The gloves were dark, resembling armored gauntlets, and were crafted entirely from Sea Prism Stone.
The moment Smoker saw Lucci put them on, his expression shifted violently.
As a Logia-type Devil Fruit user, there were only three things he truly feared.
First: Water. Specifically, large quantities of water capable of submerging half his body.
Second: Sea Prism Stone.
Third: Armament Haki.
To a Logia user, these three were essentially natural predators.
Of course, simply possessing a Sea Prism Stone weapon wasn't enough; it depended on the wielder's strength. If the user were too weak, the weapon would be useless.
But after watching the previous seven matches, Smoker knew very well that Lucci's physical combat skills and battle experience far surpassed his own.
The only reason he had volunteered was because his Logia nature theoretically made him invincible. But the moment those Sea Prism Stone gloves appeared, that invincibility vanished.
Shaking his head, Smoker forced himself to regain his composure and lunged.
"Soru!"
"White Punch!"
Since his natural advantage was gone, he decided to take the initiative and seize every possible opening. He had to find a way!
In an instant, Smoker utilized his somewhat unrefined Six Powers technique to vanish and reappear behind Lucci. He immediately unleashed his most reliable strike.
'I've got him!'
Seeing Lucci seemingly frozen in place, unable to react, a surge of joy hit Smoker's heart.
'Did he underestimate me?'
It didn't matter. If Lucci hadn't reacted by now, this match was his!
However...
Just as Smoker expected him to be too late to dodge, Lucci suddenly vanished from his sight.
The disappearance was so abrupt that several Vice Admirals at Headquarters couldn't even see it clearly, let alone the other spectators.
A second later, Smoker's White Punch hit nothing but air. Simultaneously, he felt a hand settle firmly on his shoulder.
Immediately, a wave of debilitating weakness began to spread through his entire body.
"Rankyaku!"
Like a sword-slash from a warship, Lucci unleashed a whip-kick, instantly forming a compressed air blade.
Because Lucci was gripping him with the Sea Prism Stone glove, Smoker was unable to elementally disperse. He was sent flying by the shockwave, crashing into the ground over a hundred meters away and kicking up a massive cloud of dust.
"The Six Powers originated from the Marines, yet not a single Marine today can utilize them with mastery. How pathetic!"
Regardless of what he was saying, Lucci's face remained an expressionless mask. This deadpan delivery only made his words feel more insulting.
The surrounding officers looked grim, but none of them could refute him. After all, this was the eighth opponent. Whether they were captains or Commodores, not a single person under the age of thirty had been a match for Lucci.
It was worth noting that Lucci was only twenty-three years old.
More embarrassingly, it wasn't just that they lost—the longest any of the eight had lasted was less than two minutes. It was utterly humiliating.
If the matches ended like this, the Marines would likely be unable to hold their heads high in front of the CP for a long time.
"Fleet Admiral Sengoku, are there any other challengers? If not, I shall take the prisoner as ordered."
Sengoku's face darkened completely upon hearing this. But before he could speak...
"Wait! Who gave you permission to end it like this? I haven't lost yet!!"
Everyone looked toward the voice and noticed that Smoker had climbed back to his feet. He was kneeling on one knee, propping himself up with his right hand while his left hand wiped a smear of blood from the corner of his mouth.
"You're not my match!"
"Whether I am or not will be decided once the fight is over. White Gale!!"
Boom!
Smoker's entire body erupted into a massive explosion of smoke, blanketing the entire combat area in less than three seconds. The scene became a complete white-out, hiding everything from view.
"Clever!"
"While Lucci can use the Sea Prism Stone gloves to compensate for his lack of awakened Armament Haki to hit Smoker's physical form, Smoker has now covered the entire area with his ability to completely block line of sight."
"He can even use the smoke to interfere with 'Kami-e' to some extent. This way, Lucci shouldn't be able to accurately perceive Smoker's position or movements."
Sengoku's eyes lit up at Smoker's maneuver. His analysis was spot on; that was exactly Smoker's intent.
While Lucci's Kami-e was powerful enough to sense Smoker even without sight, the technique relied on sensing changes in air currents produced by the opponent's movements to perceive and evade.
The key was the air current!
But Smoker had filled the entire area with smoke. While the smoke might not completely block the air, it provided enough interference to disrupt the precision of Lucci's Kami-e.
Moreover, since the smoke was an extension of Smoker's own body, he could clearly track Lucci's position. It was a brilliant tactical move.
'Bang! Bang! Bang!'
'Thud! Crash!'
'BOOM!!'
Although the spectators couldn't see the battle, the surrounding Marines could hear the sounds of violent clashes echoing from within the smoke. It sounded like a fierce struggle.
However, they failed to notice the expressions of the Marine high command.
Sengoku and the other Vice Admirals looked grim. Using their Observation Haki, they could perceive the truth of the battle within the smoke. It was nothing like the fierce exchange the other soldiers imagined.
In reality...
Aside from landing a single hit at the very beginning, Smoker had spent the rest of the time being systematically beaten.
Why?
Because Lucci had allowed that first hit to land on purpose. In that brief moment, Lucci used the advantage of his Sea Prism Stone gloves to seize Smoker's punching arm in a vice grip.
What followed was a brutal one-sided beating. Lucci even unleashed multiple point-blank Shigan attacks, punching several bloody holes through Smoker's body.
A moment later...
Boom!
With a thunderous crash, the smoke covering the area vanished instantly, revealing the scene within.
There was a small trace of blood at the corner of Lucci's mouth, but before the Marines could cheer, they saw Smoker lying on the ground, unconscious and near death.
"Fleet Admiral Sengoku, I've held back. Can this farce end now?"
"You..."
Sengoku was truly speechless. Even if he sent a few more men up, the result wouldn't change. It would only make the Marines look more pathetic.
The Ninth Opponent
After all, those eight had already been the strongest individuals under the age of thirty currently stationed at Headquarters.
Even Smoker, a Logia user, had been no match for him; sending anyone else up would yield the same result.
"Since you've already fought eight, you wouldn't mind spending a little more time on a ninth, would you?"
Just as Sengoku was about to concede, a voice suddenly spoke up from beside him.
Then, a youth who looked barely fourteen or fifteen—and who didn't even possess a military rank—began walking slowly toward Lucci.
If this wasn't Sean... then who else could it be?