Chapter 85: Only Haki Surpasses All! (6k)
Logia types could certainly learn Busoshoku, but compared to Busoshoku, Kenbunshoku should be the priority.
Otherwise, dodging his simple thumb flick wouldn't have been so strenuous.
A guy who doesn't know Kenbunshoku…
"Is just that much!"
While Ace was still in shock, he suddenly felt a shadow loom before him, followed immediately by a strong gust of wind.
His eyelids had just lifted when he saw a massive fist already arriving at his face.
Even though he subconsciously blocked with his arm, the moment the fist made contact, immense strength transmitted through, the force even causing Ace to involuntarily open his mouth and spurt out a mouthful of blood.
Bang!!
The ground was smashed into a huge crater. Ace was fiercely slammed into the ground by this fist, sending gravel splashing besides. As his whole body hit the ground, he instantly turned into a cluster of flames, detaching from the fist's bombardment.
The flames quickly gathered behind the crater into his form, but his hands were already trembling. His body bent over, gasping heavily for air, blood overflowing from the corners of his mouth.
The Haki intensity was still terrifying. Even compared to before, the speed and strength were clearly not on the same level!
This guy…
Ace stared intently at Sag, who was practically wearing ferocious armor, and gritted his teeth, "Monster!"
"You blocked it."
Sag glanced at the faintly faded color of Haki on Ace's arm. "Then what about the second punch?"
Whoosh!
His figure disappeared again, generating a strong gust of wind at a speed almost invisible to the naked eye, blowing Ace's hat clean off, the strap hanging around his neck.
Fwoom!
The instant Sag disappeared, huge flames burst from Ace's body, transforming him into a spiraling pillar of fire that shot straight into the sky. As the flames rose, a hole was broken open in the bottom flames, sending sparks flying everywhere.
Sag retracted his fist, casually flicking off the scorching flames on his hand, and looked up towards the sky.
The rotating flames detached from the ground, sweeping upwards. Ace's figure emerged in the center of the flames, letting the flames revolve around his body.
"Enkai…" (Flame Commandment…)
He raised both hands high, and the flames around his body all gathered into his hands. He fiercely struck downwards. "Hibashira!!" (Fire Pillar!!)
A huge spiral flame presented a pillar shape, bombarding downwards fiercely with his attack. For a moment, even the sky turned fire-red.
The intense heat had long since caused the nearby residents to evacuate. At this time, they were all staring from afar at the abruptly appearing giant fire pillar, their faces filled with terror.
If it fell, the city would likely become a sea of fire!
"Hey, what's this? Is this pockmarked guy that strong?" Renettia couldn't help but exclaim.
Marika smiled, "After all, he's a pirate worth 550 million. He's a big shot on the seas. His bounty is twice Sag's, but…"
"But he won't be Sag's opponent."
Lily interjected, "This level is impossible to win against Sag."
That flame was indeed fierce, emitting a scorching and destructive aura, but it didn't give them a feeling of being on the brink of desperation.
Compared to encountering Garp and Zephyr, that almost desperate sense of oppression, this fire pillar, at least for Sag, seemed well within his capabilities for now.
The fire pillar descended straight towards Sag, like a heavenly punishment, reflecting red on his body. The high temperature caused the surrounding area, already a desert region, to inexplicably self-ignite flames, expanding the nearby fire by a circle.
"Flame, as the most primitive destruction, its power is indeed not small, but on the sea…"
Sag looked up at the descending fire. The fire pillar had already reached above his head. The high temperature of the flames even made the tips of his white hair twist slightly. He unhurriedly opened his hands and brought them together in front of him.
"Haki is the existence that surpasses everything!"
Pitch-black flowing fire flowed from his hands, reaching the point where his hands gathered, gradually condensing into a black sphere.
"Hadōken…"
Sag's hands struck straight towards the descending fire pillar. The black sphere turned into a stream of black fire light, the thickness of an arm, crashing into the thick fire pillar.
"Tenshō Honretsu!!" (Heaven Commander Rushing Violent!!)
Boom!!
"Waah!"
On the other side of the city, Luffy, who was being chased by the Marines, turned his head, grinned, and said, "What huge fireworks!"
"It's terrifying, what is that? Luffy, stop looking! Didn't they say Smoker caught up?"
Sanji, nearby, also saw the huge flower of flame blooming in the sky. After being startled for a moment, he quickened his pace towards the port.
Behind them were the pursuing Marines.
"Over here!!"
Just as they were about to run out of the city, another batch of Marines rushed out from a side street, aiming their weapons at them.
"Straw Hat Boy, and Roronoa Zoro! You can't escape!"
Tashigi followed closely behind, leading a group of people from the other side, forming a triangular encirclement with the pursuing Marines behind them.
The group stopped, spontaneously surrounding Vivi in the center.
Sanji tutted, took out a lighter, lit the cigarette held in his mouth, exhaled smoke, and said, "Looks like we have to fight."
"Ah…"
Zoro drew Wadō Ichimonji, bit it in his mouth, then drew his other two swords. "Haven't found Chopper yet. We have to deal with these Marines first."
Nami and Usopp flanked them, one taking out a slingshot, the other the Clima-Tact, nervously facing the Marines.
"Then let's fight!"
Luffy leaned forward, cracking his knuckles, and smiled. "I won't be arrested by you!"
Tashigi gripped her sword hilt with both hands and charged forward first. The remaining Marines attacked from three sides.
"Let's go!"
Luffy shouted, his arm about to stretch out. But just then, a figure suddenly dropped rapidly from a nearby building. With a clang, it struck Tashigi's blade, knocking the hilt from her hand. A tonfa with an iron ball was now resting on her shoulder.
Boom!!
The ground shattered, sending out an impact that struck the Marines following behind, sending the first few flying.
It was another identical tonfa, its iron ball smashing the ground, unexpectedly shattering the floor tiles in front and plowing open a trench.
On the other side, the Marines had just fired pellets, but they were blocked by a figure that abruptly appeared in front.
Clang clang clang!
The pellets struck the figure, creating sparks and ricocheting off harmlessly.
It was a man with iron shields on both sides of his body. He turned his head, grinned at the group, his teeth reflecting white light in the sunlight.
"How about that? I'm handsome, right? Both Shield Man and Handsome Man, and now Tekkai Man! That's me, the invincible Lord Pearl!"
"You are…"
Sanji paused, his eyes widening slightly.
"Everyone!"
Chopper appeared from the side, shouting, "Found you!"
"Chopper!" the group exclaimed, then looked at the figure blocking Tashigi.
That person wore a grey-blue striped turban on his head and a grey coat, his back facing the group. He lifted the tonfa that had smashed the ground, straightened up, shouldered it, and slowly turned around.
Sanji's eyes widened progressively as he turned. "You…"
"Mr. Sanji, I told you…" Gin smiled at him. "We would meet in the Grand Line!"
…
The huge spiral fire pillar, under the bombardment of the arm-thick black firelight, continuously coiled inwards. Layers of Haki, interwoven with the flames, also resembled burning black fire, resisting the impact of the crimson fire.
Even amidst the collision, the fire pillar was unexpectedly forced upwards, pushed by the black light to the very center between the two, splashing outwards like flowers of flame.
Commonly known as a beam struggle (対波 - duì bō).
Sag's Haki strength, if used purely for defense, indeed couldn't block if hit by this thick fire pillar.
Even forcibly emitting it outwards to create an impact would only resist for an instant.
But his Haki recovery speed was near infinite!
Combining countless instants together, wasn't that equivalent to a continuous beam clash?
This Tenshō Honretsu move wasn't as strong as when attacking Zephyr because that kind of super-full-power release intensity would even cause his recovery speed to briefly stagnate.
But weakening it slightly, using about eighty percent Haki, coordinated with the powerful recovery speed, could create a continuous Haki shockwave.
No matter how much the Haki at the very front was worn away, as long as the follow-up could keep pace, it was infinite.
And the descending fire pillar was certainly not infinite…
It was more like something thrown, an existence with a total amount. Limited meeting infinite, even if the power was the same, it would still be worn away completely!
Moreover, this guy's stamina, after continuous dodging and having a considerable amount of Haki knocked away by his punch, had already dissipated significantly.
"So, how could you possibly be my opponent! Ho-hahahaha! Get lost!!"
Boom!!
Like a balloon popped by a black needle, the huge fire pillar suddenly dissipated at this moment, turning into scattered fireworks. And in the center, the black flowing fire light still hadn't diminished, extending all the way upwards, rushing straight towards Ace, who was maintaining his posture in the air.
Bang!
The black light struck Ace's chest directly, piercing him into an exploding cluster of flames, descending through the air, then quickly reforming into Ace's shape.
"Pu!"
Before landing, Ace clutched his chest, vomiting thick blood as if nauseated. Blood even spurted from all over his body.
"Oh… pierced the pressure points," Sag chuckled.
"You bastard!" Ace gritted his teeth and shouted.
Even though he tried his best to dodge, the Haki impact still hit him. With this strike, his chest felt as if it had been destroyed, not the broken feeling of internal destruction, but besides the intense pain, the chest pain spread throughout his body, feeling like his blood vessels had burst open.
Not to mention the strange feeling caused by the Haki impact, the amount of Haki was simply too shocking. After releasing such powerful Haki, Ace couldn't sense any weakening aura from him.
If it weren't for the non-existence of a 'Haki Fruit', he would really think the man before him was a 'Haki Man' who had eaten a Haki Fruit!
"Tenha Kassatsu!"
Before Ace landed, Sag swung his palm open. Haki launched from his palm, striking Ace's body.
Boom!
But this strike didn't hit. Under this attack, Ace again exploded into flames, turning into clusters of sparks scattering on the ground. Those flames extremely quickly gathered in front of Sag, manifesting as a fist wrapped in fierce flames.
Ace condensed in front of Sag and smashed a punch over.
Sag showed a fierce grin. His left fist wrapped open with Haki, offsetting Ace's fist, while punching towards Ace's forehead.
"I am the Whitebeard Second Division Commander! I won't lose to you!!"
Ace's pupils constricted, and he roared fiercely.
Haki…
Wasn't just Busoshoku!!
Buzz!
The surrounding burning flames, the tangled, blowing dry wind, under Ace's furious glare, turned still in this instant.
A crimson airflow seemed to emerge from Ace's body, rapidly impacting towards Sag and behind him, covering the few people watching the battle.
That was…
"Miote!"
Renettia saw Mute Miote's eyes roll back as he collapsed. Her eyes widened involuntarily, looking incredulously at the pockmarked man swinging his fist. "He also has…"
Marika opened her always smiling eyes, her gentle smiling face turning solemn. "A man with the aptitude…"
Lily gripped the sword hilt at her waist tightly, staring deadly at Ace. "Haoshoku…"
"Hiken!!" (Fire Fist!!)
Ace's fist turned into crimson fire, striking the ferocious form. Huge flames exploded from his hand, about to submerge Sag.
"Heh! Hit him!" Ace grinned fiercely.
But just as his smile emerged, his expression immediately changed. Within the impacted flames, a large hand, like a steel clamp, steadily caught his fist.
Pitch-black flowing fire continuously emanated from that hand, offsetting the impact of the flames. The flames clinging to his body also gradually extinguished as the remaining force faded. The burns on his body were rapidly recovering.
Sag looked down at Ace and said faintly, "Nicely done."
Ace was startled and was about to actively elementalize to break free from Sag's control. But just then, Sag glared fiercely at him.
Buzz!!
The crimson airflow covering the surroundings was suddenly soaked and engulfed by a layer of black-red. After a brief impact, the black-red airflow crushed the crimson airflow, enveloping Ace.
Ace's eyes widened, sweat involuntarily flowing from his forehead. "You also have…"
Bang!!
Before his words fell, Sag swung his right fist, embedding it into Ace's chest. The fist carried his body, slamming it onto the ground, creating a deep crater.
"It's not only you who has this aptitude…"
Sag's eyes shone with a scarlet glow. He glanced at Ace on the ground, covered in blood and unable to move. "Your Haoshoku is too far off."
As the one bearing the brunt of the Haoshoku impact, he almost didn't react, falling into a brief state of shock.
But luckily, he himself also possessed this aptitude.
Otherwise, being attacked by that kind of fist, relying solely on his physical body, he feared a hole would have been blasted through him.
Sag's Haoshoku Haki, although he couldn't control it precisely yet, in terms of degree, this pockmarked guy couldn't compare.
The impact of Haoshoku Haki also prevented Ace from maintaining elementalization in that instant, allowing him to be hit by his punch.
The power of Busoshoku Haki, hitting at close range with fists, besides internal destruction, also smoothly pierced his pressure points. One punch made him lose his resistance.
"Body's too frail."
Sag shook his head, stepped on Ace's chest, simultaneously clenched his fist, about to smash down. "Go die."
"Ace!!"
Just as he was about to swing his fist, a resonant shout suddenly came from a side street. At the same time, an attack came…
A stretched fist?
"Hmm?"
Renettia's fingers bloomed with electric sparks. Under dynamic drive, the mechanical hammer extended, transforming into a cannon hammer, aimed at that fist.
Marika lifted her foot, also preparing to move.
Lily even flicked her thumb, revealing a section of the blade within the scabbard, gripped it with her right hand, about to charge over.
Bang!
Suddenly, a figure quickly pounced over, slamming the stretched fist hard onto the ground.
Gin held his tonfas, the iron ball at the front end bombarding the arm onto the ground. He turned his head to look at the arriving group, remaining silent.
"Gin!"
Luffy shouted, "What are you doing?! Let me go! I have to save Ace! He's my brother!"
In front of Luffy, the people who originally had some joy now became solemn.
Zoro and Sanji stood on either side of Luffy, looking at that terrifying, ferocious body, cold sweat involuntarily flowing.
Nami, Usopp, and Chopper behind were even paler, frightened by that physique.
This guy…
Was super terrifying!
"Brother?"
Gin moved the iron ball away, letting the stretched arm retract onto Luffy's arm. He shouldered the tonfas and gave a bitter smile. "Didn't expect to meet again, and this situation still occurs. I don't want to attack you, but…"
His gaze turned fierce. "I won't let you offend my captain a second time!"
Sag glanced over. Among that group, the boy glaring angrily at him wore a straw hat, his feet planted wide, teeth clenched tightly, clearly preparing for battle.
"Monkey D. Luffy…"
Sag retracted his gaze and looked at Gin. "How did you end up with them?"
"Captain Sag, Doctor Chopper among them treated our subordinates. I originally wanted to invite them over for you to meet…" Gin quickly explained.
"Bastard! Hurry up and let Ace go!!" Luffy shouted.
That shouting expression made Sag pause, inexplicably remembering some things.
Seems like Garp's grandson…
And this one called Ace, seems like it too…
"Didn't the sea teach you respect?"
Sag sneered. His thumb quickly flicked, making a 'bang' sound, hitting Luffy's head, making it tilt back as he fell to the ground.
The sudden attack made Zoro and Sanji's pupils contract, subconsciously protecting Luffy.
"Hey, what was that? Did he hit him with air?" Zoro murmured, biting his sword hilt. "Not good, Curly Brows."
"I know!" A shadow crossed Sanji's eyes. "A seventy million bounty, is he that terrifying?!"
"Ouch ouch ouch!!"
Only then did Luffy clutch his forehead, shouting loudly.
"Pain?" Sanji said incredulously. "But you're rubber!"
That was just airflow, at most like a pellet, just an impact. How could he feel pain?
After flicking his thumb, Sag's ferocious body suddenly shrank, returning to normal state. He glanced at Ace, who was gasping there, and said:
"Whitebeard is just a sick old man beyond cure, who will die sooner or later. It's inevitable. No matter who it is, there will eventually be a day when they are old and weak. If you want to maintain his dignity, then prove it to the sea, instead of barking madly at me."
It was just the most normal commentary, not even said to his face. They had already left, but this person heard it and insisted on fighting. Did he expect him to apologize?
He was a pirate!
Sag walked out of the crater, glanced again at the pained Luffy, and shook his head. "Seeing as you treated my subordinates, forget it…"
And for the sake of that damn Garp…
Sag walked beside Lily. The latter pressed the hilt, retracting the exposed blade into the scabbard, and draped the cloak over him.
He adjusted the cloak. "If you want to come to the party, having treated my subordinates, I will welcome you. But if you want to fight, then just wait to die."
Saying this, he walked towards the depths of the street.
Renettia pursed her lips, looked towards Ace in the crater, and bared her small tiger teeth. "You pockmarked guy are quite strong, but Sag is stronger. You couldn't possibly win!"
"Ara, picked up your life, didn't you?" Marika's smile re-emerged.
Lily followed behind Sag, remembered something, turned back and said, "It's two hundred and seventy million, not seventy million. The bounty has already been raised."
"Ah~~!"
Only then did Sanji notice Lily and the others, his eyes turning into hearts. "Looking closely, they're all pretty young ladies!"
Gin pursed his lips, relieved inwardly, and smiled towards the Straw Hat crew. "Mr. Sanji, Mr. Luffy, I still hope you can come to the party. Captain Sag is very generous. Since he stopped, he won't fight anymore."
At least…
He wouldn't let Luffy die.
In that situation just now, if this Straw Hat Boy had hit the Captain, he would definitely have died.
Luffy rubbed his forehead, which seemed to be smoking, sat up, looked at the departing group, blinked his eyes, tilted his head, and said, "What was that? Seems like he's a good person…"
But then he saw Ace in the crater, not moving much, and his expression changed. "No! He's a bad person!"
But looking closely, Ace was still breathing there, seemed like he wasn't dead…
"Exactly what kind of person is he…" Luffy wondered.
"No matter what kind of person, hurry up and save him! Isn't that your brother?!" Nami shouted.
Chopper had already run over at this time. "Two injured, two injured here! Quick, someone help!"
"This guy is…"
Zoro noticed Ace being carried out of the crater in human form by Chopper, saw the tattoo on his back, looked again at his face, and exclaimed, "Whitebeard Pirates Second Division Commander?"
"Whitebeard Pirates?" Sanji was also surprised.
Zoro returned his three swords to their scabbards, watched Ace for a while, and then said, "I was a bounty hunter for several years. I saw this guy's wanted poster. It's five hundred and fifty million. He's a powerful guy."
"Are Grand Line bounties all this high?!" Usopp cried out in terror. "Didn't you hear that woman? The one called Sag is also two hundred and seventy million!"
"They've all come to the Grand Line…" Zoro's fighting spirit ignited. "Those guys are together with us. We'll meet again sooner or later! Luffy, you need to be prepared!"
"Yeah…"
Luffy stood up, pulled his straw hat down, and grinned. "They're all strong guys, but I won't lose! I will definitely become the Pirate King!"
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