Chapter 72: Thank You For The Lesson
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Chapter 72: Thank You For The Lesson
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Max smirked in excitement, he wanted to see what an Admiral could do and if his body would be able to handle the attack. There was no intention to dodge, he most likely could, but only by getting hit with different attacks would his defense grow stronger. Did Kaido dodge attacks? No he didn't, and Max wanted that kind of defense ability.
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-Max POV-
A Zoan Devil Fruit had many advantages and the more I used the Bear-Bear Fruit, the more it grew on me. One of the main powers it had was that my recovery was off the charts, and even in case Zed's attack put me down or knocked me out. I was confident that within less than ten minutes my body would be back in fighting condition.
Of course, no normal Zoan Fruit could just do this, but my forceful Awakenings had increased my base state too. Soon enough, in a year or two, there should be no differentiation and my Devil Fruit should Awaken normally, there would not be any more need for the Rumble Balls.
Suddenly Zephyr's arm started darkening, indicating his usage of heavy Armament Haki. The man's smirk seemed to indicate that he was confident in his attack.
[Kuroi Ude] (Dark Arm)
In an instant, his figure dissipated into thin air, and even though I could sense him… the only thing that appeared was a giant dark punch.
I crossed my arms and covered them in Haki, also coating them with internal destruction.
BAAAAAM!!!
The hit landed against me, but it only pushed my body back a little but my legs dug in the ground. Instead, I used Zed's powerful charge against him and swung my head down. The hit pushed the old Admiral's head back. "Ugh!" He winced as a little blood came out of his mouth.
"That was it?" I asked, before pulling my fist backward and swinging it at his chin, making the man stumble a little.
That was when something strange happened to my body.
*Crack!*
My arm twisted strangely like it was broken from the inside and I noticed the unfamiliar Haki in my body, which didn't belong there.
*Crack!*
Next was my rib, it broke like a twig, so easily. By now I had noticed what was going on. "Oh? So your Armament Haki had a delayed reaction, and as soon as I pulled my Haki to attack, your real attack took effect."
It was nothing short of genius, probably something that no one else in this world could pull. Maybe Shanks could since he was theorized to be the best Haki User out there.
"Damn, ain't you a smart one?" Zed asked, I didn't know if he was complimenting or mocking me. But one thing was for certain, he was confident in himself. "So, what are you gonna do now?"
*Crack!*
The next bone to break was that on my shoulder. This was troubling, if I pulled in my Haki and contracted on taking out Zed's Haki that had infiltrated my system, then it would leave me defenseless against his next attacks.
Also, he could probably use the same attack again when I let my guard down to deal with the internal Haki. What a troublesome situation, he had me in check-mate. It was only a matter of time before I had to concentrate on removing that internal parasite-like Haki. But the question was would Zed fall before I did?
While this Haki trick was cool and quite useful, the control and technique required to use it had to be out of this world. Just imagining the training Zed had to put in for this, makes me feel inadequate in my hard work.
*Crack!*
My hip bone was next in line and this one would hinder my ability to dodge, so this couldn't be allowed to continue for too long.
I could feel the reaper's scythe sneak its way around my neck, something that I hadn't felt in a long time. The difference between me and Zephyr was quite large, it was shown in that last attack.
So that meant I had to change….
I can't lose! I can't die! I must win!
Screaming those words in my mind brought me comfort and confidence in my victory. I only had this one chance left, this was my opportunity to see where my limit lay at.
I took three Rumble Balls from my pocket and sneakily crunched them in my mouth, the bear-like sharp teeth easily crushing the medicine.
Using Life Return, I could sense the Rumble Ball move through my veins, heart, and brain, enhancing my physique to new levels as the muscles got bigger and denser.
<Rumble Ball: Awakening>
The Haki inside of me that was previously breaking bones now felt nothing more than a tickle as I stood up, easily towering over Zed.
"Thank you," I thanked the old Admiral, this gratitude truly came from my heart. He had taught me a lot today. "For all the lessons," my voice came out as monstrous and more like an angry growl. But Zed seemed to understand what I meant.
"Stop thanking me kid," he huffed in annoyance. "You are just making it harder to punch you."
Well then, time to get serious now. This battle had lasted long enough, so it was time to end the fight. Negan needed serious medical attention soon.
I charged the man head-on, and he brought up his large mechanical arm to defend himself.
Baaam!!
But it wasn't enough, the big prosthetic broke down, and it wasn't even enough to even remotely stop the attack's power. Zed had to use his other arm to protect himself and his body flew back like a ragdoll, bouncing off the ground multiple times.
Right, my Awakened Form was like a permanent and easier to use Gear 4 so it was quite useful. Plus I could keep this up for hours instead of minutes like Luffy.
<Soru>
Fwish!
I appeared in front of Zed once more and punched at him.
[Soru]
Fwish
BOOOOM!!!
But he also dodged, and my fist landed on the ground, making a large crater. I sensed his presence behind me, so I swung my fist and felt the back of my hand hit him head-on.
This made him spit out a mouthful of blood and his sunglasses cracked. Those were sturdy. Where did he get them? I would like a pair too.
<Kamisori>
While Zed was stunned due to the hit, I appeared right behind him in a flash and lined my fists towards his back.
<Emperor Gun>
BOOOOOOM!!!
A blast of air and Haki burst through my fists, hitting the ex Admiral head-on. Unlike the Six King Guns, this was my improvised technique that combined high levels of Armament Haki with it.
Zed's body slumped on the ground and he fell unconscious.
For a split second I contemplated killing him, just one punch, and his brains would be splattered in the ground. But that wouldn't work as I needed Ain on my side, also the hundreds of warships and white Pacifista that they had access to would be useful. It was good to have Zed around, putting pressure on both the Marines and the Four Yonko.
If I spared him here, even though there was a possibility that he wouldn't respect my decision. Ain was bound to feel thankful and having her owe me a favor would play a big part in my plans.
Instead of making enemies here, it was better to make friends. Having enemies was stressful for everyone involved, plus in case the Marines decided to kick me off, the Neo Marines didn't sound so bad to join. I would easily usurp power from Zed and take his place atop the power structure here. That would have me become a Yonko in all but name.
Anyway, now wasn't the time to contemplate possible situations.
I looked at Raynare and saw that she had finished Ain, restraining her and also Shuzo. Now she was helping Isuka deal with Binz and his Grow-Grow Fruit, which would be helpful to grow food and other things. While his Fruits fighting powers weren't anything special, its production abilities were top-notch.
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A/N: Beast Awakenings are very strong, and also Zed, Z, or Zephyr (whatever you wanna call him) is genuinely strong and was considered Admiral Level when his body went to its younger state. Of course, Zed had a bad matchup against Max, since both of them are physical fighters and mostly close-quarters combat. But Max has a Devil Fruit and Awakening on top of it, plus he isn't a slouch himself as he has learned the Rokushiki and even made many variations of it. On top of all that, Max's Haki is quite powerful, and he can now use Internal Destruction with his Armament.