Chapter 74: Thunder Dragon!
"No way, no way!"
Seeing Rhodes emerge unscathed from Ryuji's attack, though slightly outmatched, Kuro's eyes nearly popped out of his head in disbelief.
A few months ago, Rhodes had only barely defeated him, his victory due to his lack of Observation Haki.
But a few months later, after painstakingly training in Observation Haki, Rhodes could now match his teacher blow for blow.
This was simply... unbelievable!
Morley and the others who had graduated alongside Rhodes were stunned, their jaws dropping.
Not to mention them—even Hack, the fish-man who had mentored Rhodes, was stunned.
He'd always acknowledged that his strength was inferior to Ryuji's.
But Rhodes' ability to withstand Ryuji's attack meant that he was almost as strong as himself.
Hack felt as if a thousand emotions were racing through his heart.
Given Rhodes' talent and strength, he had envisioned the day he'd be surpassed by this young man, but he'd never imagined it would arrive so quickly, so unexpectedly.
"He's achieved this without even using his lightning powers. Could this guy truly have a chance of defeating Ryuji?"
Koala clenched her fists, a strange sense of anticipation building within her.
...
Meanwhile, in the arena...
Crackle...
Rhodes channeled his lightning power, swinging his sword forward. A violent blast of electricity followed, transforming into a pillar of lightning that thundered toward Ryuji.
The air was thick with the scent of ozone, making everyone's hair stand on end.
"So this is the legendary Thunder Sword Style?"
"It's truly incredibly powerful."
Ryuji's eyes flickered with amazement, but his expression remained calm. Without flinching, he struck with his sword.
Whoosh!
The sword energy, swirling with the force to cleave anything in two, swept forward, almost instantly severing the pillar of lightning and dispersing it along with the sword energy.
At the same moment, Ryuji stomped his foot, stirring up a gust of wind. With lightning speed, he charged toward Rhodes.
"But if that's all you're capable of, then this ends now!"
Ryuji's eyes returned to their cold, impassive state.
A master swordsman has his own pride. Having been pressed by Sabo earlier already made him uncomfortable.
Now, facing Rhodes again, while impressed by his talent and strength, he didn't want to hold back any longer.
No one likes being used as a stepping stone.
Moreover, this overwhelming natural lightning force, with its powerful electrical current, would inevitably wear him down in a prolonged battle, so a quick victory was necessary.
"Ryuji's slash was too powerful. Even Rhodes' signature ability, his Thunder Sword Style, was ineffective."
"Senior officers are senior officers after all. They're not easily challenged."
The spectators all expressed disappointment. Rhodes' performance was impressive, but still fell short.
Everyone believed that in a few years, with Rhodes' swordsmanship and Haki further developed, he might be able to defeat Ryuji, but now was too early.
Sabo also shook his head slightly, pessimistic about Rhodes' chances.
Only Dragon remained unmoved, his eyes calm. He had assigned Ryuji to assess their strength, and hadn't expected either Sabo or Rhodes to emerge victorious. His purpose was simply to see which of the two performed better.
There was also wisdom in this approach: constant success isn't beneficial; occasional setbacks actually promote growth.
At this moment, Ryuji burst forward at breathtaking speed, like lightning itself, closing in to crush Rhodes with a single decisive blow.
"These senior officers really are far stronger than Lao G and the others. No wonder even Sabo was overwhelmed,"
Rhodes sighed inwardly.
Even before refining his internal organs, he could single-handedly defeat Lao G and Gladius. Although these two specialized in close combat, he had outmatched them in speed while lacking any area-of-effect abilities, making them no real threat to Rhodes—they were simply too durable.
But Ryuji was different. He was a master swordsman in his own right, surpassing Rhodes in pure technique.
Beyond that, in both physical strength and Haki mastery, he vastly exceeded Lao G and Gladius. Even in his forte of speed, Rhodes was only marginally competitive, falling behind in all other aspects.
"Unfortunately for you, your timing is off. If we had faced each other before my internal organ refinement, even at full strength, I'm afraid I'd only have a 40% chance of victory. But now..."
As Ryuji approached with his sword raised, Rhodes' eyes flashed with electric light.
The benefits of his internal organ refinement hadn't only dramatically increased his physical capabilities and strength—they were also reflected in his electric mastery, pushing his accumulated power to over 900, approaching the theoretical maximum of 947!
At this level, the color of his lightning power was incredibly intense, and its destructive force was enough to instantly reduce an ordinary person to ash, like divine judgment from the heavens.
The previous sword strike had been merely a test!
He gripped his sword with both hands, his eyes flashing with blue light, and suddenly swung downward.
"Ittōryū: Rairyū!" (One Sword Style: Thunder Dragon!)
His nearly perfected lightning power was pushed to its absolute limit. The force that erupted in an instant changed the very air around them. Deep blue electricity was reflected in everyone's pupils.
Buzz!
The air itself hummed. Even before the sword completed its arc, the overwhelming, irresistible force of thunder caused Ryuji's expression to change drastically.
"How is this possible?!"
Ryuji was shocked. The previous lightning attack was already formidable, but Rhodes could be even stronger?!
Because they were too close, he couldn't dodge and could only swing his sword to meet the attack head-on.
Almost instantly,
a thunder dragon, condensed from pure electricity and shimmering with pale silver light, suddenly roared forth and crashed into Ryuji's blade.
Even though Ryuji exerted all his strength, pushing his Armament Haki to its absolute limit and radiating an aura of cutting power, he was still overwhelmed by the thunder dragon.
CRACK!
The ground split open, revealing a terrifying chasm. The impact forced Ryuji back dozens of steps, each footfall creating a large crater and spiderweb cracks in the earth.
By the time the thunder dragon dissipated, Ryuji was a hundred meters away, leaving behind a completely shattered landscape.
Cough!
He spat out a mouthful of blood laced with crackling electricity, and stared at the sword-wielding youth bathed in terrifying lightning in the distance, disbelief and shock etched across his face.
A single Thunder Dragon technique—the tide had turned completely.
Absolute silence fell over the entire audience!
Everyone shared the same thought:
Is this really the true extent of the Thunder Sword Style?!
Even the normally composed Dragon nearly lost his composure, deeply moved by what he'd witnessed.
Despite commanding the Revolutionary Army and possessing vast knowledge spanning history, strategy, and Devil Fruit abilities, he had never seen anyone manipulate sword techniques into such a monstrous display of power.
Just how incredible was the lightning ability?
Koala was stunned. She had witnessed Rhodes' lightning abilities before during his battle against those pirates, and while she'd been amazed then, he was facing common "small fry," so she could barely accept it.
But at this moment, this Thunder Dragon—tearing the earth apart, dramatically reversing the battle's outcome, and driving back senior officer Ryuji—seemed almost surreal!
End of Chapter 74
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