Buggy VS Tiro

"The Seven-Colored Crown has returned to Captain Tiro's hands. Will it unleash its true power now...?" Rodifei adjusted his slipping gold-rimmed glasses.

"Rodifei, we were manipulated into attacking Captain Tiro, but it also allowed us to personally experience the power of the Seven-Colored Crown's unique strength! To rule the world with this power... that's just perfect!" Inia's face lit up with excitement.

"I...have no objection," Jesse whispered in agreement.

"One by one... isn't that a bit too much talk? This thing is nothing more than a slightly prettier decoration. To think you can use this kind of power to rule the world only shows that your ignorance has reached an outrageous level..."

Buggy slowly closed his eyes and walked towards Tiro. "Although my Mantra isn't fully developed yet, I was taught some techniques on Sky Island. It should last about a minute. If I can defeat you within that time, then there won't be so much trouble, right?"

"What do you want to do? Do you think you can fight me without opening your eyes forever?" Tiro's eyes gleamed with malice. "That will only hasten your own demise!"

Rodifei watched Buggy's retreating figure, a slight look of confusion on his face. "Choosing to fight Commander Tiro with your eyes closed... are you trying to get yourself killed?"

Inia laughed excitedly, "Haha, this Red Nose is terrified by the power of the Seven-Colored Crown. He knows that Captain Tiro, who can unleash his full power after wearing the Seven-Colored Crown, is impossible to defeat, yet he still wants to risk his life for a slim chance of survival. It's for his companions behind him, isn't it? His spirit of sticking together and never abandoning each other is truly admirable!"

"Although he could never be a match for Commander Tiro ..." Rodifei looked at Buggy with a serious expression, "I have a bad feeling."

Inia roared, "Don't embolden others, Rodifei! You don't even know something this simple!"

Jesse chimed in, "I have no objection."

Buggy ignored the conversation among the Rainbow Three executives and said calmly, "Cabaji, Mohji, Nekomamushi, Kaya, you three chattering guys will be yours to deal with for the next minute. Just keep them occupied so they don't bother me. This guy who thinks he's God after putting on the crown... I'll take care of him. No problem, right?"

Hearing Buggy's tone, which seemed to disregard them, Inia flew into a rage. "Who are you calling a chatterbox!"

Boom!

As soon as he finished speaking, Mohji unleashed a punch carrying immense power. With the force of the recoil stored within it, his punch sent Inia flying, smashing a tree that would take three people to encircle to pieces.

Mohji glanced at Cabaji, who was attacking Rodifei on the other side, and said, "It seems Captain Buggy underestimated us. Shall we take care of these guys in the coming days?"

"As you say," Cabaji replied grimly, having parried Rodifei's attack.

Sensing that Cabaji and Mohji had already begun to restrain him, Buggy approached Tiro step by step. "I won't let you have any extra energy to manipulate this or that. As long as there's no external interference, it should be fine..."

Mantra. Locked in!!

Buggy's outward-spreading Mantra instantly struck one spot. He could no longer sense anyone else's presence; only Tiro's location became increasingly clear in his mind. Even with his eyes closed, he could still vividly feel Tyro appear before his eyes.

The range of the Mantra's detection was compressed to lock onto only one person, which meant that for the next minute, it would be impossible to predict or sense attacks from other people. However, the aura of the locked person would be doubled, making it more accurately detected by the Mantra.

"Shave. Moon-Treading Drum!"

Buggy's footsteps moved to the rhythm of a drumbeat as he charged towards Tiro, closing the distance in the blink of an eye. He extended the index fingers of both hands; one hand, fragmented and vibrating like the trembling hand of an old man in the wind, thrust out; the other hand, covered in Armament Haki, lashed out with deadly force. Two completely different powers simultaneously slammed into Tiro!

Tiro never expected that Buggy could maintain such amazing speed and full firepower without using his eyes. His confident face was immediately filled with astonishment. With Buggy close at hand, he had no time to dodge and could only adopt a defensive stance, using his Devil Fruit ability to continuously transfer the terrifying power of Buggy's slamming hands into the mud under his feet.

The resonant force generated by the low-frequency vibration and the hardening force after being covered by Armament Haki forced Tiro back seven or eight steps. If it were an ordinary warrior, this attack would have crushed him long ago. However, Tiro has the ability of the Transfer-Transfer Fruit, which allows him to transmit external attacks to the ground beneath his feet. In other words, the entire earth is his shield. Although he is not completely unharmed, he can reduce a lot of damage.

Even so, before he could even regain his footing, Buggy, unleashing his full power, swiftly and accurately thrust his Shigan at him again. One hand used the power of resonance, the other Armament Haki, combined with the sharp point attacks of the Shigan, forcing Tiro to retreat step by step.

Tiro felt as if his internal organs were being churned and shifting, a sweet taste rose in his throat, and blood surged up, flowing continuously from the corners of his mouth and nostrils.

Even with his super tanking abilities, Tiro couldn't withstand Buggy's relentless, storm-like attacks. He knew that if this continued, even his body would break down!

Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed that the mercenaries who were still standing there bewildered suddenly had a glint in their eyes. One by one, they drew their weapons and rushed over, forcefully intervening in the fight between the two.

Although he couldn't sense other people's presence through his Mantra, Buggy could clearly hear the sound of a sword being raised. He didn't know who was attacking, but he couldn't easily let the other party hit his body. He quickly cleared away all the troublesome soldiers around him with two Tempest Kick.

But in that brief moment, Tiro had a chance to catch his breath. His eyes grew increasingly malevolent and bloodshot. He clasped his hands together in front of his chest and slammed them violently into the ground, launching a fatal blow. "Eighteen Pavilions!!"

Suddenly, the ground on which Buggy stood undulated like waves, rising abruptly step by step to form a staircase that stretched towards the sky and into the distance. At the same time, rows of lifelike tall buildings rose from the ground around the staircase, resembling the ruins of an ancient palace.

No matter which direction Buggy heads, the ground beneath his feet seems to extend in the opposite direction, trapping him in the shadows of ever-growing buildings on all sides.

The winding, undulating staircase stretched upwards, and the unsteady Buggy was suspended in mid-air. Instantly, seven or eight magnificent palaces and pavilions rushed in like meat sandwiches.

Boom!!

All the palaces and pavilions crashed together, shattering into pieces. Countless fragments of earth and soil flew outwards. The deformed clods of earth from the seven or eight palaces, crushed by their own weight, crashed to the ground like a terrifying mountain. From the gaps in the earthen mound, streaks of crimson blood seeped out, flowing twisted and contorted like talismans onto the ground. The people inside were probably crushed to pieces...

"What exactly is that thing...?"

"What a terrifying enemy we're facing..."

Even the navy that had retreated outside the battlefield were stunned when they saw the suddenly formed earthen hill in the distance.

The Rainbow Mercenary Group, knowing full well the danger of Tiro's move, had sprinted away. Now, standing hundreds of meters away, they watched the scene unfold before them, panting and swallowing hard.

"That Red Nose kid is dead meat... He actually forced Captain Tiro to use that move..."

"Absolutely no one can survive this attack; it destroyed nearly half of the capital city of that country called Paya!"

"But... there were only a dozen or so of our brothers, and they didn't even have time to escape; they were all killed inside..."

"Phew... We're lucky to have survived..."

As Inia battled Mohji, she laughed unrestrainedly, "Your captain is dead!"

Rodifei used Cabaji's strength to retreat. He glanced at the earthen mound out of the corner of his eye, adjusted his slipping gold-rimmed glasses, and calmly said, "Alright... this battle is over. Your strength is not bad; you will have the honor of becoming one of Captain Tiro's puppets."

Even the usually timid Jesse shouted at Mikuru, "I... don't want to fight you anymore. That guy is dead, there's no point in continuing. You... be my cat maid!"

"Naive fool!" Tiro gasped for breath, staring at the hill before him, his eyes gleaming with a malevolent crimson light. "What makes you think you can fight me? I am Tiro, the man who will trample the entire world under my feet!!"

As soon as he finished speaking, his expression changed. Not only him, but even the Rainbow Three executives, whose combat awareness was sharper than ordinary people, looked in disbelief at the seemingly shaking earthen mound. Rodifei exclaimed in surprise, "How could this be? How could there be any movement coming from inside?!"

Inia's laughter stopped abruptly. "Could it be... could it be that Red Nose... is still alive?!"

Jesse's mouth was agape in an "O" shape, and his body froze in place, completely still.

The soil on the surface of the hill began to fall down in a soft, powdery manner, and cracks appeared all over the hillside.

In an instant, it was as if the explosives buried inside the mountain had been detonated, and countless clods of earth the size of human heads flew in all directions, breaking and shattering most of the sparse trees beside the lake.

A figure, flashing like static on a television screen, burst out of the mountain, the air around him vibrating violently.

"Life Return. Lightning Flash!"

The next moment, Buggy deactivated his "Circus" mode, which had been enhanced with increased power, and returned to his speed-up mode.

"No... impossible!!" Tiro's face contorted in terror as he backed away in disbelief. "You couldn't have come out of there! No one has ever been able to withstand this attack of mine!!"

"Superficial." Buggy closed his eyes, took a step, and instantly disappeared from his spot, appearing in front of Tiro in the next instant. "Mid-frequency Shigan. Grand Slam!"

It has a higher frequency and greater power than Low-Frequency Finger Pistol, but it won't drain all its energy like Overfrequency Dimension, making it a suitable killer move to deal with the current situation.

The arm, generated by the fragmentation and operating at a medium frequency, suddenly struck out, Tiro, whose stamina had not yet recovered after using her ultimate move, took the full force of the attack.

His body flew backward like a kite with a broken string for dozens of meters, and after landing on the ground, he suddenly spat out a mouthful of blood. A buzzing sound began to ring in his mind, and his chest felt as if a stone was pressing down on it, causing him unbearable pain and discomfort.

Buggy squinted, scanning the ground, but couldn't see the Seven-Colored Crown. He muttered, "Is that crown still on his head...? He probably glued it on with superglue..."

As he spoke, he rushed towards Tiro again. The one-minute time limit for locking onto Mantra had expired, and the aftereffect was that his five senses were constantly weakening. For the next period of time, Mantra would be unable to provide any assistance. This was the drawback of someone who was a beginner in Mantra forcibly using the technique of locking onto aura.

Fortunately, Tiro no longer had the strength to struggle to her feet. Even the Rainbow Three executives who wanted to help were held back by Cabaji and his two companions. They were willing but unable to do so. Moreover, in the ensuing battle, they found their opponents becoming increasingly difficult to deal with. Not to mention helping Tiro, they themselves were finding it hard to even move.

With Tiro's defeat, the entire situation took a sharp turn for the worse!

No, no...

As Buggy drew ever closer, Tiro lost his composure and grew fearful. The Seven-Colored Crown, his trump card, could only manipulate his target once their eyes met. Whether it was Buggy with his eyes closed or the three of Cabaji with their backs turned, the Seven-Colored Crown lost its effectiveness. Even Tiro's initially unbridled attitude began to change.

Buggy wouldn't change his mind because of the other party's fear. A cunning smile appeared on his lips as he prepared to deliver a fatal blow to Tiro.

At that moment, a high-pressure storm suddenly appeared in the sky, and the powerful wind pressure continuously hindered Buggy's progress. At the same time, a dense barrage of bullets was fired at this direction, blocking Buggy's path.

Buggy leaped across the ground, forced back by the bullets. He frowned, peeking through a slit in the air, and looked up at the sky. A look of surprise crossed his face. Donquixote Doflamingo's henchman Buffalo... and Baby 5, what are they doing here? Their eyes also have iridescent light... Were they controlled by Tiro as they passed by?