Chapter 204: The Punch of Salvation
Kaito Shirogane looked at the [Virtue] card in his hand as the spirit in front of him dissipated into points of light.
That guy...
Kaito realized Roland had intentionally let him kill him. The next second, a blood-chilling killing intent descended. The Black King opened his eyes again. The sorrow was gone, replaced by pure intent to kill.
Bzzzt—
BZZT!
Black Conqueror's Haki washed over Kaito's body like a current, his [Scales of the Flame Dragon] triggering over and over.
The next second, Kaito's body erupted in crimson flames.
[Tier Trait: Solitary Jealous Flame has been activated. All Stats +1.]
[Tier Trait: Solitary Jealous Flame has been activated. All Stats +1.]
...
The crimson flames blazed. Kaito had rarely had this trait triggered since he got it; few enemies could put this much pressure on him. The Haki's pressure was so frequent that it had max-stacked [Solitary Jealous Flame] almost instantly.
His All-Stats were boosted by +7. This was a base stat increase, which, when converted by [Efficacy], massively strengthened his Constitution and Spirit.
But it still wasn't enough.
Kaito ignored the potential backlash, his heart pounding as his body swelled, his talent activating.
In this moment, Kaito Shirogane had reached his most powerful state since entering the Nexus.
He would never sit and wait for death, no matter who the opponent was.
Setsuna, activate!
Time and space seemed to slow. But Kaito's pupils shrank. The spot where his opponent had been standing was empty. Kaito turned his head. The area previously affected by the [Slow-Slow Fruit] had just returned to normal.
Flesh exploded in mid-air.
All targets hit by the [Slow-Slow] beam (objects that reflect light were unaffected) had their time frozen. But when the effect ended, all damage and displacement they had suffered was applied at once.
Therefore, the swarms of Spectral Demons Kaito had just sliced with the [Dragonslayer] all burst into a spray of gore and limbs.
Kaito, showered in blood, turned and was met by a finger pressed to his forehead.
Black King Luffy wasn't tall, but his one arm seemed impossibly long. His finger, which had no nail, pressed against Kaito's brow. A scorching point of light instantly heated Kaito's scales red-hot.
Kaito's heart sank. The shadow of death, stronger than he had ever felt, fell over him. He felt a current shoot from his brain and down every nerve.
A flood of images, too fast and too vast to process, flashed through his mind. It was like experiencing the entire genetic memory of evolution from a single-celled organism, or re-developing from an embryo.
Kaito's three-meter-tall body began to shrink. His hair stood on end. His Hamon, ki, Satsui no Hado, even the Underworld power flowing in him, were all breaking down into tiny particles of light and leaking from his body.
His hair floated, and in the shimmering light, Kaito's face began to change.
[Great Sin Reincarnator EX051, Talent Anchor anomalous. Re-anchoring...]
[Anchoring...]
Kaito looked at Luffy and, for the first time, saw through the black Haki and saw the man's true face.
Vmmm!
A golden laser erupted from Luffy's fingertip. But even pressed to his forehead, an invisible barrier appeared. No... not a barrier... it was [Spirit]!
Kaito's hair whipped back. His eyes were wide. In his pupils, he saw the reflection of Garp. For the first time, he wasn't using the left arm; he himself was unleashing Conqueror's Haki.
The two torrents of Haki clashed. Not only that, crimson-black lightning began to radiate from Kaito's body, enveloping him in a way that was very similar to Black King Luffy.
Luffy watched as his laser failed to break through. Their Haki was colliding, and his opponent was no longer being suppressed.
This Reincarnator... he was talented. He had, in just a few moments, learned... or copied... how he used his Haki.
Kaito spread his arms, roared, and his aura surged. He pulled back his left arm, the motion and rhythm identical to Garp's [Fist Bone Impact].
In that instant, Black King Luffy's pupils shrank. He thought he saw a familiar shadow (Garp's) appear behind Kaito.
Luffy looked at that shadow, his expression changing. He didn't use another ability. He just threw a punch.
"No!"
A sharp scream came from behind. Kaito's pupils shrank. His senses were unnaturally sharp. His body was like a receiver, pulling in information from all directions.
He was trying to pour his entire being into this one, desperate, ultimate punch.
But his eyes twitched. He saw the damaged warship, the girl (Cindy) falling from the rail, Orkins hanging on, and a winged Spectral Demon opening its maw to devour them both.
Kaito's control over his body was absolute. He had touched that state of [Logic] that Shen Wulong had described. He understood the secret of every nerve. The muscles in his left arm twitched, and his fist... moved... one inch to the right.
His fist, wreathed in crimson Haki, grazed Luffy's black Haki-wreathed fist, and shot past him toward the warship.
Vmmm—BOOM!
First, a muffled sound, as if the punch had shattered the air. Then, a white-hot vapor cloud split in two in front of his fist.
At the end of the vapor trail, the dark sky of the Spectral Realm was, for a moment, torn open, revealing a sea of clouds. The punch's power pierced everything.
The giant Spectral Demon exploded, along with the army of demons behind it, all of them bursting into a rain of pulp.
Bang.
Luffy's black right fist landed on Kaito's chest. The Conqueror's Haki passed through Kaito's body... but caused no damage. The destructive power had vanished just before it made contact.
Kaito's muscles spasmed, his joints locking from the overwhelming Haki.
But he just heard a swoosh. Black King Luffy was gone. The next second, a fist of Haki appeared in the sky, and the two God Hand members (Slan and Void) exploded.
Not only that, but [Yasakani Sacred Jewels] (Kizaru's ability) lit up the sky, countless light-bullets accurately striking every Spectral Demon.
"Go back to your own world."
A gale rose, a storm from all directions, sweeping up the demons, the God Hand corpses, even the Behelits, and throwing them back into the giant hole in the sky.
The next second, the Black King turned into a black bolt of lightning and vanished into the hole. The Spectral Realm collapsed. The blue sea and sky returned.
It was all like a dream.
Only the corpses on the warships and the new, terrifying scars on the shattered Skuld Island proved it was real.
Cindy stood on the warship, having hauled Uncle Orkins aboard. She turned, and her eyes lit up. She waved at Kaito, who was still on the broken beach, frozen in his punching pose.
"Hey, Mister!"
"You saved me!"
Kaito didn't smile. That overwhelming power still weighed on his mind.
Who saved whom?
He looked at his fist. He still didn't understand why, in that moment, he had thrown that punch.
If he had punched the Black King, what would have happened?
Was that... the [Heart]? ...Heh.
Krrackle!
Blue lightning exploded, and a thunder dragon pierced Kaito's rigid body.
In front of the disbelieving eyes of Cindy, Orkins, and Doberman, Enel, wreathed in lightning, appeared where Kaito had fallen. The place where his thunder drums had been now sported four new heads.
His expression no longer held the arrogance of a god. His eyes were calm and cold, but the four heads behind him showed the expressions of [Joy], [Anger], [Sorrow], and [Pleasure].
Enel looked at Kaito's blackened body. His golden staff melted and reformed into a golden blade.
"That arm... In the end, you couldn't control it, mortal."
The golden blade fell. Cindy screamed in despair.
Pff!
A charred black hand suddenly grabbed the golden blade, the immense power in its grip twisting the gold.
Enel frowned. He should be dead.
Kaito's heart resumed beating. His left hand crushed the golden blade. He rose from the ground, balancing impossibly on his toes.
His center of gravity was all wrong. The bizarre sight made even Enel take two steps back.
Kaito looked at Enel's new form. He guessed he, too, had been corrupted during the past two years. Another one of the [God of the Abyss]'s pawns.
Who could be sure Enel was the last trump card? Were there still Behelits floating in the sea?
Someone had opened [The Eclipse] in this world. The [God of the Abyss]'s goal was already in motion.
"But you, Enel... you're mistaken about one thing."
"I have mastered this arm."
Krrackle!
Crimson Conqueror's Haki exploded from Kaito's body, and the Haki in his left arm... also turned crimson.
(End of Chapter)
~~~
We hit our goal of 50, 55, 60, and 65 reviews—thank you all! As promised, you're getting 8 extra chapters as a reward!
Next goal: 70 reviews.
~~~
Every 5 new reviews = 2 extra chapters
Every 100 Power Stones = 1 extra chapter