That last Rankyaku had completely failed to break through Satoru Gojo's defense. Lucci judged that Gojo's reputation was well deserved. He would have to go all out now!
"Rankyaku: Kicking Bird!"
With a low shout, Lucci leaped off the ground and into the air. He fully unleashed his powerful body, honed through countless training sessions, and slashed his leg like a blade toward Gojo's position.
Boom!
In an instant, a massive, bird-shaped slash over a hundred meters long shot toward Gojo.
Under the threat of that enormous slash, Esdeath, Kaku, and the others who were fighting were forced to stop and retreat elsewhere.
Boom!
The enormous slash slammed into the street in an instant, cleaving a hundred-meter-long fissure straight through it.
"To think you could launch an attack like that. Looks like you do have some skill!"
After avoiding the shock wave, Esdeath spoke to Kaku.
Not far in front of her, Kaku smiled and said:
"Lucci is the strongest among us. Not only that, he's known as CP9's strongest member in eight hundred years! Your captain might be in danger!"
"You're the ones in danger. An attack of that level alone can't hurt our captain."
Lucci stayed in the air using Geppo, but he showed no sign of relaxing. Instead, he stared gravely down below.
Dust filled the street. As the wind blew, the spot where Gojo stood gradually came into view. Gojo was still standing where he had been. The hundred-meter-long fissure was split into two sections with him at its center. Only the ground beneath his feet remained unchanged.
"Cough! Cough! Cough! So much dust!"
Gojo waved a hand in front of himself to disperse the dust and spoke between coughs.
"What? How is that possible?!"
"He's completely unharmed!"
Kaku and Blueno found it unbelievable that Gojo had come out of an attack like that unscathed.
"You might be stronger than Crocodile, but you're still no match for me!"
Gojo spoke calmly, then suddenly activated Teleportation and vanished into thin air.
Then, almost at the same instant, he appeared above and behind Lucci and kicked downward.
Lucci's Observation Haki detected Gojo, but he did not choose to dodge. He turned and kicked upward.
"Armament Haki!"
"Rankyaku!"
Boom!
Their feet collided violently in midair. Lucci's foot was coated in Armament Haki, bringing his formidable kicking power to its limit and taking his Rankyaku's power a step further.
Gojo's kick, however, was merely an ordinary kick, without any Armament Haki coating, and collided directly with Lucci's.
The two forces clashed fiercely in the air, sending a tremendous roar echoing in all directions.
People hundreds of meters away could not help feeling shaken when they heard the terrifying crash.
"Is that thunder?"
Someone who did not know what was happening asked.
"People are fighting over there!"
Someone who had just escaped the battle area spoke in terror.
"Get farther away, or you'll get caught up in their fight!"
After a brief stalemate, Gojo channeled his cursed energy and instantly increased his force.
Boom!
The clash between Gojo's and Lucci's kicks was decisively settled. By channeling his cursed energy, Gojo forcibly overwhelmed Lucci's Armament Haki-coated Rankyaku.
Lucci was smashed toward the ground like a meteor. With a boom, his impact blasted a large crater in the earth.
"What?!"
Watching from nearby, Kaku and Blueno were both slightly shocked. Gojo had actually put Lucci at a disadvantage!
Although Gojo had the advantage of attacking from above, he had managed to force Lucci out of the sky.
Without a doubt, Gojo was the strongest opponent they had ever fought!
"Cough! Cough! Cough!"
Although Lucci had been knocked to the ground, he had not suffered much damage.
When he sensed that his strength fell short of Gojo's, he had activated Iron Body.
With his powerful physique and Iron Body, he had suffered almost no injuries, since Gojo had not used his full strength.
Jumping out of the crater, Lucci looked at Gojo standing in the air and said:
"As expected of the man who defeated Crocodile. You're pretty strong!"
Nearby, the other CP9 members working undercover in Water 7 had hurried over when they learned that Lucci and the others were fighting someone.
"Lucci, are you all right?!"
"Why did a fight break out?"
The other CP9 members who arrived at the scene could not help drawing sharp breaths at the sight of the hundred-meter-long fissure and the enormous crater in front of Lucci.
Although each of them had gone through rigorous selection and brutal training, and their physiques had long since surpassed those of ordinary people.
An attack capable of destruction over such a wide area was still beyond them. Lucci truly lived up to his name as CP9's strongest member in eight hundred years!
While they were astonished by Lucci's strength, they also grew deeply wary of the person fighting him.
Fighting Lucci to this extent was certainly not something an ordinary person could do!
Lucci did not look toward Kalifa and the others, but he told them, "I'm fine. Go help Kaku and Blueno!"
Lucci was their captain, and Kalifa and the others had considerable confidence in his strength. After exchanging glances, they headed for the other two battlefields.
Gojo watched Lucci deploy his forces without launching a surprise attack. Instead, he stood there calmly and said casually:
"Have you finished arranging your battle plan?"
"Sorry for the wait. Now, let's settle this!"
"No problem, but if you lose, you'll have to join my pirate crew!"
"Evil can never defeat justice. I won't lose, and I certainly won't join your pirate crew!"
Gojo has a defensive barrier. Unless I break through it, I can't hurt him!
In that case, I'll use my strongest move to break through his defense!
Lucci's expression hardened. Using Geppo, he charged toward Gojo, bringing his fists together in front of him and aiming them at Gojo.
"Rokushiki Ogi: Rokuogan!"
Facing Lucci's attack, Gojo assessed its power, then threw a punch with a suitable amount of force.
Boom!
Lucci's fists collided with Gojo's fist with ten times the power of a Sky Island Impact Dial.
This was Lucci's strongest move, the ultimate secret technique that only someone who had mastered all the Six Powers and trained them to their limits could grasp!
It concentrated all one's power at a single point, then unleashed incomparably terrifying destructive force.
As the two forces collided, Gojo and Lucci hung suspended in midair.
Centered on the point where they clashed, the shock wave struck the entire street, raising successive waves of force. Even the air seemed to tremble as the powerful impact surged in all directions.
The earthshaking roar made everyone on the other two battlefields look over.
CP9: "He actually forced Lucci to use Rokuogan?!"
Sasuke: "What a racket. Looks like I'll have to show some real skill too!"
Esdeath: "The fight over there should be ending soon. I'd better finish this quickly too!"
Boom!
With a thunderous crash, the clash between the two forces was decided. Gojo hovered motionless in the air without a single injury.
In front of Gojo, however, Lucci failed to withstand the impact and was blasted away. After smashing through several buildings, he crashed to the ground.
"Lucci!"
The other CP9 members cried out when they saw Lucci blasted away.
"Did I lose?"
Lucci muttered to himself in disbelief.
"You lost. So I'll ask you again: will you join my pirate crew?"
Gojo came up in front of Lucci and asked again.
"Cough! Cough!"
After coughing up a mouthful of blood, Lucci said:
"My justice will never allow me to submit! I won't join your pirate crew!"
"Well, well! Though I knew getting you to join willingly would be difficult, I still gave it a try. The result was very disappointing! But..."
Gojo paused, then said coldly:
"Losers don't have the right to refuse! Sasuke!"
Sasuke: "Huh?! What is it?"
"Show them the power of your Rinnegan!"
"You mean?"
"Control them with genjutsu!"
"We could've done that from the start. Why bother fighting?!"
"Now, now! Weren't you having plenty of fun?"
"In that case, let them see the power of my Uchiha Clan!"
"What are you trying to do?"
Lucci had a bad feeling.
But no one answered him.
Sasuke revealed the Rinnegan hidden beneath his hair. Purple light flashed, and both the injured Lucci and the other CP9 members still fighting stopped moving.
Every one of their eyes took on the appearance of the Rinnegan. Clearly, none of them could resist its genjutsu!
"Looks like you've got them all under control!"
"Of course. This is the power of the Uchiha!"
"But can you turn their eyes back to normal? They're too conspicuous like that!"
"Easy!"
As he spoke, Sasuke restored their eyes to their original appearance.
"Starting today, you're members of our Jujutsu Pirates too. Bring Lucci and come with us!"
"Yes, Captain!"
The CP9 members answered in unison.
Before you continue