Battle of Twin Capes (5)

The sea is turbulent.

Hawkeye stood on his small boat, looking at the sky.

His arms swung, leaving afterimages, and a series of massive slashes hurtled through the air, heading straight for the few black dots hanging in the air under the full moon.

The combined offensive of both sides dispelled the clouds and mist, allowing the silvery moonlight to shine through, and he could clearly see several members of the Hell Pirates.

Boom! A deafening roar echoed overhead, and his strike was thwarted once again.

"Tempest Kick?"

Hawkeye let out a questioning sound.

Before the final slash could hit the God Slayer, the opponent seemed to unleash a large and dense barrage of slashes in the same manner. The only difference was that the opponent wasn't using a sword, but rather relying on his own powerful physique... This familiar feeling immediately reminded Hawkeye of the Navy Six Powers.

Although they were far apart, his slashing speed allowed him to close the distance to his target almost instantly, giving him very little time to react. Yet, in such a short gap, this man was able to unleash so many 'light blades' using the 'Tempest Kick' leg technique.

The horror of its physical form is unimaginable.

These 'Tempest Kick,' which are no match for his slashes in terms of either range or power, may not pose a threat individually, but their sheer number makes them formidable.

It actually struck his blade's edge from afar with the force of a torrent, causing the two to dissolve into each other.

"Very strong."

Hawkeye narrowed his eyes, making a judgment about his opponent in his mind.

Although the long distance somewhat reduced the power of his attacks, not everyone could block them in succession.

Before this great battle began, the Navy called the Seven Warlords of the Sea to hold an internal meeting. At that time, everyone's assessment of the danger of the God Slayer depended on his personality and intellect, as well as his strange and mysterious abilities! As for the God Slayer's own strength level, there was not much praise.

But now, after a brief exchange, Hawkeye realizes... they all seem to have underestimated the threat posed by the God Slayer's own combat power.

"With such abilities, why would you still be staying in North Blue?"

A question arose in Hawkeye's mind.

Even in the New World, God Slayer can still find a place to stand. Although the New World is the territory of the Yonko, it is not absolute.

That's just a broad definition.

"If he stays in the sky forever... I'm afraid even I can't do anything about him."

"If we were to fight at sea or on land... even if I'm confident I could beat him, there's still a chance of failure... putting aside his abilities, his level of Haki is also astonishing."

Hawkeye did not attack again for the time being, and his arm holding the black knife hung down naturally.

I looked up at the few black dots that hadn't left.

He sensed the 'consciousness' of the God Slayer ...

The opponent didn't seem to think that he, hailed as the world's greatest swordsman, could hurt him here.

So... I just wanted to see his swordsmanship.

"Oh."

Hawkeye smiled.

In this situation, he seemed to have become a 'challenger,' a feeling he hadn't experienced in many years...

"You are indeed extraordinary... You are probably the strongest opponent I have encountered in recent years."

"Want to see?"

"Then I'll let you... take a look."

As he murmured, Hawkeye suddenly bent down and lowered his head.

The black blade in his hand trembled like a high frequency, while an incomparably heavy Haki permeated its blade. The entire sea surface, centered on the small boat, began to ripple in huge circular waves. He planned to use the explosive power of his lower limbs to step on the boat's planks and leap into the air... This would reduce the distance between him and the God Slayer to the absolute minimum.

Then, unleash a charged strike!

And the instant Hawkeye assumed his starting stance.

In the air, a suffocating killing intent pierced Dom and the others' 'hearts' like a sharp sword.

It gave their brains the illusion that they were about to be 'cut down' or killed!

Without exception, even Yuri... Although he was not afraid of the feeling of death, the sharpness of that invisible aura felt as if it would cut his flesh and blood into pieces.

That's too domineering!

So much so that even if one resists... it's all in vain.

The outcome... was already predetermined.

What's frightening is that none of them could even see Hawkeye in person; they could only roughly pinpoint his location.

Even their sensory systems were being frantically 'ravaged', let alone Oboro ahead of them.

At that moment, Dom and the others saw the captain suddenly raise his arm above his head.

All the Qi Vortex within Long's body were activated, pushing the Qi Refining Technique to its limit... A cold glint flashed in his indifferent eyes as he stared at the location of Hawkeye on the sea, radiating an aura of dominance that looked down upon everything. Black Haki, accompanied by Inazuma, made him appear as if he were God reigning over the vast ocean, standing within the radiant moon.

"Um?"

Below, before Hawkeye could even make a move, goosebumps suddenly rose all over his body.

Alarm bells rang in my head.

"Something's coming from the sky..."

Hawkeye had an idea.

"Destroy it."

He uttered three words in a low voice.

The raised arm was then swung downwards.

Boom... The entire sky seemed to be surging with massive clouds and rain, and for a moment, muffled thunder rumbled. But strangely, the night sky was completely clear, without a trace of mist.

"Thunder?"

"No! It's airflow!"

Hawkeye reacted immediately.

Just as he was about to raise his knife to slash upwards, the sea level below the entire Reverse Mountain suddenly dropped rapidly. From high above, a dark, abyss-like circular 'bottomless pit' appeared on the sea surface, and at its center was the small boat where Hawkeye was.

The terrifying air currents transformed into an invisible island, which the God Slayer 'condensed' together and then crashed down from nowhere.

Before even touching the seawater, Hawkeye's body was already surrounded by towering white waves, with all the water spreading outwards.

He and the small boat plunged into the bottomless pit below.

The surrounding seawater has formed a 'vacuum zone' like the bottom of a valley.

Everything within the space was being crushed by the airflow! The blade of the Supreme Grade Sword Twelve, hailed as the world's strongest black sword, was locked in a frenzied struggle with the descending gas. The feeling was akin to a massive island crashing down on him, but what was even more terrifying was that the airflow was invisible, and its density, the amount of space it filled, and the things it affected were far beyond anything a tangible island could ever achieve.

No matter how big an island is, frankly speaking... it's just a 'bigger' rock, just as fragile.

And the gas... under Oboro's control, can be continuously replenished, increasing energy... making it impossible to destroy!

Qi... is everywhere.

The force, like Mount Tai Crushing the Top, caused Hawkeye's torso to curve, his knife-wielding arm to gradually bend, and the ship's deck beneath his feet shattered with a crack, instantly swallowed by the airflow and pulverized into dust.

In the night sky, a thin layer of sweat appeared on Long's forehead.

The aura surrounding him sent chills down the spines of Dorans and the others who were watching from the sidelines.

This was the first time they had seen the captain in such a 'terrifying' way.

Whoosh whoosh whoosh...

A moment later, as the 'black hole' on the sea surface continued to expand, suddenly, several streaks of lightning, dark red in color... like 'Heaven-Opening', shot straight into the sky, shattering the vast sea of qi. Hawkeye had only disrupted the flow of qi with a slash... Oboro could actually control the scattered 'air currents' and reassemble them to launch an attack against the former, but... there was no longer any need for that.

The turbulent, dispersed seawater converged once more, filling the brief 'vacuum black hole'.

The sea gradually returned to calm.

Hawkeye, wielding a black knife, floated halfway up the sea with the ebb and flow of the water.

His expression was particularly serious.

He wasn't injured... just very disheveled.

In addition, the physical exertion is enormous.

"His ability is too troublesome, mainly because... he can stay in the sky forever, and the distance and range of his ability are astonishing. Has he awakened it...?" Hawkeye thought to himself.

In a land battle, he wouldn't be in such a 'passive' position.

Hahahaha!

"This is the world's greatest swordsman? How pathetic!!!"

Suddenly, a piercing laugh came from the sky.

Although the voice was very faint, Hawkeye could still hear it... The man seemed to be using all his strength to mock him.

"The Hell Pirates, huh..."

Hawkeye is naturally not going to get angry. There are very few people or things in this world that can truly make him angry.

This kind of trash doesn't deserve his attention.

Dorans roared, his face flushed and neck bulging, confident the other could hear him... Now was the perfect opportunity to jump out and flatter the captain! Beside him, Rob Lucci felt a mix of emotions.

He witnessed firsthand the power possessed by the God Slayer... Whether it was Oboro or Hawkeye Mihawk, their combat strength was something he could never reach at his current level.

Ironically... he once even entertained the idea of assassinating Oboro single-handedly.

"I... am far from good enough!"

Rob Lucci clenched his fist, his hand trembling.

"Hawkeye... just stay in the sea and relax... hahaha!"

"This is what happens when you're a lackey of the World Government!"

Dorans continued to shout, as if he, not Oboro, was the one who had made the move.

"Alright, let's go."

Long did not stop Dorans, but after resting for a moment, he exhaled a breath of stale air and his eyes showed a trace of fatigue.

Then he turned around, said something, and flew away with the six of them.

Unless they engage in direct combat, Hawkeye has no chance of stopping him.

Meanwhile, Hawkeye, still in the ocean, listened to the constant croaking and watched the few black dots under the moonlight speed away, only frowning slightly.

"Hehe... It seems... it's only a matter of time before you go to the New World."

Hawkeye then smiled.

The failed attempts to capture or intercept him are irrelevant to him; the real headaches are for the navy and the government.

He's already made his move... While it wasn't exactly a desperate attempt, it wouldn't have mattered if any of the Seven Warlords of the Sea had come.

Let alone the Seven Warlords of the Sea... With the opponent's abilities and his determination to leave, he has no intention of fighting to the end. Even a Marine Admiral, apart from Kizaru, probably couldn't stop him.

He has done what he was supposed to do.