Skypiea, Cloud End.
"Finally found it, Barororo! Just wait till I get back, I'll make you regret everything you've done!!"
On a battered two-person Waver, Byrnndi World spat out threats. But with his mouth twisted, eyes askew, and coughing intermittently, he had long lost his former imposing demeanor.
Not every doctor could cure Bazel's serpent venom. Especially not on Skypiea, a place decades behind the times compared to the open seas.
Though Byrnndi World had been fortunate enough to be rescued after rushing up to Skypiea, unfortunately, the doctors here could only provide emergency treatment.
As for an antivenom serum…
No doctor could identify exactly what poison Byrnndi World had been infected with. The complexity of the poison in his body far exceeded their medical knowledge.
Fortunately, his physical constitution was robust enough, and with the doctors' emergency care, he had barely managed to cling to life.
His right hand twisted the throttle, increasing the Waver's speed.
"I've finally caught up to you, Byrnndi World."
A surging wave of flames struck the Waver. In the roaring explosion, Byrnndi World leaped several times, landing effortlessly on the island cloud.
"You just won't give up, will you?"
After recognizing the face of the newcomer, Byrnndi World's expression darkened.
"Bazel, I was just wondering where to find you. I didn't expect you to come to me yourself."
"Where are my subordinates? And Byojack? Where are they?"
"You're asking me?"
Bazel, having immediately activated his Venom Body, emerged from the shadows and stood about five meters away from Byrnndi World.
"They're your subordinates. But it doesn't matter if I tell you."
"Your subordinates are probably all dead. They paid the price for your mistaken attack that day."
"If you had attacked me instead of Toki that day, I might have invited you to join the Beasts Pirates."
"But you chose the path of death…"
Poison mist spewed from his mouth, enveloping all of Cloud End within moments.
Bazel moved swiftly through the poison fog, using a combination of Soru and Geppo to quickly close in on Byrnndi World, who was attempting to use Geppo to escape the poison mist.
"Venom Bullets!"
Several concentrated blasts of venom shot forth.
Byrnndi World frowned and dodged, reaching into his pocket and pulling out a few pebbles.
"More More Jubai Sandan!"
Facing the incoming stones, Bazel merely waved his left hand, erecting a thick wall of potent poison in front of himself.
"More More Hyakubai Soku!"
Whoosh…!
To the right!
Bazel raised another poison wall on his right.
"Don't look down on me, you bastard!!"
Byrnndi World's eyes were bloodshot with rage. He punched through the poison wall with full force, striking directly at Bazel's raised right arm, which was blocking the attack.
"I am the World Destroyer, Byrnndi World!!!"
"More More Gojubai… Chikara!!"
Boom!!
The flesh on his arm exploded instantly, and at the same time, the tremendous force transferred into Bazel's body.
The sound of breaking bones echoed, and nearly the entire right side of his body was crippled.
Bazel's expression shifted slightly.
He hadn't expected his enemy to resort to a mutually destructive move right at the start of the battle!
Boom…!!
"Huff…"
"Huff… Cough, cough, cough."
Byrnndi World gritted his teeth, his right arm twisted unnaturally.
In his current condition, he could no longer withstand the amplification of fiftyfold power. If it had been fiftyfold speed instead, he might have been fine.
"Barororo…"
"Once I cripple your left arm too, I'll make you die in despair!"
Emerging from the rubble of destroyed buildings, the right side of Bazel's body hung limp.
"I underestimated you." Bazel admitted, "But Byrnndi World, I am a user of the Hebi Hebi no Mi, Mythical Zoan-type: Yamata no Orochi."
The scaly skin on Bazel's surface began to fade and crack, covered in fine fissures.
A pair of pale hands tore through the outer serpentine layer, revealing the figure that filled Byrnndi World with despair once again.
The mucus clinging to his body evaporated in moments, and his previously soft scales began to harden.
"Have you ever seen a snake shed its skin…?"
Bazel crouched down, picked up the shed skin that looked exactly like him, and tossed it toward his enemy.
"You can't kill me. Not with fiftyfold power, not even with a hundredfold."
"For me, as long as I'm not dead, a single molt is enough to restore me to peak condition."
Byrnndi World forced his trembling right arm to steady, clenched his fist, and let his killing intent show unabated.
"Then I'll just have to kill you. Even if it costs me more than I can afford."
"More More Hyakubai Soku!"
"Soru!"
"Armament!"
Facing the enemy's assault, Bazel merely crouched down, his right hand plunging into the ground.
"Venomous Hell."
Gurgle~
The island cloud between them suddenly sank downward, revealing a bubbling swamp of poison water!
Bazel had thrown the shed skin and explained his abilities not out of some twisted amusement, but to buy more recovery time for his new body.
Molting… this ability was far from as effortless as Bazel had made it sound. It consumed immense energy, and during the few minutes after molting, he was at his most vulnerable.
Not only were his scales not fully hardened, but his muscles were also extremely fatigued. Without enough time to recover, he could lose a life in an instant.
Watching his enemy plunge into the trap he had set, Bazel didn't hesitate. He immediately used Geppo to leap into the sky, his palms open, erecting one poison wall after another to obscure his presence.
Bazel understood the conditions for using Observation Haki, which is the user must maintain a calm state of mind.
And now, Byrnndi World was in the final enraged phase of a boss battle. At this point, he might be immune to control and taunts, but he absolutely couldn't use Observation Haki!
Reality unfolded exactly as Bazel had predicted. Covered in venom, Byrnndi World burst through the poison walls into the sky but couldn't locate Bazel, who was holding his breath.
"Byrnndi World, are you looking for me?"
A roar echoed!
The poison mist was blasted open by a projectile enlarged into a small mountain.
"Come out, you coward who only knows how to hide!!"
"A man like you… what right do you have to awaken Conqueror's Haki!?"
"You're nothing but a pond-bottom turtle, a filthy rat. Beyond these tricks, you don't even have the courage to take a single punch from me head-on."
"..."
Harsh curses reverberated through the poison mist, but all they elicited was a light chuckle from Bazel.
"I'm not stupid. You want to trade severe injuries for one attack amplified a hundredfold, right?"
"More More Jubai Gan!"
The projectile missed its mark.
The gap in the mist was quickly filled by new poison mist.
"You know, Byrnndi World, when a venomous serpent hunts its prey, it usually injects them with a lethal toxin that allows for tracking, then quietly waits for them to die."
"You're already on the verge of death. Right now, you can't even muster Armament Haki, can you?"
"My serpent venom has become the final bullet that will take your life..."
Hidden in the shadows, Bazel slowly straightened his body. The fatigue in his muscles faded at this moment.
He had finally endured through the weakened period...
"Found you."
Suddenly, A figure burst through the toxic mist, appearing right before Bazel.
It was Byrnndi World, who had regained his composure!
"I know I'm doomed this time, but it doesn't matter. As long as I can drag a powerful figure like you down to hell with me, I absolutely won't lose out."
"More More Hyakubai… Chikara..."
Bazel's hair stood on end, a sense of mortal danger enveloping his heart.
At this critical moment, Conqueror's Haki, far surpassing any previous outburst, suddenly erupted automatically, buying Bazel the chance for one final strike.
Bzzzt…!!
Momentarily hindered by the sudden explosion of immense Conqueror's Haki, Byrnndi World, who was about to throw his hundredfold-powered punch, felt his pupils shrink to pinpricks.
In that instant of obstruction, a premonition struck him… he likely wouldn't be able to deliver this final blow.
'How unfortunate! This is clearly the best opportunity…'
'God truly hasn't favored me. All I wanted when I set sail was to travel the world. Why did those agents stop me? Why did the World Government put a bounty on my head?'
Memories of his life flashed through his mind.
The promise he made with Byojack, his goal to travel the world...
'So it was me who changed, changed by this vast ocean...'
'You're right, Brother, this sea...'
In that fleeting moment, Bazel's body automatically shifted from the Venom Body into the more violent Blazing Molten Body.
Conqueror's Haki transformed into black-and-red lightning, coiling around his right fist, which was laden with blazing flames.
A dazzling light, unlike anything before, flashed in Bazel's eyes.
'So this is what Kaido meant by Conqueror's Haki infusion...'
"Blazing Molten Body, First Form: Solar Mirage!"
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