Chapter 59: Defeat
The strongest fighters in the pirate world often possessed incredible toughness and vitality. Battles between peak warriors could last three days and nights, or even ten days straight.
Even though Rhodes had briefly overwhelmed Lao G and Harmon, inflicting considerable damage, it still fell short of being decisive.
These injuries only intensified the two veterans' ferocity. They fought with increasing desperation, abandoning proper fighting techniques and martial arts forms, relying purely on instinct and experience as they pressed forward at every opportunity.
Even if it meant taking a sword strike, they were determined to leave their mark on Rhodes' body.
Under such circumstances, Rhodes, as a refined swordsman, naturally avoided getting drawn into their reckless melee.
Leveraging his lightning-enhanced speed, he moved like a phantom across the battlefield, engaging only when he could no longer avoid direct confrontation.
BOOM!
The combined strength of Lao G and Harmon was so immense that a single kick could crater the earth, and their coordinated charges could bring down entire buildings. Their ferocity resembled that of savage humanoid beasts.
As a Taijutsu master himself, Shuzo couldn't help but study the battle between these two veterans, feeling as though he was gaining new insights into martial combat.
However, while their savage fury was truly awe-inspiring—each punch and kick carrying tremendous power like a collapsing mountain—the most captivating aspect of the entire battlefield remained the young figure in white, sword gleaming in his hand.
Roaring thunder ravaged the combat zone while dazzling sword energy swept across the landscape, carving deep gouges in the earth. This sheer destructive power clearly surpassed even that of Lao G and Harmon combined!
By this point, the entire area within a hundred-meter radius writhed and trembled under the influence of the three combatants. Buildings collapsed, the ground was scorched black, and craters littered the landscape—everything reduced to rubble.
Eleanor and her guards followed the sounds of destruction and, upon witnessing the utter devastation, stood stunned.
"Wait, wait—this isn't right! Brother Rhodes actually possesses such powerful lightning abilities?"
"My heart's racing just watching this."
"No, you're just getting electrocuted by the residual discharge."
The guards gasped in amazement before relaxing into playful banter among themselves.
"Not only is his swordsmanship exceptional, but his combat ability is this overwhelming too?"
"Just what kind of student did Vice Admiral Momousagi take on?"
Eleanor maintained her composed expression, yet couldn't help grumbling internally.
As Momousagi's top subordinate, she still held a certain pride and dignity, but now it seemed she was being surpassed by someone much younger!
Meanwhile, on the battlefield, as the fight intensified and their injuries accumulated, Lao G and Harmon gradually sobered up and were forced to acknowledge a harsh truth:
Even fighting together, they couldn't defeat Rhodes. If this dragged on much longer, they might not make it out alive.
Accepting this reality, the two veteran fighters quickly shifted their mindset.
There was no shame in retreat. If you can't win, you run—it wasn't like they hadn't fled before.
As pirates, who hadn't been chased by Marines at some point?
It was perfectly normal.
The two men exchanged a distant glance, sharing a moment of understanding before preparing to execute their escape plan.
Rhodes, however, keenly perceived their shifting intentions.
His Kenbunshoku Haki might not be as refined as Momousagi's, but combined with his natural perceptiveness, it was more than capable of detecting subtle changes in his opponents' demeanor.
"Want to leave? Ask my sword first!"
A cold glint flashed in Rhodes' eyes.
His stamina was already running low, and if the battle continued much longer, the outcome would become uncertain.
But since his enemies had shown weakness, he naturally wouldn't miss this opportunity to press his advantage!
CRACKLE!
Rhodes unleashed his lightning power to its fullest extent. The previously controlled electrical discharge suddenly surged into violent fury, like an earthbound dragon writhing as it swept in all directions.
The lightning blazed fiercely, dancing like living flames.
Almost the instant Harmon turned to flee, Rhodes moved.
Whoosh!
In a flash, blue lightning streaked across the battlefield.
Using the thunderous aura to mask his approach and taking advantage of Harmon's momentary lapse in focus, Rhodes appeared like a specter at close range and thrust forward with a deceptively simple sword strike.
Brilliant lightning converged at the blade's tip, its power compressed to such intensity that the sword itself began to vibrate and hum, as if barely able to contain the energy.
The attack was utterly silent—its speed had obliterated even sound itself!
An indescribable sense of mortal crisis descended!
Between life and death lay absolute terror.
Harmon's mind became clearer than it had ever been, his Kenbunshoku Haki screaming warnings, and time seemed to crawl.
Damn it!
Move!
Despair and terror filled his eyes. He desperately wanted to dodge, but his body—battered by prolonged combat and ravaged by constant electrical discharge—was numb and sluggish, his reflexes fatally slowed.
He was just a fraction too late.
That single fraction of a second sealed his fate.
The lightning-wreathed blade pierced clean through his chest.
Blood erupted from Harmon's mouth in violent coughs, mixed with fragments of internal organs. He glanced down at the broken sword tip lodged in his chest, his lips twisting into a forced, bitter smile.
Sure enough, betrayers never meet a good end.
In his final moments, Harmon's vision grew hazy, yet within him lay a strange sense of peace. Death was preferable to the alternative. At least he wouldn't have to face his former captain with shame in whatever came after.
This young swordsman was truly formidable.
He would probably become a world-renowned powerhouse someday. In that sense, dying at the hands of someone with such potential wasn't a completely meaningless death.
If I can't become the strongest, then being defeated by someone who will... perhaps that's a form of fulfillment for my original dream.
With these thoughts, the light faded from Harmon's eyes. There was no resentment—only relief.
As Rhodes withdrew his blade, Harmon's massive frame trembled once before toppling like a felled mountain, blood pooling beneath his still form.
Silence.
Absolute, deathly silence.
Everyone stared at the scene in stunned disbelief.
Suppression and execution were two entirely different things, especially when dealing with opponents of this caliber.
Until now, Ain and her companions had witnessed Rhodes dominating Lao G and Harmon, but they had never imagined he could actually finish one of them off. They had assumed that with Lieutenant Eleanor's arrival, their combined strength might be enough to capture these notorious pirates.
But they hadn't expected this outcome.
Not far away, Lao G—who had been about to support his partner—instinctively pulled back.
A single thought consumed him completely.
Escape. I must escape at all costs!
Lao G felt he couldn't afford to hesitate for even a second.
Two against one, and they were already being overwhelmed.
In a one-on-one situation, he knew he would be killed within moments.
His survival instincts surged to their peak.
His eyes bulged bloodshot, veins standing out across his bald scalp as he unleashed a desperate Rokushiki technique.
This time, however, it was purely for escape.
He turned and sprinted toward the island's interior, attempting to lose his pursuer among the complex maze of buildings.
In the blink of an eye, Lao G escaped the ruined battlefield and darted into a narrow alley. Just as he was beginning to breathe easier, a leisurely voice suddenly rang out from above:
"Anyone who dares attack my people should plan on staying here permanently."
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