"White Gale!!!"
Fwooo—!!!
The battlefield, swallowed in darkness, was suddenly engulfed in a billowing cloud of white smoke. The thick mist instantly obscured the silhouettes of the Straw Hats' three top fighters, robbing Blackbeard of his target.
"Hn!?"
Just as he was about to launch his next strike, Blackbeard froze for a moment.
Then, a cunning glint flashed across his shadowed eyes.
"Reinforcements, huh!?"
At the same time, seeing smoke erupt out of nowhere, Luffy and the others also paused for a brief second.
But very quickly, they realized—
"It's Smoker!"
Luffy burst out laughing. "You came to help us!?"
"Idiot! This is not the time to be grinning like that!"
Within the smoke, Smoker's figure suddenly materialized in front of Luffy.
But the next second, he immediately barked:
"Straw Hat bastard! Red told me to notify you and that three–sword–style bastard—get to him right now and regroup!"
"Leave things here to me and that cook bastard!"
"Ah!? You two can handle it!?"
"Stop yapping! Time's short—move!"
"Oh, oh~!"
He had no idea what Red was planning, but Luffy's body acted immediately.
Before leaving, he even thoughtfully looped his arm around Zoro so the swordsman wouldn't get lost in the smoke.
"Zehahahahaha… Straw Hat brat, where do you think you're going?!"
With a grating laugh, a mass of darkness suddenly swept across the mist in front of Luffy.
Guided by Observation Haki, Blackbeard thrust a massive blackened hand toward Luffy's exposed back—
But right then—
"White… Bind!!!"
BOOM!!!
A ten–handed polearm shot out from within the smoke, slamming into Blackbeard's arm and blocking his strike on Luffy.
The next moment, Smoker's body condensed from the haze directly before Blackbeard, cutting him off from Luffy.
"Pirate… your opponent now is me!"
Smoker's expression twisted into a feral snarl as he spat the words.
Blackbeard blinked in mild surprise.
"A Logia user, huh!?"
"You really have quite a collection of monsters in your little group!"
"Bastard!"
Smoker's expression darkened.
"How many times must I say this!?"
"I'm not—"
"WITH THEM!!!!"
"Shadow Ball!!!"
FWOO—
The instant he finished shouting, Smoker thrust out his arm, palm aimed straight at Blackbeard's face.
In that palm, violet–black energy rapidly gathered into a spherical mass—then launched violently forward!
BOOM!!!
A bizarre ripple of force exploded against Blackbeard's head. Part of the strange energy seeped into his body, causing a faint delay—between his soul and his physical form.
"Hn!?"
Blackbeard froze, startled by the unnatural sensation inside him.
"What… is this power!?"
Ever since the battle began, he had experienced burning, paralysis, and freezing—three abnormal statuses.
But all of those targeted the body. As long as he coated himself in darkness, he could forcefully purge them.
Yet this new sensation from Smoker's attack—
It acted directly on his soul.
His Devil Fruit powers couldn't get rid of it at all.
Seeing Blackbeard dazed, Smoker re–elementalized to widen the distance, a pleased smirk tugging at his lips.
"Looks like my luck isn't bad today."
Despite insisting he wasn't part of the Straw Hats…
Just moments ago, Red had finally pulled Smoker into the legendary Pokémon world.
Even though Smoker was there for barely an instant—and only learned a few moves before being thrown back into reality—
It nearly made him cry from excitement.
How long had it been!?
He had known about the Pokémon world since Twin Cape… yet survived all the way until now before finally gaining access!
If not for Red's overwhelming killing intent toward Blackbeard, Smoker might still be waiting.
In that sense, he almost had Blackbeard to thank.
Of course, as a Marine, he would never thank a pirate…
Not unless the pirate gifted him powerful, precious abilities or moves!
Shadow Ball.
After returning from the Pokémon world, Red had quickly explained the effects of the four Pokémon moves Smoker acquired.
Shadow Ball could, with some probability, disturb the target's connection between soul and body—making their reactions sluggish, unable to properly defend.
Clearly, Smoker's choice to aim directly at Blackbeard's head—combined with Blackbeard's arrogant refusal to dodge—allowed the move's secondary effect to trigger perfectly.
While Blackbeard reeled in confusion, Sanji emerged from the smoke and hurried to Smoker's side.
"Smoke guy!? Why you!?"
He asked, baffled.
But Smoker didn't answer. Instead, he reached into the pouch Usopp had given him, pulled out a toxin injection vial, and tossed it to Sanji.
Smoker barked, "You've got Facade in your move set, right!?"
"This is a toxin that long–nose brat extracted from some bug. It makes you incredibly itchy after injection—but causes no other harm!"
"Use it. Trigger your Facade boost!"
"That's weird—how do you know how Facade works!?"
Sanji didn't doubt the toxin's effect. He jabbed it straight into his abdomen—the same spot Blackbeard had hit him twice earlier, breaking who–knew–how–many ribs.
With that kind of pain already raging in him, a little itchiness made no difference.
Smoker couldn't hide his smug grin.
He bared his teeth."Yeah… how do I know?"
Then he reached into the pouch again—
And pulled out an identical toxin vial.
Without hesitation, he smashed it into his own shoulder.
"Obviously because…"
"I've also gained powers from the Pokémon world—just like you!!!"
The peculiar toxin surged into both their bodies, instantly inflicting the poisoned status.
A heartbeat later, both men activated—
Facade!
Pokémon energy roared through their limbs, surging along their muscles, amplifying their strength drastically.
That was the effect of Facade.
Under a status condition, vast Pokémon energy concentrated into direct bodily reinforcement, increasing combat power significantly.
The degree of boost varied depending on one's mastery of the move and personal potential.
"I think… I've got it!"
Sanji, who had been exchanging blows with Blackbeard for several rounds, froze in surprise.
With Facade active, his physical condition felt even stronger than before the battle began.
The next instant—
Jet–black Armament Haki burst out of his body, coating him from head to toe.
A suit of pitch–black armor—like that of a dark knight.
Flames roared to life once more.
Without even needing a lighter, Sanji lit a cigarette straight from the blaze, smiling coolly as he stared at Blackbeard.
"Right now… I'm stronger than I've ever been!!!"
THUD!!!
Sanji kicked off Laboon's surface, blasting forward like a flaming meteor toward Blackbeard.
Under the lingering effect of Shadow Ball, Blackbeard's reaction was indeed delayed. He failed to harden the struck area with Armament Haki in time—
BOOOOM!!!!
A scorching blast swept across the battlefield.
Blackbeard was launched like a ragdoll, smashed violently against Laboon's massive body.
THUD.
Sanji landed in a burst of flame, the cigarette in his mouth completely burned away from the intense heat.
Powerful was powerful—but in this state, Sanji's lung capacity and flame consumption skyrocketed.
Naturally…
It was very hard on cigarettes.
What the hell!?
Smoker blinked rapidly, dumbfounded.
He had just boosted himself with Facade—
Wasn't it supposed to be his turn to shine!?
Why was that damn cook still hogging all the spotlight!?
And Red… did you not give me all the upgrades!?
Name a price!I'll buy the rest myself!!!
(End of Chapter)