Nagato in One Piece - Chapter 39
Boom! Boom! Boom, boom, boom, boom…!
In the massive rocky outskirts of Dressrosa, two figures were engaged in a fierce battle, flying and clashing against each other.
These two were Nagato and Doflamingo. Their fight had taken them from the eastern side of Dressrosa to the southern side, and in the process, they had destroyed a quarter of the vast rocky terrain surrounding the kingdom!
“Damned brat!” Doflamingo roared in rage, sending another wave of countless rising white strings towards Nagato.
Due to the lack of materials in the air to generate massive amounts of white strings from his awakened ability, Doflamingo was wary of chasing Nagato too high into the sky. Not only would his attacks be weakened, but without the defensive White Shield, he found it extremely difficult to counter Nagato’s attacks.
But Nagato was well aware of this, too, staying airborne and engaging Doflamingo from a distance. This strategy left Doflamingo at a significant disadvantage. Despite the prolonged clash, Doflamingo’s internal organs suffered from numerous hidden injuries, while Nagato’s wounds were mostly superficial cuts from close calls with Doflamingo’s strings.
After another exchange, blood sprayed from Nagato’s face, narrowly missing his eyes and head, while Doflamingo’s body shook, his internal organs shifting, causing him to spit out blood.
Nagato had been slashed by Doflamingo’s strings, leaving a flap of skin hanging from his cheek. Though it looked horrifying, Doflamingo’s injuries were far more severe.
But despite both being wounded, Doflamingo laughed grimly, “Fufufu… I must admit, you’re quite a tough opponent. With your unique ability and strange agility, it’s hard to find someone of your level even in this ‘New World!'”
Nagato didn’t respond verbally, instead stepping on the air and launching a Shinra Tensei aimed at Doflamingo’s head.
“White Shield!” Doflamingo summoned his string shield to defend himself, coughing as he took the hit but continuing to laugh, “Why the rush? Or… are you reaching your limit already?”
Nagato extended his right hand downward, the Rinnegan activating once more. The invisible repulsive force slammed into Doflamingo’s new White Shield, causing another full-body tremor.
Nagato remained silent, his actions clearly contradicting Doflamingo’s taunts.
“Tch!” Doflamingo, unable to do much else, continued to summon more white strings through his awakening. He surrounded himself with a few layers of white waves and sent the rest of the strings shooting up at Nagato. “What’s with this guy?”
Just moments ago, his Hama Hama no Mi attack had managed to slash Nagato’s face open, nearly killing him, making Doflamingo think that Nagato’s stamina was failing.
Doflamingo, like everyone else in this world, believed Nagato’s abilities stemmed from a Devil Fruit. And abilities like Nagato’s would typically consume a tremendous amount of stamina.
After fighting for so long, Doflamingo confirmed that Nagato neither knew Haki nor exhibited any signs of Devil Fruit awakening. Coupled with the initial crushing defeat of his Black Knight against Nagato, Doflamingo had concluded that Nagato’s physical abilities were weak. Such a body shouldn’t sustain such extensive use of powers.
In Doflamingo’s experience and understanding, Nagato should have reached his limit long ago. The earlier injury from his white strings seemed to confirm this, prompting his previous comments.
In another round of offense and defense, the white waves of strings either missed their mark or were repelled by Nagato’s force. Meanwhile, Doflamingo, behind his White Shield, took another Shinra Tensei, retreating several steps, visibly struggling to stand as the accumulated hidden injuries deepened.
“No!” But Doflamingo didn’t panic. Noticing the slightly diminished force in the last Shinra Tensei, he deduced, “He’s nearing exhaustion!”
The decrease in power wasn’t very noticeable, but the delay in the impact on his White Shield, about a second slower than Nagato’s usual rhythm, signaled Nagato’s strain.
The clashes continued relentlessly. The southern side of Dressrosa was being pounded into submission, the vast rocky landscape bearing the brunt of their destructive confrontation.
Doflamingo’s condition was dire, likely far worse than he ever anticipated. The battle had dragged him to an unprecedented level of desperation.
Doflamingo and Nagato’s fight had traversed from the east side to the south, almost sinking a large portion of Dressrosa’s land with their intense combat. Despite the impressive spectacle, Doflamingo was continuously wounded.
If not for his steadfast belief that Nagato couldn’t possibly have the stamina and depth to defeat him, combined with Doflamingo’s exceptionally robust physique, he wouldn’t have lasted this long against Nagato.
Thud!
Their attacks collided once more, and Doflamingo finally dropped to one knee, unable to stand.
“Curse you, brat!” Kneeling, Doflamingo unleashed an invisible burst of energy from within.
Conqueror’s Haki!
The sky darkened, dust spread, rocks shattered, and a bird flying overhead fell straight down, hitting the ground with a splash of blood.
However, this power had no effect on strong individuals. Nagato, his mind tempered by the illusions of ninjutsu, and having faced horrors a hundred times worse like Tsukuyomi, felt nothing but a breeze.
Doflamingo, oblivious to this, saw Nagato’s unchanging expression as mockery, fueling his rage.
“Ever White!” Realizing the need for a swift victory, Doflamingo, already at his limit with internal injuries, pressed a hand to his chest and slammed the other into the ground, summoning an enormous wave of white strings!
Seeing this, Nagato paused in the air, gathering all his chakra. The air above surged with violent winds as the chakra roiled.
Shushushushu…!
Thirteen thick white waves overlapped above Doflamingo, covering him and forming an unprecedentedly solid White Shield defense.
“Fufufu…” Doflamingo, amidst the endless white plain of strings, laughed maniacally from behind his White Shield, “It seems we’re both at our limits. In that case, let’s settle this with our strongest attacks!”
From the white plain emerged sixteen waves, each tip covered in Armament Haki, turning them into blackened, demonic spears.
Without waiting for Nagato’s response, Doflamingo launched his ultimate attack.
“Sixteen Holy Bullets: God Thread!!!”
“Ch? Shinra Tensei!” Facing Doflamingo’s ultimate move, Nagato responded with his strongest attack.
Boom! Hum…!
The clash between their attacks sent a massive shockwave, shattering the surrounding rocks.
The confrontation continued, with the sixteen demonic spears suspended mid-air against the invisible force, sending rippling shockwaves outward, causing continuous destruction. Finally…
Doflamingo’s strings broke!
Boom, boom boom…!
The White Shield disintegrated instantly, but there was no sign of Doflamingo underneath.
“You’ve been tricked…” A figure appeared behind Nagato, Doflamingo’s right hand glowing with colorful energy as he slashed at Nagato’s neck, shouting, “Brat!”
Doflamingo’s face twisted with a savage grin. From the moment he prepared to use God Thread, he never intended to clash head-on with Nagato. Instead, he used the strings as a cover to sneak behind Nagato. If successful, Nagato would be dead for sure!
Doflamingo was certain of Nagato’s weak physical abilities.
As expected, Doflamingo’s Five Color Strings cut through Nagato’s neck, sending a head flying.
Boom!
Suddenly, the body in front of Doflamingo exploded into white smoke, revealing a rock in place of Nagato’s body!
It was a ninja’s substitution technique!
“The ninja’s battle…” A hand reached for Doflamingo from behind, “is deception!”
Nagato stood behind Doflamingo, having lured him into a trap step by step!
From the moment he protected Law, delaying his reaction, to pretending to fall for Doflamingo’s trick and engaging in a head-on clash, it was all an act to lure Doflamingo into a vulnerable position for a final, fatal strike.
Nagato’s right hand moved swiftly, his palm already touching the back of Doflamingo’s neck.
But just as Doflamingo underestimated Nagato’s techniques, Nagato underestimated the physical prowess of this world’s inhabitants.
Sensing the shift in Nagato’s presence the moment he used the substitution technique, Doflamingo twisted his body with incredible speed and core strength, swinging his left hand with Five Color Strings toward Nagato!
Nagato was already close, and Doflamingo’s sudden twist struck both of them simultaneously!
“Shhh…crack!” Blood spurted, and bones shattered. Nagato narrowly avoided having his neck severed, but Doflamingo’s fingers deeply gouged into his left shoulder!
And Doflamingo…was completely paralyzed!
“W-what…is this…?” Doflamingo felt as if a giant hand was stirring his brain, and his consciousness nearly collapsing. Only a surge of Conqueror’s Haki kept him from losing his mind.
But even so, he was immobilized, his consciousness fading!
“Human Path, Soul Extract.” Nagato, without explanation, raised Doflamingo by the neck, extracting his soul entirely!
Become a Patron to read chapters ahead of public release and support me 😉
Read up to 40 chapters ahead on p atreon.
