A Fist Full of Sincerity!
10: All-Out Brawl!
A Fist Full of Sincerity!
Chapter 10: All-Out Brawl!
A Fist Full of Sincerity!
This was Nate’s first time fighting a truly powerful opponent.
And it just happened to be someone on Magellan’s level.
There were still seven years before the main story began, but Magellan was already nearing forty.
His strength was probably close to its peak.
Inside a confined environment like Impel Down, he was even more terrifying.
Without exaggeration, if Nate didn’t intervene, Magellan alone could probably kill every prisoner here.
But that was precisely what made this exciting.
‘Let’s test it.’ ‘Just how strong am I right now?’ Nate, who was almost always lazy and half asleep, was finally fired up.
The prisoners charging ahead of him were even more fired up.
Every one of them wore a crazed expression, like starving beasts eager to tear someone apart.
“Utterly foolish.” A huge purple Hydra came crashing down from above.
It swallowed the hot-blooded prisoners in an instant.
By the time the Hydra smashed against the bridge and burst apart, the prisoners could do nothing but lie on the ground twitching.
Everyone behind them immediately sobered up.
Even Anthony couldn’t help swallowing hard.
‘This guy is way too monstrous.’ ‘Just touching his venom is enough to finish you!’ Magellan raised his right hand, and the remaining two Hydras behind him twisted through the air.
The prisoners behind Nate unconsciously began retreating.
“Repent in hell, criminals.” Magellan’s eyes turned cold.
“Hydra!” The two enormous venom dragons opened their jaws and lunged toward the group.
“UWAAAH!!” Someone had already started screaming.
Yet amid those screams, both Hydras suddenly exploded in midair.
Something invisible tore them apart before forcibly sweeping the scattered venom over the sides of the bridge and into the pools of blood below.
“What?” Magellan frowned.
His eyes couldn’t see anything, but his Observation Haki had sensed it clearly.
Two long, transparent objects resembling serpents had suddenly appeared from nothing, crushed his Hydras, then knocked the venom away.
‘What kind of ability is that?’ Magellan knew the records of these prisoners very well.
None of them possessed anything remotely like this.
Buckingham froze as well.
‘Invisible physical attacks?’ ‘That feels familiar…’ “No one gets to judge me.” Nate stepped forward.
“And I have nothing to repent for.” His gaze settled on Magellan.
“You can’t stop me either.” “Byrnndi World—” Magellan’s words abruptly stopped.
His pupils contracted.
Invisible matter had materialized directly in front of him, instantly forming an unseen blade that slashed toward him from almost point-blank range.
Magellan instinctively stepped back.
But the attack was too fast and far too close.
He only managed to move his neck away from the lethal trajectory.
BOOM!
It was as though an enormous sword had struck him head-on.
A piercing crack tore through the air behind Magellan while the residual force ripped a deep trench through the floor.
Magellan’s face twisted in pain.
A deep wound opened from his right shoulder down across his chest, spraying blood into the air.
Then his entire body blasted backward through the air.
He flew across the entire bridge and smashed violently into the wall on the opposite side.
The distant wall visibly collapsed as rings of smoke erupted outward.
Silence.
Every prisoner stared blankly at Nate.
Nate nodded in satisfaction.
His projections couldn’t yet create genuinely real matter.
But since the objects he projected possessed physical form, they could still possess the basic properties of matter.
Hardness.
Toughness.
Weight.
By consuming more stamina, Nate could make whatever he projected harder, heavier, and more durable.
Combined with their transparency, these creations could effectively be used like telekinesis.
As long as something was within his projection range, the attacks might not literally have zero-frame startup, but they were close enough to dropping an ultimate point-blank in someone’s face.
This was currently Nate’s strongest combat method.
“INCREDIBLE, MY LORD!” Anthony immediately shrieked in an absurdly high-pitched voice.
“Even a monster like Magellan is nothing but insignificant trash before you!” “I’D FOLLOW YOU THROUGH FIRE AND WATER, MY LORD!” Solt nodded furiously.
“I’ll follow you for the rest of my life!” Buckingham’s eye twitched.
‘This is getting even more familiar.’ Nate completely ignored the shameless flatterers.
“Let’s go.” “YES!!” Every prisoner immediately became excited.
If their mysterious lord was this powerful, then maybe they really could escape this hellhole.
The group charged onto the bridge and rushed toward the opposite side.
At that moment—Across the bridge.
“Urgh…” Magellan shook his head and pressed a hand against the wound on his chest, which was deep enough to expose bone.
‘It’s been too long since I fought seriously.’ He had nearly failed to react in time.
Fortunately, he’d managed to defend himself with Armament Haki at the last moment.
Otherwise, that wound would have been far worse.
But what exactly had happened?
‘That attack definitely came from Byrnndi World.’ ‘Isn’t he supposed to be a Paramecia-type More-More Fruit user?’ There was no time to dwell on it.
Magellan forced himself upright.
Nate’s group had already reached his side of the bridge.
“Kill him and we’re free!” Anthony once again took it upon himself to raise morale.
“Everyone attack together!
He’s only one man!” The moment he finished speaking— “Chief Warden!
We’re here to support—wait, if the Chief Warden gets killed, then I can become Chief Warden—” A bizarre, overly dramatic voice came from behind Magellan.
Without even turning around, Magellan spoke coldly.
“Hannyabal.
You’re too slow.” A large group was rushing out from a nearby stairwell and rapidly approaching.
Anthony fell silent.
‘Seriously?’ ‘They show up the moment I say that?’ Leading the group was a man dressed like an Egyptian pharaoh, carrying a double-bladed weapon.
Vice Warden Hannyabal.
Behind him were numerous Jailers along with several monstrous beasts brought up from Level Two, Wild Beast Hell.
Mixed among them were several Jailer Beasts—Zoan users whose awakenings had failed.
Beside Hannyabal stood several other high-ranking officers of Impel Down: the Chief Jailer, the Chief Guard, and a man wearing a military cap with a cigar clenched between his teeth.
Impel Down’s Head Jailer and true second-strongest man—Shiryu of the Rain.
Shiryu stopped and looked with interest at Magellan’s blood-covered chest.
“You really got beaten up badly.” He smirked.
“Did we come at a bad time?” “No.” Magellan took a deep breath.
“Your timing is perfect.” He looked toward Nate.
“Something is wrong with Byrnndi World.
I’ll handle him.” Then he glanced toward Shiryu.
“You lead everyone else and eliminate the remaining prisoners.” “You’re the Chief Warden.” Shiryu shrugged.
“Your call.” “Everyone!” Magellan raised his voice.
“Put on your gas masks and prepare the antidotes!” “Huh?!
We need to go that far?” Vice Warden Hannyabal blinked, fumbling around before hurriedly pulling out a gas mask.
“Is he really that dangerous?
Chief Warden, you’re not going to get killed, are you?
Ah—if that happens, I’ll finally get promoted!” Nobody paid any attention to the clowning Vice Warden.
Without hesitation, the Jailers began putting on their gas masks.
Magellan slowly exhaled.
“Poison Cloud!” Purple mist poured from his mouth.
In the blink of an eye, it expanded into a vast cloud and rolled toward the prisoners.
Their expressions changed instantly.
‘There’s nowhere to run!’ Even an old veteran like Buckingham broke out in a cold sweat.
Nate remained completely calm.
“Didn’t you hear them?” He glanced at the Jailers.
“They have gas masks and antidotes.” The prisoners froze.
Nate lifted one hand.
Invisible matter materialized and spread outward.
When the incoming poisonous fog struck the unseen barrier, it was forced apart to either side, leaving a clear passage straight through the middle.
“CHARGE!!” Solt didn’t hesitate for even an instant.
The path was open.
There was only one direction left to go.
Forward.
His figure vanished.
In the next instant, the Jailers’ formation was violently torn open.
Bloodied bodies flew through the air as Solt carved a path directly through their ranks.
At the same time, he snatched a gas mask from one of the Jailers and strapped it over his own face.
Shiryu turned sharply in surprise.
‘That fast?’ Even he hadn’t reacted quickly enough to stop Solt.
But there was no time to chase him.
More prisoners were already charging forward.
“EVERY LAST ONE OF YOU CAN DIE!!” The enormous Cave Bear came barreling forward like a heavy tank, smashing straight toward the Jailers.
Behind Anthony, the other prisoners charged desperately after him.
“I’ll start with you.” Shiryu watched the massive bear.
His hand settled on the hilt of his sword.
But at that exact moment—A certain idiot son suddenly pulled back his right fist.
“I’LL CRUSH ALL OF YOU!!” Invisible vibrations transformed into a surging wave.
Every Jailer in its path was blasted away.
Even the enormous beasts could only howl as blood sprayed from their mouths and their bodies flew through the air.
A wide opening was forcibly carved straight through the formation.
“This guy!” Shiryu’s attention instantly shifted toward Weevil.
“Shiryu!
Stop him!” Magellan gritted his teeth.
“I almost forgot.
That’s the man who even gave Zephyr trouble!” “Understood!” Shiryu launched himself toward Weevil.
A fanatical smile gradually spread across his large-jawed face.
“Looks like I’ll finally get to enjoy myself today.” “DIE!!” Weevil roared.
Pitch-black Armament Haki covered his right fist as invisible shockwaves churned around it.
Then he punched.
In the next instant, fist and blade collided.
BOOM!
The air exploded into ring after ring of violent shockwaves.
Buckingham, standing behind her son, was nearly blown off her feet.
The floor shattered outright.
Tiles were torn into the air, pulverizing as they flew in every direction.
“Weevil!” Buckingham was frantic.
‘That swordsman looks ridiculously strong!’ But nobody had time to worry about her anymore.
Anthony had already smashed into the Jailer formation.
A single charge cleared another entire section.
“Villain!
Don’t get carried away!” Vice Warden Hannyabal leaped into the air.
His double-bladed weapon spun rapidly, descending toward Anthony like a crescent moon.
“GET LOST!” The enormous bear’s paw turned pitch-black.
Like someone swatting a fly, Anthony slapped Hannyabal straight out of the air.
The unfortunate Vice Warden flew across the battlefield and slammed flat against a nearby wall like a framed painting.
He remained stuck there.
Anthony had no idea who he’d just sent flying.
He opened his massive jaws and bit directly into one of the Jailer Beasts.
The unfortunate creature was a Zoan user whose failed awakening had allowed its animal instincts to consume its mind.
Its regenerative ability was extraordinarily strong.
That didn’t stop it from screaming in agony when Anthony bit into it.
Elsewhere, one prisoner leaped into the air and unleashed a rain of arrows.
Another raised an enormous shield and bulldozed through the crowd.
A third swung a battle-axe stolen from a Jailer, hacking wildly through anyone in his path.
The battle had become completely one-sided.
Gas masks were stolen one after another.
So were the antidotes.
…
Magellan’s expression became increasingly grim.
‘This is bad.’ The prisoners who had escaped from Level Six were far stronger than expected.
And once the battlefield descended into this kind of chaotic melee, Magellan could no longer freely use large-scale poisonous attacks without hitting his own people.
“Poison Blowfish!” Magellan spat out multiple spheres of purple venom.
They shot directly toward the prisoners.
‘A precise attack, then!’ But the venom spheres had barely left his mouth when they crashed into invisible objects and burst apart.
“Where are you looking?” Nate raised one hand.
Magellan’s pupils contracted.
His Haki-covered fist immediately smashed toward his side.
BOOM!
An invisible slash shattered beneath his punch.
The floor cracked.
The air shook.
But the attacks weren’t finished.
Magellan suddenly stepped back, avoiding another slash from the opposite direction.
His left fist struck out and shattered a transparent blade coming from the front.
He wasn’t merely defending.
Hydra after Hydra twisted through the air and lunged toward Nate.
But every venom dragon exploded in midair before it could get anywhere close.
There was no helping it.
They were ultimately made of liquid venom.
Their toxicity was terrifying, but they lacked the physical force and durability needed to break through Nate’s projections.
‘What the hell is happening?’ ‘What kind of ability is this?’ Not being able to see the attacks was already troublesome.
But the real problem was that there was no warning whatsoever.
They simply appeared beside him from nothing.
Even with Observation Haki, Magellan had almost no time to react.
‘At this rate, I can’t even get close to Byrnndi World!’ Magellan drew a deep breath.
“VENOM DEMON!” A completely different crimson venom began pouring from his body.
It engulfed him entirely.
The red poison gathered into the shape of a gigantic skeletal monster.
Merely standing there caused the ground beneath it to rapidly corrode, forming an enormous crater.
“Oh?” Nate raised an eyebrow.
‘He’s piloting a Gundam now?’ Nate experimentally projected another invisible greatsword and brought it crashing down on the Venom Demon.
A split second before impact, pitch-black Haki covered the section of the Venom Demon about to be struck.
Then the invisible sword slammed down.
The blade cut into the Venom Demon—But not very deeply.
Magellan’s Haki had drastically reduced the damage.
Then the projected sword began corroding.
It dissolved before it could ever reach Magellan’s real body.
The enormous skeletal figure retaliated with a punch.
The transparent barrier Nate created was instantly corroded and shattered, forcing him to leap backward.
BOOM!
The crimson skeleton’s fist slammed into the ground.
The hardened floor became as soft as tofu.
The Venom Demon’s fist sank straight through it with almost no resistance.
Only then did the earth begin violently shaking and breaking apart.
The entire area trembled as shattered stone flew everywhere.
‘Tch.’ ‘That red venom really is on a completely different level from the purple stuff.’ “In that case…” Nate slowly exhaled.
His real body wasn’t here.
With nothing but his consciousness controlling World remotely, this was about the limit of how much projection power he could produce.
It wasn’t enough to overpower Magellan in this form.
‘If my real body were here, though, I could probably give it a try.’ Nate thought for a moment.
‘So by that standard…
I’m around Seven Warlords level myself?’ ‘Not bad.’ In that case— ‘Then let me show you something too, Magellan.’ ‘My fist filled with sincerity.’ Inside the Venom Demon, Magellan suddenly froze.
Byrnndi World had risen into the air.
Something enormous and invisible had appeared beneath his feet.
But soon—Magellan could see it.
Because Nate began pouring Haki into the object beneath him.
The invisible giant gradually gained a faint black outline.
“What…
is that?” Magellan wondered if his eyes were deceiving him.
Because beneath Nate stood a colossal statue.
A thousand-armed Guanyin Bodhisattva.
Nate crouched down and placed one hand against the head of the enormous, translucent figure beneath him.
“100-Type Guanyin Bodhisattva.” The More-More Fruit—Activate!