Night fell, and moonlight spilled across the coast, bright and clear.
The great battle raged on. Each violent collision sent shockwaves spreading outward, sweeping up clouds of sand and dust.
Saul racked his brain, using every word he had ever learned to describe the battle into the Den Den Mushi.
But the sentences he repeated the most were the same: "Kōjin got split open, and he's not hurt! He got split open again, and he still didn't die!"
"Strange... Kōjin used Tekkai. Huh? He can use Tekkai while fighting?"
Sengoku paused at his surprised words.
Sengoku naturally understood the Rokushiki techniques, especially the high-level techniques like Tekkai.
Tekkai is primarily a defensive art. Once trained, it allows the body to harden enough to block bullets or ordinary blades.
However, it had one major weakness: Immobility.
The user could not move while using it and could only take hits passively.
Normally, Practitioners rarely used Tekkai unless an unavoidable attack was incoming.
In most cases, even with Tekkai, the user met a tragic end. Because of this, many considered it useless and never trained in it.
However, Sengoku knew that if Tekkai was trained to an advanced level, the user could activate it while moving in battle, thus overcoming its greatest weakness.
At that stage, its defensive power and hardness increased further.
If polished further, the user could rebound force when struck and harden specific body parts, making flesh comparable to weapons. Combining it with Busoshoku (Armament) Haki would create an even more terrifying offensive capability.
At that moment, Kōjin was experiencing the power of Tekkai firsthand.
With Tekkai at Level 30, his defense increased dramatically.
He could use it while moving at high speeds; his body was like forged steel and his tendons were like tightly wound steel springs. Every punch and kick carried terrifying power.
Even without the Haoshoku Haki Infusion, a single punch could smash a large section of the ground.
"Is this Iron Fist?"
"No... this could be called an Iron Body!"
Kōjin was delighted.
He didn't care much about defense. He leveled Tekkai to harden his fists and body, which would greatly amplify his strength.
At the same time, he sensed that, with further leveling up, he would be able to focus Tekkai in one location, greatly boosting the defense and hardness of that part of his body.
If he concentrated it in his fist, it would become an Iron Fist.
This technique was similar to Busoshoku (Armament) Coating, except it could not work against Logia users.
Night quickly passed, yet the battle still had not ended.
It must be said that humans in the pirate world all had monster-level physiques. Both sides fought to the death without pause.
Garp and Roger had already fought their way to the center of the island; bright flashes and violent shockwaves swept across the land.
After fighting all night, Kōjin raised his Tekkai to Level 50.
Tekkai at Level 50 could be controlled freely. The defensive layer that originally covered the entire body could now be stacked and concentrated on a single area.
Kōjin could strike with overwhelming hardness and strength wherever he willed... his fists, feet, or arms.
Even when grains of sand brushed against him, his Tekkai-enhanced muscles would instinctively rebound, launching the sand outward with greater force, like bullets.
This made his attacks against Rayleigh even more formidable.
"You're looking more and more like that monster, Garp..." Rayleigh murmured softly, his eyes growing serious.
He felt that the kid in front of him was a monster; his growth during the battle was almost visible to the naked eye.
By now, his fist could be called an Iron Fist. In fact, it might be harder and tougher than real steel. The battle seemed endless, especially for Kōjin, who never felt tired.
In the blink of an eye, another full day passed.
He didn't die as many times today because he was gradually becoming familiar with the rhythm of fighting Rayleigh.
He also raised Rankyaku to Level 35.
The enhancements to his fists and legs, combined with the high-speed movement of Soru, put tremendous pressure on Rayleigh.
Twisting in pain, Kōjin's legs spun like gyroscopes, continuously attacking Rayleigh.
"Rankyaku!"
Such a simple Rankyaku, yet he used it as if swinging a blade, slashing out terrifying cutting waves that cleaved the forest ahead, thousands of meters of trees sliced clean in half.
"This kid...he's almost the most frightening Rokushiki user I've ever seen!" Rayleigh was inwardly shocked as he saw this scene.
By the third day of battle, he was already fatigued and had witnessed his opponent's rapid growth. He vaguely realized that he might have become the boy's sharpening stone.
On the fourth day, Rayleigh noticed that the boy had started using Shigan.
His fist turned into pointed fingers, and the piercing force was terrifying. Rayleigh felt genuine disbelief. Even more outrageous was the fact that this brat infused Haoshoku Haki into two fingers.
Under the black-and-red lightning, the Shigan thrust forward as if puncturing the void, shooting out a dreadful shockwave extending tens of thousands of meters.
Rayleigh could only rely on Kenbunshoku Haki to dodge this move. Otherwise, he had no doubt that he would be pierced straight through.
"Finger Gun!"
"As expected. With Tekkai's localized hardening and Haoshoku Haki infusion, the penetrating force increases even further."
Kōjin was thrilled.
He tested Rokushiki techniques one by one, and once he reached a high enough level, the six techniques underwent a qualitative transformation.
This also meant that his current strength had undergone complete sublimation.
Now, he finally possessed sufficient survival ability across the entire world and was no longer afraid of strange and unpredictable dangers.
When he first arrived in this world, despite having the Undying trait, he could still be captured, imprisoned, or, if he encountered a perverted researcher, taken for dissection at any moment.
Undying does not mean invincible.
Later, Garp saved him, and he trained under Garp. After countless deaths, relentless training, and leveling up, his strength finally reached this level.
Now, even facing Pluton Rayleigh, he has the power to fight.
"Finger Gun!"
In a flash, Kōjin struck again.
Pop.
The air trembled, and a finger-shaped blast of black-red lightning shot straight toward Rayleigh.
Rayleigh's figure flickered as he dodged the strike.
A second later, a thunderous explosion rang in his ears, and violent shockwaves spread outward.
With such power and noise, no one would ever believe that this was the Shigan from the Marine Rokushiki technique.
"Rokushiki... This kid has already transformed it into something entirely new."
Rayleigh sighed.
The next moment, he swung his blade once more and charged in.
"I want to see just how far you can grow."
After days of battle, Rayleigh himself had become curious.
The battle continued.
Meanwhile, Saul had become a full-time war correspondent, tirelessly reporting the situation on the battlefield—causing Sengoku, on the other end of the Den Den Mushi, to experience wave after wave of shock.
He sketched out Kōjin's image in his mind, then combined it with his combat strength and techniques, forming an internal model.
At last, he arrived at a preliminary conclusion: "Kōjin… may already possess quasi-Admiral-level combat power!"
"But…"
"How is that possible?!"
(End of Chapter)
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