"You—!!"
He stared at the black figure, gnashing his teeth:
"You killed my men—now pay with your life!"
As the words fell, he stepped forward!
Both arms slashed down simultaneously, two blades striking left and right at the Shadow Soldier's neck.
This strike was enough to cut through steel!
The Shadow Soldier raised its left arm to block.
Clang—!!
Blade met metal, erupting in blinding sparks!
Pierce's slash landed on the Shadow Soldier's arm, leaving only a shallow white mark!
Pierce's pupils contracted sharply.
His Slash-Slash Fruit allowed him to turn any part of his body into blades, far harder than steel.
Ordinary swords would shatter against him.
And when he struck others, they were always cleaved in two.
But this slash couldn't even cut through this thing?
The Shadow Soldier gave him no time to think.
Its right fist shot out!
The fist wind howled, heading straight for Pierce's face!
Pierce dodged sideways as the fist grazed his cheek, the wind leaving a bloody gash.
He swung backhanded, slashing at the Shadow Soldier's ribs!
Clang!
Another crisp ring, again leaving only a white mark!
The Shadow Soldier turned, sweeping with its left fist!
Pierce leaped to avoid it, crossing his arms mid-air and slashing down!
"Whirlwind Slash—!!"
His hands crossed in an X shape, hacking down fiercely!
This was his most prized move, capable of shredding steel to pieces!
The blade landed on the Shadow Soldier's raised blocking arms.
Clang—!!
This time, the blade finally cut in slightly!
A shallow crack, about half a centimeter deep, appeared on the Shadow Soldier's arm.
Pierce's heart leaped with joy—it could be cut!
But before his joy could settle, he witnessed a shocking sight.
The crack was healing at a visible speed!
The metal surface writhed as if alive, new material growing from both sides of the crack, intertwining and fusing back together.
Within seconds, it was perfectly restored.
"What?!"
Pierce's eyes widened, unable to believe what he was seeing.
Just then, the Shadow Soldier punched him in the abdomen!
Thud!!
Pierce flew out like a cannonball!
He smashed through the cabin wall!
Then through the partition inside the cabin!
Finally embedding into the cabin wall on the other side of the ship!
"Cough... cough..."
He vomited blood, the intense pain in his abdomen making it almost impossible to breathe.
But what shocked him even more was the force of that punch.
It was immense.
He felt at least three of his ribs were broken.
If not for the Slash-Slash Fruit making his body as hard as steel, that punch would have torn him in half.
Struggling to stand up from the wall, he stared through the shattered opening at the black figure on the deck.
The Shadow Soldier did not pursue.
It simply stood there, its dark red eyes fixed on him.
There was no killing intent in that gaze, no anger—nothing at all.
Like a person looking at an ant.
Pierce raged.
"Don't look down on me—!!"
He kicked off with both feet, charging forward!
Moving faster than before!
The blades formed from his arms slashed simultaneously at the Shadow Soldier!
"Dust Slash: Two-Sword Style—!!"
Twin blades struck in rapid succession!
Each slash aimed at the exact same spot!
Five consecutive slashes landed on the same crack in the Shadow Soldier's arm!
Finally, a deep, bone-exposing wound was carved into the Shadow Soldier's arm!
Almost half of its arm was about to be severed!
Overjoyed, Pierce prepared for the sixth slash to completely cut it off!
However—
The next scene plunged him into utter despair.
The wound was healing.
At a visible speed, new metal grew from both sides of the wound, intertwining and fusing back together.
Three seconds later, the deep, bone-exposing wound was reduced to a faint scar.
Another second later, even the scar vanished.
Pierce froze.
"No... impossible..."
The Shadow Soldier punched him in the chest!
Boom!!
Pierce was sent flying once again!
This time, he crashed through the other side of the cabin wall and landed in the cargo hold.
Struggling to his feet, he gasped for breath.
His mind raced—
What was this thing?
Why couldn't it be killed?
Why could its wounds heal?
Why was it so strong?
Why was it so fast?
No answers came.
Footsteps approached.
The Shadow Soldier stepped through the shattered wall and entered the cargo hold.
It walked toward him.
Gritting his teeth, Pierce charged again!
"Grasping Slash—!!"
His right hand transformed into a tiger claw, each finger a blade, as he grabbed for the Shadow Soldier's head!
This move was enough to crush a human skull!
The Shadow Soldier raised its hand and seized his wrist.
Pierce felt as if his wrist had been clamped in iron tongs.
No, harder than iron tongs!
He struggled desperately, but the force was too great—he couldn't break free!
The Shadow Soldier clenched its other hand into a fist and smashed it into his face!
Boom!
Pierce's head snapped to the side, three teeth flying out!
One punch!
Two punches!
Three punches!
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Each blow landed on his face, each one darkening his vision!
His Slash-Slash Fruit made his head as hard as steel, but the punches felt like a hammer striking a steel block.
The steel block held, but the brain inside shook violently!
With all his might, Pierce transformed his other hand into a blade and stabbed at the Shadow Soldier's eye!
It was his only hope—surely the eyes were a weakness!
The blade pierced through!
It went in!
A surge of hope rose in Pierce—
But the next moment, despair set in.
The blade that had pierced through was stuck on something.
A black liquid, like molten metal, flowed from the Shadow Soldier's eye.
The liquid crawled up his blade, actually corroding it!
Horrified, he yanked his hand back and saw corrosive marks etched into his blade!
The Shadow Soldier released its grip on his wrist.
Raised its hand.
Grabbed his head.
Fingers tightened.
Pierce felt his skull creaking under the pressure!
He resisted with all his strength, but the force was overwhelming—almost unbearable!
"Let go—!!"
Summoning every ounce of energy, he transformed both feet into blades and kicked frantically at the Shadow Soldier's body!
Each kick left shallow gashes on its body, but every gash healed instantly!
The Shadow Soldier remained unmoved.
Its fingers continued to tighten.
Pierce felt his skull on the verge of shattering.
His consciousness began to blur, the world growing dim before his eyes.
In his final moment, he heard a voice.
"Intruder. Eliminate."
Crunch—!!
Pierce's steel-hard head was crushed outright by the Shadow Soldier!
Blood splattered, red and white matter scattering across the floor.
The headless corpse swayed, then collapsed to the ground.
The Shadow Soldier released its grip and turned away.
It walked deeper into the ship's hold.
There, more than a dozen Pirates were hiding, trembling.
They had witnessed everything that had just happened.
They had seen the terrifying sight of their captain's head being crushed alive.
"No… don't come any closer…"
"Please… spare us…"
"We were wrong… we'll never do it again…"
The Shadow Soldier did not respond.
It simply raised its hand.
And then—
The slaughter continued.
Ten seconds later.
--Enjoying the story? Want more chapters? Check out my Patreon and support me for 40+ advance chapters.
Just search for "LegendaryTL" on Patreon!"
Thanks!