Chapter 175: Hitting Female Marines, I'm the Best at It!

Tsuru's response was perfect.

As long as they could corner Buffalo, neither Doflamingo nor Abel would be able to escape the encirclement.

However, Doflamingo was also a conceited intelligent man!

Anything Tsuru could think of, he would have thought of, too.

"It's already this time and you're still trying to leave? Just stay and keep me company, fuffuffuffuffu!"

Birdcage!

Doflamingo, who had recovered his injuries and strength, immediately spewed forth the previously withdrawn shadow rider strings into the air, controlling the size of this 'Birdcage' with precision.

He trapped all the Marines within the 'Birdcage', preventing them from searching for Buffalo's whereabouts.

And at this point, even if Tsuru turned off the jamming device, trying to contact the outside Marines through the Den Den Mushi was impossible.

Because the 'Birdcage' itself could isolate all communication signals!

Of course, doing this also meant putting himself in a dangerous situation.

But then again, without deploying the 'Birdcage', would he not already be within the encirclement of the Marines?

So releasing this 'Birdcage' was an absolutely brilliant move!

Even Tsuru's expression gradually lost its calmness.

"Although I don't know what you've eaten just now, I don't believe there are many of those things that can instantly heal all injuries."

"If there are, just go ahead and use them. Because from now on, I'll be attacking with the intent to kill you."

Tsuru was not making excuses for herself; she genuinely hadn't been fighting at full strength all along.

After all, she was aware of Doflamingo's Celestial Dragon heritage.

What would be the consequences of killing a Celestial Dragon, even a former one?

No one knew.

Because no one had ever dared to try it.

If Doflamingo truly died at her hand, even her title as a Marine Admiral might not be enough to save her, nor the Marines present—it was very likely that they would all have to pay with their lives.

After all, those Celestial Dragons were completely unreasonable.

To maintain the dignity and face of the Celestial Dragons, they could do anything.

But now, she had no choice but to make a serious move.

Tsuru preferred to take a risk rather than see Doflamingo rescued and escaped.

"Old lady is getting serious now, I might not be able to take care of you later."

Doflamingo also spoke with a serious expression.

"There's no need for that, as for hitting female Marines, I'm the best there is."

At that moment, Doflamingo felt like he was hearing something unbelievable - did this boy really have such a peculiar hobby?

But he couldn't afford to ponder any further because Tsuru had already launched her attack.

He had to be fully focused to deal with it.

Fortunately, now unencumbered by injuries, he felt confident that he could withstand Tsuru's fierce onslaught for a while.

Until Buffalo recovered his strength.

"Damn! Once we get back, I'm going to train him until he's dead!"

Doflamingo, almost overwhelmed by Tsuru's attacks, thought this angrily, coincidentally mirroring Abel's thoughts.

At this time, Buffalo, hiding in the outskirts of the island's forest and gobbling down a bento box, subconsciously shivered.

Though unsure of what was happening, he couldn't shake the feeling that some villainous subject was scheming against him!

"Never mind, I need to eat quickly. After I finish, I still need to go rescue someone. I wonder how the young master will reward me this time after we return, hehehe~"

"Speaking of which, this bento is really delicious. Every time I eat it, I feel full of energy, it's great! Next time, I'll also prepare some..."

The scene returns to the battlefield.

Doflamingo alone was restraining most of the Navy's high-end combat power. Of course, this is a more polite way of putting it. A less charitable interpretation is that nobody took Abel seriously. But it's not completely true, as there was, for example, the stout female Marine with green hair who had long wanted to avenge her comrades. She had just been waiting for a chance.

And now, the opportunity had finally arrived!

"Hah!" she bellowed, charging at Abel and throwing a punch.

Without hesitation, Abel reflexively punched back. Both fists were coated with Armament Haki. Although Abel had absorbed an experience tome in Armament Haki, his training time had been too short, and he quickly began to show signs of faltering and struggled to keep up.

But let's not forget, this was just his normal state.

For a character capable of transformation, who would use their normal state to fight?

In an instant, he transformed into his Oni form—his black hair turned a pale white and began flailing wildly in the wind.

"Scram!" With triple the strength, Abel's attack power skyrocketed. Even with inferior Armament Haki, he managed to send the stout green-haired Marine flying. However, thanks to her Armament Haki protection, she wasn't injured. She rolled once upon landing and stood up as if nothing had happened.

Abel knew that now was not the time to show off; otherwise, he'd really be in trouble.

"Baby-5, Devil Weapon - Scythe Form!" he called.

"Understood!" A mundane wooden stick by his waist suddenly glowed brightly, morphing into a sinister, blood-red scythe.

Abel immediately grabbed it. He had wanted to use the "Knuckle Form," but considering the Scythe Form's hidden skill did triple damage to female opponents, he opted for this form instead.

The two then engaged in fierce combat. The green-haired Marine's proficiency in Armament Haki was astonishingly high, her physical martial skill unimaginably solid, and her strength was overwhelming. The scythe clashed and sparked with her defenses, scarcely even leaving a mark!

After exchanging a few blows, Abel realized she was a formidable foe.

"I can only look for a chance to break her defense first, then try to seize victory with a single strike from Witch's Hunt!" Abel thought to himself when suddenly she feinted, inexplicably creating distance between them.

The next moment, a barrage of lead bullets hailed from all directions. Abel dodged some with his Observation Haki, blocked others with his scythe, and had no choice but to tank what he couldn't evade with his Armament Haki.

Among them, slyly mixed in, was a precious seastone bullet – likely fired by a sniper who assumed his transformation was due to a Devil Fruit power. When Abel sensed something amiss, the seastone bullet, encased in Armament Haki, had already pierced his protective Haki and lodged into his shin.

Abel stumbled but managed to stead himself without falling. As for the pain, he felt none. In his Oni form, he was devoid of the sense of pain, so the impact was significant but manageable!

In that instant, the stout green-haired Marine charged back with a counterattack and threw a punch with all her might, aiming directly at Abel's head!