Chapter 112: Akainu's Helpless Rage
A single Senzu Bean, swallowed.
A searing white steam instantly rose from the black-haired young man in the air.
With a series of cracks, his broken bones rapidly knitted back together. The scorched skin peeled away like a snake shedding its skin, replaced by fresh, new flesh.
His aura surged, climbing steadily. He casually rolled his neck, and a series of sickening crunches echoed in the air.
Akainu's face was as dark as a thundercloud.
He's really back to his peak condition…
How in the world did he do that?!
"Ten minutes!"
Shane floated down from the sky, looking down at Akainu in the deep crater. He held up a single finger. "Old man, I'll give you ten more minutes! Let's see if you can really take me down! If you can't…"
"…then that's it for today. Don't blame me for not sticking around!"
Ten minutes.
That was enough for The Curtain Call to get to safety, and then he could find an opportunity to escape!
"Arrogant brat…"
Akainu's magma body churned violently. He slowly stood up, his voice low and dangerous, filled with a barely suppressed rage. "You think that just because you've recovered, you can change anything? If you're so determined to buy time for your comrades, then you can just stay here forever!!!"
BOOM—!!!
The ground beneath Akainu's feet exploded, and he shot into the sky like a molten meteor!
His right fist instantly turned to magma, the searing liquid twisting and writhing like a living thing, coalescing in an instant into three ferocious dog heads.
The dogs bared their fangs, roaring, their magma manes whipping wildly. The intense heat distorted the air in their wake.
"Hell Hound!"
With a low cry, the three magma dogs shot forward, so fast they left a crimson afterimage in the air. They opened their gaping maws, their magma teeth aiming for Shane's head!
Before they even got close, the terrifying heat had already singed the hair on his forehead!
"Hey, hey, hey, that's some serious heat!"
Shane laughed, his eyes shining with fighting spirit. "But it's just what I was looking for!"
He clenched his right fist, and with a pop, the air exploded, sending out ripple after ripple of shockwaves.
And in that instant, his entire fist was coated in an incredibly dense, black Haki.
"Six Powers Secret Art: Iron Wall Fist!"
The "Iron Wall Fist," like the "Sunlight Yellow Overdrive," was one of his strongest moves, created by combining his peak-level Six Powers with his Armament Haki techniques.
But there was a clear difference.
The latter was for offense, and the former, for defense!
BOOM—!!!
The three ferocious magma dogs crashed into his fist. The air vibrated and distorted violently, and then, as if a stone had been dropped into the sea, they were completely absorbed by his fist.
Shane was pushed back a dozen meters by the aftershock, his feet carving two deep furrows in the ravaged ground.
But in the next second, he looked up, blood trickling from the corner of his mouth, but his grin was even wider than before. "Is that all you've got?!"
At this rate, forget ten minutes, he wouldn't be able to take him down in half an hour!
"It's not over!!!"
Akainu's eyes were dark. His arms churned with magma, once again forming giant fists. He flickered and came crashing down, and Shane, without dodging, met him head-on!
BOOM, BOOM, BOOM, BOOM—!!!
The two figures flashed across the shore, and every clash produced a deafening roar.
Magma and Haki intertwined, and massive bolts of black lightning began to flash around them!
The terrifying shockwaves also spread out like ripples.
In fact, the battle had long since escalated beyond the area around the stone bridge.
The entire south island was trembling violently.
Even dozens of kilometers away, the pink and white cherry blossom petals were being swept up by the violent shockwaves, dancing in the sky like a blizzard.
This once-picturesque spring island was now as if it had been struck by a harsh winter.
From north to south, from east to west…
All the cherry blossom trees were now bare, their branches swaying in the wind, devoid of any sign of spring.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
Akainu was silent, but his blows were getting heavier and heavier, his assault more and more ferocious.
The frustration and humiliation of being unable to take down Shane were wearing on his nerves, and he had lost most of his composure.
He had even begun to abandon all defense, letting Shane's fists tear bloody gashes in his body.
In return, every one of his blows was even more ferocious, sending the black-haired young man stumbling back.
"Cough… ptooey!"
Shane spat out a mouthful of clotted blood, the exposed wounds on his body sizzling in the intense heat of the magma.
But he still grinned, his eyes shining with an almost crazed fighting spirit.
"That's it, that's it… old man! But it's still not enough! Put some more power into it!!!"
The murderous intent in Akainu's eyes surged, and his magma fist once again erupted with intense heat.
"DIE!!!"
However, just as he was about to unleash the punch—
"Mr. Sakazuki!"
In the distance, the figures of Dalmatian and Broumaya shot over the bare cherry blossom trees, using Moonwalk to rapidly approach!
"Oh?"
Shane glanced over, his voice dripping with sarcasm. "So you finally realized you can't do it on your own and decided to call for backup?"
I didn't call them!
He knew the brat was deliberately trying to provoke him…
But after fighting for so long with no result, Akainu couldn't contain his rage. He swung another uppercut.
This time, Shane didn't block. He let the punch connect with his jaw and used the force to send himself flying high into the air.
From his vantage point, he looked to the south. The Curtain Call was now a small, blurry black dot on the horizon.
"They're that far already? It must have been more than ten minutes!"
Shane grinned, his blood-stained lips pulling back in a wide, triumphant smile.
It's time!
POP—!
Shane's body suddenly expanded, his bones cracking like thunder, his muscle fibers growing wildly. In an instant, he had grown to a terrifying 3.9 meters.
His corded muscles bulged like forged steel, his veins popping. He landed with a thunderous crash, the ground trembling and sending dirt flying.
THUMP! THUMP!
His heavy footsteps were like war drums as he strode toward Akainu.
"..."
The shadow fell over him. Akainu looked up at the figure, who was now a full meter taller than him, and his eyes narrowed slightly.
"I see… so this is your true form?"
With his keen eye, he could tell that this imposing body was Shane's true form.
The "ordinary human" appearance from before was just a specialized combat form.
There was a kid in a CP unit who could do something similar.
"Hey, old man!"
Shane's gruff voice came from above. Akainu instinctively tilted his head back further, his gaze meeting the young man's dark eyes.
The latter grinned, a wide, toothy smile that stretched from ear to ear. "I don't know when we'll meet again. So how about a little parting gift?!"
THUMP! He took a step forward. With a loud crack, the muscles in his right arm bulged, and the entire arm seemed to swell. A terrifying force gathered in his bones and sinews.
"Spear of Elbaf—"
VWOOM!
The air suddenly vibrated. From Shane's fist, visible ripples spread out in all directions, like a stone dropped in a pond.
This blow, more powerful than the one he had unleashed on the mountain in Little Garden, drained nearly all of his remaining stamina.
And its power was, naturally, even more terrifying!
Akainu's pupils constricted.
In that instant, his Observation Haki screamed a warning, but his body was too slow to dodge.
"—IKOKU!!!"
BOOM—!!!
Before the fist even connected, the violent shockwave had already torn the earth apart.
Akainu only had time to cross his arms in front of him, his magma body barely coated in Armament Haki, when the world-destroying force hit him!
BOOM!!!
With a deafening roar, Akainu's figure was sent flying like a cannonball, crashing through countless rocks before finally slamming into a cliff on the north island, seven or eight hundred meters away!
The terrifying force of the impact sent a massive wave crashing against the shore, and huge columns of water shot into the sky.
This time, it wasn't just the south island; even the town on the north island of Thor trembled violently from the blow!
"How'd you like that one, old man?!"
Shane's laughter echoed from the distance.
His body had already reverted to his "Paper Art: Martial Body" form. After that parting shot, he turned without hesitation.
The ground beneath his feet exploded, and he shot off like an arrow, heading for the sea in the opposite direction!
Shave: Flash Step!
With his Six Powers at their peak, Shane's figure became a blur of lightning, covering hundreds of meters in the blink of an eye as he shot out toward the open sea!
"Mr. Sakazuki!"
Two cries of alarm came from the distance.
Dalmatian and Broumaya had arrived just in time to see Akainu sent flying. They both gasped, a look of utter shock on their faces.
"Bastard…"
Broumaya's eyes were red, her beautiful face twisted in rage. That hateful Tachi Swordsman, Shane, had dared to be so disrespectful to Mr. Akainu… how dare he!!
She was even more furious now than when she had let the pirates escape from the port!
"GET BACK HERE!"
She shrieked, her figure becoming a blur as she chased after Shane.
Dalmatian's face changed instantly. "What are you doing, Broumaya?! Don't be rash!"
He had been about to run toward Akainu, but he quickly changed direction and followed her.
"Hmm?"
Shane felt the rapidly approaching auras behind him and glanced over his shoulder.
The two Vice Admirals, one a disheveled spotted dog, the other a crazy woman with a syringe.
They were both covered in wounds, as if they had just been through a fierce battle. Although they weren't as weak as he had been before he had eaten the Senzu Bean, their auras were chaotic and unstable. They had clearly taken a beating.
It seems… my comrades did a good job!
A small smile played on his lips.
He glanced at the two of them as they got closer, a look of mockery in his eyes.
"You dare to chase me in that state? You've got guts…"
He was faster than them and could easily lose them, but… Akainu was one thing, but who were these nobodies to think they could mess with him?
SWISH. He suddenly stopped, flipped in mid-air, and brought his right foot down like a mountain!
"Tempest Kick: Meteor!"
BOOM—!!!
Dalmatian hastily raised his arms to block, but he was still slammed into the ground by the force of the kick!
CRACK!
The bones in his arms snapped. He coughed up a mouthful of blood, and the world spun around him.
"Cough… dammit!"
Dalmatian struggled to get up, but his arms were numb. He wouldn't be able to fight for a while.
And on the other side—
"DIE! YOU FILTHY PIRATE!!!"
Broumaya shrieked insanely, both her arms transforming into syringes. The tips suddenly extended, shooting toward Shane's throat like spears!
"Doctor's Orders: Double Puncture!"
A red light flashed in Shane's eyes. He dodged to the side and, in the same motion, grabbed her right shoulder with a hand like an iron clamp!
"You crazy bitch, your needles… are too slow."
CRACK!
With a sickening crunch, Broumaya's right arm was torn from her body!
The thick metal syringe instantly reverted to its original form, and a fountain of blood sprayed out, splattering on the ground.
"AAAAAAAAAH—!!!"
A piercing scream echoed along the coast. Broumaya stumbled back, her face twisted in pain, but her eyes were still filled with a crazed hatred.
"You… you dare… you destroyed my right hand! This is the hand that gave Mr. Sakazuki a shot when I was a nurse! It's the hand that inspired me to join the Marines and follow my idol!!!"
She thrust her left arm forward, but Shane, his face impassive, easily caught the giant syringe and was about to snap it.
But Broumaya suddenly grinned, a morbid smile on her face.
You fell for it!
CRACK!
A slit suddenly opened in her chest, and a thin syringe shot out, plunging straight into Shane's abdomen!
"Doctor's Orders: Lethal Injection!"
SQUELCH!
Poison instantly flooded his system. Shane's face turned a deathly shade of purple, and his muscles visibly stiffened.
"Hehehehe… how do you feel? Can't move your body?"
Broumaya let out a high-pitched laugh. "This is my ultimate technique! A single shot, filled with all my love and patience! Even the cruelest of men can't resist…"
In the next second, her laughter was cut short, as if she had been strangled.
—The color was rapidly returning to Shane's face, and even the large wound in his abdomen, which had been pierced by the syringe, was healing at a visible rate.
"It seems your poison isn't that strong after all,"
Shane grinned. Under Broumaya's panicked gaze, he grabbed her by the neck and lifted her into the air.
"You should have called Magellan. My body is long past the point where a poison of your level can affect it."
CRACK!
Broumaya's neck snapped with a sickening crunch. Her face quickly turned red, and her legs kicked weakly, like a drowning person. For the first time, a look of unprecedented terror appeared in her eyes.
"You… cough, cough… let… let…"
She struggled to force out a few words, twisting her body with all her might, but she couldn't break free from the iron-like grip.
"LET HER GO!!!"
A furious roar suddenly came from the distance, and the very air seemed to freeze.
BOOM—!!!
Akainu's figure shot up from the cliff like a crimson meteor, his legs spewing magma and black smoke, as he flew through the air at a terrifying speed!
Mr. Sakazuki…
Broumaya caught a glimpse of him out of the corner of her eye, and her heart clenched in terror.
That twisted, demonic face… is that really the calm, unshakable Mr. Sakazuki she knew?
VWOOM!
Akainu was getting closer and closer, and a violent aura radiated from him.
How many years has it been!
Since he had been promoted to Admiral, the highest-ranking military power at Headquarters, when had he ever been pushed to such a state?
How long had it been… since he had suffered such a humiliation?!
Just a mere brat!
He had to end him today!!!
…
Feeling the almost tangible rage coming from Akainu, Shane raised an eyebrow. So scary…
No time to waste, I have to go now!
He immediately turned and shot off, the coast now within reach.
"Cough… heh, hehe…"
Broumaya, on the verge of death, suddenly let out a bloody grin, a look of morbid madness in her eyes. "See? Mr. Sakazuki told you to let me go. He's so angry because of me… Hey, you brat, let go of me now! Do you want to die here?"
"Don't worry, after you're dead, I'll find your comrades. You have two sisters, right? I'll use my syringe to poke holes in them, bit by bit, hehehe…"
"..."
Shane had been about to let go and toss the crazy woman aside, then jump into the sea.
But hearing those words, he narrowed his eyes and grinned.
"Let go? Don't worry, I still have time to snap your neck."
The moment he finished speaking, his right arm suddenly bulged, his veins popping. The force in his hand instantly multiplied—
CRACK!
With a sharp snap, Broumaya's neck was completely broken. Her head lolled to the side at a grotesque angle, and the light in her eyes quickly faded.
To the very end, that crazed smile remained on her lips.
"BROUMAYA!!!"
Dalmatian's furious roar came from the distance.
And Akainu was now within a hundred meters, his magma-fist raised, the intense heat distorting the air.
"Dark Hound!"
The terrifying magma fist shot forward. Shane flung Broumaya's corpse at Akainu and, at the same time, pushed off the ground, shooting backward!
BOOM!!!
The magma fist mercilessly vaporized Broumaya's remains, and the aftershock still sent Shane flying a hundred meters, crashing into the sea.
"Hah…"
The cold seawater washed away much of his fatigue and weakness. Shane bit his tongue to stay conscious and began to swim for the deep sea with all his might.
Slap!
Akainu landed on the shore.
Behind him, Broumaya's black ashes drifted down.
But he didn't even glance at them. His eyes were fixed on the churning sea, a savage look on his face.
Trying to escape through the sea?
In your dreams! It's not that simple!
He suddenly raised his arms, his magma-fists pointing at the sky—
"Meteor Volcano!!!"
In an instant, countless magma fists shot into the sky and then rained down like meteors, completely covering the entire sea area!
BOOM!
BOOM!!
BOOM!!!
The searing magma slammed into the sea, instantly vaporizing large swathes of water.
The terrifying heat made the water within a radius of several kilometers boil and churn. Countless fish floated to the surface, belly up, and then quickly melted into a black sludge.
In just a few seconds, the entire sea area around Thor Island had been turned into a molten hell!
"...!"
Deep in the sea, Shane's pupils constricted. The exposed wounds on his body stung in the scorching magma.
Danger!
I have to get out of this area, now!
If the temperature continues to rise, even if I swallow the last Senzu Bean I have, I'll be in deep trouble when Akainu catches up to me!
He didn't hesitate. He summoned all his strength, and a gale-force wind, from an unknown source, gathered around his arms. It was a power that only those who had crossed the threshold of a dual-wielding master swordsman could wield—
"Fate Sealed!"
SWISH!
A torrential wave of sword energy shot out, and the sea in front of him churned violently, parting to form a vacuum.
And when Shane's figure reappeared, he had already flashed three or four kilometers away.
But he was still within the range of the Meteor Volcano. The heat was seeping deeper and deeper into the sea, and the searing magma was clinging to him like a leech!
"Again!"
Shane gritted his teeth, ignoring the exhaustion, and unleashed the ability once more!
"Fate Sealed!"
SWISH!
He flashed another three kilometers away, finally leaving the boiling, molten hell behind.
"Hah… hah…"
He shot to the surface, gasping for fresh air. He continued to swim with all his might, glancing back.
Thor Island was now a blurry silhouette in the distance. And in the sky above that sea, the crimson magma was still raging, dyeing the entire sky a bloody red, like the apocalypse had come.
"Heh…"
The black-haired young man grinned, a reckless smile on his face.
"You can't catch me now, can you?"
He wiped the seawater from his face and, imagining Akainu standing on the shore, helpless and furious, he couldn't help but laugh out loud.
What a shame I can't see the look on that red dog's face!
…
On the shore.
Akainu stood, his pupils, which had turned a dark red, fixed on the direction in which Shane had escaped. Magma dripped from his right fist, sizzling as it hit the reef.
How did he do it…
How in the hell did he do it!!!
His Observation Haki could clearly sense that his opponent had used some bizarre technique to flash several times in a short period, creating a huge distance between them.
And it had completely dashed his hopes of pursuit.
"M-Mr. Sakazuki…"
Dalmatian limped over. He was about to speak, but he suddenly froze, swallowing his words.
He had known Akainu for many years, but he had never seen him like this—
The military cap he had worn for so many years was gone. His dark red suit was in tatters, only the pants remaining.
His exposed chest was covered in bruises. His magma-fied right arm was even twisted at an unnatural angle.
But all of that was minor. He would recover in a few days.
The more critical part was…
There were scorched, gaping holes on Akainu's neck, and the edges of the bloody wounds were still coated in a faint Armament Haki.
His right ear was also half-gone, and blood was trickling down his cheek, sizzling as it dripped onto the magma on his shoulder.
These were permanent injuries. Even after emergency surgery by the Headquarters medical team, they would undoubtedly leave conspicuous scars…
That Tachi Swordsman, Shane, could actually injure Mr. Sakazuki??
"Mr. Sakazuki,"
Dalmatian hesitated for a long time before finally gritting his teeth and speaking. "It seems Headquarters underestimated the true strength of that brat. But please, don't worry. He has exhausted his stamina, and he still has Broumaya's lethal poison in him. He probably won't last long before he dies at sea…"
"Tell me…"
Akainu suddenly said, his voice grim. He slowly turned his head, and Dalmatian's heart leaped into his throat.
Those were not the eyes of a human.
They were the eyes of a cornered, furious beast, the dead calm before a volcanic eruption.
Akainu's face was impassive, but his eyes were filled with an almost tangible murderous intent. "Dalmatian, has the fight addled your brain?"
"A troublesome opponent that I couldn't take down in nearly an hour, and you think that a useless piece of trash like Broumaya's poison could kill him?"
She was just a newly promoted Vice Admiral, one of the weakest in her rank at Headquarters.
If a brat with a monster-like physique like that could be killed by such a ridiculous attack, then it would be an insult to him as well.
Wouldn't that be the same as saying that he, a Marine Admiral, was a joke?!
"..." Dalmatian knew he had misspoken. He lowered his head and didn't dare to say another word.
"I'm asking you… look at me, I'm asking you."
Akainu's voice suddenly rose, filled with a barely suppressed rage. "Broumaya is one thing, I never expected much from her. But with you in command, how could you let that brat's underlings escape?"
He wasn't just shifting the blame. This was a valid accusation!
If that orange firework hadn't suddenly exploded in the sky, distracting him and making him want to fly to the port and blockade the pirate ship, that brat might not have had the chance to use that bizarre technique to recover his stamina!
"Underlings…?"
Dalmatian said with a bitter smile, "Admiral, it wasn't just Shane whose strength was underestimated. His crew is also a force to be reckoned with. Except for the underage girl, all of them are formidable fighters…"
That black-haired, high-ponytail swordswoman, though young, was a terrifyingly skilled swordswoman.
With the support of the blue-haired girl's fists, she had been able to fight him, a veteran Vice Admiral, to a standstill.
As for Broumaya…
That somewhat weaker Vice Admiral had been completely tied up by the traitorous White Chase, Smoker, and Red Leg Zeff, unable to break free from the fierce battle.
If that was all, it wouldn't have been a big deal.
With the abilities granted by his Zoan-type fruit, he had far more stamina than a normal person.
If he had been given a little more time, he was a hundred percent confident that he could have slowly turned the tide and defeated the two girls.
But…
There was also a giant wolf, a terrifying giant wolf that could control both lightning and fire, a force to be reckoned with
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