Hachinosu, the end
On the Battlefield where flames and darkness intertwine, the heavens and earth seem to be torn apart.
Teach's figure appeared and disappeared in the churning black Swamp; with each breath, the air trembled; with each laugh, the heavens and earth shook.
"Thief--hahaha!!"
His laughter echoed through the Swamp, eerie, manic, and tinged with a kind of uncontrolled pleasure.
The black swamp beneath his feet continued to expand. He spread his arms, and the entire area pulsated like an activated living organism—countless dark hand shadows emerged from the swamp, reaching out to grab Ace, Luffy, Zoro, and Kuina.
"Don't let that thing touch you!" Ace roared, unleashing a sea of fire that forced the dark figures back.
The intense heat of the flames collided with the chill of the black swamp, unleashing a blazing Shockwave that turned the entire Battlefield into a world of red and black.
"Hehehe! Let's go crazy together--!"
Teach laughed even more wildly, Flash, he rushed straight into the flames.
His entire body was charred black, yet he still laughed wildly, throwing a punch to meet Ace's fiery fist. The explosion sent both of them flying.
Taking advantage of the opening, Luffy dodged instantly and delivered a powerful kick to Teach's abdomen, sending him shoving into the ground!
The rubble and mud exploded, but almost at the same time—that familiar "drumbeat" sounded once again.
"Bang... bang... bang bang--!"
With the rhythm, Teach's muddy body began to reassemble.
The pierced chest swelled up, and the charred flesh regenerated, even stronger than before.
He sat up in the mud, laughing like a madman, "Ha ha ha—not bad! But—now it's my turn!!"
He suddenly raised his hand, and hundreds of black tentacles immediately erupted from the entire Swamp, weaving into a giant net that devoured the heavens and the earth.
Luffy and Zoro immediately separated. Zoro gathered his Haki and unleashed Three-Sword Style cross slash, transforming into three bolts of lightning that cleaved through the air and severed the tentacles.
Kuina unfurled her blood-red wings, a crimson afterimage flashed by, Wado Ichimonji pierced the night, striking straight at Teach's heart!
"Guhaha--Useless!!"
Teach grinned wildly, and with a flick of his hand, a thick black wall suddenly rose from the Swamp, blocking the slash.
But the aftershock of the strike still left a deep gash on his body—blood splattered out, but the next second, the blood flowed in reverse and returned to his body.
"This guy... he's practically invincible!" Zoro gritted his teeth, his Enma crackling with resentful purple lightning.
"Every time we push him to his limit... the moment that damn drumbeat starts, he's like he's doing sit-ups, fully revived!"
Ace leaped forward, a fiery tornado bursting through the black mist and engulfing Teach entirely. "Let's see how many more times you can laugh this time!!"
The roar shattered the clouds, and waves of heat Impact against the surrounding ruins.
However, when the flames subsided, Teach slowly emerged from the inferno once more, the flames around him transforming into a rubbery substance that swirled around him.
He grinned wildly, his mouthful of fangs gleaming coldly. "Ha ha ha—no wonder they're the rising stars of the Navy..."
"Too bad, you can't kill me at all!!"
The laughter no longer seemed to belong to Teach himself, but rather to some ancient "thing" speaking through his throat.
Ace's gaze suddenly turned cold. "That laughter... no... that's not Teach anymore."
Luffy's dragon eyes flashed with a cold light, golden flames igniting within them. "Hmm... that sound... it seems to be 'something' inside him responding to the drumbeats..."
The two looked at each other, and in just a moment, they understood each other's thoughts.
That was an unspoken understanding between brothers. Ace suddenly roared, " --Zoro! Kuina!!"
Zoro raised an eyebrow, Kuina nodded slightly, and the four of them instantly reached a silent understanding.
"Understood!"
A shockwave erupted beneath Zoro's feet, and his Haki transformed into Spiral of wind and lightning.
"Three-Sword Style: Purgatory Oni Giri!!"
Kuina's figure flashed by at the same time, the blood mist turned into afterimages, Wado Ichimonji ignited with crimson blood flames, a mixture of chilling aura and killing intent!
"Frostblood Shadow Sky Slash!!"
Two beams of light intersected, like Twin Stars falling, tearing apart Teach's Swamp rubber domain.
"--?!!" Teach's smile finally froze.
He was forced to the edge of the domain, and was compelled to cross his arms to cover himself with Armament Haki black swamp to defend himself. The Swamp churned and roared like a raging beast.
"Trying to knock me out of your domain? You're too naive!"
Before he could finish speaking, his pupils suddenly contracted!
In that instant, a sense of danger powerful enough to tear one's soul apart approached simultaneously from both sides!
Ace and Luffy attacked simultaneously from the left and right flanks!
Flames and golden light intertwine, like Twin Dragons vying for the sky.
Ace's Fire Fist was enveloped in flames, the tongues of fire swirling into a roaring crimson dragon, with black and red lightning dancing wildly around it;
Luffy's right arm was covered in pink and gold scales, his muscles were taut like a bowstring, and Conqueror's Haki surrounded his fist, Sky Splitter like a storm!
"Conqueror's Coating Combo Skill: Flame Dragon!!"
The two roared simultaneously!
Flames and black and red lightning intertwined to form the trajectory of Twin Dragons roaring dragons, attacking from both sides and forcefully engulfing Teach!
"Boom!!"
"Ahhh!!" Before Teach could react, he was completely engulfed by the Twin Dragons!
The island's surface completely cracked under the Impact of light and heat, and flames and Shockwaves surged into the sky like a tsunami.
The clouds were torn apart, and a blinding golden-red pillar of light ignited between heaven and earth—the flames and darkness merged, transforming into a blazing "Eclipse"!
Teach's screams were gradually swallowed up by the explosions—for the first time, the laughter showed a clear break.
The four steadied themselves, sweat and dust mingling on their faces, still staring intently at the utterly destroyed Battlefield.
The air was thick with the smell of burning and sulfur; the world was so quiet that only the sound of breathing could be heard.
Then,
"Bang... bang... bang bang..."
That eerie drumbeat once again shook heaven and earth.
Zoro frowned, gripping his sword hilt tightly with both hands. "He's still not dead?"
Ace gritted his teeth and muttered, "He's still laughing..."
From the depths of the firelight, the twisted black shadow slowly rose once more.
A smile crept across his lips, and the laughter was even more eerie than before.
Just as Teach was about to open his mouth and say something with a smile--
The smile on his face suddenly froze.
His vision suddenly went dark, and a tall figure had appeared in front of him without him noticing.
Teach's pupils contracted sharply, and he was about to raise his hand to defend himself, but he only had time to see—
A massive hand, covered in a black vortex and seemingly capable of swallowing light, is slamming down with indescribable speed and power!
"What--?!"
"Boom--!"
The heavens and earth trembled, and the sound wave raised a dust curtain hundreds of feet high.
Teach's figure was instantly slammed into the ground, his consciousness completely torn apart.
The last thing I saw before I fell into a coma--
It was that enormous, pitch-black hand that slowly retracted amidst the collapsing light and shadow.