Suddenly, Aeridar's expression twisted in alarm. Instinctively, he tried to dodge to the side—but a sharp, searing pain in his chest made him just a beat too slow.
Blood splattered across the ground. A gleaming cross-shaped longsword had pierced just beneath Aeridar's left collarbone. He stared at the blade embedded in his flesh, eyes wide in disbelief.
Aeridar had been careless. He never expected the sword-wielding Rear Admiral to bypass his Observation Haki completely.
It was a harsh reminder—when it came to battling high-level opponents, Aeridar still lacked real combat experience. With his strength, even if he couldn't fully dodge, he should've at least hardened the strike zone with Armament Haki.
Farlier gripped his sword with both hands, trying to wrench it free and finish Aeridar off.
"I'm not dying that easily."
The sight of his own blood sent Aeridar into a frenzy. His eyes turned red, face contorting with rage. His Haki-hardened left hand clamped down on the blade, stopping it cold. Then his right fist surged forward, a howling wind trailing behind it as he drove it straight into Farlier's gut.
Fist Style – Dual-Stage Impact Fist!
"Damn it! Armament Hardening—Tekkai: Steel Armor!"
Farlier tried to pull his sword free, but Aeridar's grip was too strong. When he realized the incoming blow, it was already too late to dodge. The distance between them was just too short.
Farlier's abdominal muscles clenched, briefly flashing with a metallic sheen. A pitch-black coat of Armament Haki covered his core.
The impact didn't sound like a blow against flesh—it was more like a hammer crashing into iron. The ground quaked violently, a cloud of dust exploding outward.
Farlier vomited blood on the spot. First, a terrifying force ripped through his hardened muscles, then a second wave slammed into his internal organs. He felt like his insides were twisted into knots, the pain stabbing into his very soul.
His grip faltered. His body folded over and was flung backward like a broken kite, tumbling several meters before crashing to the ground with a loud crack, kicking up another burst of dust.
Aeridar grit his teeth. With a grunt, he yanked the cross-shaped longsword from his body and tossed it aside.
"You bastards... You've pissed me off now."
He rose to his feet, bloodshot eyes glaring with murderous intent. His expression was eerily calm, but his face was twisted in a way that sent chills down one's spine.
He was furious—truly furious.
Since arriving in the world of One Piece, not even on Kukos Island had he suffered a wound this serious. In the early days, he'd been injured a few times by the island's beasts due to his lack of strength—but since then, he'd rarely been hurt.
But today, due to a moment of carelessness, he'd taken a deep stab.
Had he not tightened his muscles in time to clamp the blade, it might've pierced straight through his chest.
"Let's start with you!"
Aeridar leapt forward, driving a powerful, wind-laced kick straight toward Evans's head.
"Don't underestimate me—I'm a Marine Headquarters Rear Admiral!"
Evans roared, lifting his head to meet the blow head-on. His beast-like eyes blazed with killing intent, and he refused to back down. Instead, he threw a punch to intercept.
The ground beneath Evans cracked and caved in. The raw force from their clash rippled through the earth like water, tearing open fissures in all directions.
As expected of a Zoan: Ancient Type – Snowfang Wolf Fruit user, Evans had an incredible healing factor. Just moments ago, his knees were shredded—but now they were already halfway recovered. He launched into a head-on clash with Aeridar again.
Both fighters unleashed their Armament Haki in full, Observation Haki locked tightly onto one another. Fists met kicks in a flurry of devastating blows. Aeridar, a Paramecia – Impact-Impact Fruit user, dealt crushing attacks, while Evans's endurance and regeneration allowed him to take the hits and keep fighting.
The two were evenly matched—air trembling, the battlefield cracking, the skies themselves seeming to rip apart.
"Ten Claws – Wolf Claw Tempest!"
From above, ten blue-white slashes over a meter long tore through the sky, carving deep scars into the earth.
"Maximum Ring – Impact Wave!"
The surrounding air was instantly disrupted. Violent gales swept outward as a massive ring-shaped shockwave obliterated a four-story building and gouged a crater over three meters wide and one meter deep into the ground.
"Sword Art – Cross Execution!"
A cross-shaped slash split the air, carving a massive X into the earth. Having recovered slightly, Farlier retrieved his longsword and rejoined the battle.
The three engaged in blinding-speed combat, chaining together Soru and Geppo with dazzling proficiency—rivaling even CP9's Rokushiki masters.
Midair, Aeridar hardened his arm and grabbed Evans's ankle, slamming him toward the ground. At the same time, he snatched Farlier's sword with his other hand—but Farlier's retaliatory kick landed square in Aeridar's gut, sending all three of them spiraling to the earth.
Three bodies crashed down like meteors, shaking the ground. Dust flew as they left three distinct craters.
They all staggered up, heads spinning.
Farlier, closest to Aeridar, lunged first. His sword, now black with Armament Haki, slashed downward.
Aeridar didn't flinch. He punched straight into the blade.
Fist Style – Fracturing Impact!
A thunderous force exploded from his fist. Farlier felt an irresistible shock surge into his arm—the webbing of his hand tore open, and his grip failed. His sword clattered to the ground as he was blown away by the blast.
At that moment, Aeridar's head jerked to the side—Evans's claw narrowly missed his ear.
Missed, but not deterred, Evans twisted his claw and grabbed Aeridar's shoulder, yanking him backward.
Aeridar couldn't resist Evans's brute strength. His feet left the ground as he was thrown through the air.
Midair, Aeridar saw Evans move into position, eyes going wide as Evans pulled back his clawed fist.
Shigan – Fist Cannon!
The ground quaked violently. Dust engulfed the battlefield. Aeridar's back slammed into the earth, shattering the stone beneath and forming a massive crater, spiderweb cracks radiating nearly 100 meters.
Evans suddenly dropped to one knee, coughing up blood. His fur-covered chest bore two gaping, nearly through-and-through wounds. His body shrank rapidly, his white fur retracting. From nearly three meters tall, he reverted to his human form.
The battlefield was now a ruin.
Farlier lay in the rubble of a collapsed building, his right arm limp, bones shattered—bone shards piercing through his skin. Blood gushed from his wounds, and his face was soaked in blood from every orifice. Unconscious.
Aeridar lay embedded in the crater, chest caved in, blood pouring from his nose and mouth.
Evans knelt beside the crater, having struck Aeridar with his Fist Cannon at point-blank range—but in that same instant, Aeridar had landed two Impact Guns directly to Evans's chest.
One missed his heart by inches. Any other man would've had his chest turned to pulp.
But Evans's Zoan resilience and active Snowfang Wolf transformation saved his life.
Still, the result was clear:
All three had lost the ability to fight.
A true battle of mutual destruction.
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