Chapter 511: The Final Gift, Misplaced Anger
Seeing Uncle Kuma's wild, wavy afro again, Ian felt nothing but warmth and familiarity.
In contrast, Kizaru and Sentomaru's expressions flickered with uncertainty.
They had assumed that under the encirclement of four Pacifistas, the Straw Hat Pirates had no chance of escape. However, Bartholomew Kuma's sudden appearance instantly disrupted Kizaru's deployment.
"I need a reasonable explanation!" Kizaru said, tilting his head at Bartholomew Kuma after the latter had swatted away the Pacifistas.
In truth, although Bartholomew Kuma had once been a member of the Seven Warlords of the Sea, even Kizaru didn't fully understand his abilities—especially regarding the people and objects that vanished after being swatted by Kuma. Whether those who disappeared were dead or, as legend had it, sent flying for three days and three nights, Kizaru—or rather, the entire Marines—had never confirmed it.
Only those who had actually been swatted by Kuma knew what really happened.
Regardless, the undeniable fact was that Bartholomew Kuma had appeared and made those three Pacifistas vanish. In Kizaru's eyes, this was already an act of rebellion.
However, facing Kizaru's interrogation, Bartholomew Kuma replied in a flat tone, "Don't forget, I was once a member of the Seven Warlords of the Sea. Unless it's a matter of special concern to the World Government, I have no obligation to coexist peacefully with the Marines... I don't have to answer your questions!"
Hearing this response, Kizaru's expression grew even darker.
"Then what exactly are you here to do?" Aokiji asked Kuma with a frown. "Which side are you on?"
"..." Bartholomew Kuma remained silent, offering no answer. Suddenly, he flickered and vanished from his spot.
Then, he appeared before Ian, crouching down and leaning in close to Ian's ear, speaking in a voice only the two of them could hear: "Ian, leave here quickly. Don't get tangled up with the Marines!"
"Huh?" Ian was startled and asked, "What's wrong?"
"This world is about to face a major upheaval! The Marines will soon deploy their full forces..." Uncle Kuma said quietly to him. "Take the Straw Hat Pirates and get out of here. Luffy is Dragon's son, but for them, entering the New World is still too early. If they keep causing trouble like this, the consequences will be unpredictable."
"A major upheaval!?" Ian was stunned and asked, "Is it about the Whitebeard Pirates? What's the situation?"
However, Kuma didn't answer him. Instead, he opened his palm and handed something to Ian, saying, "My situation is very bad right now, so this is our last meeting. This... is the final gift..."
Ian looked down and saw that in Uncle Kuma's paw-like palm was a thin, triangular crystal chip. It looked very similar to the Celestial Dragon identity chip he had obtained before, but the shape was different.
"What is this?" Ian reached out and took it.
"You'll know when the time comes!" After saying this, Kuma straightened up and turned to leave without looking back.
None of the people present knew what Kuma had said to Ian, so they watched him leave with puzzled expressions. Only Ian, staring at Uncle Kuma's retreating back, felt a complex mix of emotions.
Ian had already realized what Uncle Kuma meant by "last meeting." He was referring to the final stages of the Human Weapon Project. In other words, Uncle Kuma's modification was almost complete!
Once the modification was fully finished, Uncle Kuma would lose his consciousness, completely becoming a machine, with no thoughts of his own, only following programmed commands.
Ian didn't know if this counted as death, but he knew that even if he saw Uncle Kuma again in the future, he wouldn't recognize him anymore. For a moment, Ian's heart was filled with a thousand emotions.
He recalled the first time he met Uncle Kuma, their reunion after the Mary Geoise incident, and how Uncle Kuma had always given him selfless help. Though his face had never shown any expression when facing Ian, he had always cared about Ian's growth.
"Uncle Kuma..." Ian tightened his grip on the crystal in his hand—this was the last thing Uncle Kuma had left him.
But just at that moment, that damn Kizaru actually called out to the departing Bartholomew Kuma, "Hey! Kuma, you think you can just leave like that? We still have a big problem to settle!"
Hearing this old bastard Kizaru still yapping on, a surge of rage suddenly rose in Ian's heart.
It's all you! All you Marines! If it weren't for your damn Human Weapon Project, Uncle Kuma wouldn't have gotten involved and lost his will!
Ian's emotions were already on edge, and in an instant, he exploded!
"KIZARU!!!"
Ian roared, and blue-white lightning suddenly erupted from his body. Starting faintly, it gradually swelled, becoming more and more intense.
Zap! Zzzap! Zzzzzap!
In the end, the lightning around Ian writhed like a frenzy of snakes.
But that wasn't all. An illusion of a third eye appeared on Ian's forehead. He drew his Thousand Cherry Blossoms and performed its Final Release. The next second, the scattered cherry blossom petals swirling around him also became charged with lightning, forming a massive electric sphere around him.
Ian's body slowly rose, floating in midair. This wasn't due to his Flame Wings but the power of these intense electric currents. His hair and clothes billowed without any wind.
Enel stared wide-eyed at Ian. As a user of the Rumble-Rumble Fruit, he could sense the power of lightning most clearly. Among everyone present, only he truly understood how terrifying the lightning on Ian's body was right now.
"Damn it!"
Seeing the strange phenomenon around Ian, Kizaru and Aokiji could no longer spare a thought for the departing Bartholomew Kuma. They immediately went on high alert, wary of Ian.
Meanwhile, Zoro, Nami, and the others also noticed Ian's unusual emotional state. Sensing trouble, they quickly called for everyone to move away from the spot.
Hawkins and the other Supernovas could also feel Ian's surging anger. They didn't know what Bartholomew Kuma had said to Ian to make this Warlord suddenly lose his temper, but they weren't fools. Drake and Scratchmen Apoo grabbed Hawkins from either side and turned to run.
"You leave too!" Enel suddenly turned to Urouge beside him.
Whatever exchange had happened between Enel and Urouge earlier, Urouge no longer showed the hostility he had toward Enel before. Likewise, Enel didn't retaliate against Urouge for his earlier sneak attack but instead told him to leave.
Everyone instinctively tried to flee, including Sentomaru. Meanwhile, Dorry and Matthew, controlling the Ark Maxim in the air, quickly activated their Wind Dial and steered the ark away from the area.
Over Sabaody Archipelago, dark clouds had gathered from somewhere, darkening the entire sky as if sensing the arrival of disaster. Even some animals and insects in the area crawled out of their burrows and fled frantically into the distance.
The only ones who couldn't escape were Kizaru and Aokiji. As Ian's energy and aura continued to rise, they realized they were about to face Ian's devastating attack.
"Laser!"
Kizaru naturally wouldn't let Ian unleash a big move so easily. He immediately pointed his index finger and fired several lasers at Ian.
However, when these lasers touched the electric sphere around Ian, they dissipated instantly. In the face of a more powerful energy source, the lasers were useless.
Aokiji didn't attack, but half his body had already turned to ice crystals. He spread his arms and created a thick, semi-circular ice shield above himself and Kizaru, intending to protect them both.
Just then, the electric sphere around Ian suddenly contracted sharply, as if he had absorbed it all back into his body. Then, Ian's right hand swung downward!
CRACK!
A thunderous roar echoed as the dark clouds above the ground unleashed a magnificent, colossal lightning bolt!
"Ten Billion Volts! A True Thunder Strike!"
The moment the lightning appeared, it was as if the entire world was bathed in a layer of lightning light, with no other colors remaining!
Ian used all his Psychic Power, like a release of pent-up emotion, and slammed this true thunderbolt down onto Sabaody Archipelago. The lightning's range was so vast that, centered on their location, it affected five entire Yaruman Mangrove Groves!
Compared to Enel, Ian's thunder strike was a true "God's Judgment"!
Boom! In the lightning, trees turned to charcoal, soil scattered, and the strike brought an explosive shockwave. Luffy, Zoro, and the others, who had only just managed to reach the edge, screamed as they were blown away by the powerful blast.
Within the lightning, Aokiji felt the ice shield above him disintegrating under the electric assault, forcing him to pour out his power desperately to maintain it.
But then, Aokiji and Kizaru suddenly felt the ground beneath them give way, and they involuntarily fell.
They realized that the ground of Sabaody Archipelago had collapsed from the lightning strike!
Unable to maintain the ice shield any longer, Aokiji and Kizaru could only coat their entire bodies in Armament Haki, using all their strength to resist the lightning's power.
The lightning came and went quickly, but in that brief moment, a massive gap had appeared in Sabaody Archipelago. About one-tenth of the island's area had vanished in Ian's thunder strike, collapsing completely and falling into the sea...
Ian floated in midair, panting heavily. Looking down at the seawater rushing into the void, he turned and flew away from the scene.
After Ian left, Aokiji and Kizaru fell from the air. When they had noticed the ground collapsing earlier, they dared not fall into the water and had used Moon Step to stay afloat. But now that the lightning was gone, they couldn't hold on any longer.
Having used Haki to protect themselves, they weren't seriously injured, but the powerful electric current had taken its toll. Their hair, now reduced to a few singed strands, gave off a burnt smell. Their clothes were completely destroyed, leaving them nearly naked, and they were still twitching uncontrollably.
Standing on the ground on the other side, Aokiji looked at the massive hole before him and couldn't help but let out a bitter laugh.
A Marine Admiral, reduced to the brink of running naked—what a terrifying case of misplaced anger...