Chapter 55.2 : Destruction Swordsman!!
It was only at this moment that Ian gently landed on the ground. He looked at Marco and Izo, who stood ready in their fighting stances.
The two of them glared back at him.
Izo clenched his teeth, "You're an inherently evil brat from the Beasts Pirates! Today, we're going to end you right here!"
For the Kōzuki family's revenge, for all the family members who died here today!
Ian clasped his hands together and spoke softly, "At least feel a bit ashamed, you remnants of the Kōzuki clan. Kōzuki Oden already left the Whitebeard Pirates, yet you still want the Whitebeard Pirates to avenge you? Isn't that laughable?"
Izo froze in place.
"Shut up!"
Marco roared fiercely. "Oden was our father's sworn brother, our family! Avenging family is a matter of course!"
Izo, moved by Marco's words, responded firmly, "For a samurai, avenging their lord is even more justified!"
"Oh, really?"
Ian chuckled lightly. "Then let me show you a very interesting technique."
He clasped his hands together and then separated them. Between his palms, a sword—a massive blade almost as tall as he was—materialized.
Marco blinked in surprise.
A sword?
A flaming sword!
The blade was a deep crimson, its surface covered in a layer of golden flames.
Raising the sword, Ian pointed it directly at Izo. "A samurai? What an ancient term. There are no more samurai in Wano Country. As the king of Wano, I'll eliminate the last remnants of your kind right here."
"King? Wano has no such thing! The spirit of the samurai will never die!"
Armament Haki surged around Izo's clenched fists.
"Izo, let's go together!"
Marco soared into the sky. "Phoenix Mark!"
"Hah!"
Without hesitation, Izo unleashed another Armament Haki-infused shockwave.
The two aimed to use the same tactic again, hoping to shatter Ian into pieces like before.
Flames erupted from Ian's back, propelling him forward like a lightning bolt.
Facing the oncoming Haki shockwave and blazing fireball, Ian merely swung his sword.
A red line of fire flashed by.
"What?!"
Marco and Izo were both stunned.
The Haki-infused shockwave and the flames shattered simultaneously, while Ian shot forward like a blur, appearing directly in front of Izo.
"Izo! Watch out!!"
Marco dived down at full speed.
"Don't underestimate the power of a samurai, you brat!!"
Izo roared, throwing his Haki-covered fist straight at Ian's sword.
He couldn't hit Ian's body, but the sword meant to cut people had to be physical, right?
That's what Izo thought.
He felt his fist make brief contact with some resistance before smoothly gliding past.
But then, his arm lost all sensation.
No, it wasn't just his arm—his entire body felt numb and disconnected.
"Izo!!!"
Marco's desperate scream echoed through the battlefield.
He saw it clearly.
There was nothing wrong with Izo's judgment; his fist did indeed hit that brat's sword.
However, that sword effortlessly sliced through Izo's fist, then his arm, severing it from the elbow, and continued to slash through his chest.
It didn't end there. The severed arm vanished into thin air, and a significant portion of Izo's bisected body began to disappear starting from the point of the cut.
All he could do was gasp silently as his body plummeted heavily to the ground.
The last of the Wano samurai, fallen!
What the hell is this?!
Marco didn't want to think too much.
He only knew one thing.
Kill this brat!!
He must kill this brat!!
"Crane Talon!!!"
Ian didn't move at all, letting Marco pierce through his body once again from behind. Then, in one swift motion, Ian plunged his sword into Marco's chest.
"Urgh!"
Marco's expression changed drastically, and he instinctively spread his wings to retreat.
What was that?
What kind of sword is this?
The moment this sword penetrated his body, his internal organs vanished completely! His chest and waist had been pierced through, leaving a gaping hole!
Even the healing flames that should have healed those areas disappeared the moment they touched the sword!
"It's called the Sword of Destruction."
Ian flapped his wings and flew towards Marco, speaking calmly. "What do you think of it?"
A sword forged from the flames of Sun God's Wrath deserves to be called the Sword of Destruction.
And that makes me the Destruction Swordsman. So, who's the samurai here?
Seeing Ian approaching, Marco instinctively pulled back further.
"Hm? Weren't you going to kill me?"
Ian smirked. "Backing off won't get you anywhere close to killing me."
Marco gritted his teeth.
This damn brat!!
However, at that moment, Marco was shocked to notice that the flames forming Ian's body began to solidify, and in the blink of an eye, he reverted to his previous form—the golden-armored winged man.
The time's up, huh?
The Immortal Phoenix—its endurance increases the more stamina it consumes, allowing it to last longer.
But to avoid affecting the subsequent battles, Ian hadn't intended to maintain it for too long from the start. After all, the only real way to kill Marco was to completely exhaust his stamina.
Or Sea Prism Stone.
Ian thought for a moment, "If I said I just feel it's unfair to keep the Immortal Phoenix state for you, would you believe me? If not, let's end it here?"
Marco felt a surge of anger rising to the top of his head. "You can go to hell!!"
That technique had a time limit!
Marco had even felt a moment of despair.
Ian's technique, called the Immortal Phoenix, was too exaggerated; no matter what Marco did, he couldn't handle it. Marco even began to wonder if his Phoenix Fruit was fake. Was this guy the real Immortal Phoenix?
But now, Ian had returned to his original form!
The time limit for that technique had expired!
In that case, this little brat was indeed killable!
Marco had never been so swift as he was at that moment. Almost in the instant he spread his wings, his flying kick was already in front of Ian.
Endless fury burned within him; all he wanted was to take down this brat!
"Really no choice, here I come!"
Ian spread his wings to meet him.
No matter what, before Yamato and the others left, he had to stop this guy, Marco.
In the next instant, Marco's flying kick struck Ian at the waist, but at the same time, Ian's sword of destruction sliced through Marco's chest.
Upon realizing something was off with Ian's sword, Marco stopped being defenseless and tried to use Armament Haki to resist it. However, even his Armament Haki was cut through, and the blade still tore open his chest, though the wound wasn't particularly deep.
The wound may not have been deep, but the destruction was significant. Wherever the blade passed, flesh, bones, and organs vanished, revealing a chilling gash on Marco's chest!
Ian flew back like a cannonball, feeling as if his stomach had been hit by a truck, the food inside churning upward.
It hurt like hell!
Not even Kaido-sensei hit me this hard—
Wait, no, Kaido-sensei often hit me like this.
Flames erupted from his back, and Ian blasted upward like a Saiyan.
Come on, Marco, let's see if I collapse from the injuries first or if you run out of stamina to recover from yours.
"You brat!!"
After a brief shock, Marco charged again, and the two instantly engaged in a fierce battle in the sky.
Yamato, hurry up!
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