To be able to see the "road" to his dream so clearly, how could Ares not be thrilled?
Nothing was more terrifying than being lost.
It swallowed countless people whole, trapping them until they couldn't climb out, breeding gnawing self-doubt…
But Ares was not lost. Not even a little.
He knew exactly what path he had to walk, exactly how to forge his physique into something that surpassed a Supreme Grade Blade!
As he endured the pain Sladra had accumulated in battle, he felt only joy.
Precisely because of that.
This kind of pain reached every inch of skin, every strand of flesh, every ligament and bone.
A full-body "massage" so violent it was practically blood-soaked brutality.
For an ordinary person, this level of suffering would have meant dying a thousand times over.
And yet…
Ares still wasn't satisfied.
A hungry light burned in his bell-like eyes as he looked to Kuma.
"Kuma, keep going. Pat out Kaido's negative states, and yours too…"
"I'll take it all!!"
That commanding, unquestionable voice made Kuma freeze, shaken to the core.
Kaido's face changed at once. He hurried to stop him.
"Big Bro Ares, that'll drain you hard! And internal injuries aren't something you just recover from…"
"Fighting with that kind of damage, I won't allow it!"
He said it again, purely out of worry.
"Big Bro Ares, I'm a Mythical Zoan, Model: Hanuman. My defense is strong, my physique is strong enough. These injuries from earlier don't mean anything to me!"
Sladra also urged him earnestly, "Big Bro Ares, listen to us. You… you already took all my pain. That's enough!!"
What made Sladra even more torn up was that back at Marine G-1, Ares had already endured far too many hits.
And now, adding his pain on top of that…
He was terrified Ares would push his body to its limit. If it broke, it would be fatal.
Kuma, finally snapping back to himself, spoke up too.
"Big Brother Ares… I'm fine. This little pain… I'm used to it."
As a slave of the Celestial Dragons, with his bloodline and build, he was beaten and abused constantly.
Basically…
Every male slave suffered like that. And a simple, gentle kid like Kuma had it worse.
Listening to everyone's warnings, Ares still refused to budge.
"I'm the big brother. Listen to me!!"
"Only steel hammered a thousand times can become the finest blade!"
"To fulfill my dream, I'll pay any price in pain!!"
Under Ares' insistence, Kuma used the Paw-Paw Fruit to pat out all his own pain and Kaido's as well.
And Ares accepted both without hesitation.
Compared to what Sladra had suffered, their pain barely counted.
Still, blood continued to seep out from Ares' pores.
Over his corded muscles, over his dragon scales, spreading in dark crimson streaks.
He looked terrifying.
Nightmarish.
"An out-and-out lunatic…" Linlin's pupils shrank as she witnessed Ares' obsession and madness for his dream yet again.
A devil.
A pervert beyond reason.
Garling's scalp tingled. He murmured, shaken, "What kind of monstrous will is this… Blood Hand Ares…?"
"No wonder he rose to the top of the seas in such a short time. That kind of willpower is beyond imagination…"
He couldn't help thinking of Whitebeard, whom he had clashed with before.
Compared to Whitebeard, the Ares in front of him felt…
More dangerous.
Dangerous enough to spark a trace of fear.
Just then, Ivankov warned, "Ares, Kaido! That Celestial Dragon has a Fruit on him. A Mythical Zoan Dog-Dog Fruit, Model: Okuchi-no-Makami!"
Thump
Garling's heart nearly stopped.
He saw it.
Those beastlike, blood-red eyes of Ares locking onto him with burning heat.
Every pore on Garling's body tightened.
He cursed inside, Damn it! He knows what that Fruit is. There's no way he lets me walk away!
Garling flicked a glance at Linlin and spoke fast.
"Hey Charlotte Linlin. Team up with me and take down Ares."
"They have the numbers. But if we bring them down…"
"I'll give you my Devil Fruit."
He steeled his heart and "sacrificed" a priceless Fruit, trying to rope Linlin into fighting Ares.
As long as Ares died, one Devil Fruit was worth it.
With Ares' strength and that terrifying will, he would become a fatal threat to the World Government sooner or later.
If there was a chance to erase him now, Garling would take it.
Besides, whether he honored that promise after winning… would be up to him.
And Linlin was a pirate.
Garling's plan was obvious: empty-handed bait, borrow a wolf to kill a tiger.
A trick like that might fail on anyone with a brain.
But Linlin wasn't "anyone."
Her eyes flashed with greedy light. She bared her teeth in a grin.
"Mamamama… Deal! Your Devil Fruit is mine!"
She'd just lost the Paw-Paw Fruit, and Garling's Mythical Zoan Okuchi-no-Makami filled that gap perfectly.
And besides…
The hatred between Linlin and Ares ran deep!
Before their alliance talk even finished
The moment Ares heard the name "Mythical Zoan, Model: Okuchi-no-Makami," his expression shifted.
Disbelief flickered across his face.
So it was that Fruit.
Memories surged in his mind.
That was Yamato's Devil Fruit in the future.
A Mythical Zoan of tremendous power!
Ares' heart hammered wildly.
"Another Mythical Zoan… If I take this one, on top of the Yamata no Orochi Fruit…"
"In the future, my crew will have at least four Mythical Zoan users!!"
Not an all-Mythical crew, sure.
But it would still surpass the Rocks Pirates, becoming the strongest pirate crew the seas had ever seen!
Ares was tempted.
His gaze burned as he locked onto Garling, teeth bared.
"Hahahaha! I searched everywhere and found nothing…"
"And then it drops right into my lap."
"I didn't expect you to be carrying a Mythical Zoan."
"Then I won't hold back!!"
"That Devil Fruit is mine, Garling!!"
BOOM !
Ares erupted into motion.
The ground split beneath his feet as he charged like a ferocious tiger.
Blood surged. Muscles bulged.
He raised a massive fist, wind roaring around it, and smashed toward Garling.
"Crimson Armament Red Dragon Roar!!"
The punch detonated the air, shockwaves rippling.
Garling's face hardened. He slipped aside, his blade turning pitch-black as it cut toward Ares' arm.
Ares' other fist came crashing in, forcing Garling to change his move mid-breath, sliding away like a serpent.
The blade shifted from a chop to a thrust
Only to be stopped by Ares' knee.
CLANG!
A knee coated in Armament Haki easily blocked Garling's strike, and a furious gale screamed past Garling's ear.
"Divine Dragon Tail Swing!"
Garling's face changed drastically. He leapt back.
PAH !
A dragon tail whipped through the air with an explosive crack, kicking up a violent blast that toppled the surrounding trees.
"Terrifying…" Sweat beaded at Garling's temples.
"His whole body is a weapon. His martial arts… are monstrous!"
If that tail had landed, it would have snapped bones clean.
He turned and shouted toward Linlin.
"Hey Charlotte Linlin! Do you still want that Devil Fruit or not?!"
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