Just now, Yamato made Golden Lion feel a sense of déjà vu. He had invited Roger multiple times, but Roger never accepted.
"The victorious become kings and the defeated are nothing. Human history is a history of war, and anything that can be used will ultimately become a weapon. Do you think you raise those strange birds just to transport goods?!"
Golden Lion gripped the hilts of his two swords with both hands, and with a flick, the blood coating them was shaken off. Blood from the stumps of his legs continued to drip.
Over the years, the dual swords had become a part of his legs. What he did was almost like when he cut off his own legs back then. But as the muscles of his legs twitched, the wounds no longer bled, and a trace of Haki had been added to the sharpness of his swords.
"They are companions, partners you can entrust your back to on the battlefield, not the cold tools you speak of!"
"Kehahahaha! This feeling really has been long-missed. You do remind me a bit of that naive guy Roger, but no matter how good it sounds coming from your mouth, it won't change the fact that those strange birds are also your tools. You just treat them a bit better.
Aside from that, you and I are the same kind of people, fundamentally no different!"
Kogarashi and Oto spun in his hands with a flourish. Nobody knew if what he longed for was this power or some other feeling.
"I would never be the same as someone like you, you will never understand the feelings between Pokemon and humans! It's because of guys like you that so many people treat them as mere tools.
That's why I'm going to destroy this place. Guys like you, I'm going to send flying!"
Golden Lion's transformation did not intimidate Yamato, but instead, she swung her Wolf Fang Club towards him. Golden Lion's twin swords slashed in a cross; the slash wave was far more powerful than before, forcing Yamato to retreat.
Shiki laughed once again: "The ones I dislike most are you naive youngsters. You're just trying to use force to achieve your ideals too!
Without power, your naive ideas are just a joke, but kid, in return for reminding me of a few things, I'll give you a chance to gamble once."
Shiki did not continue to attack. His twin swords hovered in mid-air as his hands gradually moved to the back of his head.
"This steering wheel has been lodged in my head for a long time. My doctors back then said removing it recklessly would likely lead to death. But today, I want to gamble. What do you think will happen if I pull it out?"
He suddenly grabbed the steering wheel on his head, and with a splatter of blood flying, the steering wheel was actually pulled out from his head.
Rumble!
Rumble!
A few bolts of lightning flashed across the sky, and the clouds suddenly started gathering. Even Kaidou, who was bored above the clouds, perked up. A formidable aura burst forth with Golden Lion at its center, turning the clouds into a ferocious, gigantic lion.
"That... that guy... what did he do?!"
Maria's steps took her back repeatedly. The beasts she snared in her web cowered like turtles. This sudden outburst was far beyond her expectations.
Jack's footsteps left deep impressions on the ground, and his expression as he gazed at the battleground had changed.
Golden Lion hovered lifelessly in mid-air, unmoving, yet the island floating in the air already revealed the truth.
When ability users fall unconscious or die, most of their abilities become ineffective. Only a rare few, like the Love-Love Fruit, remain unaffected even if the contemporary user is killed; even the next generation of users would have no solution.
The Float-Float Fruit does not belong to this type. If something happened to Golden Lion, the island wouldn't continue floating in the air.
"Kehahahaha!!! Kid, your luck is bad. Seems like I won the bet!"
Blood flowed down from the top of his head, quickly soaking most of his shoulder. However, Golden Lion was feeling excellent, having regained his power for the first time in over a decade.
After many years, Golden Lion violently crossed this life-and-death threshold. Back then he opted for conservative treatment, leaving the steering wheel embedded in his head. But today, that knock made him realize a few things.
Rather than silently fading away to be forgotten by the world, it's better to take another gamble.
The chances were slim, but he won the bet.
There is still a huge gap between his current self and his peak. However, once he recovers from his injuries, he can announce to the world that the Golden Lion of yore is back.
"This is your misfortune, but it is also your fortune. Kid, I reluctantly acknowledge you as a worthy opponent, so I'll show you the power of a legendary pirate! Lion's Might·Sky Collapse!"
Under Golden Lion's power, the clouds compressed and condensed, ultimately transforming into a gigantic Water Lion, which then swung its massive paw downward.
"Bagenjin!"
Under the influence of Okuchi no Makami's power, the water froze, and then Yamato broke through the ice. The Golden Lion now was vastly different from the Golden Lion of days before, yet she had no fear.
"Lion·Thousand-Cut! Give it your all, kid, or you won't even have a chance to fight back!"
Each slash was several times more powerful than before, a perfect fusion of fruit ability and sword technique, enhanced by Haki in both offense and defense. Facing this Golden Lion, she felt a similar helplessness as when facing Kaidou.
Time slowly trickled away, and the scales of victory had completely tipped in Golden Lion's favor.
Yet another wave of Sword Qi swept by, leaving a deep, bone-revealing wound on Yamato's shoulder. The rocky giant lion pounded down, leaving a massive pit in the ground.
"Kid, don't say I didn't give you a chance. If you surrender now, I might spare you since you seem better able to command those strange birds...."
"In your dreams! Someone like you will never earn the Pokemon's recognition!"
"Tch, figured as much. Then take your naiveté and disappear from this world."
Yamato's response was as he expected; such a person would never surrender to him. The sinister Water Lion reformed and lunged at the pit.
"Thunder... Hakken!"
Her left arm was heavily wounded, temporarily out of action, but even with only one arm, she refused to sit idly by.
Golden Lion did not look back. In his view, Yamato in that state couldn't possibly withstand the attack. But Kaidou above in the clouds returned to his perch, detecting a somewhat familiar power.
In the pit, the water-formed lion had disappeared, leaving only a torrent of steam.
Noticing the anomaly, Golden Lion glanced back, only to see a pillar of lightning shooting skyward, with Yamato enveloped in black within it.
"Girl, just this once, I'll lend you my power first."