90. Shiki: Is This Dog So Powerful?

"The ground, it's rising!" 

Scanning the area, 

From the sand emerged numerous realistic lion heads, hovering in the air.

Nami and Carina couldn't help but narrow their eyes, feeling a powerful sense of danger surging from within.

Yet, before they could shake off their panic,

They noticed the earth beneath their feet creeping up towards them as if it had a life of its own.

Just as Nami began to regain her composure, mud enveloped her body!

"Damn it, what do you think you're doing!"

Although Nami wanted to crush the mud beneath her feet, Carina was too nearby.

Using the power of Lightning, she might accidentally hurt Carina!

Confronted by Nami's inquiry, Shiki sneered:

"Young lady, no need to rush. I simply want to inquire if you've taken my IQ potion."

As he spoke, Shiki utilized his Devil Fruit power to elevate Spike, still coated in mud, from the ground.

"What IQ potion? We've never even heard of it!"

"I suggest you release Spike immediately, or when our companion arrives, you'll..."

Before Carina could finish her sentence, Shiki flicked his wrist lightly, turning it into solid stone.

Then, Shiki huffed coldly and shifted his gaze to Nami.

"Your companion is quite chatty, but..."

"Regardless of whether you took my IQ potion or not, I must retrieve this mutt for research."

"If you don't wish to join your partner as a statue..."

Before the sentence could finish,

Shiki gaped in disbelief as Nami vanished before his eyes, and muttered,

"What in the world? Am I seeing things?"

"Vari (Electric Discharge)!"

Bang—

A thunderous explosion erupted from behind Shiki!

In the next moment, a brilliant bolt of lightning flashed before his eyes!

In just a heartbeat, Shiki, struck hard by Nami's attack, saw his hairstyle instantly morph into an afro!

Even a wisp of black smoke emerged from his body.

"I apologize, Carina. I have my own challenges to face."

"Hyakuman Boruto (1,000,000 V)"

As Nami's voice trailed off, lightning crackled in her palm, coalescing into a cluster of electric beams.

Seemingly aware of Nami's intentions, Shiki prepared himself.

At the moment Nami was about to unleash her attack, Carina broke free from the mud and swiftly activated Soru, darting away.

Gazing at Nami's remorseful expression, Carina cursed:

"Nami! You guys can't treat me like this just because I used my Devil Fruit power before!"

Nami flashed a smile, sticking out her tongue playfully.

"How could you say that? Carina, I only wanted to rescue you. I truly didn't have any other intentions."

"Rescuing with lightning? Are you some kind of devil?"

"Carina, please, hear my excu... No, no, no, listen to my explanation!"

As the two continued their endless argument, Shiki , now fully aware, couldn't help but furrow his brow at the lightning surrounding Nami.

"You're quite something, little miss. I never imagined the Rumble-Rumble Fruit would end up in your hands."

Carina and Nami, amidst their argument, glanced at Shiki.

He was so startled that he couldn't even utter a word!

At that moment, Shiki also came to a realization: never provoke a woman, especially one in a rage!

But Shiki had no intention of letting them off the hook!

Simply being a Rumble-Rumble Fruit user wasn't enough to make Golden Lion back down.

He was determined to capture those pests from the Cowboy Pirates today!

Especially upon discovering that these pests didn't evolve using IQ, Shiki's feverish gaze never waned!

While Nami and Carina were still engrossed in their argument,

Shiki's eyes turned icy, and the lion heads suspended in the air launched a lightning-fast assault, aiming to strike down Nami and the others!

"Barrier!"

Instinctively, Carina crossed her fingers, conjuring a circular barrier to shield herself and Nami.

Boom!

A massive explosion reverberated.

Amidst the smoke and dust, Carina displayed a trace of impatience.

Though she had lost sight of Shiki, it didn't stop her from denouncing him as despicable with a resounding yell!

Just as Nami was about to activate her Devil Fruit ability to escape from Carina's barrier,

It was time to teach this pirate called Shiki a lesson.

Suddenly, the sky darkened!

An abyss of darkness swiftly engulfed the two girls!

"What's going on?"

Carina furrowed her brow and attempted to use the barrier to force it open, but she discovered that no matter how much she exerted herself, she couldn't break free!

Hearing Carina's labored breathing, Nami quickly urged her to dispel the barrier.

Carina nodded faintly, simultaneously deactivating the barrier. Nami illuminated their surroundings with lightning.

Soon after, Nami scowled in frustration and said angrily,

"That guy seems to have buried us underground!"

"Was it those lion heads from earlier?"

"Could it be that when the barrier shattered, he used his Devil Fruit ability to coat its surface with sand, trapping us?" 

Carina's speculation proved to be quite accurate; the moment the lion heads made contact with the barrier and shattered, Shiki indeed ensnared the two of them with the floating mud.

However, there was one aspect Carina hadn't anticipated.

After imprisoning them, Shiki promptly manipulated the mass of mud, creating a deep crevice in the ground and burying them within.

That's why Carina had initially attempted to break through the cage with her barrier, but despite her utmost efforts, she couldn't break free!

"Damn it, if we had known this guy wasn't trustworthy, we wouldn't have agreed to his terms so easily!"

Nami clenched her lower lip tightly, feeling extremely frustrated!

"I should've insisted he hand over the gold and silver treasures first, and then we would've followed him."

"We're truly at a disadvantage here!"

Carina: "..."

"Nami, you idiot, how can you joke at a time like this!"

"Quick, use Elementalization to get us out of here, or we might actually end up dead!"

Nami shook her head, knowing she had only recently consumed the fruit and hadn't fully mastered its abilities yet.

The time Nami could utilize Elementalization was severely limited.

Just two seconds felt incredibly short, and Nami couldn't help feeling a little frightened, especially considering the possibility of the Golden Lion guy catching up to them.

Continuously utilizing the fruit's ability to manipulate the soil to increase its thickness,

If that were the case, Nami might not make it out of there within two seconds.

Then Nami would likely become trapped in the mud, struggling to breathe as Elementalization disappeared, ultimately suffocating!

Nami never engaged in battles with uncertain outcomes, and the key issue here was her unfamiliarity with her abilities.

If Enel were here, there would be no need to contemplate; he would make an early exit and confront Shiki, declaring himself a god.

Nami frowned, pondering how to escape this dreadful situation.

With Carina now awake, they were too close together to unleash a powerful attack to break free.

"Carina, can I just say—"

"No, absolutely not. Don't even entertain the thought!"

Carina's tone was resolute; she didn't want to be taken aback by Nami.

"I haven't even finished speaking yet!"

Nami huffed indignantly, shooting Carina an angry glance.

However, Carina paid no heed and fired back:

"Listen, Nami, whatever you're thinking, forget it. It's completely out of the question!"

The two exchanged glances and lapsed into silence.

Now wasn't the moment for squabbles; escaping their predicament took precedence!

Observing Carina resting her chin on her hand, Nami waited expectantly. After a moment of contemplation, Carina grinned.

"I've got a plan!"

With that declaration, Carina employed her Devil Fruit ability to fashion an electric drill in her hand and began drilling towards the mud wall!

Upon witnessing this, Nami's eyes sparkled with determination as he conjured electric drills in both his left and right hands simultaneously.

They prepared themselves alongside Carina, ready to shatter the cage that entrapped them.

Chug, chug—

Chug, chug—

As the ground reverberated with each drill's impact, Nami and Carina were taken aback by an unexpected realization:

The soil was far harder than they had anticipated!

Nami puffed her cheeks in frustration and exclaimed, "Damn it, that Shiki guy must've used his fruit ability to solidify the soil into rocks!"

Carina frowned slightly, mirroring Nami's determined stance, and urged, "Keep going, Nami. Don't give up. We have to save Spike; we can't let that guy take our partner away!"

Nami nodded resolutely, her gaze hardening with determination!

"Partner, we don't abandon each other!"

Those were the words Al had instilled in them, the ship's code.

While Nami continued her frantic efforts to break free from the earth's depths,

Shiki, observing the slowly closing crevice outside, couldn't help but burst into laughter.

"Shihahahaha~"

"You two just wait to suffocate underground; I'll be taking this mutt with me!"

As soon as the words left his mouth, Shiki moved to manipulate the mud field and retrieve Spike.

"Crack~"

There was only a faint sound of breaking...

The next moment—

Bang!

Spike violently shattered through the soil covering it and soared into the air!

"Interesting. There's such formidable power here. What an excellent subject for experimentation!"

Shiki's frown quickly transformed into hearty laughter.

However, as he laughed, the entire island began to tremble violently!

Spike vigorously shook his head, observing the tidal wave of mud and rocks approaching like a tsunami, his eyes widening in disbelief!

Spike extended his claws, pointing at Shiki and then at himself, before wildly waving his hands, as if to convey:

"Are you out of your mind? How dare you treat me, an extraordinary dog, with such disregard for my life?"

The smile on Shiki's face abruptly vanished, replaced by a stern expression.

Shiki hummed softly and muttered under his breath,

"Yoshi, Sugoi!"

Spike wiped the sweat from his brow, his expression filled with relief. He was just about to reach behind him to retrieve the chicken legs to reward himself.

However, Spike froze in place, staring at Shiki with a perplexed expression, as if he had stumbled upon a new continent.

Could it be that this guy in front of him actually understood what he was trying to convey???

It was remarkable, considering that aside from Al, Tom, Muscles, and Merlin, no one else had been able to comprehend their gestures!

Of course, Tom's seals don't count; no creature can make sense of that gibberish!

As Spike discreetly tucked the chicken leg away, he regarded Shiki with suspicion.

Shiki nodded solemnly and uttered with a serious demeanor,

"I assure you, this skirmish will conclude swiftly. I'll do my best to spare you undue suffering. Trust me!"

"Shihahahaha..."

Spike rolled his eyes, blew a raspberry at Shiki, and muttered under his breath:

"Idiot, idiot, colossal idiot!"

Thankfully, it had assumed the other party understood its gestures, only to realize it was a lost cause. Who would've guessed this guy was even dumber than Tom!

Not only did he fail to grasp a single sentence, but now he also wanted to hasten their burial?!

"Zanpa (Slash Wave)!"

And so on...

As Spike processed the situation, he rubbed his eyes, only to be met with the approaching tidal wave. His fright was so intense that his eyeballs practically popped out of his head!

Without a moment's hesitation, Spike released his grip on the ground and bolted into the distance!

As he ran, Spike suddenly realized his eyes weren't following him, and they didn't return!

In a split second, Spike skidded to a stop, retraced his steps, retrieved a cream pie from behind, and smashed it into Shiki's face.

Afterward, Spike grabbed his tail and spun it clockwise.

His tail, like a clock's mechanism, propelled his legs to carry him far away!

After Spike handed over control to his tail, he spread his arms wide and placed his hands on his ears, making a mocking face at Golden Lion.

It was a gesture filled with ridicule!

However, Shiki didn't seem angered by it.

It's not so much that he wasn't angry; it's more that he was still reeling from the shock of Spike's actions!

Shiki was standing there sluggishly, his eyes wide open, his jaw nearly hitting the ground.

In this moment, Shiki's mind was flooded with images of Spike's escape.

Could eyes really float in the air without plummeting to the ground?

Newton: "This is beyond my comprehension. Why don't you all understand???"

Not only were the eyes suspended in midair without falling, but they also couldn't be reeled back in fully intact?

Was this truly something creatures in this world were capable of?

"What a peculiar creature..."

Shiki wiped the cream from his face, gazing at Spike who was making faces at him in utter disbelief.

In his eyes, a hint of greed and fanaticism flickered.

"If I were to capture it and study it..."

"As long as I can harness its mystical abilities, then my legion would be invincible in battle!"

"Shihahahaha..."

Observing the inexplicably laughing Shiki, Spike gradually lowered his hand, wearing a puzzled expression, and blinked his eyes.

It was as if he was conveying, "This guy... is he an idiot?"

Just as Spike was still contemplating whether Shiki was indeed a fool,

Right before him, a colossal stone wall, towering a hundred feet high, suddenly materialized!

Spike's eyes widened in alarm, and he swiftly twisted his tail, attempting to halt his momentum!!!

As Spike continued to twist his tail, there was only a "click," and thick black smoke billowed from Spike's tail.

Spike pointed towards the towering hundred-foot wall ahead of him, then gestured towards his tail behind him, spreading his hands in a gesture of helplessness.

But Spike wasn't as composed as Tom; he wasn't so calm.

The next moment,

As the towering wall drew closer,

Spike scratched his head frantically and let out a piercing shriek:

"Ahhhhhh~"

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