Yasopp glanced at Suzumebachi. His right arm was embedded in the wall, leaving him exposed.
After firing the golden missile, Suzumebachi had lost her weapon—the Thunder Whip—leaving her empty-handed.
In his eyes, that was the only consolation.
At least, Suzumebachi couldn't use that attack again immediately.
"There's something you should know," Ninjitsuki said, observing the shift in Yasopp's expression. She bore a face identical to Unohana Retsu's, and her personality mirrored the former Captain-Commander of the Thirteen Court Guard Squads from a millennium ago. Her love for battle was identical.
The only difference was that while she enjoyed fighting, she would also go to great lengths—unscrupulous, if necessary—to destroy her enemies.
Just like now.
The mere mention of Suzumebachi being able to use her Bankai three times a day—firing Jakuhō Raikōben three times—sent Yasopp into a state of turmoil.
"I won't give her a second chance," Yasopp shouted firmly, his heart tightening.
Even just observing, he had discerned Suzumebachi's Bankai ability. One-hit kill. A single ability with terrifyingly immense power. It was a Bankai with an extremely high minimum potential.
Perhaps against an Admiral or Emperor-level powerhouse, Suzumebachi's materialized Zanpakutō might seem ineffective, but against anyone below the level of a Vice Admiral, within its firing range and blast radius, it was essentially a one-shot kill. Even if they survived, they would be on the verge of death. Even a Vice Admiral would be severely weakened by a direct hit.
Rem Jones, who had just been struck by Jakuhō Raikōben, was the best example. Especially now, with all the Red-Haired Pirates' officers engaged in combat with their materialized Zanpakutō, if Suzume were to seize the opportunity and unleash a Bankai on Lucky Roux and the others, they would truly be doomed.
Thinking of this, Yasopp broke out in a cold sweat.
"Is that so?" Ninjitsuki's smile grew sinister. "Then let me see how you prevent Suzume from using her Bankai a second time, right in front of me."
Bang!
Yasopp fired a Haki bullet powerful enough to destroy a warship, a response to Ninjitsuki. At the same time, his peripheral vision and Observation Haki kept a constant watch on Suzume's every move.
On the other side, the battle between Katen Kyokotsu and Ben Beckman continued.
Despite Katen Kyokotsu being the strongest of all materialized Zanpakutō, and Ben Beckman being second only to Shanks in the Red-Haired Pirates, their clash wasn't earth-shattering or awe-inspiring. Instead, it was far less dramatic than other battles between pirates and Zanpakutō.
However, less dramatic didn't equate to weaker combat. It was simply that their abilities were different, creating the illusion of a small-scale, even violent, clash between the Marines and pirates in the East Blue. In reality, their battle was extremely dangerous.
For example, a bullet fired casually by Ben Beckman might seem ordinary, but even a Marine Admiral hit by it head-on would be wounded. Take, for instance, the slashes of Katen Kyokotsu. They appeared mundane, lacking any special effects, unlike other great swordsmen whose casual strikes could cleave mountains and split seas. Yet, Ben Beckman would rather fight a swordsman capable of such feats than engage Katen Kyokotsu.
The reason was simple. Her abilities were too mysterious and insidious. Under the rules of the Zanpakutō, even the most ordinary strike could decide the outcome of a battle.
"Your companions seem to be in a precarious situation!" Katen, wielding her black-bodied, white-bladed Zanpakutō, first glanced at the pirates and Zanpakutō engaged in combat, then her gaze swept over Suzumebachi, before finally settling back on Ben Beckman.
"I believe in them," Ben Beckman said, but the shadow in his eyes was as dark as ink, impossible to dispel.
"Trusting your comrades—that's a virtue," Katen said, looking at Ben Beckman with a half-smile, relentlessly trying to undermine his morale. "But what if I told you that in three minutes, Suzumebachi could use her second Bankai? Then would you still have the same unwavering faith in your comrades?"
Hanaten looked at Ben Beckman with a half-smile, relentlessly trying to undermine his morale. If Ninjizuku's personality was ruthless, then she was dignified, elegant, and mysteriously sinister. Such a personality, combined with her abilities, made her a nightmare for her enemies.
"Why not?" Ben Beckman's expression remained unchanged; he even lowered his gun, but a sudden crimson glint flashed in his eyes.
"Hmm?" Hanaten, seeing this, seemed to sense something, and her pupils contracted sharply.
Conqueror's Haki!
The thought had barely formed in her mind when, centered on Ben Beckman, streaks of Conqueror's Haki, gleaming with a ferocious crimson light, burst forth, tearing through the air with lightning speed towards her and Kyōkotsu. Before the two could react, the oncoming Haki lightning, like dozens of jagged blades, pierced through their bodies.
"High-level Conqueror's Haki!" Kyōkotsu's body trembled violently, as if struck by lightning, and she froze on the spot.
"You've been hiding your abilities quite well!" Katen's reaction wasn't much better. Like an ordinary person struck by lightning, she was completely immobilized. Her previous calm and confident demeanor had vanished, replaced by gloom and anger. "If two of your comrades hadn't fallen one after another, you would have continued to refrain from using Conqueror's Haki, creating the illusion that you only knew Armament Haki and Observation Haki. As expected of the vice-captain!"
"Don't waste your energy," Ben Beckman said coldly, looking at Katen and Kyōkotsu, who were still struggling to resist after being suppressed by his Conqueror's Haki. "Since you know about advanced Conqueror's Haki, you should know that this level of Conqueror's Haki has an extremely strong suppressive effect on Devil Fruit users. And you two aren't Devil Fruit users at all; you're merely products created by Rosen using the Arms-Arms Fruit. Advanced Conqueror's Haki has an even stronger suppressive effect on you, who are creations of Devil Fruit abilities."
"Conqueror's Haki... it's really annoying," Hanaten sighed with disgust, struggling to no avail. Having materialized her Zanpakutō and learned of its existence, she already knew that high-level Conqueror's Haki had an extremely strong suppressive effect on beings like herself, products of Devil Fruit abilities. It could even be said to be a natural counter to Devil Fruit abilities. But only when facing it firsthand did Hanaten fully understand the extent of this suppression. Simply put, she was completely immobilized.
Of course, to suppress a materialized Zanpakutō of Hanaten's caliber to this extent, it had to be high-level Conqueror's Haki. Like Ben Beckman's Conqueror's Haki. Not only high-level, but also requiring the unleashing of the maximum level of Conqueror's Haki at once, concentrating all of his Conqueror's Haki on Hanaten's Zanpakutō to achieve complete suppression. To ensure this suppressive power, he couldn't even spare a single bit of Conqueror's Haki to attack other Zanpakutō; otherwise, he couldn't continue suppressing Hanaten's Zanpakutō.
"I shouldn't have held back," Ben Beckman's voice betrayed deep self-reproach and regret. "I was planning to surprise Rosen at a crucial juncture in the future, but I never imagined that you Zanpakutō created by Rosen would become so strangely difficult to deal with after gaining intelligence and life. It's my fault for Rem Jones."
Although he had completely suppressed Katen Kyokotsu, Ben Beckman's face showed no joy whatsoever. Being ambushed and severely injured by Katen Kyokotsu at the beginning was one thing, but Rem Jones's fate was entirely due to his deliberate concealment, wanting to save a trump card against Rosen. If he had displayed Conqueror's Haki the moment the battle began, although it would have revealed his trump card, it would have allowed him to suppress Katen Kyokotsu and create an opening to rescue Rem Jones. Of course, Ben Beckman truly hadn't expected Rem Jones to be defeated so quickly. However, he wouldn't blame the crew's defeat; he would only blame himself for holding back.
"It's alright," Hanaten said, her lips now seeming coated in honey, piercing Ben Beckman's heart. "Just consider it a preview of this feeling. After all, more crew members will die because of you."
"Let's not even talk about whether that will happen," Ben Beckman's eyes flashed with murderous intent, but it vanished instantly. At the same time, he raised the pistol he had just lowered, the black muzzle pointed at Hanaten's left chest. "Even if it is as you say, you won't have the chance to see it."
Compared to Kyōkotsu, who had remained silent since the start of the battle, acting purely as an assistant, he was far more wary of Hanaten, whose personality and abilities were as enigmatic and wicked. Even though Hanaten and Kyōkotsu shared the same Zanpakutō, he still chose to kill Hanaten first.
"I'd love to know," Hanaten said. "If you, transformed from a Zanpakutō into a human, were hit by a bullet, would you bleed? And if your heart were pierced, would you die?"
The words had barely left his lips. Ben Beckman, his index finger already on the trigger of his pistol, pulled hard.
Bang!
A bullet hardened by powerful Armament Haki shot out like a black ray ripping through the sky, instantly striking Hanaten and piercing her left heart before exiting from her back.
Boom!
This shot not only pierced Hanaten's body, but also pierced the massive naval base standing on her back, creating a gaping hole resembling one blasted by a cannon.
"It seems that being hit by a bullet, whether it's a person or a Zanpakutō, the result is the same," Ben Beckman watched Hanaten fall backward, his hand gripping the gun sharply, pointing it directly at Kyōkotsu. Although she appeared as a young girl, knowing that Kyōkotsu, like Hanaten, was truly a Zanpakutō, he showed no mercy. With the gun pointed at Kyōkotsu's heart, he immediately pulled the trigger.
Bang!
The second Haki bullet flew through the air like lightning, piercing through Kyōkotsu's heart just as it had when it killed Katen, leaving a gaping hole in the Marine fortress behind.
Full power of Conqueror's Haki.
Two shots with a flick of the finger, killing the head of the Zanpakutō.
Kyakotsu Katen.
This is Ben Beckman.
The right hand of Shanks.
A being that even the Four Emperors and Marine Admirals would have to fear when he gets serious.
—-
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