Inside the command room of the Military School First Class ship, Zephyr stood beside a table with a map of the Pardian Sea spread upon it. He listened to the communications officer report the battle situation of each warship and issued various orders to the battlefield.
"Have the Sixth Class warship go support the Third and Eighth Classes. Don't worry about the Tenth Class; with Sephiroth there, nothing unexpected will happen..."
Boom!
A sudden loud noise shook the entire warship violently. A red glint flashed in Zephyr's eyes. He instantly activated his Observation Haki, sensing the three-masted sailing ship that had suddenly appeared beside the warship.
"What's going on?...There's an enemy attack. Why didn't the Lookout give a warning beforehand?"
As he spoke, he quickly rushed out of the command room and arrived on the warship's deck. At the same time, dark Armament Haki wrapped around his arms. Zephyr glanced up and saw over a dozen Pirates had already landed on the warship and begun attacking the Military School Students on board.
With just one encounter, the battle situation showed a one-sided trend, with the Military School Students being completely suppressed by the Pirates. Among them, six Military School Students, due to carelessness, were instantly cut down on the deck and fell into a pool of blood. Zephyr quickly scanned the warship's deck. After seeing several high-bounty wanted criminals, he immediately sensed something was amiss.
Not good! These guys are a coalition of several Pirate crews; they clearly came prepared!
Soon, he locked onto the two most dangerous individuals: Strongman Banks and Greatsword Edward Weevil! Banks was a user of the Strength-Strength Fruit, while Edward Weevil was a master proficient in two types of Haki. In the future Zephyr foresaw, he saw one of his students named Binz about to be cut down on the deck by Edward Weevil. So, he quickly flashed forward, rushing over like a cannonball.
The next moment. Boom! Zephyr's fist, wrapped in Armament Haki, collided with the blade in Edward Weevil's hand.
This blow, because Zephyr attacked in a hurry and lacked full power, resulted in a stalemate; neither gained an advantage.
"Binz, this guy is very dangerous. Let me handle him."
"Okay, Zephyr!"
Binz, who had short pink hair and a tall, thin build, nodded and quickly retreated a few steps. However... Before Binz could recover, an invisible figure approached him.
"Huh!?"
Zephyr, who was fighting Weevil, was instantly startled. He quickly rushed towards Binz, kicked the opponent away, and instinctively blocked with his left arm wrapped in Armament Haki.
Swish!
An invisible blade instantly struck Zephyr's left arm, but it didn't leave the slightest mark on his hand.
Immediately after, Zephyr swung his right fist back, smashing towards the seemingly empty space.
Bang!
The incomparably powerful fist instantly struck Kuri in his invisible state, sending him flying like a kite with a broken string. He directly broke through the warship's railing and flew off the ship, hitting the surging sea with a "splash!", sending up a large spray.
"Take this punch!" the three-meter-tall bald strongman, Banks, roared.
He found the opening after Zephyr's attack, directly swung his muscular, explosive right fist, causing a rush of air, and punched towards the face of the Admiral before him.
Bang-!
Zephyr quickly turned around, also swinging his right fist, adopting a fist-against-fist, head-on approach to counter the blow. However...
An enormous force came from Banks's fist, causing Zephyr's body to become unsteady for a moment, making him stumble back three steps.
"Hahaha! I'm a Strength-Strength Fruit user! Does a mere Admiral think he can contend with me!?" Banks said with a wild laugh.
Although the quality of his Haki was far inferior to Zephyr's, the immense muscular strength granted by his Devil Fruit gave him the upper hand in the clash. Whether it's Haki of Armament or Haoshoku, as long as one's own strength is strong enough to form an overwhelming advantage, it can all be directly shattered!
Zephyr opened his mouth, originally intending to say something, but Weevil had already swung his long-handled greatsword again, slashing towards his neck, forcing him to withdraw and dodge.
Just as Zephyr was entangled in a fight with the two, Beck, who had been hiding on the ship with a surgical knife in his hand, also actively joined the battle. He repeatedly swung the surgical knife in his hand, creating a dazzling cold glint, and attacked Zephyr along with the other two.
For a time, the attacks from the three came one after another, making it difficult for Zephyr to find an opportunity to break through.
As the four continued to struggle, Beck suddenly took out three smoke grenade-like objects from his white coat and fiercely threw them towards Zephyr's location.
Bang!
Bang!
Bang! Three clouds of white smoke suddenly burst open on the warship's deck. But... Because it was currently during a storm, this white smoke had little effect on obstructing vision; it was easily blown off the warship by the violent hurricane and dispersed over the sea.
However...
Pant-! Pant-! Pant-! After only about ten seconds, Zephyr, who was tangled in the fight with the three, paused his originally agile movements. Violent gasping sounds came from his throat. His asthma had actually flared up at this moment!?
Due to the sudden onset of his illness, Zephyr's aura became chaotic. His two-color Haki state dropped significantly, and his movements showed a huge opening.
Bang!
Unable to dodge in time, Zephyr was punched in the chest by Banks. He spat blood and flew backward. He rolled several times on the deck, his vision blurring and darkening for a moment.
Before Zephyr could get back on his feet, Weevil, holding his long-handled greatsword, had quickly approached him and swung the greatsword straight down.
At this moment, his physical condition made it impossible for him to completely dodge. In desperation, he could only retreat while forcefully condensing Armament Haki and covering his right hand, hoping to block the blow.
However...
Swish!
The sharp blade instantly cut through skin, muscle, and bone, directly chopping off Zephyr's right forearm, which was covered in Armament Haki! Blood spurted from the severed point. A trace of shock and disbelief flashed across Zephyr's face. He had completely not anticipated that the sudden illness would weaken his Armament Haki to such an extent...
Seeing this scene, the Military School Students on the warship couldn't help but look despairing. Instructor Zephyr was the powerful fighting force they relied on the most in this battle, which had given them a glimmer of hope of winning, even when they were at a disadvantage.
Compared to the Military School Students, the Pirates' morale was greatly boosted. Taking advantage of this ferocity, they successively cut down seven or eight more Military School Students, further widening the gap in combat strength between the two sides.
Looking at Zephyr, who was clutching his right arm and repeatedly retreating, Beck couldn't help but laugh wildly.
"Hahaha! Is that all the strength the Admiral 'Black Arm' Zephyr has? After waiting so many years, I can finally avenge my older brother and wife! Zephyr, today is the day you die!" The plan was proceeding even more smoothly than Beck had anticipated, which was completely unexpected!
In an instant, as if remembering something, Zephyr's eyes widened sharply, looking at the middle-aged man with graying temples before him.
"'Death Poison Doctor' Beck... was it you!?"
"Hahaha! That's right, your asthma was triggered by a virus I used... Unfortunately, you found out too late!" The smile on Beck's face became increasingly smug, and his tone revealed a posture of having victory in his grasp. Zephyr gritted his teeth. He first used Life Return to control the severed wound on his right arm, stopping the bleeding.
Next, he used his powerful Haki of Armament to quickly circulate throughout his entire body, eliminating the asthma-inducing virus that the opponent had transmitted to him through the white smoke.
However...
The gasping sounds coming from Zephyr's throat were still violent, and even because of his frantic mobilization of Haki to cover his entire body, his physical condition declined further!
Next, he used his powerful Haki of Armament to quickly circu...