Wielding eight swords, Onigumo rushed toward Golden Tiger Raikoshin, intending to finish him off as quickly as possible.
But the moment he moved, his Observation Haki instantly sensed a huge disturbance from the side.
Whipping around, Onigumo's pupils contracted. He leaped to the side as a ferocious slash of light shot toward him.
The sharp sword energy sliced the mast's sail in two and left a long gash on the deck.
Onigumo glanced in the direction of the attack. Red-Eye Squafo had leaped onto the deck, his crimson eyes fixed on him.
"Red-Eye Squafo." Onigumo's heart tightened.
Immediately after, another savage presence approached. Raging Bull Fossum dropped from the sky, his landing nearly shattering the deck.
"You're not dead yet, old man?" Raging Bull Fossum glanced at the gasping, grimacing Golden Tiger Raikoshin, a mocking sneer on his lips.
Golden Tiger Raikoshin's mouth twitched. He took a deep breath. "Be careful. His swords are coated in a potent poison. Don't fall for his tricks."
"No wonder you were almost finished," Red-Eye Squafo said, finally understanding why Raikoshin had been defeated so quickly.
"Then we just have to make sure he doesn't hit us," Raging Bull Fossum growled and charged at Onigumo, swinging his massive, savage-looking cleaver.
Onigumo could feel the immense power behind the blow, so he had no intention of meeting it head-on. He used his agile footwork to quickly evade the strike.
"I'll show you how to dodge!" Missing twice, Raging Bull Fossum grew annoyed. Gripping his cleaver with both hands, he began to spin on the spot, turning into something like a human top.
The rapidly spinning top charged toward Onigumo. He retreated quickly as everything in the whirlwind's path was sliced apart by the high-speed cleaver.
A glint in his eye, Onigumo retreated with the agility of a monkey until he reached the ship's railing. Then he leaped into the air, using two Geppo steps to appear behind Raging Bull Fossum. His gaze sharpened, and he struck with all eight swords at once.
He intended to knock Raging Bull Fossum into the sea with a single blow.
But just then, he heard the sound of something slicing through the air. An incredibly sharp slash of light made his scalp tingle.
Red-Eye Squafo had closed the distance in an instant, his longsword aimed straight for Onigumo's head.
Onigumo's expression changed drastically. He immediately halted his attack and used two of his swords to intercept Squafo's strike.
"Your tricks are still too green, kid," Red-Eye Squafo sneered.
Raging Bull Fossum suddenly reversed his spin. Squafo pressed down with his sword, holding Onigumo in place, intending for him to take the full force of Fossum's spinning attack.
Onigumo's hair-arms shot out, and six of them slashed viciously at the spinning top, sending sparks flying. The six hair-arms trembled violently before shattering and breaking apart. The whirlwind of blades bore down on Onigumo with even greater ferocity.
Onigumo's face fell. He forced Squafo back with all his might, then slashed one of his own swords at the spinning cleaver, a a a a but the recoiling force knocked him back.
Squafo appeared behind him without warning, his longsword aimed for Onigumo's back. Onigumo quickly twisted his body. The sword struck his arm, but thankfully, it was coated in Armament Haki and he wasn't injured.
Onigumo backpedaled quickly, putting more than ten meters between them.
The spinning cleaver finally stopped, revealing Raging Bull Fossum. His face was pale, and he leaned on his cleaver for support, shaking his head forcefully to clear the dizziness.
Onigumo's expression was blank. His broken hair grew back at a rapid pace, twisting once more into the shape of arms. He rushed toward his fallen swords, intending to retrieve them.
At that moment, Squafo moved. He closed in on Onigumo and unleashed a small but razor-sharp slash of light from his longsword.
Onigumo immediately shattered the attack with a swing of his own sword. He then charged at Squafo, his two real swords a blur. At the same time, his hair-arms changed again, transforming from arms into Haki-coated blades.
Two longswords plus six hair-blades attacked in unison, a much fiercer assault than before.
A cold smirk appeared on Squafo's face. His crimson eyes darted about, taking in every attack. He swung his longsword with even greater speed, blocking every one of Onigumo's strikes.
"I can see the path of every one of your attacks. You can't hide anything from my Red Eyes."
Onigumo's expression darkened. In the next instant, his figure vanished. Squafo's heart skipped a beat, and he spun around with incredible speed.
A sword cut through the air, its cold light glinting. Onigumo had appeared directly above Squafo.
Squafo roared and swung his longsword upward, unleashing a powerful slash. But Onigumo's attack was even stronger. His eight swords descended like spider legs, eight piercing beams of light that shattered Squafo's sword energy and continued downward.
The moment Onigumo attacked, Squafo sensed the danger and instantly retreated. The eight beams of light blasted holes in the deck. One of them grazed Squafo's thigh, tearing open a bloody wound.
Before Onigumo even landed, Raging Bull Fossum was already upon him, his massive cleaver swinging wildly.
Onigumo's expression changed. He brought all eight swords up to defend. The cleaver smashed into them with immense force, sending Onigumo flying. He crashed into the ship's bow, shattering it to pieces, as a flush of red colored his face and he spat out a mouthful of blood.
Clutching his cleaver, Fossum grinned cruelly and charged at Onigumo again, unleashing another savage blow that sent a wave of sword energy flying.
Onigumo leaped up, narrowly dodging the attack. Squafo closed in, swinging his longsword repeatedly, sending a flurry of small, dense slashes that tore the deck to shreds.
Onigumo dodged nimbly and then charged straight for Raging Bull Fossum.
"You still dare to come after me? I'll cut you in two!" Fossum sneered, raising his cleaver for a brutal chop. With a ferocious look, Onigumo blocked it with seven of his swords.
The cleaver instantly struck the seven swords. The brutish force shattered the Armament Haki on the six hair-blades and then shattered the blades themselves.
The immense force drove Onigumo's feet through the deck. He spat out another mouthful of blood, but his eyes grew even more ferocious. With his free right hand, he thrust his last sword forward like a bolt of lightning, piercing Raging Bull Fossum's body.
He had taken the blow head-on just for the chance to wound him.
Raging Bull Fossum's eyes widened. He kicked Onigumo, sending him flying into the ship's railing.
Fossum clutched the bleeding wound in his side, his face a horrifying mask of pain.
"I told you not to get hit, you big oaf!" Golden Tiger Raikoshin snarled, his expression grim. He grabbed his greatsword, using the last of his strength to stand and unleash a massive wave of sword energy at Onigumo.
Onigumo pressed his lips together, gritting his teeth against the pain, and leaped out of the way of the attack.
Squafo's expression changed. He quickly charged at Onigumo, trying to kill him while he was vulnerable. The two clashed fiercely. Even though he was injured, Onigumo was still able to block Squafo's attacks.
Just then, a black shadow shot out of the sea. It moved with incredible speed, intervening in their fight as a black fist smashed violently toward Onigumo.
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