c13 – Fire Fist Ace!
'Ding! An accidental encounter with Fire Fist Ace has triggered the God-Level Selection System!'
'Choice 1: Notify Vice Admiral Flying Squirrel and cooperate to capture Fire Fist Ace upon successful completion, all three forms of Haki will increase by one level!'
'Choice 2: Flee the scene! You will receive the title "Coward." Title effect: Reduces presence and detectability by 100%!'
'Choice 3: Let Ace go and defect to the Whitebeard Pirates upon completion, all personal stats increase by one level!'
The moment he saw these three options, Carl didn't even hesitate he immediately selected Option One!
The other two were rejected without a second thought!
"Fire Fist Ace! In the name of the Navy I'm placing you under arrest!"
Carl roared, his voice ringing through the street, instantly drawing attention from everyone nearby.
Most of the people present were ordinary civilians, enjoying a typical afternoon in Grove 13 of Sabaody.
But when they heard the words "Navy" and "Fire Fist Ace", their expressions changed to horror, and they quickly ran home or hid in alleyways.
Some of them, more bold or frightened, had already contacted the local Marine base via Den Den Mushi.
Carl took out the red signal flare issued to Navy officers and fired it into the sky its brilliant crimson trail unmistakable over Sabaody's skyline.
"You have backup?!"
Ace's eyes narrowed, his instincts flaring along with his flames.
Carl gave him a look like he was talking to a brick wall, sighing exaggeratedly.
"Of course I do. Have you ever seen a Navy officer show up alone?
Well excluding the Admirals. But those three freaks don't count as human!"
At the mention of the three Marine Admirals Kizaru, Aokiji, and Akainu Carl felt a chill and couldn't help but twitch at the thought of their overwhelming power.
Ace gritted his teeth, then took a deep breath as his body began turning into flame.
He didn't hesitate to retreat!
"I'm not feeling it today! I'll come back to deal with you when I rescue my little brother!"
Ace wasn't stupid. He knew full well that if Carl had reinforcements on the way, he stood no chance alone not on Marine turf, not on Sabaody, this close to Navy HQ.
Saving Luffy was critical, but dying before reaching him would serve no one.
As Ace's body turned to fire and tried to streak away through the trees and rooftops, Carl narrowed his eyes, shook his head, and gave chase.
"Fire Fist Ace! I didn't give you permission to run!"
"Lion Power: Dirth Roll!"
"What?!"
A violent tremor surged through the ground beneath Ace's feet.
The Grove beneath him suddenly warped upward like a rug being yanked by a giant hand!
Carl's Flutter-Flutter Fruit (Fuwa Fuwa no Mi) power surged into the terrain, twisting it skyward, converting stone and root into an airborne spiral.
With a massive roar, the manipulated ground formed a rotating wall of debris like a localized typhoon right where Ace had turned into fire!
Ace, now fully elemental, tried to phase out and escape the storm.
But Carl had used his full Devil Fruit control, pulling in debris, wind, and ambient energy to trap even a Logia user momentarily.
Ace was caught in the rotating cyclone!
Carl's mastery of the Fuwa Fuwa no Mi, previously wielded by Golden Lion Shiki, allowed him to lift and manipulate massive terrain and generate high-speed, high-pressure storms and this version was fused with his own creativity.
He wasn't just floating rubble he was engineering a battlefield.
Typhoon-force winds spun violently, infused with bladed debris and slicing air currents Ace's elemental form could survive, but not escape immediately.
Carl tightened his grip on Deadwood and Sakura, preparing for the next move.
His Devil Fruit power can control not only solid objects but even manipulate the very air itself!
It's just that controlling gaseous elements like air requires significantly more precision and power.
That's why he chose to combine earth and air to generate a massive cyclone specifically to trap Ace inside its pressure spiral.
Ace's power is fire born from the Mera Mera no Mi, a Logia-type Devil Fruit and there are two key effects when flame meets wind.
If the wind is mild or passive, his flames spread faster and grow more intense with airflow.
But if it's a violent windstorm like this
His flames risk suffocating and snuffing out before they can gain momentum!
That's the core of Carl's plan.
Simply trap Ace and hold him until Vice Admiral Flying Squirrel arrives at that point, Ace's defeat would be certain!
"Damn it! I'm not going down without a fight!!!"
Ace roared his flames surging violently!
A light like a miniature sun erupted from his body, illuminating the entire region of the Sabaody Archipelago even distant port districts saw the flare light up the skies.
"Entei! Great Flame Commandment—!"
Ace gasped, pouring everything into the 'Flame Emperor', a gigantic fireball formed from condensed Mera Mera flames.
He knew unless he went all out, he'd never break through Carl's cyclone prison.
Seeing that Ace had committed to a final move, Carl didn't panic he simply crossed his twin blades, and the air around him roared in response.
"If you want to trade finishing moves—let's see whose is stronger!"
"Lion Might: Earth-Cutting Storm Fang"
In a flash
Two enormous slashes wrapped in howling storm-force winds erupted from Carl's swords!
Though not yet on par with Golden Lion Shiki at his prime this was, by far, Carl's most powerful strike to date!
After extensive training since their last encounter, Carl had fully inherited Shiki's sword style and raised his swordsmanship to Grade D.
That level meant he'd entered the realm of the swordmasters Jianhao and with the Fuwa Fuwa no Mi enhancing his range and speed, his cutting storm was now an overwhelming weapon.
Even Vice Admiral Flying Squirrel, with all his experience, would avoid taking this blow head-on.
The only flaw Carl's mastery of Haki remained limited. He still couldn't imbue his blade with Busoshoku Haki, meaning his slashes couldn't bypass Logia intangibility at range.
Meanwhile
Ace completed his own ultimate attack the massive flame orb of the Flame Emperor exploded forth, aimed directly at Carl!
Two high-level attacks clashed in the heart of Sabaody!
A violent shockwave tore across the area.
Nearby stalls and structures shattered instantly unable to withstand the overwhelming blast force.
The ground split and cracked under the stress chunks of the Grove's unique soap trees were torn loose, revealing the raw earth beneath.
The collision drew the attention of the entire archipelago!
Even Marshall D. Teach Blackbeard lurking in the shadows, narrowed his eyes as he spotted the signature of Ace's fire.
Pirates throughout the district turned their eyes to the sky, unsure of what they were witnessing.
At the same moment the Marines stationed nearby detected the explosion and the unique flame surge.
Vice Admiral Flying Squirrel, who had just landed from a patrol ship offshore, recognized Ace's Flame Emperor at once and kicked into Geppo (Moonwalk) rushing toward the explosion's epicenter.
"Carl, you brat you said you were just going out for a walk, and you picked a fight with Fire Fist Ace?!"
The Vice Admiral clenched his jaw, frustration clear as he launched himself forward, moving at top speed.
From midair, he could already see the brilliant orange light of the Flame Emperor casting shadows over half the district.
But then suddenly the light vanished.
The Vice Admiral's expression shifted.
He accelerated further reaching the battlefield in under a minute and what he saw left him stunned.
The battleground was devastated.
A crater over ten meters wide and five meters deep yawned in the middle of the Grove.
At opposite ends of the pit stood Carl and Ace, both breathing heavily, their clothes torn and bodies marked with fresh burns and cuts.
"Fire Fist Ace! You are under arrest in the name of the World Government!"
Flying Squirrel didn't hesitate he leapt down and rushed toward Ace at full speed!
Carl's lips curled into a thin smirk he followed close behind, stepping in sync with the Vice Admiral!
"Not good!"
Ace's eyes narrowed facing a two-pronged assault, one from a top-ranking veteran and another from a rising powerhouse with tricky powers.
He wasn't in shape to handle them.
He had spent nearly all his energy earlier his Flame Emperor had been a desperate gamble to escape Carl's cyclone trap.
Now, that gamble had failed and he was surrounded.
Flying Squirrel saw the hesitation and struck finding a gap in Ace's stance and slashing with a Haki-infused blade!
"Tch!"
Ace grunted in pain a line of red streaked across his side.
"Busoshoku Haki…?!"
Ace's face tightened. The moment he saw that slash had connected despite his Logia form he knew he was in trouble.
He instantly began retreating but Carl was already airborne, faster than Flying Squirrel!
He looped ahead of Ace's path and raised his twin swords.
"Tornado Cross Slash!"
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