CHAPTER 21 — The Line an Admiral Should Not Cross
Ren staggered forward slightly, blood dripping from his lip, but a wild grin stretched across his face.
"Hahahaha… what's wrong? Is the pain giving you adrenaline?"
Kizaru's eyes narrowed.
This is not good… that wound is reducing my fighting power by at least ten percent, he thought, staring at his bleeding, fractured leg. The pain was sharp, precise — foreign.
But he refused to show weakness.
"Oooh? If you think you've won, you're mistaken," Kizaru said, his voice no longer lazy. "A wound of this caliber wouldn't even bring down a Vice Admiral."
Ren's grin sharpened.
"My bad then… guess I'll just have to make a bigger one."
He blasted forward.
Both arms were engulfed in dense, vibrating red pulverizing energy.
BOOM!! BOOM!! BOOM!!
The floor of Level 6 trembled violently with each collision. Shockwaves tore through the dark corridor as the two clashed in rapid succession.
BOOOOM!!!
A heavy punch from both sides sent them skidding backwards across the stone.
Kizaru breathed out harshly.
"Don't you ever get tired… ne?"
Ren tilted his head mockingly.
"I don't think I've ever heard of that word before. And men don't talk too much during battle."
His grin widened.
"But if you want, you can resign and become a singer! Hahahahahaha!"
He blurred and appeared before Kizaru.
Kizaru lifted his good leg with lightning speed to block — CLANG — but Ren's follow-up was faster. A pulverizing fist slammed toward his gut.
Kizaru coated his abdomen in Armament Haki instantly.
BOOM!!!
The admiral flew backwards, smashing through the wall.
The dust cleared slowly.
Kizaru looked down at his stomach — cracks spread across the hardened Haki like fractured stone.
"…What was that? I used Haki to block that," he muttered, eyes widening.
Ren inhaled deeply, understanding dawning on his face.
"So that's it… if my Haki is stronger than my opponent's at the moment of impact… the pulverization overrides their defense."
Kizaru tensed as the pieces connected in his mind.
Looks like emergency Haki isn't enough… his Devil Fruit really is the Pulverize-Pulverize Fruit. Just like in the book…
The two stared at one another.
Ren smirked.
Kizaru's jaw tightened.
BOOM!!!
Ren kicked the ground so hard the stone exploded, propelling him forward so fast it looked like teleportation.
What followed was a blur.
BOOM!!
BOOM!!
BOOM!!
The ground cracked. Walls shattered. Air pressure whipped the dust into spirals. Their fists collided again and again, sparks of Haki and red pulverizing energy lighting the darkness.
Kizaru clicked his tongue, sweat mixing with blood.
Ren's attacks were getting sharper.
Faster.
More unpredictable.
He's reading my timing…
Suddenly—
Ren's movement stuttered for half a second.
A misstep?
A drop in stamina?
Kizaru saw it instantly.
An opening.
He lunged forward, light swelling around his foot—
But it was a trap.
The moment Kizaru shifted his weight, Ren's eyes snapped open with predatory focus.
Got you.
With a single sweep of motion, Ren reached into his subspace—
A black void tore open for a fraction of a second—
And from it he pulled out his naginata, the blade instantly engulfed in pulverizing energy.
Kizaru's eyes widened.
Ren swung.
SHHHHHRRRKKKK!!!
A diagonal slash tore across Kizaru's body—from his chest down to his torso.
His Haki shattered instantly.
Energy ripped through flesh and bone, leaving a deep, cracking path of destruction.
Kizaru dropped to one knee.
He stared down at the fracture-like wound spreading across his torso — only the precise line where the blade traveled.
His breathing tightened.
He lost.
Ren stepped forward slowly, planting the tip of his humming, pulverizing naginata against the admiral's neck.
A cold silence filled the air.
"I win," Ren said calmly.
Kizaru let out a breath… then smiled — faint, resigned, but genuine.
"You… pulled two tricks in that instant," he said weakly. "Slipping a weapon out of thin air… and coating it with that… ability. How did you do it… ne?"
Ren chuckled.
"I don't tell my enemies my secrets."
A ripple echoed behind them.
"Captain! That was awesome!!" Kris shouted as he emerged through a swirling gate, eyes blazing with excitement.
But before Ren could answer—
THUD! THUD! THUD!
Heavy footsteps approached from the darkness.
Magellan stepped into view, venom dripping from his jaw in thick, toxic strands.
His eyes widened when he saw Kizaru kneeling, defeated.
"What… happened here?" Magellan growled, poison bubbling around his shoulders. "Kizaru, stand back — I will eliminate the intruders—"
Kizaru raised a trembling hand.
"Stop."
Magellan froze.
"You cannot handle them," Kizaru said simply.
The admiral's face, still calm despite the pain, left no room for argument.
Magellan's eyes narrowed in shock.
Ren lifted his naginata, the red aura fading slowly as dust settled around them.
The battle was over.
And an admiral had acknowledged his defeat.