Teach's Two Abilities
Unnamed Island--
The night was deep, and the waves crashed against the Reef, echoing in the deathly still air.
The campfire had long since died out, and the remaining ashes drifted in the wind.
Teach lay on the ground like a dying Beast, his chest heaving violently, and hoarse breathing coming from his throat.
"Cough--cough cough!"
He suddenly spat out a mouthful of blood, and several broken teeth fell to his feet along with the blood and foam.
Strangely, his gums twitched and rolled, and sharp new teeth grew back, like the fangs of Beast.
"Huff... huff..."
He braced himself on the ground with both hands, staggered to his feet, swayed as he straightened up, and suddenly threw his head back and laughed, his eyes flashing with a blinding blood-red light.
"Thief—hahaha!!"
"I've finally... obtained the power that belongs to me!!"
--First, rubber.
He stretched out his left hand, his palm suddenly bulging, and his skin gleamed with an unusual sheen.
"Call out!!"
The arm swung out, instantly extending more than ten meters, and suddenly burst forth covered in Armament Haki! It lashed out like a giant whip towards the distant boulder.
"Boom!!"
The solid rock wall was shattered, sending debris flying and dust billowing.
He bent his fingers, and when he pulled them back, there was a terrifying recoil force, but due to the elasticity of the rubber, the recoil energy was completely absorbed.
"Hmph... So this is the Gum-Gum Fruit? Immune to ordinary attacks, stretching and rebounding..."
"At first glance, he looks like a juggling clown, but he has extremely high combat potential!!"
--Then, the Swamp.
He spread out his Right Hand, and his skin suddenly turned into surging black mud, dripping onto the ground. The stones that touched it were instantly swallowed up, as if they had fallen into a bottomless abyss.
"Gurgle--!"
The mud spread, instantly engulfing the entire area and dragging the fallen Kogarashi and rubble into darkness.
Teach's eyes gleamed as he murmured, "Endless devouring... trapping the enemy within, burying them alive in the dark Swamp."
"Moreover, it feels like I can store a huge amount of things inside my body, as if the space is infinitely large..."
"Logia... truly lives up to its reputation!!"
"Although it's a far cry from the power I've been hoping for..."
"But it's much better than dying at Roy's hands!!"
Finally, the two abilities are merged.
He suddenly grinned maliciously and raised both arms at the same time.
The left hand suddenly stretched for tens of meters, while the Right Hand turned into churning black mud. The two forces intertwined and merged in the air!
"Boom--!"
A long, jet-black whip of mud suddenly lashed out! It possessed both the stretching and bursting of rubber, and the swallowing and suffocating power of Swamp!
The long whip swept across, the air was blown apart, and the roar shook the night sky.
The rock face that was hit not only shattered but was also dragged into the mud, as if the whole world was about to be swallowed up.
Teach laughed maniacally, his voice hoarse yet filled with manic pleasure. "Damn it—haha!! This is the power I should have!!"
"Rubber and Swamp —one is the ultimate extension of the physical body, the other is the endless engulfment of heaven and earth!"
Others might find it contradictory and repulsive, but in Lao Tzu's eyes—this is where infinite possibilities lie!
He brandished the giant black mud whip, frantically testing its various transformations:
It stretches and rebounds, with a mud-swallowing effect;
A rubbery film of mud spread across the ground, trapping the enemy within;
They even conceived of the feasibility of having Swamp- like body stretch with rubber to instantly create a "large-scale trap".
In a short moment, Teach had already come up with dozens of battle strategies in his mind!
He threw his head back and laughed wildly, his voice echoing across the Deserted Island: "Roy--!"
"You'll regret this!! You'll regret giving me this power!!"
In the darkness of night, the laughter, like the howl of a demon, echoed through the endless sea breeze.
At that moment, even the darkness seemed to tremble with his maniacal laughter.
In the distance, Lafitte, Van Augur, Jesus Burgess, and Doc Q struggled to their feet, watching this scene with a chill running down their spines.
Lafitte's eyes were sinister, and his voice was hoarse. "Two... He can actually use... the abilities of two Devil Fruits..."
Van Augur trembled violently, barely able to hold his gun. "This... this is impossible!!"
Jesus Burgess's eyes were filled with a mixture of fear and fanaticism, his voice trembling. "Monster... no, Captain... you are the monster!!"
Doc Q coughed a few times, but a wicked smile crept across his lips, "Heh heh... this is the kind of man we should follow..."
They stared at their captain, shocked and terrified, yet involuntarily swallowed by his dark ambition.
Teach's breathing was erratic, his chest heaving violently, but his eyes had regained their crimson madness.
He whirled around, staring intently at the four dying men not far away, and burst into wild laughter. "Thieves—ha ha!!"
"My little ones!!"
"We're going out to sea!!"
Laughter echoed through the night sky, filled with madness and brutality.
Jesus Burgess swallowed weakly, his voice trembling, "Captain... Captain, are we... still going to be Pirates?"
"The navy these days is terrifying..."
After he finished speaking, Lafitte, Van Augur, and Doc Q remained silent, but their eyes were filled with hesitation and fear.
Upon hearing this, Teach suddenly stopped laughing, his expression turning ferocious yet revealing an eerie calm.
"Pirates? I'm not that stupid..."
"But--"
His arms were outstretched, and his silhouette appeared enormous against the night sky.
"This ocean isn't just about 'navies' and 'Pirates'!"
The voice boomed like thunder, carrying an undisguised madness and ambition.
Having said that, he strode toward the dilapidated ship on the shore, his steps heavy yet firm.
In that moment of turning back, a boundless ambition burned in his blood-red pupils:
"Those who aren't afraid of death, follow me!!"
The waves surged and the night wind howled, as if responding to the new journey of this man from the abyss.
--Blackbeard Teach.
True darkness is slowly baring its fangs on this vast sea.
Meanwhile, in the New World Seas...
The night wind howled, whipping up layers of white foam.
The Warship sliced through the inky black sea like Razor, sailing into the distance.
On the deck, golden flames danced on Ace's fingertips, reflecting the restlessness and unease between his brows.
He held back for a long time, but finally couldn't help but ask:
"Roy!! Is it really okay to entrust such a dangerous Logia - Swamp-Swamp Fruit ability to that scum?!"
What lingered in his mind was Teach's manic, ferocious smile.
His anger surged relentlessly, his fists clenched, and golden-white flames suddenly erupted, turning the deck crimson in an instant.
"And I don't know why..."
Ace's breathing quickened, the flames almost materialized, and he gritted his teeth and growled:
"The moment I saw that guy, my blood boiled! I just wanted to give him a piece of my mind right then and there—"
"The Great Flame Emperor with a temperature of 5,000 degrees!!"
The flames roared, their aura violent, as if they were about to transform into destructive flames and return to slaughter at any moment.
"If you hadn't stopped me..."
"Ace, calm down."
Roy's voice was calm as ever, yet it carried an undeniable power, like a tide calming the flames.
"The doctor tampered with his body... Whatever he tries to do, it won't escape our notice."
"He's still useful..."
Ace was taken aback. The flames gradually subsided, but his brows remained furrowed, unable to conceal the resentment in his heart.
Roy stood with his hands behind his back, his gaze fixed intently on the endless night sea: "And—"
"He's a smart man."
"They wouldn't be foolish enough to... test our limits."
The night wind howled, the sea surged, and the Warship, guided by the starlight, slowly sailed toward the Sabaody Archipelago.