The top floor of the castle tower was enveloped in darkness, illuminated only by the faint moonlight that filtered through the hole Ian had created.
A ring of flames appeared around Ian's head, casting a bright glow and dispelling the shadows.
The spacious room was stark and sparsely decorated, devoid of furniture.
It was evident that the Kozuki family had fallen on hard times. Despite being a regional daimyo, their current condition was quite poor.
"Stop right there, you lunatics!"
At that moment, a harsh voice called out from behind.
Ian turned to see two samurai emerging from the shadows, their swords drawn.
They appeared to be retainers of the Shimotsuki family, the same group he had encountered earlier.
Ian frowned slightly.
Their swords were pitch black.
While Shimotsuki Yasuie might not be able to use it himself, could his subordinates?
That's a breach of the basic principles of the pirate world.
It's well known that, in the pirate world, the strongest individual is usually the leader of the group.
Does the Shimotsuki family believe they're invincible? How dare they act so recklessly?
As Ian pondered this, the two samurai charged at him with remarkable speed.
They coordinated their attack flawlessly, coming at Ian from both sides simultaneously.
Ian casually sidestepped, allowing the blades of the two samurai to pass harmlessly by his chest.
The samurai were momentarily stunned. Despite Ian's youth, he was incredibly nimble.
They quickly regained their composure. If one blade wasn't enough, they would use five, ten, a hundred!
But despite their relentless assault, Ian moved with grace and precision, evading the relentless storm of strikes. He danced between their blades, retreating and twisting effortlessly, bending backward to avoid every slash.
How is this possible?!
The faces of the two samurai were flushed red, resembling pork liver.
Ian felt a surge of confidence.
"I can't help it if I'm this good."
"What kind of monster do you think I've been battling all these years? Compared to Kaido-sensei's speed and teleportation, these two are as slow as turtles."
But there was no need to hold back.
The two crunching sounds almost merged into one.
The samurai's expressions changed dramatically, their initial excitement at landing a hit quickly fading.
Ian raised his hand and lightly held onto their powerful blades.
With this level of Armament Haki and strength, how could you possibly hurt me?
It's still far from the level of fighting with Kaido-sensei. Even when I'm in Sphere Mode and see an attack, I dodge.
He glanced at the two pale warriors.
They're much weaker than that guy Hyogoro.
Moments later, from the top of the castle tower, brilliant golden pillars of fire erupted into the night sky, blooming like a volcanic explosion.
Below, in the courtyard.
Shimotsuki Yasuie, covered in burns, stared at the blossoming flames, gritting their teeth.
"Haha! Ian isn't going to lose!"
Across from him, Yamato grinned and said, "Me too!"
The girl charged forward.
Ian scratched the back of his head, regretting his actions.
Although the two samurai had long lost sight of where they had been blasted by the flames rising into the sky, the entire floor had been engulfed in fire, and the flames were spreading rapidly.
He needed to find someone quickly.
But with no clue about the whereabouts of Kozuki Oden's two children, Ian proceeded down the corridor.
At that moment, a paper door slid open, and a young boy with a crescent-shaped hairpin emerged, rubbing his eyes. Clearly still half-asleep, he looked around in confusion, "It's so hot? Did something happen?"
His eyes darted around, searching for his beloved mother.
Instead, he was met with the sight of flames spreading everywhere and a figure wrapped in fire, clad in golden armor with wings.
The boy's eyes widened in shock. "Am I still dreaming?"
Ian raised an eyebrow. Kozuki Momonosuke.
That was clear enough.
He strode over to the boy of his age.
Momonosuke, seeing Ian approach, instinctively pinched his own cheek. The sharp pain jolted him awake. "This isn't a dream!"
At eight years old, despite being shielded by his parents, Momonosuke was aware of the reality of their situation and the danger they faced. A look of fear immediately crossed his face, and he instinctively tried to run back.
But his room was behind him, and there was nowhere left to go. At that moment, he didn't have time to consider his options. His speed was no match for Ian, who casually stepped forward and grabbed him by the neck, lifting him off the ground.
Without using his abilities, Ian was only slightly taller than Momonosuke. However, in his orc form, Ian was much taller, easily outmatching the young boy.
"Momonosuke Kozuki?" Ian asked, though he already knew the answer.
"It's hot! It hurts! Save me! Father! Mother! Help me! I've been captured!"
Momonosuke cried out in terror, his fear evident as he clung to Ian. The intense heat from Ian's body made him scream in pain.
Ian confirmed that this was indeed the right person.
He nodded slightly. Kozuki Oden probably wasn't in a position to do anything for his son.
A scream-like exclamation came from behind, and Ian turned to see the green-haired lady, Kozuki Toki burst through the paper door and into the room.
Hearing his mother's voice, Momonosuke, who was sobbing in fear, turned his head desperately like a drowning man clutching at a straw. "Come and save me!"
The woman, her face illuminated by the moonlight, bit her lip in anguish. She was desperately trying to catch up, but she was still slightly behind.
Momonosuke had been captured!
"Mother? Elder brother?"
At that moment, the situation grew even worse. A high-pitched voice called out beside her. The paper door next to her was opened by a little girl. The second daughter of the Kozuki family, Kozuki Hiyori, had been woken up. She hugged a small pillow, rubbed her eyes, yawned, and walked out of the room, looking puzzled at the scene before her.
Kozuki Toki almost instinctively pulled her little daughter into her arms.
The little girl was completely unaware of the gravity of the situation. Held in her mother's arms, she closed her eyes comfortably and sighed, "Mother's arms are so warm."
Kozuki Toki bit her lip in frustration.
So everyone is here, isn't it?
Ian took a step forward, "I'm sorry, but Kaido-sensei wants to see you."
Kozuki Toki drew the sword from her waist and pointed the blade directly at Ian, "Don't come any closer! And let Momonosuke go!"
Ian didn't stop or back away; he merely shook his head, "All I can say is, I'm sorry."
He felt as though he was slipping further down the path of a villain.
"Give Momonosuke back to me!"
The enraged mother erupted with formidable force, sliding forward and slashing with her blade.
Despite recognizing from Ian's voice that he was very young, she couldn't allow him to harm her child.
Ian casually raised his hand and caught the blade of Kozuki Toki's sword. Without the enhancement of Armament Haki, it was impossible for her to breach Ian's defenses. His strength made it difficult for Toki to resist.
Without hesitation, Toki released her sword and reached out with her slender right hand.
Flames burst from Ian's hands, forming a barrier of blazing golden fire in front of Toki.
Yet, she did not falter and forced her hand through the searing flames.
The intense heat immediately contorted her face.
But in the next moment, the flames before her vanished completely.
Ian couldn't help but chuckle.
Then he recalled that this woman possessed a Paramecia-type Devil Fruit ability—a tricky one at that.
The Time-Time Fruit grants the power to travel through time and send objects or people into the future.
Could it be that she sent all the flames to the future?
Is that even possible?
As he pondered this, Toki's hand was already resting on his arm.
Toki was nearly in tears from surprise.
Now, to transport them to the distant future!
Activate the Time-Time Fruit's power!
Ian grabbed her wrist with ease and lifted her up. "Got it."
"How is that possible!!"
Toki was bewildered. "How could it not work!!"
Her Time-Time Fruit didn't affect him at all!
No, this doesn't make sense.
Powerful Haki can indeed interfere with the effects of Devil Fruits and even negate their abilities.
But this guy shows no signs of Haki at all.
It's just that her ability doesn't work on him!
How could it not work? How can it not work?
Devil Fruit abilities should be absolute.
If it doesn't work, what should I do next? What about Momonosuke and Hiyori?
"How could it not work, you ask?" Ian said calmly. "It's quite simple. The Winged Dragon of Ra isn't a mythical beast but a God (Sun God)."
Toki was momentarily stunned.
This kid actually refers to himself as the Sun God?
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