Chapter 216: A Patchwork Monster? Seriously?!

The square-shaped web of slashes collided mid-air with Doflamingo's hexagonal Spider's Web. Although both were made of what should be delicate materials, the impact between them sent sparks flying and unleashed a massive ring of shockwaves.

As the two webs clashed and Doflamingo's Spider's Web was gradually compressed, his expression grew darker. It was painfully clear, even to someone as overconfident as Doflamingo, that Wood's current strikes were on a completely different level than before.

There were only two possible explanations: either Wood had been holding back his true power earlier, or he had somehow grown exponentially stronger in an instant.

Observing Wood carefully, Doflamingo noticed the one difference from before: the radiant glow of the runes on Wood's chest. When Wood's speed had surged earlier, Doflamingo had initially assumed it was some sort of Devil Fruit ability related to speed. But now, it was obvious that something far more profound was at play.

The threads of the Spider's Web began to snap under the relentless pressure of the slashes. Finally, just as Doflamingo spat a mouthful of blood due to the injury on his chest, the web of slashes tore through his Spider's Web, descending upon him.

Under the barrage of crisscrossing slashes, everything around them—trees, rocks, and the very earth—was cleaved into neat, uniform blocks. A cloud of dust erupted into the air as massive sections of the forest were cut down, leaving a gaping square-shaped scar in the once-dense jungle. From above, it looked as if someone had carved out a massive chunk of the landscape with surgical precision.

Wood landed lightly on a thick branch, the silvery glow of the runes on his chest fading until they disappeared entirely. He surveyed the devastated surroundings and was just about to leave and claim the five billion Berries when a sudden, inexplicable sense of danger surged through him.

Acting on pure instinct, Wood leaped from his perch just as several white threads burst from the ground where he had stood moments before, slicing a nearby tree into several pieces.

Wood's eyes widened in shock at the sight. If he wasn't mistaken, this technique was supposed to be part of Doflamingo's Devil Fruit awakening!

No, while it did resemble Doflamingo's awakened "White Thread Waves," the power was far inferior. Even so, Wood could tell that Doflamingo had definitely begun to touch the edge of awakening his Devil Fruit powers.

The String-String Fruit, as its name suggested, allowed the user to create and manipulate various types of strings with cutting and controlling abilities. However, these strings needed to be produced by Doflamingo's body, as the String-String Fruit was a Paramecia-type Devil Fruit, not a Logia. This meant it didn't allow for elemental transformation or the spontaneous generation of materials.

But the threads that had just erupted from the ground were clearly different from his usual techniques—they had transformed from the very earth itself.

Devil Fruit awakening represented a higher level of mastery over one's abilities. As far as Wood knew, there were two types of awakenings.

For Paramecia types: Awakening allowed the user to affect things other than themselves, turning their surroundings into material they could manipulate.

For Zoan types: Awakening greatly enhanced their recovery and combat abilities, though failing to awaken could have serious side effects.

Paramecia-type awakening, which allowed users to influence external objects, meant that the user could transform the environment into a terrain that favored their abilities, effectively turning the battlefield into a weapon.

Before Wood could ponder further on Doflamingo's current state, more white threads shot up from the ground, tearing through everything around him with ruthless precision.

Even with exceptional Observation Haki, constantly dodging without a stable footing was a losing battle. It was only a matter of time before one of the threads found its mark. After narrowly avoiding another lethal attack that left a shallow cut on his face, Wood decided to use Moonwalk to stay in the air while searching for Doflamingo's hiding spot with his Observation Haki.

As Wood's feet tapped against the air, propelling him side to side to dodge the increasing number of threads, he slashed his sword, sending a powerful wind-laden slash in a specific direction.

"Hyakki Yagyō Sword Style: One-Sword Technique – Kamaitachi!"

The green crescent-shaped slash carried with it a howling wind, the sound akin to the eerie cry of a weasel. It easily sliced through the mass of threads, roaring toward its target.

Doflamingo, still hidden amidst the ruins, extended his arms to either side. With a swift motion, he pulled his hands together.

Almost imperceptibly thin threads connected his fingers to two massive boulders on the ground. Under Doflamingo's control, the boulders, each weighing tens of tons, were lifted as if they were made of cotton. The two rocks collided mid-air, forming a large stone barrier in front of Doflamingo.

The green crescent slash reached the barrier moments later, slicing the boulders in half, but the force of the attack had diminished. Doflamingo simply raised his hand and swatted away the remaining energy, shattering it into harmless fragments.

However, the attack had achieved one thing: it had exposed Doflamingo, previously concealed among the debris, to Wood's view once more.

Doflamingo was in a wretched state. Dust covered his face, and his body was riddled with cuts, his clothes soaked in blood. Upon closer inspection, one could see that many of his wounds had been stitched shut with threads, stopping the bleeding.

His arms and legs, in particular, bore the signs of having been severed and then stitched back together with the String-String Fruit's power, a grotesque form of self-surgery.

Wood could barely contain his urge to mock Doflamingo.

"Is this guy channeling the wrong anime? Did that stitch-faced ninja from the other series wander into the wrong set? This guy's seriously turning himself into a patchwork monster!"

But after a moment's thought, Wood accepted the situation. After all, when Doflamingo fought that rubber kid, he even managed to stitch his internal organs back together with his Devil Fruit powers. So, merely stitching up a few cuts and playing patchwork monster didn't seem too far-fetched…

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P/S: If you are interested, you can read up to chapter 330+ at p@treon.com/Betek and change @ to a