As Reno leisurely floated over to Marco's side, their battle had already reached its peak.
Queen, the scientist holed up in his laboratory, was ultimately no match for Marco, who had been fighting his entire life as a pirate. Marco had already beaten him to the point of bloodied exhaustion.
However, due to Queen being a Zoan-type Devil Fruit user, he was incredibly resilient. Despite being covered in blood, his fighting spirit hadn't weakened in the slightest; in fact, he seemed to be growing stronger by the second.
Reno, having observed the battle for a while, couldn't help but taunt Marco, "Pineapple-head, you've been a pirate for so long, and you're still struggling against a scientist? Are you sure you're up to it?"
Marco, initially happy to see Reno, suddenly scowled when he heard this. With an exasperated tone, he replied, "Now that the hostages are saved, why don't you come over and help? The sooner we take care of this guy, the sooner we can go help out at sea!"
Reno, not taking offense to Marco's words, let green energy emanate from his body, then casually raised his hand with a smile. "Pineapple-head, don't die on me now!"
As soon as Reno finished speaking, he swung his hand, sending a massive green energy hand, dozens of meters in size, hurtling toward the two.
"Holy sh*t! You're insane!"
Seeing this hand, Marco immediately panicked. Without a second thought, he soared into the air to avoid the massive attack.
Marco had seen the damage this hand could do—it had created a vacuum in the sea large enough to take several minutes to fill with water again. He certainly wasn't keen on facing that kind of attack.
Marco managed to escape due to his speed and ability to fly, but Queen, in his Beast Mode, was large and slow. He couldn't escape and had to rely on his strength to try and tank the hit.
Boom!
Crack Crack!!
Boom Rumble!!
Queen was struck by the massive energy hand, slamming into the stone wall, leaving a deep crater. The surrounding wall cracked like spider webs, and a moment later, the entire wall collapsed, burying Queen in rubble.
Marco, still airborne, watched this scene in stunned silence. After regaining his senses, he flew toward Reno and grabbed him by the collar, shouting, "You bastard! Are you trying to kill me too?!"
Reno, his small form dangling from Marco's grip, looked unfazed and defended himself confidently, "I warned you! If you couldn't dodge that, you might as well find a rock to bash your head in. Don't make Whitebeard look bad!"
"Heh…"
Seeing Reno's nonchalant expression, Marco couldn't help but laugh bitterly. He sneered, "You're in my hands now. Have you decided how you want to die?"
Reno, unfazed by Marco's threat, reminded him, "We're not on the ship anymore, and the hostages are already saved. I don't need to hold back. Are you sure you want to fight me?"
Upon hearing this, Marco's face stiffened. He turned to look at the massive handprint left in the stone wall not far from them.
He swallowed nervously, then released Reno, brushing imaginary dust off his hands, and forced a smile. "Ah, little Reno, I was just joking earlier. Why'd you take it so seriously?"
Reno didn't reply, merely smiling slyly at Marco. He enjoyed seeing Marco caught between wanting to beat him up and not daring to.
Seeing Reno's smile, Marco felt a shiver run up his spine. This little brat wouldn't really go through with it, would he?
Realizing his life might be in danger, Marco quickly changed the subject, "Now that that guy's dead, let's hurry and help at sea!"
Reno, seeing Marco was scared, decided not to press further. As he floated up, he said, "That guy still had some breath left. I'll go finish him off first, then I'll join the battle at sea."
Marco, surprised by Reno's words, looked over at the collapsed stone pile. He thought to himself, This guy's Devil Fruit ability must be something else if he can deliver an attack like that and still have such control.
It dawned on Marco that he hadn't been paying attention when Queen explained his abilities. If Queen knew, he'd probably be furious and get up to fight again.
Reno floated over to the pile of rubble. His Observation Haki confirmed what he expected—Queen was still alive.
Reno sighed inwardly. These Zoan-type Devil Fruit users really are tough, especially the ancient and mythical types. They're like cockroaches that refuse to die!
Reno had just delivered a powerful attack, one that could leave even Emperor-level fighters wounded, and yet this guy was still hanging on. He really is like a cockroach…
Shaking his head, Reno summoned more green energy and raised his hand, preparing to finish what he started.
Boom!
Rumble Boom!!
A massive green energy hand descended from the sky like a divine palm, causing the earth to shake. A massive area of dust and debris was sent flying as the ground cracked open in spiderweb-like patterns.
When the dust settled, the stone pile was gone, replaced by a huge handprint etched into the ground.
Marco, watching from a distance, swallowed hard again. From now on, I absolutely can't mess with this freak. If he gets serious and uses that kind of power, I don't even know how many lives I'd need to survive!
Marco couldn't help but think back to all the times Reno had chased him across the seas, and how lucky he was to still be alive.
What Marco didn't know was that while Reno's attacks were devastating, they weren't as fast as his speed. So, as a speed-type fighter, Marco could usually avoid getting hit.
However, if Reno and Marco ever fought for real, Reno would win for sure. His spiritual energy was limitless, so he could simply outlast Marco, no matter how fast he was.
Not just Marco any strong opponent who couldn't touch Reno would eventually be worn down and exhausted.
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