A tremor ran through his body, and then Newgate said no more. He took a step forward and threw a punch at Ortolan.
Ortolan also smiled cruelly, neither dodging nor avoiding, and threw a punch wrapped in lightning at Newgate!
The two fists collided instantly. Newgate's invincible tremor force was unable to break through the hardness of Ortolan's fist. With the collision of their fists, Archino Island trembled once again.
Without any unnecessary pause, in the next moment, Newgate and Ortolan exchanged more than a dozen punches. Unexpectedly, Ortolan was able to withstand Newgate's punches without taking any damage, thanks to his strong physique and Black Gold's defensive capabilities.
The tremor power attached to Newgate's body actually possessed extremely strong defense, as if it was using techniques such as recoil to dissipate the force. When Ortolan's fist, which was wrapped in thunder and monstrous strength, struck his chest, it had little effect!
Moreover, whenever Ortolan's fist struck the aura surrounding Newgate, he could sense that the aura seemed to be gradually growing stronger.
Another flurry of punches erupted, and the ground beneath Ortolan's feet suddenly trembled. His heart skipped a beat, and then Newgate punched Ortolan in the chest, causing him to stumble. Before he could even regain his balance, the space around him began to vibrate violently with a strange rhythm, as if Ortolan had bumped into something, experiencing a strange sense of obstruction.
This strange feeling showed no signs of abating. Before Ortolan could figure out what was going on, Newgate threw another punch, and with that punch, the strange feeling returned.
It was as if everything around Ortolan— the air, the ground—was hindering him!
For example, when he throws a punch, the air at his elbow joint will suddenly vibrate violently, affecting the direction of his fist and even the force of the punch.
It was as if an invisible stone suddenly grew out of the ground when he took a side step, trying to twist his ankle, as if the whole world was against him!
This irregular, rhythmic tremor greatly affected Ortolan's condition. In contrast, Newgate had already Cloud-Cutting Sword into the ground, freeing his hands to deliver punch after punch, and his condition was getting better and better with each fight!
After barely managing to Ortolan a few attacks, a flash of electricity appeared beneath his feet, and his figure instantly vanished from the spot, pulling back more than ten meters. He stared at Newgate with a solemn expression.
On the Execution Platform, Kajiki watched this scene with some surprise, muttering to himself, "Strange, how could that guy Ortolan be suppressed by Newgate in close combat under such circumstances?"
Moreover, he could see clearly that many of Ortolan's movements were very awkward, as if they were being twisted by an invisible but very powerful force!
"What's wrong? Weren't you just arrogant, kid?" Newgate's eyes flashed with a murderous glint as he spoke coldly.
Ortolan remained unfazed, his brow furrowing slightly as he looked at Newgate: "That feeling just now... it was you using a technique that combined the Tremor-Tremor Fruit with close combat... no... that's not right..."
When Whitebeard activates his Tremor-Tremor Fruit, he does indeed need to make some kind of movement, such as punching, kicking, or even slashing, before the trembling power can be attached to it.
Even the inexplicable trembling aura around him was the same kind of application, attached to his body.
But the sudden tremors just now were different. Ortolan's Observation Haki was not bad, and could even be said to be very strong. When he first noticed this strange feeling, he had already used his Observation Haki to guard against it.
But strangely, that trembling sensation was nowhere to be found. It seemed to require no prelude, no guidance, arriving at Newgate's will as easily as a gazelle's horns!
"Is that... Awakening?" A look of surprise appeared in Ortolan's eyes.
According to numerous intelligence reports from the Marines, Whitebeard's Devil Fruit ability had never been Awakening.
This is also considered a normal phenomenon, because it is well known that the more powerful an ability is, the more difficult it is to Awakening.
The most fundamental example is the Logia-type Devil Fruit. Some scholars believe that Logia-type do not have Awakening process, or that when they are eaten, they are already in their complete state and do not require any further Awakening. Their subsequent performance depends entirely on the carrier, namely the user's physical strength, physique, and other aspects of development. It is a complementary process; the stronger the physical strength, the greater the Logia-type energy used, and the stronger the ability naturally becomes.
Generally speaking, the easiest type of Awakening is that of ordinary Zoan type Devil Fruit users. Some scholars believe that the abilities of ordinary Zoan type users are more limited, so the depth and breadth of their development are not high, making them easier to Awakening. Other scholars believe that Zoan type easier to Awakening because they seem to possess a related will. As long as the user can communicate with, suppress, or even eliminate this will, they can achieve the Awakening process.
In fact, Zoan type Awakening beings are indeed the most numerous among the three major types, but this is still limited to 'common' and even 'Ancient type'.
Zoan-type Zoan type users, similar to Mythical Zoan, rarely Awakening powers. For example, Marco Phoenix of the Whitebeard Pirates clearly hasn't Awakening. The signature state of a Zoan- Zoan type user who Awakening their powers is when their body is surrounded by black flames.
Not to mention Marco, even someone as strong as Kaido has never entered this state. On the contrary, the Five Elders, who live in seclusion and have almost no practical combat experience, seem to have Awakening their Mythical Zoan one by one.
Perhaps the Five Elders possess some special skills, or perhaps they have had the ability for a very long time, long enough for time to permeate their abilities and reach this level.
The difficulty of Awakening Paramecia -type Devil Fruits varies greatly. Among them, the creation-type Paramecia are generally considered to be easier to Awakening, such as the Gold-Gold Fruit and the String-String Fruit.
Energy-output types, such as Newgate's Tremor-Tremor Fruit, Smoker Crush-Crush Fruit, and the Impact-Impact Fruit, are generally considered extremely difficult to Awakening. This is due to the strength of the fruit. Similar to Logia-type, the stronger their physical strength and constitution, the stronger the power they can unleash. Therefore, the breadth and depth of their development are very large, making them difficult to Awakening.
As for the rules-based system, it goes without saying that it's even more difficult.
But now, Ortolan suspects that Newgate has Devil Fruit Awakening his Tremor-Tremor Fruit at some point!
"Did you see it? I haven't mastered this power for very long either. You're the first opponent to be able to experience it, so be proud, kid!" Newgate's pert crescent-shaped mustache trembled slightly as he spoke in a deep voice.
Hearing this, the surprise in Ortolan's eyes deepened even more. He had actually Awakening the Tremor-Tremor Fruit?
As the Strongest Man, Newgate should not have bothered to exaggerate or tell pointless lies about such matters, so when he admitted it, Ortolan naturally believed him.
In fact, Ortolan had imagined the scene of Newgate Awakening the Tremor-Tremor Fruit. In his imagination, this kind of Devil Fruit with extreme destructive power, once Awakening, should be the kind of thing that could destroy the world at any time, like the kind of terror and horror that could shatter an entire island or an entire sea in an instant.
However, unexpectedly, Newgate's Awakening was completely opposite to the appearance of the Tremor-Tremor Fruit. If the appearance of the Tremor-Tremor Fruit is violent and wild, shattering and destroying one thing at a time.
Its Awakening in Newgate's hands, however, felt like a thunderclap in silence, unexpectedly veering towards a calm and subtle direction.
However, although the direction of this Awakening was completely opposite to what Ortolan had guessed, Ortolan felt that this Awakening seemed to be more conducive to the full display of Whitebeard's strength. His attack power was already strong enough, and this Awakening seemed to make up for his weaknesses in physique, defense, etc., making up for his original shortcomings!
"Could it be that the direction of Awakening for this type of Devil Fruit expands according to the user's will?" Ortolan wondered to himself.
On the other side, Newgate looked at the surprised Ortolan and felt a little emotional. There was nothing shameful about it. He could admit that a large part of the pressure on him had come from Ortolan, which was the reason why his abilities Awakening recently.
Last time, when the two of them clashed, Ortolan's so-called 'Hell Thrust - One-Finger Thrust' greatly shocked Newgate!
He also knew that Ortolan would challenge him again, and at that time, he might not be able to receive or avoid that One-Finger Thrust!
Since then, Newgate has felt immense pressure, and driven by this pressure, he... by chance, Awakening this power!
After his initial surprise, Ortolan gradually calmed down and looked at Newgate, saying, "Interesting. I never expected that the Tremor-Tremor Fruit, known for its destructive power, Awakening such... power in your hands. It's truly unbelievable. But... if this is your full strength, then you will surely perish here one day, Whitebeard!"
Ortolan and Newgate are both top-tier powerhouses. If they want to determine a winner, they don't need to exchange many blows. The previous exchanges were both about assessing each other's progress and condition, constantly forcing each other to reveal their full strength.
They have almost no weaknesses left, and in a conventional battle, it would be impossible to determine a winner in a short time. If they were to continue fighting at this pace, it would likely take ten days or even eight days, or even until the entire island is destroyed, before a winner could be determined.
Therefore, in this situation, to defeat the opponent, one must either rely on external forces from war.
Alternatively, one could demonstrate superior strength, using unimaginable overwhelming power to cripple the opponent in a single blow and end the battle!