A slender figure in the shadows raised a hand with a wave, and a gust of wind swept through, instantly dispersing the dense black aura that filled the air.
When the black mist cleared, the revealed figure made Luffy freeze in place.
What appeared before his eyes was a young girl clad in black armor engraved with patterns, wearing a tight-fitting battle robe, steel boots on her feet, and wielding a black and red sword. Her features were delicate and refined, with curved eyebrows and simple, elegant makeup.
Kaguya's eyes were cold, the corners of her mouth curled up as she said, "Since you're so excited, let me play with you properly."
"Even if you're wearing armor, you're still no match for me," Luffy said in a muffled voice.
"Is that so?"
Kaguya's figure suddenly flashed—swish—vanishing from her original position.
When she reappeared, she was already behind Luffy, and with a raised hand, she thrust her sword forward.
Luffy's eyes narrowed, and he suddenly turned around, swinging his right arm fiercely in a punch.
"Ape King Gun!"
Clang!
A crisp clash of metal rang out, sparks flew, and fist met sword with a powerful collision.
But this time, Kaguya was not knocked back—instead, they were evenly matched.
With a low growl, Luffy raised his left arm, the muscles suddenly bulging, and punched again.
Kaguya twisted her body and nimbly dodged it, then turned and thrust her sword once more.
Clang clang clang!
Amidst the flying sparks, the two clashed briefly before engaging again, a fierce battle igniting a storm of sparks.
Blow after blow, they fought with equal strength—Kaguya's swordsmanship was unconventional, light, and agile, while Luffy's attacks were open and grand with overwhelming force. For the moment, they were on equal footing.
As time passed, the intense fight reached a fever pitch, their movements so fast that only afterimages remained in the air.
The onlookers were dumbfounded, their eyes wide open, jaws nearly dropping to the ground.
Luffy's strength was undeniable—his previous victory over Doflamingo, one of the Shichibukai, was solid proof.
But this suddenly appearing blonde girl possessed equally terrifying power. With such a slender body, she was fighting Luffy head-on without being at a disadvantage—a truly rare sight.
Little did they know that with the enhancement of the magic armor, Kaguya's strength, agility, and perception had all seen a qualitative leap. Even against Kaido, she wouldn't be at a disadvantage—facing Luffy felt more like she was just playing around.
Suddenly, someone in the crowd recognized her, eyes widening in shock. "I-I know who she is!"
"Who is she?" Everyone was stunned and hurriedly asked.
"She is..." The man swallowed hard and said with difficulty, "She is Artoria."
The crowd was in an uproar.
Could it be the one known as one of the Four Emperors—Artoria?
How could it be her?
At that moment, Kaguya's eyes focused, seizing Luffy's opening. Her sword, like a snake flicking its tongue, shot out like lightning straight for Luffy's chest.
But midway, Luffy seemed to sense it, reached out with a large hand, and astonishingly grabbed Kaguya's sword.
"I told you, you can't beat Fourth Gear as you are now." Luffy's eyes widened, glowing red, as he gripped the sword tightly, emitting a creak creak sound.
Kaguya's eyes were cold as she gave a slight smirk. "You spoke too soon."
As she spoke, a black light flashed across the blade, and a jet-black beam suddenly burst forth, erupting with immense power. The sharp sword energy tore through the air in an instant.
"Aaaah!"
Luffy let out a scream as the sword energy cut his hand. Uncontrollably, he let go of the sword. At the same time, a pillar of black light as thick as a water barrel shot through the air directly toward him.
"Excalibur!"
Boom!
A deafening explosion rang out as the pitch-black beam surrounded by lightning crashed onto Luffy. His eyes bulged, throat convulsed, and a mouthful of blood spurted out.
Kaguya spun and delivered a powerful spinning kick to Luffy's abdomen. Under the heavy blow, Luffy coughed up more blood. His body flew like a cannonball, crashing hard onto the ground with a loud boom. The ground collapsed, and rocks shattered.
Kaguya coldly looked at Luffy lying in the crater and said, "Idiot."
It was the first time she had seen someone dare to grab her sword with their bare hands—utterly reckless. Even Kaido, who had mastered Armament Haki to the extreme, wouldn't dare to catch her sword barehanded, let alone Luffy.
Having taken a direct hit from Excalibur at close range, Luffy crashed to the ground. His chest was charred, covered in bloody wounds, and still smoking. It was already lucky that he didn't end up with a gaping hole.
"Give up. Don't struggle needlessly. You can't defeat me," Kaguya said coldly, her eyes like calm water.
Luffy struggled to his feet, wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth, gritted his teeth, and said, "I won't surrender. Never."
With that, he bent his legs. The ground cracked beneath him as he launched into the air with the recoil. His arms retracted into his body, tightened, and then shot out explosively.
"Gum-Gum Lion Bazooka!"
Kaguya snorted coldly, her figure moving like a phantom to meet the attack, raising her sword in response.
In a flash of lightning, sword and fist clashed.
Clang!
A deafening boom echoed through the sky. The ringing could be clearly heard across the entire island.
Luffy was the one sent flying.
Boom boom boom!
He crashed through several towers before slamming into a massive building, finally coming to a halt. His face flushed, he panted heavily, chest heaving violently, drenched in sweat.
Fourth Gear had immense power—but it came with a serious flaw: it consumed too much energy and couldn't last long.
Kaguya walked over, her cold gaze fixed on Luffy lying in the rubble. "Thanks for playing with me for so long. Unfortunately, I'm tired of it now."
Luffy was taken aback at her words.
Kaguya raised her arm. The black and red sword dissolved into starlight. In her palm now appeared another sword—gold with red markings, resembling a knight's blade. It was unmistakably the Sword of Rupture.
"So go and die for me," Kaguya's eyes narrowed as she swung the Sword of Rupture down fiercely.
A crimson light burst from the blade, tearing through the air like a tornado and shooting toward Luffy at lightning speed.
It was too late to dodge. Luffy took a deep breath, eyes narrowing, and pulled his fists into his body. Like winding a clock, he tightened bit by bit, and at the peak, he launched both fists forward. They collided with the oncoming crimson beam.
Luffy's figure was instantly engulfed by the overwhelming crimson wave.
(Author's spoiler: Don't worry, neither of them will die. This is just the protagonist's twisted sense of fun...)
(Translator: Yeah, no thanks. Readers are already tired of this crap and you still think it's not too much?)
A jet-black pillar of light tore through the azure sky, like a streak of lightning ripping through the air, flashing past Dressrosa in an instant.
Boom boom boom!
A series of earth-shattering explosions erupted, and the ground began to tremble violently. It was like an earthquake—rocks cracked, the earth collapsed, and countless fissures opened. The already ruined city, filled with broken walls and collapsed structures, was torn to shreds by the wild energy in the blink of an eye.
The city's residents screamed and fled in all directions. Cries and shrieks echoed endlessly. Many lost their footing and plummeted into bottomless chasms. A sense of despair engulfed Dressrosa—it was like the end of the world.
Dressrosa had already become a living hell.
A black figure was blasted out from the thick smoke and dust like a cannonball. With a boom, he crashed into the outer wall of the palace. The thick wall couldn't hold and collapsed with a roar. The palace, too, began to tremble and teeter.
Luffy hit the wall hard.
His eyes bulged, throat convulsed, and he spewed out a mouthful of blood.
At this point, all of Luffy's previous dominance was gone. Lying among the rubble, his body was shriveled like a punctured balloon. His clothes were torn and scorched, his body covered in patchy wounds and smeared with blood. His chest, in particular, looked charred and was still emitting wisps of smoke.
Clearly, even with Luffy's Armament Haki, he couldn't withstand a direct hit from the Sword of Rupture. It was nothing more than a mantis trying to stop a chariot.
Cough cough.
Luffy coughed violently, his head tilting to the side, arm limp beside him, body completely drained of strength. He had already used up most of his energy during the battle with Doflamingo, and hadn't fully recovered. This was merely drinking poison to quench thirst—it only accelerated his exhaustion.
A pair of feet appeared in his vision. Luffy barely lifted his eyelids, and before him stood Kaguya.
Kaguya looked down at the immobilized Luffy and said, "Now it seems like I've won."
"No... I haven't lost... I can still fight..."
Luffy gritted his teeth, struggling, trying hard to get up from the ground. But with his body heavily injured, he clearly couldn't complete what once seemed like a simple movement.
Kaguya looked at Luffy squirming like a bug and said with interest, "Unwilling? That's normal. Your comrades were killed, your dream shattered. Anyone would feel the same."
"Shut up!" Luffy gritted his teeth and roared angrily. "Shut up! I'm the man who will become the Pirate King—how could I lose to you!"
"Pirate King?" Kaguya seemed to hear something funny and coldly said, "Pirate King is nothing but a fugitive at large, at best a gang boss. Since when did gangsters become so popular?"
"No!" Luffy argued loudly. "You don't understand what the Pirate King means!"
"Meaning?" Kaguya scoffed. "It's just a convenient excuse for breaking the law."
"I won't let you insult the Pirate King!" Luffy roared through clenched teeth.
"Enough. I don't have time to listen to your nonsense—it's a waste of time. But there's something I'm curious about," Kaguya smiled brightly. "Have you ever experienced true despair?"
Luffy was momentarily stunned. Just as he faltered, a pale hand reached out and firmly gripped his throat, lifting him into the air.
"Where's your protagonist halo now? Where did it go?" Kaguya asked curiously. "Shouldn't this be the moment you awaken your hidden power and beat me down?"
Luffy didn't understand what she meant, but the choking sensation made his face flush. His body struggled, but with serious injuries and complete exhaustion, he clearly couldn't break free.
"Oh, I remember now," Kaguya said with a dazzling smile. "I'm actually the protagonist of this world."
"Thundercloud Lightning!"
Just then, a sharp cry rang out from behind. A blinding flash of lightning shot toward Kaguya from behind.
Kaguya raised an eyebrow and, without even looking, casually waved her hand. The lightning was instantly deflected.
Nami appeared behind her.
"Let go of Luffy!" Nami bit her lip and shouted, gripping her Clima-Tact tightly.
Kaguya turned around with an amused expression. "He's my spoils of war. Why should I let him go?"
"Spoils of war?" Nami unconsciously tightened her grip on the Clima-Tact and said angrily, "He's already in this state. What more do you want?"
"If you do something wrong, you naturally have to be punished," Kaguya said, locking eyes with her. "You destroyed my factory. Did you naively think I would just sit back and do nothing?"
Nami's heart sank. She hadn't expected that what Doflamingo said was all true. Could it really be that the powerful figure behind him was this very person?
But if that were the case, and she could meet her, then maybe—
With that thought, Nami seemed to make up her mind. "If you're willing to let him go, I'll take his place."
"Take his place?" Kaguya asked curiously.
"That's right," Nami said firmly. "I want to meet your leader—Kaguya."
"Oh?" Kaguya's lips curled. "She's not someone just anyone can meet."
"I know her. She will definitely see me," Nami said seriously.
Kaguya casually tossed the unconscious Luffy aside and gracefully walked over. "Plenty of people say they know her. If anyone could meet her just by saying so, she'd be overwhelmed."
"I'm not like them," Nami said as she took off a delicate necklace from around her neck and handed it to Kaguya. "If she sees this, she'll recognize it."
It was a gift Kaguya had given Nami when she was a child, just before leaving. Unexpectedly, Nami had worn it all this time.
Kaguya toyed with the intricately carved necklace, a smirk tugging at her lips. She looked up and said, "If that's the case, I'll grant your wish. After all, I'm not completely unreasonable."
Nami inwardly scoffed. If this was what passed for reasonable, then there was no such thing as unreasonable in the world.
"However," Kaguya suddenly added, "I'm afraid you'll have to come with me."
As she spoke, her hand struck like lightning, chopping Nami sharply on the neck.
Nami's eyes widened in disbelief. She hadn't expected Kaguya to suddenly make a move. Her mind went blank, and her body collapsed limply.
Kaguya reached out and caught her, cradling Nami in her arms.
At that moment, she turned her head sharply and said coldly toward the distance, "You've been watching long enough."
"Didn't expect to find you here too. What a coincidence. Seems my luck is pretty good," came a voice.
From behind the ruins, a man emerged—Fujitora.
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