Sandersonia walked down toward the arena.
"Shisui, it's your turn," Akemi instructed.
Shisui smiled. "How far should I go?"
He clearly wasn't worried about losing. As Akemi's close companion, he already had a sense of what his mentor intended.
"Handle it as you see fit," Akemi replied with a light grin.
"Got it."
Whoosh!
In an instant, Shisui appeared beside Itachi. "Itachi, you can rest. I'll take care of this one."
"Alright."
Sandersonia frowned slightly upon seeing him. "Does your clan not have any adults? You keep sending children."
Shisui smiled carefreely. "Don't underestimate me because I'm young. I'm the Uchiha clan's second strongest."
Sandersonia's expression turned serious. She had already seen Itachi's power, and this one looked about three years older.
And if he claimed to be second strongest—that meant his strength likely surpassed Itachi's.
"What's your name, boy?"
"I'm Uchiha Shisui."
"Can you also breathe fire and water?"
"Ninjutsu? That's nothing rare. Every member of my clan can do that."
Sandersonia's face stiffened. Every member? There were about three hundred of them… That meant there were three hundred ability users!
No! That's not right—
Even if they call it ninjutsu, its power definitely depends on the user.
But even so, this kind of force was terrifying.
She suddenly felt a little relieved that she hadn't chosen to fight them directly earlier. Going up against such a powerful group—
Even Amazon Lily would have suffered tremendous losses.
Sandersonia slowly closed her eyes.
"Why did you close your eyes?"
"Because if I look into your eyes, I might fall under a genjutsu. So, it's better not to look at all."
"Smart move. But how are you going to fight like that?"
Shisui quickly drew a kunai and hurled it at her. Sandersonia twisted her waist fluidly, easily avoiding the attack.
"Huh?" Shisui was surprised.
He immediately threw several more kunai in quick succession.
"Snake Dance!!"
Sandersonia's body twisted and swayed gracefully, dodging all of them with ease.
"So quick! Lady Sandersonia's Haki is simply divine!"
The female warriors in the stands watched in awe.
Whoosh!
Shisui's figure suddenly appeared behind her. Sandersonia's tail lashed back, sharp as a spear.
Boom!
Shisui dodged; the stone railing behind him shattered instantly from the impact.
"You knew where I was aiming?" Shisui frowned. How could she evade his attacks even with her eyes closed?
Sandersonia smiled. "That's Observation Haki. As long as a person is alive, their body emits special sounds. By reading those sounds, I can predict the opponent's next move. With training, I can even expand my range and accuracy. So, even with my eyes closed, I can still sense your movements."
"Armament Haki for offense and defense, Observation Haki for reading enemies beyond sight... impressive abilities."
As a ninja, Shisui was no stranger to sensing opponents during combat, but this level of precision was extraordinary. He knew these seemingly simple abilities could change the flow of battle completely.
"Brat, your eyes won't work on me, and your attacks can't hit me either. But how many times can you dodge mine? I've already won this battle."
Sandersonia controlled her tail and attacked. Shisui dodged again and again, gradually falling into a defensive rhythm.
"Finish him, Lady Sandersonia!"
"Go, Lady Sandersonia!"
Whoosh!
Shisui suddenly threw a kunai straight at her face. Sandersonia reached out and caught it—
At that instant, Shisui appeared behind her and kicked her in the back of the head.
"Uwah!"
Sandersonia's body lurched forward, barely catching herself on her arms before falling.
"Damn it!"
"Looks like your Observation Haki's powerful, but it needs full concentration to work."
"You're clever, brat—but that doesn't change anything. That was just me letting my guard down. Now, I won't give you another chance."
"Snake Possession: Eight-Headed Serpent!!"
Sandersonia's green hair stretched and twisted, weaving itself into eight massive serpents with razor-sharp fangs.
The serpents lunged toward Shisui, snapping viciously.
Whoosh!
Shisui's figure vanished.
Crash!!
The arena's stone railing shattered under the serpents' bite. Their steel-hard fangs tore through the rock like paper.
"He's over there!"
Sandersonia directed the other serpents to strike again.
Boom boom boom boom boom boom!!
The floor cracked and collapsed into crater after crater.
As the battle went on, Sandersonia grew frustrated. She could sense Shisui's movements clearly—but she couldn't catch him.
The Uchiha men watching were startled by her serpentine power, but they didn't panic. After all, this was "Shisui of the Body Flicker," the legendary Body Flicker of the ninja world—he wouldn't be caught so easily.
Nearly every attack missed. Finally, Sandersonia shouted in anger, "You little brat... how the hell are you dodging everything!?"
"Your Observation Haki really is amazing. But eyes are one of the most vital organs of a person—that's not something Haki can replace."
"Akemi-nii said before that the Sharingan can use hypnosis and illusions, but that's only part of its power. Besides that, it grants insight beyond human limits. You can sense my movements—but I can see yours."
"Damn it!"
Sandersonia's face twisted. Just where did these freaks come from? And that Sharingan... what kind of monster ability was that?
"Shadow Clone Jutsu!"
Poof, poof, poof!!
Four identical Shisuis appeared around her.
"What?!"
Sandersonia was stunned. She suddenly sensed four new presences—each one identical to the real one.
"What kind of sorcery is this?! How can one man become five?!"
The female warriors and even Hancock in the stands were equally dumbfounded.
All five Shisuis attacked at once. Sandersonia met them head-on.
After a fierce clash, she was panting, scratched and bruised.
Their weapons carried a strange energy that could pierce through her Armament Haki.
For a Zoan-type ability user, such wounds meant little—but all four clones had been destroyed.
"Use whatever you've got left. Those clones alone won't defeat me."
"Looks like you're running out of tricks. Time to finish this."
"Fire Style: Great Dragon Flame Jutsu!"
Shisui formed seals and spewed three blazing dragons at Sandersonia.
She dodged, but the dragons curved midair—roaring toward the stands.
"Waaahhh!!"
The female warriors screamed.
But the flames didn't strike them—they circled once, then turned back toward Sandersonia.
"Damn it!"
Knowing she couldn't dodge, Sandersonia met the flames with her hair-serpents head-on.
Boom boom boom!!!
The explosion rocked the entire arena.
"Uwaaaahhh!!"
The shockwave reached the audience.
"Ahhh!!"
"Eeeek!!"
"Sandersonia-nee!!"
Marigold cried out as she saw her sister blasted to the ground, covered in burns and ash. Sandersonia lay face down, gasping, her once-glossy green hair scorched, her body trembling.
"I... lost..."
"Thanks for the match."
"Damn it!"
She slammed a fist into the ground in fury. If only the arena were larger—if she could move freely—she'd never have lost this badly.
"No way!!"
"Even Lady Sandersonia lost?!"
"Are all men this strong?"
"This power is unbelievable!"
"Wait—if Lady Sandersonia's down, doesn't that mean the outsiders won?"
"Yeah! We won!"
The Uchiha men cheered loudly.
Hancock's face darkened. Her nails dug into her thumb until it nearly bled.
She was furious. Just a bunch of filthy men—and yet she couldn't stone them all with a glance?
She'd accepted Akemi's duel only because she thought victory was certain. It was supposed to be a punishment—a little entertainment. Never did she expect to lose.
"Hold on! The fight's not over yet!"
"What? Come on, Snake Princess, don't tell me—"
Hancock blinked innocently. "Not over? My dear, you said three matches. You never said best of three. And this is Amazon Lily, my country—so the rules are mine to make."
"Even if you call it cheating, that's fine, because..."
"That's right—because I'm too beautiful!!"
Hancock struck a pose, winking playfully.
"Ahh—"
"Snake Princess!!"
"Yes! The rules are whatever Snake Princess says!"
"Snake Princess is always right!"
The audience erupted like a wave of fangirls.
"Guh!"
Many Uchiha men gulped at the sight. In Konoha, they'd never seen a woman as beautiful—or as scantily dressed—as the Pirate Empress herself.
If not for their strong mental fortitude, they might've been bewitched already.
"Heh. I take it you agree with me, then?"
Akemi shrugged. "Would it matter if I didn't?"
"No."
"I knew it."
Whoosh!
Akemi's figure appeared on the arena in an instant, his eyes falling on the Empress, Boa Hancock. He said calmly,
"Come down. I know you won't accept this until I defeat you completely."