How Do You Want to Die? / The Tool Character Makes His Debut; The Second Poneglyph

A voice rang clearly in Enel's ears.

"Nylon Rope, if even you can tell she's no match for you, do you think I can't?"

Enel had kept his Observation Haki active. The moment Dongze finished speaking, he felt an unseen force lock onto him.

Its pressure far surpassed anything Dongze had unleashed with that strange sword technique.

He felt like prey caught in the gaze of a predator at the top of the food chain. Every hair on his body stood on end.

Before he knew it, his palms were slick with sweat.

A terrible dread clung to him. His heart seized with the sense that he might cease to exist in the next instant.

As his composure slipped away, his mind veered toward hysteria. The calm vanished from his eyes, leaving only madness.

"You Blue Sea monkey, don't push me too far! I'll take you down with me!"

"Output—max!"

"Two hundred million volts—Thunder God!"

Enel had finally unleashed the strongest move available to him as a Rumble-Rumble Fruit user.

In an instant, he drew forth two hundred million volts of lightning and wrapped it all around himself, taking the form of a thunder god descended to earth.

A stray bolt fell from beneath him into the White Sea. It pierced straight through the thick cloud layer; from afar, one could even see the Knock Up Stream still surging below. Its power was terrifying.

Meanwhile, an invisible little sword darted and leaped through the air. It flashed in from afar and appeared before Dongze, then jumped to Robin's side. With another flicker, it materialized above Enel's thunder-god form.

Space seemed unable to restrain it. Like a mischievous child, it flitted back and forth among them.

Though it could not be seen, its effects were frightening. Wherever it passed, space seemed to cave in, as though worn away by time.

It was none other than the first Sword Intent Dongze had comprehended: Erosion Sword Intent.

When his proficiency reached 400,000 points, his Golden Finger suddenly gave him feedback: Sword Intent could leave his body and attack on its own, no longer confined to the weapon in his hand.

Dongze had experienced the power of Sword Intent in his previous two battles. He had intended to keep this trump card in reserve for now.

Enel was formidable, but his weaknesses were glaring. The Rumble-Rumble Fruit was absurdly powerful, arguably the pinnacle of Logia fruits, yet Enel had not awakened it or developed its abilities nearly far enough. He knew no Armament Haki, and his physical training had major flaws.

With his current mastery of Haki, Dongze could overwhelm him.

He had not expected Enel to pull this move at the end. Dongze had been helping Robin grow stronger, but unlike him, she had no Golden Finger to track her progress in real time. Her daily responsibilities also ate into her training time. She could not possibly improve as quickly as he did.

Enel had been right: Robin was no match for him yet. To protect her and win, Dongze chose to use Sword Intent.

Ding!

Erosion Sword Intent struck Thunder God. After a light chime, only blinding white remained above the White Sea.

"Mm..."

Watching the apocalyptic clash nearby, Robin's legs gave way, and she sat down on the ground.

In less than a month, everything she had experienced had shaken her understanding of the world.

Had you ever seen someone split heaven and earth with a single sword strike?

Had you ever seen the collision of two people's auras tear open the sky?

Had you ever seen a person move mountains and fill seas through sheer strength?

Before all this, Robin would have slapped anyone who asked her such questions.

"Get lost! I don't have time for your nonsense!"

But she could no longer say that. Only heaven knew what she had been through lately.

Following Dongze meant she no longer had to worry about her future, but every few days he left her too shaken to stand. The excitement was almost more than she could bear.

Even now, her legs were still weak.

As a scholar from Ohara, she had read about the wonders of this world. She had never known a clash between the strong could look like this.

Boom!

Crack!

A sudden explosion burst through the air, hurting her ears. The next instant looked like the detonation of a nuclear bomb.

A vast mushroom cloud rose into the sky.

A mysterious power erupted, bringing the stillness of death and a desolation that eroded all things. Enel abruptly realized that even the violent lightning surrounding him was being affected.

It was dwindling at a terrifying rate. In less than a breath, his maximum output of two hundred million volts had dropped by ten million.

The decline showed no sign of slowing. A chill ran down his spine.

His lightning armor still protected him, but if he stayed any longer, he might well die.

With no time to consider anything else, he detonated the violent lightning and instantly transformed into his element.

Roughly one hundred and eighty million volts exploded at once. Calling it a force of destruction would not have been an exaggeration. The terrifying current instantly demolished the White Sea Entrance.

Even the trees, poor conductors though they were, were pierced by the current as it exceeded their breakdown voltage. Everything in sight became a ruin.

Dongze stood high in the air using Shave and Geppo, with Robin now at his side. A trace of admiration flashed in his eyes as he surveyed the scene.

"No wonder it's called the strongest Logia fruit! That destructive power earns the title!"

The fierce explosion had destroyed the Sword Intent he had just released. Lightning, after all, carried an inherently fierce and overwhelming force.

Enel had yet to comprehend that force. For now, he was merely wielding the power the Rumble-Rumble Fruit gave him at will.

If he truly comprehended it, the fruit would probably awaken, and his strength might approach an Admiral's.

In that case, Dongze would not still have strength to spare after fighting him.

Seeing Enel stagger in midair, barely able to stay upright, Dongze's gaze sharpened. He was about to finish off his weakened opponent.

If he waited for Enel to recharge, subduing him would take far more effort.

Just then, a ding sounded in Dongze's mind.

He checked his step. He had heard that sound before.

The last time he had tried to exploit a bug, his Golden Finger had patched it immediately.

He had wondered whether this "old master" of his might possess a consciousness of its own.

It had been quiet for days, and he had only just put the thought aside. Now it was back?

His gaze swept over the panel. As expected, a line of text had appeared.

"Thunderclap Sword Intent: (Available to comprehend. Explore it yourself! 0/1,000,000)"

The words "explore it yourself" sent a chill through his crotch. He had discovered Iron Head Skill by accident early on, and before he fully understood his Golden Finger, that path had been grueling.

Later, while toughening his body, he had trained Iron Crotch Skill to eliminate any weak point. Grinding up its proficiency had nearly made him want to ascend on the spot.

Now the old master had suddenly presented him with another option. He smiled bitterly.

The first way he could think of to comprehend Thunderclap Sword Intent was to get struck by lightning. Surely he would get a feel for it after enough hits.

But this was lightning. His Armament Haki was powerful, yet after seeing that blast, he dared say even the famously hardheaded Chinjao would not risk taking it.

Not even Garp would face a bolt from the heavens head-on.

Can I pass on this Sword Intent?

For a moment, he genuinely wanted to give up. But if he only dodged without fighting back, the overgrown child before him would probably turn into a rabid dog.

Activating Non-Contention Sword Intent would work well enough, but if the lightning could not hit him, whether he could unlock the new Sword Intent was another matter.

He knew his "old master": it was genuinely ruthless about such things. (Author: Stop complaining. You're no better—you have an old master and still try to exploit bugs!) If he did not get struck, it would not lend him a hand.

Dongze even wondered whether it resented him for not choosing Iron Head Skill.

But even if he had chosen Iron Head Skill, that would not make his head truly indestructible. Who knew whether he would survive a lightning strike?

(Ghost: Give us a break! That bolt would turn even the ancestor of all ghosts to ash!)

Looks like I have no choice.

Dongze looked toward Enel and regained his composure. Before Enel could recover and recharge, Dongze unleashed his mastered Geppo and Shave.

He vanished from the spot. Carrying another person slowed him slightly this time, and afterimages flickered through the air.

As Dongze approached, Enel could only smile bitterly. He was exhausted. To avoid the terrifying explosion, he had been forced to remain in his elemental form.

Maintaining that form consumed even more stamina, and he had not recovered yet.

He had assumed dodging the explosion would not be easy for Dongze either. Who could have expected this?

Those thoughts remained in Enel's mind. Dongze knew nothing of them; if he had, he would certainly have had something to say.

Was that not exactly why he had trained Iron Crotch Skill in the first place?

The next instant, Dongze was before Enel.

At the sight of him, Enel cursed weakly, "Blue Sea monkey!"

"You bastard!"

"Kill me or torture me. This god won't even flinch! Come on!"

Seeing him act so tough, Dongze's eye twitched. Enel was not that strong-willed. Unless he had trained Iron Crotch Skill too, Dongze was not buying it.

(Author: Enough, Dongze. Is training Iron Crotch Skill really worth complaining about over and over? Dongze: Why don't you try it, then? You heartless bastard!)

"How do you want to die?"

The wind caught a dandelion seed and carried it away. No one knew where the gust would blow, so the tiny parachute had countless possible destinations.

People in this world were much the same. Above the White Sea, Enel stared wide-eyed at a finger poised against the center of his forehead, gleaming with Ryuo.

His pupils widened as memories seemed to flash through his mind: how fortune had favored him, how he had become a god, and how he had come to regard every other life as beneath notice.

Had it all passed without leaving a trace, or had it been a remarkable life?

He could not say. All he knew was that he wanted to keep enjoying the beautiful sunlight.

And Vearth, so full of promise.

After a long while, surprise flickered in his eyes.

He could sense that the Blue Sea man before him had used that move again.

The move capable of extinguishing lightning.

Why was he still alive?

"You...?"

"I planted that Sword Intent in your mind."

When Enel met Dongze's gaze, he shuddered involuntarily.

What had he just heard?

Dongze had put that incomprehensible thing inside his head. Was his skull about to explode?

"Why?"

"What a stupid question."

"What will happen to me?"

"If I wish it, that Sword Intent can destroy your entire brain in an instant. Not even turning into lightning will save you."

Enel immediately activated his Mantra to check Dongze's claim. A moment later, his face turned as black as a pot.

Near his pineal gland, a tiny sword bearing an aura of erosion flickered in and out of sight. Without looking for it deliberately, he would never have found it.

He knew that aura all too well. He would never forget the thing that had nearly eroded his Thunder God form just moments ago.

"You..."

Enel clenched his fists, furious but unable to speak. His life was now in Dongze's hands.