An uninhabited island lay off the coast of the Lulusia Kingdom. It was nothing but rock, with no resources and not even a name.
The Thunderhawk hovered ten thousand meters above the island. Then a Bunbu opened the hatch and descended to the ground on a magnetic hoverboard.
Half an hour later, the Marine warships approached the island as well. The most conspicuous were the two enormous flagships, the Rabbit and the G-2.
To guard against any surprises, only Vice Admiral Momousagi and Vice Admiral Comil came ashore using Geppo.
After all, their opponent might be on the level of a Shichibukai-and a Logia Rumble-Rumble Fruit user at that. Ordinary officers and soldiers would only get in the way.
But when the two vice admirals discovered that only a single Bunbu was waiting there, they couldn't help frowning.
"Isn't this... a little too cowardly?"
Comil's gaze settled on the Bunbu. Although he didn't know what he was looking at, he guessed it was some kind of communication device, or at least something used to relay messages.
He certainly didn't think their opponent expected this little fellow to fight them.
"It's called being cautious, old Marine."
A red light flashed before the Bunbu's eyes, and Sephiroth's cold, electronically layered voice rang out. It sounded like several people speaking in unison through a speaker with utterly mangled audio quality.
"Boy, words are hollow things. A hundred discussions aren't worth a single test. It seems we need to establish just how capable you are first."
Vice Admiral Comil showed no particular emotion. He simply stated his opinion in a matter-of-fact tone.
As a master of the Two-Sword Style, he was also highly proficient in two-color Haki. Apart from Hawk-Eye, he could hold his own against any of the Shichibukai.
Against Shichibukai on the level of Moria, Crocodile, or Lizard King, he was even confident he could win one-on-one.
What's more, Admiral candidate Momousagi was here too. She was a great swordmaster who surpassed him in every respect.
"That's right, little Shining. I'm a fan of yours, you know. Won't you come meet me? Or are you scared?"
Across from the Bunbu, Momousagi's expression became somewhat... provoking, the sort that could really stir a man's competitive spirit.
"..."
On the other side of the camera, Sephiroth nearly courted death by blurting out, Quit acting cute, old lady.
Momousagi was old enough to be his mother... no, she might even be old enough to be his aunt.
Even a certain shameless President Xia.
Might not be able to look at Momousagi and entertain any insatiable desires.
"I see. To be honest, I also subscribe to the 'fight first, talk later' philosophy."
As soon as Sephiroth finished speaking, the Bunbu in front of the two vice admirals seemed to sense something. He returned to normal, immediately stepped onto his hoverboard, and fled into the sky.
The Thunderhawk's hatch opened. Sephiroth would sortie in his [Satellite Shining Jetstream] form.
The Cyberpunk-styled humanoid made of lightning burst through the sky like a thunderbolt.
Then, under Sephiroth's control of electromagnetic waves, entrance music rang out across the entire island from nowhere. Even the warships at sea could hear the grand, imposing music.
-"God's Anger."
It was the BGM that played when a god appeared in "Yu-Gi-Oh! DM."
At the same time, winds rose and clouds surged across the sky in an instant. Vast thunderclouds blotted out the sunlight.
-When thunder roared through the chaotic heavens, gather the ancient grimoires within the chain, and their power could reach infinity!
Sephiroth appeared in midair, having deliberately transformed into his elemental form, making his entrance amid a celestial display of overwhelming thunder.
An incomprehensible pressure... similar to Conqueror's Haki, yet utterly different, plunged straight down from the sky.
The sparse hair on Comil's head stood on end, and an electric current seemed to pass over his skin. Rather than evade, he raised his swords and slashed toward the sky.
Boom! An unnaturally loud roar of wind erupted. The enormous flying slash cut a breach in the invisible force descending from above, scattering it. The intangible pressure shattered the surrounding rocks and whipped up great clouds of dirt and sand.
Momousagi's eyes widened, a strange look flashing through them.
This didn't seem like Conqueror's Haki, yet it could affect physical matter much like the highest level of Conqueror's Haki. She even felt a kind of physical discomfort.
The two vice admirals leaped up one after the other.
Their mastery of Geppo far surpassed the norm. Gusts rose as they raced into the sky, slashing at Sephiroth with swift, effortless movements, as though riding the wind.
Neither vice admiral could compare to Sephiroth's mobility. He turned into lightning in midair, flickering about as though teleporting.
"Thunderball!"
The moment his voice fell, multicolored balls of lightning formed a dazzling barrage, dancing through the air.
During the attack on Gecko Moria, the ball lightning had already amply demonstrated just how bizarre and troublesome it could be.
The two vice admirals used their practiced Geppo to perform something akin to... grazing the bullets.
It gave Sephiroth the illusion that he was a boss in a certain Touhou game.
Comil swept both swords through the air, his Armament Haki slashing apart and dispersing the ball lightning within hundreds of meters.
Sephiroth abruptly dropped lower and teleported beneath Comil. He raised his hand, and red lightning gathered before his silver gauntlet.
Red-orange, tendril-like lightning writhed wildly before shooting toward Comil. Beneath the dark clouds, the branching arcs of red lightning resembled several crimson pillars of light, their tips spreading pale-red halos that warped the air.
"Red Sprites!"
Just as Sephiroth completed his attack, Momousagi's Kompira thrust toward his face from thirty meters away.
"Two-Sword Style: Water Moon!"
Comil's sword light suddenly split into phantom images, opening a path. Nine consecutive bursts of Soru from the Six Powers swiftly carried him out of the red lightning's attack range.
Momousagi's attack struck empty air as well.
She began to feel that her opponent's Observation Haki was far too abnormal.
Momousagi used Geppo to leap up to cloud level, mixing the Six Powers' Rankyaku with Haki in an attempt to cut off Sephiroth's routes of movement.
To them, Sephiroth seemed to be "blinking" around. Landing a hit was exceedingly difficult, and closing the distance was no easier.
Momousagi's Observation Haki suddenly forewarned her of danger. For an instant, dizziness struck her, as though heaven and earth had flipped upside down.
"Blue Jets!"
This was a narrow, conical discharge that extended from the top of a cumulonimbus cloud all the way to the ionosphere, forty to fifty kilometers above the ground.
The entire uninhabited island seemed to shudder under the attack.
Momousagi's Armament Haki abruptly coated the entirety of Kompira, extending forty meters beyond the blade as a Haki slash. Life Return from the Six Powers drove her muscles into overdrive. Her sword energy carved a path for her...
"Tch... this is trouble."
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