OP: My Aircraft Carrier Evolves#146+147: One Punch, Doflamingo Down! Admiral Kizaru, Let's Dance! Lightning vs Light!

The air over Jaya grew heavy, the tension thick enough to freeze.

Doflamingo felt the sting on his cheek—a disorienting flash of pain that was almost an illusion. The corner of his mouth twitched.

It was a long-forgotten sensation.

He raised an eyebrow.

'With that kind of power... it's no surprise he beat Hanafuda in a straight fight.' Doflamingo thought

Doflamingo pushed himself up, wiping a smear of blood from his lips. He stared at the young king, who was still sitting calmly at his table. "Fufufu... what is it with the youth these days? One more outrageous than the last."

"You've got that kid, Ace, tearing up the New World... and now a monster like this shows up in Paradise."

"Is this the new era I keep hearing about?"

"I can already smell the changing tides... Tell me, how would you like to partner up? We could rule this new era together."

A single punch had been enough for Doflamingo to realize that the young king before him was not to be trifled with. He was dangerous.

Doflamingo, the "Joker," was a creature of pure conspiracy and ambition. Every action he took was dictated by self-interest, completely devoid of emotion.

For his ambition, he had killed his own father and brother.

For his ambition, he had sent subordinates who had followed him for years to their deaths.

He had built a new Donquixote Family, a collection of villains he called his "family," but in reality, it was just a childish game.

He hadn't come here to avenge Machvise out of any sense of familial loyalty.

He had come because Jin's actions were directly threatening his core interests—his weapons supply chain. Jin was in his way.

And so, the moment he recognized Jin's strength and realized he might not come out on top, the death of his "family" was forgotten.

Doflamingo's first, most rational move was to negotiate.

After all, in the mouths of men like him, what was the word "family" but a tool for manipulation and betrayal?

"No," Jin said, his expression placid. "I refuse. Go back to the New World, flamingo. This is Paradise."

A vein throbbed on Doflamingo's forehead. "DON'T PUSH YOUR LUCK."

"I know you're not weak," he seethed, "but on these seas, fists aren't always the answer. The power I wield is beyond your imagination."

He was struggling to contain his rage. Against anyone else, he would have already struck.

He had once said, "If you meet someone who won't submit, you beat them into submission."

And yet, here he was, saying that fists weren't the answer.

On one hand, there was the precedent of Hanafuda's defeat. He worked with Kaido, and though he and Hanafuda despised each other, he knew the man wasn't weak. Doflamingo had no intention of following in his footsteps.

Men of their stature, having achieved so much, were protective of their reputations. They rarely made a move themselves, developing an air of mystery. When they did strike, it had to be with overwhelming force.

Otherwise, it just invited more trouble. The seas were full of wannabes looking to make a name for themselves.

On the other hand, Jin was the king of a member nation. And on his way here, Doflamingo had received a call from CP0.

Jin had connections to the Celestial Dragons.

He was working for them.

That gave him pause.

Doflamingo, for all his ambition, knew he lacked the raw power to become an emperor of the sea. That's why he had become a broker. His ability to operate his black-market enterprises right under the nose of the Marines was entirely due to his "Celestial Dragon" heritage. He knew exactly what that connection meant. It meant that, for now, the Celestial Dragons didn't want anything to happen to Jin.

'That would explain his meteoric rise. The Celestial Dragons have been clearing a path for him.' Doflamingo thought

He saw Jin as a kindred spirit, which was why he had tolerated his insolence for so long.

Jin, in turn, saw the weakness behind Doflamingo's bluster.

'So, CP0 didn't just call me. They called him, too. Cipher Pol's intelligence network really is everywhere. And both of us must be on their high-priority watch list to have warranted a call from the top.'

'In CP0's eyes, Doflamingo and I are just two horses in the same stable—one provides slaves for the Celestial Dragons, the other provides their 'Dream'. Of course they'd want to keep us from killing each other.'

A new wave of confidence washed over Jin.

——————

His tone hardened. "Mock Town is mine now, Doflamingo. I've already planted my flag. Get out."

"Don't get cocky, you bastard!" Doflamingo's rage finally boiled over. His eyes blazed, and arcs of dark-red lightning erupted from his body.

A fierce, tyrannical wave of Conqueror's Haki erupted outward like a hurricane.

The sea in the harbor began to churn. The air grew heavy, crackling with crimson sparks.

The force of the impact sent the few remaining conscious residents of the town into darkness, their eyes rolling back in their heads as they collapsed.

Robin braced herself against the overwhelming spiritual pressure. She'd felt it before, but it still sent a wave of dizziness through her. It took all her effort to remain standing.

On a nearby roof, Van Augur stumbled, lost his footing, and fell.

Only Jin remained unfazed, sitting calmly amidst the storm.

Doflamingo was surprised, but not entirely. His fingers twitched.

"Five Color Strings!"

Five nearly invisible, razor-sharp strings shot out from his fingertips.

He coated them in Armament Haki.

With a flick of his wrist, the five black threads shot toward Jin's neck.

The String-String Fruit.

A fruit that sounded completely useless by its name alone.

But in Doflamingo's hands, after years of development, it was a terrifying weapon. The soft threads were strong enough to cut through stone and steel.

Faster than any blade.

The Haki-coated strings shimmered in the light.

In an instant, the table in front of Jin was sliced in two, the cut perfectly smooth. The threads were now just centimeters from his face.

But Doflamingo wasn't smiling. He was tense. He was a powerhouse in his own right, and he knew it wouldn't be this easy. If Jin couldn't even defend against this, he never would have been able to land that first punch.

This was just a probe.

He knew nothing about Jin's abilities, which put him at a serious disadvantage.

And it was also a setup for his next move.

As expected.

Jin's hand moved, forming a strange gesture, and a wide beam of light shot forward.

"Slow-Slow Beam!"

Caught in the beam, the incredibly fast threads slowed to a crawl, moving slower than a snail.

They were just three centimeters from his neck, but they couldn't close the distance.

It was as if an insurmountable chasm had opened between them.

Not just the threads, but Doflamingo himself was caught in the light. His movements, his thoughts, his very consciousness—all of it slowed to a crawl.

It was as if someone had hit the pause button.

What??

Doflamingo's mind screamed. He instinctively unleashed his Haki, trying to fight off the effect of the beam.

<><><><><><><><>

Jin's mastery of the Slow-Slow Fruit was still rudimentary, and Doflamingo's Haki was strong. The effect lasted less than two seconds.

As his thoughts returned to normal speed, a new wave of shock hit him.

'A Devil Fruit ability? How? I thought his power was that candy-like substance! What was that beam? They're completely unrelated! It's like two different Devil Fruits! How can he have two?? Is it some kind of technology? There were rumors he was working with Germa 66... did he have himself modified?'

The thoughts, held back by the slowing effect, all rushed in at once, overloading his mind.

He looked back at the table.

It was shattered. The threads had passed through, hitting nothing but air.

Jin was gone.

Doflamingo's Observation Haki kicked in. He looked up.

In mid-air, a figure hung, radiating an immense, oppressive aura.

He was falling like a meteor.

Doflamingo's eyes widened in horror.

His scalp tingled. His breath caught in his throat.

Jin's fist, wreathed in Haki and lightning, was like a giant war hammer, descending upon him.

He wanted to run.

But he had no time to react. The moment he looked up, the fist was already there.

It was as if he had been looking at an afterimage.

Too fast...

Doflamingo's only choice was to unleash every string he had, weaving them into a massive cocoon around himself—his ultimate defense.

BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!

The punch landed.

The impact shook the very foundations of Jaya.

Lightning and Haki erupted.

A shockwave of rock and dust blasted outward, shredding every building within a hundred-meter radius, tearing apart the ground in a spiderweb of cracks.

The resulting gale tore through the streets, whipping up newspapers and debris, a man-made storm.

Robin crossed her arms, bracing herself against the wind, her mind reeling from the sheer power of the blow.

When the dust settled, Jin was standing at the edge of the crater. Doflamingo was embedded in the ground at its center, covered in blood, unconscious.

Doflamingo was a versatile assassin, but his one weakness was that he was a glass cannon.

Against a tank, he couldn't take many hits.

He was afraid of Kaido for the same reason: his attacks did limited damage to the Yonko, while Kaido could take him out with a single blow.

And as it happened, Jin was also a tank.

——————

"He's... DEFEATED!!"

Van Augur's Will was strong. He had only been momentarily stunned by the Conqueror's Haki, falling from the roof. When he climbed back up, he was met with a sight that shook him to his core.

Jin was standing.

Doflamingo was down.

"With a single punch... he defeated one of the Seven Warlords?"

He was terrified. The sheer power of it filled him with a profound sense of dread.

A Warlord, taken out in one hit.

It was almost unheard of since the system had been established.

This man... he was on the level of a Yonko.

Van Augur was trembling—with fear, with awe, and with excitement.

"The choice of fate," he whispered.

Jin's gaze was not on the defeated Doflamingo. It was on the wooden pier. Another man had arrived.

"Ooooh... looks like I'm a step too late. It's already over."

A tall figure, standing on a cannonball, his voice slow and comical.

"A Marine Admiral!"

Robin's pupils contracted. A flicker of panic shot through her, and she instinctively took a step back, ready to flee. Then she remembered—her appearance was completely different. No one would recognize her. Running would only draw attention.

Having traveled with Jin, having witnessed such high-level battles, her nerve had grown stronger.

She forced herself to remain calm.

On the roof, Van Augur was also stunned. "Marine Admiral Kizaru! What is he doing here?"

——————

Kizaru stood there, looking at the defeated Doflamingo. A flicker of surprise passed through his sunglasses.

"How terrifying," he drawled.

The cannonball landed, and he stepped off.

Jin watched him. 'Terrifying? One 'how terrifying' for every supernova you kick?'

Kizaru had short, curly black hair, a pair of sunglasses, and a ring of stubble around his mouth. He was tall and lanky, standing at three meters. He wore a yellow and white striped suit, a purple tie, a dark green shirt, and white shoes, with an Admiral's coat of justice draped over his shoulders.

There was no warship in the harbor. He had come alone, riding a cannonball.

Just as Doflamingo could travel through the air with his strings, so too could Kizaru.

The Logia Glint-Glint Fruit.

"What brings a Marine Admiral all the way out here?" Jin asked, his voice calm and steady.

"Fleet Admiral Sengoku heard you two were having a little disagreement," Kizaru said, his words slow, almost drawn out. "He sent me to stop you."

Sengoku had his reasons. Jin and Doflamingo were both in a special position. They were kings of member nations. Trouble for either of them was trouble for him.

"Seems you're not needed," Jin said. "It's over."

"So it is," Kizaru replied. "It's over. However, I'll be taking Doflamingo with me."

"Are the Marines interfering?" Jin said, his voice turning cold.

"My orders are not to take sides," Kizaru said. "Whoever loses, I take them away. To avoid any... unpleasantness... that might reflect poorly on the World Government. If it had been a stalemate, I would have mediated. If you had lost, I would be taking you."

"Doflamingo is my prize," Jin said, his eyes narrowing. "—If you want to take him, you'd better pay up. Two Devil Fruits. A fair price, don't you think? Or... you can try and take him from me."

'Is he really going to fight a Marine Admiral?' Van Augur thought, his mind reeling.

"Ooooh, how terrifying," Kizaru said, practically yawning. "—I'm just a working man~ Don't make things so difficult for me. Well, if you put it that way, I suppose I'll have to try. Have you ever been kicked at the Speed of Light?"

His body dissolved into a blinding, piercing light and shot toward the crater.

In the next instant—

WHAM!

Kizaru appeared in the crater, his hand reaching for Doflamingo. A foot shot out and kicked it away.

"Ooh?" Kizaru was surprised. He looked up. Jin's body was crackling with electricity.

"I have," Jin replied. "But have you ever been kicked at the speed of lightning?"

He kicked Kizaru, and in a flash of lightning, the Admiral's elemental form was sent flying, reforming in mid-air.

"A Logia... the Rumble-Rumble Fruit??" Kizaru's eyes narrowed. He was known for relying on his Devil Fruit ability in battle, a habit Z had often criticized him for. But he'd never changed. He had, however, studied the Devil Fruit encyclopedia and was familiar with a number of powerful and similar fruits.

"I see," he said. "How terrifying. Well then... let's see which is faster. Light... or lightning."

He crossed his arms, and a brilliant light began to gather. He unleashed a barrage of countless, dazzling light bullets.

Jin raised his hand, and a torrent of lightning shot from his arm, forming a barrage of lightning bullets.

Beams of light and bolts of lightning collided in mid-air, erupting in a series of blinding explosions.

The light from the impacts grew, spreading out, enveloping the entire sky over Jaya.

Van Augur was dumbfounded.

Robin couldn't help but close her eyes.

It was too bright, too dazzling. The clash was nothing short of a cataclysmic display of light pollution.