The sudden roar of a beast instantly silenced Rojen, who had been listening with rapt attention, and his cellmates, who had been growing increasingly animated in their storytelling.
The roar was distant at first, but it rapidly approached.
Crimson eyes pierced the darkness, their glow unmistakable. With each earth-shattering step, the sixth-level floor trembled violently, raising serious doubts about whether the prison tier could withstand the creature's tremors.
This was the strongest and most ferocious prison beast in the sixth-level Eternal Hell. Rumor had it that these hellish beasts were once human, Devil Fruit Users who had failed their awakenings. Forever frozen in their incomplete transformations, they became mindless Ominous Beasts. The powerhouses of Impel Down captured them and placed them here to guard the most dangerous criminals, preventing any chance of escape.
"This is a sixth-level prison beast," a faint voice murmured in the darkness, as if explaining to Rojen and Golden Lion. "Besides the guards, these beasts are the only ones stationed on this floor."
"Kid, these prison beasts are incredibly powerful!" Golden Lion added gravely.
"Mm," Rojen nodded.
Since they were in adjacent cells, communication was effortless.
The prison beast was enormous, towering at least 50 to 60 meters tall and weighing an unimaginable amount. Its movements resembled those of a small mountain, forcing onlookers to gasp.
As the creature slowly approached, Golden Lion retreated several steps, holding his breath.
Rojen's eyes, however, gleamed with curiosity. He wanted to observe this colossal Ominous Beast up close, eager to study its true form.
In the darkness, as the prison beast approached, only its heavy, rasping breaths could be heard, along with its immense, lantern-like pupils, brimming with savagery and bloodlust. There was no doubt this was a mindless Ominous Beast, driven solely by the instinct to kill.
"Roar!"
Reaching Rojen's cage, the prison beast let out a low growl and abruptly turned its head toward him.
"Boy, back off!" a gruff voice barked from the shadows.
Rojen's Sharingan flashed again, but he didn't move.
"Courting death!" the voice cursed, falling silent.
At that moment, the prison beast finally noticed the audacity of someone daring to stare directly at it from within the iron cage. Enraged, it roared thunderously.
Its mountain-like body surged forward in an instant, the rows of towering dorsal spines searing into Rojen's Sharingan. With a whirlwind of movement, its colossal claws and fangs were upon him in a heartbeat.
Boom! Rumble!
The Seastone gate shuddered violently under the impact of the claw.
Roar!
A grotesque Ominous Beast face loomed inches from Rojen's eyes, pressed against the Seastone bars. Its heavy, fetid breath washed over him, carrying a stench of blood and rot.
The surrounding prisoners all focused their attention on the scene.
They knew the prison beast's strength all too well. Each creature was terrifyingly powerful, rivaling powerhouses outside with bounties of 500-600 million berries, fierce and relentless, lacking only reason. Yet against weakened prisoners whose peak strength had long faded, they were more than sufficient.
For this reason, over the long years, many had abandoned all hope of escaping.
Even those among them who had a way to escape the Seastone prison were helpless against these prison beasts. Normally, when the beasts occasionally passed by, the prisoners would hold their breath and let them pass, never daring to provoke them.
They had once witnessed someone foolish enough to inspect the prison beasts up close, only to be torn to shreds through the bars.
"That kid's a goner!"
"The Golden Lion who came in with him was much smarter."
"He's still just a child. His courage is admirable, but his recklessness is foolish!"
The prisoners watched with cold indifference.
But at that moment, as the gale whipped around Rojen, his eyes suddenly transformed into crimson pools, three tomoe symbols swirling rapidly into existence.
"Mangekyō Sharingan!"
With a sudden glare, the three tomoe spun and intertwined, forming two massive black pinwheels in his eyes.
Rojen had never forgotten that among the Sharingan's abilities was the power to control the Tailed Beasts.
The Ominous Beast's claws were colossal, its razor-sharp nails stretching two to three meters long, like blades and swords. In the confined space of the prison, there would be no escape from their lethal strike, sealing Rojen's fate.
Rojen locked his gaze onto the Ominous Beast's blood-red eyes. The creature immediately shuddered violently and unleashed a sky-rending roar.
"ROAR!"
As if bound by invisible chains, the prison beast began to struggle frantically. Across from it, Rojen's Mangekyō Sharingan slowly rotated, his gaze cold and unwavering.
Through Rojen's perception, the moment his Mangekyō Sharingan locked onto the prison beast, he had instantly pierced through its consciousness, seeing everything within its mind.
Violent, ferocious, bloodthirsty, and driven solely by hunger, there was nothing more. Compared to the Tailed Beasts, this prison beast was woefully inferior, little more than a brute with raw power.
Within the creature's fragile consciousness, a crimson eye materialized in an instant, a black windmill spinning rapidly at its center.
Outside, a pair of Mangekyō Sharingan emerged in the prison beast's crimson eyes, holding it firmly under control.
"I'm hungry. Go find food!"
With this simple command, the prison beast shuddered and slowly lumbered away from Rojen.
Closing his eyes and settling into a cross-legged meditation posture, Rojen began channeling his consciousness into the prison beast through the Sharingan.
Once the data transfer was complete, he could clearly see everything within the sixth level through the prison beast's eyes. Guard after guard stood lazily, while the enormous prison beasts either lay sprawled or, growing bored, rose to stroll around.
"Interesting," a faint smile curled Rojen's lips.
Through the prison beast's perspective, the guards drew ever closer.
As the ground trembled beneath them, the lazy guards panicked the moment they realized the prison beast was approaching.
"Hey, hey, hey, hey! What's that big guy up to?"
"Don't worry, they usually don't attack us unless provoked," one guard said, waving dismissively as he glanced at the prison beast Rojen was controlling.
"No, this one's different. Look at its eyes, they're not normal."
"Prison beasts are weird creatures. Nothing to be surprised about," the other guard retorted, still unconcerned.
By then, the prison beast, under Rojen's control, was only thirty meters from the guards. Its massive frame paused, then slowly lowered itself to the ground.
"See? It's just found a good spot to rest."
"Good, good," the guards murmured, visibly relieved.
They relaxed, slowly sheathing their weapons, completely unaware that the prison beast's peculiar eyes had locked onto the keys hanging from the first guard's waist.
Suddenly, the seemingly docile beast sprang to its feet with a thunderous roar and lunged forward.
In an instant, the air was filled with terrified screams and howls of pain.
(End Of This Chapter)
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