Chapter 66: A Clash of Titans
Shiryu of the Rain, who had been launching wild, sweeping attacks from a stationary position, finally moved.
"Brat!" he snarled. "Let's see you dodge this!"
In the blink of an eye, he closed the distance between them to a single meter. The renowned sword Raiu in his hand flashed with a sinister blood-red light as it sliced sharply toward Ian. The intensity of his Armament Haki caused a series of explosive, oppressive sounds in the air.
As a master swordsman, Shiryu's physical prowess naturally surpassed that of ordinary strongmen. He had chosen to attack at close range only after analyzing Ian's evasive capabilities. Unfortunately for him, he didn't realize... Ian's sharpness far exceeded his judgment.
Whoosh!
"How is this possible? He vanished?!"
Shiryu had been certain he had grasped the limits of Ian's speed. The attack speed he had just displayed should have been far beyond Ian's ability to evade. Yet, his confident strike had hit nothing but air? Had Ian been deliberately holding back his strength all along?
The next second, a powerful sense of crisis from behind screamed through Shiryu's nerves. His Observation Haki detected the danger but gave him no time to turn and defend.
Hiss... CRACKLE!
Dark red lightning erupted behind Shiryu. A devastating fist, empowered by an even more advanced form of Haki, slammed into his back. Even with his Armament Haki defense at its maximum, it proved as fragile as paper against the superior Conqueror's Haki infusion.
BOOM!
The punch connected.
Shiryu was sent flying like a cannonball toward a stone pillar at the end of the corridor.
CRASH...!
The violent impact shattered the pillar in two. The force of the blow didn't stop there, hurling Shiryu's body even further into the wreckage.
Level 4: Inferno Hell, Warden's Office
Splash... splash...
The sound of flushing echoed once more. Magellan, the towering Warden of Impel Down, emerged from the bathroom holding his stomach.
Feeling utterly drained, he muttered to himself, "Huff... Just one more hour, and then I can start today's work, right? This ability of mine is truly troublesome..."
No sooner had he finished his self-pitying complaint than—
BOOM!
An explosion that shook the very foundations of Level 4 jolted him to full alertness. He rushed to the bank of surveillance monitors, searching for the source of the commotion. One of the Surveillance Den Den Mushi had captured the scene of the battle, but at that moment, the billowing smoke and dust completely obscured its view, making it impossible to see what was happening on the battlefield.
BANG! BANG! BANG!
"Warden Magellan! It's an emergency!"
Hannyabal's frantic voice came from outside the door. Magellan yanked the door open to find Hannyabal sweating profusely, his face a mask of panic.
"What's going on? Has a prisoner escaped?" Magellan boomed, looming over Hannyabal. "What was that noise just now? Answer me, Hannyabal!"
Cough! Cough!
"Warden, don't breathe on—!" Hannyabal covered his mouth and nose, stumbling backward repeatedly.
As a user of the Doku Doku no Mi, even the air Magellan exhaled was toxic. Not just anyone could enter his office. Normally, anyone interacting with him needed to wear a gas mask. In today's emergency, Hannyabal hadn't had time to find one and was nearly suffocated on the spot.
"Chief Jailer Shiryu... he's been executing prisoners in private again!" Hannyabal gasped, turning his face away, not daring to look Magellan in the eye. "Right now... he's fighting with Major General Jock Ian!"
"A Major General? Jock Ian!" Magellan's eyes widened. "Isn't he just here to escort prisoners? Why is he down on Level 4...?"
Noticing Hannyabal's evasive gaze, Magellan immediately understood what had happened.