Chapter 280: Peak Showdown
In midair, Imu tightened his arm, with red lightning and blinding light surging wildly toward his forearm and knuckles.
Then, with a fierce forward swing, he struck Bob squarely in the abdomen.
Instantly, a deafening explosion erupted.
Under the force of this punch, space itself shattered and Bob was sent flying once more.
His body hurtled backward, sonic booms continuously erupting behind him.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
In an instant, mountain after mountain behind Bob was obliterated, shockwaves and debris scattering in all directions.
It took a while before Bob's body finally came to a stop.
He was deeply embedded in a mountain range.
Meanwhile, beneath the Red Line, amidst the fierce battle, a laughter so infectious it brought joy to all who heard it suddenly rang out.
White lightning crackled in the air, and the sound of 'Drum of liberation' echoed across the summit of the Red Line.
The crowd below turned their gaze towards the source of the laughter and saw that it was Luffy who's locked in combat with Akainu.
Akainu, who had been battling both Ace and Luffy, paled as he watched Luffy—previously beaten beyond recognition—suddenly regain his vigor.
Dealing with the two of them had already been taxing, but now, with Luffy's power skyrocketing beyond his previous level, the situation had undoubtedly become far more troublesome.
High above, Imu looked down at Luffy, a cruel glint flashing in his eyes.
"Joy Boy!"
"What a nostalgic figure!"
With those words, Imu immediately shot towards Luffy's location, red lightning erupting from his body once more, accompanied by blinding light.
His fist, brimming with accumulated energy, was ready to strike.
But at that very moment, a slender figure streaked across the distant sky towards the Red Line.
Moving even faster than Imu.
The instant Imu made his move, the figure appeared right in front of him.
BOOM!!
Without the slightest hesitation, Bob's fist collided with Imu's lightning-charged punch.
Immediately.
Imu felt a force far more terrifying than before—his arm instantly turned into a mist of blood and half his body exploded on impact.
"Still holding back, are you?"
"Just how strong are you, Bob?"
Feeling the sheer brutality of that punch, a shadow crossed Imu's face.
Without a doubt, even during their earlier clash, Bob had been holding back.
For someone who had stood at the pinnacle of the world for over 800 years, this was nothing short of an insult.
"Show me your full power!"
"Today... you will die!"
With that, Imu abandoned all thoughts of targeting Joy Boy.
He knew that compared to the man before him, Joy Boy posed far less of a threat.
HUM!!
In an instant, the crimson markings on Imu's body emitted a faint glow, surging towards the half of his body that had been obliterated by Bob.
Within moments, it was fully restored.
Energy surged through his entire being and where Imu stood, a blinding light erupted.
The red markings on his body no longer emitted just a faint glow.
The next moment, Imu charged at Bob once more, his fist already descending upon him.
But this was no ordinary punch.
As Imu's arm moved, the air around him shimmered and tore, not just from speed but from a sense of erasure.
His crimson eyes glowed with an intensity that seemed to drain the color from everything around him, and the aura of death radiating from his transformed being intensified, making even the hardened pirates and revolutionaries feel a cold dread creep into their bones.
Instantly, a devastating surge of energy erupted from Imu's arm, piercing straight through Bob's body.
This wasn't merely a punch; it was a targeted obliteration, a concentrated beam of destructive power that seemed to originate from the very authority Imu wielded over the world.
A massive crimson beam, far grander than any seen before, erupted from the point of impact, slicing through the Red Line and annihilating the earth and rocks behind him along with the distant mountain peaks.
It was as if a piece of the sky itself had descended to purge the land.
The people on the Red Line stared dumbfounded at the scene, utterly terrified by the battle between Imu and Bob.
They could only imagine how powerless they would be against these two, feeling as if they had no means of resistance whatsoever.
But it wasn't over yet—Imu showed no signs of stopping.
Pushing his body's limits to the extreme, crimson patterns spread across his skin, pulsing with a bloody glow.
His speed reached terrifying levels.
Both his strength and attack frequency peaked in an instant.
Transforming into a blinding red light, he relentlessly assaulted Bob from all sides.
Within mere seconds, their battle raged from the summit of the Red Line to the nearby mountains, then plunged into the ocean below.
The entire ground trembled violently, as if shaken by an earthquake.
BOOM!!
A colossal pillar of light flashed as the two leaped from the ocean depths to the summit ten thousand meters high in the blink of an eye.
CRASH!!
In the midst of the light, Bob's body was violently hurled outward, struck by an overwhelming force that sent him plummeting downward.
He plunged into the sea.
Instantly, the waters around the Red Line convulsed as if struck by a massive meteor.
Blue waves churned wildly from the shockwaves.
Towering tsunamis rose, carrying immense energy as they surged towards the Red Line.
Meanwhile, the surrounding seawater rushed into the crater, burying Bob deep beneath the ocean in an instant.
Gurgle, gurgle!
Bob frowned slightly as he was pinching his nose.
A small fish swam past his face.
The next moment— Bob rose from the crater, bending one knee before stomping down with explosive force.
BOOM!!
A deafening roar erupted as the already massive crater expanded horrifically.
Cracks spiderwebbed across the ocean floor, spreading outward from the seismic shockwaves.
Bob's figure shot out of the water, trailing a streak of white vapor behind him.
BOOM!!
Another earth-shattering explosion rang out as Bob's stomp sheared off nearly half of the Red Line.
Everyone present stared in stunned disbelief at Bob's reappearance.
"Are these gods fighting?!"
"This is terrifying—both of them truly possess the power to destroy the world!"
"What Emperors? What Five Elders? Even the legendary Ancient Weapons are nothing but specks of dust before them!"
"The battle isn't over—they still going!"
"..."
Not just the World Government and the Revolutionary Army—even Imu himself trembled with shock.
His crimson pupils burned with disbelief.
The man before him remained completely unharmed.
But he knew retreat was impossible.
No matter what, this man had to die.
The World Government would continue to rule this world.