Chapter 26: Reasoning

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"Look, Byakuya and Captain Smoker are fighting!" Someone nearby noticed the clash between Byakuya and Smoker and shouted. 

"What? How did Byakuya end up fighting Captain Smoker?" "What's happening? What's going on?"

The crowd that had dispersed gathered once again, nervously watching the intense battle unfolding at the center. 

On one side was Captain Smoker, and on the other was Byakuya, whom they considered a role model. 

They never expected these two figures actually to come to blows. "White Fist!"

After transforming his arms into a smoky form, Smoker fiercely launched his fists at Byakuya. 

Two fists spiraled and intersected in the air, leaving behind a long trail of white smoke, resembling a roaring dragon. 

Byakuya sneered, "All show, no power."

Byakuya aimed a punch at the dragon's head, causing the entire smoky dragon to collapse. 

"You may be strong, but don't underestimate me, you bastard!" 

Smoker transformed his lower body into smoke, resembling a jet, swiftly moving through the air by rapidly expelling smoke.

Smoker left behind a large amount of smoke to confuse Byakuya, continuously darting in and out of the smoke to launch attacks. 

Byakuya kicked away the jitte attacking from the right side, then punched Smoker's chest again. 

Smoker quickly activated his elemental transformation once more, allowing Byakuya's punch to pass through his chest harmlessly.

Byakuya snorted. The Logia Devil Fruit ability was indeed quite troublesome. 

Without mastering Armament Haki, there wasn't a particularly effective way to deal with Logia Devil Fruit users. 

All he could do was launch repeated attacks, continuously draining the stamina of the Logia Devil Fruit user.

Although Byakuya couldn't effectively harm Smoker, Smoker had no way to deal with Byakuya either. 

He didn't understand why Byakuya was so powerful—his strength, speed, and reflexes were all extraordinary. 

After the exchange, he hadn't inflicted any damage on Byakuya, and he had already exhausted half of his stamina.

If this continued, he probably wouldn't last much longer. 

"Byakuya is so strong! Captain Smoker used his Devil Fruit ability, but still couldn't defeat him." 

"How do we stop it? We don't even have the qualifications to participate in this fight." 

At this point, Byakuya and Smoker's battle had escalated into a heated clash, and Byakuya was already feeling fed up with this futile fight.

This further strengthened Byakuya's determination to learn Haki at the Marine Elite Training Camp. 

"Hey, do you have any other tricks besides Logia transformation?" 

"This fight is getting boring." Smoker remained focused, still hiding within the smoke, occasionally ambushing Byakuya.

"Still at it?" Byakuya impatiently said, 

"Do you think your Logia transformation makes you untouchable?" 

Sensing Smoker's timing as he prepared to strike from behind with his jitte, Byakuya didn't dodge but instead moved to intercept. 

"Go Down!" With a low grunt, Byakuya forcefully snatched the jitte from Smoker's hand. 

Then, he charged into the smoke, sensing Smoker's position and swinging the stolen jitte down fiercely. 

"Bang!" A deafening clash of steel echoed within the smoke, and Smoker's jitte was sent flying several meters away.

Byakuya swung the jitte, sweeping it across Smoker's abdomen, forcefully knocking Smoker out of his Logia state. 

Byakuya controlled his strength to a minimum, but still leaving a vivid red mark on Smoker's abdomen. 

Smoker felt intense pain radiating from his abdomen as if his body had been split in half with just one blow, making even the slightest movement seem torturous.

Byakuya pressed the jitte against Smoker's chest, preventing Smoker from using his Logia transformation again. 

The battle was decided. The onlooking soldiers were shocked. "Captain Smoker lost?" 

They couldn't believe what they were seeing. "Captain Smoker is a Logia Devil Fruit user, after all."

"Moreover, Captain Smoker was at the top of the 25th Marine Elite Training Camp. He lost to Byakuya, who isn't even considered a rookie." 

At this moment, a question arose in everyone's minds: "Just how strong is Byakuya?"

Smoker lay on the ground, struggling to sit up, looking at Byakuya with a calm expression. He couldn't help but feel a strong sense of defeat. 

As a Logia Devil Fruit user, losing to someone who doesn't even know Haki was a major blow to his pride. 

The main reason for his failure was his reliance on the sea stone weapons he carried.

This blow was too heavy for Smoker, who had always held himself in high regard. 

Unconsciously, he remembered what Zephyr-sensei had told him during the Elite Training Camp,

"Smoker, don't think that just because you're a Logia user, you can rely solely on your Devil Fruit power and neglect training in other areas. If you maintain that mindset, you will suffer in the future."

At that time, Smoker didn't take Zephyr's words seriously. 

In his view, the Three Admirals of the Marine, Akainu, Kizaru, and Aokiji, were all Logia Devil Fruit users who had mastered their abilities to the fullest. 

They had become the top figures on the high seas.

As he was also a Logia Devil Fruit user, Smoker believed that if he could develop his Devil Fruit abilities well, he could become a powerhouse like the Three Admirals. 

But now it seemed he was wrong, very wrong. Byakuya looked at the disheartened Smoker lying on the ground, and couldn't help but furrow his brow.

"I didn't hit him on the head, did I? Did I knock some sense out of him?" 

"Hey, is lying on the ground comfortable?" Hearing Byakuya's voice, Smoker snapped out of his daze and struggled to get up from the ground. 

Byakuya asked, "When I attacked you just now, what was your first thought?"

Smoker pondered for a moment. "You've betrayed the Marine, I have to arrest you." 

"And what if I don't cooperate?" 

"Then... I'll find a way to kill you." Byakuya clapped his hands. 

"That settles it." Smoker finally understood why Byakuya suddenly attacked him, it was all because of his previous mistake.

This left Smoker feeling a bit bewildered; couldn't things be resolved through conversation? 

Did it have to end in a beatdown? But precisely because of this beating, Smoker realized his shortcomings and found his direction. 

Taking a deep breath, Smoker said, "Thank you!"

Byakuya looked at Smoker with some astonishment. "Wow, did I knock some sense into him?"

<End Chapter>

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