Internal Energy threads pierced toward the Nine-Tailed Fox like sharp blades; in an instant, the Fox Fire scattered, and white smoke quickly filled the entire battlefield.
Within the mist, the figures of Garp, Sengoku, Akainu, Aokiji, Kizaru, and Vice Admiral Tsuru appeared one after another.
"Taro, what are you doing?"
"This is a fight between pirates, you are a Marine..."
"You really do have connections with pirates..."
"The Whitebeard Pirates Remnants are nothing but losers of the Great Pirate Era..."
"This isn't how a Navy Grand Staff Officer should act..."
The figures of these Marine big shots looked just like Immortal Masters, with no discernible difference.
However, this was within Taro's Internal Energy Domain; Catarina Devon's illusion ability could fool the natives of the Pirate World.
But in the face of Taro's Internal Energy detection capabilities, it was nothing more than a joke.
A hint of playfulness flashed in Taro's eyes as he cooperatively showed a look of surprise.
"Ah, Vice Admiral Garp, it's so good that you've come!"
Saying this, he took two steps forward.
"These pirates are so ferocious, each one like a monster and so hard to kill. Let me show you!"
"God's Execution!"
Catarina Devon, hidden in the mist, initially felt relieved when she heard Taro's confused and dazed tone, thinking her ability had taken effect.
But then she saw a strange smile curl at the corner of his mouth and thought, "Oh no."
Once again, she pushed her ability to the limit, and more Fox Fire poured out of her body.
A massive pillar of Internal Energy, coated in Armament Haki, rose up, with the sizzling current of blue and red lightning surging between the pillars.
"Swoosh, swoosh, swoosh, swoosh!"
Sixteen Internal Energy pillars instantly pierced Catarina Devon and the illusions of Garp and the others into the sky.
Immediately after, all the Internal Energy pillars converged at a single point in the air, their power reaching its limit at that moment.
"Gurgle, gurgle! Ah!"
Catarina Devon let out a miserable scream.
The bodies of Garp and the others also wavered for a moment before dissipating with a bang.
"Thump, thump-thump!"
A series of sounds rang out as the white smoke dissipated, and the corpses of six foxes fell from the sky.
Catarina Devon, reverting to her hybrid form, spat out a mouthful of blood, her vacant eyes filled with confusion.
Deep within the white mist, even the most top-tier Observation Haki shouldn't have been able to find where her true body was.
Yet, Taro's attack was precise and decisive; he had clearly determined her location long ago!
How... how was this possible?
"Just how did you... cough, how did you find me!"
Devon, her chest and abdomen pierced by the Internal Energy pillars, was very unwilling to accept this. She coughed up another mouthful of blood and asked with difficulty.
"Hiding within my Internal Energy fluctuations, you really are something!"
Taro sneered, "Want to know?"
He looked up slightly at Devon and waved his hand in front of his nose.
"Because your fox odor can be smelled from miles away!"
Before his voice had even faded, blue-white Vibration Energy welled up from the base of the sixteen Internal Energy pillars, surging rapidly along them.
Finally, they exploded with a bang.
In mid-air, a dazzling white light suddenly appeared as a massive shockwave swept across half the island, stirring up towering waves!
The Vibration Energy directly dismembered Devon's body, turning it into a mist of blood that filled the sky!
"Plop!"
The corpse of a massive fox, torn into pieces, fell down.
Then, at two corners of the Internal Energy Domain, two more fox corpses appeared.
Protected by the fox Clones, Blackbeard and San Juan Wolf reappeared.
"Tch, with just this level of strength, you still spared two tails to protect Blackbeard. You really were courting death!"
Taro glanced at the corpse on the ground, which was reverting to human form, and curled his lip in disdain.
Blackbeard clutched his severed arm, his eyes full of shock.
However, he wasn't shocked by Devon's death.
It was because his Dark-Dark Fruit ability could not absorb the energy residue at the site of his severed arm!
Back in Impel Down, his abdomen had been pierced by Taro.
At that time, he had also been severely injured, but by relying on the Dark-Dark Fruit ability, he had absorbed most of the energy and was able to quickly recover his combat strength.
But now, he couldn't do it!
That sword! There's something strange about it!
He looked at the thunderstorm suspended in mid-air, his eyes full of wariness.
Between the blade shimmering with a blue glow and Taro, there was a faint blue thread connecting them.
"Your sword is cultivating on its own!"
Blackbeard watched for a long time before suddenly shouting in shock and anger!
The Whitebeard Pirates Remnants were all stunned!
They had previously noticed that Taro's sword seemed to have eaten a Devil Fruit; objects that eat Devil Fruits gain a certain degree of personification.
But it was only a little bit.
It was nowhere near the level of cultivating on its own.
Precisely because it couldn't reach that level, although the technology was amazing, in the eyes of these New World pirates, it was nothing more than a gimmick.
A brainless external object, in the end, is not as useful as one's own strength!
Taro was also curious; how did Blackbeard know that thunderstorm could Cultivate on its own?
Normally, wouldn't a Pirate World native's first reaction be that thunderstorm had eaten a Devil Fruit?
"Oh? Blackbeard, not only do you hold many secrets, but your insight also surprises me! How did you tell?"
Blackbeard looked at Taro and began to laugh, his smile a bit crazed.
"Zehahaha, why should I tell you?"
Taro shook his head slightly and said indifferently,
"It doesn't matter if you don't say it. Then just die along with your secrets and ambitions!"
The thunderstorm's blue glow intensified, and Taro's left arm instantly condensed into a massive Internal Energy arm steaming with heat.
"Taro, wait a moment!"
Just then, Aokiji spread his arms wide and leaped quickly from within the island.
Taro frowned and glanced back at Aokiji, his tone cold.
"Kuzan, are you going to stop me?"
Aokiji landed between Taro and Blackbeard.
"I said, I just want to know some things from Blackbeard!"
Blackbeard, however, seemed to have found a savior; Aokiji became his lifeline.
"Kuzan, our agreement is still valid. Now, as long as you help me block Taro, I will tell you everything I know!"
Seeing the contemplative look in Aokiji's eyes, Blackbeard added fuel to the fire.
"The secret of D! Your friend, Haguar D. Sauro, you definitely want to know about him, right?"
Upon hearing Sauro's name, Aokiji's gaze suddenly turned cold. With a tap of his foot, his figure vanished instantly.
In the next second, he appeared behind Blackbeard, then bypassed San Juan Wolf's massive frame to appear in front of Avalo Pizarro.
"Ice Time!"
Aokiji placed a hand on Pizarro's head, and extreme frost rapidly spread, freezing him into an ice sculpture in an instant.
Brushing aside the messy hair on his head, Aokiji looked at Taro, his tone actually carrying a hint of a request.
"Taro, I guarantee I won't let them escape. So, could you give me some time?"
Taro sighed in his heart. Aokiji, who had become lost regarding those matters, was truly obsessed!
After thinking for a while, Taro shrugged.
"If you want to ask, ask quickly. My patience is limited!"
"If he says a single 'no'..."
"Kill him without mercy!"
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