At this moment. Read.
Before Natsuya could finish Kaku off, a leopard with a vicious gleam in its eyes squeezed through the gap in Rashomon!
Without a doubt, it was Rob Lucci, who had activated his Zoan Fruit ability!
Whoosh!!!
The instant Rob Lucci landed, he vanished from the spot.
The next second, Rob Lucci appeared behind Natsuya, opening his fang-filled jaws to bite down on his shoulder.
But at that moment, Natsuya abruptly vanished as well, reappearing elsewhere.
As he looked at the leopard Rob Lucci had transformed into, a teasing smile appeared in Natsuya's eyes.
"Heh, your ability doesn't seem all that impressive!"
Come to think of it, this was the first time Rob Lucci had used his Zoan Fruit ability while fighting Natsuya.
Back in CP9, even when Rob Lucci sparred with Natsuya, he had only used his human form.
But now, Natsuya's Door-Door Fruit ability had clearly made Rob Lucci feel pressured, so he stopped holding back and directly activated his power!
Of course, the true strength of Rob Lucci's Cat-Cat Fruit, Leopard Model, did not lie in his full beast transformation, but in his human-beast form!
Or rather, compared to his full beast form, the human-beast form suited Rob Lucci better!
Thus, upon hearing Natsuya's words, Rob Lucci's face immediately darkened.
In an instant, his body surged upward, transforming from a leopard into a half-man, half-leopard monster!
"Let's hope you can still laugh in a moment!"
Rob Lucci coldly spoke as he transformed into his human-beast form, then vanished from the spot again!
Natsuya's pupils shrank.
"So fast!"
Sure enough.
Rob Lucci's full beast form was not weak, but his strongest form was still his human-beast form!
Because the human-beast form was better suited for using the Rokushiki!
In the blink of an eye, Rob Lucci arrived behind Natsuya and lashed out with a kick wreathed in blue light!
"Tempest Kick!"
Natsuya did not hesitate either, kicking out as well!
The two slashes collided at close range, erupting into a ring of blue shockwaves.
Natsuya was forced back, while Rob Lucci was barely affected. After only a slight pause, he pounced at Natsuya again!
Whoosh!!
Natsuya's expression shifted slightly. The moment he landed, he vanished again, avoiding Rob Lucci's pounce.
But immediately afterward, the sound of air splitting came from behind him.
Rob Lucci had flashed behind him as well.
"Finger Pistol: Yellow Lotus!"
A barrage of sharp Finger Pistols rained down on Natsuya like machine-gun fire!
"Iron Body: Steel!"
Natsuya did not dare hesitate. With no time to dodge, he hurriedly used Iron Body!
Puff puff puff!!!
But when those Finger Pistols struck his back, his expression still changed!
Even though his Iron Body had reached the highest level, he still felt intense pain!
Clearly, as CP9's strongest member in eight hundred years, Rob Lucci's Finger Pistol had also reached the highest level!
Coupled with the massive boost to his physical abilities from the Zoan Fruit, his top-tier Finger Pistol was already capable of threatening Natsuya's top-tier Iron Body!
Under the relentless Finger Pistol barrage, Natsuya staggered forward.
Seeing this, Rob Lucci did not hesitate in the slightest and suddenly sprang forward.
"Tempest Kick: Leopard Tail!"
A spiraling slash resembling a leopard's tail immediately swept toward Natsuya!
Sensing Rob Lucci's attack, Natsuya's expression changed at once.
Under these circumstances, there was no way he could use Shave!
Even if he could, he would likely be struck by this wide-ranging Tempest Kick in his haste!
Could he block it with Iron Body?
Obviously not.
Rob Lucci's Tempest Kick had definitely reached the highest level as well. Enhanced by his Zoan Fruit ability, it was highly likely to threaten Natsuya's Iron Body!
If Natsuya took this blow head-on, even if he were not split in two, he would still suffer severe injuries!
Without question, Natsuya had fallen into a dangerous situation!
Yet at this moment, there was not the slightest trace of panic on Natsuya's face. Instead, the corner of his mouth curled up.
Don't forget, he still had his Door-Door Fruit ability!
At the critical moment, Natsuya abruptly activated his power!
Rob Lucci was instantly taken aback.
What he had thought was a sure hit had actually missed!
The instant the Tempest Kick swept out, Natsuya's figure suddenly vanished from where he stood!
But it was not Shave!
Rather, an Air Door seemed to suddenly appear, swallowing Natsuya whole!
"Where is he!?"
Rob Lucci frowned.
But the next instant, his expression suddenly changed.
The Air Door from before suddenly opened above his head, and a mass of blue light poured from it like a torrential downpour!
"What!? Paper Art!!"
Rob Lucci was shocked, but his reaction was not slow. His massive body instantly turned as light and soft as a sheet of paper, drifting with the wind.
But soon, his face darkened as he realized that Natsuya had long prepared this attack, leaving Paper Art with no room to work!
Simply put, even with Paper Art, he could not evade those incredibly dense, dead-angle-free Tempest Kick slashes!
With no other choice, Rob Lucci activated Iron Body instead and took the wave of Tempest Kick slashes head-on!
Clang clang clang!!!
A series of metallic collisions immediately rang out!
The Tempest Kick slashes struck Rob Lucci's beastly body as though they had hit steel.
Normally, slashes like Tempest Kick could cut through steel, especially top-tier Tempest Kicks.
But just as before, Rob Lucci's physical abilities had risen drastically due to his Zoan Fruit power, causing the might of his Rokushiki to surge as well.
Therefore, Natsuya's Tempest Kick could not do anything to Rob Lucci's Iron Body either!
Next, even when Natsuya used Door-Strike Dog and followed it up with a surprise Finger Pistol attack, he still could not threaten Rob Lucci!
Realizing this, Rob Lucci grinned at the Air Door hanging in midair. "Natsuya, you can't laugh now, can you?"
"You should understand by now, shouldn't you? Your Rokushiki is nowhere near the same level as mine!"
"Surrender. Maybe when we get back, the higher-ups won't kill you."
By the end, Rob Lucci was directly trying to persuade him to surrender.
It was not that he did not want to capture Natsuya immediately.
Rather, he had suddenly realized that Natsuya's Door-Door Fruit ability seemed to possess a powerful hiding capability.
So, while he had Natsuya suppressed, Rob Lucci tried to crush Natsuya's will to fight through his words.
Then, as though Rob Lucci's words had truly worked, Natsuya suddenly dropped out of the Air Door.
Rob Lucci curled his lips into a smile and was about to move in to capture Natsuya completely.
But at that moment, Natsuya chuckled.
"Heh, my opinion is still the same as before!"
"Your ability really isn't all that impressive."
"Next, let me show you something interesting!"
Hearing this, Rob Lucci immediately frowned.
For some reason, he suddenly had a bad feeling.
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