A wave of pitch-black shadow energy settled upon Maude's body.
His cheeks, neck, and collarbone—
Half-spiral shadow patterns slowly emerged.
As the ripples of shadow dissipated, Maude gradually opened his eyes.
A crimson glow flickered in his pupils.
This was Observation Haki.
After all, his opponent was one of the top officers under an Emperor of the Sea—he couldn't afford to take her lightly.
Even if it meant unnecessary mental strain, he had to keep his Observation Haki activated at all times.
The changes in Maude's body did not escape Smoothie's notice.
"His aura just got stronger… or is it just my imagination?"
Watching Maude utilize Shadow Flow—Twin Fish Circulation, Smoothie furrowed her brows slightly.
Doubt crept into her mind as her gaze swiftly darted toward the numerous pirate corpses strewn across the plaza.
"Good, there's plenty of replenishment available."
Smoothie steadied her heart.
With just a single clash, she had experienced Maude's formidable power firsthand.
Despite her earlier remarks about his Hakoku being far inferior to Mama's Ikoku, deep inside, she harbored a sense of wariness.
After all, even her strongest technique, the Dehydration Blade, couldn't contend with Maude's Hakoku.
Fortunately, luck was on her side—thousands of readily available "replenishments" lay before her, significantly enhancing her endurance and strength.
Even if they were corpses…
As long as it gave her the means to defeat Bacardi Maude, she didn't mind.
"Hmm?"
A fleeting thought surfaced—linear shadows quietly appeared in her vision.
"Am I… actually relieved? Is my subconscious already acknowledging that I can't defeat him?"
"Smoothie-sama!"
The scattered members of the Big Mom Pirates quickly regrouped around her.
Their voices snapped Smoothie out of her thoughts.
She took a deep breath and swiftly corrected her mindset.
That last exchange—she had indeed been overpowered.
That was a fact. No use being stubborn about it.
But with the enhancement from the 'replenishments' in the plaza, the outcome was still undecided.
"You lot, buy me some time. Thirty seconds will do."
"No problem, Smoothie-sama!"
The Big Mom Pirates members who had accompanied her were well aware of the effects of her Devil Fruit ability.
From the earlier clash, they had realized that in her current state, Smoothie-sama might not be Maude's equal in raw strength.
That was precisely why, for once, she was asking them to create an opening for her.
Smoothie warned them at the right moment, "You're no match for Bacardi Maude. Don't engage him directly—just focus on stalling him."
"Understood!"
"Let's move!"
A high-ranking officer took the lead, charging forward.
The others immediately followed suit.
As her subordinates sprang into action, Smoothie kicked off the ground, darting toward the nearest pirate corpses.
If pride was useless in securing victory, then abandoning it meant nothing.
"Thirty seconds… I need to extract their 'juices'…"
Smoothie swung her longsword, slicing through corpse after corpse.
Under the effect of her Devil Fruit ability, her blade acted like a sponge, rapidly absorbing the moisture from the bodies and channeling it into herself.
Slash! Slash!—
Sword light flashed.
Within moments, she had drained the fluids from over a hundred pirate corpses.
The influx of moisture caused her body to visibly enlarge and stretch, giving her a stature reminiscent of the Giants.
"Still not enough… Against him, this isn't enough!"
Recognizing Maude's strength and the threat he posed, Smoothie didn't stop even after absorbing the moisture from over a hundred pirates.
She had to ensure her victory—
"I need more!"
Stepping over the shriveled corpses, she set her sights on fresher bodies further away.
Just as she bent her knees, preparing to move, a shadow abruptly descended upon her.
A figure clad in what seemed like black armor came into view.
"Hmm!? Already—?!"
Smoothie's eyes widened slightly.
She had a fair grasp of her subordinates' strength; holding Maude back for a full minute was out of the question.
But thirty seconds? That should have been achievable.
Yet, not even ten seconds had passed—
In an instant, Smoothie took a step back.
Maude swung Shusui, aiming straight for her vital points.
A flash of red gleamed in her eyes as she used the brief retreat to raise her sword, intercepting Maude's incoming slash.
Clang!
Blade met sword, sending sparks flying.
Smoothie immediately felt an oppressive force surge through her weapon.
As the friction between their weapons intensified, sparks continued to scatter.
Maude's gaze locked onto Smoothie's slightly astonished face, his voice calm: "So you can absorb moisture even from corpses… doesn't that disgust you?"
This ability—gaining power by extracting moisture from others—was eerily similar to Shadow's Asgard.
Had there been no sunlight on Fish-Man Island, Maude might not have killed all these pirates. Instead, he would've taken their shadows, using them as material for Shadow's Asgard.
Likewise, had he known Smoothie would arrive at this precise moment—
Even without the intent to collect shadows, he wouldn't have minded taking the extra effort to sever them, ensuring these pirates were reduced to nothingness.
That way, Smoothie would have nothing to extract.
But there were no 'ifs.'
Hearing Maude's subtle taunt, Smoothie's gaze turned cold.
She didn't reply, focusing all her attention on resisting the force behind Shusui.
"The moisture from corpses isn't exactly fresh, but I've absorbed over a hundred bodies' worth… And yet, my strength still falls short?"
The oppressive force transmitted through her sword made Smoothie's heart sink.
"If I could just absorb a few hundred more…"
Her peripheral vision flickered toward her subordinates' location.
Nearby, six of her men lay in two halves—clearly cut down by Maude.
Further away, the ones meant to stall Maude were instead entangled in battle with an unexpected group.
"Those people… they're Maude's crewmates."
Recognizing the figures engaged with her subordinates, Smoothie understood immediately.
No wonder Maude had been able to reach her so quickly—
"You still have time to look away? Guess you're underestimating me."
Maude's eyes narrowed. Boosted by Shadow Flow—Twin Fish Circulation, he suddenly surged forward, forcing Smoothie back.
She staggered several steps.
Maude planted his right foot forward, pressing Shusui's Haki-coated tip against the ground.
Shadow Cutter!
He flicked his blade upward.
A black-and-red fissure-like shockwave erupted from the ground, slicing directly toward Smoothie, who stood just a few paces away.
With her towering height, a ground-based attack like this would be easy to avoid with a simple backward leap.
But against Maude—who wielded a strange ability that allowed him to attack through shadows—
Smoothie dared not be careless. She swiftly reversed her grip and braced her sword in front of her.
Her judgment was spot on.
The earth-rending slash traveled along the ground, carving through shadows to inflict damage upon its target.
The seismic shockwave crashed forcefully against the longsword.
The concentrated energy burst apart with a thunderous roar, sending shockwaves rippling through the air, scattering sand and stone, and making Smoothie's long hair and coat billow wildly.
As the residual force of the clash spread outward, Maude seized the moment, his figure flickering to Smoothie's side.
Smoothie's eyes darted sideways, her pupils instantly reflecting the gleaming edge of a blade flashing toward her.
Maude had found an opening in Smoothie's defensive stance, driving his sword straight for her face.
If this strike, coated in Armament Haki, were to land, it would be enough to kill Smoothie on the spot.
At the last possible moment, Smoothie raised her left arm to shield herself.
The armguard on her left elbow was instantly enveloped in a jet-black sheen of Armament Haki.
Clang!
The legendary blade, Shusui, struck the Haki-clad armguard with tremendous force.
A shockwave of energy erupted from the point of impact, surging outward.
Cracks began to spiderweb across the armguard at a visibly alarming rate.
"Hm?"
Smoothie's pupils contracted sharply.
The next instant—her armguard shattered.
Fragments of the broken armor scattered through the air as the tip of Shusui, still driving forward, pierced through the exposed flesh of Smoothie's Haki-covered elbow.
Shnk!
Blood spurted into the air.
Smoothie furrowed her brows, yet a fierce glint flickered in her eyes.
In that fleeting instant of offense and defense, as the aftershock of the seismic slash dissipated, Smoothie's other hand swiftly grasped the longsword planted in the ground.
"If I can land a hit, what does it matter if I lose an arm?"
Turning the enemy's tactics against them, she ignored the pain in her elbow, driving her sword toward Maude's vital point.
Expected.
A smirk played at the corner of Maude's lips.
Shadow Cicada.
The shadow clone enveloping Maude split open down the middle, forming a vertical rift that ran through its entire form.
Like a cicada shedding its shell, Maude's true body swiftly detached from within, emerging behind the shadow double.
At the same time—
Smoothie's Haki-clad longsword pierced straight through the chest of the shadow double.
Yet before her blade could land, Maude had already preemptively hollowed out the area where the sword would strike, allowing it to pass clean through.
This was a common technique among Logia users to evade Haki-infused attacks, but it was equally applicable to Maude's malleable shadow clone.
His foresight had nullified Smoothie's attempt to run him through.
"No…!"
As her sword fully penetrated the shadow double, Smoothie instantly realized something was off.
Before she could react, the shadow double disintegrated into countless inky-black fragments, scattering like butterflies into the air.
With the obstruction gone, Smoothie now had a clear view of Maude, standing in an unusual posture.
She was still lunging forward with her sword, committed to the attack.
The impact had sent Shusui, still embedded in her elbow, flying backward, freed from the clash.
However—
Rather than tumbling away, Shusui seemed to be drawn toward Maude's outstretched right hand, as if pulled by an invisible force.
Everything unfolded exactly as if it had been drawn up in Maude's mind beforehand.
The airborne Shusui landed precisely in his waiting grasp.
In the breakneck pace of their battle, Smoothie took in the scene, an inexplicable sense of absurdity welling within her.
Yet Maude showed no intention of giving her a moment to breathe. His sharp gaze flickered as he drew his other sword, White Weasel, from its sheath, his body launching forward like an arrow, slicing past Smoothie's incoming blade.
Shadow Blade—Day and Night.
The twin swords, Shusui and White Weasel, crossed in an instant—one black, one white. Their slashes streaked through Smoothie's towering frame.
Clang!
Sparks erupted.
A second later—
Maude appeared behind Smoothie, his arms spread wide as he flicked the blood from his blades before smoothly returning them to their scabbards.
Smoothie, meanwhile, remained frozen in place.
"Even with two blades… I could only block one…?"
Her back facing Maude, Smoothie's gaze trembled, her complexion paling.
Shhhk—!
Blood erupted from the gash on her chest like a breached dam.
Her knees buckled, and she collapsed onto the ground.
The blood from her wound quickly soaked the ground beneath her.
Maude, having sheathed his blades, turned slowly, gazing at her fallen form with an impassive expression.
"An unknown ability and technique… often yield the best results. Surely, you of all people should understand that, Charlotte Smoothie, Sweet Commander of the Big Mom Pirates."
"..."
Smoothie clutched her bleeding chest, momentarily silent.
After a brief pause, she slowly turned her gaze toward Maude's sheathed swords.
"You think this is over just because you cut me once?"
"No, it's not over."
Maude gave a slight nod before making a casual motion, as if to sit.
Shadows gathered behind him, forming into a pitch-black throne.
Maude lowered himself onto the throne, one leg crossed over the other, fingers interlaced over his knee as he tilted his head slightly, shifting his gaze to another battlefield.
"But your defeat is already decided."
"..."
Smoothie's peripheral vision followed his gaze—to where her subordinates were struggling against the relentless assault of Lafitte and the others.
The outcome of the battle was clear.
"Don't get ahead of yourself…!"
"This isn't over yet!!!"
Ignoring her injuries, Smoothie forced herself to stand.
Maude's eyes lowered slightly, unimpressed.
"If it were one of the other Sweet Commanders… someone with a higher level of Observation Haki… my trick might not have been as effective."
"Oh, and what I mean is—being able to defeat a Sweet Commander of the Big Mom Pirates in just a few moves is quite satisfying."
"!!!"
Smoothie's expression turned glacial.
His words echoed across the battlefield.
The Big Mom Pirates, still engaged in battle with Lafitte's group, scoffed at first—
"What a joke, Smoothie-sama would never—huh?"
But when they turned to look, their expressions shifted to shock at the sight of Smoothie, gravely wounded.
It had only been a few exchanges!
"How is this possible…?"
"She's a Sweet Commander!"
Their disbelief was palpable.
Smoothie's defeat sent a devastating blow to their morale.
As Maude had said—
The battle was already decided, an irreversible outcome.
...
Fish-Man District.
The Fish-Man Pirates of the New Fish-Man Crew had witnessed Maude's swift victory over Smoothie with their own eyes.
Silence filled the room.
Hody Jones abruptly stood, his voice cold.
"To Ryugu Palace."
"What for?"
A nearby officer asked instinctively.
Jones' bloodshot eyes gleamed with chilling intent.
He let out a cruel laugh.
"To slaughter Neptune's family and every last one of his soldiers."
"!!!"
The Fish-Men in the room froze in shock.
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