Chapter 450 - 289

Chapter 290: Asthma Attack!Center of the Battlefield.The clash between Yamato and Zephyr was no longer a test, but the raw crushing of power and will!"Haaah—!"War blazed in Yamato's eyes. The Spiked Club"takeru" stirred up wind, thunder, and freezing air, sending a powerful, heavy Thunder Baguaslamming down!"Bring it on!"Zephyr roared with laughter, neither retreating nor dodging. The mechanical giant arm "Crusher" wrapped in boiling deep-red Haki, met the attack head-on from below!Dong—!!!A terrifying sonic boom exploded once more! The shockwave scraped the ground three feet lower! The earth beneath their feet simultaneously collapsed, forming a spreading crater.Yamato used the force to leap back. While still airborne, her form began to change!Bones cracked, muscles swelled, silver-white hair danced wildly without wind, the crimson Oni horns on her head grew thicker and more ferocious, and faint white cloud-like patterns appeared on her cheeks and arms—Hybrid Form!"Now that's more like it!"Zephyr's lone eye blazed with light. Far from showing fear, his fighting spirit intensified.He could feel the opponent's aura surge by a level the moment she transformed. The pressure, mixed with Ancient Oni Lineage, thunder, and frost, made the passion that had lain dormant for years subtly boil.'Who exactly is this young girl? This aura... she is definitely not an ordinary Devil Fruit user!'Zephyr felt awe in his heart, but mostly he was thrilled by the challenge.Since retiring and leading the NEO Marines, he mostly dealt with cleaning up small fry or maneuvering against Marineford. Opportunities like this, where he could go all out against a top-tier powerhouse, were too rare!"Take this! Mirror Mountain!"Yamato roared, instantly surging forward the moment she landed, moving nearly twice as fast as her human form!'Speed, strength, Haki, elemental attacks... a nearly perfect hexagonal warrior!'Zephyr assessed her internally, yet his movements were not slow in the slightest.He no longer simply relied on brute force. His footwork became agile and seasoned, sometimes using "Crusher" to block and deflect power, and sometimes countering with an Iron Fist wrapped in Ryuo from an unexpected angle.Every punch was incredibly heavy, and the deep-red Haki seemed alive, capable not only of defense but also actively eroding and shaking the opponent's Haki defense.Boom! Boom! Boom! Clang! Clang! Clang!The battle completely entered a fever pitch!Their figures rapidly crossed, collided, and separated within the ice and fire ruins. Every contact erupted in deafening roars and destructive aftershocks.Yamato's attacks were fierce and varied, combining the swiftness of lightning, the delay of frost, and the immense strength of the Oni lineage. As the Spiked Club swung, ice cones and lightning snakes splattered everywhere.Zephyr, however, was as steady as a mountain, terrifyingly rich in experience. He always managed to neutralize the most dangerous attacks with minimal cost, seizing fleeting openings to deliver heavy counterattacks.New craters continually exploded in the ground, freezing and then melting, only to be covered by cold air again after melting.Law, watching from afar, had managed to temporarily treat his most severe injuries using his ability. Leaning against the shattered rock wall, his gaze was fixed intently on the battlefield.'Zephyr's combat experience is truly terrifying. Every ounce of strength is used where it counts... Is this the foundation of a top powerhouse from the old era?'On the other side, "Smoker" and "Tashigi," hiding behind boulders further away, were already too shocked by the battle before them to speak."Th-that woman... she can actually fight Teacher Zephyr to this extent...""Smoker's" voice was filled with disbelief.In her understanding, Teacher Zephyr was a symbol of invincibility. Even though he was old and suffered from severe asthma, his Haki and martial arts still stood at the peak of the sea.But now... "She seems to be using... a Spiked Club? And powers of thunder and ice? I've never heard of this person!""Tashigi" also tried hard to adjust to the changes in visual perspective, attempting to analyze the situation, but the intensity before him exceeded his comprehension.They watched Yamato slam Zephyr with a single strike, forcing him to slide back several steps, plowing a deep trench in the ground;The next second, Zephyr blasted the Spiked ClubYamato used to block with a precise "Crushing Short Strike," sending her flipping through the air.But Yamato adjusted her posture mid-air, lightning bursting forth, and counter-charged back at an even faster speed!An even match! A truly even match!...Meanwhile, on a relatively "calm" ice field about a hundred meters away from the main battlefield.Sanji lit a cigarette, slowly exhaled a smoke ring, and kept his gaze fixed on... the tall man who had appeared sometime earlier not far to his front-side, leaning lazily against a block of ice rock."So..."Sanji spoke, his voice betraying little nervousness, instead having a strange calm,"The legendary former Admiral, 'Aokiji' Kuzan, is just watching his Teacher fight for his life over there, while you are here... enjoying the snow?"Kuzan scratched his fluffy black curly hair, yawned widely, and pushed his eye mask up onto his forehead, revealing a pair of eyes that seemed perpetually half-asleep."Arara... don't put it so harshly, Black Leg Sanji!""I just think it would be a shame to interrupt the old man's fun, since he finally found an opponent who can give him a workout."He glanced at Sanji: "What about you? Aren't you going to help your crew's executive? Things look pretty intense over there."Sanji took a drag of his cigarette; the smoke condensed into a white streamer in the icy air."I'll go when I'm needed. But right now..."He looked at Kuzan, his gaze sharpening slightly,"Compared to over there, being with you might require more caution."Kuzan shrugged noncommittally, his gaze turning to the distant battlefield, watching Zephyr and Yamato's latest fierce collision trigger a small-scale ice explosion."What a vibrant young person... That girl, she's Kaido's son, right? I didn't expect her to join the Straw Hat.""She's his daughter!!"Sanji corrected him, then slightly narrowed his eyes,"You know quite a bit. Still well-informed after leaving the Marine?""I just happen to know what I should know."Kuzan's tone remained lazy, but Sanji keenly caught the complexity that flashed across his eyes,"After all, wandering the New World, you encounter all sorts of people and events... Some things are harder to see clearly when wearing that 'Justice' coat."Sanji was silent for a moment, then flicked his cigarette ash."Such as?""Such as... whether Absolute Justice is truly 'absolute'."Kuzan's voice lowered slightly, carrying a hint of imperceptible fatigue and confusion,"Such as, whether the order being maintained is itself already twisted.""Such as... whether certain concealed 'truths' are worth exchanging for something greater."He looked at Sanji and suddenly smiled. The smile had less laziness and more of something indefinable:"Your Captain is walking a very interesting path. Overthrow, shatter, rebuild... It's reckless, but perhaps, it's another kind of 'Justice'?"Sanji did not answer directly, but countered with a question:"So, what 'Justice' are you pursuing now? Or have you given up on the word 'Justice'?"Kuzan was silent for a longer time, finally just letting out a soft sigh and pulling his eye mask back down, covering his eyes."Who knows... Perhaps I'm just looking for an answer that allows me to sleep soundly.""Right now, I'm just a hitchhiking traveler."Silence fell between the two again, broken only by the distant roars and the howling cold wind.Sanji could sense that Kuzan was not truly without fighting intent or stance; he was just caught in a deeper state of confusion and observation.An enemy in this state is sometimes more troublesome than one who is clearly hostile.'A lost former Admiral... is more of a headache than a determined pursuing Admiral, Luffy!'Sanji thought internally, yet maintained his composure and vigilance on the surface... Just as Sanji and Kuzan were engaged in their subtle conversation, the situation on the main battlefield was undergoing an unforeseen change.After another fierce, head-on clash, Yamato and Zephyr retreated over ten meters each, breathing heavily.Yamato had several new bruises, and her Oni horns had scrapes, but her eyes were still blazing bright.Zephyr appeared unharmed, but upon closer inspection, his breathing rhythm was much more erratic than at the start, and fine beads of sweat were forming on his temples."Haha... exhilarating!"Yamato leaned on her Spiked Club, licking the corner of her mouth,"Old man, you are ridiculously strong! But I can still fight!"Zephyr did not reply immediately. He took a deep breath, trying to calm the familiar, repulsive feeling of suffocation in his chest.Damn the asthma... why now of all times!'My body... has it really reached its limit?'A trace of helplessness and unwillingness surged in Zephyr's heart.The erosion of age and the torment of chronic illness were shadows he could not completely erase, no matter how much he trained and fought.If it were twenty years ago—no, even ten years ago—he would have been confident fighting this exceptionally talented girl for three days and three nights!But now... "What's wrong? Are you tired, old man?"Yamato keenly noticed the subtle change in Zephyr's aura, and full of fighting spirit, raised her Spiked Club again,"I'm not satisfied yet! Next move!""Divine Foot: White Serpent Rush!"Lightning exploded beneath her feet, and her figure instantly transformed into a winding, charging white lightning serpent, moving faster than any previous rush!The Spiked Club trailed behind her, condensing astonishing freezing air and Haki, charging straight toward Zephyr's center!This was a strike combining speed and piercing power!Zephyr's pupils contracted, his Observation Hakiwildly warning him!He wanted to move, he wanted to block, but his chest suddenly tightened!That damned suffocating feeling squeezed his breath like an iron hoop, and his body movements inevitably suffered a moment of delay and stiffness!It was this single instant!Yamato's Spiked Club, at an incredible angle, pierced through Zephyr's Haki defense layer, which had slightly slackened due to his physical distress!!Pfft!Time seemed to freeze.Law, "Smoker," "Tashigi," and even Sanji and Kuzan who had been watching from afar, all instantly held their breath!The tip of Yamato's Spiked Club, wrapped in chilling frozen air and Ryuo, deeply pierced Zephyrbelow his left shoulder, near his chest!Blood slowly seeped out along the tip and grooves of the Spiked Club, dripping onto the frozen ground, blooming into dazzling red flowers.Zephyr's body stiffened.He lowered his head, looking at the Spiked Clubembedded in his body. A momentary look of shock, unwillingness, and... a hint of relief flashed in his lone eye?"Cough... cough, cough, cough!"Violent coughing erupted uncontrollably, mixed with bloody foam.His face instantly turned pale. The asthma attack, like an exploding bomb, fully flared up at the moment his body was weakest!Breathing became extremely difficult; every inhale was accompanied by a wheezing sound like a bellows, and the strength drained from his entire body like a receding tide.Yamato was also stunned.She hadn't expected to pierce the opponent's defense so easily!Given this old man's strength and experience, this strike should have been blocked or dodged!She subconsciously tried to pull the Spiked Clubback, but found Zephyr's hand gripping the staff tightly, preventing her from drawing it out."...Well... done..."Zephyr struggled to utter a few words, a complex smile twisting his lips,"It is I... who lost... cough! cough, cough, cough!"Before he finished speaking, his tall body finally gave out and fell backward. The Spiked Club was released along with him.Blood gushed from the wound, staining the white cloak and the words "Justice" crimson."Teacher Zephyr—!!!"Two mournful cries sounded simultaneously!One came from "Smoker," who had finally broken free of his psychological barrier and rushed over desperately, and the other came from Kuzan, who instantly erupted with terrifying cold air and appeared beside Zephyr as if teleporting to support him!"Old man!"Kuzan's voice lost all its laziness, filled instead with rare anxiety and coldness.He quickly used his ability to freeze Zephyr's wound to stop the bleeding, while checking his breathing, his expression extremely solemn.Yamato stood still, holding her Spiked Club, looking somewhat helplessly at the fallen Zephyr, and then at her own hand.The victory came too suddenly, and felt too... wrong.She could feel that the opponent's body seemed to have failed him at the last moment.Sanji also instantly appeared beside Yamato, watching Kuzan warily, and asked Yamato in a low voice:"Are you alright?"Yamato shook her head, her eyes complex: "I... it seems...""It has nothing to do with you."Sanji interrupted her, his gaze falling upon Zephyr, who was struggling to breathe and whose consciousness seemed to be blurring,"It was his body that reached its limit first."The atmosphere of the battlefield instantly dropped from extreme frenzy to freezing point.Zephyr's collapse was like an abrupt rest note, forcibly halting the duel.However, a greater storm seemed to be just beginning to brew.Kuzan slowly raised his head. The eyes that were usually sleepy were now sharp with cold light, fixed on Yamato and Sanji.Law silently gripped "kikoku," struggling to stand upright."Smoker" and "Tashigi" also rushed to Zephyr's side, their faces filled with anxiety and fury.The ice and fire hell of Punk Hazard ushered in an interlude full of variables and hidden dangers.Stopped🔊 Browser