Why?!" Luffy protested, frustrated. He'd come all this way, yet Akira and his allies seemed to do all the fighting.
Akira fixed Luffy with an unamused stare. "Because, right now… you're simply too weak."
Luffy opened his mouth to argue but was interrupted by a thunderous rumbling. The Gate of Justice had begun to open.
"They're here," Akira muttered, turning his gaze toward the Navy ships filling the horizon. The battle was about to escalate.
---
The massive Gate of Justice creaked open, unveiling a chilling sight. Robin's face was pale as she muttered, "The Gate of Justice is fully open now. Naval Headquarters warships are on their way for the Buster Call bombardment."
Akira turned to Shisui and Itachi. "The guests have arrived. Let's go greet them."
With a nod, all three vanished.
"Hey! Wait up!" Luffy shouted, frustrated, but Akira and the others ignored him. Akira knew Luffy's potential from his knowledge of the anime, but as things stood, Luffy and his friends were still too weak to be of any help.
Whoosh!
Akira, Shisui, and Itachi reappeared atop the gate at the end of the Bridge of Hesitation, where they could see the approaching Marine warships.
"Activate the Buster Call!" came the shout from the Marine fleet below.
"Target: Pirate Straw Hat Luffy and his crew! No need for confirmation—destroy the entire Enies Lobby!"
As the Marine fleet came into position, the cannons roared, unleashing a rain of cannonballs that tore into the Justice Tower, obliterating it in an instant.
"Tsk, tsk," Akira muttered, watching the ruthless bombardment.
Unfazed, Shisui smirked. "If they're showing no mercy, then neither will we."
"Go ,Shisui! Make the world tremble before Uchiha!"
Shisui raised his arm, letting an arc of blue lightning crackle through his fingers before he launched it into the sky.
"Is that… lightning?" a Marine soldier stammered as the lightning intensified.
Shisui without saying anything else went releasing a massive thunderbolt that crashed down onto a battleship.
BOOM!
The battleship exploded, and the sailors on the nearby vessels were paralyzed with fear.
"What… what is this?" one Marine gasped. Others were horrified as another Marine Vice Admiral recognized the attack.
"Logia Devil Fruit power—Thunder Fruit!" he shouted. "Only a Logia Devil Fruit could generate lightning this powerful!"
Onigumo, another Vice Admiral, gritted his teeth. "Enough! Cover the Island with artillery fire! And aim at those three on the bridge!"
In a heartbeat, the Marines followed the order, firing another volley of cannonballs toward the bridge.
But Itachi finally unsheathed his sword. With his Sharingan glowing, he whispered, "Flame Breathing: Second Form: Rising Scorching Sun!"
He unleashed a series of precise flame slashes, each one cutting through an incoming cannonball mid-air, detonating them before they could reach the bridge.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
Each explosion lit up the sky, but Itachi's blade didn't let a single cannonball slip through.
And then, with a loud crack, another thunderbolt fell from the sky, striking another battleship with pinpoint accuracy.
BOOM!
Luffy and his crew arrived in time to witness the destruction, their faces pale with shock.
"So… so much power!" Nami stammered as she stared at the wreckage. She glanced down at her Clima Takt, realizing how insignificant her own lightning attacks seemed compared to Shisui's divine onslaught.
Zoro clenched his fists, a mix of admiration and frustration in his eyes. So, I really am too weak, he thought, realizing how his pride had led him to underestimate these Uchiha warriors.
Paulie looked at the scene with wide eyes. "They destroyed two Marine battleships just like this… This is power beyond belief!"
Robin was equally shaken. "This is the true terror of a Logia Devil Fruit—especially the Thunder Fruit," she murmured. Watching Shisui use the Thunder Fruit so effortlessly, she understood just how far beyond their strength these warriors were.
Luffy clenched his fists in frustration, feeling the widening gap in power. But as he watched, his resolve only hardened.
Akira, observing the scene before him, was unfazed by the Marine casualties. After years in the ninja world, he'd come to understand that on the battlefield, kindness to enemies was merely cruelty to oneself. He had long accepted that only a dead enemy was a good one.
Click-!
Another thunderbolt streaked down, obliterating a third battleship. The Gate of Justice had barely finished opening, and already three of the ten battleships sent for the Buster Call were reduced to smoldering wreckage.
...