"He's escaped, truly escaped."
As time passed, Hyde's body ascended rapidly, and the light in his eyes grew brighter.
Gazing at the white clouds overhead, he saw not clouds, but a stairway to life.
However...
Would Kou Tai let him go?
Of course not.
Just as the light in Hyde's eyes intensified, a figure, a silver-haired figure, materialized above him.
The moment this figure appeared, it instantly filled Hyde's entire field of vision. A pair of azure blue eyes, filled with mockery, seemed to overshadow the clouds outside, becoming his sky.
"Yo! Pirate, have you ever been kicked at the speed of light?"
Looking at Hyde, Kou Tai couldn't help but utter Kizaru's famous line.
*Bang—!*
A kick in mid-air.
Without giving Hyde a chance to react, Kou Tai, with a bicycle kick, sent him falling back down as quickly as he had risen.
*Boom—!*
Under Kou Tai's kick, Hyde's body shot downwards like a cannonball.
Then, he slammed hard into the stone sphere he had previously used his ability to trap Kou Tai within.
A deafening roar, accompanied by countless shards of rock scattering like falling flowers, instantly echoed throughout the island.
Despite the immense sound and the trembling of the entire island, no one dared to approach.
In the New World, one must understand what to observe and what to avoid.
The battles between pirates were clearly the kind to avoid.
Thus, upon realizing the island's tremors were caused by a fight, the onlookers on the town streets quickly dispersed, leaving the already narrow streets suddenly quiet. The town, too, grew silent as people dwindled.
On one of the town's streets, Ah Hua and his two companions, after meeting Robin and Brook, headed towards the hill behind the town.
Judging by the commotion, Kou Tai had clearly engaged the user of the Goro Goro no Mi ability.
As time passed, the disturbances gradually subsided, and before everyone's eyes appeared a circular pit, as if formed by a meteor impact.
At the bottom of the pit, Hyde lay on his back, his body embedded in the hard rock, a trickle of red flowing silently from the corner of his mouth.
Without bothering to wipe it, Hyde, though not severely injured, felt his fear amplify to an extreme as he once again looked up at the silver-haired youth suspended in the air, like a god.
"Was it speed?"
"No, no, impossible."
If not speed, then what?
As if contemplating something unbelievable, Hyde's expression turned completely grim.
"If it's not speed, then it can only be teleportation."
No wonder even the Four Emperors couldn't escape him. With such an ability, coupled with immense attack power, he was indeed the world's strongest.
"Am I going to die?"
Looking down, a myriad of thoughts flashed through his mind at this moment.
"No, only the weak wait for death. How could I do that!"
"I may not be a top-tier fighter in the world, but I'm no ordinary individual!"
He abruptly raised his head, his body vibrating. With a "crack," he pulled himself out of the rock.
Standing in place, he caught his breath for a moment. His lowered hands clenched tightly, and an aura of defiance surged through him.
Death was the end for every life, and the underworld the final destination for all beings. No living creature was without fear of death.
Did Hyde fear it?
Clearly, he did, otherwise, he wouldn't have thought of escaping immediately upon encountering Kou Tai.
But since escape was impossible, the manner of his death was something he could choose.
At least, that's what he believed.
"Oh~ going all out, are we?"
Observing Hyde, now enveloped in Haki and appearing like a demon, Kou Tai's eyes showed a hint of admiration.
Despite being a villain, his courage to face his fear and confront him was worthy of praise.
Of course, this admiration was fleeting. For this cruel pirate who had intended to obliterate an island from the outset, Kou Tai would show him what cruelty truly meant.
Staring at Hyde, a killing intent appeared in Kou Tai's eyes for the first time.
Since the one below had chosen death, how could he not fulfill his wish!
Relaxing his body, Kou Tai grew serious. He stared at Hyde and slowly placed his right hand on the hilt of Zankou.
Then, he took a step forward, his figure vanishing instantly.
"He's here."
Hyde, now fully prepared, his bloodshot pupils contracted sharply.
"Can't sense him, can't sense him at all. Where is he? Left, right, front, or back?"
Even with his mind focused like never before, even using his full Kenbunshoku Haki, he couldn't sense Kou Tai's presence.
"How the hell am I supposed to fight this?"
At this moment, time seemed to have stopped. Silently, Kou Tai's figure appeared before Hyde, yet Hyde, still in a state of high alert, remained rooted to the spot as if he couldn't see him.
This was speed of thought, perhaps!
Before, even when Kou Tai concealed his presence with his domain, the moment he teleported, his reaction and the reaction of his opponent were similar. Thus, at the instant of his appearance, his opponent would detect him and react.
For example, fighting Kizaru, fighting Garp, fighting Kaido.
However, after signing an agreement with Bian to freely enter and exit his sea of consciousness, he discovered he could achieve extreme mental processing speeds.
It was this state, where time seemed to stand still, yet he could think, that he now experienced.
It was as if time had stopped, but it hadn't; instead, it had slowed, as if the entire world was moving according to Kou Tai's will.
"What are you thinking?"
Kou Tai's voice, like a pebble dropped into a calm lake, instantly shattered the peculiar tranquility of the world he perceived, restoring it to normalcy.
"You..."
Hyde finally saw someone before him. He was startled, then retracted his right hand, his eyes glaring fiercely at the silver-haired youth who had suddenly appeared before him.
"Die."
His retracted fist, like a spring, generated a faint red glow as it cut through the air, launching towards Kou Tai.
"Too slow."
Staring at the rapidly approaching fist, Kou Tai took a step forward, his form like a phantom, or like a mirage. The fist passed straight through Kou Tai's body.
*Swoosh—!*
And at that moment, Hyde's body recoiled as if struck, arching backward. A ghastly wound silently appeared on his chest.
Only then did Kou Tai's illusion on Hyde's fist disappear, and Kou Tai's figure had silently appeared to Hyde's left.
The sword, a blood-dripping sword.
At some point, Zankou had been unsheathed and had struck him.
Hyde's mouth opened, blood flowing upwards from the corners of his lips.
He shook his head incessantly, trying to clear his vision, his body constantly retreating, leaving a trail of blood.
His vision cleared, he looked at the handsome silver-haired youth to his right, at the dripping blade in his hand. The light in Hyde's eyes rapidly dimmed, and his imposing aura collapsed to its lowest point.
How to fight?
Cannot touch, cannot see, cannot sense.
It was as if they were not from the same world.
He was an ant, and Kou Tai was a god in the heavens. The insurmountable gap he could feel was as vast as the distance between him and the starry sky above, so immense that it shattered him.
*Bang—!*
His knees buckled, and Hyde fell to the ground.
His sturdy body slumped completely.
"I'm not running anymore. I see no room for resistance. Actually, death is just the beginning of stepping into another world, isn't it?"
"Hahahahaha!!"