Chapter 143: Chapter 143: Hell At The Top Of The World!
(Please add it to your Library! Please send Power Stones! Thank you!
For more chapters, visit my patreon.com/LazySeeker)
---
Remnant Flame Style
"Call!"
Faint words escaped Ace's lips.
As Ace exhaled, the atmosphere before him twisted and collapsed. His body transformed into Remnant Flame, even the air he breathed carrying terrifying heat.
"This... this is..."
Rayleigh, mid-attack against Kizaru, paused, his pupils contracting. He stopped and stared at Ace in disbelief.
By now, no flames surrounded Ace. It seemed as though he had lost the power of the Mera-Mera Fruit.
Instead, beautiful dark red cracks, resembling tattoos, adorned his body. Within these cracks, a dark red sun seemed to surge.
Ace's entire form appeared transformed, like that of a demon. It was indescribably beautiful yet exuded an intense aura of Haki. But beneath this beauty and Haki, Rayleigh sensed immense danger. Those beautiful dark red cracks held a terror capable of annihilating everything.
"This... this is definitely beyond any Logia ability!"
Not even the Dark Fruit, said to be the most sinister of Logia powers, had this form. This transformation was more exaggerated than even the human-beast form of the Mythical Zoan!
"What is happening?"
Rayleigh's pupils contracted violently.
"My Observation Haki can't even approach him; it feels like it burns away just by getting close. Is this really still the power of a Devil Fruit?"
Issho's face was filled with disbelief.
Even Haki seemed to be burning away in the face of Ace's power. Could a Logia Devil Fruit really achieve this?
"So... beautiful."
Nami gazed at Ace's body, her eyes wide in awe. She looked at the dark red cracks, like tattoos, surging with the light of a blazing sun, her gaze flickering with fascination.
This beauty was indescribable, perhaps the most incredible in the world. The other women present were also drawn to Ace's form. Even Robin, usually mature and composed, had an expression of awe in her eyes.
"So beautiful..."
On the Shichibukai's warship, Hancock stared at the screen, her beautiful eyes filled with a mix of confusion and obsession as she gazed at Ace's body. This beauty was different from her own. The dark red cracks, like tattoos surging with sunlight, seemed to stir her very soul.
For Hancock, who had consumed the Love-Love Fruit, this kind of beauty was a poison. It was irresistible, dangerous, and yet captivating. She couldn't tear her gaze away.
Her eyes misted over, and her red lips parted slightly in an unconscious gesture. Looking at Ace's eyes—dark red like the sun—her heart pounded uncontrollably.
"What's happening to me?"
Hancock clutched her chest, her confusion mirrored in her beautiful eyes.
——
"What is this?!"
Sengoku's voice trembled as he stared at Ace's body, now marked with dark red cracks like tattoos, surging with the blazing sun. He turned slowly, his face pale with shock as he looked at Garp, who seemed equally stunned.
"Hey, Garp, didn't you once say that Ace, at the age of ten, developed an ability surpassing that of the Mera-Mera Fruit? Is this what you meant?"
Sengoku's voice was mechanical, his forehead beaded with cold sweat.
"No... it's not this. The one I saw was a sudden explosion of flames. This... this is like a state—a transformation."
Garp murmured, his voice filled with disbelief.
"It's like the human-beast form of a Mythical Zoan, but even more dangerous!"
Aokiji stared at the screen, cold sweat running down his forehead. As a Logia user himself, he could tell that this transformation was something entirely new.
"This kind of form... shouldn't exist for a Logia user!"
It surpassed even the most powerful transformations known to the sea!
——
"This... This is impossible! How could a Logia user develop a form stronger than the Mythical Zoan transformations!?"
Sengoku's teeth ground together as the veins on his forehead bulged. Ace, who had already developed the Mera-Mera Fruit to its peak, mastered Conqueror's Haki, and could see into the future using Observation Haki, was now displaying power far beyond that of any known Logia.
Where did his limits lie?
"Why haven't we arrived at the Sabaody Archipelago yet? Full speed ahead! Forget about energy consumption or warship damage! Full speed!"
Sengoku roared.
This form was far too dangerous. A chill ran down Sengoku's spine.
"Marshal! Ten more minutes!"
The messenger shouted.
"Ten minutes... Akainu should be able to hold out, right?"
Even the normally confident Sengoku now harbored doubts. Could Akainu even stand against Ace in this state?
It was a demon-like form that struck fear into all who saw it.
——
Sengoku stood up and draped his marshal's coat over his shoulders. The coat fluttered in the wind as he stepped out onto the deck.
"Don't underestimate the Marines, Portgas D. Ace!"
Golden light began to emanate from Sengoku's body.
The Mythical Zoan user was ready.
Sengoku, the Buddha, was on the move!
——
Holy Land, Mariejois.
'Boom!'
"Impossible!!!"
Saint Warcury screamed in horror as he looked at Ace, who now resembled a flame demon on the screen. His expression had never been more disturbed.
"This... this form... it's nothing like a Logia power!"
Saint Mars, whose forehead was now dripping with sweat, was equally shaken.
"A demon... How could something like this happen? Who is Portgas D. Ace? Who is he?!"
Saint Nusjuro, his composure shattered, nervously tapped his sword on the ground repeatedly.
"We cannot allow Portgas D. Ace to continue growing in front of the entire world. This form is far too dangerous! Saturn, have you arrived yet?"
Saint Ju Peter, speaking not into a phone but to the air, awaited a response.
"It will take a bit more time," a voice echoed strangely, carried not by a den-den mushi, but by an unknown power throughout Pangaea Castle.
"Prepare yourselves. Portgas D. Ace is a threat to our very existence," Saint Ju Peter commanded, his eyes glowing with dangerous intensity, becoming increasingly bizarre.
The expressions of Saint Warcury, Saint Nusjuro, and Saint Mars turned equally eerie, their eyes reflecting the same unnerving glow as Saint Ju Peter's.
——
Deep within Pangaea Castle:
'Tock! Tock!'
No one should be here, and yet a figure ascended the long staircase that led past the weapons of the twenty kings who had founded the World Government. At the top sat the Empty Throne, which no one should ever occupy.
But now, a figure moved through the darkness, settling upon that very throne. Hidden within the shadows, a pair of blood-red eyes gazed out at the world displayed by the den-den mushi.
The king behind the Five Elders—Imu.
"Vivi..."
Im murmured softly, gazing at Ace's demon-like form on the screen. He stretched out a hand and two bounty posters appeared in his grasp. His gaze lingered on one in particular, Vivi's bounty poster, his eyes flickering with emotion.
"...."
Imu then shifted his attention to the other poster.
Portgas D. Ace.
Imu's eyes darkened, becoming deeper and more sinister.
"Who are you...?"
A terrifying voice suddenly echoed from the depths of the ancient city, chilling the air.
——
Meanwhile, on the battlefield, Akainu stared at Ace's demon-like body, covered in dark red cracks that resembled tattoos, pulsating like the blazing sun.
"This is definitely not Logia!" Akainu's pupils contracted violently. "No Logia Devil Fruit user should possess a form like this!"
A sensation of danger, terror, and fear overwhelmed him. The form Ace had taken was far superior to the human-beast form of the Mythical Zoan. As Akainu faced Ace, the power of his own Magma-Magma Fruit surged uncontrollably.
It was almost as if the Magma-Magma Fruit itself was warning him to stay away from Ace.
"My Magma is afraid of the Flame? Impossible!" Akainu thought, enraged.
His Devil Fruit, the Magma-Magma Fruit, was the superior form, yet it felt threatened by the Flame-Flame Fruit!
"Great Eruption!"
With a furious roar, Akainu's right fist transformed into a massive magma fist, surging toward Ace like a volcanic eruption.
---
Ace stood calmly as the terrifying magma fist approached. His expression remained unchanged as he slowly raised his right fist. With a gentle motion, as if greeting a friend, Ace's fist lightly tapped the incoming magma.
'Whoosh!'
Akainu's eyes widened in disbelief as his magma fist vanished upon contact, as if it had never existed, erased completely.
"Remnant Flame: Rising Sun."
Ace's dark red eyes, pulsating with the intensity of the blazing sun, suddenly lifted.
"Dance, my Flame."
'Whoosh!'
Ace's figure vanished.
"What?!"
Akainu's face twisted in shock. His Observation Haki failed to detect Ace's movement.
——
With no warning, Ace reappeared before Akainu, his right fist slowly extending.
Akainu, in panic, transformed his arms into magma and braced himself.
"Armed!!!"
His Haki surged, his magma-covered arms glowing fiercely as he prepared to defend.
'Sizzle!'
"AAARRRGGG!!!"
A horrifying sound filled the air as Akainu screamed in agony. His iron will faltered as a searing pain spread through his arms. The magma had been scorched, leaving indelible marks on his body. Even his Armament Haki could not withstand it.
His Magma was burned, Haki was burned, as if nothing could stand in the face of Ace's terrifying flames.
Ace's power was something beyond imagination, a force the world had never seen before.