Kuzan Holding Back (Bonus Chapter for Big Boss's Reward)

"[Ice Time Capsule]."

On the deserted street, a bone-chilling blast of cold exploded outward, surging across the ground.

Lucas still held his punching stance, but a thin layer of ice crystals had already crept over his entire body, sealing him within a clear, glittering ice sculpture.

"Ah la la, young man."

"You're under arrest. Go cool your head in prison for a few days."

Kuzan reached out toward the ice sculpture.

Unlike his other techniques meant to kill, this "Ice Time Capsule" had been developed specifically to stop a target from moving. The cold did not enter the body, so it would not freeze the internal organs or cause death.

It was remarkably effective when capturing petty criminals whose crimes did not warrant death, or stopping civilians who had gotten drunk, seen red, and refused to listen no matter how much they were talked down.

Crack, crack.

Countless fine cracks spread across the surface of the ice sculpture, and streams of scarlet blood energy shot out through them. Just as Kuzan's hand was about to touch it, the sculpture exploded from the inside out.

Countless shards of ice scattered through the air, refracting rainbow-colored light beneath the sun. Amid that dazzling rain of ice crystals, a spear condensed from blood tore through the air toward him.

"[Bloody Hunt]"

The blood spear rapidly extended through the narrow space between them, its surface wrapped in a flowing layer of crimson Armament Haki.

A red gleam flashed through Kuzan's eyes. His feet hammered the ground in a series of booming steps as he retreated. At the same time, he swiftly plucked several blades of wild grass from the ground. White freezing air poured from between his fingers, turning those fragile leaves into a sharp ice blade. Armament Haki flowed from his body like water, coating the blade's surface.

"[Ice Saber]"

The ice blade carved a frigid arc through the air and struck the side of the blood spear with precision. The crimson Haki was split apart, and the blade cut straight through, cleaving the blood spear in two.

The severed blood lost its condensed shape, turning into clumps of dark-red liquid that scattered across the ground like celestial maidens scattering flowers.

Rather than seeping into the ice or freezing like normal liquid, the blood scattered across the ground wriggled like living creatures under Lucas's control, forming a blood pool dozens of meters across.

"It won't be that easy to catch me."

A vast amount of blood roiled as though a scorching-hot iron had been plunged into it. Bubbles rose from the depths and burst, while a massive vortex formed before him. Blood shot skyward like a fountain, transforming into a ferocious blood dragon in midair.

"[Blood Dragon Bullet]"

The blood dragon, wrapped in flowing Armament Haki, raised its head and opened a bloody maw large enough to swallow a person whole before lunging savagely at Kuzan.

"Ah la la. Young man, that level of shape transformation... are you a Logia? Does blood count as a natural element?"

A freezing current swept through the entire street. Everywhere it passed was encased in thick ice, and the blood dragon stopped several meters away from Kuzan.

"I'm a Paramecia Blood-Blood Fruit user. I can control blood."

Without changing expression, Lucas made up the name of a Devil Fruit that even he did not know existed. Lying to enemies was a good habit he had developed over the years.

"Is that so? What a strange ability."

Kuzan's gaze flickered, and it was impossible to tell whether he believed him. He used Geppo, bursts of air exploding beneath his feet as his tall body floated into the sky. With a wave of both hands, two ice spears formed from freezing air in his palms, Armament Haki coiling around them like snakes.

"[Ice Time: Two Thorn Spear]"

The blood pool on the ground surged again under Lucas's control. Blood bats infused with projected Armament Haki flew from its surface, densely swarming toward the incoming ice spears.

The blood bats crashed into the ice spears in a rapid series of impacts, like hail pounding against a tin roof.

The ice spears pierced through wave after wave of blood bats, but shattered after countless collisions.

Broken ice fragments and scattered blood mixed together as they fell from the sky, like a red-and-white rainstorm.

The blood pool rose and fell across the ground, condensing into all kinds of blood constructs—blood wolves, blood snakes, blood birds, and even several blurry crimson humanoid figures.

The bone-chilling freezing air repeatedly thickened the ice covering the ground, freezing those blood constructs, forcing them back into the blood pool, then freezing them again.

The battle raged from the height of day until dusk fell, then from a sky full of stars until dawn lightened the east—a full day and night of fighting.

On the sea beyond the docks, a steamship gently rocked with the waves. Baccarat leaned against the railing, her red hair thrown into disarray by the sea breeze.

She looked toward the island where the battle was taking place, her brows tightly furrowed and her eyes full of undisguised worry.

Lucas had told her to return to the ship and wait, so she obediently waited there.

Several times, she had wanted to rush back and check on him, but she was afraid of holding him back.

The Lucky-Lucky Fruit was useful against fodder, but against a Marine of Kuzan's level, that little bit of bad luck was nowhere near enough.

On the street, most of the buildings on both sides had collapsed. The ground was covered in thick ice, and frozen black-red blood seeped through the cracks.

Lucas stood amid the ice shards, holding a longsword condensed from blood, its tip angled toward the ground.

"I don't think you can do anything to me either."

"How about we each take a step back? Pretend you never saw me, and I won't touch anything belonging to the South Blue Marine bases again. How about it?"

If Kuzan went all out, Lucas still wanted to keep fighting him. Battling an opponent like this could improve him.

But he truly had no interest in fighting a Kuzan who was holding back. Naturally, Lucas himself had not gone all out either in order to conceal his true abilities, but wasn't Kuzan doing the same?

Leaving aside the fist bones he had not used from beginning to end, even the power of the Ice-Ice Fruit—could a terrifying technique like Ice Age, capable of freezing the sea between several islands, only freeze a little over a hundred meters of ground?

Who was he trying to fool?

This guy was clearly afraid of harming civilians, so he had restrained his strength throughout the entire fight.

As Garp's disciple, he had learned more than just the Iron Fist. He had also inherited the conscience and kindness engraved into the bones of the Monkey family.

Hearing this, Kuzan scratched his messy hair in frustration. He truly did not want to fight anymore.

He could not bring himself to sacrifice an island's civilians just to capture a criminal who had broken into a base.

If he truly fought without restraint, the battle might already have ended. But if he did that, a considerable number of civilians on this island would surely freeze to death in the low temperatures.

"Can I trust you, young man?"

"If you cause trouble again, I'll have a hard time."

"Don't worry."

Lucas dismissed the blood sword, and the blood energy around him slowly withdrew into his body.

"I was planning to leave the South Blue anyway."

With that, he turned and left without the slightest hesitation.

Kuzan watched his upright figure disappear at the end of the street and gently shook his head.

"What an interesting man. Little brother Jion... against a rival like that, you probably don't stand a chance in this lifetime."

TO BE CONTINUED

(PS: Blood control was simple and brutal, and it seemed to fit perfectly with the water-release technique next door. Blood was water too.

Once developed to the later stages, it would become a blood tsunami unleashed from flat ground—an outright natural-disaster-level power, enough to count as a pseudo-Logia.

In fact, Electromagnetic Force could also strengthen Vampire abilities. I wonder if any readers thought of that.)