"You're just a mere pirate! Don't talk nonsense!"
Seeing that his rifle was useless, Lance immediately switched tactics.
After all, he was still a member of the first batch of cadets, even if he was among the bottom, he was no pushover.
A blue slash burst out instantly.
But Nightin wasn't fazed by the Rankyaku at all.
"The Marine's Six Styles? You think that can compare to my martial arts, the Kenpo Kanpo?"
"Kanpo Kenpo: Kudzu Root Decoction!"
A thick scent of herbal medicine wafted from Nightin's body.
Her slender fist suddenly exploded with unusual power. With one punch, the Rankyaku slash was shattered.
"Kenpo Kanpo: Cordyceps Smash!"
Breaking through Rankyaku, Nightin pressed on. She lunged at Lance like a tiger pouncing on prey.
A heavy blow landed on Lance.
A painful cry followed. Even Tekkai's hardness couldn't withstand Nightin's powerful strike.
"I told you already, your Marine Six Styles is worthless."
Lance's expression grew grim.
Enduring the intense pain from his body, Lance launched another attack.
A flurry of slashes surrounded Nightin.
A brown mist appeared; it was medicine powder thrown by Nightin.
Then, an unbelievable scene shocked Lance: the Rankyaku slashes were all blocked by the medicine mist.
"Ohohoho~ Little cutie, I told you, your Marine Six Sty-"
"Shattering Hammer: Flying Fire Strike!"
Before Nightin could finish, a ferocious shockwave tore through the Kenpo Kanpo Dome and struck her directly.
The hammer blow pierced right through Nightin.
Nightin, heavily injured, coughed up blood and was sent flying straight into the sea.
"Lance! Retreat now! We're almost out of the Calm Belt! Don't linger! Get away from the World Pirates!"
A heart-wrenching roar echoed from Hammer.
Lance jolted and looked up.
Hammer was covered in wounds and bruises, sprinting through the air at an incredible speed.
Behind him was an enraged Byrnndi World, but now the so-called "Destroyer of the World" was pitch-black and smoking.
Just moments ago, World had been engulfed by lightning, but he used his powerful Armament Haki to charge through the storm.
Then he brutally retaliated against Hammer.
Even though Hammer had activated his own Armament Haki for defense against the furious World, he had become little more than a punching bag.
"You forced me into this, you old bastard!"
"I can't beat you, but I can send your crewmates straight to heaven!"
Hammer cursed and charged toward World's pirate ship at full speed.
World immediately sensed danger and activated the More More Fruit:
"Moa Moa, Hundredfold Speed!"
Like a rocket, he shot towards Hammer.
But Hammer wasn't some weakling. He was a blacksmith!
With Hammering of the Soul and Chest-Shattering Strikes, two types of hammer attacks are launched without pause.
He pulled World into a square-dancing frenzy! One step, one twist!
Lance, who knew Hammer well, realized: this guy was seriously pissed, and something big was coming.
"Everyone, stop attacking! Throw all heavy stuff overboard! Full speed ahead!"
"Move it! Move it! Move it!"
"Hello?! Anyone out there?!"
Lance barked commands while picking up a Den Den Mushi to call Vice Admiral Garp, the Marine Hero.
At the same time, Hammer had reached above World's pirate ship.
He casually pulled out two rocks and a steel plate.
The materials: Cryolite, Flameweave Stone, and the Special Steel Plates.
"You punched my face? Beat me like a drum? Fine, have a taste of ATOMIC BOOM!"
Hammer gave World a deadly glare as the pirate still danced awkwardly from all the hammering.
Without hesitation, he landed on the deck of World's ship.
Under the horrified gaze of low-ranking pirates, he placed the three materials on the deck.
With both hands, he began hammering furiously.
"You bastards think you can mess with a blacksmith and get away unharmed?!"
"Don't you know in my hometown, blacksmiths were the kind of people who hand-forged atom bombs?!"
Under heavy hammer strikes, the three materials started intertwining.
But since this wasn't a forge, fusing them without high heat was nearly impossible.
Hammer realized this, but a determined light appeared in his eyes.
"If even a damn sea lion can hammer out sparks, SO CAN I!.
Each hammer blow was earth-shaking.
The strikes were so powerful that they overshadowed his usual Hammering of the Soul and Chest-Shattering techniques.
But using all three hammer styles at once pushed Hammer to his limit, and blood began dripping from his mouth and nose.
Still, he didn't stop. He kept hammering, one blow at a time.
Under high-speed strikes, the three materials were forcefully fused.
With one final hammer blow, a red glow suddenly sparked.
Another strike made the red glow blaze even brighter.
Feeling the heat from his right hand, Hammer's face lit up.
"Hahaha! I knew it! Every bullshit creativity comes from imagination!"
"Catch fire! Heavy Hammer Spark!"
With a roar, his right fist turned red-hot. The hammer blow burst into flames and wrapped the three materials in a fiery blaze.
"Hahahaha! World! Here's a special gift just for you!"
As the fire engulfed the materials, Hammer donned his hat and activated stealth mode, ceasing the hammering.
With the interference gone, World immediately used his Devil Fruit powers to arrive at his ship.
The roaring flames enraged him even more.
Using Observation Haki, he tried to find Hammer.
But the moment he activated it, his heart sank, and he suddenly looked toward the center of the fire.
"You little bastard! AAAHHHH!"
"Moa Moa, Hundredfold Slash!"
A massive blade appeared on the deck, its tip aimed straight at the fused, flaming materials.
A terrifying explosion erupted above the pirate ship.
A mushroom cloud rose into the sky. The massive blade, enhanced by the Moa Moa Fruit, instantly melted into molten iron and splashed into the sea.
The shockwave from the blast blew the pirate ship sideways.
Far away, already several hundred meters out thanks to Geppo, Hammer looked back at the mushroom cloud with a satisfied grin.
If you enjoy the story, my p@treon is 15 chapters ahead.
[email protected]/DaoistJinzu