Chapitre 213: The Strength Of The Pirate Empress
"Luffy!!!"
Using Observation, Haki, Ace, Sabo, Zoro, and Sanji sensed Luffy's aura fade from full strength to a flickering ember. Their faces twisted in shock as they shouted his name.
Hancock, equally surprised, frowned. "A pirate with a bounty of 1.6 billion, unable to handle a single kick?" She couldn't believe that someone supposedly this strong had been so easily overpowered. In her mind, bounties had clearly lost value in this era if this was all it took to reach 1.6 billion berries.
Her expression darkened with disdain. "If that's truly the extent of your strength, then prepare to be buried here—all of you."
In an instant, Hancock vanished in a streak of purple lightning. She reappeared behind Sabo, aiming a devastating kick, just as she had used to knock out Luffy, determined to eliminate the Revolutionary Army's second-in-command in a single blow.
*Boom!*
But Sabo was no Luffy. Although he didn't possess Conqueror's Haki, his skill in both Armament and Observation Haki was exceptional. Unlike Luffy, Sabo had been closely observing Hancock's moves, remaining on high alert.
He reacted in time, turning around and channelling advanced Armament Haki to block her strike—strong enough to fend off even the fiercest New World fighters.
The resulting impact sent shockwaves across the coast. The massive force of their clash created a unique sight: the waves that had been crashing against the shore seemed to reverse as though an invisible barrier had been erected, bouncing them back into the ocean.
*Rumble…*
Seeing her attack blocked, Hancock quickly assessed the strength ranking among the three sworn brothers. She decided not to continue grappling with Sabo. Instead, she withdrew her leg and, with another flash of purple lightning, disappeared.
Ace and Sabo, fully on guard, spread their Observation Haki to track her movements. But this time, Hancock didn't reappear behind them or any of the others—she was in the sky.
Crackling with blinding purple lightning, Hancock summoned a massive surge of energy, spreading it over the entire coast like a Stormfront. Thunder rumbled, echoing like Kuma's Ursa Shock, reverberating through most of Wano.
"Not good! Sabo, grab Luffy and get out of here—I'll hold her off!"
With a quick glance at the ominous display of lightning covering the sky, Ace glimpsed a potential future and his expression turned grim. He barked an order to Sabo, who nodded with equal seriousness.
Then, using the shockwave generated by Armament Haki, Ace propelled himself upward, leaping into the air to intercept Hancock before her lightning attack could devastate the area.
Ace launched himself into the air, using Armament Haki to create a shockwave that propelled him, just like Rayleigh did when rescuing Luffy. But such flight consumes a significant amount of Haki, showing just how desperate Ace is to stop Hancock's attack.
Unfortunately, his effort was in vain. Thunder, one of the top three fastest elemental attacks alongside Light, doesn't need a casting delay. If there were any buildup, it would only mean an even more devastating attack was coming.
"Be reduced to ashes in the thunder... Thousand Thunders of Destruction!"
Hancock, hovering above, raised her hand and swept it down.
*Rumble…*
In an instant, the thunder roared louder than ever. Countless bolts of purple lightning filled the sky, suddenly drawn downward, striking toward the coast at a terrifying speed. The lightning bolts fell in mere milliseconds, faster than anyone could react.
"No!!!" Ace shouted, having glimpsed a tragic future. But despite his strength, he couldn't protect everyone from this overwhelming, widespread attack.
If he were a swordsman, perhaps he could have deflected some lightning with flying slashes. But Ace was a close-combat fighter. He could protect himself and even use Conqueror's Haki infusion to block some lightning in his immediate area, but he couldn't cover everyone on the coast.
As the countless bolts descended, the entire coastline crumbled, and a massive section of Wano itself was carved away. Everything within the strike zone was instantly reduced to ash as if touched by Crocodile's "Erosion Cycle," which drains life from anything it touches. But here, lightning carrying the "power of destruction" scorched everything to ashes at 500 million volts.
Trees, flowers, seawater, and even the Thousand Sunny—made from the indestructible Adam Wood—were all obliterated, leaving only dust. Alongside these fallen things were the members of the Straw Hat Pirates, Spade Pirates, and Revolutionary Army forces, who were already injured from Kuma's Ursa Shock and unable to escape.
When the lightning finally ceased, Hancock looked down from above to find that the coastline had been erased, leaving only ocean where land once was. Almost every life in the area had vanished.
A few had managed to flee. Among the survivors were those evacuated by the Seraphim and Perfect Twelve, who used the powers of the Paw-Paw Fruit to escape. They, along with Hancock, were unharmed.
The only other survivors were Sanji, who had carried Chopper and Usopp to safety; Zoro, who managed to save Luffy; Kin'emon, who shielded Momonosuke with his superior defence; and finally, Ace and Sabo, who hadn't been able to save anyone else but had protected themselves.
Thus, the forces of the three sworn brothers were nearly annihilated. Even the Thousand Sunny was reduced to ashes.
In mere moments, Hancock and her two artificial allies had decimated a group with a combined bounty of over 5 billion berries.
This… was the true power of the Pirate Empress.
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État de l’alimentation hebdomadaire
-- Classement
Power Stone 
-- Power
stone