The Dark-Dark Fruit in Hand
Meinz wasn't in a hurry, even though his abilities were arguably ineffective against this man.
However, he was also aware of this man's strength. His own strength was only at the level of an ordinary Vice Admiral, but he possessed the ability of the Isolate Fruit, which allowed him to deal with opponents stronger than himself.
If we can stall them, the royal palace will send reinforcements soon.
Similarly, guarding such a place is also a testament to the trust the Kraken Kingdom family placed in him.
Isolation is merely isolation, a defensive tactic. Similarly, precisely because of this, he cannot break free from his air barrier. The fact that the entire barrier envelops the man indicates that the sounds of their battle cannot be transmitted outside.
Even so, he couldn't get any reinforcements, because Meinz knew that the entire palace had basically fallen and was being held back by the members of the Night Pirates.
Now, all he needs to do is create an opportunity, because the one lurking in the shadows is already poised to strike.
Being cut off from the air doesn't mean he can't use the Void-Void Fruit's power; he can still use it, but it has no effect on the man surrounded by a blue barrier.
Meinz was incredibly fast, becoming one with the air, moving swiftly through it, and soon arrived beside the man, unleashing a powerful whip kick imbued with Armament Haki.
Seeing this, the man raised his arms to try and block, but the kick contained a strange, irresistible force.
From top to bottom, the man's body suddenly plunged downwards, with Meinz close behind. The man felt a life-threatening crisis and thought it was Meinz, Meinz had drawn his attention.
Behind him, underground, a huge shadow moved. The instant he fell, Rediat appeared, wielding the long sword Shadowless, and stabbed towards the man's back.
By the time the man realized Rediat's presence, it was too late. Before he could even apply Armament Haki to his back, the knife had already pierced through it.
The blue circular barrier was useless, as it could only block air. Under this strike, his power became unstable, and the entire barrier rippled. Before long, it could no longer hold and shattered.
With their excellent teamwork, coupled with Rediat's formidable strength and ability to conceal himself, the man was quickly and effectively dealt with by their combined efforts.
Rediat did not attack vital organs; gathering intelligence was essential. While the man was still alive, Rediat placed his hand on the man's head and viewed his memories.
After a long pause, Rediat shook his head, a hint of disappointment in his eyes. "There's no important intelligence."
"Heh, it doesn't matter whether we have intelligence or not, anyway, the Kraken Kingdom will soon cease to exist." Meinz chuckled.
"That's true." Rediat. "Gather some research data and these researchers, and destroy the rest. Let them perish in the flames."
"Hmm, that makes things a bit easier." Meinz nodded. Now that they knew these things were afraid of fire, and the entire research institute was equipped with flamethrower devices, it seemed that the Kraken Kingdom had made preparations when building this research institute.
After touring the research institute, Rediat found important research data from the memories of several researchers. He then packed all of these researchers up and took them into the Shadow Space.
These researchers are invaluable talents, no matter where they are. It would be better for them to be taken in by the Tiresfa Kingdom than to be killed.
The two then divided the work: Meinz used his abilities to envelop the entire research institute, preventing the leakage of toxic gas and germs.
Rediat shattered all the containers holding these forbidden items, and at the same time, pressed the switch to activate the jet flame device.
With a deafening roar, a burst of flames shot into the sky, engulfing the entire research institute in flames. The blue-purple flames produced by the burning poison gas created an extremely eerie scene.
Fortunately, the military factory was located in a relatively remote area, so not many people noticed it. However, being in the core area of the military factory, almost everyone in the factory noticed it.
"What's going on?" The head of the military factory stared wide-eyed at the commotion and was about to get up to go and see what was happening.
His pupils contracted, blood flowed from his mouth, and he stared in disbelief at his colleague beside him, a small knife stuck in his back—he had been stabbed in the back.
His colleague next to him couldn't help but reveal a strange smile. "It's time to close the net."
Having said that, seemingly wanting the head of the military factory to die quickly, he pulled out a knife and stabbed him twice more.
The same scene occurred in many places throughout the military factory. These were all spies sent by the Tiresfa Kingdom. Now they have finally shown their fangs, killed the people of the Kraken Kingdom, and taken their place to stabilize the order of the military factory.
If we were to say Tiresfa Kingdom most wanted from the Kraken Kingdom, besides reclaiming its territory, what it most desired was this military factory. Obtaining it would be equivalent to gaining one-third of the entire West Blue's arms production.
Not only the military factories, but also other parts of the kingdom, all the important figures who hindered the Tiresfa Kingdom's reconquest of the Kraken Kingdom were assassinated one by one, and the power distribution within the Kraken Kingdom was completely transformed in a short period of time.
However, the most crucial point lies with Teach. As long as King Joseph Pande of the Kraken Kingdom is alive, the operation will be considered a failure.
Because Pande controls the army, and the final step for the Tiresfa Kingdom in conquering the Kraken Kingdom is to use the Kraken Kingdom army.
And this crucial link is Pande, and also Teach.
The battle on Teach's side became the sole focus of the entire Kraken Kingdom. Around the palace, the battles of the other members had ended, and they had come from all directions to the edge of this battlefield, each standing in a position to watch Teach's battle without any intention of interfering.
However, their arrival startled the onlookers. Behind the officers of the Night Pirates stood the members of the Night Pirates. Although they suffered some losses in this battle, the losses were not significant.
The reporter, who was broadcasting live, trembled with fear, but relying on his professional ethics, the encouragement of his boss, and the lure of a promotion and raise, he mustered his courage. The scene shifted to the approaching members and officers of the Night Pirates.
Many people's pupils contracted, and they couldn't help but cover their mouths. They clearly saw some familiar figures; those were corpses, the corpses of the captain of the Royal City Guard.
Although a few bodies were missing, judging from the situation on the field, their chances of survival were slim.
This was a top-tier expert from the Kraken Kingdom, and he was defeated by a member of the Night Pirates.
In other words, this war, which inexplicably erupted when the Night Pirates invaded the capital of the Kraken Kingdom, has now become a battle between their king and the captain of the Night Pirates. Of course, there is also a former king present, but based on his performance in previous battles, he has naturally been ignored.
Teach naturally sensed the current situation; he was all alone. At the same time, he sensed a familiar presence rapidly approaching, and a smile involuntarily crept onto Teach's lips.
On a distant rooftop in the eastern part of the palace, two figures stood— Rediat and Meinz, who had come from the military factory.
The two were watching Teach and Pande's fight. Now, Teach's fighting style was becoming increasingly ferocious. In the pouring rain, Teach's body was also stained with blood, but it wasn't his.
The fist transformed into a claw, and with a powerful swing in the air, Pande's tentacles were instantly severed, five sharp claw beams sending chills down one's spine.
It was a long, torrential downpour, but in reality, the battle hadn't even lasted an hour, yet it had already reached its climax.
For some reason, perhaps because of the approach of that thing, Teach became more and more excited, and his heart was pounding.
That kind of excitement that arises from the heart is longing.
The Claw Strike, a culmination of Teach's full power, transformed into five massive slashes, each over thirty meters long, rapidly hurtling towards Pande.
Bond, not daring to touch Teach's claw, flapped his wings and flew away, temporarily avoiding the brunt of the attack.
Faced with these five slashes, Pande simultaneously extended his five tentacles and lashed out at them.
All five enormous tentacles were wrapped in black armor.
With a loud bang, a crack appeared on Pande's tentacle, but it did not completely break off. Taking advantage of this opportunity, Teach, "Hah!" and raised his arm, unleashing two more shockwaves at Pande.
Rain soaked Teach's hair, causing it to stick together in twos and threes, yet it still drifted away in the wind.
"Brother, is this your future captain?" Meinz, watching Teach's battle with curiosity.
This was their first meeting; before this, Meinz had only seen Teach's information through intelligence reports.
"Yes, that's right." Rediat nodded and smiled.
"I must say, that's quite Haki! But I have to leave; the front lines still need me." Meinz smiled as he watched Teach fighting, then glanced at Rediat beside him.
"Then let's go first," Rediat said with a smile.
"Hmm." Meinz nodded, his body transforming into air as he rapidly flew towards the front lines of the battlefield.
Pande possesses powerful recovery and regeneration abilities, while Teach is a master of physical combat and also has the Life Return. Their battle can be described as evenly matched, but it can also be said that neither can gain the upper hand.
This situation has persisted for a long time, from the time of Pande's complete beast form until now.
Even ordinary people can see that the two are currently at a stalemate, and it's unclear how long this stalemate will last.
"See that? The Kraken Kingdom is doomed." Teach sneered as he looked at Pande, who resembled a monster.
"Don't joke around, as long as I'm still here." Pande naturally noticed the situation around him. All the people who appeared were members of the Night Pirates, and none of his guard captains were alive; they were likely all dead.
A pang of heartache shot through my heart. So many powerful figures, vital forces to the Kraken Kingdom, had perished just like that.
An enraged tentacle lashed out at Teach, but Teach, showing no weakness, transformed his claws into fists, imbued with Haki, and delivered a powerful punch to the tentacle.
The air exploded with a loud bang, and the violent collision created shockwaves that spread outwards.
"Then let me end you." Teach laughed confidently, his eyes fixed on Pande.
"Are you kidding me?" Pande frowned, wondering why Teach was so confident. However, after fighting Teach, he had to admit Teach's strength. So young, if it weren't for the power of the Kraken Fruit, he might have been defeated long ago.
After all, Teach's sharp attacks, it's uncertain how long his physique could withstand it.
However, the smile on Teach's face gave him a bad feeling.
After another fierce collision with Pande, Teach's body was thrown backward, retreating more than a hundred meters.
At that moment, suddenly, a figure appeared on the battlefield, next to Teach. It was Nelson, the last officer of the Night Pirates, who had not appeared for a long time.
His arrival was somewhat unexpected. What was he going to do? Was he going to interfere in Teach's battle?
Seeing the smile on Nelson's face, the officers of the Night Pirates knew that the task they had given Nelson had been perfectly completed.
At the same time, they couldn't help but smile, their eyes sparkling, their hearts filled with anticipation.
This is the Devil Fruit their captain wanted; just how powerful will it be?
"Captain, I've got it." Nelson smiled at Teach, extending his hand, and a Devil Fruit appeared out of thin air in his palm.
This pale purple Devil Fruit instantly attracted everyone's attention.
"It's it! How did it end up in your hands?" Pande's voice rang out. He had also seen the Dark-Dark Fruit, the Devil Fruit in their royal collection. He knew it well, but how could it have ended up in Nelson's hands after being kept in a secret Curry all these years? How did he get it?
His eyes were fixed on Nelson, as if he wanted to know what had happened.
Nelson simply smiled at this. "Of course, it was taken from your Curry. And, of course, we also have someone to thank, I think it's your son. But we'll be sending you to see him soon."
Nelson's meaning was clear: his son was dead, killed by him, though he didn't know why, which enraged Pande.
Clutching the Dark-Dark Fruit in one hand, Teach looked at Pande with an excited smile, his right hand trembling as he held the Dark-Dark Fruit. "The main purpose of my trip to the Kraken Kingdom is this Devil Fruit, which has been gathering dust in your hands for so many years."
"Now, let me show you its true power, and let your life witness it."