Lightning Master!!!

For Kuma, there was no doubt that Nicholas was the key to whether this world could move toward a better future.

This was something he realized during his time with Vegapunk.

This meant—

Even knowing that, while he might be able to block Imu's next attack, he couldn't block the one after that, Kuma still chose to use his life to buy a few seconds of hope for Nicholas.

Maybe the few seconds bought with his life wouldn't change anything, but if he did nothing, then there would be no chance for any miracle to happen.

"Nicholas, I really wish I could see with my own eyes the world you envision."

As Kuma muttered softly, a brilliant beam of light, like a comet, descended from the sky, striking toward him and Nicholas behind him.

The dazzling light completely engulfed Kuma's figure.

Just as Kuma raised his hand, intending to unleash his final Bear Impact, a hand suddenly rested on his shoulder.

Feeling the hand on his shoulder, Kuma instinctively turned his head and saw Nicholas smiling at him.

Behind them, Nicholas, with a gaping wound through his chest, lay on the ground, slowly disappearing.

Before Kuma could comprehend what had happened, he felt a surge of force from his shoulder, and the scene in his vision rapidly retreated and blurred.

Boom!

Imu's terrifying attack once again caused a massive explosion on the ground.

As the smoke cleared, the figures of Nicholas and Kuma slowly emerged from the dust.

Katie, who had rushed over from afar, saw this scene and immediately felt a sense of relief.

"Bear, take Katie and leave here. I'm counting on you."

Nicholas, while staring up at Imu, spoke to Kuma, instructing him to use the power of his Paw-Paw Fruit to take Katie away.

"Alright."

Although he didn't know why Nicholas wanted him to leave, it was clear that Nicholas had his own plans. Thinking of the terrifying power Imu had just displayed, Kuma understood that staying wouldn't help Nicholas.

"Even though I don't know what you've taken, you're not the only one who can cheat the system."

Nicholas was inwardly amazed by Imu's surge in power, but his expression remained calm.

After all, if he didn't have some cards up his sleeve, he wouldn't have come to the Holy Land, Mariejois.

As Nicholas finished speaking, the other Nicholas, who was lying on the ground behind him and slowly disappearing, finally dissipated into lightning. The lightning seemed to have a life of its own, moving toward Nicholas and eventually merging into his body.

This was a skill he used to amplify his strength. Each version of Nicholas that was sent out was like a battery, and when these batteries returned to Nicholas, his power would increase.

At the same time, massive bolts of lightning in the sky began converging toward Nicholas.

The lightning, like writhing silver snakes, continuously flowed into Nicholas' body.

Each bolt of lightning enhanced Nicholas' strength.

In past battles, Nicholas would also borrow the power of natural phenomena.

But this time—

He was absorbing nearly all the lightning that covered Mariejois in one go.

As the last bolt of lightning entered his body, his pupils sparkled like electricity.

"This feeling... it's intoxicating."

As more and more lightning was absorbed, Nicholas could clearly feel his power skyrocketing.

As one of the most destructive forces in nature, lightning, even a random strike, could easily wipe out 99% of the people on the seas. And now, this power was continuously flowing into one person.

Just thinking about it was terrifying.

Absorbing this much lightning at once reminded Nicholas of his fight with Roger and Whitebeard long ago. Back then, he had nearly been overwhelmed by the lightning. But this time, he could clearly sense the lightning submitting to him.

[AN – The Zoro disaster that wiped out 60% of the readers]

He could even feel the excited charge in the particles around him.

As the last bolt of lightning entered his body, Nicholas didn't show any obvious physical changes.

But a cloak of intertwined lightning now draped over him, and behind him appeared thunder drums made of pure lightning. His body was also covered with patterns emitting a blinding white light, and his pupils flickered with lightning-shaped designs.

In his hand, he now held several small red pills.

"I've got my own methods for boosting my strength."

Nicholas looked up at Imu and directly swallowed the pills.

As his throat moved, a powerful and terrifying aura erupted from his body, soaring into the sky.

Not far away, Imu, who was radiating an equally immense aura, furrowed her brows as she looked at Nicholas.

At first, she hadn't quite understood what Nicholas meant by "cheating the system." To her, it seemed like he was referring to methods of increasing one's strength.

Even if Nicholas had a way to enhance his strength, she assumed he still wouldn't be her match.

After all, the power she had accumulated over 800 years, combined with the continuous improvements by the dangerous drugs, made her unbeatable.

But as the lightning surged into Nicholas' body—

She began to feel an unprecedented sense of danger.

She had thought that, after using her trump card, she would easily defeat Nicholas. But now, it seemed...

She might have been overconfident.

"Master of lightning, huh?"

Imu wasn't asking a question; she was speaking to herself.

Her ability to hear the breath of all things made it clear: at this moment, Nicholas had become the embodiment of lightning in this world, no different in essence from the gods in legends who controlled and commanded lightning.

Realizing this, Imu's gaze toward Nicholas became more serious.

"But even if you can control lightning, it's meaningless."

Her ethereal voice carried a chill as cold as winter.

Then—

Imu waved her hand, sending a giant slash directly toward Nicholas.

The power of this slash was such that even a giant warrior would appear like an ant in its path.

But Nicholas simply raised his hand and grabbed the massive slash.

The immense slash that tore through the air and carried tremendous energy was stopped in its tracks by Nicholas' bare hand. In front of Nicholas, it couldn't advance an inch. Then, with a squeeze of his hand, Imu's giant slash shattered into scattered energy.

"You should know that attacks of this level are meaningless for both of us," Nicholas said calmly, staring at Imu.