The Strongest Showdown

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"First match: Vergo versus Strawberry."

"Second match: Chaton versus Onigumo."

"Third match: Smoker versus Kuzan."

"Fourth match: Momonga versus Jonathan."

On the new day, the battles became especially fierce from the very beginning. Everyone gave it their all. Though some won and some lost, they gave the crowd a visual feast.

In the first match, Vergo defeated Strawberry. Meanwhile, Smoker ultimately failed to hold out against Kuzan and suffered another defeat.

And now, the final match was about to begin.

"Fifth match: Sakazuki versus Ye Chen."

At last, under the major referee's decision, Sakazuki and Ye Chen stepped into the center of the arena.

The true clash of monsters had officially begun.

The entire venue fell silent, everyone staring unblinkingly at the two figures in the middle of the field.

"I've finally waited for this."

Sakazuki's face was grim as he looked at Ye Chen, his entire body brimming with fighting spirit.

Ye Chen, meanwhile, remained calm and indifferent.

Without a sound, an oppressive aura began to fill the arena. Then, the two vanished at the same time. Amid a thunderous collision, Sakazuki was sent flying backward, his feet digging hard into the ground and leaving two deep trails behind.

Air currents rippled as Ye Chen flashed into view before Sakazuki, driving out his right fist.

Scorching heat began to boil as Sakazuki transformed his right hand into magma and forcefully met Ye Chen's punch head-on.

With a deafening boom, a shockwave erupted from the two of them and tore up the surface of the ground.

The immense force made Ye Chen grunt. He flipped backward several times before crashing heavily onto the ground, leaving the area in ruins.

Shaking his hand, Ye Chen watched Sakazuki solemnly, narrowing his eyes.

Light and darkness flashed as the ground exploded. Two dazzling slashes shot toward Sakazuki.

Magma shattered, and half of Sakazuki's face flowed as he forcibly smashed apart Ye Chen's Rankyaku. But at that moment, Ye Chen appeared behind Sakazuki, his right leg coated in Armament Haki as he kicked out, creating an explosive crack.

Boom!

A massive explosion sent smoke and flames soaring, sweeping recklessly through everything like a raging tidal wave.

At the very center, a crater measuring 0 meters in diameter had split apart, making the entire arena tremble.

Not far away, magma surged as Sakazuki reformed his body. If he had been a moment slower, he might have been struck by the blast.

Across from him, Ye Chen slowly emerged from the billowing smoke, half his body rapidly recovering.

Meteor Volcano.

Raising his hands, Sakazuki continuously fired enormous masses of molten lava from both fists. Like countless shells, they packed the sky like fiery meteors and rained down upon Ye Chen.

Ye Chen frowned as he watched the broad attack surge toward him. He was somewhat puzzled, because this move did not have much effect on him.

He vanished from where he stood. The ground shattered under the bombardment of magma, while Ye Chen appeared in midair, stepping through the sky with Geppo.

Great Eruption.

Just then, Sakazuki suddenly appeared beneath Ye Chen. A mountain-shattering force erupted from the earth, shaking the entire arena.

Rumble!

The immense power was like an erupting volcano. Ye Chen's expression changed drastically as his entire body exploded. A black mushroom cloud ringed with a halo came crashing down like a mountain.

The arena was thrown into chaos, and the spectators watching nearby began cursing loudly. A visible shockwave, carrying all kinds of debris, was sweeping straight toward them.

At the critical moment, dazzling golden light lit up from the elevated seats. A tall, majestic Buddha descended from above and suppressed the storm in an instant.

At the center, chaotic energies continuously intertwined. At the edge of the destruction, blood dripped from Sakazuki's mouth as he reformed his body, his gaze fixed firmly on the smoke.

"Hmph."

A muffled groan came from the center. Ye Chen's face was deathly pale, his body battered and torn as it rapidly recovered.

Earlier, more than half his body had exploded. Ye Chen had felt unimaginable pain, and that sense of mortal danger had chilled his soul to the bone.

When Death Embrace closed around him, Ye Chen had been afraid, because the sensation was too real—so real that it drove him to despair.

Raising his battered hands as they gradually recovered, Ye Chen's pale face suddenly turned savage.

The sound of air tearing rang out as Ye Chen vanished from where he stood and launched another attack on Sakazuki.

Their fists collided, shattering the ground. Ye Chen was driven directly backward. In terms of strength, he had actually fallen at a disadvantage.

Sakazuki's ability simulated volcanic eruptions. The impact produced by that power made Ye Chen's mind waver.

Boom!

With a small explosion, Ye Chen's speed instantly increased. Before Sakazuki could react, a single kick blew Sakazuki apart.

As he reformed his body, blood seeped from Sakazuki's lips. Observation Haki spread out in every direction, leaving no blind spots.

The sound of air splitting came from the left, but Ye Chen was too fast. After taking another blow, Sakazuki turned into magma.

His feet exploded and recovered without pause. Relying on his speed, Ye Chen suppressed Sakazuki so thoroughly that Sakazuki could not lift his head, leaving him utterly stifled.

Dark Hound.

Deliberately exposing a slight opening, Sakazuki condensed high-density magma in his right hand and burned it toward Ye Chen's chest.

Rumble!

The terrifying blast once again leveled everything. Sakazuki reformed his body in the distance, his face covered in blood and his chest heaving violently.

Within the smoke, Ye Chen's body slowly healed amid the smoke and flames.

Suppressing the stabbing pain in his soul, Ye Chen vanished from where he stood. Sakazuki roared and charged forward as well.

A powerful collision shattered the magma, and another terrifying explosion spread outward.

Rumble!

At that moment, the people in the stands truly understood what a humanoid bomb was.

With every collision, Ye Chen exploded—sometimes an arm, sometimes a leg. The force generated by those explosions leveled the entire battlefield time and again.

The whole island even began to crack, splitting open with several enormous fissures.

"Damn it!" Covered in blood, Sakazuki appeared in the distance amid a massive explosion, his face pale.

This battle was extremely frustrating for him. It was like fighting Borsalino—utterly powerless.

"I acknowledge your strength. You're just like that bastard Borsalino, equally infuriating. There's no need to continue this fight. How about we call it a draw?"

Sakazuki looked serious. He no longer wanted to waste time fighting, because unless they fought to the death, there was simply no way to determine a victor.

Most importantly, this battle was utterly disgusting to him.

Wiping the blood from the corner of his mouth, Ye Chen nodded with a cold expression, because he was not confident he could defeat the man before him either.

Sakazuki was not like Borsalino. Though he lacked speed, his destructive power and defense were both first-rate.

Even Ye Chen's victory over Borsalino in the previous match had been a matter of luck. If they fought again, it was uncertain who would win or lose.

Sakazuki and Ye Chen, the two parties involved, chose a draw. This disappointed many people, because while the battle had been intense, it somehow felt anticlimactic, as if something were missing.

Only Sengoku and the others in the elevated seats understood. They even nodded in agreement. After all, when two contestants were evenly matched, it was difficult to determine a winner unless they fought a battle to the death.

This was merely a competition, not a fight to the death. Ye Chen and Sakazuki had already done enough. There was no need to display their abilities any further, because everything had been sufficient.

Hmph, wasn't the result different from what you expected? How was that twist? Was it too bland, too unsatisfying? Do you want to hit me? Just tell me, are you mad? Come on, torment me!