Chapter 56: The Unyielding Mammoth
Shoulders, knees, flanks...
In a brief, furious flurry, Ian delivered multiple internal strikes at high speed. With every blow, a part of him marveled at the sheer, monstrous vitality of his opponent. Jack's massive body was now stained with blood, yet his tangible life force had barely diminished.
Within the darkness of his own mind, Jack's consciousness struggled. With every blow Ian landed, the intense physical and mental pain began to seep through, a sign his senses were gradually recovering. This terrifying technique made him realize, with chilling clarity, that he could no longer afford to underestimate this young Major General.
Finally, as Ian poised to deliver a shattering blow to his jaw, Jack's Observation Haki recovered just enough to sense the killing intent.
BOOM!
Ian's attack landed, sending Jack's body flying once more and carving a crater half a street wide into the ground. This time, however, there was no spray of blood. Ian's expression turned serious. He didn't press the attack with high speed. Instead, he stopped, cracking his knuckles thoughtfully.
The last attack had been blocked by a last-second surge of Armament Haki defense.
Jack had broken free from the state of sensory deprivation through sheer willpower and Haki!
"No wonder this guy dared to attack a fleet carrying an Admiral and a Fleet Marshal," Ian muttered under his breath. "He's really, really hard to kill."
BOOM!
BOOM!
From within the distant crater, the mammoth in its full beast form emerged once more through the smoke and dust.
"You brat... is this your Devil Fruit's ability?" Jack's voice roared out, thick with rage and pain. "The Human-Human Fruit... can it be used like this? You truly caught me off guard!"
His appearance made Ian grin despite the situation. Jack was not maintaining his human or hybrid form. He had reverted to his most cumbersome, yet most defensively potent, full beast form. It was a clear admission—he was too gravely injured to maintain anything else. He was buying time, using the mammoth's raw durability to recover.
"Hahaha!" Ian laughed. "I've seen a lot of four-legged turtles, but this is the first time I've seen a three-legged elephant!"
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Outside the epicenter of Ian and Jack's battle, the duels between the cadres were reaching their climax.
Among Jack's subordinates, the strongest was Holdem, the Lion SMILE user. Yet, his situation was the most dire.
"Nijiro!" Holdem screamed, his face contorted in pain. "Are you crazy? Let go of my hand! We're on the same side, why are you biting me?!"
He was frantically beating the animate lion head on his own stomach with his free hand while stumbling deeper into the ruins. Behind him, his own weapon, the "Machine Knife," moved as if possessed, chasing him down while its mechanisms spat fire. His trusted partner, his very power, had been turned against him.
Peacock, having tamed the weapon with a crack of her whip, moved like a phantom through the debris. "Fool, you really know how to pick your own grave, hehe," she taunted. "The more clutter around, the better it suits my style!"
She swung her combat whip, not at Holdem, but at the dilapidated buildings surrounding him.
"Where is she? Where is that hateful woman?" Holdem panted, looking back but not stopping his flight. "I can hear the whip, but I can't see her! What kind of weird ability is this?!"
BOOM!
A ruined house suddenly materialized on the path before him. Holdem, with no time to react, crashed straight into it.
"Aghhh! It hurts! What the...? How did this house get here?!"
He had been running down a clear path. One moment it was open, the next, a building blocked his way.
Creak...
Groan...
As Holdem scrambled on the ground, strange noises echoed around him. He looked up in horror. "The houses... they're moving! How is this possible?!"
In another part of the ruins, amidst a cluster of bubble-topped buildings now cleared of civilians, the sniper duel reached its peak.
Thwip!
Thwip!
Two Armament Haki-infused arrows pierced through a wooden wall, forcing Skylark from her cover.
"Tsk..." She glided out with practiced grace, leaping onto a nearby soap bubble. The moment she stabilized, she ejected a spent magazine, slammed in a fresh one, and aimed at Speed's position.
BANG!
An explosive shell shot out with violent force.
Tap, tap...
Hearing the projectile, Speed sidestepped, easily predicting and avoiding the bullet's trajectory. She had been in a stalemate with Skylark for a while. The lark's bullets were powerful, but not yet a fatal threat. What made Skylark truly dangerous was her incredible mobility, allowing her to escape every time Speed got a lock.
But now, she was crouched on a bubble, assuming a stable sniper's pose. In that position, she couldn't possibly dodge as quickly.
"I've finally found your weakness!" Speed exclaimed, quickly drawing her bow and aiming at the stationary target. "You're finished, little one!"
However...
BOOM!
The bullet Skylark had fired moments earlier struck a building behind Speed and detonated with the force of a cannonball. It wasn't the bullet itself, but the shrapnel and debris from the explosion that became the real attack, flying towards Speed's unprotected back. She had dodged the initial shot, only to fall into the trap of the follow-up blast. The sniper's true skill lay not just in a direct hit, but in controlling the entire battlefield.
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