An immensely heavy force slammed into Saint Rimoshifu, sending him flying through the air before crashing into distant buildings!
"Whoosh—"
"Boom!!"
After smashing through several buildings, he violently struck the ground.
"Boom!!"
"Huh?"
A slave who noticed this scene instinctively exclaimed, "What's happening this time?!"
Could it be that someone else was sent flying over?
"It's a monster!" another slave shouted. "A golden monster!"
At these words, the others immediately showed fearful expressions, instinctively backing away.
"Cough... That really hurts."
Saint Rimoshifu clutched his head as he climbed up from the ground, then turned to glare viciously at the slaves. "Bastards, who are you calling a monster?"
"I am a Kirin!"
To think they'd mistaken him for a monster... What a bunch of ignorant country bumpkins!
"Kirin?"
The slaves exchanged glances, then looked at Saint Rimoshifu and asked, "Are you here to save us?"
"Save you?" Saint Rimoshifu was momentarily stunned, then sneered coldly. "I'm a Celestial Dragon. Why would I save you?"
He was already being merciful by not killing these wretches outright, and they expected him to rescue them?
Don't make me laugh!
The slaves fell silent upon hearing this, their eyes quickly filling with hatred.
"He's a Celestial Dragon—kill him!"
"Kill him!"
"Charge!!"
These slaves, who bore deep grudges against the Celestial Dragons, immediately abandoned any thought of escape. Instead, they grabbed their weapons and charged at Saint Rimoshifu.
Saint Rimoshifu: ???
Have these guys gone mad?
After a brief silence, Saint Rimoshifu revealed a sinister expression. "Since you want to die, I'll grant your wish!"
If he couldn't kill the Blood-Eyed Ninja, could he at least not handle these lowlifes?
With a cold laugh, Saint Rimoshifu swiftly advanced to meet their charge.
"Die!"
"Hmm?"
Meiser, who had created distance between himself, Kizaru, and Gunko, glanced toward Saint Rimoshifu's direction. "That guy, could he be—"
"Just killing some slaves in passing. What's the issue?" Gunko said indifferently.
As lofty Celestial Dragons, killing a few slaves when displeased was perfectly normal.
Thus, Gunko saw nothing wrong with it.
Nearby, Borsalino frowned upon hearing her words, clearly displeased.
But he said nothing, because... he was a Marine Admiral!!
In his position, no matter how much he disliked the Celestial Dragons, he couldn't speak out—or he would face punishment.
Thinking this, Borsalino silently sighed.
Meiser, however, sneered, "Heh, that line again."
This time, Gunko didn't respond. Instead, she glanced at Borsalino and said, "Stop daydreaming. Take him down!"
As the words fell, Gunko used her Devil Fruit Ability to create an enormous spinning arrowhead, then infused Haki into its tip.
After doing this, Gunko launched her attack at Meiser.
Meanwhile, Borsalino charged toward Meiser at that moment, raising his long leg—already wrapped in Haki—and kicked out fiercely!
"Come at me!" Meiser shouted.
As he spoke, Meiser manipulated Susanoo to swing the TimePiercingSpearOfToki at Borsalino, intending to nullify the man's Elemental Transformation first.
Sensing Meiser's intent, Borsalino delivered a powerful kick directly to the tip of the TimePiercingSpearOfToki.
"Clang!"
"Boom!!"
A terrifying explosion erupted between the two, shattering the massive rocks beneath them!!
Seizing this opportunity, Gunko hurled the spinning arrowhead with immense force, aiming straight for Susanoo's body.
Facing such an assault, Meiser immediately controlled Susanoo to raise its other hand and strike directly at the spinning arrowhead.
"Clang!"
"Boom!!"
Ultimately, under the combined force of both opponents, Meiser was sent flying sideways.
"Boom!!"
"Boom!!"
"Boom!!"
After crashing through numerous structures, he slammed hard into the ground.
"Boom!!"
"Cough, cough."
After coughing twice, Meiser stood up from the ground and remarked, "As expected, taking on multiple strong opponents at once is no easy task."
Fortunately, that woman hadn't reached Admiral level, or the fight would have been even more difficult.
Shaking his head, Meiser turned his gaze to the side and thought, 'This position...
Are they trying to knock me out of Mary Geoise?
To prevent me from causing more destruction?
"Not a bad idea, but it won't be easy to throw me out," Meiser sneered.
Just then, Saint Rimoshifu emerged from a distant street, clearly in pursuit of a slave.
Witnessing this, Meiser coldly laughed, "Truly fitting of a Celestial Dragon."
No sooner had he spoken than Meiser sensed something amiss.
"Hmm?"
Staring at Saint Rimoshifu's rapidly healing arm, a flicker of shock appeared in Meiser's eyes.
Then, he murmured, "Could it be that this guy also possesses that kind of Super Regeneration ability?"
Has his Devil Fruit Ability Awakened, or is he like that woman, endowed with an undying Super Regeneration?
After a moment's thought, Meiser muttered, "Never mind, I'll test it with Seastone Handcuffs first."
These can suppress Devil Fruit Ability Users, so there's a chance they could neutralize his ability!
With that in mind, Meiser reached into his Ninja Tool Pouch and pulled out the scroll containing the Seastone Handcuffs.
"Grabbed a few pairs earlier on a whim—didn't think they'd actually come in handy," Meiser mumbled.
As he spoke, he retrieved a pair of handcuffs from the scroll.
After doing so, Meiser stored the scroll away, placing it back into his Ninja Tool Pouch.
"Haa~"
Taking a deep breath, Meiser looked toward the distant Saint Rimoshifu and declared, "Get ready for a beating, little Kirin!"
With those words, Meiser vanished from the spot in an instant.
"You dare shoot me with cannons?!" Saint Rimoshifu sneered, looking at the slave he had just impaled with his trident. "You all deserve to die!"
He then shifted his gaze to the battlefield and said, "Well, it's time to return—"
Before he could finish, his Observation Haki detected a familiar presence beside him, causing his pupils to contract to their limits.
"Blood-Eyed Ninja!!"
Damn it, had this guy come for him first?
Without a second thought, Saint Rimoshifu immediately infused his trident with Armament Haki and spun around to thrust it at Meiser behind him.
"Die!"
"Thud!"
The strike pierced clean through Meiser!
Seeing how easily he had impaled Meiser, Saint Rimoshifu froze momentarily, clearly surprised by the ease of the attack.
Wait... This guy might be planning to use that move again!
Recalling how the Blood-Eyed Ninja had reappeared after being killed by Kizaru earlier, Saint Rimoshifu heightened his alertness.
At that moment, the impaled Meiser charged forward against the trident and seized Saint Rimoshifu's arm.
Saint Rimoshifu: ???
What? This isn't right—doesn't he feel any pain?
"Got you~" Meiser grinned.
Alarmed, Saint Rimoshifu wondered if this guy had some hidden ability.
No... There's the aura of Sea Stone behind him!
"You—"
"Only noticed now?"
"Too late!" Meiser shouted.
As he spoke, Meiser brought his right hand from behind his back and slapped the Seastone Handcuffs onto Saint Rimoshifu!
"Bastard!"
Though blessed with an Undying Body by Imu, touching Sea Stone would weaken his regenerative abilities!
Moreover... the Sea Stone would sap his strength, reducing him to a helpless lamb!
Thinking this, Saint Rimoshifu decided to sever his own arm to break free from Meiser's grasp.
Just then, the ground behind him trembled, and an earthen spear shot up, aimed straight at his heart!
"Earth Release: Earth Flow Spears!" Meiser's Clone yelled.
The next moment...
"Thud!"
"Crack~"
The sharp earthen spear effortlessly pierced through Saint Rimoshifu's abdomen, skewering him like a candied hawthorn.
The impact also robbed him of the chance to cut his arm and escape, leaving the Seastone Handcuffs locked firmly around his wrist.
Saint Rimoshifu: ...
Feeling the searing pain in his abdomen and the chilling coolness on his arm, Saint Rimoshifu felt utterly defeated.
What kind of mess is this?
In the next moment, his body began to transform, reverting from his final Kirin form back to his original human form.
Ignoring the transformation, Meiser stepped back, pulled the golden trident from his own abdomen, and grinned. "Finally caught you."
Saint Rimoshifu fell silent, then staggered as he pulled himself off the earthen spear.
Once free, his legs gave way, and he slumped to the ground.
"You still have the strength to move..."
Meiser glanced at the distant yellow light rapidly approaching and remarked, "Your vitality is truly tenacious."
As he spoke, he observed Saint Rimoshifu's slowly healing wound and thought: 'Even restrained by Sea Stone, his wounds are gradually closing... It seems his Super Regeneration isn't granted by a Zoan Devil Fruit ability.'
This left Meiser puzzled - how was the other achieving this? Could it be... the World Government had mastered some form of long-distance healing technique?
If so, the World Government was truly formidable. With such means, no one could defeat them in a prolonged war!
"Useless, Blood-Eyed Ninja." Saint Rimoshifu looked up at Meiser and declared, "You cannot kill me."
Even deprived of his Devil Fruit ability, as long as the power bestowed by Lord Imu remained, he would not die!
Hearing this, Meiser fell silent for a moment before creating numerous Shadow Clones to attack the approaching Kizaru and intercept Gunko from behind, preventing them from interfering.
After deploying the clones, Meiser activated Susanoo.
"Hmm—"
A massive Susanoo materialized around Meiser, its hands gripping a pale golden spear. Without hesitation, Meiser drove the spear through Saint Rimoshifu's body, pinning him to the ground.
"Indeed not dying so easily," Meiser frowned, observing Saint Rimoshifu's mocking gaze. "It seems special measures are needed to eliminate your kind."
"Futile, Blood-Eyed Ninja! You cannot kill me!" Saint Rimoshifu laughed wildly. "Just wait, soon you'll—"
"Such noise!"
Cutting off Saint Rimoshifu's words, Meiser immediately activated 'Yomotsu Hirasaka' combined with his left eye's Pupil Technique!
"Bzzz—"
An anomalous force instantly froze the temporal flow around Saint Rimoshifu's wounds.
Saint Rimoshifu: !!!
Feeling the change in his injuries, shock flashed in his eyes. "So this is the technique that suppresses healing abilities?"
Experiencing it firsthand, Saint Rimoshifu realized the terror of this power. How... how could this man suppress Lord Imu's power?
Noting Saint Rimoshifu's expression, Meiser mocked, "So you can make such a face too."
"Damn inferior—"
"Enough, I've no patience for chatter." Meiser interrupted. "Now confess everything you know!"
With these words, Meiser unleashed an Illusion Technique at the Mangekyō Sharingan level, intending to forcibly extract information. But at that moment, he detected another spiritual presence within Saint Rimoshifu—and "saw" a strange shadowy figure!
Meiser: !!!
A flicker of astonishment crossed Meiser's eyes as he sensed this alarming spiritual pressure.
Without hesitation, Meiser immediately distanced himself from Saint Rimoshifu.
"What's going on?"
Frowning as he stared at Saint Rimoshifu, Meiser muttered, "Why does this guy's mind contain another spiritual presence?"
It was as if... another person's consciousness existed deep within this guy's mind.
'Could it be the Devil Fruit's own consciousness?' Meiser speculated.
Earlier, through the Sealing Scroll, he had concluded that Devil Fruits possessed their own consciousness, so the previous situation was possible.
But considering his previous experiences controlling other Devil Fruit Ability Users, Meiser dismissed this conclusion.
After all... other Devil Fruit Ability Users didn't possess a second spiritual presence!
At that moment, Meiser recalled the strange shadow he had seen within Saint Rimoshifu's consciousness.
That black shadow with the peculiar eyes...
"Could it be that this guy is just someone else's puppet?" Meiser murmured while staring at Saint Rimoshifu. "Just like Nagato's techniques..."
As he watched Saint Rimoshifu silently staring back at him, Meiser fell deep into thought.
Seeing Meiser's confused expression, Saint Rimoshifu's face gradually revealed a mocking smile.
Trying to turn him into a servant using hypnosis?
What a joke!!
As long as this great one exists, no one can hypnotize them, the God's Knights!
After all... Imu is invincible!
Thinking this, Saint Rimoshifu grinned widely.