Chapter 35: 《One Piece: Magma of Absolute》Chapter 35: The Empress Spits Blood
BOOM! BOOM!! BOOM!!!
Cannonballs rained down in relentless waves, pounding the path of the Kuja Pirates like a torrential storm.
The three giant serpents hauling their ship reared back, hissing in pain as the vessel rocked violently.
"Your Majesty!"
The sudden bombardment shattered the tense silence. The royal guard struggled to steady herself, eyes darting anxiously to Irenesena.
Irenesena narrowed her eyes, her face carved from ice, a faint aura of killing intent radiating from her slender frame.
"Return fire. Cover them."
Her voice was cold as steel. Instantly, volleys of Haki-infused arrows shot skyward, arcing in synchronized waves toward the Marine warship.
There was no denying the power of Armament Haki—arrows coated in it flew farther, hit harder, and wherever they landed, they blasted fist-sized craters into the deck.
A rain of black arrows descended on the Marines.
Some soldiers met the onslaught barehanded, others with weapons, all hastily coating themselves in Haki as they batted the arrows aside.
On one side stood a nation's finest—Kuja warriors, veterans of a hundred battles. On the other, elite Marines still green to the true horrors of war. The chaos was instant.
"Hiss!!"
"God, that hurts!"
"How are these arrows so damn strong?!"
"Ugh!"
"Ahhh!"
Clang!
Ding! Ding!
Those with weapons yelped at the bone-jarring impact. The unlucky ones who blocked with bare hands felt as if small bombs had detonated on their skin—cries of pain and shock echoed across the deck.
Atop the highest deck, Sakazuki stood motionless, Observation Haki flaring to its limit. His fingers danced, flicking out with pinpoint precision.
Any arrow that slipped through at a deadly angle was deflected midair by his Flying Finger Gun, sent harmlessly into the sea.
Within moments, every Marine was battered and bruised—some struck directly, but none with lethal wounds.
The brush with death only sharpened their resolve. The recruits grew braver, their Armament Haki more refined, their reflexes faster with every desperate block.
Whoosh!—
A faint whistle of air. In a blur, Sakazuki vanished from the deck, reappearing at the rail.
"Everyone, fall back."
His voice brooked no argument. Before the order had fully registered, he swept his arm.
A curtain of magma—glowing black with Haki—erupted beside the warship, forming a blazing wall.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
Explosions hammered the barrier, shaking the ship and leaving everyone's ears ringing. But under cover of the Empress's relentless assault, the Kuja Pirates pressed forward, their ship surging toward the Marines.
Sakazuki's brow furrowed as his Observation Haki picked up the charge.
"Fools courting death."
"Finger Tiger."
He dropped the magma wall, formed his right hand into a pistol shape, and his index finger glowed with molten red—magma swirling beneath the skin.
Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!
Like bullets, jet-black magma rounds—each coated in Armament Haki—blasted from Sakazuki's fingertip, streaking toward the Kuja ship.
The Kuja warriors barely flinched. Laughing off the incoming rounds, they leaped to the prow, drew their longswords, and slashed with Haki-coated blades.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
ROAR! ROAR! ROAR!
But the magma rounds didn't deflect—they detonated with thunderous force. In the next instant, the impossible happened.
Each round swelled, morphing into a massive, smoke-wreathed magma tiger. The beasts roared as they pounced on the crew.
Enormous claws crashed down, and with every strike, flesh and blood exploded in a crimson spray.
"What—?!"
"AAAAHHHH!"
Bang!
"Help—!"
"Ughhh!"
Splurt!
Most of the terrified warriors were obliterated in an instant, reduced to clouds of blood. The few who managed to shield themselves with Haki were sent hurtling backward, smashing through bulkheads and splintering decks.
The magma tigers rampaged without thought or mercy, their only instinct to pounce and destroy. They would not stop unless shattered or forced beyond Sakazuki's reach.
In the span of a few breaths, the bow of the Kuja ship was a slaughterhouse.
Fury boiled in Irenesena's chest. The Empress released a surge of Conqueror's Haki that swept forward like a tidal wave.
The magma tigers at the prow froze, stunned by the overwhelming will.
In that split second, several black arrows streaked from the hands of recovering warriors, slamming into the tigers' heads.
A chain of explosions ripped through the air, blowing the magma beasts' heads apart. But just as relief flickered across the crew's faces, the headless tigers blazed with crimson light—the heat was suffocating.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
Like volcanic bombs, molten rock erupted in all directions, blanketing the deck in a hellish inferno.
The entire ship was swallowed by smoke and flame.
Chunks of magma splattered onto the three giant serpents, their agonized writhing sending the ship into wild convulsions.
Then, a wave of pure dominance and killing intent crashed over the serpents. The terror in their hearts eclipsed even the pain, and they fell eerily still.
"Everyone—put out the fires!"
Irenesena clenched her fury, forcing herself to stay calm as she barked orders.
Then, with a burst of speed that cracked the air, she leapt skyward—her figure flickering ever closer to the Marine warship.
Raiding ships was routine for the Kuja. Even when surrounded by Marines, they had never suffered such devastating losses—never been driven to such desperation.
For the Empress of the ancient Kuja tribe, this humiliation was unforgivable.
Watching Irenesena rocket forward, her movement as swift as Moonwalk, Sakazuki's voice drifted across the waves, cold and dismissive:
"Think escaping a few Marine blockades makes you untouchable?"
The truth was, the Marines simply hadn't bothered with a full-scale campaign here—there was only one island nation in the Calm Belt, and conquering it served little purpose. Logistics were a nightmare, and Sea King attacks could come at any time.
But that didn't give a pirate nation free rein to run wild.
Sakazuki launched himself forward, no need for air steps—he shot straight at Irenesena, body twisting, right arm wreathed in Armament Haki as he threw a devastating punch.
Clang!
Midair, above the raging sea, Irenesena's right foot, crackling with Conqueror's Haki, collided with Sakazuki's fist.
The impact rang out like clashing steel, neither side giving an inch.
Below, the sea erupted—shockwaves from their clash detonated like underwater torpedoes, sending geysers rocketing skyward.
Crackle—crackle—!!
Black lightning danced where their blows met.
A heartbeat later, a figure was sent hurtling backward, crashing down onto the corpse of that colossal Sea King from earlier.
Countless bone spikes shattered beneath the impact—
BOOM!!!
~~~❃❃~~~~~~~~❃❃~~~
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