149 The Powder Keg Kizaru (1)

"Crack... crack..." The ice wall vanished, turning into fragments of ice that scattered all over the ground.

Standing in front of Kizaru, Aokiji was wreathed in wisps of white mist, looking as though he were standing amidst the clouds, exuding an extreme sense of mystery.

The astonishing chill gradually faded away. Aokiji raised his head, gazing at the trailing sparks vanishing into the distant horizon, his face filled with regret.

Why? Why did you still choose to walk down this path? I once told you that no matter what you became, I would stop you. Even if you claimed to have severed all ties of kinship, I would never abandon you.

Clenching his fists tightly, Aokiji knew that Xuanye's departure at this moment was simply because he didn't want to fight him. But could escaping once mean escaping for a lifetime, my friend?

Staring blankly at the horizon, Aokiji didn't know how to express his current mood. Detachment? Anticipated all along? Regret? Were all of these feelings present?

From this day forward, we are enemies.

With a complex expression, Aokiji found it somewhat difficult to accept, even though he had foreseen it to some extent.

At that moment, the onlookers also slowly began to withdraw from the darkness, for another Marine Admiral had arrived.

The battle between a Marine Vice-Admiral and an Admiral alone was already terrifying to the extreme; it was hard to imagine how terrifying it would be if yet another Admiral joined the fray.

"Cough... cough..." Behind him, Kizaru let out a sigh of relief, which was immediately followed by endless rage.

Today, he could truly say he had walked along the edge of life and death. Especially that fatal crisis at the very last moment, which had nearly caused his mind to collapse.

Since when had he ever been in such a pathetic state, with even his own life grasped in someone else's hands?

Spitting out a mouthful of blood as he lay among the rubble, Kizaru weakly cursed at the top of his lungs, "You bastard! If you had arrived even a moment later, you wouldn't have been able to see me anymore. You did that on purpose, didn't you?!"

Turning around, Aokiji looked at the battered Kizaru, a trace of astonishment in his eyes, because Kizaru's injuries were far too severe. Given Kizaru's abilities, no one should have been able to trap him if he wanted to flee.

"Was that guy really that strong? You didn't even get the chance to escape?!" Bending down to help Kizaru up, Aokiji ignored the complaints and asked with a hint of doubt.

"Don't even mention it. That guy must have been hiding his true strength all along." Grimacing and hissing as he felt the internal agony within his body, Kizaru wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth, his eyes filled with lingering fear.

"Things are going to be troublesome now. If he becomes a pirate, I shudder to imagine the consequences." Sighing, Aokiji voiced the worry in his heart.

"I don't give a damn anymore! From now on, whenever I'm alone, I will never go anywhere near that guy again. He's an absolute lunatic."

Still shaken with fear, Kizaru had once again been forcibly reminded of the sheer terror of that madman.

At that moment, Onigumo led a group of Marines and closed in around them.

"Are you alright?" Onigumo stepped forward, offering a token gesture of concern.

"Are you trying to be sarcastic?! Do I look like I'm alright in this state? I was almost killed by that bastard!" Right now, Kizaru was like a powder keg on the verge of exploding, and his mood couldn't possibly have been worse.

Giving a nervous chuckle, Onigumo indeed gasped inwardly at the sight of Kizaru's blood-soaked body.

Especially both of his hands, where three deep, bone-visible claw marks were clearly etched, not to mention his chest, which was mangled, bloodied, and charred completely black.

"That lunatic didn't hold back at all! The bastard, he must be holding a grudge against me from back at the academy when I tried to stop him from killing Akainu." Grumbling and cursing incessantly, Kizaru vented his fury.

"No way, right?" Onigumo glanced sideways. How many years ago was that?

"Nothing is impossible with a guy like that. You know his personality—he's a complete maniac, a freak. I've learned that firsthand today, and my days ahead are definitely not going to be peaceful."

"So what do we do now?" Onigumo let out a heavy sigh.

"We report this to Fleet Admiral Sengoku!" Supporting Kizaru, Aokiji pulled a Den Den Mushi from his coat.

"Buru... buru..."

"Hello! Well, have you caught him?" Sengoku asked directly the moment the call connected.

"No, he got away." Aokiji shook his head.

"Where is Kizaru?" In Sengoku's office at Marineford, several people sat gathered around.

"He's right beside me. His condition isn't very good right now." Aokiji glanced at Kizaru, whose face was deathly pale and gloomy.

"Don't tell me Kizaru failed to stall that bastard? What on earth was he doing?!" At that moment, an arrogant voice of reprimand came through the receiver of the Den Den Mushi.

Upon hearing that voice, Kizaru, who had been ranting just a moment ago, snapped to his feet. He snatched the Den Den Mushi, activated the visual projection, and roared back furiously, "Akainu! Stop sitting there and talking nonsense! I almost died this time, so you'd better not provoke me! If you've got the guts, come handle it yourself!"

In the office, a screen of light suddenly materialized in mid-air. What came into view were those shocking, horrifying wounds. As Sengoku and the others stared at Kizaru's blood-drenched appearance, they all drew in sharp breaths of cold air.

Normally, Kizaru's usual frivolous expression made it hard to read much from his face, but what was with that complete lack of color? He looked like someone on the brink of death, on the verge of kicking the bucket at any second.

"You..." With a grim expression, Akainu felt a surge of anger, glaring fixedly at Kizaru in the projection.

"What about me?! If you've got the ability, go capture that bastard yourself instead of barking like a madman in front of me! My mood is extremely foul right now, so you'd better not provoke me!"

Even a clay Buddha had a spark of anger. Although Kizaru was usually lazy and seemed indifferent to everything—leading many Marines to believe he possessed an exceptional temper—was that really the case? Let's not forget that Kizaru had just nearly been killed, and Akainu's earlier remark was clearly blaming him for failing to capture Xuanye. Could that condescending tone fail to infuriate Kizaru?

Furthermore, as fellow Admirals, if they were to fight to the death, there was no telling who would end up six feet under. Just because Kizaru usually avoided petty disputes didn't mean he was afraid of Akainu.

With a dark expression, Akainu's face grew as gloomy as dripping water, because Kizaru's fierce demeanor was completely unlike his usual self.

The entire office fell into a dead silence.

"Sigh... If that guy becomes a pirate, the future of the Marines is hard to predict." Tsuru massaged her temples, a deep headache settling in.

"Fleet Admiral Sengoku, what should we do now?" Aokiji asked, looking into the projection.

"Can we still catch up to him?" Sengoku's expression remained grim.

"There's no way. At my speed, I can't catch him. Perhaps only Ki—" Aokiji broke off mid-sentence, suddenly freezing as a pair of murderous eyes glared straight at him.

"Uh..." Aokiji snapped his mouth shut and said no more.

At that moment, even though everyone knew what Aokiji had wanted to say, no one dared to pick up the thread. One look at Kizaru made it abundantly clear that he was a ticking time bomb right now; whoever provoked him would meet with disaster. After all, this concerned their own lives—it wasn't a laughing matter.