Check out advanced chapters on P@treon: [email protected]/CosmicKaminari
----------
"It has something to do with that man's ability... No, maybe it has to do with the abilities of the swords in his hands," Shakky mused.
"If they fought on the ground, Ikki could sneak into shadows and attack Rayleigh. To avoid this, Rayleigh dragged the battlefield into the air."
"However, when airborne, it seems that attacks from people standing at higher positions receive a huge bonus. Although this is Ikki's ability, it appears Rayleigh can also use it."
"It's... just like a children's game. Speaking of which, if this ability can be used, I wonder if Rayleigh can also utilize the shadow power."
Shakky touched her chin, her face full of curiosity.
Beside her, Kalifa just gave her a cold look and said nothing more.
"If you stand higher, your attacks get boosted? What a strange ability," Hancock said with a frown, looking up at Ikki and Rayleigh.
With her keen eyesight, she suddenly noticed flame-like marks rapidly spreading across Ikki's forehead.
Not only that, but the blade he wielded also began igniting with blazing flames.
At this moment, the battle situation suddenly changed.
'Did his sword speed suddenly increase? Is this guy going all out?' Rayleigh thought, raising his eyebrows as he used Moonwalk to jump higher than Ikki and swung his sword downward.
Ikki's eyes narrowed. Just as Rayleigh's blade approached, he suddenly sheathed the sword in his right hand and grabbed Rayleigh's blade with his bare hand.
Rayleigh frowned, subconsciously reducing the force behind his strike and changing his swing angle.
During their battle, he had clearly felt the combat bonus from standing at higher positions.
He understood that with his current sword strength, even if Ikki's hand was reinforced with powerful Armament Haki, it would still be severed by his blade, and Ikki would very likely lose that hand.
But soon, he regretted his hesitation.
"Irooni: Kuro!"
Ikki smiled, and while speaking softly, he dispersed the Armament Haki from his hand and simultaneously activated Iron Body.
After this period of practice, besides Moonwalk, Ikki had also mastered Iron Body from the Marine Six Powers.
He had thought there would be no opportunity to use Iron Body, but never imagined he'd employ it while using Katen Kyōkotsu.
The right hand that had turned pitch black from Armament Haki returned to its normal color but gained a light metallic luster from Iron Body.
Seeing Ikki insist on grabbing his sword, Rayleigh frowned even deeper.
He wanted to obtain information about Roger's son from Ikki. If possible, he didn't want to kill or seriously injure him.
After hesitating, he reduced his strength once again.
At this moment, Ikki's hand reached Rayleigh's blade.
CLANG!
Ikki's right hand grasped Rayleigh's sword, producing a metallic clash.
Then, Rayleigh was surprised to discover that even though he had significantly reduced his striking force, his blade still sliced through Ikki's palm like cutting through vegetables, stopping only when it reached his arm and became stuck in flesh and bone.
'What's happening? Is that "Irooni" so weak? Even after I held back so much strength, it can still cause such serious damage?'
Just as Rayleigh puzzled over this and his blade became stuck in Ikki's flesh and bone, Ikki's left-hand blade had already stabbed toward a black button on Rayleigh's abdomen.
Rayleigh instinctively used Armament Haki to create a hard defensive barrier on his abdomen.
But he soon realized something was wrong.
'Ikki just said "Irooni: Kuro"? And he deliberately dispersed his Armament Haki? Could it be that... the rules of the game have changed?'
Realizing something was amiss, Rayleigh tried to step back, but Ikki's right hand held his sword fast.
The next moment, blood erupted as the black button on Rayleigh's abdomen was pierced, the blade penetrating his entire torso.
In an instant, Rayleigh felt sharp pain in his abdomen and couldn't stop blood from flowing from his mouth.
"Cough, cough... hey, that attack was a bit excessive," Rayleigh said, coughing twice while looking at Ikki with a grim expression.
"Why does an ordinary stab cause such damage? Ikki... this move of yours targets the color I mentioned, and doubles the damage, doesn't it?"
The strike had clearly only stabbed his abdomen, yet it had shattered the flesh, blood, and internal organs around the wound.
If not treated promptly, Rayleigh felt he might need to stay bedridden for a long time.
"Who knows," Ikki replied with a smile, but he wouldn't tell Rayleigh why that move was so powerful.
It was because he was wearing pure black clothes, and the black area covering his body was large enough.
The only black parts on Rayleigh's body were the few black buttons on his clothing.
As the target color, the black on Ikki's body far exceeded the black parts on Rayleigh's body. With Irooni's support, his attack power naturally became particularly devastating.
"I have a headache. If we continue fighting like this, it really will become a battle to the death," Rayleigh said, shaking his head with a soft sigh.
"So, are you going to give up, Rayleigh?" Ikki asked with a laugh.
That said, Ikki himself still greatly admired Rayleigh.
Even after being hit by Irooni, he hadn't been brought down completely.
And this was after Rayleigh had held back beforehand.
Compared to the Golden Lion, Rayleigh was truly much stronger.
If the fight continued, it would indeed turn into a death match.
"Forget it, let's stop fighting," Rayleigh said.
"If I continue, the information about Roger's son won't be of any use to me. I'll leave this sword of mine with you."
Rayleigh shook his head, released his grip on his blade, and chose to retreat.
[Ding! Rayleigh admits defeat. Congratulations to Host for winning. Special reward: Host gains "Sea-Breaking Realm Swordsman Rayleigh's Challenge Authority."]
[Host can now claim Rayleigh's Supreme Grade Sword Haō.]