True to his nature, Kirk had left a spatial window beside Saff for communication.
On the battlefield, Pini and Youki were suddenly ambushed. Ash acted as if he noticed nothing, casually taking out the small cookies Saff had made for him and eating them.
Pini and Youki had been holding off Shanks and Benn Beckman. One maintained a fragile stalemate, while the other held a slight advantage. If things continued this way, victory would eventually tilt in their favor, even without Ash stepping in.
But the moment Scopper Gaban and Silvers Rayleigh joined, everything changed.
Against opponents of equal level, facing two enemies at once made defeat inevitable. Even with their speed, wind-based abilities, and strong physiques, Pini and Youki could only barely endure.
They sought growth through battle, not punishment.
Fortunately, they had planned for this.
The instant Gaban and Rayleigh made their move, Kirk stopped playing around. Just as Yasopp raised his gun for another shot, the bullet that should have flown across the battlefield suddenly appeared right in front of his chest.
Thud.
It pierced straight through.
Yasopp's eyes widened in shock. The realization struck him immediately. The pink-haired boy had been controlling the fight from the very beginning.
He coughed up blood, forcing himself to remain standing, but Kirk had no intention of dragging things out.
In the distance, Yasopp saw Kirk raise his arm, coated in Armament Haki, and swing it down sharply.
The next moment, an invisible strike slammed into the back of his neck with overwhelming force.
His body collapsed.
As his consciousness faded, a faint whisper reached his ears.
"Trash."
With Yasopp down, Kirk immediately issued orders into the air.
"You two, keep Benn Beckman occupied. No close combat. Use long-range attacks and stay alert for his gun."
Then his eyes locked onto Gaban.
The axe-wielding veteran charged forward, excitement blazing as he unleashed a powerful attack toward Pini.
At that exact moment, Kirk raised his hand.
"Eighty Owls Commander."
As Gaban's strike tore through the air, the violent shockwave suddenly shifted position, appearing beside Rayleigh and Benn Beckman instead.
Caught off guard, both men could only reinforce themselves with Armament Haki before being engulfed by the attack.
Shanks and Gaban reacted with alarm.
At the same time, Pini and Youki understood. Kirk had stepped in for real.
Without hesitation, they turned to engage their opponents.
Shanks had no intention of losing the advantage. This was not a duel, it was a battle for survival.
But just as he moved, a gunshot rang out.
A Haki-coated bullet appeared out of nowhere directly in front of him.
Shanks reacted instantly, raising Gryphon to deflect it, but the sudden impact forced him back several steps.
His expression darkened as he scanned the battlefield, finally locking onto Kirk, who was inspecting a flintlock in his hand with clear interest.
"No wonder people like using these," Kirk muttered. "It's actually fun."
Shanks' gaze sharpened.
Information on the Dawn crew had always been scarce. Aside from Pini and Youki, whose strength and abilities were somewhat known, the rest remained a mystery.
It was not due to secrecy. No one simply had the information.
And that uncertainty made them dangerous.
Kirk's ability, in particular, was deeply unsettling.
Still, Shanks had no time to dwell on it. He needed to capitalize on the presence of Rayleigh and Gaban and secure an advantage.
Without hesitation, he shifted his focus to eliminating Kirk first.
Meanwhile, as expected, Rayleigh and Beckman emerged from the redirected attack with only minor damage, their clothes slightly torn.
They had no time to complain.
A fully charged elemental slash from Youki was already upon them.
This was no longer the same opponent Rayleigh had faced months ago. Back then, he could handle both Pini and Youki with ease.
Now, even in a one-on-one fight, he was at a disadvantage.
During his time sparring with the Dawn crew, Rayleigh often found himself questioning how their strength had grown so rapidly.
After their battles in Wano, every one of them had improved at an alarming rate.
It almost made him wonder if Kaido's greatest strength was not his power, but his ability to push others to evolve.
The thought passed quickly.
The attack was already in front of him.
Blocking it was not an option.
Rayleigh moved instantly, evading the strike before closing the distance with his sword. Close combat might still be difficult, but it would at least buy time.
As long as Shanks could finish his fight quickly, the balance could shift again.
Unconsciously, Rayleigh ignored Ash, who was still watching from the sidelines.
Perhaps he already understood that if Ash stepped in, everything would end.
Rayleigh avoided the attack, but Benn Beckman was not as fast.
He had no choice but to face it head-on.
Raising his flintlock, a weapon hardened through years of Armament Haki, he blocked the incoming strike.
The impact forced him back dozens of meters, leaving a fresh mark on his weapon, but he managed to withstand the attack.
Before he could regroup, two more attacks arrived.
One blue, one white.
Beckman reacted quickly, dodging both and turning toward their source.
Two figures hovered in the air.
A man wearing a beret, electricity crackling in his hand.
A blonde woman forming a glowing arrow of light.
McKinley and Conis.
Kirk had already relayed his orders to them through his spatial ability.
They said nothing, launching another wave of ranged attacks toward Beckman.
Watching this unfold, Fidel stood nearby, his expression filled with frustration.
He wanted to join the fight more than anything.
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