Raki stared in disbelief at the scene before her.
The shattered earth, countless fallen trees, the sky roiling backward, and the lingering black and purple lightning in the atmosphere.
A massive ravine stretched where Enel had been struck down.
Enel, the thunder incarnate, who had once left all of Shandia powerless, was now beaten to the point where it was unclear if he was even still alive.
Was this the power of Ace?
Raki's heart raced.
"Ace..."
Conis, equally stunned, gazed at the devastation. She thought of Enel, the same Enel who had arrived on Angel Island four years ago and, in just one day, overthrew the previous god, seizing control over Angel Island and the nearby islands.
Enel, who instilled fear in every corner of Angel Island, now lay motionless, pummeled by Ace to the point of near-death.
Conis clenched her fists, determination gleaming in her eyes.
"If only I had that kind of power, no, if I had even a fraction of the strength that Vivi, Kaya, and the others possess, perhaps the people of Angel Island wouldn't be so helpless. At the very least, we'd have a fighting chance against Enel."
She resolved to become stronger.
"Ace, you've grown even stronger," Robin muttered, her voice carrying a hint of admiration as she observed the aftermath.
Although Enel was no match for Ace, he did possess the Thunder Fruit, one of the most formidable powers among the Logia types. The destructive potential and speed granted by the Thunder Fruit were far beyond what Crocodile and his Sand-Sand Fruit could offer.
Yet, before Ace, Enel seemed powerless.
What worried Robin most was Ace's uncanny control over the battle. It was as if he could foresee all of Enel's moves. At the critical moment, Ace had intercepted Enel with pinpoint precision, using Haki to catch him.
Could Ace already see the future?
Robin quickly shook her head, dismissing the impossible thought.
But how else could one explain what just happened?
"Impressed?" Nami smirked, noticing Conis's expression. "Our captain is pretty amazing, right?"
Conis nodded solemnly.
"R-Raki..." Aisha's voice wavered as she tugged at Raki's arm, her face pale with shock.
"Enel's voice... it's gone."
Raki's pupils contracted.
"Enel…is dead?" she whispered, disbelief in her voice.
The same Enel who had driven Shandia to the brink of despair had been struck down by Ace's punch to death?
"No, not quite," Ace said, his eyes flashing red as the corners of his lips curled into a subtle smile. "He's still alive, but that's fine. I can use his Thunder Fruit to complete the final step for my Mera-Mera Fruit."
Amid the wreckage of the battle, Enel lay motionless at the base of a large rock wall. His head hung limp, blood pouring from his orifices, his body utterly still.
Then, a faint glimmer of lightning flickered from his chest.
Crack!
A final jolt of thunder surged through Enel's heart, jumpstarting his pulse.
Thud!
At last, after a long moment, his heart began to beat again, albeit faintly.
Splurt!
A mouthful of blood mixed with pieces of his internal organs erupted from Enel's lips.
Cough! Cough!
Enel struggled to open his eyes, each breath racking his body with excruciating pain.
He was still alive, but just barely.
Anger and disbelief filled his gaze. He had almost died. The moment Ace's attack connected, his Heart Network had sensed an overwhelming, near-death crisis that nearly crushed him.
In that moment of sheer terror, Enel had pushed his Thunder Fruit powers to their absolute limit, barely managing to avoid full elementalization. But the damage had been done. If not for the Thunder Fruit's ability to restart his heart, he would have died from that punch alone.
Even now, his body was on the brink. The Thunder Fruit's electrical stimulation was the only thing keeping him alive.
Enel's injuries were grave: his internal organs were severely damaged, and most of his ribs were shattered.
If it weren't for the Thunder Fruit, which could jumpstart his body with electricity, he would have already succumbed to his wounds. But even with its power, Enel knew he couldn't move.
If he faced Ace again, it would mean certain death.
"Haki… What is this power?"
Enel's bloodshot eyes were filled with fear. He remembered the terrifying force in Ace's punch—a force so immense it made him feel pure despair.
Haki… Could there really be a power that surpassed his Thunder Fruit?
He didn't want to believe it. From the moment he gained the Thunder Fruit, Enel had thought himself invincible, a true god. He had used its power to destroy his homeland of Birka and subjugate the Sky Islands with ease.
Yet now, his dream of omnipotence had been shattered by one punch.
His Thunder Fruit, his Heart Network, everything he prided himself on had been rendered useless.
If Ace struck him again, there was no escaping death.
Enel trembled with fear, the arrogance in his eyes completely gone.
"I won't die here!" Enel growled, refusing to accept defeat. He activated his Thunder Fruit, forcing his battered body to move.
"I still have the Ark Maxim, and with it, the power to destroy all of Angel Island and Shandian!"
Enel's entire body began to glow with lightning as he forced himself to flee.
Crack!
In a flash of lightning, Enel vanished.
"Enel… escaped?" Raki gasped, her voice filled with disbelief.
Conis's expression darkened with worry. If Enel survived and sought revenge, he might unleash his full fury on Angel Island and Shandia.
Ace, however, remained calm. "Don't worry. He can't escape. His Thunder Fruit will belong to my navigator soon enough."
Ace smiled at Raki and Conis, his Observation Haki tracking Enel's every move.
Nami smiled warmly at Ace, as did the rest of the crew. They had absolute confidence in their captain.
Ace declared that the Thunder Fruit must belong to Nami, and thus, it would.
Whatever Ace said, it was certain to come true.
Raki and Conis glanced at each other, feeling an unspoken relief as they looked at Ace, whose confidence seemed to radiate control over everything.
Ace was a man capable of toying with Enel as though the thunder god were a mere pawn and had struck him down with a single punch. There was no doubt that what Ace promised would become reality.
Enel, you won't escape!
"Cough!"
Just then, a faint cough came from the battlefield.
"Wyper!"
Aisha looked over in surprise as Wyper's weak voice, which had nearly vanished, resurfaced.
"Aisha..." Wyper struggled to lift his body, but his eyes immediately widened in shock.
"What happened here?!"
The sight of the shattered ground, the broken forest, and the enormous ravine left Wyper in disbelief.
"Still alive, huh?"
A chuckle made Wyper turn his head, and his expression darkened.
"Blue Sea scum!"
Click! Wyper adjusted the barrel of his gun, glaring at Ace.
Yes, it was this man who had struck him down with just one punch.
"Stop! Wyper!"
Click!
Wyper looked on in disbelief as Raki aimed her gun at him.
"Raki, you—!"
He could hardly believe it.
"Woo!"
The injured Braham, Kamakiri, and Genbo awoke with pained groans, struggling to rise.
"Raki? Wyper?! What are you doing?"
The three of them stared at Raki, astonished to see her pointing a weapon at Wyper.
"Blue Sea filth! What did you do to Raki?!"
Wyper turned his furious gaze back toward Ace.
"Wyper, show some respect!"
Raki's voice was firm, her expression a mix of frustration and disappointment.
If not for Ace, everyone in Shandia would have died because of Wyper's reckless pride. It was clear that Ace and his crew held no ill will toward the Shandians.
The fault lay with Wyper, who had attacked them without knowing who they were.
After being defeated by Ace, Wyper clung to his pride as a descendant of the great warrior Kalgara, refusing to admit his mistake and still seeking to reclaim his honor—a notion Raki found absurd.
"His name is not 'Blue Sea scum.' His name is Portgas D. Ace!"
"If it weren't for Ace, we'd all be dead because of your recklessness, Wyper."
"You were defeated because of your own foolishness. Put away your senseless pride."
"Ace is a savior to the Shandians. He took down Enel with a single punch and saved us all!"
"Put down your weapon!"
Each of Raki's words deepened the anger on Wyper's face.
When he heard that Ace had struck down Enel with one blow, his disbelief was palpable.
"That's impossible. Enel is the god of thunder! How could he be taken down by a single punch?"
"Raki, you've always been infatuated with him. I bet you've betrayed Shandia and plan to leave for the Blue Sea with these outsiders!"
Wyper growled.
"You!"
Raki's fury flared. This hopeless idiot refused to see reason and was now accusing her of treachery.
As she glanced at her other companions, she could see that Wyper's words were swaying them too.
Would they really choose to believe Wyper over her, even after his reckless actions had nearly led to their extinction?
"Fine!" Raki spat in frustration. "I do want to go to the Blue Sea! I want to go with Ace and his crew!"
"Traitor!"
Wyper, enraged, raised his weapon again.
Bang!
With a loud crack, Wyper cried out in pain, clutching his hand.
"Pathetic," Nami's older sister, Nojiko, said coolly, her gun still smoking. "No matter the situation, you should never point a weapon at your comrades."
"Wyper!"
Braham, Kamakiri, and Genbo scrambled to pick up their weapons.
"Stop!" Aisha shouted, tears in her eyes as she stood protectively in front of Raki.
"What Raki said is true!"
Her words stunned Braham, Kamakiri, and Genbo into silence, their eyes widening in disbelief.
Aisha too? Could the Blue Sea people really have saved them and defeated Enel?
Neigh!
Suddenly, a strange sound echoed, and a figure riding a peculiar mount descended slowly from the sky.
"Gan Fall!"
Wyper's face twisted in discomfort at the sight of the former god of Skypiea.
"That old man from before," Kaya murmured, recognizing him.
"Wyper, enough!" Gan Fall said gravely. "Everything Raki said is true. I saw it all from the sky."
He then turned to Ace, awe filling his expression.
"Your power is incredible. Under such strength, I couldn't even get close. It's hard to imagine that Enel was like a helpless child before you."
His words made Wyper's face contort further, glancing once more at the devastated battlefield, the broken earth, and the toppled trees.
Could this all have been the work of a man from Blue Sea?
"I told you we'd meet again, didn't I?" Ace said, a slight grin on his face.
"Indeed," Gan Fall replied, sighing. "But I never expected it to be like this."
"Please don't blame Wyper and the Shandians. They're only fighting to reclaim their homeland. They aren't bad people; they just didn't know what was happening. Please, don't hold it against them."
Gan Fall bowed deeply toward Ace.
"Wouldn't it be better for both Angel Island and Shandia if I simply killed them?" Ace said with a light smile.
His words put Wyper and the others instantly on edge.
"Of course you know my identity," Gan Fall sighed, admitting defeat. "But no, I hope for peace between Angel Island and Shandia. I don't want to see either side destroyed."
Gan Fall's face was sincere, but Ace said nothing in response. Instead, he walked over to Raki.
"And what do you think, my chief?" Ace asked, offering Raki his hand with a gentle smile.