In the dim Underground Tunnel, the air was stifling, and it was impossible to see one's hand in front of one's face. The current in Ron's hand was the only source of light, allowing the two to see each other.
Shuzuo looked around but found no ambush. Frowning, he shouted, "What are you trying to do?"
"Say, Brigadier General Shuzuo... right?"
Ron pressed a hand against the metal wall. As electricity coursed around him, he bent over and panted heavily. "Anyway, you won't be able to catch me anytime soon if we keep this up. How about we call this test over?"
The chase earlier had exhausted Ron. Now that he increased his output, it nearly drained him dry.
"You mean I should count you as having passed... is that it?"
Shuzuo was stunned for a moment, then understood.
Indeed, he had nearly forgotten this was a targeted test. He did not necessarily have to defeat Ron. He had been thoroughly angered just now, but after calming down and thinking it over, Ron's performance had already been perfect.
He knew his own strengths and weaknesses and had used only his strengths to keep Shuzuo occupied. Even if there had been some sly advantage in knowing the information beforehand, that only meant Ron's intelligence work had been good! As a soldier, one must never make excuses. Shuzuo understood that principle well.
"Yeah, it's only a test!"
Leaning against the wall, Ron smiled. "Tell me honestly, based on my current performance, what score can I get?"
"Hmm, let me think..."
Duty called. He could not refuse.
After hearing that, Shuzuo seriously considered the question. He was the main person in charge of the New Recruit Camp's Test Field, known for being strict and rarely giving high scores. Yet when it came to Ron's performance today, he could not deliberately make things difficult for him.
Just as Ron had said—honestly!
"I think... your practical combat score should be..."
What an opportunity!
Seeing Shuzuo distracted, Ron's eyes lit up. In an instant, the electricity in both his hands erupted without further concealment!
For a moment, lightning blazed through the tunnel, accompanied by an endless, piercing hum. Shuzuo blankly raised his head and thought.
Wasn't I supposed to be grading him?
What the hell is this brat trying to do now?!
Ron had no time to pay attention to him. Electricity swelled in both his hands as he roared, "Iron Tempering!!!"
This was something Ron had long been capable of doing, but he had kept it hidden until now. Using metal to interfere with the pursuit had all been for the sake of concealing it, like a venomous snake hiding its fangs as it waited for the chance to inject lethal poison into its prey and secure victory!
He truly wanted to win... because it was something he could not do...
That was the true meaning of challenging oneself: doing what one could not do!!
Rumble rumble rumble—!!!
Under Shuzuo's dumbfounded gaze, the steel around them, which had never moved since it was forged, suddenly twisted and began to squirm as though alive! Iron blocks from every direction wrapped around the Lightning Python. The terrifying heat turned them into gelatinous molten iron as they slowly closed in on him.
In an instant, steel covered him from every direction—front, back, left, right, above, and below! The heavy steel was like a cage, trapping him in place!
At the same time, the steel continued shrinking, crushing the space available for him to move.
"Fuck!!!"
Shuzuo's expression changed drastically. He had no choice but to force himself upright, leaving finger marks in the scorching red-hot steel just to fight for a patch of room to move.
But that only gave more steel the chance to surge in wildly and seal off the places he could not protect.
Gradually, the blue light began to dim. The gap between him and Ron was narrowing, and the cage was about to be completed.
Raising his head, Shuzuo looked through the final sliver of a gap and saw Ron thrusting both hands into the steel without hiding it at all. Lightning exploded around him. His lips had gone pale, and cold sweat poured down his face, showing that his stamina was depleted, yet the smile on his face was utterly infuriating!
"You bastard!!!!"
How could Shuzuo not realize that he had been played? Enraged, he coated himself in Haki and punched toward that face.
But he was one step too slow. The steel had already sealed shut, and his fist struck the thick steel wall.
Dong—!!!
A dull bell-like sound echoed through the silent Underground Tunnel as dust and sand rained down. Ron was blasted backward and landed on his ass, hunching his head and covering his ears. Only after the vibrations faded did he have the chance to turn around. Looking at the fist-shaped bulge on the steel ball, he clicked his tongue in amazement.
"That was close, that was close. Good thing I prepared enough steel in advance!"
Inside the square tunnel, the soil along this section had been entirely exposed. The steel that had originally covered it had melted together into a single mass, forming a steel ball around Shuzuo. Ron had pulled in every bit of underground steel within twenty square meters. That had truly been no easy task!
Shuzuo thought he had chased Ron into a frantic, panicked retreat, but in reality, every route had been part of Ron's calculations. He had deliberately chosen tunnels that showed no abnormalities to lead Shuzuo onward. As for the other places... Ron had already circled around and modified them while Shuzuo was avoiding the raging thunderstorm outside. As a Lightning Person, the Steel Tunnel was practically a maze game with cheats enabled for Ron. The tunnel was pitch-black, and Shuzuo might fail to remember certain routes, but Ron never would!
However, the thunderstorm had lasted too briefly, leaving his preparations incomplete. Ron had no choice but to choose his routes carefully and continue the construction during the chase, melting the walls with the heat of his lightning.
With all his attention focused on Ron, Shuzuo never noticed that the steel everywhere except the paths he traveled through was constantly melting and deforming. With its excellent heat and electrical conductivity, and being made of Pure Steel, the dark, lightless Underground Tunnel provided Ron with the perfect environment for causing trouble.
That gap in the final corner had been deliberately left by Ron. Reaching that spot meant he had completed all his preparations and only needed to activate them.
Then...
Bang!
Lightning crackled across the sandy field.
Ron burst out from underground, leaned against the steel sphere exposed amid the soil, and sat down hard on the ground.
Dong! Dong! Dong!
Dull drumlike bell sounds rang continuously beside his ears, making his body tremble along with them. He immediately turned and thrust his hand into the steel ball, using the last of his strength to continuously mend the cracks Shuzuo had punched open with lightning's heat.
He had to do this!
His opponent was simply a monster!
Even an iron ball more than three meters thick had been cracked by his punches. He was clearly about to break free of the cage!
Those were fists of flesh and blood!
Not pile drivers!
And that was with the limited space leaving him without enough distance to throw a proper punch!
If Ron had not been too exhausted to continue, he would have wrapped Shuzuo tightly in steel and left him no room to move at all.
Even so, the final outcome was already decided.
The high heat from the melting steel would rapidly consume the oxygen inside. Moreover, Shuzuo's oxygen demand would increase in such high temperatures. The interior was not spacious, and there was already insufficient oxygen. Soon, he would pass out from lack of oxygen, no longer as energetic as he was now.
Being able to throw so many heavy, powerful punches in such a cramped, oxygen-starved—or even oxygenless—environment and crack the steel ball was enough to show Shuzuo's strength.
Watching Ron's utterly insane method, Kizaru pondered for two seconds in the stands before speaking.
"This Ron... hmm... is very unique..."
As one of the people who had watched from above the entire time, he could clearly see the long steel plates slowly extending out from the ground. At one moment, they suddenly converged toward the center, eventually wrapping around that area.
If nothing unexpected happened... that was where Shuzuo was.
The dull drumbeats by his ears gradually weakened, from earthshaking to barely audible. It was easy to imagine what Shuzuo had suffered.
At that outcome, Traine's mouth twitched. He forced a smile.
"Ha, haha... indeed... very unique!"
Fuck!
This brat is going to turn the world upside down!
Before you continue