Chapter 114: A Little Spar

"Hold on," Luo Ning interjected. "I stopped you simply for a spar, a fight with no lasting harm. Consider it a chance to test your resolve."

Shanks' shoulders visibly relaxed. A good fight was preferable to imprisonment any day.

"In that case, I'm eager to gauge your strength, Mr. Luo Ning!"

With a flourish, Shanks drew Gryphon from his waist. The rest of the Red Hair Pirates silently followed suit, raising their weapons in unison.

They understood the disparity in power. Luo Ning, the man who single-handedly overpowered both the Marines and the Shichibukai, was far beyond their collective might. A single fighter wouldn't stand a chance.

The air shimmered as several clones materialized around Luo Ning. Simultaneously, the space surrounding them began to warp, the very sky twisting and contorting.

"This is a special battleground I've created," Luo Ning explained. "It's vast enough to accommodate our fight, and the repercussions won't reach the outside world."

Essentially, this was a combat arena conjured by Luo Ning's Fantasy. Unless his opponent possessed the strength to directly kill him or shatter the space itself, the battle's ferocity wouldn't spill over.

An anomaly unfolded before the onlookers. From their vantage point, the interior space seemed to stretch and morph, morphing into a colossal battlefield entirely separate from their location.

"An extraordinary ability!" King Riku and the others gasped in awe. This power was unlike anything they'd ever witnessed. They were transformed into spectators, granted a clear view of the impending clash within the confines of the constructed space.

"Lets get started. Show me what you're truly capable of!"

Luo Ning doesn't use weapons. He usually relies on his fists and fantasy. In terms of hand-to-hand combat, he has been training in Impel Down for a while. Although he can't say he can compare with fighters who have trained for decades, his skills are not bad.

After all, his training ground was far more real than those who trained outside. So even if he isn't as good as these people now, the gap isn't significant.

Seeing that Luo Ning was going to fight them barehanded, Shanks naturally wouldn't question his opponent's choice of weapon. He still knew some of Luo Ning's tricks.

BOOM!

Just after Luo Ning finished speaking, Beckman fired a shot directly. The bullet, coated in Armament Haki, struck Luo Ning right on.

To be honest, Luo Ning thought Beckman was so powerful that he could make Kizaru surrender directly. It was obvious this bullet was no ordinary bullet.

Even Seastone bullets wouldn't be much use against Kizaru if they weren't imbued with Armament Haki.

"By covering the bullet with Armament Haki, its hardness is strengthened. The outer layer of Armament Haki is used as a propellant to accelerate the bullet's speed to a level far exceeding what a firearm can achieve. It's a brilliant method!"

Luo Ning grabbed the bullet, which was indeed very powerful, using Armament Haki as the propellant. This made it much stronger than the gun itself.

With Armament Haki coating it, it's no wonder even Kizaru wouldn't dare act rashly when pointed at by this gun, and could only escape when given the opportunity.

"You caught it like that? It's both expected and unexpected!"

As the Red Hair Pirates' think tank, Beckman himself had analyzed Luo Ning's strength, so he naturally knew the power of his guns.

He knew his bullets would hardly hurt Luo Ning. After all, Luo Ning couldn't be broken through during the siege by Garp, Sengoku, and the two Admirals, so naturally his bullets couldn't do it either.

Seeing the bullet effortlessly pinched by Luo Ning, Shanks found it unacceptable.

"It seems long-range attacks won't work. Yasopp, can you help obscure his vision?"

Shanks recognized Beckman's bullets were ineffective, rendering him practically useless in this fight. As for Yasopp, while a scoundrel...

He conceded that Yasopp, unlike Usopp, possessed some genuine skill. Usopp's sniping wasn't just basic slingshot marksmanship.

Later, Usopp would utilize various special seeds, but that was a future development. Early on, Usopp relied solely on his skill. His sniping of Sugar was a testament to his talent.

Similarly, Yasopp could likely employ some attribute-enhanced slingshot techniques.

Don't be fooled by Lucky Roox's fat figure. In the pirate world, such appearances can be deceiving. He fought alongside Shanks in close combat, wielding Armament Haki at a very proficient level. His punches held immense power.

Shanks, on the other hand, relied primarily on his signature weapon, the Gryphon.

This is why Luo Ning claimed Mihawk possessed the combat strength of a Yonko. As a "little Roger," Shanks followed a similar path to the Pirate King.

The Gryphon in his hands is one of his strongest fighting methods. Hawkeye can draw with Shanks in this regard, so he naturally possesses Emperor-level skills.

After all, Shanks is not a Devil Fruit user. It's completely different from Golden Lion. Golden Lion loses his Devil Fruit power, and his strongest technique becomes swordsmanship.

The battle between the two was on the verge of breaking out, but Shanks soon discovered a disturbing fact: no matter how he slashed, he couldn't break through Luo Ning's defense.

"...What a terrifying defense!" Shanks almost gave up. How could he fight without breaking the defense?

"Aren't you going to use Conqueror's Haki? A strong man like you should be able to!"

Luo Ning said. When Conqueror's Haki first appeared, he always thought it was actually a weak skill for clearing out weak soldiers, a skill that forced surrender. But later, he found out he was completely wrong. This Conqueror's Haki can also be imbued, and after imbuing it, the power becomes even more terrifying. Whitebeard and Roger used it like that.

"Conqueror's Haki, I haven't used it for a long time!" After Shanks finished speaking, his face hardened. He then unleashed Conqueror's Haki and wrapped it around his blade.

Horrifying Haki poured out, and then he slashed at Luo Ning with his sword. Luo Ning also directly met him with a fist. This Conqueror's Haki imbuement is indeed quite powerful.

But it still can't compare with Reiatsu. Reiatsu is completely superior to Conqueror's Haki. No matter what kind of Haki imbuement exists, it cannot compare with the application of Reiatsu at all.

The fist infused with Reiatsu collided with Shanks' sword, and the terrifying aftermath formed a shockwave that directly blew away some of the Red Hair Pirates' crew members with average strength.