"Is that so? Although I'd prefer not to take on extra work, in this situation, it seems I have no choice but to intervene," Zeno sighed.
The moment his words faded, Takeru sensed his presence vanish… no, he had moved with extreme speed, appearing right before Takeru. A hand infused with potent Nen was already aimed at Takeru's heart.
Though Takeru's Observation Haki had perceived the movement, his body couldn't react fast enough.
The speed disparity was too great. Takeru could only instinctively activate Ken. In an instant, Zeno's hand collided with Takeru's armor.
Bang!
The sound of impact echoed. The Twilight Armor, evolved twice, couldn't withstand Zeno's strike. His fingers pierced through the armor and quickly met Takeru's skin...
However, upon contact, even though they had already broken through Takeru's Ken, much of their force had dissipated.
Just as Zeno thought Takeru had no chance of survival, he was shocked to discover his fingers could not penetrate Takeru's now-unprotected skin...
Boom!
By the time Gotoh and the others registered what happened, Takeru had already been sent flying.
Despite launching Takeru, Zeno's face showed no trace of triumph. Instead, he looked at Takeru with a grave and deeply puzzled expression.
Takeru, unable to be pierced, had been sent flying by the subsequent explosive force of the impact. Though hurled back, he felt no actual damage...
Moreover, Takeru realized that the moment Zeno attacked him, his Strength, Speed, and other attributes had dramatically increased.
He understood now: with Zeno's level of power, breaching his defense would likely be even more difficult.
The reason was simple: besides Absolute Defense, Takeru possessed the Giant Killing skill.
[Giant Killing: When four or more ability values (excluding HP/MP) are lower than the opponent's, all abilities except HP/MP are doubled!]
Takeru's current base Defense was 544. With Absolute Defense doubling it, and Giant Killing doubling it again...
So, when facing Zeno, Takeru's Defense had reached 2176. Combined with his equipment bonuses, even with Zeno's more ferocious attacks, breaching Takeru's defense would be exceedingly difficult...
Realizing this, Takeru quickly stood up, a faint smile playing on his lips.
His Twilight Armor had already repaired itself, its evolution count now at three...
"Something's strange..." Zeno frowned, seeing Takeru clearly unharmed. Of course, he wouldn't retreat because of this.
Seeing Zeno's confusion, Takeru didn't hesitate. He lunged forward, thrusting Twilight Moon at Zeno. To make it easier for the weapon to break, he didn't coat it with Armament Haki or use Shu to reinforce it.
Seeing Takeru's displayed speed, Zeno was momentarily surprised but quickly reacted, moving away from his original position with even greater speed...
"Dragon Head!" After creating some distance, Zeno stopped underestimating Takeru and unleashed his signature technique...
Soon, a Nen Construct resembling a purple dragon took form in Zeno's hands. After swirling it twice, he sent it hurtling toward Takeru with an unstoppable momentum...
Takeru, seeing this, simply continued reinforcing his body with Nen and Armament Haki, then raised his shield and Crescent Moon to meet the attack...
As the shield and sword made contact with the purple dragon phantom, they shattered like paper. The dragon slammed into Takeru, sending him flying once again...
This time, the purple dragon carried Takeru a great distance, smashing through numerous trees along the way...
Gotoh and the other butlers looked at Zeno with awe. This level of power was something they could never hope to achieve in their lifetimes.
"Probably not over yet. What an extraordinary young man..." Zeno murmured, watching Takeru being carried away by the dragon, yet feeling that Takeru couldn't possibly have died from that attack.
"Rankyaku!"
While Zeno was reflecting, a white shockwave slash flew directly at him.
Seeing this, Zeno quickly used Ken to defend against the Rankyaku...
Takeru wasn't surprised. He closed the distance with Zeno at high speed, then used Soru for a burst of acceleration, thrusting Twilight Moon mercilessly toward Zeno's abdomen.
Takeru's use of Soru increased his speed drastically, making it difficult for Zeno to dodge. While evasion was tough, defense was still possible.
He instantly activated Ken and used Ryu to concentrate about eighty percent of his Aura at his abdomen. As Twilight Moon struck, it couldn't penetrate Zeno's defense...
Seizing the momentary pause, Zeno created distance again.
Takeru, however, pressed relentlessly, swinging Twilight Moon in pursuit.
Encountering such a formidable opponent was rare, and Takeru found himself captivated, his innate combat instincts driving him to attack.
Relying on his near-impenetrable defense, Takeru only needed to maintain Ken for protection. If his Nen ran low, he could switch to Armament Haki...
Boom! Boom! As time passed, the battle between Takeru and Zeno continued. Of course, compared to Zeno, Takeru was mostly on the receiving end. Though Takeru occasionally surprised Zeno with unexpected abilities, Zeno, experienced and cunning, suffered little actual damage.
"Father, I'll assist you!" About half an hour later, a powerfully built figure suddenly appeared between Takeru and Zeno.
By now, after half an hour of high-intensity combat, Zeno was slightly winded. Takeru was in a similar state, and although his defense held, constantly maintaining Ken and launching attacks had taken a toll on his stamina.
Seeing Silva appear, Takeru paid no mind and even used the Provocation skill on him.
Affected by the provocation, Silva felt an inexplicable urge to attack Takeru.
However, his mental fortitude was strong. He quickly calmed himself, appearing unaffected. Takeru hadn't expected such composure, but then again, as a top-tier assassin, emotional control was fundamental...
With Silva joining the fray, Takeru had even less opportunity to attack and could only focus on defense. As his Potential Aura dwindled, he switched to full-body Armament Haki coverage.
After exchanging blows with Takeru, Silva also sensed something odd. Takeru's defense was strangely robust.
While his other abilities were nothing special to them, Takeru himself hadn't sustained any real damage despite taking numerous hits.
Furthermore, Takeru's equipment was bizarre. It had shattered several times but instantly repaired itself. Each time it repaired, breaking it again became more difficult...
Finally, after another ten minutes, when Silva's strongest attacks failed to break Takeru's shield and armor, Takeru created distance between them.
Noticing Takeru's move, Silva halted his attacks, looking at him curiously. He could now sense Takeru seemed to have lost his will to fight.
Facing a turtle-like opponent whose defense they couldn't crack, Silva, if possible, also had no desire to continue. Besides, even if they killed Takeru, it held no benefit for them.
As for using Nanika to wish Takeru dead, that was even more impossible. If even they struggled to kill him, the cost of such a wish might far exceed thousands of lives.
"Your strength is truly impressive. Actually, I came here to find Killua. I hope you'll allow me to see him."
Despite the life-and-death struggle moments ago, Takeru now spoke with a cheerful smile, as if the entire fight had been nothing but a dream.
"You're here for Killua?" Hearing this, Silva frowned at Takeru.
As for the battle just now, although it had consumed considerable energy, they had suffered no real losses. Therefore, they wouldn't outright reject Takeru's proposal without consideration.