"Oh?"
The smile on Kojin's face did not fade, but a glint flashed through his eyes.
The moment those large hands behind him grabbed hold of him, he clearly felt a mysterious force surge over him. The powers of the three Devil Fruits within his body were completely suppressed and rendered ineffective.
But unlike Seastone, only the abilities vanished, his physical strength remained intact.
He had long since adapted to and grown accustomed to this feeling of losing his abilities. To him, it had almost no effect at all.
"You old-timers who have been famous for so long always have the habit of looking down on those beneath you! You think you're stronger than everyone else. When facing opponents weaker than yourselves, you naturally become dismissive, arrogant, and careless!"
Marshall Teach burst into laughter as he clenched one hand into a fist and ruthlessly swung it toward his opponent.
"But… That is also the greatest obstacle preventing old fossils like you from understanding the current situation… Zehahahahaha!"
Amid his wild laughter, Marshall Teach launched his attack.
He had never truly revealed himself. Even within the Whitebeard Pirates, he had concealed his capabilities well, allowing others to take the position of commander.
His strength, Rokushiki mastery, and spirit had already reached the highest levels in the world.
The extra amount of time he possessed compared to ordinary people had not been wasted.
However, at that very moment, the shoulder he had firmly seized suddenly trembled.
An unimaginable and overwhelming force surged forth instantly, causing him to lose his grip involuntarily. The crazed grin on his face immediately turned into shock.
"Ever since that battle, the words 'carelessness' and 'underestimation' have ceased to exist in my world." A calm voice echoed out.
At some point, Kojin, who had been facing away from him just a second earlier, had already turned around.
"I was merely curious about how powerful the ability granted by the Dark-Dark Fruit truly is. This Devil Fruit that is known as the most dangerous in history, what kind of power does it actually possess?"
Marshall Teach reacted instantly. His eyes hardened as he threw another punch.
But…
Bang!
Ripples of trembling force spread outward, whipping his clothes violently.
Looking at the finger that had effortlessly blocked his punch, sweat began pouring from Marshall Teach's forehead. The shock within him became impossible to suppress.
"I have never believed that a Devil Fruit alone could create the strongest person in the world, and so, I have never relied solely on the power of a fruit." Kojin spoke softly as his eyes remained fixed on Teach.
"Your Devil fruit can suppress Devil Fruit abilities?"
Marshall Teach's body trembled as he rapidly retreated to widen the distance.
Crash!
The surrounding sea currents churned violently while fierce winds howled.
Not far away, the gigantic pillar of seawater that stretched toward the heavens had already pierced through the clouds, presenting an astonishing sight.
Rain poured down in torrents, drenching every member of the Blackbeard Pirates.
"That's right! But its power is far more than just that and that's exactly why I went through countless hardships to obtain it!" Marshall Teach said in a deep voice.
His eyes were filled with gravity and seriousness.
Without question, the pressure this man exerted was no less than that of the Old Man, perhaps even greater.
"Then let me witness that power, Teach!" Kojin suddenly smiled. "Show me the power you currently wield!"
His tone was casual and light, yet it made Marshall Teach, as well as Lafitte, Burgess, and Van Augur beside and behind him, tense up instantly.
They could not even understand it.
The man was merely standing there, yet he radiated such a terrifying aura and exerted such immense pressure upon them.
'Was this what it meant to be one of the world's strongest?'
But aside from Teach, none of them had ever heard this person's name.
'What was his ability?'
'How strong was he?'
'What was his identity?'
To Van Augur and the others, all of these questions were complete blanks.
"My power?" Marshall Teach's pupils contracted.
He stared into Kojin's calm eyes, yet it felt as though he saw something else hidden within them.
'What a terrifying man…' He muttered inwardly.
Under that gaze, it felt as though every secret he possessed had been completely exposed.
"Looks like… I'll have to go all out!" Suddenly, Marshall Teach's eyes turned cold.
The tension and fear on his face vanished without a trace. He had long been accustomed to hiding his true self behind a facade of roughness and cowardice.
Only now, after being completely seen through by the man before him, did his real nature finally emerge.
"Since you want to witness the power of darkness… Then I'll show it to you!"
His cold voice rang out, and even the crashing waves around them seemed to grow louder.
The wooden raft upon which everyone stood swayed violently from side to side, engulfed by the raging storm. Visibility across the sea ahead was severely disrupted.
Suddenly, a wisp of black smoke drifted outward.
Infused with Conqueror's Haki, it gathered around Marshall Teach and formed a ferocious ghostly phantom above his head.
An ominous, icy, and dark aura swept across the area in an instant.
Even the surrounding sea mysteriously fell silent. Even Kojin had a hint of seriousness appear in his eyes at this moment.
When dealing with someone so skilled at hiding his true strength, caution was necessary at every turn.
"Whoooosh! Whoooosh!"
Violent winds swept across the sea, causing everyone's clothes to flutter wildly.
Van Augur and the others took a deep breath and exchanged glances.
In an instant, they understood each other's intentions. The tension in their eyes vanished, replaced by cold determination.
"Attack!" Burgess was the first to act.
He leaped high into the air, clenched his fist tightly, and dove toward Kojin.
"Wahahahaha… Taste my fist!" Amid his laughter, Burgess arrived before Kojin in an instant.
Kojin's expression remained unchanged.
Facing the incoming punch, he neither dodged nor displayed the slightest reaction.
Bang!
To everyone's astonishment, Burgess's fist landed squarely on Kojin's face.
The tremendous force shook the surrounding air, but after one or two breaths, the man before him suddenly grinned, revealing a mocking expression.
"A punch this weak feels like a fly flapping its wings against my face."
As he spoke, Kojin moved. His right hand clenched into a fist, his body lowered slightly, and he assumed a punching stance.
"Go train a few more years, you foolish-looking brat!"
The moment his words fell, his right fist ruthlessly slammed into Burgess's abdomen.
"Urgh!"
The terrifying punch instantly bent Burgess's muscular body in half.
Clutching what felt like a shattered stomach, he staggered backward.
"Cough! Cough! Cough!" Burgess suddenly coughed violently.
Several pools of bright-red blood appeared on the deck. He felt as though all the strength in his body had been punched away.
Even his vision became blurry and it was only after shaking his head repeatedly did his sight become clear again.
Before him stood a man wearing a white Marine cloak.
Over three meters tall.
With powerful muscles packed with explosive strength.
And a face carved as if by an axe and chisel.
Merely standing there, he resembled an immovable mountain… feeling heavy, imposing, and majestic.
Suddenly, the man seemed to smile. He grabbed hold of his own clothing.
Behind him, the sky was filled with raging storms, and towering pillars of seawater roared into the sky.
Lightning occasionally flashed across the clouds.
Rip!
With a casual tug, the Marine uniform was torn away.
What appeared next left the Blackbeard Pirates completely stunned. His massive pectoral muscles were packed with steel-like muscle fibers. His abdominal muscles resembled perfectly stacked slabs of rock. His back looked like a monstrous demon opening its jaws, fierce and terrifying.
Even his legs were covered in mysterious muscle patterns that resembled strange runes.
Compared to the physique of the man before him, even Burgess felt ashamed of his own body.
"Come on. I'll play with you for a bit, just to pass the time."
A faint laugh escaped Kojin's lips as he bent his body slightly.
Yet this small movement caused Marshall Teach's expression to change drastically.
"Watch out!" However, by the time everyone looked up again, Kojin had already vanished.
"BURGESS!!" Van Augur roared.
Still recovering from the earlier punch, Burgess raised his head in confusion.
Then he saw a fist rapidly enlarging before his eyes.
His pupils instantly contracted.
BANG!
Everyone's hearts skipped a beat.
The punch landed squarely on Burgess's face, causing his powerful body to instantly launched into the air.
The bridge of his nose collapsed as a clear fist imprint appeared on his large face.
His entire body shot backward at incredible speed.
Only after flying several thousand meters did he finally plunge into the sea and disappear from sight.
Kojin landed lightly.
His feet sank slightly into the raft before his eyes shifted toward the others.
Van Augur's scalp tingled with fear.
"Attack!!" The next second, he rapidly pulled the trigger.
Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!
A barrage of gunshots rang out but Kojin didn't move at all.
The bullets struck his body and instantly deformed. The projectiles flattened on impact, producing a series of metallic sounds.
Ding! Ding! Dang! Dang!
Sparks flew everywhere.
"What?!" Van Augur stared in shock.
The man's body was harder than steel itself.
"I've tolerated you for long enough. An old tiger may ignore the buzzing of flies, but that doesn't mean it never gets angry."
A deep voice sounded.
One moment it had come from ahead of him, and in the next moment, it echoed directly beside his ear.
A violent gust of wind struck his face, distorting his features.
Immediately afterward, a towering figure appeared before him. Before Van Augur could react, a massive hand had already wrapped around his neck and lifted him off the ground.
A powerful sense of suffocation flooded him.
The bell of death rang in his ears.
Overwhelming fear froze his body and plunged his thoughts into complete stillness.
Kojin raised him with one hand.
His eyes were cold and merciless. He would not mind wiping out the entire Blackbeard Pirates right here.
His grip tightened as he was about to crush Van Augur's neck.
At that moment…
"Dark Water!!" A furious roar erupted.
A powerful gravitational force instantly enveloped Kojin's body, forcibly pulling him backward.
Van Augur slipped free from his grasp.
"You've got excellent timing… Teach."
While being dragged backward, Kojin turned his head.
Marshall Teach stood there with one hand shrouded in darkness while the other was clenched tightly into a fist.
With a ferocious expression, he roared:
"Die!!"
The next instant… The two fists collided ruthlessly.
BOOM!!
(End of Chapter)
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