"You arrogant fool, you actually expect us to hand over the weapons developed by the King to you? Wishful thinking!"
"You should obediently fall before the King's invincible mechanical beasts!"
"As long as we defeat you, our next target will be that despicable tyrant who wants to destroy our homeland!"
The Mechanical Beast Knights roared with confidence. Their voices echoed across the battlefield as they glared fiercely at the massive mechanical gear ship in the distance. Upon its mast fluttered a banner marked with the sword insignia of the Mechanical Knights.
Only one enemy remained.
Once this man was defeated, they would finally begin their march against the tyrant who had enslaved their nation.
"This time you will not escape," one knight shouted angrily. "We will cut the weeds and eliminate the roots!"
"Hey, hey, hey… listen to yourselves."
Admiral Aramaki scratched lazily inside his ear with his pinky finger. His expression was filled with helpless irritation as he looked at the enormous mechanical beasts stomping toward him.
He sighed.
"Why are you so eager to cut down cute little grass, and even cruelly pull out its roots? Is a plant's life not a life too? Humans really are selfish creatures."
Rumble.
The towering mechanical beasts charged forward, shaking the earth as they advanced toward the admiral.
"Go to hell! Marine accomplice of that tyrant!"
The leading Mechanical Knight roared in fury.
He controlled a massive mechanical ox, a machine originally built by Franky to help farmers plow the fields. Under the tyrant's rule, however, it had been transformed into a brutal war machine, a heavily armored Iron Ox designed for battle.
With a thunderous step, the Iron Ox raised its enormous steel hoof and slammed it downward toward Aramaki.
"You stood by and did nothing when the youth of this country were turned into mindless mechanical soldiers!"
"When this country was about to be ignited and destroyed by that tyrant, used as nothing more than his toy, you Marines did not lift a finger!"
"And now that we have finally broken free from his rule and regained our freedom…"
"You appear to stop us and force us to kneel again, to remain slaves to that tyrant?"
"Dream on!"
The knight's voice shook with rage.
"What right do you Marines have to speak of justice when you twist right and wrong and help evil!"
Boom.
A massive iron hoof shadow descended, covering Aramaki completely. It looked as if Admiral Green Bull would be crushed into paste in a single strike.
Aramaki's sunglasses flashed coldly.
His white justice coat with green cuffs fluttered lightly in the wind.
"You commoners really love blaming others," he said calmly. "You blame the World Government and the Marines for your own weakness, for your habit of being ruled by the strong because you lack power yourselves. That kind of thinking is truly laughable."
He casually raised one hand.
In an instant, his arm transformed.
Thick vines burst forth, twisting and expanding rapidly until a gigantic vine structure formed above him. The spreading vines caught the falling iron hoof and held it firmly in place.
The crushing force stopped completely.
"What…?"
The Mechanical Knight controlling the Iron Ox froze in horror.
"He actually caught it?!"
The knight frantically pulled the control levers and pressed every button on the control panel, trying to force the Iron Ox to stomp down harder.
But the mechanical beast would not move even an inch.
"Hmph."
Aramaki glanced up at the iron hoof held above his head by vines and scoffed.
"Some man made mechanical toy," he said dismissively. "It cannot even begin to compete with the power of nature."
Then his expression turned cold.
"Alright, commoners who betrayed the king of the World Government's affiliated nation, Gear Country."
"Your performance ends here."
Boom!
The vines exploded outward violently.
In the blink of an eye, the gigantic Iron Ox was lifted off the ground and flipped onto its back with tremendous force. Thick vines spread wildly, wrapping around the mechanical beast and binding it tightly.
The war machine was completely immobilized.
"Oh no!"
The Mechanical Knight controlling the Iron Ox was thrown violently from the cockpit and slammed into the ground. The impact nearly knocked him unconscious.
"Damn it!"
"Kill him!"
"Avenge the Iron Ox Knight!"
"He's an ability user, but don't be afraid!"
"We outnumber him! If we get close, he's finished!"
The other Mechanical Knights roared with fury.
They commanded their respective mechanical beasts forward, charging toward Aramaki with overwhelming momentum.
Aramaki watched them with clear disdain.
"Hmph. Foolish commoners."
"If numbers alone could defeat an enemy…"
He slammed his hand onto the ground.
"Then you would have solved every problem in the world already."
The admiral's voice suddenly rose.
"Come out, little ones. Let these people who destroyed the environment experience the wrath of nature."
Boom!
The earth trembled violently.
Under the influence of the Mori Mori no Mi, the Forest Forest Fruit, countless enormous vines burst from the ground. They spread like living serpents, surging across the battlefield.
Within seconds, the vines wrapped around every mechanical beast present.
Whoosh. Whoosh. Whoosh.
The vines coiled relentlessly around the heavy machines, tightening again and again until the giant mechanical beasts could no longer move.
"This is bad…"
"This is really bad!"
The Mechanical Knights desperately struggled with their controls.
They pulled the steering levers, pressed buttons, and slammed switches.
But the mechanisms felt completely locked.
It was as if rust had frozen every component solid.
"Don't panic!"
One knight shouted loudly.
"I'll burn them!"
The Western Mechanical Dragon Knight raised his voice as he activated the dragon shaped weapon mounted on his mechanical beast.
"I'll make the fire dragon burn these vines to ash!"
The mechanical dragon head opened.
A blazing torrent of flames erupted from its mouth.
But the moment the fire touched the vines, something strange happened.
The thick vines suddenly grew clusters of crystalline flowers.
From those flowers burst waves of intensely cold air.
Aramaki smirked.
"If flames could destroy a forest so easily, forests would have disappeared from this world long ago."
"Idiots."
The cold air extinguished the flames instantly.
Whoosh.
The vines surged again, moving faster than before. They wrapped around the mechanical dragon's head, sealing it completely and preventing any further fire from escaping.
Within moments, every mechanical creature on the battlefield was fully restrained.
"Ah… ah…"
The Mechanical Knights began screaming.
Their bodies shriveled rapidly.
The vines drained their nutrients, leaving behind thin, lifeless figures hanging from the branches like empty husks.
After draining them completely, the vines released the bodies, dropping them carelessly onto the ground.
Aramaki looked over the immobilized mechanical beasts and nodded with clear satisfaction.
"Perfect."
"These mechanical creatures will make excellent additions to my collection."
He chuckled happily.
Suddenly, his head turned sharply toward the nearby town.
A figure was sprinting toward him at full speed.
"Oh?"
Aramaki raised an eyebrow in mild surprise.
"Looks like there is someone decent around here after all."
Heavy footsteps thundered across the ground.
Franky charged forward with long strides, his eyes bloodshot with fury.
He glared at Aramaki.
"I say!"
Franky roared.
"Aren't you going way too far?!"
"To treat my King's subordinates like this… it's completely unforgivable!"
"It's enough to break a man's heart!"
"I'm so angry I could spit fire!"
Boom!
The next second, Franky literally did.
A blazing fireball shot from his mouth, rushing straight toward Aramaki.
"Huh?"
Aramaki barely reacted.
"That boring flame trick again."
He lazily raised his hand.
A massive flower suddenly grew from the ground in front of him.
Gulp.
The giant flower opened its slimy bud wide and swallowed the incoming fireball whole.
Inside its mouth, thick liquid sloshed around, possessing powerful fire extinguishing properties.
"Slurp… slurp…"
Aramaki looked completely unconcerned.
To him, this was more than enough to extinguish Franky's attack.
But in the next second, something unexpected happened.
The flower began to swell.
Its body expanded rapidly, as if something inside was violently expanding.
Boom!
The flower exploded.
Flames burst outward with explosive force, tearing the plant apart and blasting the surrounding vines.
The burning explosion spread through the air, scorching everything nearby.
Aramaki's eyes widened slightly.
The remains of the once proud flower collapsed into a charred black stalk.
"You…"
Aramaki stared at the destroyed plant, his expression twisting with genuine pain.
"My beloved little flower…"
He slowly turned his head toward Franky.
His teeth clenched tightly.
"You hateful cyborg."
"I will kill you."
"To avenge my dear little flower!"
===
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