Hoo~
Across the desert, now a fractured crystal surface, long cracks spidered outward.
Step… step… step…
A heavy, uneven footfall sounded.
The ancestor, barefoot, stepped across the shards of glassy sand, producing a constant creak… creak… creak…
A strong gust of wind swept across, scattering the translucent fragments across the ground.
Heavy breaths came from the ancestor, his eyes white and still in a state of madness.
Luffy and the others immediately stepped forward, surrounding him once more as before.
But this time, their expressions were no longer as lively or confident.
A tense silence hung over them, pressing down heavily!
Six pairs of anxious eyes fixed on the one figure.
Zoro, biting down on his sword, revealed a bitter expression. Hesitant, he asked Luffy:
"What should we do, Luffy?"
The ability to use air to heal himself left Zoro and the others deeply shocked and terrified.
A power like this… truly existed in the world.
An ancestor who had refined the Air-type Devil Fruit to its awakened state was clearly standing beyond defeat.
Zoro could not imagine, with their current configuration, how they could possibly defeat this monster.
Still slightly dazed, Luffy pressed a hand to his forehead, staggering forward.
He cast a glance at his ancestor, whose breath had steadied and whose body now bore not a single injury.
For a moment, Luffy, too, felt trapped in a deadlock.
The situation was obvious.
If one measured combat strength by the usual standards of the pirate world, the Starry Sky Pirates' power roughly broke down as follows:
Luffy: Low-level Yonko tier.
Zoro: Low-level Admiral tier.
Sanji: Admiral candidate, roughly strong Warlord tier.
Robin and Brook: Standard Warlord tier.
Crocodile: Though normally his strength was moderate, his profound Devil Fruit mastery made him difficult for ordinary strong opponents to suppress.
Even this group—a team strong enough to crush any world force, perhaps even assault Marine Headquarters if coordinated—had been reduced to this state by a mindless force of sheer power.
Truly, the ancestor of the "D" clan!
This power alone could dominate the entire world.
At least Luffy believed that Whitebeard, called the world's strongest man, could not defeat him.
Even if Luffy had never met Whitebeard, and even if Whitebeard's power had waned…
The "Gura Gura no Mi," "world's strongest man"—in the grand scope of history, was nothing but a fleeting memory.
Compared to someone who truly reshaped history, the difference was monumental.
First!
The ancestor's goal was clear: annihilate the Nefertari clan—Princess Vivi, who had just joined the Starry Sky, and her father, Cobra.
A mission engraved in his body over 800 years.
Not something anyone could alter.
But Luffy… would never let anyone who chose the Starry Sky be harmed in this way.
...
Facing Zoro's question, Luffy could not immediately think of a better plan. He forced his exhausted mind to focus on the ancestor, now gathering energy, and said:
"He's a Devil Fruit user. Right now, we can only take advantage of his confusion and try to get him into the sea!"
"Into the sea…"
Zoro nodded in agreement, though he knew this was hardly an ideal plan.
First, Yuba was inland; generating seawater nearby was nearly impossible.
Second, the battlefield was quite distant from the sea.
If the ancestor suddenly abandoned the fight and headed toward Nami and Vivi, even greater trouble could arise.
Most importantly: would seawater even work on this monster?
Luffy's ancestor was not just powerful because of his Devil Fruit—he was a true strongman capable of ignoring Seastone and the ocean itself.
Even in the sea, Zoro doubted they could defeat him.
This was the Starry Sky Pirates' greatest challenge since leaving port.
They had just announced cooperation with Vivi, and now she could be in mortal danger!
This was a blow to their reputation they could not ignore.
They had to fight.
They must fight.
...
BOOM!!!
The crystalline desert, burned into glass, had already crumbled into shards.
Yuba's land, after nearly two days of tumultuous chaos, finally calmed.
The ancestor's power exceeded Yonko-level!
The Starry Sky Pirates' devastating attacks… if not controlled, Arabasta itself might have been erased from the Grand Line today!
...
In a central desert of Yuba:
With a sharp, forceful roar, three black swords spun rapidly.
The organized, relentless slashes attacked the ancestor as if wielding a giant fan.
Zoro, the only one fully alert and uninjured, became the main offensive of the Starry Sky Pirates.
The three swords, each unique, radiated a savage, bloodthirsty aura.
Sanji, wielding the culinary cell-devouring ability, transformed into the team's tank.
He constantly positioned himself to shield Zoro from the ancestor's overwhelming power, preventing accumulated injuries from killing him.
Armament-enhanced sword strikes clashed against the ancestor's body, leaving only minor scratches.
Sanji, thrown by a powerful blow, fell once more into Robin's cushioned hands.
Brook unleashed spectral ranged attacks. Frost traces, like bothersome little insects, disrupted the ancestor's rhythm, giving Zoro tiny windows to strike.
Crocodile used sand waterfalls to obscure the ancestor's vision.
Robin, unable to affect the ancient monster offensively, became a defensive shield.
Together, they fought while retreating, guiding the ancestor toward the sea.
They passed through countless abandoned towns, each reduced to ruins.
Even if Vivi survived, Arabasta's national strength would likely drop by more than half.
But this was unavoidable.
Fortunately, the ancestor, having lost conscious thought, acted only on instinct.
He had yet to notice the trap or seek the Nefertari bloodline.
Meanwhile, Luffy…
Sat cross-legged atop the shattered crystal glass, deep in meditation, recovering his mind.
This strategy—Zoro's idea—had the team luring the ancestor toward the sea while Luffy restored his full strength.
Only Luffy could truly deal a decisive blow to the ancestor.
All hope rested on him defeating the ancestor at sea.
Otherwise, they had no choice but to flee with Vivi and Cobra.
Abandoning the Nefertari clan was simply impossible for Starry Sky at this point.
The sounds of battle receded as Luffy remained.
Yet even from afar, flashes of light and fire above the clouds testified to the intensity of the fight.
As Luffy grew anxious, a familiar yet unfamiliar figure suddenly flew toward him at incredible speed.
In an instant, the figure arrived before him!
"Luffy! Long time no see!"
Godia, in human form, waved and greeted him warmly.