Double-transformation: I, Sakura Haruno! Will crush the pirates!

Milia carefully adjusted her glasses, preparing to speak.

boom--!

The sudden explosion interrupted her words. Flames and shockwaves erupted as the blue-haired priestess Milia tackled Sakura, shielding her with her body.

Amidst the smoke, an arrogant voice echoed along the Lovely Avenue.

"Hahaha, this is a robbery! Hand over all your valuables!"

Chapter 215 Sky Pirate Enel!

The center of Angel Island's Lovely Avenue.

A pale-skinned man with a well-proportioned but slightly thin build walked slowly out of the smoke, clutching an apple.

He had long, thin earlobes, was shirtless with a flowing purple belt around his waist, wore loose-fitting lantern pants, and carried a black rocket launcher on his arm, moving the muzzle back and forth over the surrounding residents.

Out of fear, the merchants, with cannon barrels pressed against their heads, had no choice but to hand over all the cash from their shops to him.

Behind him followed a small squad that was also fully armed.

They worked together seamlessly to snatch money from the surrounding merchants, then bagged and packed it up.

Then, someone shot a cloud arrow at this place from a distance, leaving a trail of white clouds in the sky.

The pale-skinned man shouldered the bag full of cash, jumped onto the cloud track, and rode away on a wind-blown shell.

"He's pretty professional. Who's that guy?"

The entire robbery was carried out smoothly and took less than a minute.

After Sakura helped Milia, who was lying on top of her, to her feet, she pointed to the departing man.

Wiping the dust off her face, Milia gritted her teeth and said, "He is the island's infamous sky pirate—Enel!"

really.

Sakura thought to herself.

After all, Sakura could see that iconic big earlobe even through the smoke, not to mention that guy's strange laughter.

"Tell me about that guy."

Sakura raised her finger, and her Wood Release technique created vines out of thin air on the ground beneath the clouds.

Then these vines, which meandered through the entire street, blossomed, spraying sap to heal the injured and extinguish the flames caused by the explosion.

“Those guys were a group of sky pirates that rose to prominence five years ago,” Milia said, biting her lip as she continued her story.

At the southernmost edge of this sky island lies a small sky island called Bika.

From the earliest records of Sky Island, that island has always been used as a place where the Sky Island gods exiled prisoners.

However, the scarcity of resources, coupled with the bloodline of prisoners living on Bika passed down through generations, unexpectedly created the island's current state of abundant military strength and gave birth to many powerful warriors.

Enel and his Sky Pirates were among those who rose to prominence during this period. They plundered the island, causing great headaches for Gan Fall, the god who ruled the Sky Island.

"interesting!"

Sakura turned around and tilted her head to show her companions behind her.

The well-coordinated Kuina and her companions immediately understood her meaning, stuffing all the purchased luggage into Leviathan's mouth and catching up with Sakura.

"Wait, Miss Sakura, what are you going to do?" Seeing Sakura walking in the direction of the cloud path, Priestess Milia hurriedly called out to the group who were like lambs to the slaughter.

"It's nothing. Just pass on a message to Mr. Ganford, saying that I am very grateful for his hospitality."

Sakura waved and gradually disappeared from her sight.

Leviathan flapped its wings and landed on the pink-haired girl's shoulder as they walked out of Angel Island's cute avenue. "Sakura~, is there anything special about that Enel?"

"Pretend, keep pretending."

Sakura tapped her head with her finger. "Having shared my Haki, haven't you sensed that guy's Observation Haki yet?"

"That's true, the shops around us weren't looted."

Tiger nodded in deep agreement. "It seems that guy is deliberately avoiding us."

It was more than just avoiding; judging from the speed at which Enel retreated, it was practically an escape.

"So, that guy named Enel is really powerful?"

Kuina placed her hand on the hilt of the sword, her little face filled with eager anticipation.

"Don't be too cruel, I want to live."

Sakura nodded almost imperceptibly, tacitly approving of Kuina's plan.

Fisher Tiger, resting his chin on his hand, pondered, "Come to think of it, it seems Sakura is intentionally helping a genius!"

"Huh? Is it that obvious?"

Sakura was taken aback and asked in surprise.

Then she saw Tiger nod seriously.

Whether it was Kuina, who was already on the ship, or her admonition to Doflamingo at the tavern in Mock Town, and finally Enel now.

Tiger noticed that Sakura paid special attention to those who possessed the potential to become strong.

In some ways, he was even more patient than the always restless emperor candidate.

As her partner and a member of the pirate crew, Tiger wanted to know what his captain was thinking, so he brought up the matter.

"Well, the main reason is to cultivate some rivals for myself."

Sakura raised her hand and scratched her cheek. "Whether they are allies or enemies, as long as they can demonstrate sufficient talent, I am happy to see them succeed."

It doesn't matter how ambitious these people are, nor does it matter where the world will be led by the rise of these powerful individuals.

Her goal was pure and simple: to fight against more powerful opponents.

Leaving the main street, the group entered the port of Angel Island and rented a medium-sized Vehru for the White Sea for 50 million Ik. They then sailed leisurely towards the southern region of the Sky Island—Bika.

On the other side, at the edge of Bica's island.

Enel, carrying the treasure, led his men into a naturally formed cloud cave. He brought up the rear and used island clouds from the surrounding area to block the entrance.

"Boss, we could have grabbed more just now, why did you send out the retreat signal so early?"

In some damp caves, air pirates sitting on wooden crates preparing their guns and cannons complained.

"Idiot, how dare you question the boss's decision?" Another man grabbed an Ik and threw it at him. "Have you forgotten that we've been able to develop to where we are today entirely thanks to the boss's Mind Network?"

Enel leaned back on his throne, munching on an apple, completely oblivious to the argument below.

Previously on Angel Island, when he wanted to plunder the group's treasure, he did indeed sense an aura emanating from the four people that he could not match.

"Just who are those people from Qinghai?"

As he was engrossed in eating his apple, he didn't notice that in the apple crate behind him, one of the apples inexplicably began to develop arabesque patterns, then quickly turned golden yellow, with tiny lightning bolt patterns faintly visible around it.

Click! Glug!

Enel picked up the strangely shaped fruit and took a bite. The nausea that instantly erupted on his taste buds made him instinctively swallow.

"yue~"

While he was retching, uncontrollable bolts of lightning suddenly erupted from his body, and thunder echoed throughout the cave formed by the island cloud.

By the time the members of the Sky Pirates sitting inside noticed the change in the color of the surrounding clouds, it was already too late.

boom!

A burst of blazing lightning shot up from the island, burning away the clouds within a radius of several miles, causing the island to tremble and the sky to shake.

Sakura and her group, riding their Waver to Bika, happened to witness this scene.

"What's that?"

Leviathan climbed the mast, cupped his hands to his brow, and gazed into the distance at the spot where the lightning struck.

Sakura closed her eyes, and her Observation Haki spread towards the center of the giant crater.

Amidst the clouds where countless bolts of lightning flowed, a pair of gloomy eyes opened, coldly meeting Sakura's gaze.

"He appears to be someone who can manipulate lightning."

Tiger secured the rudder, walked to the side of the ship, and leaned out over the bulwark with both hands.

"Is Thunder the same as Sakura's ability?"

Kuina tugged at Sakura's arm.

"No, he's a Logia-type Devil Fruit user, and one of the top-tier ones at that—the Logia-type Rumble-Rumble Fruit!"

Sakura, who had opened her eyes, gently nudged Kuina. "Go on, your opponent is waiting for you."

The swordswoman's eyes narrowed, and she revealed a wild smile.

"That's wonderful!"

Chapter 216 Kuina Cuts Through the Thunder

"Hahaha, this is the power of thunder!"

Floating in the air, Enel felt as if he had become one with the lightning.

Each bolt of lightning was part of his body, and he could command these lightning bolts as if they were his own body.

But why did he suddenly possess this magical power? Could it be... that the gods of the Sky Island finally chose him?

"Boss... Boss, help..."

Amidst the ruins, a small number of sky pirates who survived the thunderclouds pleaded with Enel for help.

Unfortunately, he didn't pay any attention to it at all.

“I have received the power of the gods; you are no longer of any use to me.”

Without a trace of regret, Enel turned away, ignoring his former subordinates.

Before long, several lives vanished under the heavy island clouds.

For Enel, who grew up in Bika and was ostracized because he had no wings, indifference was something he was used to.

Only in this way could he grow up successfully in an environment filled with violence and primitiveness.

After acquiring power comparable to that of a god, Enel's first thought was to seek out the 'strong' from his homeland to determine his ecological niche on the Sky Island.

"This is really something to look forward to! Hahahaha!"

Taking a deep breath, Enel leaped into the air, about to transform into lightning and plunge into the clouds above.

However... a streak of dark blade light silently snaked across his neck.

With a few casual strokes, he severed his head, which then slid to the ground.

"Ok?"

Enel's head and eyes rolled as he fell onto the island cloud, looking in the direction from which the blade had come.

The girl, holding a long sword with a scorched pattern in both hands, was panting heavily, her face flushed, and her eyes gleaming with excitement.

"As expected, she's a Logia-type user. Sakura-neechan wasn't lying to me!"

Kuina laughed loudly as she charged toward Enel.

Enel, still in shock after his head was severed, noticed Kuina's movements through his psychic vision.

On the other hand, the thought that his own body had not been harmed arose in his self-perception, and the head on the ground turned into a small bolt of lightning and merged into his body.

"This is amazing! This is the power of God, the power to make people immortal!"

Enel stared fascinated at the lightning between his hands, then opened his arms and laughed hysterically.

"God? Immortal?"

Kuina sheathed her sword and assumed an iaido stance. "What a coincidence, I've wanted to slay a god for a long time now!"

The next instant, a blade of light mixed with gray mist and deathly aura appeared in the sky like a bright moon, easily slicing through the island clouds and tearing Enel's body apart.

"Hahahaha, it's useless. How can a mortal's weak sword possibly harm a god?"