"Ahhh!!!!"
Bang bang bang bang bang!!!!
The giant Armament-coated fists collided in a relentless storm, filling the sky with a barrage of blows.
But against Sadgeo, whose overall stats had been raised to the limit, Luffy could not gain any advantage at all.
In fact, Sadgeo did not even need to enter Gear Third to handle Luffy's giant punches with ease.
The battle became incredibly intense. Sadgeo's fighting style even seemed more naturally suited to his abilities, to the point that, in Ozz Dotor's eyes, he had begun to resemble the real Joy Boy just a little.
Though in truth, that was still unlikely.
But if Sadgeo really did achieve his goal, gather power, and drag Imu down from the throne, then once he possessed that level of spirit, he would be no different from the real Joy Boy.
At least for now, however, he was only about one tier stronger than the current Luffy.
With his stitched-together hexagonal stats, before undergoing any major growth, he was merely around the level of an ordinary Emperor-commander hybrid.
"Facing an opponent like this…"
"Can it force out the Nika form? I'm really looking forward to it…"
Ozz Dotor watched the battlefield, anticipation flickering in his heart.
If Luffy could be pushed into awakening Nika here, then the Dark Sun God could finally be completed in full.
With material like that, Sadgeo's Gum-Gum Fruit could truly evolve into the Nika Fruit.
So?
Would he transform?
But in the end, Ozz Dotor was disappointed.
The current Luffy had not yet experienced enough battles on the edge of life and death. Even with the bond he had already formed with Shirahoshi after arriving on Fish-Man Island, there was still no way for him to directly step into Gear Fifth.
"You're really damn annoying!!!"
Sadgeo finally started putting in real force. The overwhelming physical power of the giants began to show itself.
He suddenly increased the force in his hands, and through the gap between blows, one Armament-coated fist shot forward and smashed Luffy straight into the ground.
"Puah!!!"
Luffy crashed into the earth, splitting open the ground for dozens of meters around him as blood spilled from his mouth.
"Luffy!!!"
Everyone cried out in alarm.
Zoro was the first to rush forward, drawing all three blades at once and assuming an attacking stance.
"Three-Sword Style: Tiger Hunt!!!"
"Hm???"
"A swordsman?!!!"
Clang!
Faced with the slash of a black blade, Sadgeo instantly wrapped his hand in dense Armament Haki and caught the strike head-on.
"Take this!!!"
At the same time, Sanji, his leg wreathed in flames, ran through the air with rapid bursts of Sky Walk, then delivered a heavy kick straight at Sadgeo.
Sadgeo blocked that with his other arm.
The rest of the Straw Hat crew also looked ready to move, while Luffy forced himself back to his feet.
"I'm definitely taking you down!!!"
On a battlefield ruled by monsters, there was no place for ordinary people.
As the battle shifted and expanded, countless fish-man punks and soldiers were blown away by the aftershocks. The ground shook violently.
Neptune, Otohime, and Shirahoshi all wore pained expressions.
"Please stop!!!"
"Fish-Man Island is under Lord Ozz Dotor's protection!!!"
Neptune shouted, and for a few seconds, it actually did calm the battlefield.
Everyone turned to look at him.
The Straw Hat crew stiffened.
Hope rose on the faces of the fish-men.
If it was that man's name, then surely…
"No."
A voice of refusal rang out, utterly out of place in that atmosphere.
Sadgeo held down his straw hat and smiled.
"Look carefully. Our battlefield has already moved into the half that is not under his protection!!!"
"This…!!!"
Cold sweat broke out across Neptune's face.
This war had originally begun to stop the riots coming from the punks living in Fish-Man District. For the safety of the normal half of Fish-Man Island, the battlefield had naturally been pushed into the other half.
"If I remember right, this half isn't protected by that man, is it?"
"That works out perfectly!!!"
Luffy roared, cutting him off.
"If Ozz Dotor doesn't control this side, then I can beat the hell out of this guy as much as I want, right?!"
Ozz Dotor smiled.
Resting his chin on one hand, he watched everything from afar in the deep sea, finding the whole development extremely amusing.
The current Luffy probably still had not realized that without mastering Conqueror's coating, or awakening the Nika form, there was no way they could defeat the current Sadgeo.
Even though Sadgeo himself was still only an incomplete Dark Sun God.
But after all, he was a toy Ozz Dotor had painstakingly crafted. How could it possibly break the moment he started playing with it?
The hardware was still there.
Feeling the rising Haki from the three brats before him, along with the hostile intent from the Straw Hat crew in the distance, Sadgeo showed a broad, battle-thirsty grin.
"Then come on, you fake!!!"
The giant youth in the straw hat let out a roar, fully unleashing his Haki.
Crack crack crack crack!!!!
A domain-like force seemed to solidify into a half-spherical wave and surged forward madly.
Wherever it swept through, anyone slightly weaker collapsed to the ground in less than a second.
Black-red lightning ran wild inside that domain, twisting and exploding. Even the deep sea currents began to stir.
"This Haki…"
Zoro and Sanji both widened their eyes.
Faced with such terrifying Conqueror's Haki, even the three main fighters, who had been fully prepared, changed expressions. The ground beneath them was already starting to crack.
Bzzzzzz!!!!
Luffy felt the Haki coming from Sadgeo. It was strangely familiar, and overwhelmingly powerful.
"It's not just you who has Conqueror's Haki!!!"
One crimson, one dark crimson.
The two Conqueror's Haki fields crushed against each other, each trying to suppress the other completely, but no clear victor emerged.
Sadgeo held the upper hand.
Laughing loudly, the giant youth stepped forward and threw a punch toward Luffy.
But a swordsman in a bandana leapt first.
"Don't look down on our training over these past two years!!!"
His arm instantly swelled with muscle, and Zoro's gaze turned icy.
"One-Sword Style: Great Quake!!!"
"I've been waiting for you!!!"
Sadgeo laughed gleefully.
His fist shifted mid-motion and smashed toward Zoro instead.
A direct clash of raw power.
With Sadgeo's physical strength, he was actually pushed back two steps by that fully charged slash.
As for Zoro, his sword arm throbbed painfully.
The brief delay gave Luffy time to grasp just how troublesome this opponent was. Gritting his teeth, he began blowing air into his arm.
As smoke billowed around him,
"Gear Fourth: Boundman!!!"
Sadgeo's eyes lit up as if he had just seen something fascinating.
"You can fight like that too?"
"I'll try it too!!!"
...
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