The Death of Jesus Burgess
He gasped for breath, but couldn't inhale a single drop of air. The disordered bodily fluids constantly squeezed his organs and blocked his airways, suffocating him from the inside out. Every second was an excruciating torture worse than death.
His consciousness, bound by Genjutsu, could not function, and his exhausted physical strength could not sustain any resistance. He could only watch helplessly as he headed for his demise in endless agony.
Taki's face remained completely expressionless from beginning to end, as cold and indifferent as a heartless killing machine, showing no concern for his opponent's dying struggle.
He slowly lowered his body, his shoulders slumped and elbows dropped, his right hand gripping the hilt of the sword tightly in reverse. A massive amount of Lightning Release Chakra instantly gathered on the blade, and crackling blue and white lightning suddenly exploded. The sharp lightning tore through the airflow, carrying a terrifying power capable of cutting through fine steel.
Without any unnecessary charging or dragging out, Taki uttered the cold name of the technique in a deep voice. "Lightning Release: Heavenly Thunder: Shadow Blade Slash!"
A dazzling, blinding lightning strike instantly burst forth, transforming into a blue bolt of lightning that stretched across the sky. Its speed surpassed the limits of the naked eye, striking the completely out-of-control Jesus Burgess with pinpoint accuracy.
The piercing screams abruptly ceased, and the struggle in mid-air came to an abrupt halt.
Witnessing his trusted lieutenant die a horrible death, while he himself was surrounded and unable to move an inch, with no chance of rescue whatsoever, Blackbeard's pent-up rage and despair completely broke through the shackles of reason.
"You damned bastard--!!"
A deafening roar exploded, sending shockwaves through the sky and causing the surrounding clouds to churn violently.
Blackbeard's dark Dark-Dark Fruit energy instantly went berserk, causing a large-scale, dark vortex to spread wildly, tearing apart the surrounding space and airflow.
But his extreme anger did not completely destroy his reason. He was extremely clear-headed: with four Mangekyo Sharingan experts surrounding him, if he rashly broke away to rush to their aid, he would only perish and end up like Jesus Burgess.
The flames of revenge burned fiercely in his chest, but the instinct for survival still prevailed.
On the surface, he roared furiously and appeared fearless, pretending to be determined to fight to the death. However, in his heart, the thought of abandoning all the cadres and breaking through the encirclement to escape alone had already quietly taken root. But he perfectly concealed this selfish thought and did not reveal it at all.
The next second, Blackbeard no longer held back any of his fighting power, unleashing the full physical power of his Mythical Zoan Titan Giant Form.
His muscles were bulging to the extreme, his bones trembled and roared, and every inch of his skin was bursting with brute force that could crush mountains and rivers. The power of the dark Dark-Dark Fruit was gathered in his fists, and with a terrifying pressure that could devour everything, he swept in all directions!
A muffled explosion resounded through the sky, and a violent shockwave raged in all directions, instantly compressing the air and creating visible ripples in the air.
This was his desperate counterattack in a hopeless situation, an ultimate outburst of all his fighting power.
Tekka, Yashiro, and the two Night Owl Guard tensed up, instantly activating their Chakra defenses in unison. Layers of Dōjutsu barriers and Chakra barriers were erected in an instant, steadily resisting this violent impact.
The powerful impact still sent all four flying several feet through the air, forcibly tearing a fleeting gap in the tight encirclement.
Fortunately, all four were top-tier experts with extremely fast reaction speeds, and they did not suffer any real serious injuries, only a slight turmoil in their blood and qi. However, this fleeting gap was the only chance to catch their breath that Blackbeard had risked his life for.
He was panting heavily, his chest heaving, his eyes scanning the entire battlefield like a hawk, secretly and quickly locking onto a breakout route.
He glanced at the sea and the deserted island below. All the remaining pirate officers under his command were tied down and preoccupied with their own affairs. No one could come out to cover for him, stop the enemy, or create an escape route for him.
A subtle chill and determination flashed in Blackbeard's eyes, his resolve to abandon the others and escape alone growing stronger, though his face remained contorted with rage and ferocity, perfectly concealing his inner scheming.
On the other side, Taki, having completed the kill, did not pause for a moment; his decisive nature did not allow him to hesitate even slightly.
As the lightning dissipated and his longsword returned to its sheath, he flashed into a swift black shadow, instantly returning to the main battlefield high in the sky. He landed steadily at the encirclement point, filling the gap in the formation and completely sealing off the brief opening that Blackbeard had desperately torn open.
In the blink of an eye, four chilling and powerful auras converged and locked him in once again. Blackbeard's brief respite vanished instantly, and his escape route was completely blocked once more.
On the deserted island, deafening roars and thunderous explosions echoed continuously from high above. The intense aftershocks of the battle poured down from the sky, causing the entire island to tremble, with rocks tumbling down and sand and dust flying everywhere.
With their extraordinary perception, Rin and Chunwu immediately detected the dramatic changes in the aerial battle.
A faint light flickered in Rin's Mangekyo Sharingan eyes, making the traces of blood and tears at the corners of her eyes even more striking. She raised her gaze, staring intently at the turbulent sky above, her cool expression filled with composure and gravity. "The battle in the sky has completely intensified. Four Mangekyo Sharingan experts have surrounded Blackbeard, and he has been forced into a desperate situation."
Chunwu gripped the sword at his waist, his Three-Tomoe Sharingan silently circulating as he clearly sensed the terrifying fluctuations in combat power at high altitude. He calmly analyzed in a deep voice, "But the high altitude is a battle of Admiral-Emperor Level. Most of our new generation of team members are at the level of Rear Admirals to Vice Admiral in the Marine Headquarters Rear Admiral. If we rashly intervene, we will only be throwing our lives away. We simply don't have the strength to resist."
The two exchanged a glance, reaching a perfect understanding without needing to say a word, and quickly finalized their battle plan.
Rather than rashly getting involved in a battle between top-tier fighters, it would be better to stabilize the ground situation, wipe out the remaining enemies, and completely cut off all of Blackbeard's backup plans.
"All personnel, listen to my command!" Chunwu stood to the side, his clear and powerful voice echoing across the entire ground battlefield. "Abandon scattered defenses and immediately regroup! There's no need to intervene in the main aerial battle. Everyone, concentrate your forces and focus on eliminating the remaining officers and elite pirates of the Blackbeard Pirates left on the ground!"
A series of neat and resounding responses rang out instantly.
The Uchiha new generation members, who had been scattered and on guard, clearing out the miscellaneous soldiers, quickly retreated. Their steps were swift and their formation orderly as they gathered into a battle formation. Their Sharingan lit up simultaneously, their crimson gazes firmly locking onto the remaining pirate forces stubbornly resisting on the battlefield.
Rin stepped forward slowly, the remaining purple light of Susanoo around her gradually receding. Her voice was clear and firm as she set the final battle objective for the team. "Stabilize the formation, advance steadily, eliminate all remaining enemies on the ground, completely cut off Blackbeard's retreat routes, and coordinate with the aerial encirclement to achieve a complete crushing victory."