One Piece Shadow Army - Chapter 58
Iai: Knight’s Requiem!
This was the first technique Curls had developed through meditation, and he had been honing it for the past ten months. At this stage, it was Curls’s strongest sword move.
He slightly bent his body forward, positioning his waist and thighs to maximize the explosive power of his strike. This technique unified his strength and spirit into one.
Swish!
Facing Curls’s attack, William’s expression turned serious as he also assumed an iai stance to counter. In an instant, blue and red sword lights flashed on the deck, colliding and crossing paths. Curls and William stood back-to-back, and the atmosphere grew tense as everyone watched and waited.
Snap!
The silver chain of Curls’s pocket watch snapped, and a red slash appeared on his chest, quickly soaking his white uniform in blood. He had suffered a serious injury in this clash.
On the other side, William’s white shirt was split open at the abdomen, revealing a ten-centimeter wound from which blood slowly seeped out. Despite the slow bleeding, it was a genuine injury.
William’s eyes widened in surprise. He had already broken through to the level of a master swordsman, and yet, here in the East Blue, someone had managed to injure him. How rare!
“Meeting an opponent like you brings me great joy, but unfortunately, this has to end now!”
William took a step forward, slowly turning around. His eyes now held no trace of underestimation, and he unleashed a ferocious sword attack toward Curls.
“Wave Slash!”
A torrent of blue swordlight surged forward, unstoppable like a giant wave on the sea. This wasn’t merely a difference in sword techniques; it was a fundamental difference in the power of swordsmanship.
Facing William’s incredibly powerful sword energy, Curls didn’t turn around. The cursed blade was exerting a strong influence over his mind, attempting to take control completely. His normally handsome face was contorted with the effort to resist the cursed blade’s invasive thoughts, leaving him temporarily immobilized.
In this critical moment, Curls called out clearly, “Larlos!”
Behind Curls, shadowy energy surged, and a black knight clad in black armor with a red cape appeared swiftly. It was Larlos, who had disappeared earlier!
“Protecting the king is my duty.”
As the strongest knight of the Silvermoon Kingdom, Larlos raised his black sword high and fought once more to protect his king.
“Silvermoon Slash!”
The black sword fell, emitting a blinding sword light that, under the moonlight, resembled a white crescent moon. The two sword energies collided with a thunderous impact, scattering powerful energy waves in all directions. The intense white light forced the onlookers to shield their eyes to avoid being blinded.
The wooden deck was shattered and splintered at the center of the collision. Even before the light faded, William charged forward to attack again, while Larlos continued his duty, staying close to protect his king. William’s sword cut through Larlos’s arm, but Larlos’s shadow blade also slashed his thigh.
In the next moment, Larlos’s shadowy body regenerated, and he continued to fight William without any signs of injury. The clash of blades and swords continued, with William’s wounds accumulating rapidly.
This can’t go on!
William felt an urgent need to change tactics. Despite his peak combat ability, Larlos’s regenerative power as a shadow soldier was overwhelming, while William’s injuries were compounding.
Suddenly, William shifted his attack, aiming directly at Curls. No matter how strong the shadow soldiers were, defeating the ability user would nullify any Devil Fruit powers.
Just as William’s attack was about to land, Curls’s eyes snapped open, his face no longer showing any signs of struggle. Shadowy energy surged beside him, and a burly figure with a red beard appeared.
“Barbarossa!”
Barbarossa intercepted William’s lethal strike, his body shattering in the process, but this had little effect since shadow soldiers were immortal.
“You seem to forget that I’ve never been fighting you alone,” Curls said, discarding the cursed blade and relying on his Devil Fruit abilities.
The shadow soldier Arlong appeared behind William, his sharp jaws snapping towards William’s shoulder. To avoid being severely injured, William had to counter with his elbow, shattering Arlong’s jaw into shadow fragments but leaving himself open.
In front of him, Curls seized the opportunity. His right leg, powered by shadow energy, launched a powerful kick.
“Shadow Meteor Kick!”
This powerful, shadow-enhanced kick was impossible for William to dodge. It struck William’s chest, sending him flying several dozen meters. Mid-air, William couldn’t suppress his injuries anymore, spewing a mouthful of blood that scattered through the air.
Boom!
William crashed through the wooden walls of the ship’s cabin, disappearing inside.
“Captain!”
“Are you okay?”
The crew of the William Pirates shouted in alarm, rushing towards their captain. Moments later, William emerged from the wreckage, blood at the corner of his mouth, his chest heaving with labored breaths, clearly badly injured.
“Captain, let us fight together!”
“Yes, let’s take down these Marines together!”
The crew was indignant at Curls’s summoning of multiple shadow soldiers and prepared to join the fight.
Curls showed no fear. With nearly a hundred immortal shadow soldiers at his command, he wasn’t worried about a group fight.
Just as the William Pirates were rallying, a young pirate observing the sea called out urgently.
“Captain, we have trouble! Several Marine ships are approaching!”
On the Marine side, someone also spotted the approaching ships and joyfully reported to Curls after confirming their identity.
“Lieutenant, Lieutenant Curls, Captain Smoker is here with reinforcements!”
“Great!”
“We have hope of surviving!”
The arrival of several Marine ships instantly lifted the spirits of the Marines present, especially since Captain Smoker was personally leading the reinforcements.
“Leave me, you guys go first,” Akin, the captive, shouted, recognizing the shift in the situation.
William remained silent, the atmosphere growing tense. Vice-Captain Jeff looked at the approaching Marine ships and, after assessing the situation, urged anxiously.
“Captain, things don’t look good. Let’s retreat and come back for Akin later.”
William was severely injured. If they got surrounded by Smoker and the Marine ships, the William Pirates would be done for.
With a sigh, William finally decided on a temporary retreat.
“Curls, today’s battle ends here. Next time, I’ll come to rescue Akin. Let’s go!”
The William Pirates quickly returned to their ship and sailed away before Smoker and the Marine ships could close in.
As the William Pirates disappeared from sight, Curls finally breathed a sigh of relief. It wasn’t that he didn’t want to stop them; his injuries and severe exhaustion of his spiritual power made it impossible to continue. The shadow soldiers could only be maintained for a limited time, and continuing the fight with William was unpredictable and risky.
A temporary halt in the battle was for the best.
Next time, they would settle the score with William once and for all.
It wasn’t until Smoker and the Marine ships arrived that Curls retracted his shadow soldiers. After reporting the recent events to Smoker, Curls went to receive treatment for his serious injuries sustained during the fight with William.
…
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