The blinding golden light flooded the entire underground passage, turning it stark white.
Every trace of color drained from Vegapunk's face.
He clutched the silver metal case tightly in his arms.
It held the fruits of thirty years of his scientific research.
Everything from the complete sequences of the Lineage Factor to the core master samples for Artificial Devil Fruits was inside.
If a laser burned these things to ashes here, science would be set back centuries.
"Is this priceless brain of mine really going to meet its end here today?"
Vegapunk muttered under his breath, a sheen of cold sweat forming on his forehead.
The shadow of death loomed over him.
The cross-shaped light at Kizaru's fingertip grew increasingly dazzling, its heat warping the surrounding air.
"Doctor, get down!"
With a shout, a robed figure charged out of the control room to the side.
It was Shaka, Vegapunk's first satellite.
Shaka wore a sturdy, fully enclosed metal helmet and held a high-frequency riot shield in both hands.
He pushed his thrusters to maximum power and threw himself between Vegapunk and Kizaru.
He tried to block the lethal laser beam with his mechanical body.
Kizaru did not even blink.
Not a flicker of emotion crossed his slack face.
"My, my. What a touching act of self-sacrifice."
Kizaru drawled the words.
His left leg traced a golden arc through the air.
His photonized leg whipped up a piercing sonic boom.
Bang!
A heavy thud erupted through the passage.
Kizaru's kick struck Shaka squarely in his abdominal armor.
The sheer impact of a kick delivered at light speed was far beyond what conventional alloys could withstand.
The riot shield in Shaka's hands instantly buckled into scrap metal.
His mechanical body flew backward and slammed into an alloy wall dozens of meters away.