Chapter 282: Second-in-Command

"Not good!"

Panic washed over Koala's face, yet she was utterly powerless—she couldn't fly.

The Flying Dragon Unit was a vital link in their plan to dismantle the World Government's defenses. Without their air support, breaching the enemy line would become nearly impossible.

Gales howled through the sky as Dragon tried to vault upward, but Fujitora and Big Mom gave him zero leeway—especially Big Mom.

Earlier, Dragon had blasted her away with a black wind dragon, causing her to lose face entirely. For a sovereign Emperor to fail to block even a single strike from Dragon was a humiliation beyond endurance.

Particularly at a time like this, when Big Mom was already harboring a deep-seated fury over being stripped of her Yonko title.

This setback only seemed to confirm the slander that her strength was subpar!

BOOM!

The two powerhouses struck simultaneously, forcing Dragon straight back to the ground.

On the other flank, Red-Haired Shanks found his path cut off by the newly arrived Kaido. Caught between Admiral Ryokugyu and Kaido, he was left with absolute zero room to maneuver.

"Morley!" Koala shouted at the top of her lungs.

"Understood!"

Morley slammed his gargantuan trident deep into the stone plaza, gritting his teeth as he roared with everything he had, "UP YOU GO!!"

ROAR... KABOOM!

The earth contorted violently beneath their feet, sending the panic-stricken soldiers sliding off the shifting stone.

A massive wall of earth surged high into the sky like a towering mountain, rising directly opposite Kizaru just as a storm of lasers cut through the air.

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

An endless stream of light spheres hammered relentlessly into the earthen barrier. Before long, the wall began to crumble, with stray lasers punching clean through the stone.

The Revolutionary Army officers held their breath for the Flying Dragon Unit. Though Morley's earthen wall hadn't fully blocked Admiral Kizaru's attack, it bought them critical seconds.

With their mobility, that split second was more than enough to dodge the incoming barrage.

"Thank goodness..." Seeing that the Flying Dragon Unit had avoided the brunt of the assault, Koala let out a sigh of relief.

"It's far too early to celebrate! You subversives are destined for total annihilation today! When a mouse comes out into the open to play with a cat, there is only one possible outcome!"

A silhouette materialized behind Koala in a flash, driving a heavy kick toward her back.

"Tempest Kick!"

A sharp whistling cut through the air behind her. Cold sweat broke out across Koala's skin as she executed a strange, fluid footwork pattern, contorting her frame at an impossible angle to slip past the strike.

"Hmph!" Seeing Koala dodge the blow, the white-robed agent furrowed his brows and pressed the attack.

BOOM!

His heavy fist slammed into empty air once more.

"Fish-Man Karate!" Koala closed the distance without a shred of fear, tightening her right fist as she drove a crushing blow straight into the agent's chest.

"Iron Body!"

BANG!

"You're not escaping!" A cruel smirk touched the agent's lips as he grabbed Koala's wrist with one hand, extending the index finger of his free hand like a loaded gun.

"Finger Pistol!"

Targeting her heart directly!

Koala shifted her stance mid-motion, her body spinning at a bizarre angle as she coated her leg in dense, shimmering Armament Haki, driving a high-velocity kick straight toward the agent's temple.

"Hmph! Useless! You can't break through my Iron Body!" The agent deployed Iron Body once again.

BOOM!

The heavy kick connected flush against his temple!

"Gagh..." The agent's eyes rolled back as a look of pure terror froze on his face. His tight grip on Koala's wrist slowly slackened, and he collapsed to the ground.

Landing smoothly on her feet, Koala was about to draw a breath of relief when a frantic shout pierced her ears.

"WATCH OUT!"

In the next microsecond, a heavy figure threw himself before her. Purtch! A jet of fresh crimson sprayed across the air, splashing warm against Koala's face.

"Ah... HACK!" Koala shrieked in horror.

Hack's chest had been pierced clean through by a finger, fresh blood pooling rapidly on the stone beneath his body.

He had already taken a slash earlier to shield her—a wound that had soaked his clothes in red even if it wasn't deep.

Now, with his chest pierced through, his survival metrics were dropping fast...

"It makes no difference who dies first. Though I have to admit, that kick of yours hurt like hell, little girl!" The white-robed agent tossed Hack aside like a piece of trash. Before he could speak another word, Koala lunged forward with a furious flying kick.

"YOU BASTARD!!"

"Hm?" The agent blocked the kick with a single arm.

BANG!

"Fish-Man Karate Secret Technique: Three Thousand Tile True Punch!" Koala struck relentlessly, throwing punch after desperate punch without taking the time to coat her knuckles in Armament Haki.

Her heavy fists rained down like a relentless downpour. In response, the agent deployed the ultimate evolution of the Six Powers' Iron Body—Steel!

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

"FOUR THOUSAND TILE TRUE PUNCH!!" Koala screamed wildly, funneling every last drop of her strength into the strike.

Her hands were already drenched in blood that dripped continuously onto the stone, yet her maximum-output blow sent the white-robed agent flying backward through the air.

CRACK...

The sickening sound of shattering bones echoed as her right hand fractured completely. Koala, entirely oblivious to the severe trauma in her arm, scrambled over to Hack's side on her knees.

"Hack! Hack! Don't die! Please, don't die..."

Hack lay motionless for a long moment. As Koala's tears cascaded uncontrollably down her cheeks, she sobbed helplessly, "Why?! Why did you save me?!"

"I don't want you to die!"

"Why were you stupid enough to throw yourself in front of me..."

"Cough, cough, cough..." Hack's eyes snapped open as he gasped out, "Take it easy! If you keep shaking me like that, I really am going to pass on..."

"Huh?! Hack, you're alive?!"

"The strike missed my vitals, but I'm afraid I'm completely out of combat capacity..." Hack's voice trailed off, fading into a whisper as he lost consciousness once more.

"Blood..." Koala's pupils contracted violently. A massive pool of blood was still spreading beneath Hack's body. If the bleeding wasn't stopped immediately, he would die within minutes!

"Is anyone there?! Medic! MEDIC! Stop his bleeding... Cough, cough..." Koala broke into a violent coughing fit. When she managed to raise her head, she froze—the white-robed agent was standing directly over her once again.

"You wretched brat, you really have a death wish!" The agent glared down at her with pure, murderous malice, his eyes locked onto Koala and the unconscious Hack.

He was a master who had perfected the Six Powers to absolute completion—to be forced to bleed by a little girl who hadn't even grown up was a humiliation that enraged him beyond measure!

He was furious to the absolute limit!

"That fish-man is your friend, isn't he? Since you care about him so much, I'll send him to hell right before your eyes!" A sinister smile stretched across the agent's face.

"Shave!"

He materialized over Hack in a flash, planting a heavy boot squarely on the fish-man's chest as he raised a single finger.

"I wonder how many Finger Pistols it will take to end his life..."

"YOU BASTARD!!" Koala's eyes turned bloodshot. She tried to spring forward to stop him, but the excruciating pain in her shattered hand paralyzed her movements. "NO! STOP!!"

Screaming in desperation, she threw her entire body flat over Hack's frame.

"Flying Finger Pistol!"

SWISH! SWISH! SWISH!

BANG! BANG! BANG!

A sudden gale swept across the ground, violently deflecting the air bullets right before they could strike Koala and Hack.

"WHO IS THAT?!"

The agent—who had assumed he was about to execute the girl—snapped his eyes open to find his targets rescued. Thick, furious veins bulged across his forehead.

"Me...? I am Sabo of the Revolutionary Army! The Chief of Staff and Second-in-Command of the Revolutionary Army, SABO!!"

Sabo brought his heavy steel pipe smashing down squarely against the agent's forehead.

BOOM!

The skull shattered completely under the crushing impact, throwing a violent spray of blood and tissue into the air.

A roaring, scorching sea of flame erupted from Sabo's frame. Sheathing his steel pipe, he walked slowly toward Koala.

Koala tried to lift her head, but her body refused to obey as her eyelids grew heavier with every passing second. Straining with every remaining shred of willpower, she fought to keep her eyes open, desperate to confirm whether this was a dream or reality.

Finally, just as her consciousness reached its absolute limit, a pair of boots stepped into her blurring field of view, coming to a halt directly before her.

"I'm sorry... I'm late..."

Hearing that familiar, gentle voice softly echo in her ears, Koala's tense body stiffened for a microsecond before completely relaxing. Her heavy eyelids finally fluttered shut.

And along the corner of her lips, a soft, happy smile quietly bloomed...