One Piece: Surrounded at Marineford? Just kidding!

Chapter 635: One Slash Clears the Way

Hundreds of black, pointed cones of liquid hung like inverted tombstones, firmly anchored above the northern passage. The storm had completely drained the oxygen. A nauseating, fishy stench spread through the extreme cold. A drop of pitch-black, viscous liquid slid down.

嗤

The black liquid struck the hard frozen ground. There was no splashing. Acrid white smoke rose instantly. A fist-sized crater formed in the blink of an eye. The ice around the crater's edges rapidly carbonized and crumbled away. A sickeningly loud melting sound echoed incessantly.

Nami's breath caught in her throat. Her legs seemed rooted to the spot, frozen in place. Her long orange hair danced wildly in the raging wind. The anxiety in her eyes was almost overflowing.

Her gaze shifted rapidly. On one side was Zoro's upright back. His right arm, recently reattached by Chopper, was bleeding profusely, dark red blood trickling down the hilt of his sword, splashing onto the ice in glaring sprays. On the other side was the endless snowstorm to the north. Usopp's tracking signal flickered like a candle in the wind, its red glow slowly being swallowed by the darkness.

If they don't leave, Sanji and Usopp will be isolated and helpless deep within the ruins. The giant child will be dragged into the abyss by the Celestial Dragons. But if they leave, Zoro will have to face this monster alone.

Time stretched on endlessly. Nami bit her lower lip hard. She tasted the metallic, metallic taste of blood in her mouth.

"We can't force our way in."

Robin's cold voice rang out behind Nami.

Pink petals swirled rapidly in the gale. Robin crossed her arms in front of her chest, her index and middle fingers touching. She had just created two rows of arms beside Nami, intending to build a protective barrier beneath the Blackwater Arrow formation.

The foremost hand had barely taken shape. It hadn't even had a chance to firmly grasp the ice on the ground. A drop of black liquid, blown off course by the wind, splashed onto its fingertip. There was no warning. Only instantaneous annihilation.

The arm, imbued with concentrated power, crumbled the instant it touched the black water. Its fair skin, like a painting splashed with sulfuric acid, dissolved into ashes along with the pink petals.

Robin immediately severed the power connection. Her breathing became erratic.

"This stuff is corrosive beyond the physical realm. It can even devour ethereal entities."

Robin looked up. His eyes reflected the black rain falling from the sky.

"Conventional defenses are completely ineffective. Without cutting through this water, even a single drop will be fatal."

The blizzard in mid-air was forcibly torn apart by an invisible force. The Kirin Gom Saint hovered above the Rain God's head, looking down at the Straw Hat crew locked in a stalemate. His rage transformed into cruel mockery.

"Insects. You seem to have no idea what's going on."

The Celestial Dragons' voices were amplified by demonic energy, booming like thunder across an icy plain. They were filled with arrogance.

"In my domain, no insect can choose where it dies."

He raised his right hand, covered in dark keratin. He gently tapped it downwards with his index finger.

Hundreds of black water spikes suspended above the north passage emitted a high-frequency vibration. The air seemed to be shattered. An immense, oppressive force, like a tangible mountain, slammed down on everyone's shoulders. The tips of all the spikes dipped downwards by half an inch.

The countdown to death has been reset. A rain of black water arrows is about to be unleashed.

A gust of wind, carrying shards of ice, slammed into Zoro's face. He didn't even blink. The dark red light in his left eye left a long trail in the snowstorm. He didn't respond to the Celestial Dragons' provocation.

Zoro subtly adjusted his feet.

His left foot slammed forward, crushing the solid ice into powder. The sole of his boot gripped the frozen ground tightly. His right foot stepped back half a step, pinning his entire body to the spot like a steel nail.

The three black swords were adjusted to intersect at different angles.

The blade of Shusui tilted. Sandai Kitetsu lowered. Wado Ichimonji's blade met the raging wind.

His mind went completely cold in the face of crisis. He deduced the trajectory of the black water arrow rain. The spikes wouldn't just fall due to gravity; they would also split into lateral water blades. Simple defense was meaningless. The control line had to be severed at its source.

"Zoro, look up."

Nami's piercing scream shattered the battlefield's roar. With strength from who-knows-where, she abruptly raised her Clima-Tact, pointing it directly at the black demon in mid-air. Her keen observation pierced through the dense black water, catching a hidden detail.

"There is a line at the base of the cone."

Following Nami's guidance, each of the black water cones was connected at its tip by a thin, hair-like black water line. These lines were almost transparent in the gale-force winds, extending upwards. Hundreds of these tiny water lines converged in mid-air, all surging into the crimson vortex in the Rain God's chest. A crimson light flickered within the black water, like a pulsating demonic aura.

The target is not the arrowhead.

Nami shouted loudly. Her voice was completely hoarse.

"Cut them off at the base of the waterline."

"I heard you."

Zoro flashed a gleaming white smile. The instant his voice fell, his body transformed into a black and purple lightning bolt.

boom

The terrifying force of his impact sculpted a three-meter-deep crater into the ice. Zoro, facing the onslaught of black water spikes, didn't retreat but instead charged forward, hurtling at breakneck speed.

Dark purple ghostly energy blended perfectly with Armament Haki. Black lightning crackled wildly across the blades of the three famous swords.

The first strike.

Zoro charged forward, his body suddenly spinning in mid-air. His right hand, Shusui, slashed upwards in a dark purple arc. The ferocious flying slash surged against the current, its energy precisely piercing through the gaps in the black water, slicing fiercely into the aerial waterline network.

哧啦

The vortex control line was severed in an instant. The black water spike, now deprived of its traction, suddenly came to a halt.

"The second one."

Zoro landed, his knees slightly bent. His left hand, wielding the Sandai Kitetsu, swept out with killing intent. This strike directly cleaved the rain of arrows that had already crashed down out of control. The Haki-infused blade shredded the black water spikes into jet-black fragments.

"The third one."

Zoro lowered his center of gravity to its lowest point. He unleashed a combined attack of the Doichimonji and two hands, slashing across the frozen ground with the widest possible range. A violent gust of wind swept along the ice, swirling up fragments of black water that had splashed onto the north passage and sending them high into the air.

Three swift, consecutive strikes. Completed in one fluid motion.

The out-of-control black water exploded in mid-air with a deafening roar. The deadly rain of arrows transformed into a fine, black downpour, scattering across both sides of the battlefield. Completely losing its tracking ability, it corroded the distant open ground, leaving plumes of white smoke.

A safe passage on the north side. It was cleaved open by Zoro using pure brute force.

"The Reckless Pirates"

The roar of the Qilin Gom Saint shook the heavens and earth. The killing trap was broken. A murderous intent surged in his eyes.

A colossal black shadow raised its arms. Black water compressed rapidly in the rain god's palms. Two fan-shaped waterfalls of black water shot out, perfectly bypassing Zoro's frontal defenses and heading straight for Nami's flank.

"Don't even think about it, ho ho ho."

A streak of ghastly green light glided rapidly across the ice. Brook's Soul-Slaying Sword left afterimages. Extremely cold, ghostly energy surged forth. It crashed directly into the edge of the fan-shaped black water. The outermost black water, upon contact with the frigid air, was forcibly frozen into a thin, pitch-black ice.

But this only held them off for half a second. The corrosive demonic energy was frantically devouring the ice. Dense cracks appeared on the thin ice.

"Half a second is enough."

Franky's massive mechanical body took a sudden step forward. The air cannon in his right arm was already fully charged.

"Wind Cannon."

A powerful column of compressed air erupted from the cannon. The violent blast struck the frozen black water shards with pinpoint accuracy. The immense impact sent deadly fragments flying, blasting them hundreds of meters away into the depths of the ruins.

The crisis has been temporarily averted. The costs, however, are immediately apparent.

Franky's sturdy cannon muzzle was corroded by the splashed black water mist, leaving two rings of charred cracks.

"That's a damn tough monster."

He cursed under his breath. His body, as solid as an iron wall, stood firmly in front of Nami.

Brook straightened up. A few drops of black water splashed onto his left forearm bone, revealing several small black cracks on its pale surface. He swung his left arm behind him, his right hand gripping the Soul-Destroying Sword tightly.

Nami stared at Franky's shattered cannon muzzle and Brook's injured arm. Her heart felt like it was being squeezed by an invisible hand. She snapped to her senses. Ordinary defenses were ineffective. Leaving more people behind would only increase casualties.

Nami's eyes changed. All her struggles were replaced by resolve.

"The weather is like thunder and clouds."

Nami gripped the Weather Stick tightly with both hands and swung it rapidly in mid-air. A dark, low-lying thundercloud formed above the northern passage.

"Thunder."

Blinding blue lightning descended from the sky. The violent thunder struck precisely the massive ice pillars on either side of the passage. With a loud bang, chunks of ice crisscrossed and piled up, creating a temporary shelter at the passage's entrance.

Nami suddenly turned around, her gaze sweeping over Robin Franky Brook.

"Walk."

She screamed with all her might.

"Run along the lines Zoro cut, and don't look back."

Without a second thought, Nami was the first to turn around, facing the raging blizzard to the north, and take her first step towards breaking through.

"A tree in full bloom, a riot of flowers."

Robin crossed her arms. Ahead of Nami's running path. Countless arms blossomed on the rocky ruins along the way. The arms forcefully fixed the loose walls, clearing a stable foothold in the icy cracks.

Franky fired his shoulder-mounted tracking cannon. The blue energy blast struck the partially collapsed ice wall precisely, blasting away the obstruction of vision.

Brook followed closely on Nami's flank. The Soul-Slaying Sword breathed out icy air. The cold air froze the thin film of black water on the ground, creating a carpet of frost.

The four moved with fluid, coordinated movements. In just a few seconds, Nami led the team towards the northern breach, officially escaping the Zoro Protectorate.

"They split their forces without authorization. How dare they be so presumptuous before God!"

The Celestial Dragon's bottom line was breached. Extreme rage contorted his face. He suddenly raised his right fist high above his head.

The crimson vortex on the Rain God's chest spun violently. Endless black water and terrifying demonic energy rapidly compressed in mid-air.

In just two breaths, a massive twenty-meter-tall black crystal meteorite took shape. Its surface burned with black demonic flames and was covered in sharp barbs.

"Die, turn to ashes!"

The black crystal meteorite, carrying high temperatures and corrosive properties, crashed down from high altitude.

But this fatal blow struck Zoro, who was still standing in place. The meteor's shadow passed directly over Zoro's head, completely enveloping Nami and the others who were running at full speed along the passage.