Chapter 237: Who Would Daren't Welcome the Navy?
Chapter 237: Who Would Daren’t Welcome the Navy?
After watching for so many days, and having Kuro and Lida casually explain the principles, someone who had practiced the Six Styles naturally mastered this ‘Nails Martial Art’.
In his view, the only real benefit of this fist technique wasn’t its ability to ‘concentrate’ force, but rather the dispersal of that concentrated power afterward. For someone like him who lacked Aoe capabilities, this was a close-range Aoe technique. Combined with his own speed, it was perfect for clearing grunts.
Just as he landed a strike, Klah’s feet rapidly stamped the ground, using ‘Shave’ to appear behind Kuro. He extended his leg and launched a crescent kick that slashed through the air, unleashing a massive crescent-shaped slash.
“Calm Step.”
The slash from Calm Step suddenly dispersed mid-air, fracturing into countless pinpoint attacks like spear tips. They riddled the straight-sworded black-clad warriors surrounding the Navy.
Hiss! Hiss! Hiss!
The black-clad warriors encircling the Navy were pierced through, blood splattering as they collapsed one by one.
Klah retracted his leg, pushed his glasses up, and scoffed, “Too weak.”
No sooner had his words faded than some of the black-clad warriors rose again, gripping their straight swords and resuming their assault on Lida.
“Can’t you understand human speech?”
Klah lashed out again with Calm Step’s Explosive Dispersion, striking them once more and deepening their wounds.
“What’s going on here?”
His expression darkened. These warriors had already taken two of his attacks—none held back—and were clearly immobilized. Yet not a single one lost their fighting will. Even when their bodies couldn’t move, they still dragged themselves forward toward Lida, gripping their swords.
It was like mindless robots following pre-programmed instructions, impervious to external forces. Their eyes showed no change either, just like their swords—straight and sharp.
“This is absurd. Let me see your faces!”
Klah stomped on a trembling straight sword, pinning it to the ground, then knelt to rip off the black mask of one warrior.
It was a normal human face—pale from blood loss but utterly expressionless.
Crack.
The sword beneath his foot, weakened from resisting Klah’s earlier attack, snapped under his weight. The warrior’s pupils dilated, his body stiffened, and he stopped moving entirely.
He wasn’t dead—his life aura remained—but he looked like a corpse.
Kuro frowned. There was no doubt these were living people.
The concept of Weapon-to-Human Transformation was sheer nonsense—barely worth a chuckle. There simply weren’t enough Devil Fruits to go around for every straight-sword wielder to have consumed one, and even the Ningen Ningen no Mi couldn’t churn out identical copies of the same species.
That “human” concept was unique to that one reindeer—no duplicate existed.
This was undeniably a human, though their nature matched their swords perfectly.
Kuro walked over and pulled off another black mask. The face revealed was different from the first, but their eyes—those windows to the soul—were identical.
Kuro knew Kas could mimic such expressions.
“A highly infectious Devil Fruit? Or—”
He picked up a straight sword. The moment it left the ground, the wounded warrior below began violently struggling, despite having been slashed by Klah’s strikes.
“This material is extremely durable.”
Kuro glanced at the blade, flicked the edge with his finger, and said coldly, “Your aura is like this blade—too rigid. Rigid things snap easily. A sword can be reforged, but a person snapped is beyond repair.”
He released the blade, letting it plunge into the ground. The warrior’s hand clutched the sword hilt, blood seeping through his fingers, yet he ignored the pain. Only after gripping the sword did he stop thrashing.
“You don’t resonate with the sword at all. You’re all just slaves to it.”
Kuro understood now—the straight-sworded warriors and even Gardi with his long straight sword weren’t achieving any ‘harmony of man and sword’. They were merely slaves to their weapons, their personalities and attacks molded to fit their swords.
This wasn’t humans wielding swords. It was swords controlling humans.
And achieving this level of control with just Devil Fruits seemed insufficient.
Kuro activated his Transponder Snail and dialed Sengoku.
“Big Brother Kuro?”
After a brief static crackle, Sengoku’s face appeared on the snail.
“A question. You’re Vegapunk’s head bodyguard, right? Did that bastard ever research technology linking weapon compatibility with humans?”
“Weapon and human compatibility?”
Sengoku paused, then asked, “You mean the ‘life factor’? Vegapunk did study that, but I can’t say more—he’s busy these days. I’m the tightest-lipped man, Kuro. No matter how you ask, I won’t tell you about Vegapunk’s secret weapon ‘Ssg’.”
“It’s not about ‘life factor’—I already know that. And Sengoku, you just spilled the beans.”
“Ah—”
The Transponder Snail’s eyes darted evasively before hardening. “I meant to say that. As for the next secret? I won’t tell you, no matter what. Don’t ask, Big Brother Kuro.”
“Fine, fine. Go play with your axes yourself.”
Kuro hung up and exhaled a plume of smoke.
“Ssg? What the hell is that?”
“Isn’t the World Government’s latest weapon the ‘Pacifista’?”
He wasn’t sure what it was, but Kuro wasn’t interested. He turned to the Ensign beside him. “Who governs this sea area?”
“Commander, this is a neutral zone with no jurisdiction. The two Kingdoms nearby, though close, lie on separate navigational routes.”
“The western sea area of Moe Island belongs to the G-8 Branch under the Jerman Kingdom. To the east lies the Sukunai Kingdom on another route, with no direct Branch nearby—just scattered bases.” the Ensign explained.
“A no-man’s-land that somehow maintains order?”
Kuro glanced at the fallen warriors. “Is it sustained by these people? Or—”
He looked up at the massive fortress atop the island. “That’s where the Moe Islandlord resides, right? The magnetic field recharges in two days. Let’s pay him a visit. We’re an official agency—we mustn’t skip the courtesy of contacting the local host.”
“Commander, the Moe Islandlord seems hostile toward the Navy. Going without warning might—” the Ensign hesitated.
“Who wouldn’t welcome the Navy, huh? Tell me?” Kuro fixed him with a stare.
Only criminals feared the Navy.
Coincidentally, Kuro had just activated his Observation Haki. Though the fortress appeared sturdy, its interior pulsed with countless, diverse life auras.
As diverse as weapons themselves.
(End of Chapter)
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