In Finn's understanding of this world, battles between top-tier masters often lasted three days and three nights, or even ten days and nights.
For example, the Fleet Admiral dispute between Kuzan and Sakazuki at Punk Hazard.
Another example, the battle between the Roger Pirates and Whitebeard Pirates on some island.
It was as if they couldn't fight to their satisfaction unless they battled for several days and nights.
These were all facts, but things weren't as simple as Finn had thought.
During the past two years, he'd asked Zephyr about these matters and received definitive answers.
In this world, there weren't many top masters, but there were quite a few. At their level, determining a winner was genuinely difficult.
After all, they were all on the same tier. Those who'd become top masters had been famous for many years.
The whole world knew what abilities and methods they possessed.
Nothing could be hidden.
Therefore, once a fight broke out, it was difficult to gain an absolute advantage and end the battle quickly.
Fighting for three days and nights was normal.
According to Zephyr, if a fight lasted three days and nights, nine times out of ten, the first two days were spent testing each other and constantly devising countermeasures. The real all-out effort usually came on the last day.
Simply put, for the first two days, everyone was conserving their strength.
However, Zephyr had also clarified many of Finn's doubts. Generally speaking, this type of battle had one inevitable element: equal strength.
Whether one-on-one or group combat, this kind of protracted war only occurred when both sides' strength was roughly equivalent.
Once the balance broke, the advantage would rapidly expand, and the battle would naturally end quickly.
Finn compared this with examples in his memories. It seemed accurate.
He remembered that in the original timeline Fleet Admiral Kong and Redfield had also fought for several days and nights.
Now, calming down to think about it, maybe the situation at that time had genuinely been a one-on-one duel.
Thinking this through, Finn glanced at Kuzan and secretly speculated. "In other words, there probably was no Vice Admiral Garp, no Kuzan, and certainly no me. Though I don't know why the Fleet Admiral set out alone, that must be the reality. And judging from the current situation, because circumstances have changed, the Fleet Admiral has the upper hand. Perhaps there's no need to fight for days and nights. As long as Kuzan and I can break the balance and rapidly amplify the Fleet Admiral's advantage, Redfield won't have time to escape..."
"Empty your mind, Finn. That guy can hear your thoughts," Kuzan suddenly spoke.
Though he didn't look up, he seemed to sense what Finn was thinking.
Finn froze momentarily, then quickly replied, "Understood."
Damn it. Redfield possessed the ability to read minds. If he wanted to, he could hear whatever you were thinking.
His ability was simply abnormal. When fighting him, he could hear whatever tactics you devised. The optimal state was emptying your mind, thinking only about defeating him wholeheartedly. Don't consider tactical countermeasures, just respond to his moves as they came.
Redfield himself was incredibly strong. In this state, very few people could beat him one-on-one.
Finn had previously thought Kong was somewhat weak for losing to him. Now, reconsidering, it wasn't that their forces were incompetent. The enemy was just too cunning!
After hearing Kuzan's advice, Finn stopped thinking about how to handle Redfield. Thinking was useless, but the human mind was extraordinarily difficult to control. He feared that overthinking might expose his messy secrets.
So he tried thinking about dirtier things instead. Like certain romantic action films. Before he knew it, his blood was pumping...
Redfield was dealing with Kong over there. This wasn't the first time Kong had fought Redfield. He had no extraneous thoughts, only anger filling his mind. As soon as Redfield listened, he heard only curses.
Knowing that with Kong's self-control, he could completely manage his emotions, Redfield simply stopped listening.
Instead, he focused on Kuzan and that unknown bastard kid.
When he listened to Kuzan's mind, he perceived only a vast expanse of white, like a glacier. Occasionally, when ice spikes protruded in his thoughts, Redfield would simply shift his feet and avoid them.
This made him realize that although Kuzan knew how to counter him, he still couldn't achieve Kong's state of mental emptiness.
Such people were very easy for him to handle.
Therefore, he didn't take Kuzan seriously. Simultaneously, he looked at the bastard kid standing next to Kuzan, one hand on the sword at his waist, all his abilities gathering ominously, clearly preparing to ambush him given the chance.
Therefore, Redfield wore a disdainful smile and cast his Observation Haki on Finn, wanting to see what dirty ideas this kid harbored so he could guard against them.
However, the moment he heard Finn's thoughts, he seemed to hear a series of sounds like "hmmmm ahhh" in his ears.
These noises completely confused Redfield. Damn, this bastard Marine looked righteous on the outside, but was so filthy inside. What was the meaning of this?
With battle imminent, what was he thinking about?
To be honest, in all his years traveling the world, Redfield had never encountered such a shameless person!
Precisely because he was too surprised and bewildered, he couldn't help but slow his movements. His blade brushed past Kong's fist and failed to block it.
The next second, Kong was also stunned. What happened? Why such poor performance?
But he showed no mercy, landing a full-power punch on Redfield's chest.
"Puff..." After taking this punch, Redfield spat blood from his mouth. His feet slipped and his figure flew backward.
Kuzan was stunned by this sudden change. He failed to keep up with his movements and missed the opportunity.
Finn, who'd been recalling those dirty things, was also jolted awake. Due to his Iron Will, his reaction speed in battle was extremely fast, far more reliable than Kuzan's. The moment Redfield was knocked away, Sōzai in Finn's hand left its sheath!
"Gravity Blade: Tiger Bite!" Finn roared.
The sword slashed out like a tiger descending from the mountain. Surging power carried powerful impact, striking directly at Redfield.
Redfield was a top master after all. When knocked away by Kong's punch, he noticed Finn's attack and slashed out with his cane-sword, breaking the offensive before the gravity slash could fully manifest its power.
At that moment, as if hearing something, he stepped forward. Not caring about his injuries, he rushed directly toward Kong.
As soon as he moved, Finn roared again. "Gravity Domain: Suppression Zone!"
The area where Redfield had been standing collapsed instantly. The glacier shattered.
Meanwhile, Redfield had engaged Kong again.
Finn's expression darkened. He murmured, "Mind-reading is indeed formidable."
There was no doubt that Redfield had dodged so quickly and accurately just now because he'd heard what Finn was thinking.
Even if only for a moment, it was enough for him to react.
Finn used this to speculate what would happen if he fought Redfield alone.
Only one answer existed: he'd be tortured so badly his own mother couldn't recognize him.
After realizing this, Finn was filled with murderous intent toward Redfield. He didn't even dare think about the reason, fearing that bastard would hear it.
Redfield, fighting with Kong, suddenly forced the Fleet Admiral back with a slash, then looked at Finn in surprise.
He still couldn't understand what was happening. Why was this kid so murderous toward him?
That feeling of life-or-death struggle?
Ridiculous. Finn wasn't from this world at all. He harbored too many secrets. Once exposed, he'd be doomed.
Therefore, he must eliminate this mind-reading ability.
Unlike Roger and Luffy, those two could hear the Voice of All Things, which had little connection to Observation Haki. They couldn't hear people's thoughts unless you actively communicated with them, like the Zou or Sea Kings.
No need to worry about those things. But Redfield had been a cheat since childhood. He'd awakened Observation Haki from birth, listening to everyone he met. This made him intimately familiar with the darkness of human hearts, leading him down the path of "arrogance."
People like this must be killed!
Why capture him for Impel Down? The correct action was killing him right here!
Since his previous attack had failed, Finn didn't dare rush forward and cause trouble. If he did, he'd definitely hinder Kong.
Therefore, he could only use his ability to harass Redfield from a distance. Only when the right opportunity presented itself could he move forward and attack.
Unfortunately, his ability control wasn't precise enough, his development not thorough enough. He couldn't lock onto Redfield in this chaotic battle.
In this situation, as long as Redfield fought Kong in close combat, it was difficult for Finn to act.
So the two fought fiercely over there, Kuzan secretly provided support here, and Finn could only watch from the side, not daring to formulate countermeasures. It was genuinely frustrating.
However, though he felt aggrieved, he didn't know that Redfield felt even more aggrieved.
When fighting Kong, there was Kuzan trying to sabotage him, plus a kid brimming with murderous intent, making it impossible for him to fight freely.
This was completely different from what he'd expected!
The more he fought, the angrier he became!
Initially, he hadn't taken Kuzan and Finn seriously. Now those two didn't even approach him, just annoyed him from a distance, greatly restricting his offensive capability.
He was being forced into a defensive rhythm by Kong.
What was supposed to be a thrilling duel would never materialize because of Kuzan and Finn. Redfield was completely at a disadvantage.
Finn himself hadn't expected that Kong's advantage would be amplified this way!
The Aloof Red was discovering that his solitary path had serious drawbacks when facing coordinated opponents.