Between Two Worlds: Nen and Haki

Boom!!!

A massive explosion echoed from within the gloomy island.

Zane raised his eyebrows.

'Manlong has engaged Gecko Moria, then.'

Soldiers against soldiers, generals against generals!

In Zane's absence, Manlong acted as the lead general of the Hunting Team.

He completely ignored the zombies.

Pushing through to the base of the castle and relying on his Observation Haki, Manlong stormed directly inside, setting his sights on the enemy commander, Gecko Moria.

He looked toward the castle in the center of the island.

A massive gap had been blasted into one of its sides.

Amidst a shower of stone debris and ruins, Gecko Moria was sent flying out of the castle in a pathetic state.

Whoosh!

Manlong followed close behind.

As Moria soared out, Manlong flickered in pursuit, rapidly condensing the power of repulsion before throwing a punch.

"Shadow Shield!"

A pitch-black shield, as solid as a wall, materialized instantly to block Manlong's fist.

Boom!!!

A terrifying shockwave erupted.

Large chunks of stone and debris were violently swept away.

The black shield of shadow buckled and dented under the forward pressure of the fist.

Stumbling to regain his footing, Gecko Moria watched the scene with a mixture of shock and fury.

'Where did this guy come from? How is he making me look so pathetic?'

"You bastard! Die!"

Moria manipulated the shadow shield, causing its edges to transform into bats that lunged at Manlong to tear him apart.

"Repulsion: Repulsive Backlash!"

His gaze hardened as an invisible shockwave of repulsion surged from his body, instantly shattering the approaching shadow bats.

Manlong used the momentum to descend, landing heavily on the ground below.

Thud!!!

The earth groaned under his weight, a crater fracturing beneath his feet.

"Shadow Horn!"

The shadow returned to his feet in an instant.

With a cruel smirk, Moria waved his hand, and his shadow immediately morphed into a gecko-like spear, extending rapidly to pierce Manlong's chest.

Manlong reached out and grabbed it.

He perceived the trajectory with Observation Haki.

Manlong didn't dodge. Instead, he accurately snatched the thrusting shadow spear with his right hand, which was coated in Armament Haki and repulsion.

The gecko-shaped spear tip came to a dead halt, firmly blocked by Haki and repulsion, before being crushed into scattered fragments of shadow as Manlong exerted his strength.

Repulsion converted into propulsion.

The moment he crushed the spear, Manlong lunged forward at extreme speed, appearing before Gecko Moria in the blink of an eye.

Boom!!!

A heavy punch landed squarely on Gecko Moria's abdomen.

The powerful impact pierced through his obese body and erupted from his back, tearing a long fissure through the air.

Blood sprayed from his mouth as if it cost nothing.

Moria stumbled back, clutching his stomach in agony.

'It's just as Boss said.'

'This Gecko Moria is truly the disgrace of the Seven Warlords.'

Watching his opponent struggle to even stand after a single punch, Manlong felt no joy; instead, a flicker of disappointment crossed his eyes.

Of course, disappointment was one thing.

It didn't mean Manlong would stop his assault.

He took a large stride forward.

Manlong forcefully grabbed the other man's face and leaped high into the air. Using the push of repulsion, he plummeted back down, slamming Gecko Moria ruthlessly into the earth.

Boom!!!!

A violent shockwave swept through the entire castle, shattering the surrounding walls.

As the ground shook violently, a massive crater emerged from the swirling dust.

"Huh?!"

Manlong's eyes narrowed as he looked down at Gecko Moria.

A layer of shadow had been spread beneath Moria at some point.

Most of the impact from the slam had been absorbed by this layer of shadow.

"Shadow Warrior!"

A swap of bodies.

The Gecko Moria in Manlong's grasp suddenly transformed into a figure made of shadow.

Completely ignoring Manlong's grip, the shadow clone's hands turned into twin spears that lunged at his face.

With a crimson flash in his eyes, Manlong quickly let go and leaped backward, dodging the thrusting spears.

"You..."

Moria, who had switched places with his shadow, appeared a short distance away. He glared at Manlong, opening his mouth in shock and anger.

But before he could get another word out, a massive wave of repulsive force crashed toward him.

His expression changed drastically as he hurriedly deployed another Shadow Shield to block the repulsive strike.

Thud!!!

The shadow shield trembled violently, even beginning to warp.

Before Moria could make another move, Manlong streaked through the air toward him.

"Repulsion: Shark Tile True Punch!"

The powerful straight punch slammed into Gecko Moria's head.

In addition to the shockwave from the repulsive force, it carried the unique internal impact of Fishman Karate.

The combined pressure was so terrifying that Moria's neck seemed to compress, and blood began to leak from all seven of his facial orifices.

Rumble!!!

The ground beneath them could not withstand the pressure, collapsing into a gargantuan crater amidst a storm of dust.

From this single blow alone, more than a third of the castle crumbled into ruins.

"How can I... fall here?!"

With his head severely traumatized, Moria's consciousness began to fade.

But at the final moment, he seemed to recover a glimmer of his former self—the legendary hero of the West Blue.

His fading consciousness gathered once more.

With a roar, Moria exploded with strength, physically shoving Manlong back.

His chest heaved violently as he gasped for air, blood trickling from his mouth.

Countless shadow tendrils spread from Moria's feet, reaching out to connect with the zombies across the island, intending to strip their shadows and pull them into his body.

'Naive!!'

The opponent's sudden burst of energy had indeed caught Manlong slightly off guard.

But as he landed steadily and saw what Moria was trying to do, Manlong immediately passed judgment.

While he craved battles with strong foes to hone his skills...

...he knew better than to cause trouble for his captain.

He would never allow the enemy to gather their strength.

Vast amounts of moisture gathered from the surroundings.

Repulsive force was being continuously compressed.

Even before Moria could finish gathering the shadows, a blue-white orb of light, several meters in diameter, had condensed in Manlong's right hand.

"Repulsion Flow: Sky-Sea Extreme Tremor!"

He had possessed the Repelling Fruit for some time now.

Manlong had not only developed techniques for the fruit but had also repeatedly attempted to combine its powers with Fishman Karate.

The blue-white orb in his palm was the fusion of the fruit's repulsive force and the water-vibration techniques of Fishman Karate.

He blurred forward like a phantom.

With even greater speed, Manlong slammed the blue-white orb directly into Gecko Moria.

Boom!!!

In a world-shaking roar, the tangible shockwave transformed into a massive energy field that engulfed Moria, tearing through the nearby castle.

Billowing dust rose into the sky like a tornado.

The entire island-ship trembled from the force.

When everything finally settled, the castle was in ruins.

All that remained was a colossal crater, as if struck by a meteor.

At the bottom of the pit lay Gecko Moria, his body twisted and bloodied, clinging to his last breath.

Standing at the edge of the crater, Manlong looked down at the barely-alive Moria.

Manlong was not surprised.

This was the result of him intentionally dissipating a portion of the attack's power at the last second.

The Boss was hunting Devil Fruit users; he had to ensure Moria was delivered alive as a trophy.

"I think I still used a bit too much force."

His Observation Haki caught Moria's aura, which felt like it could go out at any moment.

Not daring to delay, Manlong rushed to the bottom of the pit, hoisted Moria onto his shoulders, and returned toward the coast.

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