Boom!
Time rewound several minutes earlier.
On the third underground level of Impel Down, two violent slashes collided head on. Chaotic sword energy crisscrossed the air, tearing apart the frozen floor as shockwaves rippled outward.
"Shiryu of the Rain."
A solemn voice rang out.
Charlotte Smoothie gripped her long sword with both hands, her expression cold and resolute as she blocked the man before her. The air around him reeked of blood and killing intent.
"Sweet Commander, Charlotte Smoothie."
Shiryu's eyes glowed with bloodlust, resembling a feral beast as he pressed forward, exuding immense pressure. He held his sword casually with one hand, effortlessly parrying Smoothie's attacks while exhaling slow smoke rings. His gaze swept over her with undisguised interest.
He had deliberately sought her out.
"Seeking death."
Smoothie's irritation flared at Shiryu's mocking stare. Her long, powerful leg snapped forward with a deafening sonic boom, the air rippling violently as she aimed directly for his chest.
Shiryu remained calm.
He pressed down on the hilt of his sword, anchoring himself as the violent wind slammed into him. His boots sank deep into the ground, cracks spreading beneath his feet. He looked at Smoothie with faint surprise.
"As one of the Sweet Commanders, you should not be this weak."
His eyes sharpened like blades.
Shiryu countered with a kick of his own, the sonic boom even louder than before.
Smoothie reacted instantly. She withdrew her leg and coated it in Armament Haki, blocking the attack head on. Both fighters were forced back several steps, retreating almost simultaneously.
"Stop holding back," Smoothie said coldly. "I do not have time to play with you."
Shiryu frowned slightly.
The situation was far from ideal.
Perhaps joining the Blackbeard Pirates had been a mistake.
But there was no turning back now.
"Squeeze, Powerful Form."
Smoothie activated her Devil Fruit ability, fully drawing out her latent strength. Her presence surged explosively as she prepared to completely overwhelm the man before her.
"Hm?"
Shiryu felt the stormlike pressure bearing down on him and finally abandoned his relaxed attitude.
"Whoosh!"
Smoothie vanished.
She reappeared at Shiryu's side in an instant, her long sword slicing horizontally toward his head.
Shiryu's expression changed sharply. The ground behind him exploded as he was forced to grip his blade with both hands to block the attack.
Before he could recover, Smoothie blurred again.
Afterimages surrounded him as her sword strikes rained down from every direction.
Sparks flew.
Sword energy erupted wildly, powerful enough to cleave solid stone with ease.
Fifth Level, Freezing Hell
"Gulp… Gulp…"
The frozen ground melted beneath Oven's feet as magma spread outward. His entire body glowed crimson, heat rolling off him in suffocating waves as he stared down Jesus Burgess.
"Wahahaha! Charlotte Oven, what a monster of an opponent!"
Burgess flexed his bulging muscles, laughing loudly despite the oppressive heat.
Oven did not bother replying.
He launched himself forward like a cannonball, erupting from the magma as his right fist glowed red hot. Terrifying heat gathered around it as he slammed the punch toward Burgess's face.
Burgess did not dodge.
He roared and raised his own fist, Armament Haki coating it completely, smashing it head on against Oven's attack.
The ground shattered.
A massive explosion erupted as shockwaves tore through the area. The frozen terrain collapsed, magma and ice flying everywhere.
The air rippled violently.
Oven grinned grimly as the temperature on his fist continued to rise.
Burgess felt searing pain surge up his arm, his expression tightening.
"Shockwave Punch!"
The air vibrated violently as a powerful shockwave burst from Burgess's fist. Caught off guard, Oven was blasted backward.
Dragging molten cracks across the ground, Oven steadied himself and rose, his eyes burning coldly as he stared at Burgess.
He charged again.
Like a living volcano, he surged forward, rolling waves of scorching heat flooding the battlefield.
"Unsinkable Fleet, Elbow!"
Burgess coated half his body in Armament Haki and lunged forward.
The two collided like speeding locomotives.
A violent heat storm exploded outward, blinding light engulfing all of Freezing Hell. Both fighters spat blood as they were thrown backward, their bodies battered.
Oven stood once more.
His entire form glowed red white, resembling a blazing sun. The temperature around him climbed to an extreme.
He was done holding back.
"Wahahaha! Shockwave Elbow!"
Burgess burst from the rubble like a charging bull, moving at terrifying speed. His armored arm bent sharply as he slammed forward again.
Oven did not move.
He clenched his fist as his arm swelled, radiating blinding light and unbearable heat.
Boom!
The entire level shook violently. Massive cracks ripped through the ground as a devastating storm erupted, making it impossible to open one's eyes.
"Wahahaha!"
Burgess's expression twisted wildly as he poured in even more strength, intent on crushing Oven in a single blow.
Oven's feet sank deep into the magma.
His golden red eyes locked onto Burgess.
With a single step forward, a colossal wave of heat and force erupted like a collapsing mountain, sweeping everything away.
Crack. Snap.
"H How is this possible…"
Burgess stared in disbelief at the cracks spreading across the armor on his elbow.
It was melting.
With a roar, Burgess was sent flying, skidding across the ground and carving a massive trench before crashing into the shattered terrain.
As Oven advanced, the ground beneath him turned completely molten.
The temperature continued rising.
The air distorted violently.
"Wahahaha…"
Burgess struggled upright, no longer relaxed. He tore off the ruined armor from his elbow and glared fiercely at Oven.
His arm swelled again.
With a violent blast, he vanished.
Reappearing instantly before Oven, he unleashed a punch wrapped in multicolored force, the roar echoing like thunder.
Oven remained calm.
Flames ignited around his raised hand as he delivered a heavy, crushing punch.
A violent storm erupted.
Burgess was fully coated in Armament Haki, but the intense heat drained his stamina rapidly.
Prolonging this fight meant certain defeat.
Oven shifted suddenly.
His fingers hardened like blades as he grabbed Burgess's arm, forcing Burgess to kick out reflexively.
With a deafening clash, Oven raised his knee, blocking the kick. He tightened his grip and flipped Burgess overhead, smashing him into the ground.
Blood sprayed from Burgess's mouth.
The smell of cooked flesh filled the air.
Even Armament Haki struggled against that heat.
Boom. Boom.
Landslides followed as Oven repeatedly slammed Burgess into the ground. Magma surged, rocks shattered, and the battlefield collapsed entirely.
After more than a dozen impacts, Burgess lay broken in a pool of magma, bloodied and barely conscious.
From afar, Oven was little more than a blinding humanoid silhouette of red white light.
He grabbed Burgess by the head and lifted him, then drove a final punch into his abdomen, knocking him unconscious.
As the heat gradually faded, Burgess barely survived.
If not for Lucien's orders, he would have died.
"So this is the strength of the Sweet Commanders…"
On the other side of the fifth level, Vasco Shot and Doc Q found themselves surrounded by countless Biscuit Soldiers.
Their expressions were grim.
Cracker stood in the distance, arms crossed, having yet to make a move.
The Biscuit Soldiers regenerated endlessly.
Even when shattered, they were immediately replaced.
Vasco Shot and Doc Q could defeat one Biscuit Soldier in several minutes, but the numbers never thinned.
They were completely suppressed.
Cracker alone was enough to hold them back.
The true strength of a Sweet Commander was on full display.
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