Chapter 432: The Most Unsolvable, Kamusari
"See my own future?"
"...So that's how it is. I get what Luffy means!"
Usopp's eyes lit up.
"By foreseeing the future scene of himself being attacked with Observation Haki, he can deduce the opponent's attack route in reverse!"
"Eh! Can he really do that?"
Nami exclaimed, feeling a little incredulous.
In such a fast and ever-changing battle, there was no time to think. Just by seeing a brief image of himself being attacked, he could deduce the opponent's attack route?
This method sounded simply unrealistic.
"Usopp is probably right. It's possible."
Reiner suddenly spoke, his gaze fixed on Luffy in the distance, a corner of his mouth lifting slightly.
"If it were someone else, perhaps they couldn't do it. But Luffy is different. Don't forget, that guy's intuition is terrifyingly accurate."
"I can't believe you thought of this method. As expected of you."
Shanks wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth with the back of his hand, looked up at Luffy, and his tone was somewhat joking, but his heart couldn't help but become grave.
That kid's punches are ridiculously powerful. Taking one head-on felt like being hit by Kaido's spiked club.
He neither had an iron body like Big Mom, nor did he have the superhuman physique of an awakened Zoan like Kaido or Luffy.
He couldn't take many hits of this power. It was fine if he blocked or parried, but if he took a few solid punches, it would be fatal.
Thinking of this, Shanks's eyes hardened and flashed red. His Observation Haki was pushed to its limit, and his Conqueror's Haki was fully released.
A whistling, fierce wind blasted out from his body, and his powerful aura rose madly.
It was clearly irrational to engage in a war of attrition with an awakened Zoan user with super-speed recovery. He was preparing to go all out for a quick battle.
Seeing Shanks's stance, Luffy's round eyes focused. He also released his Haki at full power, and the surging, chaotic wind blasted against the surrounding ruins.
"Here I come, Luffy."
Shanks swung his arm, his longsword held horizontally at his side, his gaze cold, his aura like a sword.
Luffy's fighting spirit was fiery. He grinned, and bumped his fists together in front of his chest.
"Bring it on! Shanks!"
The Haki of the two madly clashed, and countless black lightning bolts ravaged the earth.
The next second.
—Swish!
Shanks's figure instantly disappeared from the spot.
Luffy directly closed his eyes. In his pitch-black mind, there was only a streak of crimson shadow rapidly approaching.
The moment he saw the image of his arms being cut, Luffy's figure paused. The hand he had raised suddenly stopped in mid-air, and he instead turned his body and whipped out a kick!
"Gomu Gomu no... White Whip!!"
CLANG!!
A bright blade of light streaked past Luffy's side. His sideways movement had barely dodged Shanks's fast sword. At the same time, his foot viciously lashed out at the blade of the famous sword, Gryphon.
Shanks, who had just appeared, was sent sliding back by this powerful and heavy kick.
"I hit him!"
Feeling the touch from his foot, Luffy, with his eyes closed, was overjoyed. He quickly drew back his fist and smashed it out!
"Gomu Gomu no... White Comet!!"
His arm flew at the sensed position. At the same time, it expanded and grew at a speed visible to the naked eye. However, before his fist could land, Shanks's figure had once again flashed and disappeared.
Boom!!
A giant fist landed on the ground. It was as if it had hit a ball of elastic jelly. The shaking earth rippled.
"He's gone again?!"
The sensation in his mind had disappeared again. Luffy frowned and retracted his fist. Just then, a voice from behind him instantly sent a cold sweat down his back. He quickly jumped to the side!
Clang!
"You've shown a flaw, Luffy."
Before his voice had even faded, the blade had cut through his skin and flesh, bringing up a spray of blood.
Although Luffy had already taken evasive action, he was still a step too late. His upper arm was directly cut by the sharp blade, leaving a gash a dozen centimeters long, so deep that the bone was visible!
By using Observation Haki to predict himself, although it had given him a chance to crack Shanks's unpredictable swordsmanship...
...when he took the initiative to attack, he still couldn't capture the other's dodging route. In fact, he would only more easily expose his own flaws.
A purely defensive counterattack was too passive. And a thing like intuition was not right every time. If he was wrong even once, the winner might be directly decided.
Relying on his amazing combat talent, Luffy had, in just an instant, understood that he was still in a disadvantageous situation.
Swish—Swish—Swish—!
Shanks's figure flickered nonstop, so fast that it left several afterimages in the space.
Bang!!
Luffy stomped heavily on the ground, and a wave of ripples from the ground immediately spread out. He raised his left hand in a palm in front of him, and his right hand was held back at his chest, his fist clenched.
He closed his eyes again, held his breath, and focused all his attention on himself.
Whether or not he could seize the opportunity all depended on the next wave of attacks.
Shanks, moving at high speed, saw Luffy standing still and immediately understood that he was planning to wait for a chance to defend and counterattack again.
Although he's usually a clumsy fool, his mind is extraordinarily sharp when he's fighting.
"In that case..."
Shanks's eyes turned cold. A sharp sword momentum and Haki quickly brewed on the Gryphon.
"He's coming."
Reiner suddenly spoke, his gaze fixed on the scene below.
The auras of both sides were rising rapidly, indicating that this duel would soon be decided.
Everyone held their breath, watching with nervous expressions.
Suddenly.
The atmosphere changed abruptly. A streak of crimson flashed and appeared at Luffy's side!
"Gomu Gomu no!"
Having foreseen that he would be attacked from the front, Luffy's fist, which had been gathering power, was coiled with Haki, and was tightly drawn back, aimed at his front.
As expected, that crimson figure flashed again, and from his side, it flashed in front of him!
"White...!"
Just as he was punching out, Luffy's eyes suddenly flew open, and a panicked look appeared.
Black lightning flashed!
The famous sword, Gryphon, which contained a terrifying Conqueror's Haki, combined swordsmanship and Haki to the extreme. With an explosive roar from Shanks, he swung his sword in a fierce chop!
"Kamusari!!"
—ZING!!
In the dense black lightning, the blade whipped up a storm! The slash, while deflecting his fist, in Luffy's constricted pupils, the aftershock of the sword's momentum instantly swept his entire person out!
Bang—Bang—Bang!!
Luffy's retreating figure was sent flying back a hundred meters, crashing through several giant stone pillars in a row, and finally, with a loud bang, he smashed into the castle.
Rumble!!
In the violent tremor, the front hall of this long-abandoned, magnificent royal palace gradually collapsed, burying Luffy within.
"Luffy!!"
Usopp cried out in panic and was about to jump down, but was luckily grabbed by Franky's shoulder in time.
"Wait a minute, Usopp. It's not the time yet. Don't worry. Luffy won't die that easily."
Shanks probably wouldn't deal a fatal blow to Luffy either. Although he thought so, Franky's expression was also incomparably grave.
"He even used that move. Isn't that a bit much?"
Yasopp murmured, a hint of worry in his eyes. He had not expected Shanks to use such a move on Luffy.
This one slash, although its area of effect was not large, all its power was concentrated at one point. It definitely wouldn't be easy to take it head-on.
Kamusari, which was combined with his Observation-killing Haki... it was almost impossible to dodge. It was Shanks's strongest, and also most unsolvable, killing move.
"Even if he stands up again, Luffy can't continue to fight Shanks,"
Benn Beckman took the cigarette butt that had burned to its end, and stubbed it out on the floor. His tone was indifferent as he said:
"The winner has been decided."
(End of chapter)