Chapter 17: A Hard-Fought Battle

Chapter 17: A Hard-Fought Battle

This terrifying pillar of magma made the faces of everyone present change color. The temperature of the entire area even rose by several degrees. A Marine Admiral was truly not just hype.

"Captain Buggy!"

"You have to be okay!"

Mohji, Alvida, and the others could only watch from a distance. In a battle between powerhouses of this level, they wouldn't even last a minute.

"All Marines, fall back! Don't get caught in the magma!"

"Admiral Akainu will definitely win!"

Smoker followed the crowd of Marines retreating towards the shore, leaving space for the two monsters to fight. Even as a Logia fruit user himself, he didn't dare to interfere in such a battle.

The magma pillar lasted for several minutes. The figures of two tall men appeared in everyone's sight, and in their hearts, they all hoped their own side would win the duel.

"Hiss... that really hurts. You almost killed me."

Buggy the Clown's entire left shoulder was pierced by Dark Hound. Fortunately, his top-tier Observation Haki saved his life. This Dark Hound didn't hit his heart directly. Although his internal organs were saved and uninjured, his left arm was momentarily useless due to damage to his bone structure.

"So this is the Conqueror's Haki Infusion mentioned on the Sky Screen. It doesn't seem to hurt much when it hits me."

Sakazuki had just finished his tough-guy talk when he spat out a large mouthful of dark blood. Just now in the magma, he had taken another Divine Rend, the fist landing on his lung area. The Marine Admiral now felt pain even when breathing.

"Your body is as strong as a monster's. Marine Admirals are truly terrifying."

When Luffy took one of Teacher Kaido's Haki-infused hits, the protagonist passed out immediately. But when Buggy used this Haki infusion technique, it didn't have that same decisive effect. Was it because he didn't use a weapon? Or was this Admiral Sakazuki just too tough?

"Strong as a monster... there won't be any result if we keep fighting."

The opponent offered him an out, but Sakazuki, who insisted on Absolute Justice, rejected the clown's suggestion without a second thought. "The Marines never compromise with pirates."

"Dark Hound!"

"Splitting Cannon!"

The deadly techniques clashed once again. This battle would never end until one of them fell. The Marine base had become a hell of magma.

The Loguetown Marine Branch was completely reduced to ruins within minutes. Every move from both sides was a large-scale destructive technique. Buildings were destroyed, and the ground collapsed into the sea. There was not a single place left unscathed where they passed.

During the battle, Sakazuki thought about everything that had happened. Buggy had too many secrets, shooting up from a two-meter shorty to four meters, a whole head taller than him, an Admiral.

"This change in your body and personality—is it all caused by your Devil Fruit?"

"Great Eruption!" Blazing magma churned with astonishing heat, a force once thought to be unbeatable by humans.

As a villain in a manga, Buggy the Clown was very self-aware. While continuously fighting a Marine Admiral, he still had to take the time to explain things clearly to this hero. Being a proper villain was truly not easy.

"I used my fruit to split off my weakest personality. I even shaved down my own bones and muscles to reduce my height, all to weaken my own strength. The appearance of the Sky Screen exposed my plan! Damn it!"

"Splitting Cannon!" The splitting ability given to Buggy the Clown by the Chop-Chop Fruit was completely unreasonable, as if it could separate anything. All matter in the world was within its scope of decomposition.

"Magma Pluto!"

A magma giant tens of meters tall, with boiling magma flowing all over its body. This technique of Sakazuki's had a hint of the mythological power, its destructive force multiplying several times over in an instant. Unfortunately for him, his opponent was a clown with a liberated Devil Fruit.

"True Splitting World!"

Buggy infused his fists with the power of his Devil Fruit. His powerful Chop-Chop ability could hit the magma giant even from several meters away. The two engaged in a seesaw battle of Devil Fruit abilities for a while, but soon the pirate gained the upper hand. Sakazuki's magma-man form was immediately torn to pieces.

"Although your Logia Devil Fruit has the strongest offensive power, you are too obsessed with Haki."

"The Marines do not need a lecture from a pirate! On these seas, only Haki is the strongest!"

Two different beliefs, relying on two different paths of cultivation. Two opposing identities, Marine and pirate. Today, either you die, or I do.

"Divine Rend!"

"Dark Hound!"

For these two powerful men, a basic attack was like an ultimate move. Neither wanted to take a step back. The ground beneath their feet, supporting them, was torn apart by the terrifying force. The island of Loguetown began to crumble.

After that, Akainu chose to trade blows with the clown, seeing who had more stamina and whose body was tougher. Armament Haki versus Armament Haki, Devil Fruit versus Devil Fruit. This level of battle completely exceeded the imagination of the people of the world. Some "frogs in a well" had their eyes opened for the first time; so there were actually men this strong in the world.

Onigashima, stronghold of the Beasts Pirates.

Young Master Yamato was completely engrossed in the live broadcast. As the battle intensified, she nervously clased her hands. "What a terrifying pair! They've destroyed the entire Marine base."

"This Marine Admiral and Buggy the Clown... I want to fight them too! I really want to join this battle!"

Kaido was currently in his human form, his kanabo wrapped in Conqueror's Haki. The death match between powerhouses shown on the live broadcast made his hands itch, wanting to find an evenly matched opponent to practice with.

"Let's go, quickly! The boss is definitely not going to be able to hold back in a bit!"

"Keep it down! Let's go, let's go!"

None of the Beasts Pirates' cadres wanted to be Kaido's sparring partner. Fighting a monster like that was purely being a punching bag. After the fight, you'd be bedridden for days. No one wanted to be that unlucky one; Kaido's subordinates simply couldn't break his defense.

Kaido started wailing again; his crying fits always came very suddenly. "Yamato! I train you so harshly it could kill you, but it's all for your own good! With your current strength, if you encountered monsters like these, you'd only be killed!"

The paternal love of the Strongest Creature was simply too violent. Every time Yamato fought Kaido, they teetered on the edge of life and death. They couldn't forgive this father, who didn't treat them like his own child at all; there were several times they almost died.

"I am Kozuki Oden! I am the future ruler of Wano Country! Father, I will definitely defeat you!"

Yamato had already read Kozuki Oden's journal. In the darkest time of their life, they had actually found this bizarre path, which became a spiritual comfort in their dark life. They looked as if they had been completely brainwashed.

"He's been dead for almost twenty years! I even buried his body myself! You rebellious child, you're asking for a beating!"

Kaido and Kurozumi Orochi plotted to kill Kozuki Oden, but he too had been hit by the Kozuki clan's "Hypnosis Fruit," actually believing in his heart that the idiot was a true man. He even admired Kozuki Oden from the bottom of his heart. This father and child suffered from the same sickness.

"Come on, Kaido, I'm not afraid of you! I'll fight you again!"

"What a pathetic son. Let me, as your father, teach you a proper lesson."

The Onigashima "father-son match" began again. Both were Mythical Zoan Devil Fruit users, and when they fought, they were truly enraged. Unfortunately, Yamato had never once defeated Kaido...