"That was... close..."
Karin extended her long-unseen arm, pressing firmly against her temple.
There was no helping it… even now, her consciousness was still somewhat unclear.
Although it might sound a bit like 'killing the donkey after it's done the grinding', she still didn't want to give up this body to Momoshiki.
The feeling of being controlled by Imu was extremely unpleasant, completely different from encountering that Jashin earlier at Punk Hazard.
If that Jashin sealed your memories and threw you into a false narrative to brainwash you, then Imu directly rewrote the fundamental logic of your human emotions.
Those negative emotions, which were originally just minor, were infinitely magnified in an instant, and she could clearly feel them herself.
She knew clearly that she shouldn't think this way, shouldn't harbor such intense malice towards Hancock and Stussy, even wanting to kill them, then 'keep' Naruto and have him all to herself.
But under Imu's interference, no matter how Karin tried to think, her own logic plainly told her that this was the truth.
It was as if Imu had infused a part of his 'self' into Karin's soul through some method, polluting her sense of self like a toxin.
Half of her thought processes were almost indistinguishable from that pitch-black figure, her killing intent and desire towards others completely undisguised.
This intense 'malignant self' continued to dominate… until Momoshiki took over.
It was thanks to Momoshiki taking the reins that Karin had the chance to fully focus on dealing with the malignant self.
While Momoshiki, piloting the Garuda body that had now approached the concept of a 'god', fought fiercely against Imu-Blackbeard, Karin was also struggling with all her might to expel the 'poison' that had infected her thoughts, bit by bit.
As an existence that shared the same spirit with Momoshiki and even held the dominant position, she could see all of Momoshiki's intentions clearly.
But she was powerless.
Karin first had to purge the part of her self that didn't belong to her from within her spirit.
Perhaps due to the influence of the [Pure Gold], Karin inherently possessed a tendency to 'remain unchanged'. Therefore, that power, capable of corrupting even legendary pirates, couldn't completely alter her thinking.
After cleaning out most of the thoughts that clearly didn't belong to her, Karin anxiously and urgently reclaimed control of her body.
—She had no choice but to be anxious.
After Momoshiki refined a portion of Imu's spiritual body into a pill and swallowed it, his soul strength immediately recovered by more than half, to the point where Karin could feel her control over the body weakening.
If she didn't seize the chance to take back control, she was really worried about what Momoshiki might do with her body.
Don't forget, Naomi and Kalifa were still down there.
Thinking of her two loyal crew members, Karin immediately snapped back to reality.
'That's right!'
Karin's gaze sharply looked downward. She felt she had just overlooked something.
Rumble—
That was the sound of the island beginning to split apart in mid-air due to loss of gravity.
Hachinosu!
Imu had teleported away with Blackbeard's body, but he certainly hadn't taken Hachinosu with him.
Hachinosu, which had been transformed by the Fuwa Fuwa no Mi into an egg-like shape, had been floating fine in the sky, but just now it suddenly began to plummet.
The power of the Fuwa Fuwa no Mi didn't require the user to continuously exert effort to maintain it. As long as the user wasn't knocked unconscious or killed by external force, the matter imbued with anti-gravity could float forever, until the user actively dismissed the ability.
Clearly, the current situation meant either Imu had already killed Blackbeard, or Imu had actively canceled the ability.
Considering Blackbeard's precious body possessed two top-tier fruits, the latter was more likely.
"He just had to cause trouble for me even after leaving?"
"Such a sore loser..."
Muttering this, Karin still flew at extreme speed towards the underside of the island, then fully activated her ability.
In an instant, the four winds rose again, lifting the entire spherical Hachinosu from below.
However, wind force was not as 'gentle' as the Fuwa Fuwa no Mi, which could keep Hachinosu intact and stationary in the air.
In fact, the hurricane, constantly in contact with the island's base, was violently cutting away parts of the island every moment, turning it into dust or gravel, which were then blown away by the wind to who knows where.
It was predictable that for a long time to come, the air quality over this vast sea area would deteriorate significantly.
Of course, this also suited Karin's needs.
She couldn't continuously use her ability to hold up the entire island… even if she were at one hundred percent capacity, she couldn't.
After all, she wasn't a native creature of this world… she didn't have the unreasonable stamina like Yamato or Kaido.
Therefore, destroying the island in the air was also a method.
"Mmph!"
Karin was still manipulating the hurricane to cut and divide Hachinosu when suddenly she felt her left palm uncontrollably open.
In the center of her palm, a yellow Rinnegan and a large mouth appeared simultaneously.
"Stupid woman! I am the one who can bring out one hundred percent of this body's power."
"Give the body to me!"
"You know, with just a wave of my hand, I could easily solve this island problem."
Karin frowned, staring at Momoshiki's single eye that had partially escaped her control.
She didn't deny what he said.
Indeed, when it came to energy control, she was far inferior to Momoshiki.
Moreover, as an Otsutsuki, Momoshiki could use his Rinnegan to create an anti-gravity field similar to the Fuwa Fuwa no Mi, without having to grind the island down bit by bit like her.
"I admit, what you say makes sense."
Karin's gaze suddenly calmed, as if she also acknowledged Momoshiki's words.
"Then what are you waiting for, hurry up and—"
"—But! I refuse!"
"What!?"
"I still have my own goals to accomplish. I can't just hand over this body to you like that."
Saying this, Karin concentrated her mind, diverted some of her power, and again created Purity Chains, winding them toward her palm.
"Mmph mmph... Bastard! Fine then, you just wait!"
"I'll get out sooner or later!"
"When that day comes, I'll kill all those precious people of yours! Every single one!"
Because he had obtained a part of Imu's power, Momoshiki now had some ability to resist the Purity Chains that could originally bind him.
Seeing this, Karin continued to increase her effort, creating more Purity Chains, determined to suppress him back.
Soon, Karin's hand was tightly wrapped by countless fine chains.
But she didn't relax her mind.
Because Karin knew this was only a temporary measure. Judging by the intensity of Momoshiki's resistance just now, it was only a matter of time before he broke free from these Purity Chains.
She had to return to Naruto before all the chains were broken.
During this time, Karin also had to maintain the integrity of the Purity Chains' seal as much as possible.
Ignoring the growing dizziness and stabbing pain in her head from overexertion, Karin used her other hand to vigorously pat her cheeks, then refocused her mind to continue the work of destroying Hachinosu.