Chapter 255: The Roar of the Lion Falls
"It's useless, Golden Lion."
Mio spoke calmly as he turned his right palm upward. A glowing circle of light appeared, rapidly expanding until it covered the entire floating island.
The moment the light settled, Mio vanished, dodging the Golden Lion's slash. In the blink of an eye, he reappeared behind him, his fist clenched and brimming with energy. His punch exploded forward, swirling with tightly woven force.
The Golden Lion didn't hesitate. Twisting his body mid-air, he kicked out. The weaponized blade replacing his leg gleamed as it hardened with Armament Haki, clashing directly with Mio's punch.
A powerful shockwave erupted from the collision.
But then, the Golden Lion's body flew backward. His pupils constricted in surprise.
"What a strong power!!"
He was visibly shaken. This level of strength was beyond what he had anticipated.
Yet even as he was forced back, the Golden Lion quickly stabilized in midair. With a sweep of his right arm, the sea surrounding the island surged skyward, twisting unnaturally before forming into a massive, airborne lion that charged through the air toward Mio, roaring with elemental force.
"Awakening..." Mio murmured. But he didn't appear surprised.
The Floating-Float Fruit normally required physical contact to manipulate matter. However, the Golden Lion clearly no longer needed that. His control over the fruit had reached the point of awakening.