Chapter 235: The Battle Begins!
"JIHYAHAHAHA—!!"
Golden Lion Shiki ignored the gluttonous pirates stuffing themselves at the banquet table.
His gaze pierced through the towering windows, descending toward the moonlit desert kingdom thousands of meters below.
"My beloved beasts."
His voice wasn't loud.
Yet every sound of chewing and drinking in the hall stopped instantly.
Greasy faces lifted one after another, their eyes devoid of loyalty—
Filled only with ravenous hunger.
Shiki slowly turned around.
Candlelight danced within his eyes like twin cold stars.
"Down there…"
"…are ten million lambs waiting to be slaughtered."
"The royal catacombs run deep enough to bury trash like you a hundred times over."
"The temple pillars are thick enough that after hanging every soldier…"
"…there'll still be room left."
"I don't want gold."
He stepped forward, one of his blades splashing through spilled wine.
"I don't want women either."
Another step.
CRACK.
A porcelain plate shattered beneath his foot.
"There's only one thing I want—"
He stopped at the center of the banquet table and leaned forward, both hands pressing against the greasy wood.
The ship's wheel embedded in his skull cast a monstrous shadow beneath the flickering candlelight, swallowing the pale faces of nearby pirates.
"Blood."
The single word ground slowly between his teeth.
"I want rivers of blood."
"Blood enough to drown the dunes."
"Blood that turns every rainfall into rust-colored mud."
"I want mothers unable to cover their children's wounds."
"I want soldiers kneeling in puddles of blood searching for the hands sliced from their bodies."
"I want the royal family's white flags soaked red until they're too heavy to raise!"
His voice exploded violently.
"DO YOU UNDERSTAND ME, YOU FILTHY DOGS WHO ARE ONLY FIT TO CHEW BONES?!"
"I want Alabasta to
be wiped out!! !"
Silence.
Then—
A howl erupted from somewhere in the hall.
Not fear.
Excitement.
Something primal had awakened.
The trembling cry of scavengers catching the scent of rotting flesh.
Another howl followed.
Then another.
And another.
Steel flashed from countless drawn blades.
Some pirates buried their faces into bloodstained tablecloths and inhaled deeply.
Others sliced open their own palms and licked the blood greedily.
Shiki watched expressionlessly.
He knew exactly what these creatures were.
Garbage dredged up from the world's worst prisons.
Murderers whose names had remained on black market bounty lists for decades.
Plagues despised even by other pirate crews.
He had fed them meat and liquor for three straight months.
All to squeeze the last remnants of humanity from their bones.
Turning away, he strode toward the massive windows.
The floating island slowly tilted.
Furniture and dishes slid violently across the hall as glass shattered endlessly.
Shiki grinned.
"Go."
His voice was soft.
Like a master unchaining his dogs.
"Bring hell itself…"
"…down to the human world."
——————
"R-Report!! This is bad!!"
A pirate crashed through the banquet hall doors in panic, stumbling across the floor with terror written all over his face.
"Lord Shiki! Eleven intruders have broken in! They're heading this wa—"
SHING!!
The gilded doors along the left corridor were sliced cleanly in half by a brilliant green sword slash.
Only after Zoro sheathed his blade did the severed doors collapse thunderously to the floor.
Almost simultaneously—
BOOM!!!
The right-side wall exploded inward from a monstrous kick.
Stone and dust poured through the hall like a collapsing waterfall.
Sanji slowly lowered his leg, the ember of his cigarette glowing faintly through the dust cloud.
Silence.
Every pirate inside the banquet hall froze.
Raised wine glasses.
Half-eaten meat.
Fists halted mid-swing.
All eyes locked onto the two destroyed entrances and the silhouettes gradually emerging through the smoke.
On the left side—
The Three-Sword Style swordsman.
The long-nosed sniper.
The silver-haired songstress.
The reindeer doctor.
One after another, they appeared.
On the right—
The Black Leg cook.
The archaeologist.
The skeleton musician.
The Cat Burglar navigator.
The surgeon with the spotted hat.
Each stepped forward calmly, their sharp eyes sweeping across the hall.
They split apart, leaving a path through the center.
Clack… clack… clack…
The slow sound of sandals tapping marble echoed steadily through the silence.
A figure emerged from the deepest part of the smoke.
Straw Hat atop his head.
A crimson suit beneath a black coat fluttering lightly in the invisible air currents.
He stopped at the center of the hall.
Standing before everyone.
"Golden Lion…"
Luffy raised his head.
Beneath the shadow of his Straw Hat, his eyes shone brightly like stars.
A sharp grin spread across his face.
"We finally meet."
After several seconds of silence—
Panic exploded throughout the pirate crowd.
"S-Straw Hat?!"
"That's Straw Hat Luffy?! Monkey D. Luffy?!"
"No way… why would one of the Four Emperors appear here?!"
"One of the rulers of the sea… the Fourth Emperor…"
Shouts, gasps, and the clattering of dropped weapons erupted together.
Many pirates instinctively stumbled backward, cold sweat soaking their clothes instantly.
The smiling face from the bounty posters no longer seemed ridiculous.
Now it carried suffocating pressure.
At the far end of the hall—
Golden Lion Shiki slowly set down his golden wine cup.
The soft clink against the table somehow echoed clearly amidst the chaos.
Ignoring his panicking subordinates, his gaze locked directly onto Luffy.
"The new Emperor of the Sea…"
He repeated the title slowly, savoring it.
Then a cold grin appeared.
"Interesting."
His quiet voice instantly froze the hall once more.
"You didn't even knock."
Shiki leaned slightly forward, elbows resting on the table, fingers interlocked beneath his chin.
The ship's wheel atop his head cast twisted shadows beneath the candlelight.
"You youngsters these days…"
His eyes narrowed.
Something ancient and monstrous stirred awake within them.
"…are really in such a hurry…"
His tone suddenly sharpened violently.
"—TO DIE?!"
BOOM!!!
Conqueror's Haki erupted outward.
The overwhelming pressure detonated from Shiki's body like a storm.
The air itself screamed under the force.
Several banquet tables exploded instantly while plates and goblets shattered into dust.
Dozens of pirates collapsed unconscious before they could even scream.
Cracks spread wildly across the glass windows.
Most of the candles throughout the hall were extinguished simultaneously.
Within the darkness—
Only black lightning danced violently.
And yet—
The eleven figures standing at the center of the storm did not move an inch.
Luffy slowly lifted a hand and adjusted the brim of his Straw Hat.
His body lowered slightly.
His grin widened within the darkness.
"Guess we'll have to try…"
He spoke softly.
Then—
BOOOOOOM!!!
Crimson-gold Conqueror's Haki exploded outward like a rising sun, crashing directly against Shiki's dark-red pressure.
The two overwhelming wills collided violently midair.
Black lightning tore through space itself.
Crimson and gold electricity intertwined and exploded endlessly, illuminating the banquet hall like the center of a thunderstorm.
The stone floor shattered upward.
Ceiling murals peeled apart.
The entire hall trembled violently beneath the clash of two kings.
"What a shame."
Luffy's voice pierced through the roaring Haki.
He shook his head calmly.
Not the slightest hesitation existed in his eyes.
Only certainty.
"Your opponent…"
The crimson-gold lightning surged violently, crushing through Shiki's dark-red Haki and tearing it apart.
"…isn't me."
Before the final echoes faded—
Luffy spread his arms and wrapped them around Uta and Nami's waists.
Silver-white light burst outward.
Space rippled like water.
And in the next instant—
The three of them vanished completely.
Only the devastated banquet hall remained.
And at the far end—
Golden Lion Shiki slowly rose to his feet.
He stared coldly at the place where Luffy disappeared.
The final traces of amusement vanished from his eyes completely.
"Very well."
"Then let me see…"
"…whether ships of this new era are truly sturdy enough."
BOOOOOOM!!!
The banquet hall ceiling exploded apart.
Golden Lion Shiki shot skyward like a cannonball, tearing through stone and crystal chandeliers alike.
Debris rained down endlessly behind him.
He hovered over a hundred meters in the air with nothing beneath his feet—
Floating effortlessly through the power of the Float-Float Fruit.
Violent winds erupted around him, whipping his golden coat and lion-like mane wildly through the storm.
Then—
An even more terrifying wave of Conqueror's Haki exploded outward.
Dark-red pressure swept across the floating island like a tsunami.
Clouds above the island were torn apart violently.
Lightning roared across the heavens.
Every blade of grass bent downward.
Buildings trembled.
Even distant pirates felt invisible hands crushing their hearts.
"JIHYAHAHAHA—!!"
His laughter drowned out the thunder itself.
The arrogance of an old-era tyrant radiated from every word.
"Let me see with my own eyes…"
He looked downward through the smoke and chaos as if searching directly for the vanished Straw Hat.
"…what gives a brat like you the right…"
"…to be called an EMPEROR OF THE SEA!!"
The final words struck like thunder.
Without even glancing downward, he issued another command coldly.
"You lot…"
His voice cut clearly through the storm.
"Kill the rest of those brats."
The terrifying killing intent behind those words caused the frightened pirates below to shudder violently.
Then—
Their fear transformed into something more primal.
"YES, BOSS SHIKI!!!"
Hundreds of pirates roared together.
They gripped bloodstained blades tightly.
Loaded rifles.
The last traces of hesitation disappeared from their eyes.
If they couldn't beat an Emperor—
Couldn't they at least kill his subordinates?!
That poisonous thought ignited their blood.
"Tch."
Zoro glanced across the murderous pirates before him, a mocking grin spreading across his face.
"Being underestimated by trash like this…"
"…really pisses me off."
Meanwhile, Shiki's gaze shifted sharply upward.
Toward the strange lion-headed pirate ship floating high above the island—
The Thousand Sunny.
A flicker of surprise and greed crossed his eyes.
"A flying ship…"
"Not a Devil Fruit ability."
He muttered quietly.
"How interesting…"
His body leaned slightly forward.
The air beneath his feet cracked faintly.
It seemed he was about to launch directly toward the Sunny.
But—
At that exact instant—
BZZZZZZZT—!!!
A violent burst of crackling electricity exploded directly behind him.
Shiki's pupils contracted instantly.
Observation Haki flashed through his eyes.
Then—
A black dress shoe wrapped in blazing blue-white lightning tore through the air behind him at supersonic speed.
The lightning was so bright it scorched the air itself.
"Hey."
Within Shiki's rapidly shrinking pupils reflected Sanji's fierce eyes burning like golden flames.
"You're not qualified…"
"…to bother our captain!!!!"
"Diable Jambe: Grill Shot — Lightning Star!!"
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