On the mountaintop not far away.
The snow on the hillside had long been cleared away during the previous clash between Ian and Zephyr. Members of the Donquixote family were now standing on a bare rocky mountain.
Baby-5 tightly gripped Buffalo's arm, preventing herself from being blown away by the oncoming violent wind.
The other officers couldn't help but raise their hands to shield their faces, trying to block the fierce wind.
The cold sweat on Trebol's forehead, as soon as it started to seep out, was dried by the wind, leaving white salt stains on his forehead. "Ian, Ian is really fighting Black Arm Zephyr!"
Doflamingo also looked shocked.
That's Black Arm Zephyr!
The former admiral of the Navy Headquarters, though he had long since retired from the frontlines, his strength was undoubtedly monstrous!
Even at such a distance, Doflamingo could feel the immense power of that man's Armament Haki!
Doflamingo even doubted if a full-force attack from him would even hurt Zephyr.
Yet, Ian was able to fight him on equal terms!
Even—
"Hey, hey, hey, is that all you've got? Mr. Zephyr! That's really disappointing!" Ian laughed recklessly.
Flames erupted from his joints, and the brilliant fire that gathered was almost like a laser, so powerful that it could pierce through mountains.
But right now, it only served to enhance the power of Ian's fists!
Akainu could turn his body into a volcano, making every punch feel like a volcanic eruption.
Ian could do something similar.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
After a few consecutive punches, Zephyr was forced back step by step, his face looking extremely grim.
Such terrifying power!
Even though his Armament Haki might be a bit weaker than Zephyr's, this exaggerated strength more than made up for any weaknesses.
In fact, it even surpassed Zephyr's!
This kid—
"Zephyr is being overwhelmed!"
Diamante screamed in disbelief, "How could this be possible!"
That kid, Ian, is only fifteen!
Such overwhelming power!
He couldn't help but glance at Doflamingo.
Although they had always believed that Doflamingo was the man capable of shaking the world and becoming the new Pirate King...
But—
Doflamingo stared unblinkingly, his expression unreadable.
"It's safer here."
A calm voice sounded, and a figure descended from the sky, landing beside the Donquixote family.
"Ah! It's Law!"
Baby-5 immediately exclaimed in surprise.
"Law?"
Doflamingo turned his head, looking down at the young boy who had landed next to him, holding a small box in his arms.
"Don't mind me," Law said casually, "Ian's fight with Zephyr was too intense. I couldn't even stand there, so let me stay with you guys for a while."
The eyes of Trebol, Diamante, Pica, and all the members of the Donquixote family immediately focused on the small box in Law's arms.
Inside that box... was the Op-Op Fruit!
Law noticed their gaze and smiled, handing the box to Doflamingo, "What's wrong? Do you want it? If you want it, just take it."
Doflamingo's expression changed dramatically.
Veins popped out on the back of his hand.
The Donquixote family executives also had their faces turn pale.
Doflamingo stared at Law, for a long time, before finally letting out a strange laugh, "Hehehe, don't joke, Law. That thing belongs to Ian. Why would I take my friend's things?"
"Is that so? Well, then forget it."
Law calmly took back the small box, trying his best to maintain a neutral expression, though the corners of his mouth couldn't help but curve upward.
Seeing this guy's expression, angry but unable to act on it... it's really amusing.
Below them, Ian was overwhelming Zephyr.
Ian felt a little disappointed.
After all, it had been so long since he left the frontlines. Zephyr had switched to being an instructor nineteen years ago.
He hadn't fought a true strong enemy in so long. He had already fallen behind the times.
Not to mention, his mentality had already collapsed nineteen years ago when his family was killed by pirates.
Rayleigh had once said when teaching Luffy Haki, "Believing without doubt is what makes you strong."
But now, where was Zephyr's belief?
From being called "Black Arm," his once-expert use of Armament Haki could barely outmatch his own.
He had thought this would be a thrilling, evenly matched battle.
Ian sighed.
"Kid!"
Zephyr noticed Ian's sigh.
This kid, was he looking down on him?
He instantly flew into a rage.
He couldn't help but be furious!
The screams of his disciples still echoed behind him. Tsuru and Gion were stuck, desperately entangled by the enemy, and the only one with the ability to turn the tide, himself, was being suppressed by this kid in front of him!
Not only could he not save everyone, but now he was almost in danger himself.
How could he not be angry?
How could he not be enraged?
In his fury, his Armament Haki, which had been declining for many years, seemed to awaken as if never before. He threw a punch, stronger than ever before.
This punch showed a glimpse of the true power of "Black Arm" Zephyr.
But—
Boom!
The fists collided!
A gust of wind exploded.
Zephyr was sent back once again.
But this time, Ian also took a step back.
"This is getting interesting," he said with a smile.
"Then accept your defeat! Kid!"
Zephyr didn't stop, charging forward.
Iron Fist!
The iron fist that could even cut through the wind struck Ian's body, leaving holes in him.
However, Zephyr's expression suddenly changed, and he quickly distanced himself.
Ian turned into flames!
He entered the state of his flame incarnation Phoenix!
Now, the entire Navy knew that when facing Ian in this form, the only thing they could do was retreat for the time being.
However, Ian's state only lasted for a moment.
Before Zephyr could even distance himself, Ian had already returned to his original form.
Just like before, nothing had changed. The red destructive flames were not even used.
Ian simply waved at Zephyr, "Come here, Zephyr. I can't stay in the Phoenix form for long, so don't worry. Go ahead and attack."
Veins bulged on Zephyr's forehead, his anger rising further at Ian's arrogant words.
He charged forward, turning his iron fist into a storm.
But just as the iron fist came close, Ian once again transformed into flames, making all of Zephyr's attacks ineffective.
As Zephyr attempted to distance himself again, Ian returned to his normal state once more.
"Dammit!!"
Zephyr's eyes were nearly bloodshot.
How could he not see it? This little brat was completely toying with him.
Ian simply chuckled.
In these two years, what had improved his strength the most was, of course, his diligent training and the experience gained from numerous battles, which had helped him achieve the internal destruction level of Armament Haki.
And after two more years, his body had become even stronger, to the point where, after using his abilities, he could enhance his physique to even more terrifying levels.
However, there were two other aspects of progress that Ian was proud of.
The first was his observation haki, which was now accurate enough to predict Zephyr's attacks, even to the point of being able to foresee them down to the slightest detail.
The second was that he had finally, through training, removed the wind-up for the "Phoenix Form". This meant that he could now instantly enter the state of the Immortal Phoenix at will and quickly exit it again.
The combination of these two factors meant that, like Katakuri, Ian could transform at the exact moment an enemy's attack was about to land, thereby avoiding the attack with minimal damage.
In fact, while Katakuri couldn't handle changes through large-area attacks, Ian, once transformed into flames, was nearly invulnerable.
"Damn!!"
After a series of attacks, Zephyr's face had changed multiple times.
Each time his attack was about to land, Ian would turn into flames, and once his attack ended, Ian would return to his normal form.
Even when Zephyr changed his moves mid-attack, Ian could still transform once more in the nick of time.
It was unsolvable!
This ability seemed impossible to deal with.
He couldn't land a single hit.
A thought quietly arose in his mind.
He couldn't win.
He couldn't defeat this brat.
In a head-on fight, he was being suppressed, and even when he allowed himself to attack, he couldn't land a single hit.
As soon as this thought appeared, it spread like wildfire, consuming Zephyr's entire heart.
At this rate—
"Retreat!!"
Zephyr couldn't help but shout loudly, "Everyone, follow my orders! Retreat!"
Continuing to fight would lead to disastrous consequences.
Retreat, we can only retreat now.
Almost the instant Zephyr stopped attacking and spoke, Ian shot forward. In his hand was a sword, a scarlet destruction sword.
"Mr. Zephyr, hesitation,"
"Will lead to defeat!"
The scarlet sword blade was raised high, then swung down fiercely.
Zephyr's pupils shrank, but due to the distraction caused by his earlier words, he could no longer dodge in time.
He could only brace for impact!
Clang!
This collision was almost silent.
Ian and Zephyr had already passed by each other in an instant.
Ian shook his head while holding the destruction sword. "Really disappointing, such a weak punch. Did I scare you that much, Mr. Zephyr?"
"Ahhh!!"
A scream of agony came from behind.
Zephyr's right arm had completely disappeared from his shoulder downward, without leaving a single fragment.
Not only that, but his right side had also been grazed by the destruction sword.
Even though it was just a light graze, it had torn a large hole through his right ribcage.
The Navy's chief instructor clutched his wound, screaming in pain.
At the same time, his body went limp and collapsed onto the ground.
"Zephyr!!"
Vice Admiral Tsuru's face suddenly changed.
This was bad!
"Alright,"
Ian lifted his head and looked toward the Navy soldiers still engaged in battle. "It's time to surrender, Navy."
**********
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