CP agents selected to serve as bodyguards for the Celestial Dragons might not be on the level of the Seven Warlords of the Sea, yet none of them could be considered weak. Anyone chosen for that duty possessed considerable strength, and many of them were Devil Fruit users.
As the attack was launched, a masked man dressed in a white suit suddenly leapt out from the crowd. He rushed forward and collided directly with the Wind Blade that Youki had fired.
The rest of the guards kept Saint Charloss tightly surrounded. Only the front line had already hardened their bodies with Armament Haki, their skin turning pitch black.
They treated protecting their master as their highest priority. None of them dared gamble that the Wind Blade might simply be a bluff.
Boom.
The explosion echoed throughout the auction hall. The masked white-suit who had jumped forward appeared to explode on the spot, leaving Ash and the others staring in disbelief.
Whose subordinate was this, and why was he so reckless?
When the smoke slowly cleared, the masked agent was still standing.
The Wind Blade had been mostly neutralized by the blast. Only a small amount of its power remained, far too weak to seriously injure him.
"A Logia?"
"Could it be a Wind Logia?"
"Where did a Wind Fruit even come from? I have never heard of such a Devil Fruit. I have only heard of something like a Hurricane Fruit!"
The crowd could not stop talking. Even though a battle had already begun, whispers and speculation still spread through the spectators.
However, those background voices were nothing compared to the arrogant shouting of a Celestial Dragon.
"You filthy insects. How dare you resist!"
"Kill them! Kill them all, you useless trash!"
Saint Charloss suddenly paused, then his tone twisted with cruelty.
"No, do not kill them yet."
"Capture them alive. Turn them into slaves and torture them slowly."
The masked white-suit did not even wait for orders. He was already fighting Youki head on. Since both of them appeared to possess abilities similar to Logia or strange Paramecia types, long distance attacks were ineffective. The fight quickly turned into brutal close combat.
Overall, Youki clearly had the upper hand.
The other agents dressed in black suits paid no attention to Charloss's screaming. They had their own priorities.
If they angered their master, the worst that might happen was a bullet. At most they would cough up some blood, roll around on the floor, and pretend to be severely injured. With their strong bodies and Haki, proper preparation meant they would not truly suffer.
But if even a single hair on the Celestial Dragons was harmed, then their lives would truly be over.
The black-suited guards said nothing. Their eyes remained locked on Ash and his group.
Ash curled his lip slightly.
Stupid and blind.
"Perona, shut them up," Ash said calmly.
Perona had already been watching Youki exchange blows with the agents. Her body trembled with excitement. The moment Ash gave the command, she did not hesitate. A swarm of Negative Hollows surged forward like a ghostly tide.
Only after launching the attack did she realize what she had done. Cold sweat instantly covered her back.
"I attacked a Celestial Dragon. I am going to be executed!"
Saff gave a gentle smile.
"Relax. If you disobey Bro Ash, you would be executed anyway."
Perona fell silent.
Reality proved a simple truth. With sufficient preparation, Armament Haki could resist many special Paramecia abilities. In the end it depended on who had developed their power further.
Perona's Devil Fruit ability was extremely powerful, but her training was terrible.
Her wave of Negative Hollows produced limited results. Only three or four weaker black-suited guards and Saint Charloss collapsed to their knees in despair. Most of the others only froze for a moment before recovering.
The results were mediocre.
Still, Charloss finally stopped shouting.
Only now did Saint Rosward and Saint Mjosgard fully understand what was happening. At first they were ready to scream about how mortals deserved death for offending the descendants of gods.
Then they saw Charloss kneeling on the ground in despair.
The two Celestial Dragons quietly stepped backward.
Once they had retreated to what they considered a safe distance, Saint Rosward immediately began shouting again. More guards and CP agents rushed forward, forming another circle around Ash.
At the same time, Youki was still fighting the masked CP agent.
When he noticed more guards pointing guns and blades toward Ash's group, clearly planning to surround them, he abandoned the idea of continuing his training match.
He stopped holding back.
His fists became coated in dense black and violet Armament Haki as they slammed into the masked agent with terrifying force.
The white-suited agent was reaching his limit. He prepared to use his old tactic, exploding his body apart and reforming in order to stall Youki.
But before he could do it, Youki flicked his finger.
A small Water Bullet shot forward and drenched the man instantly.
The moment the water soaked his body, his strength seemed to drain away.
The next second, a massive Haki covered fist slammed directly into his temple.
The CP agent's eyes rolled back as consciousness faded. His final thought was filled with confusion.
Where did that water come from?
Youki did not care about the inner thoughts of a defeated enemy.
As his punch landed, he spun his body in a full circle.
A storm of Wind Blades exploded outward.
This was his favorite technique for clearing cannon fodder.
Invisible blades of wind sliced across the auction hall. Blood splattered across the floor as several guards were cut down instantly. The spectators who had stayed to watch quickly fled in terror.
Anyone with even a bit of intelligence understood that remaining here might mean never leaving alive.
Among the crowd, Tesoro watched the chaos unfold.
He glanced once more at Ash, who still stood calmly in the center of everything. After a moment of silence, Tesoro finally turned and left the hall with his subordinates.
The instant Tesoro stepped outside, Ash shifted his gaze toward the entrance.
He was not watching Tesoro.
His Observation Haki had already sensed the arrival of the Marines.
"Stop playing around," Ash said quietly. "Put those three pigs to sleep."
Youki cracked his neck and grinned.
"Heh, got it."
He rushed straight toward the guards protecting the Celestial Dragons.
At that moment, Saff lifted her hand slightly and flicked her finger toward Youki.
Ash's vision blurred for an instant.
In the next moment, Youki had already appeared beside Saint Rosward.
Youki frowned slightly as he looked around. Every World Government guard had collapsed to the ground.
Ash turned his head toward Saff.
She smiled softly.
"A small technique I developed. I can briefly alter the flow of time for a person, accelerating or slowing it."
Ash's eyes widened slightly.
Time acceleration and time deceleration.
When he had originally given Saff the Time Fruit, part of his intention had been to create perfect storage equipment. He had never fully believed that a Devil Fruit could truly control time in combat.
After all, time abilities sounded absurdly powerful.
In the original story, Kozuki Toki had leaped hundreds of years into the future. Ash had always thought that sounded unbelievable.
He had never expected Saff to achieve such combat applications.
This sudden breakthrough pleasantly surprised him.
"Saff's ability?" Youki said in surprise.
Now he understood why the guards had suddenly moved like slow motion figures. Their eyes could barely track his movements.
Youki burst out laughing.
"Haha. Fighting them like this feels like beating up half paralyzed old men."
Watching these insects casually chatting in front of him filled Saint Rosward with rage. For a moment he had been stunned when everyone around him collapsed.
Now his anger exploded.
"Y-you filthy scum..."
Before he could finish his sentence, Youki casually backhanded him.
Saint Rosward collapsed instantly, falling into unconsciousness.
Ash looked at the three Celestial Dragons lying on the floor, sleeping peacefully like babies.
He slowly shook his head.
The same conclusion came to his mind once again.
Stupid and blind.
Then Ash turned his gaze toward the entrance of the auction hall.
"Do you agree, Vice Admiral Tsuru?"
===
If you want to read more, check out my patreon.
Patreon.com/ _Zeph