"Awesome! Another fight!"
Faced with the aggressively approaching Great Whirlpool Spider Pirates, Yamato immediately cheered.
She had been worrying about not having any fun.
"Brother Ian! Let's go!"
As Jack and the others drew closer, he pulled his custom weapons from behind his back—two strange blades with flat lower ends and scythe-like upper sections. He was already itching for a fight.
Black Maria was also carrying her weapon, which was even stranger than Jack's. The top of an iron rod was connected to a wheel-like head, making it look like a special kind of warhammer.
Their weapons were not merely unusual in appearance; they were genuinely exceptional.
They had all been finely crafted by Kozuki Sukiyaki after he was brought to Onigashima. By the standards of the seas, they were probably all at the level of Skillful Grade blades.
"Then let's meet them head-on."
Ian said calmly.
"Awesome!"
With a cheer, Yamato was already preparing to charge first. "That guy with the huge sword is mine—"
But Ian directly grabbed her ponytail and chuckled. "No, he's mine."
"Eh!"
Yamato turned back unhappily. "Why?"
"To test something."
Ian pushed his frog-eye sunglasses up onto his forehead and stepped forward. "You can divide up the others however you like."
Other than fighting Teacher Kai, he had barely fought seriously over the past few years. He lacked a proper understanding of his true strength.
This Great Whirlpool Spider was perfect for that.
The captains under the Whitebeard Pirates basically possessed strength comparable to Marine vice admirals—though the gap between the strongest and weakest vice admirals was absurdly wide.
Still, he would be more than enough as a target.
"Then I'm going in!"
Before Yamato could react, Jack transformed into his beastman form and charged.
Like Maria, Jack's beastman form combined a human upper body with an animal lower body. At that moment, he looked like a centaur, charging ahead thunderously on four legs.
"Shave!"
His massive body became astonishingly fast with Shave. Dragging two long trails of blade light behind him, he charged into the pirate mob. A single rush sent several pirates' heads flying from their shoulders.
The pirates around him had only managed to raise their weapons. Before they could even swing at Jack, white spiderwebs swept over them and covered them all.
The sticky webs bound the pirates tightly.
"Nice one, Maria!"
Jack laughed as he swung his twin blades. "Tempest Kick!!"
Two blue slashes howled through the air, sending a large number of pirates flying from that single attack.
Jack naturally could not sense the breath of all things, but after mastering the Six Powers, he was able to release Rankyaku through the blades in his hands.
"Being praised makes me so happy."
Black Maria had no intention of standing by either. She was using Shave as well, but she was far faster than Jack.
After all, all eight of her spider legs were using Shave at once. She moved like an afterimage, and flames burst forth the instant she swung her enormous strange weapon. She had specifically asked Kozuki Sukiyaki to make her a weapon that could produce fire.
"Sode no Shirayuki!"
The normally soft and timid Black Maria now swung her warhammer with exceptional violence. The pirates bound by Web Restraint could not dodge at all. They could only stare in terror before being sent flying by a single blow.
"Spider Finger Gun!"
As she swung the warhammer, her eight spider legs struck one after another. While maintaining her stance, they pierced through the bodies of surrounding pirates like spears.
In an instant, the Great Whirlpool Spider Pirates had suffered devastating losses.
"Bastards! Don't get too cocky!"
The pirates in the rear raised their guns. The next moment, gunfire erupted in a chorus.
But—
"Iron Body!"
Jack and Black Maria spoke in unison.
Bodies that had become harder than steel effortlessly blocked every bullet.
However, someone even stronger than bullets was attacking.
"Die, you brats!"
A man dressed like a knight leaped into the air with a long lance braced before him, its sharp tip aimed at Jack.
The end of his lance was coated in a layer of black!
Armament Haki Hardening!
"You two are just as sneaky as Ian!"
Accompanied by the unhappy voice of a girl, a white figure descended from the sky. "Don't steal them all from me! Phantom Blade!"
"What?"
The man turned in disbelief. The girl swinging a spiked club had transformed into a white wolfwoman and somehow appeared at his side in an instant!
How was she so fast? He had not even had time to react.
The iron club wrapped in white mist and Haki came crashing down on his head.
"Brat! Don't look down on me!"
His lance abruptly changed direction and swept toward Yamato.
It was only basic coating-level Haki!
Mine was Hardening—
Crack!
The Haki-coated lance snapped in half, and the iron club ruthlessly smashed into the man's forehead. It sank deep into his skull, freezing his head solid.
His head was nearly driven into his chest, producing a scalp-numbing series of cracks. His body crashed down, instantly smashing a huge crater into the ground.
His Haki was indeed stronger, but the difference in their strength was simply too great.
Haki did not determine everything.
Yamato took a deep breath without caring in the slightest. "Mouth-Tearing Ice Fang!!"
A laser-like blast of breath swept across the area, freezing the surrounding pirates into ice.
"Sister Yamato—"
Jack could only sigh helplessly.
Couldn't she let him show off too?
"We should just watch."
Black Maria took it rather well. Watching Ian perform was not bad either, was it?
Clang clang clang clang!
Compared with Yamato's one-sided slaughter, Ian's fight with Great Whirlpool Spider was rather intense.
Squard's blade was absurdly huge, yet it was incomparably obedient in his hands. Like a tamed hunting dog, it moved exactly as he wished, nimbly striking wherever he intended. The massive blade danced with a magnificence that could only be called dazzling.
Compared to that, Ian's movements were far stranger.
He met Squard's blade barehanded.
That was naturally no easy task.
After all, Squard's Haki was far stronger than his. If he truly caught the blade with his hands, they would be severed in an instant. Without using his ability, his defense was no different from an ordinary person's.
So whenever Squard's blade came chopping down, Ian's arm twisted like a snake. Then, with a flick, it lashed against the side of the blade and knocked it away.
Kami-e Serpent Fist!
The two of them fought noisily amid a barrage of clangs, but in reality, Squard's most threatening blade had not touched Ian even once. Ian had not even used Haki.
In the gaps between blocking Squard's attacks, he even had enough leeway to flick his hand out like a whip and lash Squard across the face.
"Ugh!"
Squard was seeing stars from that blow and immediately began doubting his life choices.
This brat's strength was too absurd! He could not suppress him at all!
Even more outrageous than his strength was his combat technique.
There was no discernible style to it, yet it was utterly terrifying!
What kind of thirteen- or fourteen-year-old brat could deflect every one of his slashes so easily? Even if he had awakened Observation Haki, that should have been impossible!
If Ian knew of Squard's shock, he would probably sneer. Compared to Teacher Kai's attacks, yours were as slow as a turtle crawling.
If he could not even react to attacks like yours, then all those beatings over the years would have been for nothing.
Squard's expression had already darkened.
Because Lady Toki had said that these two brats were ability users! Mythical Zoan ability users!
If they were this strong without using their abilities—
"Haah!"
With an explosive shout, the great blade suddenly chopped down.
Ian bent his body like a willow branch in the wind and avoided the strike.
"Die!"
The katana at Squard's waist left its sheath, a lethal iaijutsu slash drawing a brilliant streak of blade light.
What a fast blade.
Ian marveled.
The blade struck his chest.
But before Squard could show a delighted smile, the sensation of striking Seastone made his expression change drastically.
How could he be this hard?
"Impressive."
Ian had entered his beastman form in an instant. His broad wings spread, fanning out a wave of heat that forced Squard back again and again. "That strike almost hurt me."
He had not even had time to dodge. That slash truly had been fast.
"..."
Squard said nothing. He merely held his great blade in his right hand and gripped his katana in reverse with his left, his face tense.
His all-out strike could not even break through this brat's defense?
Ian glanced behind Squard.
He saw ice statues scattered across the ground. Yamato had already finished the battle over there.
Then—
"Let's finish things over here too."
Ian extended his right hand. Flames gathered in his palm and stretched into a sword—a sword of blazing fire wrapped in Haki.
Five years of Return to Life training had long since borne fruit.
He could shape flames into any form he wished. Ian called it Flame Equipment.
Flames?
Squard could not comprehend it. Flames solidified into a physical form?
And that was Haki?
This brat could use Haki?
What kind of monster was he?
"Here I come."
Ian chuckled, suddenly turning into a golden phantom. The next moment, he was already in front of Squard, and the Flame Sword came slashing down.
So fast!
There was no time to dodge at all!!
The distance was so close that he could not even use his great blade!
Squard gritted his teeth. There was only one thing he could do!
He released the great blade in his right hand, gripped the katana with both hands, coated it in black Haki, and swung to meet the attack!
Slash!
A flash of fire gleamed.
"Oh?"
Ian came to a stop behind Squard and examined the Flame Sword in his hand. "So it's this sharp? I couldn't cut Teacher Kai at all."
Sure enough, he should not use Teacher Kai as the standard for judgment.
Clang.
It was the sound of a blade falling to the ground.
"Ugh—"
Squard's tall body collapsed to his knees. The katana in his hand had broken in the middle, its fracture melted as molten iron ran down the blade.
And across his chest, a diagonal wound slanting downward stood out clearly.
Yet no blood flowed from the wound, because before any blood could emerge, the high heat had already carbonized it instantly.
Ian turned back and looked at Squard kneeling there with his back to him.
Huh. I'm actually pretty strong.
Guys at this level? I could kill twenty of them at once.
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