"Soru..."
Despite holding two people, Lancelot moved with fluid grace, as if Alvida and Cabaji weighed nothing at all.
In the blink of an eye, he vanished from his original position like a ghost, disappearing along with his two captives.
This sudden development left Buggy's flying dagger and Mohji's wind blade completely missing their mark, striking nothing but empty air.
As the two stood stunned, Lancelot reappeared, now standing steadily right beside Buggy.
What happened next was jaw-dropping—Lancelot began swinging the unconscious Cabaji like a massive, makeshift weapon.
He mercilessly whirled the acrobat with thunderous force before slamming him hard into Buggy!
"Thud..."
Given the overwhelming disparity in their strength, Buggy had no time to react before Cabaji's body slammed into him with tremendous force.
Under such a terrifying impact, Buggy, despite his Chop-Chop Fruit powers, was utterly powerless to resist the raw, blunt force.
Amid a cloud of swirling dust, Buggy was driven deep into the hard ground, forming a human-shaped crater.
The surrounding earth cracked like a spiderweb under the immense force, with fissures radiating in all directions.
Yet, the principle of action and reaction remains immutable.
Although Cabaji played the role of the "attacker," he too was unable to escape unscathed after the violent collision with Buggy.
A massive, alarming red bump rapidly swelled on Cabaji's head, a shocking sight to behold.
Simultaneously, the intense impact, combined with Lancelot's earlier chokehold, kept him unconscious as he collapsed limply to the side.
"Gasp!"
Nearby, Matthew, the captain of the Hurricane Pirate Crew, stared wide-eyed, his pupils dilated like bronze bells, his jaw hanging open wide enough to fit an egg.
His face was a mask of utter disbelief.
He simply couldn't believe what had just unfolded before his eyes—Lancelot had effortlessly defeated the infamous Buggy the Clown, a man renowned throughout the East Blue, with just a single, humiliating move.
Yet now, Buggy had been instantly defeated by Lancelot as if he were a helpless chick, utterly powerless to resist.
The scene was so staggering that Matthew felt his heart nearly stop beating.
Before Matthew could even begin to process his overwhelming shock, Lancelot made his move once more.
With one hand still gripping Alvida's wrist like an iron clamp, Lancelot abruptly hurled the unconscious Cabaji with tremendous force.
In an instant, Cabaji's body shot through the air like an arrow released from its bow, his speed akin to lightning, flying straight toward Matthew.
Watching Cabaji transform into a "human flail" hurtling toward him, Matthew was seized with panic.
However, his years of combat experience on the Grand Line allowed him to react swiftly.
He forcefully pushed off the ground with both feet, propelling himself backward several meters.
At the same time, he crossed his arms in front of his chest with lightning speed and roared at the top of his lungs.
"Cyclone Guard!"
As Matthew's furious shout echoed, an immensely powerful gust of wind materialized out of thin air.
This wind seemed almost alive, swirling rapidly and converging into a massive, defensive cyclone.
Matthew stood firmly at the very center of the whirlwind, and as it spun at high velocity, he appeared to be shielded by an invisible barrier, completely isolated from the outside world.
"Thud…"
Cabaji's unconscious body slammed into the powerful cyclone like a cannonball!
Instantly, the whirlwind emitted a sharp, piercing howl, as if intent on tearing Cabaji to shreds.
Yet, contrary to expectations, Cabaji wasn't easily swept away or repelled by the cyclone.
Instead, his limp body was caught by its surface, spinning rapidly along with the wind's momentum.
In the blink of an eye, he completed a full rotation around the cyclone, which then hurled him high into the sky like a catapult.
Cabaji's figure vanished from everyone's sight in an instant.
It was only after a considerable while that a dull thud echoed from the distance.
It turned out that Cabaji had ultimately crashed heavily onto the ground, a full hundred meters away from his original position.
Dust billowed up all around, obscuring the details of the scene.
However, judging by the loud impact and the scattered debris, it was clear that the fall had been anything but gentle.
Witnessing this, Lancelot couldn't help but nod slightly in acknowledgment.
"Not bad…"
However, before his words could fully settle, his tone abruptly shifted.
"But, it's merely 'not bad.' If you think such a move can block my attacks? You're still far from it!"
In the blink of an eye, as soon as Lancelot finished speaking, his figure shot forward like a phantom, using Soru to charge straight toward Matthew in the distance with astonishing speed.
Matthew's eyes widened in shock and disbelief.
He simply couldn't comprehend how his opponent had moved so quickly.
One moment, Lancelot was standing still, and the next, he was right in front of him!
With almost no time to react, Matthew saw a massive fist, wrapped in a fierce, dark gust of Armament Haki, hurtling straight toward him.
The cyclone he had always prided himself on, his "absolute defense," now seemed as insignificant as a gentle breeze before the sheer, overwhelming force of that punch.
The seemingly indestructible whirlwind shattered instantly under the impact of Lancelot's iron fist, vanishing without a trace, unable to offer even the slightest resistance.
Yet Lancelot's fist continued its unstoppable advance toward Matthew.
Then came a dull, sickening groan.
Under the terrifying impact of that overwhelming force, Matthew was sent flying uncontrollably into the air like a kite torn from its string by a violent gust.
"Pfft…"
At the same time, a stream of crimson liquid burst from Matthew's mouth, forming a shocking arc of blood.
As it shot through the air, the blood dispersed into a mist, like a ghastly crimson flower blooming in the sky—both tragic and chilling.
Moments later, Matthew's body crashed heavily onto the ground a hundred meters away, kicking up a cloud of dust.
At that moment, time seemed to freeze, and an eerie silence fell over the surroundings.
The few remaining pirates who had noticed the commotion stared at the motionless figure in the distance, their hearts filled with shock and fear.
A faint smile curled at the corner of Lancelot's lips.
After all, that punch, though it appeared devastating, had been thrown with such casual ease—he clearly hadn't even used his full strength.
Even so, the power Lancelot had displayed was far beyond what someone like Matthew could withstand.
The gap in strength between the two was simply worlds apart.
"This… this… this…"
Still held firmly in Lancelot's grasp, Alvida stared wide-eyed, her faced was full of shock at the unbelievable scene before her.
Just moments ago, she had been conspiring with two other high-bounty pirates on how to deal with Lancelot's subordinate, Gin.
And now, in the span of about a minute, all three of them—Cabaji, Buggy, and the powerful Matthew—had been utterly, effortlessly defeated by Lancelot himself.
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