Above the Cliff
A brilliant glow, like a rising moon, suddenly illuminated the cliff top. To those directly below, it was incredibly blinding and dazzling, montarily eclipsing the scorching sun in the sky.
Boom!
A sweeping wave of sword energy surged from behind the radiant arc of Lunar Eclipse, colliding violently with the incoming storm of petals. It annihilated the first wave of cherry blossoms, reducing them to nothingness.
The previously aggressive flower rain behind it was also shaken, swaying left and right, eventually losing its original resilience, shattering into pieces, and falling like ordinary petals.
In the town below, the outlaws who witnessed this scene froze, stunned in place.
"Prince William's flower rain… was cut down?"
"To be able to unleash a sword strike like that, who… who is that guy?"
It wasn't just them.
William, in mid-air, was also montarily stunned by the power of that sword strike, his eyes wide with disbelief.
Transforming the petal storm into blades was one of his trump cards. In the past, he had used this technique to slaughter countless individuals who dared to oppose him.
But today, it was actually easily neutralized by a single sword strike from that black-haired brat?
Whoosh!
While William's vision was still disrupted by the flash of the Lunar Eclipse, Nao had already appeared behind him.
Two sword blades slashed, crossing each other. The bone-chilling cold instantly made the hairs on William's back stand on end.
In a panic, he summoned his power—dark blue petals blood across his back, forming a tight armor. So of them peeled away and ignited with ghostly blue flas, trailing down Nao's blades in a snaking motion toward his hands.
"Tch. What a pain."
Nao frowned as the fiery petals crept toward him like spectral fire. Without hesitation, he adjusted his grip and executed a rapid flurry—dozens of precise slashes in a flash, slicing every creeping petal to pieces.
Then, he activated Soru, shifted his position, and once again swung his swords from different angles!
Ti ticked by, little by little.
The sun gradually began to set in the west, and the scorching heat of the afternoon desert gradually subsided.
The two on the cliff top were still engaged in an intense clash. Blades and petals danced together, and the battle gradually entered a white-hot state, yet for a ti, no clear victor could be determined, with no indication of who would win.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Another head-on collision. The fighters broke apart.
Nao, holding his two swords, looked at William—who now looked visibly impatient and agitated. In contrast, Nao's mind was calm, steady.
The opponent's seemingly infinite petal ability, with its myriad techniques and endless variations, was indeed quite troubleso.
However.
The activation of a Devil Fruit ability ultimately consus stamina.
Perhaps in terms of raw power and speed, he was slightly weaker than William, but in terms of endurance and resistance to damage, he possessed a massive advantage that William couldn't compare to.
Since William couldn't inflict fatal damage on him, he would just keep fighting. It didn't matter how long it dragged on.
Once William ran out of steam and his condition faltered, that would be the mont he would unleash his full power and completely defeat his opponent!
"Has it beco a stalemate…?"
In the valley below, everyone was still looking up at the fierce battle on the cliff top. Rear Admiral Gumiiru couldn't help but exclaim in admiration, "I never expected that kid's strength would reach such a level; he's actually evenly matched with a Warlord of the Sea…"
That was a Great Pirate with a forr bounty of 150,000,000 Berries!
Could he do that?
Gumiiru fell into thought, asking himself, and realized that this question didn't need much contemplation.
If it were him, being able to survive more than ten or twenty minutes without being instantly killed by William would already be extrely remarkable.
In fact, not just him; even so Vice Admirals of mid-to-lower tier strength would be no match for William at all. Defeat would only be a matter of ti.
Compared like that, did that an Nao's strength was already enough to be a Vice Admiral? But how old was that kid? He hadn't even graduated from the Headquarters Elite Course yet!
Not far away.
Kizaru, who had also been looking up the entire ti, suddenly took off his sunglasses, wiping the lenses with his sleeve, a subtle smile playing on his face.
That guy really didn't disappoint him…
Unlike Gumiiru, Kizaru could see far more clearly.
Where Gumiiru saw an even match, Kizaru saw the shift—the tide of battle slowly, steadily, tilting in Nao's favor.
He didn't know William's stamina limit, but how could he not know how monstrous Nao's physique was? The series of terrifying achievents he had racked up over the past two months, which had even deeply shocked Kizaru, were the best proof.
"Gumiiru."
After watching the battle in the sky for a while longer, Kizaru suddenly turned his head and spoke slowly, "Take the n into the cold storage. Rescue all those children in the ice coffins. When you move, rember to be extrely careful."
"Eh?"
Rear Admiral Gumiiru was startled at first, then his face broke out in a look of ecstasy. He saluted without hesitation. "Yes, Vice Admiral!"
He turned around, gave a shout, and imdiately countless soldiers rallied, a large group surging into the rock cave once more.
"Stop right there, you bastards!"
Kale, who had been watching William with a worried expression, imdiately blanched, stepping forward to block the iron gate. "This is Prince William's property! Without His Highness's permission, I'd like to see who dares enter!"
"Is that so?"
Kizaru looked at her with a surprised expression, then turned to Gumiiru. "This is my first ti here, Gumiiru. What about you? Are you familiar with this place? Do you see Prince William's na written anywhere here?"
"If there were, we'd have to retreat, you know. Prince William's things shouldn't be touched casually."
"No, Vice Admiral."
Gumiiru suppressed a smile, replying, "It's my first ti here too. I don't know anything."
"See? No one saw it. It's not good to just make things up."
Kizaru shrugged at Kale, then raised a fingertip, smiling.
"Sorry, unless you can make Prince William appear here right now to prove you weren't lying, it seems you'll just have to step aside obediently…"
Make Prince William prove it himself?
Kale trembled with rage. What a joke! Even a ghost could see that His Highness was fighting tooth and nail with that damned black-haired brat on the cliff top and couldn't possibly spare a mont.
How could this despicable old man be so shaless?!
Seeing the faint golden light flickering at Kizaru's fingertip, Kale instinctively took half a step back and swallowed hard.
She knew very well that she was no match for him. As she was struggling with whether or not to step aside, Bub's footsteps suddenly ca from behind her.
"You want proof, Marine?"
The simple-faced brute was holding a Transponder Snail and said gleefully, "I just dialed the palace's number. His Majesty is on the line now. Why don't you let His Majesty tell you personally?"
"Well done, Bub!"
Kale was both surprised and delighted. She never expected her typically simple-minded subordinate to have such quick wits. She couldn't help but punch the brute, then took the Transponder Snail, handed it to Kizaru, and snorted coldly:
"What do you say now, Vice Admiral?"
His Majesty?
Kizaru narrowed his eyes slightly. Did she an King Nefertari XI of the Alabasta Kingdom, or the Angia Kingdom? No matter which, it was going to be troubleso.
"Hello? Moshi Moshi?"
He finally took the Transponder Snail, squinting his eyes, and said in a lifeless, weary voice like a dead man, "Is anyone there~?"
A faintly angry rebuke ca from the other end of the line, but Kizaru maintained his usual languid deanor, looking down at the Transponder Snail and asking, "Hello, Moshi Moshi? How co… no one's answering?"
"How strange."
He hung up the phone, scratching his head with a bewildered expression, and looked at the dumbfounded Kale. "No one answered at all. Is it because we're in the valley and the communication signal isn't very good?"
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