Zoina's Threat
Zoina lowered the fishtail from in front of her, her face still expressionless. She said calmly, "Now you want to engage in a futile struggle like a trapped beast? You're not that rabbit. I don't believe you have the ability to break through my defenses."
"Ah, perhaps that's true..." Jilan shook her numb arm and forced a smile, "But, it would be laughable if I did nothing and let you take this life... I wonder if the little fish struggle to survive in your mouth when you're hunting in the sea?"
"You and that rabbit both love to spout meaningless nonsense." Zoina said with a frown and annoyance. Her fishtail lashed out and struck Jilan horizontally. Jilan only had time to use Hamon to protect that area before Hamon sent flying. His body crashed into the thick load-bearing wall behind him, even creating several terrifying cracks on it!
Jilan's brain slammed heavily against the wall, causing him to feel dizzy for a moment.
This attack feels so familiar... It's like I've been attacked the exact same way before... Ah, I remember now, it was during USJ. I was punched in the chest by a Nomu, and it even felt like my bones were shattering. So, thinking about it carefully, is there any difference between now and then...?
You know, this time All Might isn't coming as reinforcements, so we really could die...
Jilan placed her wrist behind her back, hiding it in the shadow cast by her body and the wall. Her fingers gently traced the bronze, skull-shaped mechanical watch on her wrist, which had a steampunk aesthetic.
Jilan whispered in a voice so no one could hear, "Sheer Heart Attack, target: Zoina."
The skull's dark eye sockets, which seemed to absorb all light, glowed with a bloodthirsty red light. The long-dormant Sheer Heart Attack was awakened once again under the influence of the Killer Queen's Quirk. This time, Jilan decided not to restrain him and let him blow up to his heart's content.
Since I can't turn Zoina into a bomb, then let him be bombarded by bombs.
"Master, are you really going to let me bombard you to my heart's content this time?!" The excited voice of the Sheer Heart Attack appeared in Jilan's mind.
"Ah, of course, but you'll need to wait a bit before that."
"I can't hear anything anymore, is it over?" Ueno asked tremblingly, "Is Jilan alright?"
"Shiozaki- kun, thank you so much this time, but shouldn't we check on Jilan's condition?" Nakiri solemnly. "Wouldn't it be bad to leave him fighting alone outside?"
Before Jilan Jiyu boarded the ship, she had been told that if anything unexpected happened during the journey, she didn't need to worry about Jilan; she just needed to protect herself.
Although Jilan didn't explicitly ask her to protect Nakiri and the others, Ibara Shiozaki still did it reflexively.
Ibara Shiozaki silently retracted the Vines. Now that Jilan was in trouble, she didn't want to be left to fend for herself. After all, he was the one who paid her salary. If something happened to him, who would give her the money to care for the plants? Who would take her to the botanical garden?
When the group returned to the restaurant from behind the Vines, they were greeted by a vibrant array of colors, like an overturned palette, and Jilan Jiyu, who seemed to be embedded in the wall and remained motionless.
"Jilan, are you alright!" Tsukimi Machi ran to Jilan, her eyes brimming with tears. "Don't die!"
At this moment, Jilan was quietly communicating with the skull-shaped tank. When she heard Tsukimi Machi speaking to her, she smiled at her to indicate that she was alright. However, for some reason, Tsukimi Machi began to sob.
"Hey, you bastard, you should be looking for me! Don't bully Jilan!" Ueno stood firmly in front of Jilan, blocking his way, his orange hair standing on end and revealing his fangs as he angrily threatened, "Let me tell you, I have a nuclear reactor inside me. If you dare touch Jilan, I'll detonate it and we'll both die!"
Before Zoina could even speak, the guest who overheard Ueno's words panicked and hurriedly said, "Young lady, don't be agitated! This person has already said he won't harm us. As long as he kills that boy, we'll be safe. Please don't do anything foolish!"
Hearing this, Ueno was displeased. Forgetting the enemy in front of him, he turned around and yelled at him, "No matter what, you're a man in your forties or fifties! All you think about is taking other people's lives to make you live in peace!"
Nakiri his arms, trying to appear dismissive of his opponent, and said in a calm voice, "Although I don't know who you are or why you attacked Jilan, you can't do anything violent on this ship. Captain Barus will definitely stop you. He's someone who can rival the Pro Hero Endeavor; he will absolutely not let you get away with this."
As a member of an upper-class family, one of the skills Nakiri learned was to put on airs. Even if he had no confidence, he would act as if he controlled the world, making the other party believe that he had a trump card that could turn the tide.
Although she said that, she was already starting to get anxious. Why hadn't Barus arrived yet? Five minutes had passed since the enemy attack!
"Endeavor, huh? That's a tough opponent." Zoina took Nakiri more seriously. If what she said was true, she really couldn't stay here for long. Although she wasn't afraid of Endeavor in the water, it would be difficult to deal with if he burned her "important equipment" with his flames.
Nakiri successfully misled Zoina with this statement, making her believe that Barus was a fire-wielding individual like Endeavor.
Isana glanced past Nakiri and looked at Jilan lying on the ground, coldly saying, "Hey, your name is Jilan, right? Stop pretending. I don't think that attack could have completely rendered you incapable of fighting. Your heart is still beating quite strongly."
"I knew I wasn't lying to you. Your caution reminds me of that guy who was so cautious he'd smash people with a steamroller." Jilan pulled himself out of the wall, shook off the dust, and rubbed Tsukimi Machi's head with a smile. "Don't worry, I'm fine."
Although Jilan wasn't faking his injury to try and turn the tables, the fact that his opponent was so cautious made Jilan realize one thing: apart from his fishtail, which seemed to be his strongest shield, his body must be extremely fragile, so fragile that he could be killed instantly with a single blow.
"I've experienced failure once before, but not this time." He didn't attack Jilan, but stood a few meters away and said, "Now, I'll give you two choices. One, you continue to resist. I don't want to run into that guy named Barus, so this time I won't deliberately control my power, and I don't care if the aftershocks affect others; two, you give up resisting now, and I won't kill you for the time being. You'll leave this ship with me until Rabbit comes looking for you."
He didn't give Jilan any time to think, continuing, "I'll only give you ten seconds to choose: 10, 9, 8."