God of War

"Phew..."

Neither of them moved, yet the air around them froze in that instant.

It wasn't the effect of Conqueror's Haki, but sheer force of presence and killing intent.

Dark clouds began to gather above the sky that had been filled with rising white steam, and fierce winds swept in behind them.

Under the force of their powerful wills, even the weather began to change. The real battle was about to begin.

Shiki drew the two companions he trusted most, Oto and Kogarashi, from his waist. Holding them before him, he raised his head and looked at the two swords at Ye Mu's waist with a defiant gaze.

"There's something I've been wondering. Those two swords at your waist are Heaven and Lion Maru, aren't they? Like my Oto and Kogarashi, they're Famous Swords. John died by your hand, too. He might not have been among the Rocks Pirates' top fighters, but he was a Great Swordsman through and through. So you're a swordsman, right? Why didn't you use your swords when you fought Sengoku?"

The question caught Ye Mu by surprise.

Still, he made no attempt to hide it. He drew both swords from his waist, looked at their blades, and said,

"Unfortunately, my swordsmanship hasn't reached the level of a Great Swordsman. In a fight at that level, using swords would only hold me back."

"Is that so? Then you're not a swordsman through and through. Who taught you swordsmanship?"

"Mr. Rayleigh!"

"Rayleigh!?"

Shiki was taken aback. Several questions came tumbling out at once.

"What's your connection to Rayleigh? You two know each other? Does that mean you've met Roger, too?"

Ye Mu nodded. At this point, there was no need to hide much of anything.

"I spent three days with the Roger Pirates. That's when I met