One Piece: Song of Despair - Chapter 23

Standing to the side after the initial clash, Nokiyoru felt a surge of vigilance. If not for his Observation of Haki detecting a slight disturbance, Kizaru’s attack might have landed on him.

Likewise, Kizaru was equally serious, as he hadn’t anticipated Nokiyoru’s Observation Haki and physical coordination to be so strong. That earlier strike would have incapacitated most people.

“Whoosh… whoosh…” Flames ignited, engulfing Nokiyoru in golden flames as he quietly assumed his half-beast form.

Raising their heads, they exchanged glances, seeing excitement and seriousness in each other’s eyes.

“Nokiyoru, have you ever been kicked by light?”

“Kizaru, have you ever been burned by fire?”

Almost simultaneously, both their lips curled into a smile. Then, the golden light disappeared, and the ground exploded. One golden and one red figure collided at incredible speeds.

“Heavenly Congested Cloud Sword.” Blinding golden light, Kizaru appeared with a long golden sword in his right hand, mercilessly striking at Nokiyoru with the power of light.

“High Temperature: Flaming Blade.”

“Clang… whoosh…” Nokiyoru’s eyes turned gold-red, his hair ablaze. A flaming long sword appeared in his right hand, emitting an intense heat that was palpable from outside the arena.

“Bang…” Like metal clashing, the powerful sound shook the air. The ground beneath Nokiyoru shattered, sending countless stones flying. Nokiyoru remained calm, another flaming blade appearing in his left hand, which he then stabbed at Kizaru.

At the same moment, Kizaru, seemingly predicting Nokiyoru’s move, also conjured another light sword.

Instantly, dust and debris flew as their fierce clashes sent shockwaves, splitting and rejoining rapidly. The ground fractured, and cracks spread quickly; in the dust, only two blurred figures could be seen, rapidly colliding.

“Laser Beam.” Kizaru appeared mid-air, spreading his hands as ten golden energy beams streaked like falling stars, targeting Nokiyoru.

“Kizaru, your techniques are quite interesting. Fire Ray.”

Raising his head slightly, Nokiyoru spread his fingers, flames blazing on his hands as ten laser beams shot upward.

“Boom… boom…” The dazzling fireworks lit up the sky, causing ripples in the air.

“Endless Arrows.”

“Boom…” Waves rippled as countless weapons materialized from the flames behind Nokiyoru, shooting skyward like missiles.

“Light Rain.”

Kizaru, looking serious, his body radiating golden light, countered with countless light particles falling like rain, piercing through the air.

Raindrops versus endless arrows, with the light rain outnumbering the fire arrows.

“Whoosh…” Breathing lightly, Nokiyoru’s eyes burned, his hair billowed, his arms transformed into wings, flames blazing hot.

“High Temperature: Firestorm.”

Spreading his wings, a fiery vortex formed, creating a flaming tornado that shot toward Kizaru.

“Bang…”

The ground shattered as Nokiyoru appeared behind Kizaru, his foot, black with Haki, kicking towards Kizaru’s back.

Sensing Nokiyoru’s move, Kizaru’s pupils contracted, realizing Nokiyoru’s speed was too fast.

“Elementalization.” Transforming into light particles, Kizaru reappeared a hundred meters away, blood trickling from his mouth. Nokiyoru’s Haki had grazed him.

“Impossible. How can you be this fast?” Kizaru’s face turned pale, staring at Nokiyoru.

“Kizaru, light speed isn’t like this. You haven’t even reached the speed of sound. Clearly, you haven’t fully developed your Devil Fruit. If that’s the case, I’m sorry, but you stand no chance.” Nokiyoru’s expression was calm. Observing closely, one could see his legs were red and swollen.

“I don’t believe you can be faster than light.” Kizaru, face dark, roared internally. He always believed no one could match his speed.

Speed was Kizaru’s pride, equating speed to power.

“Is that so? Let’s not discuss whether you’ve developed your fruit ability fully. Even if you have, you have a major flaw: light can only travel in a straight line, and you clearly haven’t overcome this. By paying a price, I can match your speed for a short time.”

“Impossible. Light is the fastest. No one can defeat it.” Kizaru snarled, his figure disappearing instantly, reappearing beside Nokiyoru with a powerful kick.

“Is that so?” The ground trembled as Nokiyoru vanished in a flash, reappearing behind Kizaru with another kick.

But Kizaru disappeared first, reappearing five meters away.

The ground exploded again as Nokiyoru appeared in front of Kizaru.

“Impossible.” Kizaru roared, his figure disappearing rapidly.

But no matter how Kizaru moved, Nokiyoru always reappeared beside him in the next moment.

After ten exchanges, Kizaru’s face twisted with rage, screaming.

“Bang…” The ground roared once more. Mid-air, Nokiyoru suddenly stopped, panting heavily. This super-speed movement was exceeding his limits.

“Hahaha…” Gleaming with golden light, Kizaru appeared mid-air, looking at Nokiyoru’s bleeding legs. Initially shocked, his face then lit up with excitement. “So this speed is beyond your capacity. It comes with a price, doesn’t it, Nokiyoru?”

Raising his head, Nokiyoru grinned madly, compressing flames. Instantly, explosions erupted under his feet, spraying blood with each burst, revealing the bone.

“Madman.”

In the audience, everyone was shocked. Nokiyoru’s madness in risking his legs to match Kizaru’s speed was astonishing.

“Madman… madman…” Kong stood up, looking at Nokiyoru’s bone-deep legs, both surprised and impressed.

“Doesn’t he feel pain?” Some female cadets turned pale at the sight of Nokiyoru’s bloody legs.

“You…” In the arena, Kizaru was stunned, realizing Nokiyoru’s madness anew.

“Kizaru, I admit speed is power. If you can’t hit your opponent, even the strongest attack is useless. So, I developed this technique. It’s fortunate I used you as a reference.” Grinning wickedly, Nokiyoru, despite his bloody appearance, seemed both mad and terrifying.

“You really do have a grudge. You developed this just for revenge. Terrifying.” Kizaru’s face turned grim. He hadn’t expected Nokiyoru to develop this ability specifically to avenge their previous encounter.

“Whoosh…” With a burst, Nokiyoru disappeared, and Kizaru became vigilant, instantly turning into light particles.

As expected, just as Kizaru disappeared, a black foot swept through where he had been, tearing through the air.

“Fire Ray.”

“Endless Arrows.”

Flames filled the sky like a cage, attempting to restrict Kizaru’s speed. Nokiyoru needed to resolve the fight quickly before his speed wore out.

But Kizaru wouldn’t be trapped so easily.

With explosions, Kizaru appeared slightly disheveled but unharmed, maintaining a distance from Nokiyoru.

“It looks like I’ve won.” Seeing Nokiyoru’s labored breathing, Kizaru regained confidence. Nokiyoru’s legs were almost bone-deep; a few more moves, and they’d be useless.

“Indeed, your ability is the most troublesome.” Nokiyoru stared at Kizaru calmly.

“Use all your tricks, or you won’t have another chance.” Kizaru, confident in victory, mirrored the sentiment of the audience.

“Unfortunately, I can’t afford to lose.” Nokiyoru’s eyes burned, his flames erupting with volcanic intensity.

“One million degrees: Endless Fire Domain.”

With hands blackened with Haki, Nokiyoru crouched. A golden fire line spread rapidly, creating a fiery dome that sealed everything.

In the center, Kizaru’s body tensed, his golden light resisting the intense heat.

Outside, only a fiery dome was visible, engulfing everything.

“Snap…” In the dome’s center, Nokiyoru snapped his fingers. The flames moved eerily, and Kizaru’s eyes widened, clutching his neck in horror as his face turned red.

“Caw…” With a flap of wings, a majestic, flame-wreathed creature with a golden crown and tail hovered mid-air.

This was Kizaru’s first time seeing Nokiyoru’s full beast form. The overwhelming power and savage aura were undeniable.

Shining with golden light, Kizaru tried to escape, realizing the dome was airless—no oxygen.

But a massive, black wing struck him before he could fully escape.

“Spurt…” Eyes wide, blood spraying from his mouth, Kizaru felt like he’d been hit by a mountain, crashing to the ground.

“Bang…” With a tremendous force, a crater formed, and Kizaru, covered in blood, struggled to rise. A black claw, sharp and cold, pressed heavily on his chest.

Groaning in pain, Kizaru’s eyes were filled with disbelief.

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