Crossing Blades with Kizaru

On the Training Grounds, Doflamingo slowly drew Narikitsune. Its unusual Eight-Sided Han Sword design drew Borsalino's gaze.

"Is this... Narikitsune, the Great Grade Sword from the Flower Country?"

Borsalino was also a swordsman. Though he had not followed the pure path of a Great Swordsman and instead used swordsmanship alongside his Devil Fruit abilities, he still knew of the Great Grade Swords renowned throughout the seas.

"Sharp eyes, Senior," Doflamingo said casually. There were not many weapons with an Eight-Sided Han Sword design, and Narikitsune was the most famous among them.

He had chosen this weapon precisely because he had absorbed Ye Gucheng's talent for swordsmanship. This type of sword simply felt the most natural in his hands.

Otherwise, he had two Supreme Grade Swords even among his collection. Narikitsune could only be considered mid-tier.

The Supreme Grade Swords were said to number twelve, but there were naturally more than that across the seas. Many possessed the quality of Supreme Grade Swords, yet had never encountered the right opportunity to become famous throughout the world.

On the seas, the standard for a Supreme Grade Sword was that even an ordinary person wielding it could cut through steel.

But in truth, that was merely the most basic requirement. There was another hidden criterion: the master of a Supreme Grade Sword had to be one of the strongest people on the seas!

Or rather, only the swords wielded by the Top Experts of the seas could be called Supreme Grade Swords.

Even Great Grade Swords and Grade Swords followed the same principle. Even ordinary Grade Swords had once passed through the hands of illustrious masters.

Otherwise, with the seas being so vast, how could there be fewer than a hundred such divine weapons?

None of the Supreme Grade Swords in Doflamingo's possession were famous weapons. No, perhaps one of them would become very famous in the future.

Idle thoughts flashed through Doflamingo's mind in an instant. With a long exhale, a sharp light gradually appeared in his eyes as his body, mind, and spirit rose to their peak.

Seeing Doflamingo's expression, Borsalino's lecherous face showed a look of alarm. "As expected of a genius even Teacher praises. How terrifying."

That single sentence nearly broke Doflamingo's composure. He spent a long while adjusting his breathing before returning to a state as still as an ancient well.

If Kizaru were not strong enough, he probably would have been beaten to death long before growing this big!

He took another deep breath. A flash of blade light streaked from his hand, and a Flying Slash wrapped in Armament Haki cleaved toward Borsalino.

Borsalino's expression remained as lecherous as ever. He raised a hand, and a laser canceled out Doflamingo's Flying Slash.

Then he pulled with his hand, and a golden light sword appeared in his grasp.

Golden light surged forward. Doflamingo, who had pushed his Observation Haki to its limits, hurriedly moved and blocked Kizaru's descending Ama no Murakumo.

A hint of surprise flashed through Kizaru's eyes. He was clearly astonished by Doflamingo's mastery of Observation Haki.

As the wielder of the Glint-Glint Fruit, Kizaru's movement speed, while not reaching the speed of light, had still reached the limit of his reaction speed.

More precisely, however fast his reactions were, that was how fast he could move. Thus, opponents with even slightly inferior Observation Haki often failed to react before being defeated by him.

Among the Three Admirals, Kizaru's Glint-Glint Fruit could be called a true test of strength. Anyone even slightly weaker could not withstand a single move from him.

Although Doflamingo already possessed the strength of an elite Navy Vice Admiral, in Kizaru's eyes, he could at most rely on Armament Haki and physical combat to endure a few blows.

Yet he had not expected Doflamingo's greatest strength to be Observation Haki. He could actually barely react to Kizaru's attacks.

That made Kizaru somewhat interested.

Though he was called an old hand, Kizaru was not so lazy that he was unwilling even to spar with opponents.

No matter what, anyone who could join the Navy, that violent organization, and become an Admiral surely had some pursuit of strength.

But ordinary opponents, even so-called Navy Vice Admirals, aside from exceptional figures like Garp and Tsuru, were targets who could not react at all when fighting him. Naturally, that did not interest him much.

With his interest piqued, Kizaru pushed the Glint-Glint Fruit to its limits without using any long-range attacks. Relying solely on repeated photonization, high-speed movement, and the Ama no Murakumo in his hand, he began exchanging blows with Doflamingo.

Amid the storm-like onslaught, Doflamingo had no time to think of anything else. He could only keep swinging Narikitsune in his hand, fending off wave after wave of attacks.

Kizaru's attacks were not only fast, but powerful. Under the relentless assault, after merely twenty minutes, Doflamingo felt his arms go weak and his stamina drain away rapidly.

Zephyr had once said in frustration that Kizaru placed too much emphasis on developing his Devil Fruit, neglecting his physical combat and Haki. But that was judging him by an Admiral's standards.

The facts proved that even the relatively weaker physical combat and Haki of an Admiral Candidate who had yet to develop his strength to its peak were not something Doflamingo could contend against now.

The fierce exchange continued for over half an hour. Covered in bloody cuts, Doflamingo was knocked flying along with Narikitsune, collapsing to the ground as he gasped for breath.

"My, my, I was almost defeated. Young newcomers these days are truly terrifying." Borsalino pretended to wipe the forehead that had barely broken a sweat, speaking in an exaggerated tone.

Still, Kizaru was indeed somewhat shocked. Though Doflamingo had only lasted half an hour, that result already far surpassed ordinary Navy Vice Admirals.

Moreover, he was only seventeen years old. (He was actually fifteen. To join the Navy, Steve, whom he was impersonating, had falsely added two years to his age.) And during their exchange just now, due to the Logia Devil Fruit's restraint over his intangibility ability, he had not even displayed his full strength.

Zephyr had told Kizaru about the abilities of the Intangibility Fruit. This terrifying power, which completely ignored defense, was an enormous deterrent against all the tough-skinned powerhouses of the Pirate World.

It could be said that if this ability were developed properly, it would be no weaker than the Logia abilities of the Three Admirals.

This showed just how great Doflamingo's potential was. In Borsalino's eyes, it was entirely possible that Doflamingo might one day reach his level of strength.

If Kizaru had known that Doflamingo was actually only fifteen, he would not merely have thought it possible for Doflamingo to reach Admiral-level strength. He would have been basically certain of it.

Doflamingo was too exhausted and covered in too many wounds to retort to Kizaru's nonsense. He merely rolled his eyes and gave him a look that said, Figure it out yourself.

Thanks to Bai Tian Bu Dong Yi E Han for the monthly ticket.