204 Chapter 193

"Help!!!!"

From within one piece of land that was floating by the sea, the cry of one man was heard.

Nojiko, who was standing on top of it, raised her eyebrow, just as one Pacifista was corroding away from her back.

"Help me, please!!!"

The cry was miserable. At the same time, it was pleading. Nojiko felt her mind weakening upon such a heartfelt cry—she sighed while approaching the source of the sound.

Transforming her hand into a paw, she effortlessly lifted up the ruins, freeing one man from being crushed under.

Nojiko then had her eyes widened. Of all possibilities, the man whom she saved,

'...is a Celestial Dragon?'

The man with a huge lump on his head gulped. With the utmost gratitude, he bowed to Nojiko,

"T-thank you! If not for your help, I would've lost my life!"

"...What are you doing here?" Nojiko found her voice becoming cold. All worries that previously lingered in her mind melted away, and all that remained was disdain.

"I was previously knocked out, and far too much time has passed since then, but—"

However, what that Celestial Dragon stated then surprised her.

"—I am here to ask king Imu to stop his wrongdoing!!"

The Celestial Dragon with the noble will. It was the first time Nojiko has ever seen one.

"My name is Donquixote Mjosgard, a human just like any other!"

____________

Doom.

Upon sighting Imu's approach, that was the first thought that entered Usopp's mind.

"...Heh."

His legs trembled. He unconsciously gulped while sweating profusely. He knew that he stood no chance against the sea god.

The appearance of this man meant one thing, that Rowan lost. And frankly speaking, the rest of them had enough of Imu already—Usopp believed that there was no chance for the rest of them to defeat Imu by themselves.

Nonetheless, Usopp pointed his weapons at the man through the use of his fruit ability.

'Don't hesitate!'

"Usopp Magnet Style," Usopp clenched his sweaty hands before launching all weapons at once,

"Final Star!"

*Plop* *Plop* *Plop*

All the bullets and cannonballs were easily stopped by the wall of water that abruptly sprang forth.

*Booom*

Then, the muffled noise of an explosion. Usopp's weapons were too weak to overcome the otherworldly being in front of him.

Imu continued his approach.

"T-tch..." Usopp gritted his teeth. He felt his whole body dominating himself. But...

"I-I am the great warrior of the sea!!" Usopp shouted at Imu, "I won't allow you to pass!!!"

"...Then die."

Imu lazily waved his hand, and in contrast to his small movement, a whole tsunami arose from the side, ready to crash onto Usopp in one go.

From afar, Chopper's eyes widened in panic as he saw what trouble Usopp got himself in, "Usopp!!!!"

Usopp closed his eyes tight, 'Kaya... I...'

"STOP THIS!!!"

Then, Usopp saw a shadow looming over him. Raising his head up, he saw... one short and obese man with a bizarre hairstyle. Though Usopp never met that man, he knew who this man was based on the man's attire,

"C-Celestial Dragon?!"

The tsunami came to a stop before it crashed onto the two of them.

"...Donquixote Mjosgard. What do you think you are doing?"

The sole Celestial Dragon who refused to board Pluton. Imu left that man alone, knowing that the Celestial Dragons are capable of nothing, and will serve as nothing but scarecrows for him to control.

However, seeing such an incapable man standing in front of him, rebelling against him—Imu felt something cracking within him.

"Your highness!!" Mjosgard shouted adamantly, "This is wrong! The whole war was wrong from the start! What have they done?! For what wrong did they commit for them to face your judgment?!"

"An act of treason." Imu growled in fury, "I won't say it twice. Move over, lowly slave."

"NO!!"

Usopp found his jaw dropping wide open. This man—Usopp couldn't help but wonder if he was some hidden expert with enough strength to defeat Imu.

"The only reason why you Earth Worms were left alive—is because you are quite useful as puppets. Brain-dead, complacent, ignorant, and selfish—it is your vices that I value." Imu's eyes gleamed in rage, "You are expected to hold no ideal, no dream, and no desire. You are meant and built to be hollow, for me to utilize you worms as the 'Celestial Dragons' for the sake of my ambition."

Mjosgard visibly trembled. His face was pale, and he was drooling unconsciously. Upon facing Imu's potent Conqueror's Haki, Mjosgard stood no chance.

It was simply horrible. Imu didn't even allow Mjosgard to faint. A torture. Mjosgard was going under incredible pain as if his own soul was being crushed.

"...Damn it!!"

Then, one woman, Nojiko, came in intervening,

"What is wrong with you?! Aren't you the Celestial Dragon like those other filths?!"

Imu watched as Nojiko, while sweating profusely from nervousness, grabbing Usopp and Mjosgard before beginning to run away from him.

Silently, just like how a predator gazes at one's prey.

As if reflecting his fury, the whole sea swirled. The pieces of land all crashed onto each other, with the sudden whirlpool pulling them to the centre.

*BOOOM*

"Let me go, my saviour!!" Mjosgard, in Nojiko's arms, struggled to get out, "I am sure that king Imu will listen!! I just have to try again and again!!"

"Idiot! Look properly for once!!" Nojiko shouted with disbelief, "Do you think your words will reach that man, who wishes for the domination of the entire world?! As if!!"

"*Huff*... What is going on?" Robin, who was huffing along with the others as they faced Pacifistas and the other enemies around them, expressed her disbelief upon sighting Imu, "No... that isn't right."

"...Captain lost?" Urouge muttered with a shaky grin.

*BOOOOOOOOOOM*

Carmen grimaced as she sighted Imu, while facing Sakazuki alongside Dragon, Alfred, and Urouge.

"...Not good." Dragon said with sharp eyes, quickly assessing the whole situation and calculating the best strategy in his head.

Mihawk simply stared at Imu without any emotion. Simply crossing his arms as his foes were breathing heavily, Mihawk met his eyes with Imu, who looked back at him with nothing but mockery.

"Weak as always." Imu said in disdain, "You never cease to disappoint me, Mihawk."

Mihawk didn't respond. He simply snorted while sheathing his sword on his back.

Then, Imu saw that one burly man, Kong, was being flown to him as he was severely bleeding all over.

Kong, upon sighting Imu, lit up, "I-Imu-sama—"

*PUK*

A sharp seastone spike suddenly sprang forth from the air, penetrating through Kong's brain in a single go.

"There is no use for a failure."

The formal Fleet Admiral of the Marine, and the current Commander-In-Chief, died just like that, in an anti-climactic death.

Sakazuki gritted his teeth in a cold sweat. He clenched his fists that were shaking uncontrollably; he felt pressured, for if he fails to defeat his foes as well, he too will be killed without a doubt.

"In the end, it's still the same, ha..." Imu slowly raised his hands up with a wrinkled-up expression, focusing his eyes on Mjosgard at the back, "I will have to do it all by myself."

Within the whirlpool where everyone has gathered altogether, the walls of water all arose simultaneously.

"...No."

Carina whispered. Her eyes were shadowed by her bangs, and her grip on her knives tightened.

"Rowan hasn't lost yet. Somehow, I know—he's still alive." Carina spoke as if convincing herself, "All we got to do is to hang on."

"Nishishishi! I think so too!"

Then came a jovial voice that everyone recognized.

Imu stopped on his track.

Ace, Sabo, Garp, Zoro, Sanji—they all turned back with evident joy,

"""""Luffy!!!"""""

"Joy Boy...!" Imu's eyes widened. The sole person whom Imu found to be on par with him, the man who would've won 800 years ago if Imu didn't extract his heart from his body.

Nika, the sun god and his arch-nemesis. That man was standing in a form of a scrawny boy with a straw hat on his back.

The walls of water then turned into sharp spikes of seastone, and closed into the middle rapidly. Imu intended to kill all the enemies within the area at once, for his fine control allowed him to evade those on his side.

Mihawk, without any word, walked out of the land that he was standing on top of and bypassed the seastone spikes.

Sakazuki sweated profusely as he looked to his left and right, before slowly moving out of the area with the use of Geppo.

"Nishishi," Luffy, with a grin, stomped his foot on the ground.

In everyone's eyes, the ground began to churn strangely, before the edges of the land suddenly stretched unnaturally like rubbers.

"I can't defeat that funny-crown man, but Rowan definitely can! And for some reason, I know it—" Luffy cried while laughing, "—he's going to come back and finish the deed!"

Luffy stretched his arms and grabbed onto the edges of the land, before pulling them together to create a dome that shielded everyone from the seastone spikes.

"Luffy..." Sanji's cigarette fell out of his mouth, "What in the world..."

Dragon found a smile on his face.

"Therefore, hang on!!"

*BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM*

The seastone spikes simultaneously crashed onto the now-ceilings. Just like rubber would, they waved up and down with great elasticity, holding their own against the seastone spikes to some extent.

"What happened to your grandson?" Sengoku whispered to Garp, "Why is his head burning like that?"

Garp's eyes narrowed, "Hm..."

"Talk later. Now isn't the time for that." Tsuru stated with a serious expression.

Everyone watched as the seastone spikes poked onto the rubbery ceilings.

*Boing* *Boing* *Boing*

They bounced back and forth with an increasing magnitude; it won't be long before Luffy's defence cracks down.

In this situation,

"...That's right. It isn't over yet." Carina, as if having been infected by Luffy's grin, made a grin herself, "As long as we can hold back until Rowan returns... it's our win."

She began to glow in purple.

"I will place my trust in him, because," Carina turned to the rest of the crew, "he's our captain, right?"

Dan grinned, "You bet."

Carmen snorted knowingly, "What else do you expect? Captain only fights when he's confident of winning."

"Guahaha! True! I saw captain fighting that Garp before; he was running like crazy!" Cavendish laughed.

"Shh, master Cavendish. I thought that we are going to keep that one quiet." Alfred shushed Cavendish while adjusting his monocle.

"Neigh~!!" Farul huffed while standing proudly.

"...If he doesn't come, I'm going to dig up his corpse and put Farul's faeces on his face." Robin said darkly, causing Urouge to back off in a pale expression.

"Welp," Urouge commented with a gulp, "Now you definitely have to come, captain."

"Hrrrrghhhh!!!" Luffy was at his utmost effort in defending against the seastone spikes.

Everyone tensed up, preparing themselves for the upcoming attack. However, just then,

"…Shambles!"

*SWOOSH*

The mass teleportation was dictated by Law. Everyone was brought out of the dome in an instant, just as,

*BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM*

the seastone spikes demolished the structure completely.

"*Huff*... *Huff*... F***..." Law muttered powerlessly, before falling down onto one Sea King that he was standing on top of.

*Thud*

Everyone was out.

"Oh, thanks, white-cap guy!" Luffy bent down and petted the unconscious Law, to which the Heart pirates stared weirdly.

Imu seemed unfazed by it. With a simple wave of his hand, an even greater number of seastone spikes were generated, before simultaneously blasting to where everyone stood.

"Leave this to me." Carina stated with determination. Stepping up, she took a deep breath.

'Something that I feel within me,'

Is this the awakening?

*ZOOOM*

A huge, circular gap of void then appeared in front of everyone.

"...Black Hole."

It was an amazing sight. The seastone spikes that were flying toward them, ended up entering the portal created by Carina, before,

*ZOOOM*

"White Hole."

exiting out of another portal that was located right above the sea,

*SPLASHSPLASHSPLASH*

causing the seastone spikes to impact the surface of the water instead.

"...Damn." Ace exclaimed with amazement.

"Nishishi! That's cool!" Luffy laughed, before turning back to where more seastone spikes were incoming, "This is going to be fun!"

___________

Haki of Resistance. It was the fourth type of Haki that Rowan awakened due to the special property of him being a reincarnator.

The different sides of the same coin.

What he initially believed to be the opposites, were quite similar instead. The Haki of Resistance and the Conqueror's Haki were akin to him and 'Youchiha Bob.'

<Hey, so, what was that thing you did to block my Conqueror's Haki?> Shanks said back then, <What?! Resist Conqueror's Haki? So you can resist Conqueror's Haki, but use it to others with your own? What in the world is that?!>

If him and 'Youchiha Bob' can be merged, then...

'Why not the Haki of Resistance and the Conqueror's Haki?'

Within the sphere of seastone that continued to descend into the dark sea, within this small space where the oxygen was rapidly running out, Rowan slowly raised his hand up,

and clenched.

'Resist.'

The Haki of Resistance. It was a transparent liquid-like substance that encased his hand. Rowan used it many times before, but now that he looked at it, it seemed incomplete.

"*Huff*... *Huff*..." Rowan felt the shortness of breath. The air was scarce, and the longer he stayed within this sphere, the more likely it is for him to end up just like Davy Jones.

The end is near. Rowan is one step before achieving true freedom, free of any concerns. The being that haunted him for quite some time, Imu the supposed 'sea god,' was finally before his reach!

'And no way in hell am I giving up.'

BGM: The Very Very Very Strongest

*Paz* *Paz*

As if reflecting his determination, the black lightning of Conqueror's Haki: Manifestation burst into existence.

"*Huff*... *Huff*... *Huff*..."

Rowan's breathing fastened. His eyes blazed up in ferocious dark-red as he moved his shaky arm forth, pushing the Conqueror's Haki: Manifestation onto the Haki of Resistance.

*PAZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ*

The two different types of Haki were repelling one another with incredible strength. The sparks scattered within the sphere, generating bright flashes over and over.

"*Huff* *Huff* *Huff* *Huff*"

Rowan's breathing fastened even further. He was sweating all over his body. His whole body shook as he bit his lips, striving to achieve the goal in his mind.

*PAZZZZZZZZZZZZZ*

If one can conquer, but the others are prevented from doing so, just how unfair is it?

Then came the light brighter than any other. Within the dark sea, the light entered—lighting up the area brighter than it ever has.

*Crack* *Crack*

Within the space where the air was almost running out, the thick layer of seastone began to crack.

The hardest mineral in the world, thought to be indestructible by many. The scene which everyone thought to be impossible, was happening within the bright depth of the sea.

*PAZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ*

Then, the seastone sphere completely shattered. As if cowering under the incredible will of domination, the whole sea trembled and vibrated rapidly.

*VROOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM*

The sea split into two, parting itself open to give the way to one man who stood within.

*Plop*

That man took one step forward, to mark an end to the World Government's reign.

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