"When I held that tournament, you didn't come. I thought that was a real shame."
"This time, I'll make up for it! I'll defeat you and prove beyond doubt that I'm the World's Greatest Swordsman!"
Lucas gripped Dracule's hilt with both hands and raised it high. Blood and two forms of Haki gathered and intertwined wildly along the blade, radiating terrifying energy as he brought it down against the oncoming golden slash.
"Blood Domain Veil!"
A curtain-like crimson Flying Slash roared from his blade. It stretched over a thousand meters, matching Golden Lion's golden slash in scale and losing nothing to it in force.
Boom!
The instant their slashes collided in midair, it sounded as though countless heavy cannons had fired at once. The violent impact scattered the already thin clouds, briefly leaving a small patch of empty sky.
Below, the terrifying storm uprooted countless trees and snapped others in half. Driven by instinct to flee that cataclysmic presence, the giant beasts hidden deep on the island bolted even farther into its depths.
"Flash of Instant Thunder!"
Lucas flickered into a streak of crimson lightning and vanished from the sky at a speed far beyond what ordinary eyes could track.
Golden Lion pushed his Observation Haki to its limit. The instant Lucas appeared behind him, his lightning-fast reflexes sent his blade slashing without hesitation into what looked like empty air.
Clang!
Dracule, flashing with crimson lightning, met Kogarashi, which was wrapped in Supreme Armament Haki. The blades collided precisely in midair, spraying dazzling sparks and screeching against each other.
Overwhelming force surged through Kogarashi. Golden Lion's arm went numb, and he staggered back dozens of meters. His metal prosthetic legs plowed two long furrows through the hard ground, scattering stones.
Before Golden Lion could steady himself, an even larger, wave-shaped