"I don't understand why a man who claims to eradicate all evil chooses to turn a blind eye to the ugliest of sins."
"I don't understand why a soldier who prides himself on absolute justice would willingly become a watchdog whining in front of the Heavenly Celestial Dragons."
He squinted, not bothering to hide his sarcastic tone:
"Even more puzzling... knowing how hypocritical and laughable it is, how do you still have the face to stand here and lecture me on big-picture thinking and foresight?"
"What you in the Navy haven't dared to do in eight hundred years, I did!"
"The ones you didn't dare to kill in eight hundred years, I killed!"
"And this Navy Headquarters, so full of big-picture thinking and foresight, in the past eight hundred years, besides helping the Heavenly Celestial Dragons to slaughter nation after nation, creating more and more pirates..."
"What else have you done!"
Akainu's face turned crimson, his breathing grew heavier, temples pulsing, fists clenched tightly as magma uncontrollably oozed between his fingers.
"You...!"
"Angry?"
Shano grinned, pressing forward relentlessly:
"But what's really making you angry is that every word I've said is the undeniable truth!"
"Enough! Enough! Enough!!!!"
Akainu suddenly looked up, the hesitation in his bloodshot eyes vanished, replaced by menace and fury:
"Arrogant brat! Do you think you know who you're talking to? The path of justice I've upheld for years is not for you to judge!"
In the moment Akainu roared, his right arm had entirely transformed into magma, the searing molten rock boiling and warping the surrounding air into distortion.
"Meigo!"
Fast! Fierce! Accurate! Such are the traits of the Meigo move, world-class in penetration and destructive power!
The suddenly launched magma arm, carrying a destructive heat, reached Shano's chest in the blink of an eye!
Yet.
Shano continued to grin, his eyes unwavering: "Completely red-hot, old dog?"
"However, such a move might work against an old man with one foot in the grave, but against me, what could it do?!"
As Akainu attacked, Shano's right arm was already taut, his fist clenched, pitch-black Armament Haki flooding over the entire arm like a torrent, with a faint dark red electric gleam!
"Galaxy..."
He slightly sidestepped, drew back his right arm to gather strength, and the space around his fist seemed about to collapse under the pressure of the Haki!
"——Star Burst!"
Boom!!
The moment the fist collided with the magma, a massive shockwave erupted with both of them at the center, setting the entire kingdom trembling!
The ground collapsed instantly, the surrounding area for hundreds of kilometers first withered into a land of flowing magma, before being shattered and fragmented in the next moment!
This move was named after a manga Shano read in his childhood, though it really just borrowed the name.
Stripping away the facade, it was in essence Shano's ultimate refinement of Garp's Galaxy Impact as a martial arts master!
Faster! Fiercer! It could better gather the Supreme King's Haki stored inside his body to a single point!
Unleashing a terrifying power akin to a planetary core explosion!
"What?!"
Akainu's expression changed dramatically, feeling an unprecedented force transmitted through the fist, not only neutralizing the impact of the Meigo but instantly crushing back against him!
His entire magma arm was shattered forcefully, exploding into a fiery rain scattered across the sky!
"Ugh!"
Akainu groaned, coughed up a large mouthful of blood, and was sent reeling back several dozen meters, his feet carving two charred furrows into the ground.
Meanwhile, Shano remained expressionless, standing still with black smoke swirling around his as yet undispersed Haki-clad fist.
"Compared to our last encounter, there's now no aspect in which I'm weaker than you, and in this domain of pure power and Haki..."
Shano shook his hand, speaking calmly, "I stand above you!"
"Don't get ahead of yourself!"
Akainu, seething with rage, slammed his arms into the ground, magma erupting like a volcano from beneath the earth!
"Inugami Guren!"
Three enormous lava hounds roared as they burst from the ground, their sinister magma jaws opened wide, lunging at him ferociously!
Roar—!
The molten hounds attacked from all sides, a nearly unstoppable assault, yet Shano merely chuckled, his figure flickering as he disappeared on the spot!
A sense of crisis suddenly struck, Akainu's eyes flashed red, and his years of combat experience prompted him to turn and throw a punch without hesitation!
But it was ultimately too slow!
Shano's teleportation speed was even faster than he anticipated; the moment his body turned halfway, Shano's fist, infused with intense Haki, had already slammed fiercely into his nose bridge!
Crack!!
The punch landed solidly, causing Akainu's face to cave in instantly, his nose collapsing as he flew backward like a cannonball, crashing into the distant mountain wall!
"Cough...!"
Struggling to rise from the rubble, Akainu wiped the blood from his mouth with force, his eyes blazing with anger, yet an intense unease inexplicably grew within him!
What that brat said was true!
No boasting!
In terms of speed, power, or the intensity of Haki, the opponent was truly not inferior to him, even pulling slightly ahead!
To truly compare, the differences were very small, so small they could only be described as subtle, overall strength-wise, both still remained a cut above.
But these small differences kept accumulating, producing an effect where one plus one was much greater than two, nearly cutting off his chances of suppressing the opponent quickly!
But the human spirit prevails!
Gambling on the glory earned over decades, betting on his path of justice, no matter what, today he must take this guy down and restore order to this ocean!
With these thoughts, Akainu suddenly stepped out of the depression, his body swelling, scorching magma gushing from his palms, transforming him into a volcano about to erupt!
"Meteor Volcano!"
Rumble——!
The earth trembled, the sky darkened, countless magma trailed black flames as they descended, turning the battlefield in the valley into a Purgatory!
"Now, let's see where you hide!"
Akainu's roar echoed amidst the eruption, his eyes blood-red, as he stared intently at Shano's figure, witnessing the countless magma fireballs engulfing him completely.
It hit!
However.
The next instant, only Shano's mocking laughter was heard:
"Hide? Such an attack isn't even worth hiding from?"
No sooner had the words fallen, the first magma fireball slammed heavily into his chest!
Boom!!!
Amidst the deafening explosion, scorching magma splattered, instantly reducing surrounding trees to ashes.
But when the dust settled, Shano still stood tall.
His shirt burnt away mostly, exposing a muscular chest, while the magma capable of melting gold and iron left only shallow scorch marks on his skin, which promptly vanished.
"What?!"
Akainu's pupils shrunk, disbelief etched onto his face.
Second, third, fourth...
More and more magma fireballs followed, striking Shano in a torrential downpour.
Explosion shockwaves radiated, the ground melted under the high heat, air twisted from the intense heat.
Yet the slender figure kept advancing steadily through the Meteor Volcano.
One step.
Two steps.
Three steps.
Shano's skin began to redden, his muscle lines more defined under the high heat, indifferent he was, slightly lowering his head, black hair hanging obscuring his eyes, only the cold smile at his mouth becoming more apparent.
Again, over ten consecutive fireballs hit.
Finally, burns appeared on his skin surface, cracking open.
Yet wounds, strangely, didn't bleed, wisps of white vapor steamed off, healing swiftly under the high temperature.
"Monster... Monster!!!"
On the distant edge, Navy Officers watching, their eyelids twitching frantically, someone trembling whispered:
"Is this, is this really a body humans can possess?"
That man...
At this moment, he seemed like a Demon emerging from Purgatory, exuding an aura of terror making all bow before him!
With towering pressure, invincible!