Even though World's body was naturally strong—and as a Devil Fruit user, he could adapt better to the power of the Momo Momo no Mi—he rarely used it to enhance himself in specific ways.
If this were Redfield at his peak, he might have been able to withstand the burden of the Momo Momo no Mi.
But after being imprisoned in Level 6 of Impel Down for over twenty years, Redfield was no longer the same Red Count from the past.
"Enough talk!"
Redfield barked. He would rather die fighting here than be thrown back into the hell of Impel Down.
"You annoying bastard… Just don't die on me! Momo Momo: Hundredfold Reinforcement!"
World smacked Redfield hard on the shoulder. Immediately, the Red Count's already pale face flushed red, as if a raging fire had ignited inside him, causing his body temperature to skyrocket.
Even though he had mentally prepared himself, the sheer intensity of the power surge made Redfield cry out in pain.
He felt like a ticking time bomb, one misstep away from exploding.
However, in return, he also felt an incredible lightness, as if his body had become weightless. If he wanted to, he could push his speed to an unprecedented level.
While Redfield was subduing the prisoners, Kizaru had finalized his deal with Orochimaru. He then made a show of forming a few meaningless hand seals.
"Summoning Jutsu!"
Even though the summoning was handled through the Dimensional Chat Group's transaction system, Kizaru felt that not striking a pose would make it feel off.
"Are you the one who summoned me, brat?"
A massive serpent rose before Kizaru, its upper body alone towering 40 to 50 meters high, with a total length exceeding 200 meters.
This was Manda—Orochimaru's number one enforcer. Its hobbies included haggling with Orochimaru before every battle and demanding live sacrifices afterward.
Fortunately, since Kizaru had paid with Dimensional Coins, the matter of sacrifices was left to Orochimaru.
"Such a foul temper. Do you even know the phrase 'the customer is always right'? Watch your attitude, or I'll file a complaint with Orochimaru!"
Kizaru scolded righteously.
Manda, momentarily stunned by Kizaru's arrogance, didn't even know how to respond.
Then, fury overtook it.
It was always the one acting high and mighty, looking down on others. When had a mere human ever dared to point at its face and insult it? Even Orochimaru wouldn't treat it this way!
Enraged, Manda raised itself even higher, hissing menacingly.
"Brat, how dare you speak to me like that?! I'll eat you—"
Manda was no kind soul. Despite humans being little more than snacks to its massive form, it always insisted on receiving live sacrifices whenever Orochimaru summoned it. That alone spoke volumes about its nature.
But just as it opened its enormous maw—
Kizaru calmly raised a hand.
"Laser Beam."
A flash of light shot from Kizaru's fingertip.
A moment later, Manda realized in horror that one of its horns had been sliced clean off without a sound.
That was the hardest part of its entire body.
In other words, if Kizaru had aimed at its head, it would've died instantly—without even knowing how it happened.
Instinctively, Manda tried to escape back to Ryuchi Cave.
But since it had arrived in the One Piece world through the power of the Dimensional Chat Group, it couldn't return without Kizaru's permission.
That bastard Orochimaru had loaned it out to a monster!
Shocked and furious, Manda coiled itself defensively.
But it quickly realized how useless that was. With Kizaru's attack speed, if he wanted to kill it, there would be no time to react.
"So… Who was it you said you were going to eat?"
Kizaru squinted, his tone carrying an unmistakable threat.
He knew exactly how to handle creatures like Manda—brutes that bullied the weak but groveled before the strong.
Even though Manda was a snake, its cowardly nature dictated that when faced with an overwhelming force, it would do nothing but submit.
"Hissss… What I meant was—I'll eat your enemies! Yes, that's right! Where are the fools who dare oppose you? I'll devour them all!"
Before Kizaru, who could kill it at any moment, Manda flawlessly demonstrated the serpent clan's well-known ability to recognize when to submit.
"Look, over there. Eat as much as you can handle—just don't get yourself killed."
Kizaru didn't bother arguing with Manda and casually pointed toward the escaping prisoners.
"Hiss! So much fresh blood!"
Manda, who had been calculating its next move, froze in shock at the sight of the prisoners. Normal human sacrifices weren't even enough to fill the gaps between its fangs, but the prisoners of Level 6 were different—each one of them had a powerful physique and overflowing vitality.
To Manda, they were walking, breathing nutritional supplements. A few bites would be a nice snack, but eating them all? That would be worth thousands, maybe even millions of human sacrifices!
It had originally sworn that, after returning to Ryuchi Cave, it would never come back to this godforsaken place.
But now, staring at such a grand feast, it suddenly reconsidered.
—
"What is that monster planning?"
"Who knows what's going on in that guy's head?"
"Wait… is he planning to feed us to that giant snake?!"
The prisoners grew tense as they watched Kizaru 'summon' Manda.
Still, most of them focused on Kizaru rather than the snake. Newcomers might have been scared by Manda's size, but the prisoners of Level 6 had spent years on the Grand Line—most had seen Sea Kings bigger than Manda had eaten humans. A mere 200-meter-long 'small snake' wasn't worth their attention.
"Hissss… I'm going to eat you all!"
Manda was stunned. It was used to people fleeing in terror at the mere sight of it.
Now, being ignored like this? It was a first.
Stunned at first, then furious, Manda let out an enraged roar and lunged at the prisoners.
—
"That snake can talk!"
"Is it a Zoan-type Devil Fruit user?"
"Hah! Let me take care of it!"
The prisoners weren't worried. Even as Manda charged, only one particularly massive man stepped forward to confront it.
"Heh, it's been a while since I had a real fight. Let me show you what I, Rhino Parker, can do!"
The prisoner blocking Manda's path let out a low roar, and his body swelled at an astonishing speed.
He was the user of the Ancient Zoan-type Rhino Rhino Fruit. The prehistoric giant rhino was the largest land mammal, outweighing even elephants.
Parker had even awakened his Devil Fruit ability. Transformed, he stood nearly as tall as Manda's head.
Manda paused for a moment, then its eyes lit up.
It had worried that these prisoners, while tasty, wouldn't have enough meat on their bones to be satisfying.
But now? Seeing that humans could grow bigger? A supersized rhino was a perfectly-sized treat.
—
"That's Rhino Parker! How did even he get caught by the Navy?"
"Parker's bounty was over 200 million berries! A mere snake is nothing to him!"
"Don't get cocky—the real threat is that monster…"
—
As Parker rushed forward, some prisoners even started betting on how many seconds it would take him to kill the snake.
Hearing his comrades' talk, Parker roared, ready to showcase his strength.
But just as he was about to make his move, Manda suddenly accelerated—closing the distance in a blink.
Before Parker could react, Manda's massive maw opened wide, and its fangs sank deep into his back.
Darkness overtook Parker's vision. Something had pierced through his body.
Moments later, paralysis set in, and he lost consciousness.
"Chomp!"
A single bite—and the giant rhino was gone.
Not too big, not too small—just the right size for Manda to swallow whole.
—
"I bet three seconds—"
Before the prisoner could finish his sentence, they all watched in horror as Rhino Parker vanished into Manda's throat, without even a chance to fight back.
And then—
Manda's eyes locked onto them.
"Hisss… Such sweet, delicious blood…"
Manda trembled with excitement as it felt power surging through its body from consuming Parker.
Never before had it tasted such high-quality blood.
Even a thousand of Orochimaru's human sacrifices couldn't compare to this single giant rhino.
Realizing this, Manda didn't hesitate—its massive jaws opened wide as it lunged at the rest of the prisoners.
If it could devour all of these top-grade blood meals, it would grow bigger, stronger—maybe even surpass Orochimaru!
—
"Don't get cocky, damn snake! Spiral Drill!"
A prisoner, seemingly close to Parker, leaped forward.
He had eaten the Drill Drill Fruit—though he hadn't awakened its full potential, he had still caused heavy casualties among the Marines when he was captured.
Snap!
However, before the Drill Man could even reach Manda in midair, a massive tail—seemingly out of nowhere—whipped him mercilessly into the ground. His body was reduced to an unrecognizable mess of flesh and bone.
Not that Manda minded. Its forked tongue flicked out, scooped up the remains, and sent them straight down its gullet.
But this time, Manda was clearly dissatisfied. Compared to the previous rhino, this so-called Drill Man barely provided any benefit at all.
Sure, he was still leagues above the human sacrifices Orochimaru used to offer, but once a predator has tasted true quality, going back is unbearable. Having savored superior blood, Manda had become picky.
—
"Damn it! That snake is a monster too!"
The prisoners might not have been top-tier fighters, but their instincts were razor-sharp.
This snake wasn't some ordinary Sea King or sea beast—its speed, strength, and sheer size put it in an entirely different league.
A larger body might mean bigger openings, but it also meant greater endurance. A wound that would be fatal to a human was, to Manda, nothing more than a mosquito bite.
"Hisss… Struggle all you want—I'm going to eat every last one of you!"
Manda's voice carried an eerie excitement as it took in the feast before it.
But just then—
A scarlet shadow flashed across the air and, faster than the eye could follow, slammed down onto Manda's head.
BOOM!
Despite Manda's monstrous strength, it was powerless to resist the force of the impact. Its massive head smashed into the ground.
"Round two begins, Kizaru!"
The dust settled, revealing a lone figure standing atop Manda's skull—Redfield.
If the previous Redfield had been a withering tree, then now, he was a volcano on the verge of eruption.
"Hisss… I'm going to eat you!"
Manda, humiliated and furious, thrashed wildly, trying to lift its head—only to find that Redfield's foot held it firmly in place, in complete defiance of physics.
—
"Oh my, how terrifying…"
Kizaru raised an eyebrow. With his incredible Observation Haki, he could see the limit of Redfield's lifespan.
The man was a burning matchstick—blazing brilliantly for the moment, but inevitably destined to burn out.
More tragically, Redfield himself didn't realize…
That he was facing a raging wildfire that could burn for months.
—
"DIE! Scarlet Phantom—Glowing Light!"
Redfield knew his time was short. And since his body had its limits, World's Momo Fruit couldn't push him beyond a certain point.
Feeling the unbearable strain in his body, he didn't dare hesitate. In a flash of crimson light, he lunged at Kizaru.
BOOM!
A massive explosion erupted where Kizaru had stood.
But Redfield's face fell. His Observation Haki screamed a warning—but his body couldn't keep up.
"Speed is weight. Have you ever been kicked at the speed of light?"
°°°
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