One Piece: Impel Down's Guard - Chapter 37

The brief clash shattered Raoul’s arrogance, and the aching sensation in his arms continuously warned him.

“Is this monstrous body the reason you defy the Five Elders? It seems I need to give you a lesson to wake you up.”

“Strong force is the only way to make fools listen calmly,” Figo retorted, extending his right hand and beckoning Raoul with a finger, “Alright, enough talk. If you’re not planning to run, come on, let’s continue.”

Arrogant! Raoul’s eyes sharpened, and as he crossed his arms before his chest, a gentle breeze stirred, gathering countless tiny azure wind blades in front of him!

With a forward sweep of his arms, the wind blades surged toward Figo, blanketing the sky!

However, Figo walked toward Raoul through the wind blades, accelerating with each step. He extended his hands, fists half-clenched, preparing to flick his fingers. Then, he began flicking rapidly!

‘Flying Finger Gun – Flick!’

One after another, black, Armament Haki-covered energy bullets shot from Figo’s fingers, colliding with the incoming wind blades, both vanishing on contact.

Figo’s flicking speed increased, and soon he was flicking with all four fingers.

‘Flying Finger Gun – Scattershot!’

The dense black bullets quickly devoured the azure wind blades and continued towards Raoul, riddling him with holes!

But it had no effect.

Armament Haki could indeed hit Logia users, but only if it made actual contact.

Using his Observation Haki, Raoul preemptively turned any part of his body that could be hit into intangible wind. The attack seemed to hit, but it actually missed, rendering it ineffective.

Instead, Raoul also charged towards Figo, bringing a tempestuous whirlwind that tore up the ground in front of Figo, sending debris and sand his way!

Blinded by the sand, Figo halted, closing his eyes and relying on Observation Haki to sense Raoul’s position. When Raoul was at the right distance, Figo’s right leg whipped around, coated in flowing Armament Haki, slicing through Raoul’s wind-form body!

Whoosh—

Raoul split in two, with his lower half dispersing and his upper half swirling and shifting, instantly moving behind Figo. His right arm transformed into a wind drill, piercing Figo’s back, twisting his muscles and aiming for internal damage!

“You can’t hit the wind!”

“You can’t hurt me!”

Figo’s right arm swung backward with explosive force!

Boom! Raoul was sent flying again, but simultaneously, a terrifying tornado erupted under Figo, hundreds of meters wide and nearly a kilometer high, lifting Figo skyward!

The high-speed tornado restricted Figo’s movements, trapping him in a spinning vortex.

Raoul bounced a few times on the ground before coming to a stop. He knelt and then shot upward, his hands clasped above his head. He spun his entire body into a massive wind spear, bringing an overwhelming force!

Within the tornado, Figo clenched his right fist.

The structure and density of the muscles in his right arm changed rapidly, swelling to an enormous, disproportionate size, twice as thick!

Simultaneously, Figo’s weight increased rapidly, defying science to release a hidden energy within him, pushing his weight from under 500 pounds to nearly 500 kilograms!

The increased weight might slow his speed slightly, but it brought even greater strength and stability, and the massively swollen arm seemed capable of shattering anything!

‘Life Return – War God’s Arm!’

Boom—

The twice-as-large fist collided with the tip of Raoul’s wind spear, instantly shattering the surrounding tornado into countless azure streaks of light scattering far and wide. At the center of the collision, the blue firelight was dazzlingly bright!

…

Boom boom boom—

Impel Down was understandably shaking not far from the battlefield, appearing on the verge of collapse.

At the exit of the zero-level platform, Deputy Warden Rupplay on the ground, trembling as he held a Den Den Mushi in his hands: “Impel Down is collapsing! Impel Down is collapsing! Five Elders, please send a ship to get us out! We’ll be drowned by the sea or eaten by Sea Kings!”

“Shut up!” Mendesbin’s angry voice came through the Den Den Mushi: “Impel Down was reinforced with the highest specifications when it was built to withstand multiple attacks from the strongest pirates at sea!

As long as they aren’t deliberately attacking, Impel Down will not collapse! Rupp, I’m asking you about the battle situation! Go and see!”

“Re-Really won’t collapse?” Reluctantly, Rupp got up, his expression suddenly frozen.

“How is it? Does Gaston Figo really have the power to stand against Raoul?!”

Rupp mumbled, “Five, Five Elders, the, the sky, the sky is splitting!”

High above, thick clouds were completely torn in half by force, making the azure sky look like it had a deep chasm!

In the Holy Land Mariejois, Mendesbin turned his gaze out the window, seeing the anomaly in the distant sky, his face darkened completely. After a moment of silence, he picked up another Den Den Mushi and dialed: “Moka, mobilize a ship immediately…”

“Uh, Five Elders, there’s no more noise. The battle seems to be over? The sea, the sea is flowing back!” Rupp’s voice came through, halting Mendesbin’s words.

It’s over? No matter who won or lost, the battle shouldn’t end so quickly!

The sea is flowing back? Realizing this, Mendesbin’s heart sank… Not good!

…

“In a fair fight, it would take us more than a day and a night to determine a winner, but I don’t have that much time.”

Figo pinned Raoul against Impel Down’s slightly cracked outer wall, saying to the powerless Raoul: “You’re not wronged. Without the Wind-Wind Fruit, you wouldn’t stand a chance against me. Enjoying the power granted by the fruit also means accepting its drawbacks.”

“Besides, I was just a hardworking little boss back then? You, a warden who did nothing, have the nerve to judge? You didn’t even remember that Impel Down’s walls are reinforced with Sea Stone to prevent Sea King invasions. If I dared to smash you here, you should have known better than to hit the wall?”

Raoul’s eyes burned with anger. Despicable bastard!

I was too captivated by his reckless behavior and became careless. Damn it!

Worried about the seawater pouring in after the collision broke the wind wall, he didn’t think about the Sea Stone in Impel Down’s outer walls and fell into this embarrassing situation, halting the battle that had just begun.

“What do you want, Figo?”

“You’re going to stay in Impel Down for a couple of days. Let’s see if that fool will talk to me calmly. Yes, that’s right, you’re a hostage.”

“Bastard, where is your sense of justice?!”

The roaring sea waves drowned out Raoul’s last angry shout, making him lose strength as seawater flooded his mouth!

Winning means lecturing.

Losing means talking about justice.

Obedient justice is still justice?

Figo chuckled, pulling Raoul up to the surface.

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