Chapter 259: The Legend Returns

"Shiki… you've weakened!"

A flicker of pain flashed across Shiki's face. The Haki on his twin swords wavered slightly—an imperceptible shift to most, but not to Wright. He caught it instantly.

"Divine Judgment!"

With a single slash, Wright forced Shiki back, immediately launching into a relentless flurry of sword strikes, an onslaught like a raging storm.

"Shiki! Have you finally grown old?!"

"..."

Shiki quickly regained his composure, but that brief moment of weakness had cost him—Wright had seized the advantage, pressing him into a defensive stance.

"Damn it… this cursed rudder!"

Atop Shiki's head, the very object that had rendered him bald—ahem, the very object threatening his life—finally started to act up.

For years, he had believed he'd adapted to the rudder lodged in his skull. It had become a part of him, inseparable. Though it restricted his full power, he had long since learned to fight with it—so he thought.

But now, that belief was crumbling.

After three days and nights of intense combat against Wright, a true equal in strength, the rudder's burden had finally caught up with him.

"Bastard!"

Shiki's eyes flared with rage, and his aura surged violently—ready to erupt.

Yet, just as his Conqueror's Haki was about to explode, a searing pain and a wave of dizziness struck him from the top of his head, interrupting his momentum.

"You…"

Wright frowned. That sensation just now…

"Shiki! It seems you are still shackled!"

Wright unleashed another barrage of attacks, driving Shiki backward once more. But this time, he didn't pursue.

He took a quick look around. After all this back-and-forth, they had unknowingly fought their way back to the skies above Merveille.

Shiki hovered in midair, his back to the snow-capped peak of Merveille's main mountain.

As the dizziness faded, his aura shifted once again.

"What's the matter, brat? Are you pitying me?!"

Shiki suddenly lifted his head. The word "shackled" had struck a deep wound—his pride.

"Shackled? Nothing can shackle me!"

Bloodshot eyes burned with fury. His raging presence fluctuated wildly, roaring like a storm.

"I am the Golden Lion!"

Black-red lightning crackled around him as his fury reached its peak. He let go of Oto and Kogarashi, allowing them to float at his sides, and instead gripped the rudder embedded in his head with both hands.

"I AM A LEGEND!!"

Splurt—

Blood erupted into the air.

With sheer force of will, Shiki ripped the rudder from his skull—an object that had been part of him for over twenty years.

Wright's powerful Observation Haki could see it—

Not just blood, but fragments of grey-white brain matter sprayed from the wound.

RUMBLE—

The heavens darkened.

The instant the rudder was removed, Shiki's aura skyrocketed, surging to terrifying heights. Black-red lightning raged around him, as if the world itself was celebrating…

For the return of a legendary king!

"Are you trying to die?!"

Wright roared.

Sure, without the rudder, Shiki could finally unleash his full strength.

But it would be nothing more than a fleeting moment of brilliance.

Wright knew—if he could endure this onslaught, if he could hold his ground, Shiki's body would collapse under its own strain.

"You think I care? If I die—then I'll die at my peak!"

Shiki burst into wild laughter. His sheer force of will seemed to overpower even his dwindling life force.

He gripped his twin swords tightly, pointing them at Wright.

"Brat! I acknowledge your strength. Now let me show you what it means to be a legend!"

BOOM!

Shiki prepared to charge—

But suddenly, golden lightning surged around Wright, clashing violently against Shiki's raging black-red aura.

Shiki's expression changed.

"You little brat—A Marine?! Conqueror's Haki?!"

"Heh…"

Wright let out a soft chuckle. "Peak strength? Legend? Conqueror's Haki? Sounds good."

"Shiki, you do live up to your name—Golden Lion."

"Even though we stand on opposite sides, and your existence threatens the world…"

"I will still grant you the greatest respect—respect for an unyielding warrior!"

Raising one hand, Wright summoned a radiant golden light.

In Shiki's stunned gaze, the light descended upon him.

"You—?!"

Shiki felt it instantly—

The excruciating pain from the rudder's removal vanished. The dizziness disappeared. His strength… had even increased.

It was as if—

He had returned to his former self from over twenty years ago!

"Gyahahahaha… brat! Are you insane?!"

"You healed me?! Don't you realize that means I'll cut you down?!"

Shiki felt his fading life force stabilize, his body surging with newfound strength. He laughed wildly—

Tears streamed from his eyes.

"Hah! You arrogant little bastard! I'm so touched, I might just cry!"

Through the tears, Shiki lifted his swords and charged. His aura alone seemed capable of splitting the sky in two.

"To defeat you at your strongest—that's the greatest value of this battle!"

Wright gripped his blade with both hands, a slight smile forming on his lips.

"It was just a Holy Light spell. Don't think you're fully healed… No simple healing can do that."

CLANG!

BOOM!

Golden lightning clashed against black-red lightning.

Blades met swords.

Advanced Armament Haki collided—

CRACK!

Thunder roared across the skies of Merveille. The thick storm clouds above were torn apart by the sheer force of their battle.

Golden sunlight cascaded down, illuminating this clash of legends in a divine radiance.

"The Holy Light only healed the external wounds caused by the rudder! Your dwindling life force, however—that cannot be restored."

"In other words—you can fight me at your peak! But when this battle ends, regardless of the outcome, the moment your spirit wavers… will be the moment you die!"

Wright's brow ignited with divine fire. Golden wings spread behind him, celestial stars swirling in his wake. Divine energy surged to its limit.

"Shiki! Come! Show me—what the true Golden Lion looks like!"

"Gyahahahaha!"

Shiki roared with laughter, his madness shaking Merveille to its core.

The very land trembled—entire islands shifted as he exerted his full power.

Around Merveille, dozens of floating islands began converging, drawn toward the battlefield.

"Brat! I finally realize it—conquering the world? That's pathetic!"

Massive floating islands loomed over Merveille. Shiki's mastery over the Fuwa Fuwa no Mi allowed him to control them effortlessly.

"I envy Roger now! Legends—true legends—should stay legends!"

"When a legend is tainted by worldly greed and obsession, it fades… just like me."

"But now… as you wished—I will fight with everything I have!"

Shiki unleashed a full-scale attack. Above, a massive floating island shattered, its debris transforming into countless colossal swords, raining down toward Wright.

"DIE!"

Shiki's twin swords slashed, forcing Wright into the path of the deadly barrage.

"Hah! Let's see if you can stop this!"

"Judgment!"

Wright's voice rang cold.

With his unyielding will, he slashed three times, carving a path through the storm of swords—bursting out of the encirclement.

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