"How is this possible?
This punch… I can feel a force no less than Big Mom's from it. H-How could that be?" Perospero was drenched in cold sweat.
What Perospero didn't know was that if Rossinante could fully control his current strength and unleash the full power of the Collapse Fist, his attack power could genuinely rival Big Mom's.
As Rossinante's fist surged with overwhelming energy, Katakuri felt the presence of death looming over him.
"I'm going to die. If that punch hits me... I'm going to die!" Katakuri's mind screamed in alarm. He could smell death.
Rossinante slowly raised his fist—not to charge forward, but to throw a punch across the air toward Katakuri.
As the punch was unleashed, an invisible shockwave tore through the air. The very atmosphere exploded with rippling force, and the punch's energy tore through space like a swordsman's flying slash.
Too fast. It was unimaginably fast—within an instant, the shockwave traveled across the space between them and struck Katakuri squarely.
"BOOM!"
The earth roared. Katakuri was slammed into the mountainside, blasting open a massive crater. Blood spurted from his mouth.
"Heh… hehehe…"
Even as he coughed up blood, Katakuri was smiling.
"That blow… missed the vital spot?" Rossinante said cautiously.
"So that's it… That's it! It takes tremendous pressure to break through… my Observation Haki!" Katakuri said between coughs of blood.
Just before Rossinante's blow landed, Katakuri had sensed death. In that life-threatening moment, his Observation Haki broke through—he clearly saw a vision of Rossinante's punch piercing his chest and shattering his internal organs.
After seeing that image, he realized there was no time to dodge. But with that vision, he moved ever so slightly—just enough to avoid the fatal blow. Simultaneously, he withdrew all of his Armament Haki from across his body and focused it at the point of impact, shielding his chest with his hardened hands.
Even so, the impact was massive. Katakuri still coughed up blood.
"You've broken through… Observation Haki… You can now foresee the future?" Rossinante slowly walked forward, his expression grim.
This was the outcome he had least wanted to see.
Katakuri's body was already riddled with wounds from Rossinante's relentless assault. And now, after taking a Collapse Fist, he was near his limit. But he stood up anyway—with a look of excitement on his face.
"Swish—"
Rossinante vanished, reappearing beside Katakuri in complete silence. A kick struck out from behind Katakuri's head—his skull should've been shattered on the spot.
But Rossinante's expression didn't lighten. In fact, it darkened even more.
"You're the one I should thank. Under your pressure, I finally broke through. And at this level… I'm invincible." Katakuri smiled confidently.
He was a Special Paramecia-type Devil Fruit user—his body was mochi, able to stretch and change shape at will.
Now, combining that with his future sight, he could foresee every attack and morph his body in advance to evade them. This was more terrifying than a Logia-type's element-based intangibility—because not even Armament Haki could touch him.
"Invincible? You think too highly of yourself." Rossinante snorted coldly.
"Every power has its limits. And you're already near yours. Let's see how long you can last."
Rossinante moved with high speed again, continuing his ferocious assault.
With his future sight, Katakuri gradually adapted to Rossinante's movements. Rossinante's speed was still incredible, but not completely out of reach for someone like Katakuri.
Normally, Katakuri could rely on sound—the noise of movement, wind friction, muscle strain. But Rossinante's Devil Fruit power silenced all that, placing him in a state of absolute quiet. This nullified even the sharpest Observation Haki.
That's why, until now, Rossinante had completely overwhelmed him.
But now, with the ability to see the future, Katakuri could respond to Rossinante's attacks in advance.
"What a troublesome ability…" Rossinante muttered.
He had to admit—future sight Katakuri was terrifying. Even though Rossinante had lifted his self-limiters and boosted his strength and Haki tremendously, he was still finding it difficult.
"BAM!"
Their fists collided, unleashing a blast of wind.
In just a short time, Katakuri was already catching up to Rossinante's speed. The battle began shifting into a balanced exchange of blows.
[I can't let this continue. Even if it's dangerous… even if I cross the line… I need to end this.]
Rossinante made up his mind. He raised his fist—energy gathering again, causing the air around him to tremble violently.
At close range, he launched another Collapse Fist. Even before his fist connected, the shockwave surged forward, punching through Katakuri's body.
"Gah—!"
Although Katakuri had foreseen the attack, he still couldn't dodge it entirely. Part of his body was blasted apart.
By transforming in advance, he evaded some of the damage—but some of the force still pierced him, and he coughed up blood again.
"I can't stay passive. I have to fight back!" Katakuri shouted.
White mochi structures burst from his body, hurtling toward Rossinante.
His hands transformed into mochi whips, laced with Armament Haki, spinning rapidly and striking like blades.
Other mochi limbs compressed and ignited like rocket boosters, launching attacks like artillery shells.
"Collapse Fist!"
No matter what Katakuri threw at him, Rossinante responded with the same:
"Collapse Fist!"
Each punch distorted the air, tearing through Katakuri's defenses and shattering everything in its path. Though Katakuri kept using his future sight to minimize damage, he was still forced to spit blood over and over.
"Collapse Fist!!"
Another devastating punch broke through.
This time, Katakuri failed to evade. The crushing blow landed squarely on his body.
Blood gushed from his mouth. His consciousness faded.
"THUD—"
He collapsed.
After all, he had just broken into the realm of future sight. He couldn't maintain that level of Observation Haki for long—and finally, he'd reached his limit.
He could no longer see the future.