"Why didn't the black shadow appear this time?"
Larson had been pondering this question since landing.
When Marco first ascended into the sky, a black shadow appeared and knocked him down. He used Moon Step to jump back up, but this time, the shadow didn't reappear. Later, when Marco flew up again, the shadow returned. Even when Rayleigh used Moon Step, the outcome was the same—the shadow didn't show up.
If the shadow only appears when a flight ability is used, then by logic, it should have appeared when Larson copied Marco's Phoenix Fruit powers. But it didn't. Why? Could it be that the shadow targets specific people? Does it only attack Marco?
As Larson's gaze lingered on him, Marco suddenly felt uneasy. "Can you stop staring at me like that? You're scaring me."
Larson snapped out of his thoughts, then asked, "Did you notice anything unusual before the black shadow appeared? I mean, before it struck."
Marco shook his head honestly. "No, I didn't feel anything. I didn't even see the barrier you mentioned. Just as I was about to break through, the shadow appeared out of nowhere and hit me directly."
Larson pondered for a moment. "How about you try again?"
Marco hesitated. He had been quick to refuse earlier because every time the shadow struck him, it caused immense pain. The shadow's impact was incredibly strong, even more powerful than Larson's punches, and it hurt.
But seeing how serious the situation had become, Marco was willing to endure the pain to help investigate further.
Larson leaned in and whispered, "I'll go with you this time. If the black shadow appears again, I'll protect you."
With Larson's reassurance, Marco nodded without hesitation. "Alright, leave it to me."
This time, Larson planned to ascend with Marco to discover the identity of the black shadow.
He still had some time left on Marco's Phoenix powers, so both of them were engulfed in blue flames. Larson gave Marco a confident nod. "Let's go."
Marco took a deep breath and soared silently into the sky.
Larson followed closely, ready to intervene if the shadow appeared again.
On the ground, everyone watched them intently. As the two continued their ascent, the crowd's gaze followed them upward.
They were approaching the area where the barrier had appeared before.
When they were three meters away from it, Larson signaled Marco to slow down, fearing that if the shadow attacked, the barrier might block him from protecting Marco.
Marco followed his instructions and reduced his speed.
Two meters…
One meter…
Marco held his breath, remembering how he'd been attacked at this very point twice before. He braced himself as he continued upward.
To his surprise, the black shadow didn't appear this time. For the first time, he wasn't attacked as he flew higher.
He grinned in excitement and cheered, "Hahaha, the shadow's gone!"
Boom!
In his excitement, Marco forgot to stop and crashed into something above him.
Clutching his head in pain, he muttered, "What's blocking me?"
Larson, observing nearby, realized that although the shadow hadn't appeared, they had hit the barrier. Since ordinary methods hadn't worked before, Larson decided to take Marco back down.
"How did it go this time?"
As soon as they landed, Rayleigh and Whitebeard eagerly awaited the results.
Larson glanced at Marco and said, "It's different from before. The black shadow didn't show up this time."
Whitebeard and the others remained calm about the news. From the ground, they had seen the whole thing and had only asked to ensure they hadn't missed any details.
"Why didn't the shadow appear this time?" Rayleigh frowned, clearly puzzled.
Larson rubbed his chin thoughtfully, his gaze drifting over to Shanks and Buggy, who were standing nearby.
Noticing his glance, Shanks and Buggy exchanged looks before Shanks stepped forward boldly. "Is there something we can do?"
"I do need your help with something," Larson replied, smiling warmly.
Both Shanks and Buggy were taken aback, and even Whitebeard, Roger, and the others didn't understand Larson's intentions.
Larson explained, "This time, I want you both to go up with Marco and take a look."
Before Shanks could respond, Buggy agreed enthusiastically, "Leave it to us."
Marco hesitated. "Are you coming again?"
"Yes."
Larson nodded. "This should be the last time, don't worry."
"Okay."
Shanks and Buggy stood beside Marco, each grabbing one of his hands. Just as they were about to take off, Larson suddenly stopped them. "Wait a minute, red-nosed brat."
Buggy froze, immediately taken aback. "What? I want to go up too!"
Before Larson could respond, Rayleigh intervened. "Buggy, come back."
Buggy returned with his head hanging low.
He had been the one to agree to go just moments ago, but now, thanks to Shanks, the spot that should have been his was taken away.
Of course, no one paid attention to his silent complaints.
Larson turned to Marco and Shanks. "We need to get some results this time."
"Understood," they both replied.
After the black shadow failed to appear earlier, Marco felt a bit braver.
Grabbing Shanks' hand, he ascended once more. Under everyone's watchful eyes, the two of them flew higher and higher.
Shanks was clearly nervous; his hand, holding Marco's, was becoming sweaty.
Marco's pace slowed down, though he didn't say anything. As they neared the familiar area where the barrier had stopped them last time, he couldn't help but feel tense again.
Without realizing it, they arrived at the spot where Larson had been halted by the barrier.
Just as everyone thought they would be stopped again, suddenly, a familiar black shadow materialized in front of them. As the shadow appeared, several figures shot up from the ground at incredible speed, moving so fast they left only afterimages behind.
'It's over!'
The moment Marco saw the black shadow, he knew something was wrong. He braced himself for the impact he had come to expect and instinctively shut his eyes.