The instant the dust cleared, Tokikake's narrow eyes flew fully open, a sharp gleam flashing within them. Moving like a fleeing rabbit, he charged straight at Ortolan.
At that moment, Ortolan had just released Momonga and Hoshigaki with both hands, leaving his chest wide open!
Naturally, Tokikake would not miss such a good opportunity. One hand curled into a claw, and he struck fiercely beneath Ortolan's left ribs!
Tokikake called this move "Beef Steak Grab." Its intended effect was an attack on the weak spot beneath the ribs—piercing through the weakest area of Ortolan's abdomen to seize his ribs, causing excruciating pain!
The idea was good, but in reality, the moment Tokikake's claw struck, even his Haki-coated fingers nearly broke. All he felt was pain shooting through his hand!
Looking again, the claw that was supposed to sink into Ortolan's weak spot had not succeeded at all. Ortolan's abdominal muscles were taut and solid, and he had inherited Charlotte Linlin's Steel Bones and Iron Muscles. Tokikake's strike had failed to break through his defenses entirely!
"No way, Alun? You really do have Steel Bones and Iron Muscles?" Tokikake blurted out in disbelief.
If you had that kind of ability, why did you dodge my sneak attack in the first place?
But Ortolan had no intention of answering him. His eyes were bloodshot, and he moved with terrifying speed. Before Tokikake could recover from his shock, Ortolan grabbed him by the throat, lifted him into the air, and slammed his forehead directly into Tokikake's nose bridge!
The instant Tokikake was grabbed by the throat, he reacted. Armament Haki immediately darkened his head, making it look like a black tin can!
Ortolan, however, did not use Haki at all.
Normally, Ortolan should have suffered badly from that exchange. But as had already been said, he really did have Steel Bones and Iron Muscles!
At the sound of their skulls colliding, everyone outside the field felt their scalps tingle and their teeth ache. Tokikake had it even worse. His Armament Haki was shattered on the spot by Ortolan's iron head, his nose bridge caved in, and blood sprayed everywhere. His eyes rolled back slightly, and it was clear that his consciousness had grown hazy.
Seeing that Tokikake seemed to have lost the ability to resist, Ortolan appeared to lose interest in him as well. Like he was tossing out garbage, he casually threw Tokikake to the ground.
But at that moment, Momonga and Hoshigaki's voices came from behind Ortolan!
The two men who had just been planted headfirst in the ground had reappeared behind Ortolan, one on each side, their swords already drawn from their waists.
"As expected, unless we bring out the real thing, we can't even hope to hurt you. Don't blame your brothers for using blades!" Momonga said, a serious look flashing through his eyes.
As his words fell, he and Hoshigaki crossed paths from opposite sides, sending two slashes sweeping across Ortolan's lower back!
They were elite Marine Headquarters commodores, after all, and both were highly proficient in Haki. It was not as though they could not even break the defense of an Ortolan who was not using Haki!
Yet after that strike, Momonga and Hoshigaki still looked utterly incredulous. They had already estimated Ortolan's Steel Bones and Iron Muscles as highly as possible, but when they struck with all their strength, they had merely "broken his skin"!
That was right. Ortolan's black tank top had been cut open at the lower back, revealing the wounds beneath... two bloody marks where the skin had split. The blades had not even cut deeply into the muscles beneath.
After being "seriously wounded" by the sneak attack, Ortolan ignored Momonga and Hoshigaki completely. Instead, he bent down, tore away the Seastone chains wrapped around his ankles, and threw them aside.
Free from the restraints of Seastone, Ortolan felt his strength surge forth once more. At the same time, silver lightning like coiling dragons emerged around him again, swiftly circling his body.
"How are we supposed to fight this?" Even Momonga was dumbfounded.
He knew Ortolan was strong. Otherwise, Garp would not have specially recruited him and dropped him directly into the Marines' Officer Training Camp. Still, they had never truly fought before!
Now they had. The guy possessed monstrous strength, but that alone would have been manageable. They had encountered strong opponents before, and with enough skill, they could still win. The problem was that even working together, he and Hoshigaki could not effectively break Ortolan's defenses. What did that mean? It meant they had almost no chance of defeating Ortolan!
If you could not deal any real damage, what dungeon were you running? What boss were you challenging?
Outside the field, the delight in Admiral Zephyr's eyes grew increasingly obvious. He said excitedly, "Sengoku, do you see it now?!"
"It seems he really did inherit that person's talent..." Admiral Sengoku clicked his tongue in amazement.
As a Marine admiral, Sengoku had fought Charlotte Linlin before. He knew better than anyone how difficult she was to deal with. Even a ruthless monster like Whitebeard had suffered losses against swarm tactics, bearing wounds left by Marine officers.
But Charlotte Linlin had never suffered that kind of loss. She was simply immune to the attacks of weak fodder who lacked sufficient firepower!
If you can't find a book by its title, try searching for the author instead. It may have simply been renamed!
And now, this brat named Bane Ortolan had begun to display that same ability!
Momonga and Hoshigaki were elites among commodores. Sengoku could tell that they still had tremendous room to grow, or Zephyr would not have brought them into the Officer Training Camp for training.
If they grew another step stronger in the future, they might be able to cause Ortolan some trouble. But for now, the average combat strength of everyone below commodore at Marine Headquarters could no longer pose any threat to Ortolan!
Just as Sengoku was thinking about this, Zephyr excitedly slapped Stolobey on the shoulder. "Stainless, Kaisa, you two get in there too!"
The three of them looked at Zephyr in surprise. Kaisa, the handsome fellow, spoke up directly. "Teacher, even Commodore Momonga and the others can't do anything to him. We Captains... honestly, I'm not confident we can even break his defense!"
"That is exactly why you must go! This is not only a trial for Ortolan, but training for all of you as well. Go. Feel just how despairing those monsters of the seas were in their youth. Then remember that despair, savor that despair, carry that despair with you, and become stronger!!!" Admiral Zephyr declared without hesitation.
With things said to that extent, Kaisa, Stainless, Stolobey, and the others could not exactly refuse. They charged into the field with a roar, forcing themselves to muster some courage.
Then Zephyr still felt it was not enough and turned toward Gion. "Gion, you're stronger than all of them. You too!"
Gion did not refuse. She placed a hand on the hilt of Konpira at her waist and said with a hint of helplessness, "I'm only a tiny bit stronger than Tokikake, Teacher. Don't expect too much from me!"
In the time it took to say those words—less than two minutes—Captain Stainless, who had just rushed in, slashed Ortolan across the shoulder. Sure enough, it was completely useless. It did not even leave a bloody mark!
Then Ortolan drove a berserk punch into Stainless's stomach. The blow curled him up like a fully cooked bright-red shrimp, while the back of his suit burst apart as the force tore through his body, as though his shrimp vein had been pulled out.
Stainless spat out a mouthful of dark blood, rolled his eyes back, lost consciousness, and collapsed limply to the ground.
The next second, Captain Kaisa leaped high from behind Ortolan, his elbow coated in dense Armament Haki as he brought it crashing down onto Ortolan's temple!
Since sharp blades could not break his defense, could the impact of a blunt strike perhaps injure him?
The facts proved otherwise. Ortolan did not even try to dodge Kaisa's elbow. He simply let it crash into his temple, and then... there was no then.
At most, the force made Ortolan tilt his neck slightly. He felt nothing else, not even pain. It was no different from being casually bumped into while walking down the street.
Then Ortolan threw an uppercut directly into Captain Kaisa's chin. Kaisa shot up from the ground like a crow riding an airplane, flew dozens of meters into the air, and crashed heavily onto the distant ground, no longer moving.
"Moon Rabbit: Eagle Kick!" A crisp shout rang out from nearby.
The shout arrived with its owner! It was Gion!
As Ortolan turned toward the voice, Gion had already appeared before him with the agility of a fleeing rabbit. The famous blade in her hand carried a keen edge as she slashed across Ortolan's chest.
Perhaps Gion was simply much stronger than Momonga and Hoshigaki. Perhaps she specialized in swordsmanship and possessed considerable mastery. Or perhaps it was because her equipment was better—after all, she wielded the renowned Konpira, an unquestionable famous blade.
In any case, that slash genuinely broke through his defense!
A bloody gash ran from Ortolan's left shoulder to his right abdomen. His skin split open and some muscle turned outward, though it did not reach the bone. Even so, this was the most severe injury he suffered during this incident of campus violence.
Her slash having worked, Gion slid past Ortolan's side like a rabbit dodging an eagle's strike. Then she reversed her grip and swung again, aiming to cut Ortolan's back once more.
But just as she raised her blade, lightning flashed around Ortolan's body, and he vanished completely. Naturally, Gion's slash struck empty air!
Her Observation Haki was active, so she immediately sensed danger behind her. It was Ortolan!
Gion flipped backward and slid away, her Konpira cutting a slash through the air in the process... but it was useless. Lightning filled her pupils. Ortolan had already caught up to her, his fist blasting toward her chest!
The enormous evil on the left side of Gion's chest nearly exploded from the punch. The Justice Cloak on her back was blasted open by force that passed through her body. Her pretty face twisted into a mask of pain as she spat out a mouthful of dark blood, her body shooting dozens of meters away like a cannonball before crashing into the ground and kicking up a huge cloud of dust.
"Ah la la, Teacher, what are your thoughts on the future of the Marines being wiped out by a case of campus violence, and on how Ortolan may very well be the only student able to attend class tomorrow?" Kuzan asked Zephyr from outside the field with a grin.
Zephyr glared at Kuzan. "What are you laughing at? You get in there too!"
"Huh?" Kuzan stared at Zephyr with a blank expression.
Before you continue