Diamante was giving it his all.
Compared to before, his strength had increased by at least thirty percent, both in terms of speed and power. Combined with the eerie swordsmanship and bizarre techniques he unleashed through his Devil Fruit abilities, Lucci found himself struggling just to defend, barely finding a window to counterattack.
"Life Return: Kami-e!"
Left with no other choice, Lucci revealed his final trump card.
In his Hybrid Form, he used Life Return to freely control his muscle outbursts and internal organs, channeling his consciousness to condense his physical body. Aside from the leopard head and the spots on his fur, Lucci's stature now looked almost identical to his human form.
In this state, the effects of Kami-e were significantly enhanced, and his stamina consumption was minimized. However, Kami-e was still just Kami-e; no matter how much it was strengthened, it couldn't change the fundamental truth. In terms of raw essence, there was a dimensional gap between it and Observation Haki.
With Diamante fighting at full capacity and his Observation Haki fully active, Lucci's every movement was captured with crystal clarity. The minimal dodging provided by Kami-e actually became a fatal flaw.
If Lucci had relied on Soru to dodge, Diamante might have found it troublesome. But since Lucci was dodging by the narrowest of margins—refusing to move even a single centimeter more than necessary—it made things far too easy.
'If you're using Kami-e to evade, why can't I use Observation Haki to perceive that evasion and slightly adjust my angle of attack?'
And that is exactly what he did.
Following the direction of Lucci's dodge, Diamante slightly shifted his trajectory, chasing him down. Lucci was horrified. By the time he realized what was happening, it was too late to dodge again or use Soru to create distance. He could only bark a short command—"Tekkai!"—to tank the hit head-on.
In a flash, Diamante's blade was coated in a layer of pitch-black, piercing straight through Lucci's left shoulder. As the sword was ripped back out, blood sprayed violently from the wound.
Watching from the sidelines, Sean frowned slightly.
'As I thought, the Diamante from the original story was definitely nerfed for the sake of the plot.'
Otherwise, as a top executive under Doflamingo and the leader of the Diamond Division's fighting force, there was no way he wouldn't possess Haki. Dressrosa was located in the New World. If even the leader of Doflamingo's strongest combat group couldn't use Haki, how could Doflamingo have maintained such a dominant presence in the New World? The Donquixote Family would have been wiped out long ago.
Just look at those Supernovas; most of them had mastered Haki shortly after arriving in the New World. For Diamante to never use Haki in the original story was simply absurd.
Still, Sean had no intention of intervening. Lucci's injury wasn't fatal, and if Sean stepped in now, he might destroy the very catalyst Lucci needed.
Sean had noticed that the moment the sword pierced Lucci's shoulder, the area around the wound had momentarily turned into a... glossy, metallic black.
Though it vanished in an instant, it was an undeniable sign: Lucci's full awakening of Armament Haki was imminent.
Even so, while he didn't plan to interfere, Sean's hand tightened around Hekireki. Better to be safe than sorry.
Kneeling on one knee, Lucci panted heavily, then muttered, "Life Return!"
The blood that had been flowing profusely from the wound stopped instantly. Life Return was an incredibly powerful skill; by manipulating the muscles around the injury, Lucci effectively sealed the wound to prevent further blood loss. After a few more breaths to stabilize his condition, he stood up once more.
Diamante merely sneered at Lucci's resilience and swung his sword again. This time, he aimed for the right shoulder.
Just as before, the moment Lucci attempted a marginal dodge, Diamante used Observation Haki to lock onto him. The sword bent like a snake, the tip tracking Lucci's right shoulder with precision.
But then, the unexpected happened.
Just as it seemed impossible to escape, Lucci's body blurred, dodging the seemingly guaranteed hit. Diamante noticed that Lucci's eyes were now completely closed.
"Observation Haki? You awakened it?"
"Impossible!"
"Hangetsu Glaive!"
"Corrida Glaive!"
"Vipera Glaive!"
Refusing to believe it, Diamante launched a relentless barrage of attacks, cycling through his various techniques. Yet, Lucci dodged every single one of them, his eyes remaining closed throughout the entire sequence.
Finally, as Diamante thrust the Snake Sword forward, Lucci reached out and caught the blade directly in his right hand!
His right hand was pitch black, shimmering with a glass-like luster. This was the unmistakable mark of Armament Haki.
Not stopping there, Lucci swung his leopard tail, wrapping it tightly around Diamante's waist and hoisting him into the air. He then released the sword.
Now free, Diamante immediately slashed at the tail, attempting to sever it. However, instead of cutting through flesh, there was only a loud, metallic clang. He realized with horror that Lucci's tail had also turned a glossy, pitch-black.
At that moment, Lucci had both fists pressed against his chest. His eyes snapped open, wide and piercing.
It was the same move that had blasted Diamante away earlier.
'Damn it! I can't defend in time!'
Trapped by the leopard tail, Diamante found himself unable to evade. He had only one option.
"Full Body Armament!"
"Six-Style Secret Technique: Maximum Wheel... Rokuogan!"
BOOM!!!!
Seconds later, the tail released its grip. Diamante plummeted to the ground, eyes rolling back in his head. Lucci, having exhausted every last drop of his strength, sank to one knee, supporting himself with his right hand.
He gasped for air. He had finally taken him down.
Furthermore, he had awakened both Armament and Observation Haki. Despite being covered in wounds, Lucci was deeply satisfied with the result.
However, in the next instant, Diamante—who should have been unconscious—stood up. He raised his sword and swung it down with a sudden, violent arc.
Lucci tried to dodge, but he had spent the last of his energy; he couldn't even stand up, let alone evade.
'Am I... going to be ended here, by a pirate?'
For the first time in his life, Lucci felt a feeling called "frustration," but he was powerless to stop the blade.
He could only watch helplessly as the longsword swung down toward him.
But in the final moment before he slowly closed his eyes, a flash of brilliant azure suddenly filled his vision.
"Lucci, you did well!"
It was Sean's voice.
Struggling to open his eyes once more, Lucci realized that Diamante had vanished. In his place stood the silhouette of Sean, shrouded in brilliant azure lightning.