The immense force was diverted by the rotation, and the whirlwind of slashes forced both Mr.1 and Miss Doublefinger to retreat half a step.
As the vortex dissipated, Giyu's figure solidified once more, maintaining the finishing pose of his sword swing.
"This guy..." A flicker of genuine surprise crossed Mr.1's cold eyes. "Could he be the one mentioned in the intel? But he doesn't look old..."
"Never mind! Let's just take him down first!" Miss Doublefinger's arms then transformed into sharp thorns, thrusting toward Giyu!
The three of them descended into complete chaos! Sword glares and thorns wildly clashed and intertwined!
Giyu found himself in an extremely passive position.
He had to heighten his breathing, his eyes rapidly moving as he predicted attacks from both directions. The various forms of Water Breathing flowed seamlessly through his hands—sometimes using Striking Tide, other times Twisting Whirlpool.
But two fists were no match for four hands, especially since Giyu now only had his left. If it were the Giyu of old, these two before him would have been no issue at all.
Yet the current Giyu had lost his most powerful right arm, and his body hadn't fully recovered from that horrific battle.
His haori was slashed open in several places by the thorns, and his arms and cheeks were scratched by the sharp sword winds.
During a brief lull after a fierce clash, Giyu panted slightly, gazing at the two who kept launching deadly attacks at him. Suddenly, he spoke, his voice tinged with confusion and gravity:
"Actually, I don't understand... Why are we fighting so desperately now, disregarding life and death?"
Miss Doublefinger was taken aback by his words, then let out a mocking laugh. "Heh... How naive! Blame the princess on your ship! You shouldn't have gotten involved with her and dragged into this mess!"
Princess Vivi... the nation's turmoil... Baroque Works' pursuit... The fragmented pieces connected in Giyu's mind.
"I... see..."
He fell silent for a moment, the last trace of doubt in his eyes vanishing, replaced only by icy resolve. Reasoning was useless now—the situation had become a fight to the death.
He took a deep breath, instantly adjusting all his muscles to their optimal state.
Giyu leaped back a step, then lowered his stance like flowing water gathering momentum. The next moment, he shot forward!
His footsteps crisscrossed, tracing paths like a river, his speed increasing with each step! The torrential waters surging around him converged forward, wildly gathering on the Nichirin Blade in his hand!
"Water Breathing · Tenth Form: Constant Flux!!!"
The water gradually formed into a roaring dragon's head along his charging path!
Giyu dashed directly in front of Mr.1, then used the immense power of Constant Flux to slash toward Mr.1's chest!
What?!
Mr.1's pupils contracted sharply—the slashing attack from this charging man made him feel an unprecedented threat! Yet he still firmly believed in his Slicing-Slicing Fruit, roaring as he crossed his arms to block!
"Useless! My body is the strongest steel!"
Crack!!
Mr.1's proud steel defense was forcibly breached for the first time by Giyu's concentrated slash!
A ferocious wound suddenly erupted across his crossed arms and chest!
"Urgh!"
Mr.1 let out a pained grunt, his body no longer able to remain steady as he crashed to one knee with a thud. His face was filled with shock and an expression of disbelief.
"No... impossible... my body..."
Meanwhile, Zoro, who had slowly risen to his feet from the tree roots, was also staring in awe.
So it's truly possible to cut through steel...
But at the very moment Giyu struck Mr.1 with his Flowing Dance technique, a venomous glint flashed in Miss Doublefinger's eyes! Seizing this opportunity, she activated her Spike-Spike Fruit ability once more.
"Got you! Thorn Meteor Hammer!"
Her arm transformed into the sharpest thorns, taking advantage of this fleeting chance to strike like a meteor hammer! It brutally pierced through Giyu's left shoulder!
An intense stabbing pain instantly shot through him, causing Giyu's body to falter slightly as his face paled.
Just as all four combatants on the battlefield were catching their breath with slowed movements—
Whoosh whoosh whoosh—!
Several tiny but extremely fast black shadows shot through the air with shrill whistles from the distant dense forest, landing precisely at the center of the battlefield!
"Snot Fantasy Cannon! Super Chain Shot!"
Boom boom boom—!
Violent explosions erupted one after another without warning! The savage shockwaves blasted toward the already unsteady four fighters!
"Cough!"
Giyu was violently thrown back by the blast wave, crashing heavily to the ground. The violent impact aggravated the wound on his left shoulder, sending such intense pain through him that he nearly gritted his teeth to the breaking point.
Amid the smoke and chaos of the battlefield...
Before they could recover from the dizziness and pain of the explosions, a twisted, sinister voice full of smug satisfaction drifted over from the distance:
"Wax Skin~!"
The next moment, a massive surge of thick, specially formulated white wax liquid came rushing toward them!
"What the hell is this?!"
"Mr.3!!!!"
Zoro's furious roar and Miss Doublefinger's startled cry were soon swallowed by the tidal wave of wax, while Mr.1 remained bewildered about how a swordsman had managed to cut him down.
Giyu's gaze fell upon Zoro, who wasn't far from him. He saw that Zoro hadn't fully recovered yet, but the white wax was already surging toward him first!
With almost no time to hesitate, Giyu endured the tearing agony in his left shoulder, took a deep breath, and channeled his remaining strength into his legs.
"Crunch!"
The ground beneath his feet shattered as he shot forward! He grabbed Zoro by the collar and, mustering all his strength, hurled him outward with tremendous force!
"You—!"
Zoro completely failed to react, only feeling an immense force before his entire body was sent flying backward uncontrollably.
At the same moment Giyu pushed Zoro away, the white wax tidal wave completely engulfed his figure. He could even feel the sticky sensation as his body gradually became immobilized.
Mr.3's wax was solidifying at an astonishing rate. Within moments, three white wax statues frozen in struggling poses stood where they had been.
Zoro was thrown far into the distance, and the last scene he saw mid-air was Giyu completely covered by the wax—the arm that had thrown him away finally solidified into a resolute posture, alongside the similarly frozen wax statues of Mr.1 and Miss Doublefinger nearby.
"Righte..." Zoro's furious roar was cut short by a dull thud as his head slammed against a rock after landing. Darkness clouded his vision, and he lost consciousness.
Mr.3's figure gradually emerged from the dissipating gunpowder smoke. Adjusting his glasses, he surveyed the brutal battlefield—or rather, the battlefield now coated with Wax Liquid—and curled his lips into a malicious grin, sneering with disdain.
"Tch, one lucky rat managed to escape... But it doesn't matter."
His gaze greedily swept over the three artistic collectibles that were priceless to him, especially lingering on the final shocked expressions of Mr.1 and Miss Doublefinger. A satisfied smile spread across his face.
"The most important prey has been captured."