With masterful control of the Navy's Six Powers, Zephyr used Moonwalk to soar into the air.
At the peak of his ascent, he spun, unleashing a grand slash toward Sakura.
"Tempest Kick: Spiral White Blade!"
The high-speed, twisting slash spiraled through the air, aimed straight at her.
"Mirror Mountain!"
Sakura crossed her arms in an X, layers of icy armor forming over her body.
Crystals of ice extended from her arms, freezing into a shield that clashed with the incoming slash.
"Hmph, naive!"
Seeing Sakura block his attack, Zephyr sneered.
At her arms, the slashing wind blade exploded.
Flowing Armament Haki pierced her defenses, shattering the ice and pressing forward.
The fragmented wind blade left a web of tiny cuts across Sakura's arms before dissipating.
"Ow!"
Sakura glanced at her arms, now swollen and bruised, blood seeping from the wounds.
After months, facing a pure physical Haki master again, she felt that familiar sense of being defenseless.
It wasn't her will breaking—it was her survival instincts, triggered by Armament Haki, urging her to flee.
"Your hands are done for. Surrender now if you don't want to lose them completely!"
Zephyr executed a few nimble flips, using Moonwalk to cushion his descent back to the ground.
"Heh, done for?"
The giant girl grinned, a chilling smile spreading across her face.
She plunged her hands into her body, and when she pulled them out, her arms were as good as new.
"What? That monster can heal injuries too?!"
Zephyr's eyes lit up with envy.
If that power could be used on the battlefield, how many soldiers' lives could be saved!
"Little girl, that bug of yours has a destiny with the Navy—consider it confiscated!"
"What's wrong? Not attacking anymore? My turn!"
Sakura leaped from above, her clenched fist pulsing with a strange energy.
The surrounding water molecules gathered under its influence, erupting as she swung.
Fishman Karate: Shark Tile True Fist!
"Crap!"
Zephyr's Observation Haki snapped him out of his distraction, instincts screaming not to take this punch head-on.
At the last second, he stomped the ground, using Shave to retreat swiftly.
Boom!
The unreasonable strength of the Giant Clan, amplified by Boil Release chakra, pushed Sakura's power to unimaginable heights. Combined with Fishman Karate's true fist, the strike tore the earth apart, shattering the eastern beach of the island.
Thick smoke billowed, obscuring everyone's view.
"Teacher Zephyr!"
Hina and Smoker struggled to rush forward.
"Stop them!"
At Sakura's command, acid sprayed toward them, forcing the two elite Navy trainees out of the fight.
"What the—"
As the smoke cleared, Zephyr stared at the ravaged earth, his expression twisting in shock.
What incredible power!
"No way. A monster like you can't be allowed to keep growing! In the name of justice!"
Zephyr's gaze turned icy, his soul's devotion to justice igniting into a blazing will.
A pitch-black sheen spread over his arms, his overwhelming Armament Haki warping the air around him, dark lightning crackling and shaking everything.
"Star Shatter: Crush!"
Zephyr threw a thunderous punch, his Armament Haki tearing through the air like a black bolt of lightning, impossibly fast.
Sakura's Observation Haki spread fully, taking in every blade of grass and tree within miles.
So fast—her Haki could barely track his movements.
"Then bring it, former Admiral Zephyr!"
If she couldn't see clearly, she'd pour everything into her fist!
Sakura raised her fist, chakra infused with water properties gathering massively, forming droplets in the air.
Fishman Karate: Tang Tile True Fist!
Her punch unleashed a 360-degree shockwave from her fist.
The roar shook the heavens and earth.
Amid the massive impact, Sakura sensed something breaking through, moving against the current—a wrist?
So fast! Where's he aiming? Protect vital points?
No, the neck!
Reading his intent, Sakura pulled her arm back, frost armor coating it.
At that moment, Zephyr appeared beside her, his wrist smashing down, pressing her arm toward her throat.
Boom!
The flowing Armament Haki bypassed all defenses, slamming into her throat, forcing her to spit blood.
But this time… she resisted the instinct to retreat!
"Partner!
[Notice: Juvenile Giant Clan physique has met minimum standards. You can try!]"
"Is that so? Cough, cough!"
Spitting two more mouthfuls of blood, Sakura wiped her lips, the blood staining her delicate face with a haunting beauty.
One hand pressed to her neck, using Palm Sage Technique to heal, the other stayed in a fighting stance.
"Still able to fight?"
Zephyr frowned at Sakura's unyielding spirit.
Taking a hit like that without passing out, still burning with fighting spirit—what incredible resolve.
But— "If one hit doesn't knock you out, I'll just hit you more!"
His wrists blackened with Armament Haki again, Zephyr lunged at Sakura like lightning.
"Then don't hold back, Teacher Zephyr!"
Sakura clenched her fists, laughing as she charged forward.
Boom!
Where their fists collided, ice shattered with a crisp crack, a storm erupting between them.
In the next instant, Sakura was sent flying by the overpowering Armament Haki, while Zephyr staggered slightly.
"Immense strength, but without Haki, it's just a fleeting illusion!"
"And I'm not your teacher!"
Zephyr sneered, shooting toward Sakura again, delivering a ruthless Tempest Kick.
"Heh!"
Sakura grinned, saying nothing, and countered with her own Tempest Kick.
His Haki-infused wind blade shattered hers, then crashed into her leg.
Dark lightning spread in all directions, the rushing air currents blowing the ground's dust into a ring.
"Hiss!"
Both landed, a piercing pain shooting through Sakura's leg.
Zephyr gave her no time to recover, closing in with another punch.
Sakura gritted her teeth, her emerald eyes blazing with defiance. Though her fists were bloodied and mangled, she didn't care.
Numbly, she swung back, counterattacking!
Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!
Their fists wove a dance of phantom light, each clash tempering Sakura's will.
Finally, after being knocked back four or five steps by Zephyr's punch, Sakura grasped a thread of light from the void, leading to reality.
"Haruno Sakura, I respect your tenacity, but this ends here!"
Looking at the battered girl, Zephyr felt a flicker of admiration, but his steadfast sense of justice wouldn't let him spare a potential disaster.
He took a deep breath, throwing another powerful punch.
"End here? No way I'm falling now!"
Covered in wounds, Sakura assumed a true fist stance, striking back.
BOOM!!!
In the explosive clash, both figures staggered back.
Zephyr dug his legs into the ground, carving a deep trench in the beach.
He looked up in disbelief, gritting his teeth. "What a joke! How is this possible?!"
Sakura, pale and trembling, finally threw her head back, laughing wildly.
"Hahahaha!"
Her bloodied, mangled fists were now coated in a pitch-black sheen.
After a long battle, the girl's will transformed at this moment.
The tiny seed of Haki broke through, blooming into the flower of Armament Haki!