West Blue, outside the gorge, on the edge of the ruins, the cold night air was piercing, carrying the smell of dust and destruction.
"Hey! Viktor, aren't you going too far?" An annoyed voice broke the silence. Peter Nock, a short, green-haired youth, 1.8 meters tall, stared at Robert Viktor with an unhappy expression.
Hearing this, the walrus-mustached man holding two swords sneered disdainfully: "Nock, stop your nonsense. If you have a way, why don't you just go now? Stop being hypocritical!"
"Tch!" Hearing that, Peter Nock, who had a bounty of 200 million Berries, immediately snorted coldly. It wasn't that he was truly angry just now, but some of the people killed by those wind blades were also his subordinates. If he didn't make a statement, it wouldn't make sense logically or emotionally. Even just putting on a show was necessary—a pragmatic consideration.
However, he hadn't expected that Robert Viktor wouldn't say a single polite word and ignored him completely!
Roar! The green-haired youth roared, his body rapidly beginning to swell, his muscles enlarging. Sharp spines grew on his spine and lumbar vertebrae, and a thick tail grew from his coccyx, sharp claws, pointed teeth... In the blink of an eye, he transformed into a half-human, half-dinosaur form—a terrifying transformation from the Ryu Ryu no Mi, Ancient Species, Model: Spinosaurus, Zoan-type fruit.
"My men, charge with me!" As he spoke, Nock took a stride forward and charged towards the rocks, leading his terrified troops. Just now, over a thousand men were blocked in the gorge by Sephiroth and killed in one wave. The pirates' morale was low, and asking them to continue lurking and sacrificing themselves would cause the army's morale to collapse at any time. In desperation, Nock could only transform into his beast-man form and lead the charge, which could at least forcibly boost morale.
Along the way, he also wanted to ensure that Viktor didn't continue indiscriminately killing his subordinates. Viktor could form his own army with his long-range attacking Devil Fruit ability. His subordinates were basically only useful for odd jobs, but he was different. Although Nock possessed the Ryu Ryu no Mi, Ancient Species, his physical strength was formidable and his defense high, but in terms of attack methods, he lacked the ability to clear a large area. Therefore, he still needed his subordinates to share the pressure on the battlefield—a strategic dependency.
In a flash, Nock climbed over the rocks and charged at Sephiroth and the Royal Army who had taken their positions, ready and waiting.
Bang bang bang...! Bullets from ordinary firearms hitting Nock's body were completely unable to penetrate his tough hide, only causing a slight stinging sensation, proving his Zoan body's resilience.
Roar! The dinosaur-man roared, pushed off with his legs, and shot out, wanting to charge into the Royal Army and slaughter them, killing the ants who dared to attack him, bloodthirsty.
However... Sephiroth's figure flickered, then he swung his Butcher's Blade forcefully, slashing towards Nock's neck with deadly speed.
Clang! Two dragon claws wrapped in pitch-black Busoshoku Haki collided with the sharp Butcher's Blade, producing bright sparks in the darkness. But... To Nock's shock, his dragon claws, encased in Busoshoku Haki, were actually cut and began to bleed—a wound he hadn't anticipated!
How is this possible! My sharp claws are comparable to steel, and they're even wrapped in Busoshoku Haki... Nock thought, aghast. However, Nock didn't immediately let go of his hands. Instead, he held on tightly, securing the Butcher's Blade, unwilling to release it.
The next moment.
Steel Tail! A thick tail wrapped in Busoshoku Haki, carrying with it the sound of breaking air, lashed viciously towards the silver-haired youth's waist, a deadly counterattack.
Six Powers: Finger Pistol: Flick!Six Powers: Iron Body!Busoshoku Haki: Local Hardening!
Sephiroth completed these three actions in the blink of an eye. He immediately adopted the idea of mutual injury and stopped parrying—a bold strategy. A blue energy wrapped in Busoshoku Haki flew out from his left index finger, shooting towards the dinosaur-man's right eyeball, instantly causing blood to gush from the opponent's eye, crippling his vision. On the other hand, his left waist and ribs, covered in Busoshoku Haki, also took the full force of the dinosaur's tail.
Whoosh! Sephiroth still stood in place, unmoved, his expression calm.
Huh!?... It doesn't hurt that much!? He was surprised by himself. This was the first time he had used Iron Body for defense, but the effect was surprisingly good... Ah! No! No!... I absolutely cannot get addicted to the strongest illusion of the Six Powers, Iron Body! Those who always have a mysterious confidence and use Iron Body to take hits, are probably those who tasted the sweetness and used it frequently, which is why they were immediately beaten down!
On the other side, Nock's right eye had taken the hit, and his right eye's vision immediately went black. He suddenly released his claws and retreated repeatedly, the intense pain making him stagger.
Seeing that, Sephiroth sneered. He immediately wanted to swing his Butcher's Blade and charge forward to kill the dinosaur-man, capitalizing on the momentum.
However...
Whish! Several wind blades suddenly appeared beside him, not only blocking his path forward but also obstructing his retreat route—a trap.
The silver-haired youth frowned fleetingly, then immediately swung his Butcher's Blade, horizontally unleashing a narrow, elongated, bloody Flying Slash.
Boom! At the intersection of the wind blades and the bloody slash, an invisible airwave suddenly erupted, spreading in all directions, making everyone's clothes flutter and unable to open their eyes, creating a small storm. The momentum of the bloody slash had not yet dissipated and continued to shoot towards the two-sword wielding man, forcing the opponent to swing another wind blade to completely neutralize the silver-haired youth's attack.
Sephiroth glanced at the mustached man who had appeared to his right. He found the other party's manner of exerting power intriguing and said: "Huh!? Your attack isn't just a Flying Slash..." Is that a Devil Fruit?
"But my wind blade slash is much stronger than an ordinary Flying Slash... Is there a need to think about such things?" Viktor sneered as he continued to swing his two swords and cut out more wind blades, which not only encompassed Sephiroth but also thousands of Royal Army soldiers—a widespread threat.
The mustached man himself was a Swordsman, but after acquiring the Kama Kama no Mi, Paramecia-type ability, his Flying Slashes reached another level, touching the realm of Great Swordsmen's steel-cutting sword energy, and the stamina consumption and execution difficulty were much lower than ordinary Flying Slashes—a significant advantage.
"Very troublesome!" Sephiroth muttered as he placed his Butcher's Blade horizontally to his left side, preparing for a stronger attack.
Sword Drawing Technique! As he swung his Butcher's Blade horizontally, a bloody slash over forty meters long erupted from the blade's tip, sweeping away most of the wind blades with the force of a thousand soldiers, cleaving through Viktor's attack. As for the few wind blades that missed... let the Royal Army pray for themselves! he thought indifferently.
A surging storm of airwaves spread out again in all directions. Sephiroth did not continue to stand in place and engage in a long-range sword energy clash with the opponent. The other party could frequently slash out wind blades due to their Devil Fruit ability, while he needed to consume a large amount of Haki to unleash Flying Slashes to counter the opponent's consumption-based attacks. If he continued like this, he would sooner or later be finished!
Whish! The silver-haired youth shot forward, dodging the strong wind blade attacks while charging towards the mustached man, closing the distance.
Clang! The two swords collided, producing a crisp metallic clang.
Just as the two were at a stalemate, Viktor suddenly took a deep breath, a sign of a new attack.
Sephiroth's pupils suddenly constricted, and a strong sense of crisis immediately appeared in his mind. Subconsciously, he retreated, rolling on the ground, relying on instinct.
Boom! A fierce wind blade suddenly shot out from the mustached man's mouth, slicing diagonally through the ground, carving a trench over ten meters long—an unexpected attack that narrowly missed him.