26 Chapter 26

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Chapter 26

Title: Shadow Bear...

….

Max smirked and Gecko Moria smiled back, and his shadows also retreated to the ground.

He suddenly laid down on the ground atop the wall. "Shishishishi~ I don't need to get up to deal with some small fry like you."

Fwish!

The shadows under Max moved and became ropes that held him down. Out of the ropes, Moria's shadowy face appeared. This was his double created from the man's own shadow.

BOOOOM!!!

Two unseen cannonballs hit Max while he was restricted by the shadows. 

Raynare looked at the scene with a terrified look in her eyes. "Max!!" She wasn't even able to react to this.

"Horohorohoro~" Persona's laughs ring through, her previously shocked face was now filled with amusement. "It seems like this guy wasn't anything too special. Moria -sama handled him without difficulty."

"Huh?" Max frowned as the dust cleared, he was in his bear hybrid form so unexpectedly he hadn't been injured. "Those cannons most suck. Not even a scratch?"

He looked at himself in wonder. Then back at Absalon who had just shot the cannonballs. "Ah, I get it now, you have the Invisibility Fruit so the handheld cannonballs aren't as strong as the normal ones."

But Max was truly baffled why he was unhurt by any of this, true there was a little internal shaking and some of his bones had cracked. But that wasn't anything too big, and in an hour or two with the right care, these internal injuries would be healed... He didn't know how to use Tekkai and at best used some kind of bastardized version of it. He knew the theory behind the move, and any attempts to learn, train and use it would result in failure. He had a whole week in Boin Island to train with the Rokushiki, and except his weapon's long-range attack. Only his Geppo had evolved and he was able to do a double jump. 

He wanted to master all of the Rokushiki before cannon came around. It would help him immensely if he was able to do so. Still though, here in the midst of battle he had just used Tekkai unconsciously.

He knew why only people who fought a lot in this world became so strong. It was simple, because this was how people in this world became stronger, by fighting. Training can help till a certain degree, but fighting and  a dangerous situation helped even more. Luffy was the best example of that.

"You know, I really like your Devil Fruit Moria. So I will be taking it," Max shrugged without a  care in the world. He leaned the spiked bat on his shoulder.

<Soru>

Fwish!

Max disappeared from everyone's view and landed atop the wall. In the middle of the enemies, that was the signal Raynare and the other marines needed as crow wings came out of her back and the marines started shooting at the zombies.

Clang!

Max and Moria calshed, one used a spiked bat and the other a giant scissor turned into a makeshift sword. Immediately Max thought of using the flashbang that he had prepared for this fight. Instead he decided against it, and wanted to fight a strong enemy straight on. This would help with his growth.

Clang! Clang! Clang!

They clashed over a dozen times, spiked bat and a giant sword. Fow a big guy, Gecko Moria was quite fast with his hands. Especially since his shadow double would attack Max and distract him.

"{Bat Swarm!}" Yelled out Moria, and that caused his shadow double to turn into shadow bats. They went to bite into Max, and the marine captain had to jump back.

Absalon turned to shoot with his invisible cannons, but it wasn't meant to be as Raynare aimed with a sniper rifle while high in the air.

Pow!

A shot rang out, and the next thing anyone saw was Absalon fall on the ground, with blood coming out of the hole in his forehead.

"Absalon!!" Yelled out Moria in distress, and Max took that opening. His spiked bat hit the Warlord straight in the back of his head.

Baaam!

"Ugh!" Moria's body slumped into the ground, unconsciousness claiming him.

Max slammed his spiked bat into the man's head once more, causing his skull to crack open like a watermelon. Brain bits splattering all over the ground. "Ray, kill the rest too."

Pow! Pow! Pow! Pow!...

Her shots rang through, killing all of the other zombies except Perona. The bullets just went straight through her, showing  that she was in her ghost form.

Perona finally got out of her shocked form, turned around and started running. "AHHHHHH!!!" her yells vibrated all through the island as she ran away in fear.

Raynare looked at the running figure in confusion. "Is she a Logia?" 

"No, she is a Paramecia," explained Max. "Her real body must be around here somewhere. Also now this island has become pretty harmless since Moria has been killed. No other zombie would survive here and all shadows will return to their owners."

Raynare nodded. "So what now?"

"Now we just tell the Headquarters that Gecko Moria attacked us out of nowhere," Max looked at everyone in the crew pointedly, daring them to challenge his story. He then smirked and added. "Also his treasures got lost at sea."

His crew's face brightened at that, they all felt like they were about to become way richer.

"Hell yeah!"

"The best captain in the world!" 

"""Max!! Max!! Max!""" They started chanting like madmen and some brought out barrels of wine and got ready to have a feast.

But one dangerous look from Raynare stopped them on their tracks. "Are you stupid enough to party in enemy territory?"

"Uhhh… Lieutenant Ray… we were just joking." 

"Y -Yeah… joking sir…"

Max chucked amusingly at the sight, it truly was funny to see his subordinates acting like this. He considered it comedic at how laid back his subordinates could be, all because of his presence.

"Anyway, the Shadow-Shadow Fruit should have reincarnated in one of the fruits in our ship or Moria's island. Search every nook and cranny of this place." Raynare ordered the marines. Her captain on the other hand looked at this with interest in his eyes.

Max sat down on the wall, with his feet dangling in the air as he went back to his human form. "Oy, wanna come and sit down with me a little?"

"We have an unknown enemy here, that girl could be anywhere in this island ship," Raynare frowned, as always looking at duty before relaxing. While she sometimes doesn't approve of her captain's actions, she will follow his commands all the same. Raynare knew how the world worked and even respected Max for capturing the world by its reigns.

"We have two enemies," Max corrected her, "Both the girl named Perona, and doctor Hogback."

"Hogback?" The name seemed familiar to Raynare, but she couldn't put her finger on why.

Max noticed this and patted the ground next to him. "Come now, I will explain everything to you."

Raynare had no choice but to relent. "Okay, but you will have to be careful. I am your eyes in the sky, and having you be hurt in my watch wouldn't be good."

"My 'Eyes in the Sky'... that was a metaphor dear Raynare." 

"Don't call me Raynare, or someone might hear the name," she seemed a little careful on her true name, but since she told Max already about her name, he could see that she truly did trust him. After all, for some reason that Max didn't know, it seemed like the name Raynare was famous for something.

Max shrugged. "If you feel like telling me something then do so. If not, then don't. I trust you Raynare and whatever crimes you did in the past, won't matter to me," he chuckled a little at that. "It would be kinda hypocritical if they did."

Raynare took a deep breath. "I hate the Celestial Dragons and the World Government. They both killed everything I have ever loved."

....