Upper Yard, at the heart of the ancient ruins, was wrapped tight in enormous vines.
The air reeked of ozone. The sunlight that had filtered through the canopy was now completely blotted out by thick, dark clouds.
Ace stopped.
His tall, broad-shouldered frame stood on a moss-covered stone path. His dark red coat snapped in the increasingly violent wind. He raised his head and looked toward the top of a massive broken pillar ahead.
"Zzz... crackle..."
A shrill buzz of electricity rang out as the air overhead twisted violently.
A brilliant bolt of blue lightning crashed down from the clouds, striking the pillar with pinpoint precision. But the light didn't fade. It swiftly intertwined and reformed, as if alive, into a bare-chested man with exceptionally long earlobes and four drums strapped to his back.
Enel sat cross-legged atop the pillar, holding a bright red apple. He took a careless bite.
"Yahahahaha! You made it all the way through that forest. I have to admit, you've surprised me for a Blue Sea bug."
Enel chewed his apple as he looked down at Ace with eyes full of utter arrogance.
"But my Mantra tells me your men knocked out two of my Priests on the other side of the forest with some savage technique."
Enel casually tossed the leftover apple core down. It landed on the stone path at Ace's feet.
"Those fellows are just toys I use to pass the time, but if you damage something that belongs to God, you'll have to face Divine Punishment."
Ace glanced down at the apple core, then looked up at Enel as if he were an idiot.
"God?"
Ace's mouth twitched. His eyes held undisguised disbelief and disdain. He snorted, his voice thick with mockery. "Back in the Blue Sea, the Celestial Dragons at