Chapter 101: Bitter Battle Against the Sand Crocodile [33]

Clang!

The crisp sound of metal striking metal vibrated painfully against the eardrums.

Siano's figure materialized in mid-air, his right arm coated in an even denser layer of Armament Haki, casually blocking this fatal blow as if nothing were wrong.

At this moment.

The two faces were within a hair's breadth of each other.

After exchanging a glance, Crocodile exhaled a puff of smoke; just as he was about to speak, a whistling wind sound reached his ear.

Meanwhile, Siano before him lowly uttered:

"Tempest Kick: Meteor!"

Boom!

A heavy, powerful downward axe kick stirred up layers of air waves, smashing heavily onto Crocodile's shoulder, the crisp sound of shattering bones clearly audible.

Even though Crocodile reacted and did his utmost to block with his golden hook, he was still smashed into the ground like a meteor, kicking up sand and dust that filled the sky.

"Cough, cough..."

He struggled to climb up, coughing out mouthfuls of fresh blood, and when he looked at Siano again, his eyes inevitably carried a trace of fear.

Such fast legs!

This time, even his Observation Haki had failed to react; but compared to that, what was even more exaggerated was the terrifying force displayed by this single kick!

Just what kind of monster is this that popped up out of nowhere!!!

He could no longer remember when he was last so crushed in terms of raw power; perhaps it was that damn Boss Hua Zha? But that was at least five years ago...

No, I must directly use my trump card move!

"Desert Great Sword!"

With this thought, Crocodile's right hand suddenly turned to sand, condensing into a huge sand blade wrapped in Armament Haki, and he slashed fiercely toward the Siano opposite him!

Hiss-hiss!

This move was both fast and ruthless, with tremendous momentum; wherever it passed, the desert instantly split in two, stirring up dark purple electric sparks along the way.

However.

What Crocodile did not expect was.

The opponent neither dodged nor avoided, but instead looked at the rapidly approaching sand blade with interest, without even the thought of closing his eyes.

Bai Chi!

Crocodile sneered viciously; this fool actually wanted to take it head-on. If it were an ordinary "Desert Spada," he might believe the other could withstand it.

But this was the fully enhanced and upgraded version, a true ultimate technique he had only developed a few months ago; did the fool not weigh the odds before daring to rely on his flesh and blood...

Hmm?

The next moment, his smile froze on his face.

He saw that the giant sand blade, whose power was sufficient to split the entire desert, instantly exploded into countless fine sand particles the moment it collided with Siano's chest, rustling down to the ground without even cutting through the outer layer of skin.

And those grains of sand that flew into the other's eyes bounced away as if they had hit a wall of bronze and iron.

Some did remain on his lower eyelashes, but Siano merely tilted his head slightly, and they all slid down his cheeks...

"I gave you a chance, yet you're still not very good."

Siano lightly flicked the last grain of sand off the bridge of his nose with his index finger, raised his head to look at the Sand Crocodile opposite him who was still staring in shock:

"Hey, snap out of it; from now on, it's all my turn."

What does that mean?

Before Crocodile could react, Siano had already stepped onto the air using Moon Walk, his right index finger thrusting continuously at speeds indistinguishable to the naked eye.

Every strike utilized the technique of releasing Haki outward, flying precisely toward various parts of Crocodile's body!

"Flying Finger Pistol: Pear Rain!"

Not good! Crocodile's expression changed drastically, and he urgently exerted all his strength to dodge using Observation Haki.

Some parts elementalized in time, escaping disaster.

But the speed of the Flying Finger Pistol far exceeded Crocodile's expectations.

Accompanied by "puff-puff" sounds, several blood holes were pierced into his knees and shoulders, with fresh blood spraying out.

"Erosion..."

Enduring the excruciating pain, Crocodile slammed his right hand firmly onto the ground and activated another ultimate technique, "Ground Death!!!"

Rumble-rumble-rumble!

In an instant, the entire Whiskey Shanfeng began to shake violently; huge cracks spread rapidly from the ground near the port outward to the surroundings.

Eh?

Siano's eyebrow twitched slightly; the Sand Crocodile still had this trick? Using the elementalization of the nearby environment to quickly replenish his body's stamina and heal wounds?

In some aspects, Logia-type abilities are truly bug-level.

Pity...

Since the one he encountered was himself, there was no way he would give this opportunity!

His grin stretched to his ears, his figure flashed, and he rushed to attack Crocodile on the ground!

"—Do you even deserve to do sit-ups?!"

"Stop him!"

Crocodile screamed hysterically, waving his golden hook fiercely!

As long as he could buy a little more time to turn this entire island into sand, he would not only be able to fully recover his injuries but could also unleash his Devil Fruit abilities even more recklessly!

Swish-swish!

The moment the words fell, countless sand hands extended densely from underground, reaching out to grab Siano's legs.

A considerable portion of them were wreathed in faint Armament Haki; if entangled, even Siano would need some time to break free.

But...

How could this speed possibly stop him!

A sand hand wreathed in Armament Haki pierced straight through Siano's back, yet the next second, the "Siano" that had just been impaled dissolved into an afterimage mid-air.

Moon Step: Empty Cicada!

He stepped continuously on the air mid-flight, his form shifting positions eerily with a mere thought.

While dodging every reaching sand hand, his speed not only didn't slow in the slightest, but due to the frequent position switches, a series of afterimages resembling a golden cicada shedding its shell appeared in the air!

—This was a profound secret technique that could only be mastered after cultivating the Six Styles to their peak!

The vast majority of Moon Step users, if they tried to play like him, would only have their speed affected by frequent turns, becoming living targets in the sky.

In an instant, Siano arrived unimpeded before Crocodile.

Amidst the latter's panicked upward glance filled with terror, he grinned ferociously and delivered an uppercut, hammering him high into the sky!

Whoosh!

Amidst a muffled thud, Siano flashed forward; before the Sand Crocodile could hit the ground, he appeared again in the air level with him, clenched his fist, and smashed down viciously!

This scene repeated rapidly; Siano's twin fists launched consecutive blows at supersonic speed, each strike targeting either the chest or the neck, all carrying the power to destroy everything in its path.

Boom-boom-boom!

Crocodile's body, like a ragdoll, moved up and down in the air, constantly twisting and deforming, while the sound of shattering bones popped continuously like frying beans.

For the final punch, Siano pressed his fists together, condensing all his power onto his knuckles; the dense Armament Haki at that instant nearly solidified into substance—

"Six Styles Secret Technique: Mountain-Blowing Color Ripple Dash!!!"

This was a supreme technique Siano had independently fused and comprehended by combining the Six Styles Secret Technique after mastering the Ripple Fist Style.

Its power was great enough to flatten a Shanfeng!

Boom!!!

This punch landed squarely on Crocodile's chest; time seemed to freeze at that moment, Crocodile's expression frozen between terror and disbelief.

Then—

Boom!!!

A terrifying shockwave erupted outward with the two at its center.

Crocodile's body flew backward like a cannonball, smashing continuously through several piled-up sand dunes before barely coming to a stop.

"Ugh, ugh-ah..."

He lay sprawled diagonally beside the crater in Yamcha's pose, his golden hook twisted and deformed, his luxurious coat torn to shreds.

His entire body trembled and struggled repeatedly on the sandy ground, yet with every bone in his body shattered, he couldn't even lift a single finger.

Hoo!

Having finished the entire set of punches, Siano, feeling thoroughly satisfied, landed beside Crocodile, nodded at him in praise, and said:

"Although you're as easy to beat as Spider, I have to say, the feel is really nice; that's the good thing about Logia types, they can take a beating."

You bastard...!!!

Crocodile nearly spat out a mouthful of old blood.

But facing Siano, who was walking closer and closer, he chose to hide the resentment in his eyes, opened his mouth with a hoarse throat, and said:

"Y-yes, I shouldn't have provoked you; d-don't, don't kill me..."

"Saying this now is too late!"

Siano grabbed him by the hair, dragged him up like a dead dog, and smiled as he stared straight into his eyes:

"Originally, if you hadn't come to provoke me, considering you hadn't launched that wicked plan of yours yet, I might have spared your life and just kicked you back to the New World."

"But you just had to hunt me down for the Marines? Haha, the Marines being dogs for the Celestial Dragons is ridiculous enough, yet there are people like you rushing to be dogs for the Marines?"

"... That was all just acting for them to see."

Crocodile grew increasingly resentful, yet on his face appeared an expression of someone who had struggled for a long time before making a decision; panting heavily, he spoke with difficulty: "Cough... cough-cough, hey, you... a guy like you, a powerhouse like you, shouldn't you also be very ambitious!"

"Like this, like this! Spare my life, and I'll tell you an astonishing ancient secret, enough to help you dominate the entire sea, even go toe-to-toe with the World Government..."

A new month has arrived; weakly asking for monthly tickets.

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(End of Chapter)