Heat-Heat Fruit

Karp charged in with a mighty punch, only to plunge headfirst into the Dark Door. A thunderous clash rang out at once, the sound stabbing painfully into everyone's eardrums. Accompanied by a miserable howl, Buddha Sengoku's enormous golden Buddha body came crashing to the ground, shaking the earth itself.

"Ah~~ It hurts, it hurts, it hurts~~!!! Damn it, Karp! What the hell are you doing?!!!"

Sengoku's furious roar soared into the sky. His massive Buddha body had been embedded in the ground, showing just how brutal Karp's blow had been.

After all, even when he had taken Akainu's Meigo, Sengoku had suffered nothing more than some superficial injuries.

"Ahem, ahem~~" Karp immediately put on an awkward yet innocent expression. "Well, that kid's too crafty. He actually teleported me behind you. You can't blame me for that."

"Damn it! I told you all not to attack recklessly!" Sengoku was absolutely livid. As if taking Akainu's attack wasn't enough, he had then been hit by Karp's iron fist too. What, do I have some grudge against you or something? Why are all the attacks being redirected toward me?

Lu Ge could only say: Who could blame them when he was so huge? It would be a waste not to use such a perfect target.

At that very moment, while Lu Ge was distracted and transferring Karp, Zephyr seized the opportunity and roared, "Kid! Don't get too cocky!"

His left fist, already hardened with Armament Haki, thundered toward Lu Ge's head!

Against an ordinary person, this perfectly timed attack would have been almost impossible to evade.

But it was completely useless against Lu Ge. In his eyes, every one of Zephyr's movements had already been foreseen. Lu Ge merely lowered his body and easily dodged the blow, then drew his sword and slashed with lightning speed. Amid splattering blood and a miserable scream, Zephyr's right hand was severed at the root and sent flying into the sky before crashing to the ground.

The Armament Haki covering his right hand had already been completely absorbed by Lu Ge. Naturally, his hand could no longer withstand the edge of the blade.

"Ah~ My hand!! My hand!!!"

Zephyr immediately clutched his severed arm and let out a shrill scream.

Karp, Sengoku, and the others all paled in shock. "Zephyr!!!"

"Teacher!!"

Akainu and Aokiji were equally startled. Their figures flashed as they instantly moved to surround Lu Ge!

Seeing this, Lu Ge merely grinned. He tapped the ground with his foot, advancing instead of retreating, then swung his right fist, hardened with Armament Haki, straight at Aokiji.

Aokiji was not afraid in the slightest. His elementalized arm, wrapped in Haki, collided head-on with Lu Ge's fist!

A terrifying boom erupted. The ice beneath their feet shattered in an instant, blasting open a huge crater. At the same time, an intensely frigid chill spread along Lu Ge's arm, freezing his entire limb at a visible speed.

At nearly the same moment, Akainu's attack arrived. His right fist, transformed into magma, erupted with scorching heat as it struck. Lu Ge blocked it with his left hand, but the intense heat turned even his Armament Haki-hardened arm bright red.

Magma filled his left hand and ice froze his right. The interweaving of ice and fire distorted the air itself.

Akainu's entire body began to flow with molten lava. "I admit that you're strong. But I wonder whether your body can withstand being scorched by magma?"

As he spoke, the fist locked against Lu Ge's suddenly changed into a palm. Akainu grabbed Lu Ge tightly. "Now you won't be able to escape."

In the next moment, his body visibly transformed into a molten-lava form. The temperature in the area rose sharply, and even the ice covering Lu Ge's right arm melted away, completely overwhelming Aokiji's chill for a time.

Aokiji frowned slightly. His ability was naturally opposed to Akainu's, so it seemed they truly could not attack simultaneously. He decisively retreated, leaving the battlefield to Akainu, and pulled Zephyr back with him.

Knowing that Lu Ge could transfer attacks, Akainu did not attack again. Instead, he transformed into magma and slowly spread and flowed outward, solidifying around them and building up a pool. Then blazing lava flowed from his body once more. In only a short while, the area had become a pool of magma.

Standing in the magma pool, Lu Ge's body was gradually submerged. Even his skin, hardened by Armament Haki, slowly began to redden.

Akainu wore a smug expression. "Now your ability can't work, can it? And inside this magma pool, let's see how long you can last!"

Sengoku was overjoyed at the sight. "Well done, Akainu!"

Just when everyone thought victory was assured, Lu Ge revealed his teeth in a grin. "This is the move you came up with to deal with me? To be honest, it works pretty well."

As he spoke, Lu Ge stretched lazily, then casually lay down in the magma pool. He paddled twice as though swimming, then leisurely took a mouthful of lava and gargled it like water.

But the next moment, he seemed to think of something. With a "ptooey," he spat it all out. "Holy crap! This magma flowed out of your body. Doesn't that mean I'm basically drinking your bathwater? Ptooey, ptooey, ptooey~~!!"

Of course, he was only teasing. Otherwise, did they really think the ice Aokiji created was made from his sweat too?

"..."

"..."

"..."

The bizarre scene left Sengoku and the others dumbfounded. Karp even pinched himself, staring in shock. "Sengoku, am I getting old? Has my eyesight gotten bad? Why do I see that kid swimming in magma and even gargling it?"

Sengoku: "Uh~ What kind of monster is that kid? He isn't even afraid of magma's heat?!"

"..."

Akainu looked as though he had seen a ghost. This was the method he had racked his brains to devise against Lu Ge's ability to transfer attacks, yet it had produced such a result. That man was actually immune to high temperatures?

Then there could only be one truth: "You have another Devil Fruit Ability?"

Aokiji was shocked when he heard that. "That guy has two Devil Fruit Abilities?!!"

By now, the wound at Zephyr's right arm had been frozen, stopping the bleeding. He glared at Lu Ge with deep hatred, while a thoughtful look appeared in his eyes. "As far as I know, the only ability that allows someone to bathe in magma is the Heat-Heat Fruit."

It had to be said that these old veterans had spent so long in high positions that they truly knew many secrets.

Karp's expression turned solemn. "The Heat-Heat Fruit... the Door-Door Fruit... Who would have thought this kid possesses two Devil Fruits. Such a special constitution..."