"Insignificant brat, don't look down on me!" Moratos snarled, his expression fierce. "If I'm not mistaken, you're the one controlling these monsters, aren't you? As long as I take care of you, these monsters will all turn back into motionless statues and sculptures!"
With that, he glared at the approaching Cross, gripping his refined iron spear tightly, and roared as he lunged forward.
Simultaneously, Moratos's body began to change.
First, his eyes transformed into black vertical pupils laced with brown blood vessels, like a snake's. Then, his skin developed fine, greenish-yellow snake scales, and a pair of sharp horns, formed from rolled-up skin, grew on top of his head. His legs even transformed directly into a thick snake tail, replacing his lower body, allowing him to glide rapidly across the ground.
Clang—
In an instant, the katana and iron spear collided, producing a crisp metallic clang, along with dazzling sparks and a visible ring of chaotic airflow.
"No wonder he's so confident; he's a Zoan-type Devil Fruit user!" Cross muttered, slightly surprised at Moratos's transformed appearance, secretly guessing the specific type of his Devil Fruit.
After all, whether snake or python, there were too many different species, and also the classifications of Common, Ancient, and Mythical Zoan.
"Hiss hiss~" Moratos flicked his tongue, two pointed snake fangs protruding from his mouth, and snarled, "You're a Devil Fruit user, and I am too, a Zoan-type Snake-Snake Fruit, Two-Horned Serpent Form user! I betrayed my country and poisoned a prince for this ability!"
Originally, in Moratos's home country, the Two-Horned Serpent was considered a guardian serpent, rumored to also control the power of fertility and reproduction, holding a very high status. Therefore, the image of the Two-Horned Serpent was ubiquitous in his country, appearing on boundary stones, pottery, some amulets, and even on the Queen's golden crown.
"So that's how it is. No wonder the First Prince of the Assyria Kingdom of North Blue died mysteriously. I suppose King Shukasa still believes it was an assassin sent by a rival kingdom who poisoned his son!" Cross's expression showed understanding, but his movements didn't slow in the slightest. He swung his blade again towards the opponent's neck.
"That idiot deserved to die!" Moratos sneered, tilting his upper body backward, narrowly dodging Cross's swing. Then, he suddenly straightened his body, like a slingshot, and headbutted Cross. With the two horns on his head, it was like a spiked hammer.
"Snake Horn Headbutt!!!"
Clang—
Cross's expression hardened. He immediately retracted his arm, holding Shusui horizontally in front of him, and collided with the headbutt.
A violent, powerful gust of wind pressure erupted on the spot, even blowing away pirates within dozens of meters, stirring up thick dust.
"Ahhh—"
"Quick, get out of the way!"
"Where did this strong wind come from?"
"..."
At this moment, Cross noticed that the ground beneath them could no longer withstand the immense force, cracking and forming a spiderweb-like pattern of sunken fissures.
"As expected of a Zoan, quite a bit of raw power!"
"That should be my line! As expected of the man who killed Gecko Moria! And this sword of yours, it's probably not ordinary either, is it?!" Moratos's expression was startled, and a drop of cold sweat appeared on his forehead.
He hadn't expected this seemingly young brat, who looked barely adult, to possess such immense strength. He could block his full-force attack with a single hand on his sword, without showing any strain. It was truly astonishing.
"You recognized it, huh? This Shusui, one of the 21 Great Grade Blades, is the spoils of war I got from Moria. You're its first opponent!" Cross grinned, then kicked towards Moratos's abdomen.
Thump—
A muffled thud.
The kick was swift and sudden, and before Moratos could dodge, he was sent flying, crashing heavily into the ruins of a house a dozen meters away, kicking up a cloud of dust.
"By the way, if I cripple you and deliver you to King Shukasa, then tell him the truth that you killed his son, I could at least gain the friendship of the entire Shukasa Royal Family, right?!" Cross walked forward unhurriedly, seemingly talking to himself.
"Cough, cough~" Moratos coughed up a mouthful of blood, forcefully pushed away a large stone slab pressing on him, and crawled out of the messy house ruins.
"This is really troublesome. I thought the newspapers were just the Marines bragging! Hiss hiss~" Moratos wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth, flicking his snake tongue, and watched Cross approach with a grim expression.
"Compared to me, you're also quite impressive. You poisoned a prince, and no one knows about it even now. It seems King Shukasa back then didn't know about the Two-Horned Serpent Devil Fruit either!" With that, Cross suddenly dashed forward, unleashing a thrusting technique.
"One Sword Style: Hawk Assault!"
"Snake Horn Headbutt!!!"
Moratos's expression was stern as he grunted deeply. His body shot out like lightning, slamming a powerful headbutt onto the tip of Shusui's blade.
Clang—
Like jade colliding, sparks flew. A visible ring of fierce air pressure erupted, sweeping in all directions like a tempest, instantly raising thick, rolling dust.
"Hiss hiss~ I discovered the Two-Horned Serpent Fruit. That bastard wanted to buy it from me for ten thousand Berries and said that after he ate this Devil Fruit, he would be the next King Shukasa, and that it would be an honor for me to sell the fruit to him, all that nonsense!" Moratos snarled through gritted teeth, then let out a neurotic, sinister chuckle: "Hehehe~ Too bad that fool didn't want to pay more and wanted to bully me with his status, so I had no choice but to send him to his death. Anyway, I was just a small-time thug back then. No one would know I possessed something as valuable as the Two-Horned Serpent Fruit, and no one would know I dared to poison a prince! Hiss hiss~"
He used his forehead, covered in Armament Haki, to block the sharp tip of Shusui, speaking as he did, and simultaneously thrust his refined iron spear towards Cross's neck.
Clink~
Cross didn't dodge. He simply protected his neck with Armament Haki, allowing the opponent's spear to strike his throat. His body didn't even tremble in the slightest.
"It's useless. Facing me alone is your biggest mistake!"
"Damn it!"
The next second, Moratos cursed under his breath, immediately retreating and slithering rapidly across the ground like a python.
"One Sword Style: Mikazuki! (Crescent Moon)"
Cross pushed off the ground, shooting forward like an arrow. He wielded Shusui, slashing upwards from below with a massive attack, its sharpness seemingly cleaving the very air.
Boom—
In that split second, Moratos displayed the nimble movements of a snake, narrowly dodging the giant crescent-shaped slash. However, the street ground was effortlessly cut open like a cake, forming a long, bottomless fissure.
"Geppo!"
Immediately after, Cross leaped up, rapidly stepping on the air several times to catch up to the fleeing Moratos.
"One Sword Style: Kagen no Tsuki! (Waning Moon)"
Cross descended from mid-air, and Shusui in his hand slashed downwards, aiming for Moratos's back.
At the crucial moment, Moratos felt a chilling coldness behind him. He immediately spun around, holding his refined iron spear with both hands to block in front of him.
Clang—
A crisp clash, a few sparks flew. The sharp Shusui effortlessly cut through the refined iron spear in Moratos's hands, leaving a deep, bone-visible gash on his chest.
"Kuuk—guah" Moratos coughed up a large mouthful of blood, his eyes filled with incredulous horror.
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