Above the deserted island, the sky was pressed so low by thunderclouds that it seemed ready to collapse.
Rock hovered in midair, his chest heaving violently as lightning crawled across his body, coiling like living snakes.
He had just awakened from the brink of death. His heart still ached faintly from Lightning Strike Revival, yet he felt even more violent and alive than before.
Whitebeard looked up at him, watching him rise again from the rubble. There was not only fighting spirit in his eyes, but heartfelt admiration as well.
"Gurararara... That punch wasn't something to laugh off, brat."
"You can still stand under those circumstances?"
He bared his teeth. "Good. Now this is interesting—!!!"
Rock took a deep breath and suppressed the pain still churning inside his chest.
"The Tremor-Tremor Fruit, the strongest Paramecia..."
The moment that punch landed, he had not simply been sent flying—
His entire body had been turned into an internal earthquake. His organs felt as though countless tremor hammers had smashed them apart, and even his bones had cried out in agony.
If he had not spent years tempering his organs and flesh with lightning, he probably would not even have any consciousness left.
The next instant.
"Rumble—!!!"
Thunder exploded from Rock's body, as if the Thunder God had descended.
The entire sky darkened with it. Thunderclouds gathered wildly at a visible speed, blanketing the whole deserted island within a few breaths.
The air pressure dropped, and the atmosphere trembled.
Rock roared, his thunderous voice piercing heaven and earth. "Ten Thousand Thunders: Beast Roar—!!!"
The thunderclouds boiled, and the sky instantly became a roaring realm of thunder beasts.
Thunder Tigers leaped down from the clouds, Thunder Dragons coiled through the cloud layer, thunder eagles dove with electric flames burning on their feathers, packs of thunder wolves charged forth, and lightning serpents intertwined and bit at one another—
The entire sky seemed to become a gigantic bestiary. Countless beasts roared, their killing intent soaring into the heavens.
Lightning illuminated Whitebeard's face. There was no fear in his eyes, only excitement and fighting spirit.
"Gurarara... Brat, you want to wear me down?!"
He suddenly tightened his grip on Murakumogiri. Armament Haki enveloped the blade, producing a deep, heavy roar.
The air began to crack—
"Quake-Quake: Tidal Annihilation Slash!!!"
Whitebeard shouted as Murakumogiri swept across the sky!
The vibrations were not a linear attack, but spread outward!
The atmosphere was smashed apart as if struck by a giant hammer—
"Crack!!!"
"Crack crack crack crack crack!!!"
A gigantic spherical vibration shockwave exploded outward!
The Thunder Tigers were directly shaken into lightning fragments! The thunder eagles split apart the instant they dove!
The Thunder Dragons were torn with more than a dozen cracks before bursting into electric rain! The thunder wolves became specks of light, scattered like dust by the Shockwave!
The swarms of thunder beasts charging in for the kill were completely obliterated. Their roars shattered in midair, exploding into dazzling fragments like stars!
The air above the deserted island was torn by thunder and vibrations as if it could explode at any moment. Whitebeard's gaze turned cold, and his fighting spirit suddenly condensed into a tangible pressure!
The next moment, he abruptly twisted his body and turned his blade!
Murakumogiri swept out, its blade covered in a white vibrating film. The air seemed to be torn apart right down the middle!
Yet what it cut apart was only a lightning afterimage.
"Bang—!!!"
The lightning shadow burst into countless electric currents that raced along the blade like venomous snakes, wrapping around Whitebeard's arm.
"Sizzle sizzle sizzle—!"
Electric arcs jumped wildly, trying to numb his muscles and disrupt his nerves!
Yet Whitebeard could not even be bothered to frown. He snorted coldly. "You think you can paralyze me with lightning?!"
Armament Haki instantly covered his entire arm, gleaming with the luster of black iron. Just as the lightning reached his shoulder—
"Get lost—!!!"
Whitebeard violently shook his right arm!
"Crack—!!!"
The Shockwave instantly spread out in a spherical burst!
The electric arcs were shattered into pieces, turning into scattered lightning that evaporated in the air.
Just as the Shockwave reached its limit and a fleeting gap appeared in Whitebeard's defense...
"Hah—!!!"
A real streak of lightning suddenly pierced out from his left!
Rock revealed himself, swinging a long Lightning Blade from his right arm. Its edge trailed a long streak of light, carrying the force to cleave heaven and split the sea.
The fighting spirit on Whitebeard's face surged. "Perfect timing, brat!!!"
In that instant, his muscles bulged completely, and the Armament Haki on his right arm became as dense as a black iron furnace.
Drawing his blade to the limit—!
Two blades containing world-class power slammed into each other in the center of the deserted island!
"Boom—!!!"
Heaven and earth exploded. The ground split open around them, forming a bottomless cross-shaped abyss!
Seawater poured back through the fissures, forming enormous water columns that shot into the sky like inverted tsunamis.
Their blades pressed against each other, like two ancient beasts biting each other's throats!
Lightning and fire scattered, while Shockwaves tore through the atmosphere horizontally like air blades.
The sky was forced open with layer after layer of cracks by that power. A black rift even stretched deep into the clouds!
Rock gritted his teeth, veins bulging across his forehead. "You bastard... That strength isn't something a human should possess!!"
Whitebeard grinned, his laughter making ripples tremble through the air. "Gurararara!! Brat, aren't you a monster yourself too?!!!"
Lightning exploded madly around Rock's body, while Shockwaves spread from beneath Whitebeard's feet, making the entire island sink and tremble without end.
Monster against monster.
Power against power.
Will against will.
"Clang!!!"
"Boom!!!"
"Crack crack crack crack—!!!"
The Lightning Blade and Murakumogiri clashed continuously, sparks and electric light weaving into a terrifying storm.
Rock's Lightning Blades were so fast that swarms of afterimages followed them. Every swing sprayed vast arcs of lightning, like a galaxy falling from the sky.
Whitebeard's Murakumogiri, meanwhile, had no flashy movements. Every strike was steady, ruthless, and precise—
The vibrating film around the blade shattered lightning in the air, making the atmosphere crack like glass.
Lightning gathered around Rock's body into the form of Lightning Armor. Electric arcs covered him from head to toe, as if a god had descended.
Whitebeard's Armament Haki flowed as thickly as lava. The blade wrapped in a vibrating film gave off a terrifying low hum in the air.
The more fiercely they fought, the more excited they became! Both had entered a state of frenzy!
"Crack—!!!"
A heavy collision directly crushed the center of the island into a massive abyssal crater. Cracks spread across the entire island like a spiderweb.
Seawater surged out through the fissures, only to be forcefully swept back into the sky by Shockwaves and lightning, as if the tides had been reversed by a god!
The deserted island seemed to wail beneath their feet. Lightning raged, vibrations surged, and the sound of exploding air never ceased.
Whitebeard's gaze suddenly turned vicious as Haki overflowed like a tide. "Brat! Kneel before me—!!!"
Conqueror's Haki erupted! Black-red lightning mixed with vibrations and exploded uncontrollably from Whitebeard's body!!!
The rocks were instantly pulverized, the mountain cracked apart, and Rock's body stiffened. His lightning became chaotic, and cracks appeared in his Lightning Armor!
Whitebeard advanced with his blade, laughing savagely. "What's wrong, brat? This is what a true king's—"
Just as Whitebeard's Conqueror's Haki was about to crush Rock—
Rock suddenly raised his head!
At that instant, crimson lightning exploded from the depths of his eyes!!
"Don't think you're the only one who has it—Newgate!!!"
"Boom—!!!"
An aura that also belonged to a "king" erupted from Rock's body!
Although it was a tier weaker than Whitebeard's, its sharpness and ferocity were astonishingly fierce!
Black-red Haki seemed to be ignited by lightning, clinging to the electric light and forming a terrifying shockwave!
Whitebeard's pupils instantly shrank. "W-What?! Conqueror's Haki?!!
You brat... Are you like those two monsters, Sengoku and Garp?!!"
Lightning surged in Rock's eyes as memories of the past overlapped like flashes of lightning—
Rocks's King-tier Conqueror's Haki pressure, capable of tearing apart sea and sky;
Months of near-hellish Conqueror's Haki "sparring" with Garp and Sengoku;
And the beastlike man before him—Whitebeard Newgate.
All of it had quietly transformed him.
He was the King of Sky Island—
The Thunder God who had ruled the skies at only sixteen, led countless people toward prosperity, and protected the kingdom in the heavens!
His courage, his resolve, his sense of responsibility, his conviction—
Had never lost to any so-called king of the seas!!!
"Rocks's Conqueror's Haki, Garp and Sengoku's tempering... and you too—Newgate!!!"
Rock roared, "Today—this is the Conqueror's Haki of the Thunder God!!!"
"Boom—!!!"
The black-red kingly aura fused with blue-white lightning, forming the unprecedented Thunder King's Might!
"Rock... That kind of presence—" Shock appeared in Whitebeard's eyes.
Rock stepped forward, black-red lightning violently tearing through the sky!
"Don't underestimate me... Newgate—!!!"
The black-red lightning torrent swept forth like a tsunami, crashing head-on into Whitebeard's Conqueror's Haki!
The two Conqueror's Hakis collided head-on with the bearing of kings!
"Boom—!!!"
The sky was torn open directly, and the edges of the deserted island collapsed and broke apart!
Lightning Roar roared!
Vibrations howled!
Two men who would one day dominate the seas—
At this moment, truly clashed in the manner of "kings"!!!
On the distant horizon, a pirate ship with a crooked mast and cracks all over its hull fled shakily like a dying beast;
Behind it, an equally battered Marine warship clung relentlessly to its tail.
Just as the two ships were about to enter the waters near the deserted island—
Everyone froze at the same time.
Whether Marine or pirate, every face stiffened as if struck by lightning, their pupils widening to the limit.
The entire deserted island had been torn into several pieces. The land shifted and rose and fell like a shattered plate!
A vast amount of seawater poured upward against gravity, like a heavenly waterfall flowing backward from the depths of the sea.
In the sky, a horrifying black spatial rift continued to spread, opening like a wound.
"Gulp—"
A Marine soldier swallowed, his voice trembling. "The... the sky has been split open!!!"
The pirates were even paler than ash. "That's impossible... Is that still something humans can do?!!"
"The deserted island, the seawater, the sky... Everything has been split apart!!!"
Amid that incomparably shocking sight, the two damaged ships floated on the sea while everyone stood there in a daze, as though forgotten by the world.
Everyone realized—
The two monsters fighting on that deserted island... were absolutely beyond a level they could ever approach.
Before you continue