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Chapter 44: Domain Awakening?! Everyone Shocked
Tree World Descent.
A technique developed by the First Hokage, Senju Hashirama.
It could instantly create an entire forest, with every attack and defense within the forest under the user's control—an all-purpose technique capable of capturing enemies.
Even among all Wood Release techniques,
Tree World Descent was undeniably one of the strongest.
While Lotte's mastery of Hashirama Cells was still far from complete,
Creating a weakened version posed no problem.
As Lotte's words fell,
The water surface beneath his feet suddenly trembled violently.
Then, trees erupted explosively, instantly enveloping a radius of several hundred meters across the sea.
Seeing this scene,
Rayleigh couldn't help but suck in a cold breath.
Could the other side have already awakened his Devil Fruit ability?!
Awakening.
It represented a higher tier of Devil Fruit power.
For Paramecia types, awakening could affect things beyond the user's own body. For Zoan types, it dramatically increased recovery and combat ability.
From any perspective,
Devil Fruit awakening was an extremely difficult feat.
This was the first time Rayleigh had seen someone so young awaken their Devil Fruit.
He couldn't help but marvel inwardly at such prodigious talent.
But even with an awakened Devil Fruit,
Winning against him wouldn't be easy!
After all, he was the vice-captain of the Roger Pirates!
The dense forest grew thicker.
Shock appeared on both Whitebeard's and Roger's faces.
From the effect alone, it seemed Lotte possessed a Paramecia-type Devil Fruit—though it could possibly be Zoan.
But Zoan awakening was the most difficult kind.
Even if Whitebeard and Roger believed Lotte's talent was unmatched,
They didn't think he could awaken so quickly.
"Gurararara! This kid really gave me a surprise!"
"Roger, your vice-captain's in trouble now."
Whitebeard laughed heartily.
From their earlier conversation, he found Roger quite agreeable.
Roger's face also showed surprise.
"This kid really is a monster. Now this show just got interesting."
"Newgate, don't gloat too soon. My vice-captain isn't that fragile."
Though Lotte had displayed extraordinary power,
Roger still had full confidence in his vice-captain.
Within the dense forest,
Rayleigh gripped his sword tightly with one hand and charged straight toward Lotte.
His figure flashed through the trees like lightning, sword raised without hesitation to slash down.
In the opponent's domain,
He had to end this quickly no matter what!
Ahead,
As Rayleigh rushed forward, Lotte simply watched calmly with his hands pressed together, showing no intention of dodging.
Just as Rayleigh thought he was about to land the hit,
The sturdy trees behind Lotte suddenly swayed. Dozens of whip-like branches surged like a raging flood, crashing down with terrifying force!
A fierce wind rose, shockwaves rolling outward.
Like an overwhelming tidal wave, the massive tree whips enveloped Rayleigh from behind in an instant.
In the very next moment,
The whips seemed to cross space itself, arriving right in front of Rayleigh.
The speed was so great that Rayleigh's eyes widened instinctively. Caught off guard, he quickly raised his sword to block.
Boom!
Amid several thunderous muffled explosions, overwhelming force tore through like ripping cloth.
In an instant, Rayleigh was sent flying backward, crashing into a towering tree dozens of meters high.
The giant tree shattered at the impact.
Bang!
Amid falling branches and debris,
Rayleigh barely stopped himself just before hitting the water.
"Cough cough! What a terrifying ability!"
"Tree Demon Lotte truly lives up to the name. You can probably control every tree here, right?"
Rayleigh wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth, kneeling on one knee atop the debris, gripping his sword tightly. He looked utterly disheveled.
His gaze locked onto that figure, filled with wariness.
He had thought they were ordinary trees.
Even if ambushed, he should have been able to block easily.
But the toughness and power of these branches far exceeded his expectations.
This was why he suffered such a heavy setback.
He had never seen such an ability. If the entire forest could be used by the opponent,
This was undoubtedly one of the strongest Paramecia Fruits!
In Rayleigh's view,
Lotte's Fruit potential surpassed even the Tremor-Tremor Fruit!
If he could continue expanding this domain, one person could practically become an army!
"Should we stop here, Rayleigh?"
Lotte asked calmly while looking at Rayleigh.
Through this brief clash with Rayleigh,
He had successfully tested the power of Pseudo Tree World Descent.
Even someone like Rayleigh had struggled to resist it suddenly. Probably no one in Marine Headquarters—except Admirals—could break through this area.
But it wasn't without flaws.
The stamina consumption of Pseudo Tree World Descent was enormous.
Though his Hashirama Cells mastery had reached over 40%, unleashing such a large-scale Wood Release was still a severe drain.
It would be easier on land or in a forest.
But creating Tree World Descent on the water surface still required further mastery improvement.
Rayleigh heard Lotte's question.
He gripped his sword tightly and broke into an unrestrained, wild grin.
"No need!"
"If you can take this next move, you win!"
"Watch closely, Tree Demon Lotte!"
Rayleigh stomped forward with one foot, crouching slightly while gripping his sword hilt.
Advanced Armament Haki overflowed from his blackened arm, completely enveloping the blade once more!
Sudden change!
The originally bright, gleaming blade was now coated pitch-black.
As more Haki poured in, the black gradually shifted to deep purple.
The power contained within the blade grew increasingly violent.
Sizzle—!
Seeing this, Lotte became more vigilant.
He kept his hands pressed together while secretly channeling Hashirama Cells, preparing for anything.
"One Sword Style! Violet Dawn!"
Rayleigh took a deep breath, twisted his wrist, and swung the blade in a sudden arc.
A dazzling purple meteor-like slash, carrying vast power,
Shot straight toward Lotte!
Though Lotte could dodge,
Doing so would mean he hadn't truly won this spar!
With his hands still pressed together,
The surrounding giant trees swayed once more.
Then he calmly extended his arm. The surrounding trees surged forward.
"Wood Release—Violent Spear Tree!"
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