One Piece: The Strongest Creature

As the scorching pillar of heat and fire roared towards them, it was Ace who stepped forward to block it.

With a determined stride, he punched toward the incoming inferno. His advanced Armament, Haki, flowed outward from his fist, transforming into waves that looked like wind but carried the force of shock waves. The invisible, twisting air collided with the blazing pillar, shattering it in an instant. Flames exploded around them, filling the air before gradually fading away.

"...?!"

Before the three sworn brothers and their crews could celebrate, those among them with advanced Observation Haki sensed something unsettling. A red glow flared in their eyes as they glimpsed a vision of what was to come, their expressions shifting from relief to dread.

At some point, Perfect Twelve had returned to her human form from her dragon state—and had teleported directly into the heart of the sworn brothers' crew.

Under orders from Hancock to eliminate her targets, Perfect Twelve showed no mercy. Using the abilities of her Paramecia-type Paw-Paw Fruit, she reappeared among the crowd, her right hand transforming into a razor-sharp blade, no less deadly than the famed sword Shusui. With swift, brutal precision, she cut down those around her without hesitation.

Perfect Twelve's teleportation and attack speed were so swift that only the three sworn brothers, with their future-sight abilities, could sense her coming. Yet, even they couldn't react in time. They could do nothing but watch as Perfect Twelve slaughtered their crewmates who couldn't defend themselves.

"TREE!!!"

By cruel chance, the pirates targeted by Perfect Twelve were from Ace's crew, the Spade Pirates. Seeing his comrades—who had journeyed with him all the way from East Blue to the New World—cut down mercilessly, Ace's mind snapped. Years at sea had tempered him, making him far more mature than the Ace of the past, but this was too much.

With a furious roar, Ace unleashed a wave of Conqueror's Haki so intense that it rippled across the entire coastline of Wano.

The shockwaves from his Haki swept through the area. Within its range, even seasoned fighters felt its impact. Aside from Zoro and Sanji, the rest of the Straw Hat Pirates went light-headed, nearly collapsing from the pressure.

The Revolutionary Army members who had come to Wano with Sabo, as well as the Spade Pirates who had long since grown used to their captain's Conqueror's Haki, were also shaken by the sheer force of Ace's unleashed fury.

The sheer intensity of Ace's unleashed Conqueror's Haki was terrifying.

Years ago, at the age of ten, Ace had first awakened this powerful Haki due to Luffy and Sabo, but that burst paled in comparison to what he wielded now. This time, the Conqueror's Haki he unleashed was of an entirely different dimension.

As his Haki shockwaves swept across the coastline, nearby beasts rolled their eyes and collapsed instantly. Dark red lightning crackled around Ace, swirling with uncontrolled fury. Driven by rage, he charged at Perfect Twelve, fist wrapped in Conqueror's Haki, intending to destroy her with a single punch.

If Perfect Twelve were merely a robot, a direct hit from Ace's Conqueror's infused fist would shatter her. However, she was a hybrid creation—two-thirds human, one-third machine. Perfect Twelve's body contained the resilience of Lunarian bloodline traits, an artificial Zoan Fish-Fish Fruit, Model: Azure Dragon, and a Germa-developed exoskeleton. Coupled with the Paramecia Paw-Paw Fruit, she was almost indestructible.

Even if struck with advanced Armament Haki or Conqueror's infusion, Perfect Twelve could instantly eject any damage she received. With the combination of her exoskeleton, Lunarian regenerative abilities, and the resilience of her mythical Zoan fruit, she could regenerate almost instantly, making her a pseudo-immortal weapon.

The only limitation of Perfect Twelve was her lack of mastery over advanced Haki, leaving her vulnerable to Haki-infused attacks from the highest level.

*Boom!*

Just as Ace closed in, Hancock—knowing that Perfect Twelve would struggle against a Haki clash of this magnitude—stepped in. Purple lightning flashed, and Hancock appeared in front of Ace in an instant. Her long leg, crackling with intense purple lightning and dark red arcs, swung down toward his face with supreme force.

Reacting on instinct, Ace adjusted his punch to meet her kick head-on.

The fist, infused with Conqueror's Haki, collided with Hancock's lightning-clad leg, and an invisible barrier formed between them, amplifying the impact. In an instant, the force from their clash exploded outward in a shockwave far stronger than Ace's earlier release, sending a powerful airwave skyward.

The sky over Wano tore apart from the sheer intensity of their Haki clash.

"My god…the sky is splitting!" 

"What's happening in Wano?! What kind of power could cause this?!"

"Such terrifying Haki! Could it really be human?"

People across the Wano sea area, as well as on the distant shores of Dressrosa, were stunned as the rift appeared in the heavens above Wano. While ordinary people marvelled at the sight, those who could sense Haki were horrified by the immense power rippling through the air.

Some of the strongest individuals felt the overwhelming force, realizing how insignificant their own Haki was in comparison to the powerful clash shaking the sky.

"Fufufufu… so, a fight has broken out?" 

Standing on the high plateau in Dressrosa, Doflamingo grinned wickedly as he looked at the massive rift stretching across the Wano sea area. "Purple lightning storming through the clouds… it seems the Empress has joined the fray."

"Those poor fools," he chuckled. "Anyone who faces that arrogant yet incomparably powerful woman is in for a brutal awakening."

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