"What did you say?"
Mr.3 drew out his tone exaggeratedly, as if he had heard the most absurd joke. But instead of showing anger, his face revealed a curious expression as he stepped onto the wax staircase once again.
He climbed step by step up the cake, stopping before the still-trapped Giyu.
He reached out and knocked on the hard, cold wax shell covering Giyu's chest with his knuckles, producing a dull thud.
"You're completely trapped now, aren't you? This impressive swordsman."
Mr.3 tilted his head, his eyes narrowing to slits behind his glasses. His tone was somewhat flippant as he said with a laugh, "Surely you don't think you can cut through my Candle Art with your mouth?"
"This guy created this giant candle cake!"
Nami urgently called out, beginning to explain the critical situation to Giyu. "Giyu, we're all immobilized! This wax mist falling now... cough... if we inhale too much, we'll slowly turn into real wax figures!"
As if to confirm her words, Vivi, who was also immobilized nearby, let out an uncontrollable cough. Her face looked somewhat pale, clearly having already inhaled some of the wax mist.
Mr.3 applauded with satisfaction: "Yes, yes! This young lady explains it perfectly! So very clever, what a pity you'll soon become a beautiful collection piece."
Giyu remained silent, trying to mobilize all the muscles in his body.
Strength was gathering, but the wax encasing his entire body was incredibly sturdy, making movement difficult. His legs in particular felt as if they were cast in quicksand, completely immobile.
But drawing his Nichirin Blade in this situation was nearly impossible.
"Hmm~"
Mr.3, standing before everyone, observed the subtle changes in Giyu's expression and the tension in his muscles, letting out an uncontrollable chuckle. "That's it, that's it."
He circled to Giyu's side, his tone growing increasingly triumphant:
"Right now only your head can move freely, but judging from your fighting style earlier, you're not a Devil Fruit Ability User, are you? What a pity~ If you were some strange Ability User, perhaps you'd still have a chance to resist."
He descended the staircase, spread his arms wide, and began announcing inexplicably:
"Now! Let us formally introduce the swordsman rumored to have fought one against a hundred at Whiskey Peak, and who managed to defeat Mr.1 in the jungles of Little Garden! What a pity, what a pity - on this perfect candle cake, you're no different from any ordinary person you might find anywhere! Hahahaha!"
His piercing laughter echoed across the open space, Mr.3 brimming with the arrogance of certain victory.
Nami and Vivi's coughing seemed to grow heavier, and the wax mist filling the air appeared to thicken.
At that moment!
Thump... thump-thump... thump-thump-thump!
Giyu's heart began to beat violently, so loudly it seemed about to burst from his chest. In his mind, Sabito's voice seemed to ring out once more—"This time, it's your turn to protect everyone!"
"Water Breathing: Total Concentration..."
The clear voice interrupted Mr.3's laughter.
Giyu took a sharp, deep breath!
His chest expanded to an unprecedented degree, even causing the sturdy wax shell to emit faint groans. The wax dust and oxygen floating in the surrounding air were frantically drawn into his lungs!
"Hey, hey, hey? No way?"
Mr.3 stared at Giyu's actions in front of him, first stunned, then revealing an extremely exaggerated mocking expression.
Pointing at Giyu, he laughed so hard he could barely stand straight,
"To reduce the amount of wax mist your companion inhales, you decided to suck it all in yourself? Hahaha! Is this some kind of heroic rescue? Or have you just given up thinking?"
"Giyu!? What are you doing?! Stop it!" Vivi also watched in panic as the wax mist was all drawn toward Giyu, unable to comprehend this behavior.
Giyu did not answer, and could not answer.
The second time—a deeper, longer inhalation!
Cough, cough, cough—
It felt as if all the blood in his body had been ignited at this moment, coursing through him at an unbelievable speed alongside the extreme operation of the Water Breathing technique!
The sound of his heartbeat was like war drums on a battlefield, dense and powerful, even allowing those nearby to faintly hear its surging rhythm.
Crack...
An extremely faint, crisp sound came from the wax layer near his left shoulder.
Wisps of white steam began seeping from his body's surface—not sweat, but the result of his sharply rising body temperature meeting the cold wax shell.
On his exposed skin, at his left cheek, wave-like markings emerged, undulating like ocean waves, eerie yet brimming with a sense of power.
But pain followed as well—muscles felt as if they were tearing, bones bore immense pressure, each heartbeat like an explosion, draining his life potential.
During the final battle in the Infinity Castle, his body had already been pushed beyond its limits. Now, activating the Mark again was far from as easy as it had been back then.
"Raaaaaaah!!!"
With a suppressed roar that erupted with explosive force, Giyu gathered his strength and slammed against the shell binding him!
Suddenly! The wax layer on his upper body shattered violently! Countless hard wax fragments flew in all directions!
"What?! You...!"
The smile vanished from Mr.3's face, replaced by a look of astonishment. He staggered back a step, staring at Giyu's actions.
"You've got to be kidding me! This is wax skin that can even trap giants!? Is this pure strength? No... it's body temperature! Your body temperature is rising sharply! Parts of the wax layer have softened! You... are you really human?!"
A sense of crisis instantly gripped Mr.3. He knew he absolutely could not let this monstrous swordsman continue. Otherwise, with his strength, he would be no match for him.
"Melt Melt Carve Sword!"
His arm released a massive amount of wax liquid, which quickly solidified and shaped in the air, forming a huge, sharp candle greatsword.
Then Mr.3 directly aimed at the cake and hurled the greatsword at Giyu, who had just broken free from his upper body restraints!
Crack!
At that moment, the wax layer on Giyu's lower body also completely shattered under his terrifying burst of strength and high temperature!
Just as the candle greatsword flew toward Giyu's face!
His deep blue eyes were terrifyingly calm. The Nichirin Blade was already drawn, its light tracing a subtle yet ultimate arc in front of him.
"Water Breathing: Eleventh Form - Dead Calm."
Ahem—
For a moment, time and air seemed to freeze.
The massive, powerfully swung candle sword, upon touching that invisible domain, collided as if against an absolute defensive wall.
In an instant, it began disintegrating from the tip, shattering into countless tiny wax fragments that clattered to the ground, failing to even graze the hem of Giyu's clothes.
Everything happened too quickly—from the moment the wax layer on Giyu's body shattered to the destruction of Mr.3's candle sword, it was over in the blink of an eye.