Chapter 91 Sanji Suffers Crushing Defeat Due to Mental Network's PredictionA deafening explosion, accompanied by a piercing hum of electricity, ripped a charred, terrifying tunnel through the forest before him!
A charred branch snapped and fell, startling the terrified Shadley.
He turned stiffly, staring at Luffy as if he were a demon from hell.
Luffy flashed a chillingly benevolent smile that would haunt his nightmares: "Want to live? If you want to live, find a way to kill those two. Otherwise, your fate will be like this forest… bang!"
Shadley's legs went weak, and he collapsed to the ground, incontinent from shock.
As one of the four high priests, he was utterly stunned.
He had never imagined he would be reduced to this, a tool used for someone else's leveling up.
But looking at the still-smoking tunnel in the forest, Shadley gritted his teeth. To survive, he had to fight.
Zoro and Sanji looked at the still trembling Shadley with disdain: "This kind of trash can level us up? Luffy, are you kidding me?"
Sanji lit a cigarette, took a deep drag, and jumped off the ship: "Moss Head, leave this guy to me. Don't interfere, or people will say we're bullying a cripple."
Zoro didn't say anything, just sat cross-legged on the deck with his three swords, making his stance clear—he wouldn't deign to touch this weakling.
Luffy didn't object either; after all, if the two of them, strengthened by the Navy's Six Powers, attacked together, it would indeed be too much of a bully.
Even with Shadley's Mind Control ability, his physical weaknesses were enough to make him easily defeated.
Sanji struck first, a fierce kick aimed straight at Shadley's face.
Shadley suddenly sneered: "A right upper leg kick, huh?"
He shifted to the side, dodging Sanji's attack half a second in advance.
Just then, Sanji uttered the name of his attack: "First Meat!"
But in that instant, Shadley's hand, bound with the Impact Deck, was already ghost-like, pressed against Sanji's chest.
"Impossible! This guy predicted my move!?"
Sanji's pupils contracted sharply, staring in shock at the agile fat man.
The next second, a terrifying shockwave erupted from Shadley's palm.
Bang!
Sanji was sent flying like a kite with a broken string, crashing heavily into a large tree.
"What?!" Zoro frowned at the scene, clearly not expecting Sanji to suffer such a heavy loss in their first exchange.
Seeing this, the fear on Shadley's face vanished, replaced by ecstatic joy.
He could win!
As long as this terrifying Straw Hat kid kept his promise and didn't attack, he could live!
"Hahahaha!" Shadley bounced excitedly on the cloud, "Looks like you guys aren't so great after all!"
Sanji got up from the ground, wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth, and his eyes sharpened: "Interesting..."
Sanji then got into a fighting stance, unleashing a Vacuum Slash Wave with a Tempest Kick, heading straight for Shadley.
However, by the time Sanji finished kicking, he realized that Shadley had already jumped into the air.
"Too slow!"
Shadley's round body suddenly shrank, using a similar technique, Shave, and instantly appeared behind Sanji.
Sanji's kick missed completely, his mind reeling: "How is this possible! How did you know where I was going to kick?!"
Shadori danced triumphantly: "This is a divine skill acquired only through hellish training—Mind Web! You mere mortals will never understand!"
As she spoke, Shadori's palm whistled as it struck Sanji again.
Sanji, now smarter, knew the real threat lay in that hand. He executed a Thomas Flair, narrowly dodging the attack.
With a bang, a massive hole, several meters in diameter, was blasted open in the ancient tree.
"Damn it, what kind of superhuman strength is that? It looks a bit like a finger gun, but much more powerful."
Sanji stared at the hole, cold sweat pouring down his back. "If that hit me, my bones would shatter."
Impact Shells cause damage by storing and releasing impact force. Even Luffy's rubber body wouldn't dare take it head-on, let alone a mortal like Sanji.
"Hey, Sanji, our time is precious. If you haven't dealt with him before the ship leaves this forest, you're stuck here as Tarzan."
Luffy leaned on the ship's railing, grinning as he called out to Sanji below.
The Cloud River in the Mysterious Forest meandered, but its end led to the next challenge.
Zoro, also on the ship, made a sarcastic remark: "Want me to lend you a hand? If it were me, I'd have sliced this roly-poly toy into sashimi by now."
Sanji, enraged, roared at Zoro: "Get lost! I don't need your help!"
Then he abruptly turned to Shadley, his eyes blazing with fury: "That damn fatso, he's infuriating! Storm Kick: Chaos!"
Sanji's legs shot out like phantoms, countless slashes engulfing Shadley like a storm.
However, Shadley, like a slippery eel, moved with an agility completely disproportionate to his size, weaving effortlessly through the dense gaps in the slashes.
"Hahaha! Useless, useless! All your attacks are under my control!"
Shadley, overjoyed, leaped in front of Sanji, unleashing an Impact Shell that slammed squarely into Sanji's abdomen.
*Pfft!*
Sanji coughed up blood, flying backward again.
"Sanji!" Nami, seeing Sanji covered in blood, felt her heart clench. She cried out to Luffy in bewilderment, "You could have crushed him with a single finger! Why make Sanji suffer like this?!"
Luffy's smile vanished, replaced by a serious expression as he rambled on, "I am a god, destined to be misunderstood by mortals. Now that you're on my pirate ship, you'll inevitably encounter even more terrifying enemies. So I must push you, to make you capable of standing on your own!"
Nami: "…"
Thump!
"Speak like a human!"
"Uh...it's just that the boss I'm going to fight later is too strong, and I'm afraid you guys will be a hindrance and get instantly killed, so I'm leveling up now."
Luffy rubbed the bump on his head and confessed honestly.
Nami looked at him suspiciously: "With your status, is there anyone in this world who would dare to mess with you?"
"That's precisely the biggest problem," Luffy muttered under his breath.
At this moment, Sanji swore he had never fought such a frustrating battle in his life.
No matter what move he used, his opponent could dodge it in advance; no matter how he dodged, his opponent always seemed to be waiting for him in the predicted path.
It was like offering his face to be slapped—utterly humiliating.
Sanji, already battered and bruised from Shadley's Impact Ber, was breathing heavily.
"Hahaha! I think you should just admit defeat and wait to die. You absolutely can't beat me!"
Shadley stood atop a high cloud, mocking him from above.
Sanji lowered his head, his bangs obscuring his eyes, making his expression impossible to see. He trembled as he lit a cigarette, took a deep drag, and exhaled a cloud of smoke.
On the Phoenix Tail Ship, a flicker of surprise crossed Luffy's eyes. So this was the foundation of Germa 66's modified genes? From first encountering the Six Powers of the Navy to now, it's only been a month at most, and he's already reached the basics?
Shadley looked at the silent Sanji, a hint of impatience flashing in her eyes: "Since you want to act cool, then die!"
Shadley swooped down on Sanji again, her killing intent palpable.
However, this time, Sanji didn't rush to retaliate or dodge as before.
He just stood there quietly, like a statue.
"What?! He's given up?"