"What did you say?"
Mr.3 stretched out his words exaggeratedly, as if he had heard an utterly absurd joke. But his face didn't show anger; instead, a curious expression appeared, causing him to step onto the wax stairs once more.
He ascended the cake step by step, stopping in front of Tomioka, who was still trapped.
He extended a finger and tapped the hard, cold wax shell on Tomioka's chest with his knuckle, producing a dull thud.
"Now you're really trapped, aren't you, Mr. Talented Swordsman?"
Mr.3 tilted his head, his eyes behind his glasses narrowed to slits, his tone somewhat flippant, and then he said with a laugh, "Are you going to cut through my candle art with your mouth or something?"
"This guy made this giant candle cake!"
Nami shouted urgently, beginning to explain the dire situation to Tomioka, "Tomioka, we're all stuck! And this wax mist floating down now... *cough*... if we inhale too much, we'll all slowly turn into real wax figures!"
As if to confirm her words, Vivi, who was also immobilized nearby, let out an uncontrollable cough. Her face looked somewhat pale; she had clearly inhaled some of the wax mist.
Mr.3 clapped his hands in satisfaction: "Yes, yes! This young lady explained it perfectly! So clever, but unfortunately, she'll soon become a beautiful collectible."
Tomioka remained silent, trying to move all his muscles.
Strength was gathering, but the wax layer covering his entire body was incredibly stiff, making it difficult for him to move, especially his legs, which felt as if they were cast in a swamp, completely immobile.
However, trying to draw his Blade in this situation was almost impossible.
"Hmmph~"
Mr.3, standing in front of everyone, observed Tomioka's subtle expressions and tensed muscles, letting out an irrepressible laugh, "That's it, that's it."
He walked around to Tomioka's side, his tone growing increasingly smug:
"Now only your head can move freely, but judging by your fighting style just now, you shouldn't be a Devil Fruit user, right? What a pity~ If you were some strange ability user, perhaps you'd still have a chance to resist right now."
He walked down the stairs, spread his arms, and began to announce inexplicably:
"Now! Let us grandly introduce, the swordsman rumored to fight a hundred men on Whiskey Peak, and who can defeat Mr.1 in the Small Garden jungle! What a pity, what a pity, on this perfect candle cake, you are no different from any ordinary person found anywhere! Hahahahaha!"
Mr.3's piercing, wild laughter echoed in the open space, filled with the arrogance of certain victory.
Nami and Vivi's coughing seemed to grow heavier, and the wax mist pervading the air appeared to become denser.
Just then!
Thump... thump-thump... thump-thump-thump!
Tomioka's heart began to beat violently, so loudly it almost burst through his chest. In his mind, Sabito's voice seemed to echo again—"This time, it's your turn to protect everyone!"
"Water Breathing · Total Concentration..."
A clear voice interrupted Mr.3's laughter.
Tomioka took a sharp breath!
His chest expanded to an unprecedented degree, even causing the sturdy wax shell to emit a faint groan. The surrounding wax dust and oxygen in the air were all frantically drawn into his lungs!
"Hey, hey, hey? No way?"
Mr.3 was first stunned by Tomioka's actions, then displayed an extremely exaggerated mocking expression.
He pointed at Tomioka, laughing so hard he could barely stand upright,
"To reduce the wax mist your companions inhale, you've decided to inhale it all yourself? Hahaha! Is this a hero saving a beauty?! Or have you given up thinking?"
"Tomioka!? What are you doing?! Stop it!" Vivi also watched as all the wax mist was drawn in by Tomioka, shouting in panic. She couldn't understand this behavior.
Tomioka did not answer, and could not answer.
The second time, it was an even deeper, longer breath!
Cough, cough, cough—
All the blood in his body seemed to ignite at that moment, rushing wildly at an incredible speed with the extreme operation of the Water Breathing technique!
His heartbeat was like war drums on a battlefield, rapid and powerful, so much so that those around him could faintly hear the surging sound.
Crack... an extremely faint crisp sound came from the wax layer near his left shoulder.
Wisps of white steam began to seep from his body, not sweat, but a phenomenon caused by his rapidly rising body temperature coming into contact with the cold wax shell.
On his exposed skin, specifically on his left cheek, blue wave-like patterns, undulating like ocean waves, appeared, strange and full of power.
But pain followed, his muscles felt as if they were tearing, his bones enduring immense pressure, each heartbeat like an explosion, overdrawing his life potential.
In the previous battle at Infinity Castle, his body had already been overdrawn, and activating the mark again now was far from as easy as it was then.
"Ah ah ah ah ah ah ah!!!"
Accompanied by a low roar, suppressed to the extreme before suddenly erupting, Tomioka gathered his strength, impacting the outer shell fixed on his body!
Suddenly! The wax layer on his upper body shattered with a crash! Countless hard wax fragments scattered and flew!
"What?! You bastard!!"
The smile vanished from Mr.3's face, replaced by an expression of astonishment. He staggered back a step, watching Tomioka's actions before him.
"What a joke! This is wax skin that can trap even giants!? Is this pure strength? No... it's body temperature! Your body temperature is rising sharply! Part of the wax layer has softened! You... are you really human?!"
A sense of crisis instantly enveloped Mr.3. He knew he absolutely could not let this monstrous swordsman continue! Otherwise, with his strength, he would definitely not be an opponent.
"Melt Melt Sculpture · Sword!"
His arm suddenly released a large amount of wax liquid, which then quickly solidified and molded in the air, transforming into a huge, sharp candle greatsword.
Then Mr.3 pointed directly at the cake, throwing the greatsword fiercely at Tomioka, who had just broken free from the upper body's restraint!
Crack!
Just then, the wax layer on Tomioka's lower body also completely shattered under his terrifying burst of strength and high temperature!
The candle greatsword was already flying towards Tomioka!
His deep blue eyes were terrifyingly calm. His Blade was already unsheathed, and the glint of the blade drew a subtle yet ultimate arc in front of him.
"Water Breathing · Eleventh Form: Dead Calm."
Cough cough—
Time and air seemed to freeze for an instant.
The powerful and heavy candle greatsword, upon touching that invisible domain, was like hitting a wall of absolute defense.
In an instant, it began to disintegrate from the tip of the sword, turning into countless tiny wax fragments that scattered across the ground with a clatter, without even touching Tomioka's clothes.
All of this happened too quickly, from the shattering of the wax layer on Tomioka's body to the destruction of Mr.3's candle greatsword, it was but a blink of an eye.