Shiki, who had been watching from the sidelines, suddenly shuddered, his pupils contracting sharply as the smile on his face instantly froze.
Even Whitebeard, who had been spectating all along, widened his eyes in disbelief.
This was one of the proud, ultimate techniques of the Golden Lion Shiki—the starting stance that combined the hovering power of the Float-Float Fruit with the ferocious slashes of his Two-Sword Style!
How could Raiver Sky possibly...
"Lion's Might: Wave Slash!"
With Raiver Sky's low shout, his two swords followed a precise sequence and angle difference, brutally crossing as they slashed!
Riiip—!!!
The air was violently torn apart!
An enormous, cross-shaped, terrifying Sword Energy Beam, its edges crackling with wild electricity, shot through the sky!
In the next moment, under the stunned gazes of Shiki and Whitebeard, the X-shaped slash effortlessly cleaved through the vast sea ahead as if it were a hot knife through butter!
A massive trench, dozens of meters wide and stretching straight to the horizon, appeared before them!
The seawater on both sides was pushed aside, unable to merge back for a long time, revealing the dark seabed below!
The power, the Sword Aura, the refinement and speed of the slash!
Neither Shiki nor Whitebeard had expected that Raiver Sky could not only perfectly imitate the starting stance but also execute the move to such a masterful, even slightly surpassing, level compared to the original!
This was no longer mere "imitation"—it was as if Shiki himself had delivered this peak strike after decades of rigorous training!
No, perhaps in some aspects of control and efficiency of power explosion, it was even more perfect than Shiki's usual performances!
But this—was not the end!
Before the massive trench on the sea surface could even begin to close, Raiver Sky's figure abruptly moved!
The space beneath his feet twisted slightly as he leaped into the air, instantly reaching the optimal height for exerting force!
Gripping his two swords tightly, his arms became blurs, continuously slashing in cross patterns!
"Lion's Might: Thousand Rending Valleys!!!"
In an instant, countless Sword Energy Beams poured down like a torrent upon another area of the sea below!
Each one's power and speed were not far inferior to the previous "Wave Slash."
Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!
The sea, still unsettled from the "Wave Slash," completely boiled and exploded once more!
Countless water columns shot into the sky, only to be sliced into finer mist by subsequent slashes.
The entire sea area seemed to have been plowed repeatedly by countless invisible giant blades, leaving it utterly fragmented.
As the creator of this technique, who had honed it for ten years, the Golden Lion Shiki was now completely stunned into speechlessness!
His mouth hung agape, his golden hair disheveled in the sea breeze.
Snapping out of his extreme shock, Shiki suddenly activated his Float-Float Fruit ability and soared into the air.
Flying to the same height as Raiver Sky, his face filled with "incredulity," he circled around Raiver Sky twice, as if to confirm whether the person before him was an imposter.
Damn it! What the hell! Are you the Golden Lion, or am I?!
I've only barely managed to make your relatively simple "Sea Severance" look similar through practice.
And you, you brat, quietly not only learned my ultimate techniques "Wave Slash" and "Thousand Rending Valleys" in their entirety but also executed them so flawlessly.
"Ahem!"
"Raiver Sky, you brat! You... you better explain yourself honestly!
"How on earth did you manage to master my killing technique to such... such an unbelievable level in just one month?!"
Raiver Sky smiled faintly. "It's simple..."
Shiki looked at him expectantly, waiting for the rest of the explanation.
"Just use your hands. If you're bad, practice more." Raiver shrugged nonchalantly.
Shiki nearly fainted from sheer frustration.
The residual power of Raiver's "Slash Wave" and "Thousand Cut Valley" continued to churn the nearby sea into chaos.
About a dozen nautical miles away, a pirate ship bearing the distinctive jolly roger with a skull sporting a crescent mustache sailed leisurely along the New World route.
The ship belonged to the legend who would eventually be crowned the "Pirate King"—Gol D. Roger.
The Roger Pirates had already established themselves as a formidable force in the New World, giving Marine Headquarters constant headaches.
Their strength was sufficient to dominate the seas, with almost no one able to rival them except for the colossal gathering of monsters known as the Rocks Pirates.
Captain Roger's power was unfathomable—his Haki overwhelming, his swordsmanship exquisite, and his physique formidable. He stood equal to top-tier fighters like Whitebeard and Golden Lion Shiki, even surpassing them in certain aspects.
Vice Captain "Dark King" Silvers Rayleigh possessed both wisdom and courage, with god-like swordsmanship.
Core Officer Scopper Gaban's strength was equally bottomless.
At this moment, the atmosphere aboard the Roger Pirates' ship was relaxed.
Crew members were cleaning weapons and adjusting sails while Roger, holding a bottle of sake, joked and laughed heartily with Rayleigh and Gaban.
However—
A sudden change occurred!
An enormous golden cross-shaped slash suddenly shot through the air from the direction of a distant island!
Its speed was terrifying, its momentum so fierce it seemed capable of splitting both the sea and their ship in two!
The relaxed atmosphere instantly froze.
On the deck, the golden-haired, short-bearded Rayleigh wearing glasses narrowed his eyes sharply!
His right hand swiftly reached for his sword hilt—drawing, turning, and slashing in one fluid motion.
"Clang—!!!"
Amid the clear ring of steel, a condensed, crescent-moon-shaped slash shot forth, accurately meeting the golden cross slash!
"Boom—!!!!!"
A deafening explosion erupted across the sea!
The two terrifying slashes collided violently, erupting in blinding light and scattering currents of Sword Qi!
A fierce gale whipped up, causing the sails to snap loudly, while the sea surface was blasted into a massive depression.
Finally, the golden slash was shattered mid-air by Rayleigh, dissipating into sparkling fragments.
"Tch..." Rayleigh landed steadily back on the deck, sheathing his sword with a reverse grip.
He adjusted his glasses, his gaze turning serious as he looked toward the island. "The energy signature of this slash... is it Golden Lion Shiki?"
From the residual energy fluctuations of the slash, he had detected a familiar presence.
Leaning against the ship's rail while polishing his massive battle axe, Gaban confirmed without looking up:
"You're not mistaken, Rayleigh. This is indeed Golden Lion Shiki's 'Slash Wave'."
He paused, revealing a meaningful smile. "From this distance, its power has been greatly diminished.
Or perhaps... that guy doesn't even consider us worth his attention, and this was just a stray test swing?"
Roger, who had been standing at the ship's bow all along, burst into hearty laughter: "Hahahaha! What a coincidence!
Never thought we'd run into that arrogant Shiki in these remote waters! Is this his new way of saying hello?"
As his laughter subsided, Roger slowly closed his eyes, his smile slightly fading.
His unique, nearly "Voice of All Things" level Observation Haki silently spread out across the sea.
"How interesting..." The corner of his mouth lifted in a fascinated curve:
"There are indeed Shiki and Newgate on the island. But... the 'Slash Wave' and 'Thousand Cut Valley' just now weren't performed by Shiki himself."
Upon hearing this, Rayleigh's expression shifted slightly, and even Gaban stopped wiping his axe blade, revealing a look of surprise.