Taking advantage of Momonga’s failed Shigan, Pons quickly rose into the air, ascending to about ten meters.
Once there, he hurled another Shadow Ball down at Momonga.
This time, Momonga did not dodge.
Instead, he used Shigan to pierce the incoming Shadow Ball, causing it to explode on impact.
Pons was momentarily worried, wondering if Momonga’s arm had been injured by directly intercepting the Shadow Ball with his bare fingers.
However, he quickly realized his concern was unnecessary…
Momonga’s arm was completely unharmed.
The skin on Momonga’s exposed forearm had turned black.
Pons’s heart sank.
That was indeed Armament Haki… Marine Vice Admirals were required to possess both Observation Haki and Armament Haki.
As an established Vice Admiral, Momonga naturally possessed both.
And Haki’s defensive capabilities lived up to its reputation…
his Shadow Ball had failed to inflict any damage whatsoever.
‘It seemed this battle would be extremely difficult…
and victory might very well be beyond my reach.’ Pons set those thoughts aside.
Since he was in the fight, he would give it his all and strive to win, rather than second-guessing himself or hesitating.
Momonga, seeing Pons in the air, used Geppo to pursue him.
Geppo allowed him to “walk” on air.
Within moments, Momonga was almost upon Pons.
Pons quickly flew higher, trying to increase the distance.
But Momonga’s Geppo speed was remarkably fast…
even faster than Pons’s flight.
He caught up quickly.
Once he reached Pons, Momonga used Shigan again, this time with Armament Haki coating his finger.
Pons tried to phase through it once more…
but though he became intangible in time, Momonga’s strike still hit him.
A sharp, searing pain shot through his body, and the force sent him tumbling several meters through the air.
He managed to steady himself, but his mind was racing.
He had known that Armament Haki could strike Logia users, but could it also hit him while intangible?
Was that even fair?
Momonga had apparently held back on that Shigan…
after all, the technique was known for its piercing power.
If Momonga had struck with full force, Pons suspected the pain would have been far worse than a mere sharp sting.
Having landed one blow, Momonga pressed his advantage, continuing to use Geppo to close in on Pons.
Pons was now wary.
Even if Momonga was not going all out, being hit multiple times by Shigan would leave him in dire straits.
There was no room for restraint now.
Pons opened his mouth wide and released a large cloud of purple poisonous gas…
Smog…
directly forward.
Momonga was startled.
He halted his pursuit, treading air in place.
‘That purple smoke clearly looked toxic.
So this kid could spew poisonous gas as well?’ Momonga did not dare charge through the cloud.
Even with Armament Haki, inhaling poisonous gas could still be dangerous.
He tried to circle around the gas cloud to attack Pons from another angle.
At that moment, two globs of Acid Spray shot through the mist toward him.
Though the smog obscured vision, Pons hoped to catch Momonga off guard.
But Momonga possessed Observation Haki and detected the attacks almost instantly.
He once again met them with an Armament Haki-coated Shigan, thrusting his fingers rapidly to pierce the incoming acid globs.
The Acid Sprays burst on impact…
but the result was acid splashing everywhere, some landing on Momonga’s uniform and neck.
His clothes and the skin on his neck began to corrode.
Momonga had only coated his arm with Haki; his neck had been unprotected.
He felt a burning sting spreading from the contact points.
‘Not only poison gas, but acid as well.
Quite a versatile skill set.
What kind of Devil Fruit had this kid eaten?’ Momonga considered for a moment, then drew his sword.
Momonga was a swordsman with considerable skill.
He raised his blade before him and delivered a powerful downward slash.
“Sword Technique: Momonga Gale!” The slash sent a vortex of compressed air forward, dispersing the poisonous fog.
With the smog cleared, Momonga and Pons faced each other again.
Still treading air, Momonga remarked: “I didn’t expect you to spit acid too.
If that had hit my face, it would have left quite a scar.” Pons noticed what looked like acid burns on Momonga’s neck…
his attack had achieved some minor effect after all.
But Acid Spray probably would not work again.
If he kept using it, Momonga would likely coat his entire body in Armament Haki to prevent further corrosion.
‘Also, Momonga had drawn his sword…
did that mean he was getting more serious?’ ‘In that case… Poltergeist!’ Pons extended his stubby hand toward Momonga’s sword and released his “spirit” energy.
Several streams of dark energy shot out, streaking directly toward the blade.
The dark energy moved at incredible speed with homing properties.
Even as Momonga saw them and attempted to evade with Geppo, the dark streams turned and all merged into his sword’s blade.
Pons’s heart leaped with hope.
He immediately tried to use the “spirit” to wrest control of Momonga’s sword away from him.
Momonga quickly felt his sword trying to slip from his grip.
Startled, he tightened his hold, refusing to let it go.
But the sword seemed to have developed a will of its own, fighting to break free.
Mere physical strength would not keep it in his grasp forever…
sooner or later, it would wrench itself out of his hand.
Momonga quickly tried to channel Armament Haki into the blade, hoping to reclaim “control.” Soon, the sword’s surface turned black.
In the next moment, Pons felt his connection to the “spirit” severed completely.
He could no longer control Momonga’s sword through his ability.
‘Could Armament Haki do even that?’ He already knew Haki was powerful in battle, but this felt almost like cheating.
Seeing Momonga poised to launch another attack, Pons quickly called out: “Um, can I concede?” In his Gengar form, he could still speak, though his voice was higher and sharper than usual…
more fitting for Gengar’s nature.
Though he had said he would give it his all, after exhausting every trick he had without seeing any path to victory, he was out of options.
It was better to concede now while the match was still somewhat respectable.
Momonga heard his surrender and stopped.
He nodded to Pons and slowly descended to the ground using Geppo.
Pons also drifted down and reverted to human form.
Tsuru and the others approached them.
Once close, Tsuru said: “Thank you both for your efforts.
That was a truly thrilling match.” Pons smiled wryly.
“You’re too kind.” In that fight, he had been dominated the entire time.
“Thrilling” was not quite how he would describe it.
Tsuru smiled kindly and encouraged him: “Momonga has been a Marine for over twenty years.
For you to fight him to this extent is already an impressive feat.” After a pause, she asked: “If you were to fight without using your Devil Fruit ability, relying solely on your own physical combat skills, how effective would you be?” Pons laughed awkwardly.
“To be honest, I rely almost entirely on my Devil Fruit for combat.
Without it, I suspect even an average Marine could beat me.” Tsuru nodded slowly, seemingly pondering something.
What puzzled her most was what kind of fruit Pons had eaten.
The fact that he could transform suggested it was some type of Zoan fruit.
However, Zoan fruits typically enhanced the user’s physical attributes…
strength, speed, and so forth.
The techniques a Zoan user employed in battle were generally ones they had trained in normally, amplified by their enhanced body.
For example, a Marine who had trained in the Rokushiki and later ate a Zoan fruit would still primarily use the Rokushiki in battle…
they would just be more powerful due to the physical boost.
Of course, some Zoan fruits also granted additional abilities like fire, ice, or flight, but those were exceptions.
Moreover, Pons had demonstrated a wide variety of abilities, yet his physical attributes seemed entirely unenhanced.
That left Tsuru genuinely uncertain about what kind of fruit he had eaten.
It did not quite fit a Zoan…
but it seemed even less like a Paramecia or Logia.
So she asked directly: “By the way, what Devil Fruit did you eat?” Pons replied: “I’m not really sure.
There’s a tree behind my house.
One day when I came home, I saw a strange fruit growing on it.
Out of curiosity, I picked it and ate it…
and then I found I could transform into this strange creature…” There was no way he could tell Tsuru the truth.
Besides, even if he said a Devil Fruit had appeared on his table out of nowhere, no one would believe him.
He also did not see the need to explain that the fruit was a “Gengar Fruit”…
after all, who in this world would know what a Gengar was?