Clash

"Report to Admiral Sakazuki, Rexeno Island has arrived!"

"I see it."

Since Rexeno was an abandoned island with no port at all, the warship could only dock at sea, close to the shore.

Akainu narrowed his eyes, his Observation Haki instantly enveloping the entire island, but he detected no trace of any people.

"It looks like we can fight to our heart's content!"

Cifer's Neural Scan also swept across the island, finding no inhabitants.

"After we go ashore, move the warship further away."

"Sakazuki, are you two planning to..."

Jonathan still couldn't believe it. Were these two going to fight with all their might on the island?

Before he could finish asking, Cifer and Akainu had already leaped off the warship using Sound Step and Geppo respectively.

The two accelerated continuously, and in the blink of an eye, they had arrived at the center of the island.

The scenery here was beautiful, with clear waters, lush mountains, fragrant flowers, and birdsong. It could even be called a paradise on earth. Even Cifer and Akainu couldn't help but stop to admire it.

"What a shame, such beautiful scenery will be gone after today," Cifer sighed.

"The clashes between the strong always destroy the weak," Akainu's body was already starting to heat up, and a trace of magma seemed to be seeping from his glove.

"You're really impatient!"

Cifer no longer suppressed his Spiritual Pressure. A black rain poured down, but it evaporated into steam as it approached Akainu.

"Seal it, Black Winged Great Demon!"

With a flap of his wings, Cifer completed his Resurrección, his Spiritual Pressure snapping all the surrounding trees.

The wild beasts that had initially been hiding nearby and observing were awestruck by this aura. In an instant, birds took flight and beasts scattered, even the fish in the rivers sank to the bottom and quickly retreated.

"So scary!"

Everyone on the warship dared not even breathe heavily. Even from such a distance, Cifer's Spiritual Pressure could instill fear in them.

Hina's expression was the most solemn among them all. She had been on Cifer's ship for so long, yet she had never felt such a terrifying aura from him.

They hadn't even started fighting, and the mere aura was already earth-shattering. If they were to truly fight with such power, neither of them would fare well.

"Come on, Sakazuki!"

Cifer beckoned with two fingers, and Akainu's fist, covered in Armament Haki, came charging at him.

Cifer dodged to the side and countered with a powerful punch, but Akainu blocked it with his elbow.

After dozens of exchanges, they were evenly matched.

Wherever they passed, the ground cracked. The sheer force and shockwaves from their physical combat alone had dented the foot of a towering mountain.

"Bang!"

Their fists collided.

"Hell Hound!"

Akainu's right fist turned into magma, enveloping Cifer's fist. The magma on the outer layer then heated up and erupted towards Cifer like lava.

Cifer quickly covered his entire body with Spiritual Pressure. The magma dissipated upon impact with it.

"Not good!"

Realizing that Hell Hound had no effect, Akainu immediately elementalized his arm to break free, but Cifer grabbed him with his Spiritual Pressure instead.

Unable to elementalize his arm, Akainu swung his other hand at Cifer, which was also caught. Cifer then exerted force with both arms, yanking Akainu up and slamming him hard onto the ground after spinning him in the air.

Akainu landed face first. When he looked up again, several scars had appeared on his face.

Just as Cifer was about to repeat his maneuver, lifting Akainu from the ground and slamming him down again, Akainu, who was in the air, kicked forward with both legs, striking Cifer's abdomen.

Cifer cried out in pain and released his grip, staggering back several steps, clutching his stomach. A trickle of blood slid from the corner of his mouth.

After a brief respite, the two resumed their fisticuffs, exchanging hundreds more rounds without a clear winner.

"Cero Oscuras!"

As Cifer leaped backward into the air, Akainu grabbed his left leg. Cifer raised a finger and fired at Akainu. The Cero Oscuras was far faster than a Cero, and at this distance, it was impossible to dodge.

"Ah!!!"

Akainu's chest was struck by the Cero Oscuras. The pain surged through him like a cannonball thrown into the sea, and his entire skeleton seemed to tremble.

But he didn't let go. Instead, the pain only increased the strength in his grip. In a similar fashion, he slammed Cifer down from the air.

Cifer landed on his back, his entire body embedded in the ground. A large amount of blood gushed from his mouth, especially from his left leg, which Akainu was gripping tightly, as if it were being burned by magma.

While Cifer was still struggling to break free from the ground, Akainu pressed down on him and began raining blows on Cifer's head with his iron fists.

Cifer could only raise his arms to block in front of his face. The continuous heavy blows from Akainu made his arms go numb.

Akainu raised his right fist high and brought it down in a charged attack. Cifer quickly moved his head to the side, and the fist plunged into the ground.

Seizing the opportunity, Cifer flapped his wings forcefully, breaking free from the ground. He used the momentum to punch Akainu in the face, sending him flying dozens of meters and embedding him in a large mountain.

"What a lunatic!"

Cifer gasped for air, his super-regeneration granting him immense healing abilities, but the pain was very real. He couldn't just ignore everything like Ulquiorra.

This was pain and pleasure intertwined! In the more than a month since he'd arrived in this world, he'd never experienced such an evenly matched and exhilarating fight as today.

Invincibility was a lonely thing; a journey with an opponent was much more exciting. This was another reason he'd been reluctant to use his second stage Resurrección, but he had a premonition that today was the day!

Akainu's power was beyond his imagination!

A wave of heat spread out, and magma continuously flowed from the large mountain towards Cifer, erupting before him and taking the form of Akainu.

"Moonlight Sword!"

Blazing Spiritual Pressure gathered in his hand, condensing into a treasured sword. Akainu had already begun to partially elementalize, and Cifer had no intention of continuing to trade blows with him.

"Inugama Kurenai!"

Akainu's arm once again turned to magma, forming a dog's head shape as it flew towards Cifer.

Cifer swung forcefully, and a powerful sword energy shot straight into the sky. The Inugama Kurenai was split in two as if it were solid, flying past Cifer's sides and incinerating the fallen trees.

The residual sword energy pressed forward, the slash extending all the way to the mountain behind Akainu.

"BOOM!!!"

A thunderous impact echoed, and Akainu turned his head slightly. The mountain behind him was sliced into two smooth halves as if it were made of tofu.

The earth shook and the mountains trembled. Cifer's sword strike seemed to have angered certain creatures.

Under their Observation Haki and Neural Scan, a large number of red dots were approaching.

"The anger of their destroyed homes seems to have overcome their fear~"

During a rare moment of respite, Akainu removed his hat, which bore English lettering for Marines, and tidied his short hair.

"I already gave them a warning. If they want to court death, there's nothing I can do."

Cifer's powerful Spiritual Pressure would normally have caused all these weak creatures to faint, but he had dispersed it, merely scaring them away.

If they had honestly left the battlefield, they might have had a chance to survive. If they returned, Cifer would show no mercy.

Wolves, tigers, leopards, and beasts of various shapes and sizes began to gather around them. Not far away, there seemed to be abnormally large bodies.

Gaze after gaze fell upon Cifer and Akainu, but it didn't draw their attention. At this moment, only the person before them mattered!

"Great Eruption!"

Scalding magma dripped from Akainu's arm, quickly engulfing it and continuously growing larger, finally solidifying into a fist-shaped mass of lava that fiercely attacked Cifer.

"Cero Oscuras!"

For such a powerful yet slow attack, Cifer naturally raised a finger and unleashed an attack with similar strengths and weaknesses.

The two forces collided violently. Centered on them, the earth cracked inch by inch. With cries of agony, the beasts caught in the blast lay dead and scattered.

"Look quickly!"

A Marine on the warship, who had been observing the island's condition, shouted, drawing the attention of Jonathan, Hina, and the others who were playing chess nearby.

Following the direction he pointed, Hina's eyes widened in disbelief. She didn't even notice the chess piece falling from her hand.

Jonathan, as Akainu's good friend, had seen many grand scenes, but this was the first time he'd witnessed such a terrifying battle. He couldn't help but swallow hard, forcing himself to remain calm.

He followed the gazes of the many terrified onlookers.

The sky... was tearing apart.