With one final surge of strength, the Golden Eagle King drove his wings downward.
BOOM!
The clouds exploded apart.
A moment later, he burst through the final layer and emerged into a world unlike anything he had ever imagined.
Ten thousand meters above the sea.
The world below was gone.
No ocean.
No islands.
No horizon.
Only an endless sea of white clouds stretching in every direction.
The eagle panted heavily.
His wings trembled with fatigue.
Every muscle in his body burned.
Even as the undisputed ruler of his island’s skies, he had never flown this high before.
The air felt wrong.
Thin.
Cold.
Unnatural.
What kind of place is this?
What is that monster even looking for up here?
Nothing should be able to live at this height…
Then his thoughts came to an abrupt halt.
The giant bird froze.
His eyes widened.
Ahead of them floated an island.
Not a cloud.
Not an illusion.
An actual island.
Suspended in the sky.
Dense forests covered its surface.
Ancient ruins rose above the treeline.
Rivers and grasslands stretched across solid earth, all resting atop a boundless ocean of clouds.
The eagle nearly forgot how to fly.
What?!
An island?!
In the sky?!
His worldview shattered on the spot.
For a creature that had spent its entire life ruling a single island, the sight was beyond comprehension.
Meanwhile, Rowan merely smiled.
Just as he remembered.
“Looks like I wasn’t wrong.”
His eyes settled on the floating landmass.
“The Upper Yard.”
“The heart of Skypiea.”
“The so-called God’s Domain.”
Excitement flickered in his gaze.
Part of it came from anticipation.
After years of planning, the Lightning Fruit was finally within reach.
The rest came from the challenge itself.
Enel.
The self-proclaimed god.
The first major obstacle standing between Rowan and the future he envisioned.
The air was noticeably thinner at this altitude, but his body adapted quickly.
A few deep breaths were enough.
The Behemoth’s physique was more than capable of handling the environment.
“Let’s go.”
He pointed toward Upper Yard.
The eagle swallowed his shock and obeyed.
His wings beat once more.
Then he flew directly toward the sacred island.
And the moment they crossed into God’s Domain—
Someone noticed.
Deep within Upper Yard.
At the center of a lavish golden palace.
A man lounging atop an ornate throne slowly opened his eyes.
Enel.
The ruler of Skypiea.
The self-proclaimed God.
A faint smile curved across his lips.
“Oh?”
His Observation Haki expanded outward.
Countless emotions.
Countless lives.
Everything across his domain existed within his awareness.
Nothing escaped his perception.
And right now, something unusual had entered his territory.
“A Blue Sea human?”
His smile widened slightly.
“Interesting.”
Then another presence caught his attention.
The giant eagle.
Even among the sky islands, a creature of that size was rare.
Enel’s eyes lit up.
“Now that’s impressive.”
He leaned forward.
“A bird like that would make an excellent pet.”
Nearby, several priests immediately perked up.
An intruder.
Finally.
Life under Enel’s rule was painfully dull most days.
One of the priests stepped forward eagerly.
“Lord Enel, allow us to deal with the intruder.”
Another quickly nodded.
“We’ll eliminate him immediately.”
The others voiced their agreement.
Unfortunately for them, Enel simply waved a hand.
“No.”
The priests froze.
Enel stood and stretched lazily.
A yawn escaped him.
“If you idiots damage the bird, what then?”
The priests blinked.
The bird?
That was what he cared about?
Enel grabbed his golden staff and rested it against his shoulder.
Lightning crackled softly around him.
His confidence never wavered.
Why would it?
He was God.
The Goro Goro no Mi granted him absolute power.
Nobody in Skypiea could challenge him.
Nobody could even touch him.
As for the newcomer…
His life force was stronger than most.
Much stronger.
But compared to lightning?
Meaningless.
Enel smirked.
Blue electricity erupted around his body.
CRACK!
Thunder echoed through the palace.
Then he vanished.
The priests stared at the empty throne.
Moments later, excited whispers spread through the room.
“Lord Enel went personally?”
“That intruder is finished.”
“He’ll probably die before he even understands what happened.”
“Of course.”
“The power of God is absolute.”
“A Blue Sea human never had a chance.”
Far above Upper Yard.
The giant eagle continued his approach.
Then suddenly—
Something changed.
The air grew heavy.
The atmosphere itself seemed to tighten.
Every feather on the eagle’s body stood upright.
Danger.
Pure danger.
Instinct screamed at him.
Run.
Escape.
Anything.
Every survival instinct he possessed was shrieking in terror.
But Rowan remained seated calmly on his back.
Not a trace of concern appeared on his face.
Seeing that, the eagle forced himself to keep flying.
Then the heavens erupted.
BOOOOOOOOM!
A pillar of lightning descended from the sky.
Blinding.
Overwhelming.
A bolt so massive it looked as though heaven itself had unleashed punishment upon the world.
Divine Judgment.
Enel’s signature attack.
The same technique that had erased countless enemies without resistance.
The eagle never even saw where it came from.
One moment the sky was clear.
The next, death was falling toward them.
Then Rowan moved.
His body blurred.
A fist shot upward.
Dark Armament Haki coated his arm.
BANG!
The punch collided directly with the descending lightning.
The sky exploded.
A shockwave rippled outward.
Blue arcs scattered across the heavens like shattered glass.
The Golden Eagle King’s beak slowly fell open.
His mind went blank.
Someone…
Had punched lightning.
Bare-handed.
The sight was so absurd that his brain refused to process it.
Meanwhile, Rowan remained completely calm.
He had expected this.
In his previous life, he had watched Enel use Divine Judgment countless times.
A devastating attack against ordinary opponents.
But its greatest advantage was simple.
Most people couldn’t touch lightning.
Rowan could.
Armament Haki changed everything.
Electricity crackled around his arm.
Blue currents hissed and danced across his skin, searching for a way into his body.
They found nothing.
The Behemoth’s durability was already monstrous.
Combined with Armament Haki, this level of lightning simply wasn’t enough.
The energy dispersed.
The thunder faded.
The sky slowly returned to normal.
Silence followed.
For several long seconds, nothing moved.
Then Rowan lowered his fist.
A grin spread across his face.
“Found you.”
His gaze shifted toward the distant sky.
Toward the source of the attack.
Toward the man responsible.
The God of Skypiea.
At that same moment, far away, Enel’s smile vanished.
For the first time since detecting the intruder, genuine surprise crossed his face.
Someone had blocked Divine Judgment.
Not dodged.
Not survived.
Blocked.
With a single punch.
Enel slowly lowered his hand.
The amusement in his eyes deepened.
Now this…
This was interesting.