Cracker was feeling extremely stifled right now.
He had originally thought he could regain his dignity from Sherwin, only to be stopped by a little cat under the other party command.
Being stopped would have been one thing, but the key problem was… he couldn't even beat that little black cat!
It wasn't that he hadn't thought of creating a biscuit army for a group assault, but the problem was that every time he summoned biscuit soldiers, the other side would take out a shell and spray out massive streams of water, soaking and melting all the biscuit soldiers Cracker had created.
What made Cracker feel even more stifled was that when Seijuro Meow used the water-spraying shell, he deliberately avoided Cracker pseudo pepper-salt pretzel.
That meant that not only could he not defeat the little black cat in front of him, but the other party was also holding back.
Otherwise, once his biscuit sword melted, it simply wouldn't be able to withstand that razor-sharp swordsmanship…
Though it was already close to being unable to withstand it.
"Flying Cat Sword-Riding Style · Hunting Technique · Qi Release Rolling Flash Meow."
The slender Kikyo Sengetsu traced ring after ring in the air, slashing continuously toward Cracker.
In the Qi Release state, Cracker, who originally possessed greater strength, could only fend off Seijuro Meow slashes in a sorry state while constantly retreating.
However, after exchanging so many rounds, Cracker also understood that this kind of sudden explosive state required a period of charging. So as long as he endured this wave…
What came next wouldn't be so embarrassing to defend against.
"…Damn it!"
Just thinking about how he was being beaten into passive defense by a cat mink who might not even be an adult yet made Cracker furious.
Meanwhile, Seijuro Meow kept slashing while pointing at him.
"You clearly had a chance to counterattack just now, so why did you still choose to defend, meow?" the little black cat shook his head and sighed.
"Are you really that afraid of getting hurt? No wonder your swordsmanship goes back and forth with just these few moves, and they're all the kind more suited for sneak attack, meow."
That was right—besides having his biscuit ability completely countered by the water-spraying shell, there was another reason Cracker had fallen into a disadvantage: his old problem—fear of pain.
He would rather be pressed and beaten than get injured, so after realizing that his Devil Fruit ability had once again become ineffective, he immediately became timid and constrained, just like the last time he fought Sherwin.
If Cracker weren't so obsessed with avoiding injury, then relying on his strength, which was greater than Seijuro Meow, it might still have been possible for him to find a chance to turn the tide during the fight.
But if he continued choosing this turtle-shell style of combat, then there was zero chance of victory—it was nothing more than a slow death.
What Cracker was thinking, however, was that as long as he stalled this highly skilled little black cat in front of him, once his brother Katakuri finished dealing with Sherwin, Seijuro Meow would naturally no longer be a threat.
Since that was the case, why should he risk getting injured by desperately fighting Seijuro Meow?
It was just that while he was focused entirely on defending against Seijuro Meow, he failed to notice that the Katakuri he had placed such high hopes on was also locked in a stalemate with Sherwin at this very moment, with no time at all to come and help him.
After exchanging a few more rounds with Cracker, Seijuro Meow realized that the other party had truly made up his mind to act like a cowardly turtle.
A disappointed expression immediately appeared on the furry little face of the black cat.
"I originally thought that since you came to seek revenge against Lord Sherwin, you would have made at least a little progress. It seems I thought too much, meow."
Seijuro Meow sheathed Kikyo Sengetsu, placed it back into his space pouch, then drew out another smaller tachi from within.
That was the black blade "Shusui" he had obtained as spoils of war after defeating the zombie of the samurai Ryuma. After being compressed by Purah Meow ability, it had become a size suitable for Seijuro Meow use.
As for why the little black cat changed swords, it was naturally because he no longer wanted to continue fighting Cracker, who lacked the soul of a swordsman. Moreover, aside from being reduced in size by Purah Meow, the Shusui he had drawn was also an attribute-infused Sky Island shell weapon modified using Sky Island technology.
And the attribute used to deal with Cracker was, naturally…
"Water Breathing: Third Form — Flowing Dance, meow."
Qiushui, wrapped in flowing water, effortlessly severed the biscuit sword Cracker raised to block and left a bone-deep gash across his chest.
"Waaahhh!"
Cracker, terrified of pain, let out a shrill scream and rapidly summoned several Biscuit Soldiers.
But in front of Seijuro Meow water-attributed Longsword, they were all utterly helpless.
Still, Cracker goal in summoning them had already been achieved. Taking advantage of the brief moment Seijuro Meow was delayed, he lunged to the side and picked up a scimitar from beside the corpse of a pirate who had been taken down earlier…
Although it wasn't a weapon type he was skilled with, and its size and weight felt completely wrong in his hands, it was still far better than a biscuit sword that shattered at a single touch.
At the same time, regret filled Cracker heart. He clearly knew that Sherwin Sword carried water-attributed attacks—so why hadn't he prepared an ordinary weapon beforehand, instead stubbornly insisting on using the biscuit sword to reclaim his pride?
In the end, he had underestimated Sherwin, this suddenly rising newcomer, and had stubbornly believed that his earlier defeat was only because the opponent weapon countered his ability, plus the backing of Katakuri.
That was why Cracker had rushed off to seek revenge against Sherwin without any preparation at all…
And then he was taught how the world works by Seijuro Meow.
Even when wielding the familiar biscuit sword, he couldn't defeat Seijuro Meow.
Now, using an unfamiliar scimitar and carrying injuries, Cracker couldn't possibly hold on for long.
Sure enough, under Seijuro Meow relentless barrage of attacks, the scimitar was knocked from his hand.
With his balance thrown off, he staggered and exposed a fatal opening.
Seijuro Meow naturally wouldn't miss such a perfect chance. The little black cat kicked off the ground, leapt into the air, gripped Qiushui with both hands and raised it high overhead, then brought it crashing down toward Cracker head.
"Water Breathing: Eighth Form — Waterfall Basin, meow!"
"D-damn it!"
Seeing that there was no way to dodge it, Cracker reaction was not much different from when he had faced Sherwin Scarlet Sky End.
He still frantically gathered Armament Haki to block, but this time he didn't have the salted-fish longsword in his hands.
All he could do was use his ability to create biscuits to form a defense. Yet those biscuits, when facing the water-attributed Shusui, were no different from being made of paper.
If nothing unexpected happened, even if Cracker didn't meet his end at Seijuro Meow hands this time, he would at least be left severely injured.
However, fate ultimately had not decided to claim him just yet. Just as Seijuro Meow broke through layer after layer of biscuit walls, and his blade had already slashed onto the arms Cracker held above his head, Katakuri attack arrived.
"Hmph!"
Interrupted, Seijuro Meow let out an unhappy snort, but he still withdrew his Longsword and retreated in time, avoiding Katakuri strike.
Naturally, the little black cat had no intention of letting Cracker off so easily. Yet just as he was about to step forward again to launch another attack, the ground beneath his feet began to writhe like dough.
Or rather, the ground truly turned into dough—becoming soft and even changing color to white. Seijuro Meow keen nose could even catch a faint scent of glutinous rice.
Immediately after, the now-mochi-like ground changed once more. The white dough surged up from the earth like waves,
wrapping around Cracker—whose face was twisted in pain yet also showed excitement—and then swiftly carried him away into the distance.