thefictionvixens Chapter 157: The battle ends in a draw; cadres are promoted.
Chapter 157: The battle ends in a draw; cadres are promoted.
Pooh!
Zefa spat out a mouthful of blood.
Having been hit so many times by Kaido, he was certainly not completely unharmed, but he wasn't seriously injured.
"Let's begin round two!!"
Zephyr lowered his stance slightly, his fighting spirit also being aroused by Kaido.
Although he has stepped down from the front lines, he wouldn't mind arresting Kaido if he could.
"Uro ro ro ro..."
Kaido chuckled softly, his eyes fixed on the Armament Haki flames on Zephyr's hands.
"This technique..."
He raised his hands and slowly clenched them into fists.
After stacking their Armament Haki to its maximum, they then flow it at an extremely high frequency.
Essentially, it's still a technique of using Armament Haki to project outwards and destroy internally.
However, Kaido's Armament Haki is not yet as refined as Zephyr's.
After all, Kaido hasn't had many battles that require his personal involvement since establishing the Land of Dragons.
As for the training with Charlotte Linlin.
Kaido focuses more on physical growth and strengthening his Conqueror's Haki.
Therefore, Armament Haki has been largely ignored.
In contrast, Zephyr has been fighting many powerful pirates over the years.
Moreover, since he only possesses Armament Haki and Observation Haki, he doesn't need to spend time training in Conqueror's Haki, allowing him to fully dedicate himself to improving his Armament Haki.
Therefore, although Kaido understood Zephyr's technique, he was unable to use Armament Haki like Zephyr did at this moment.
"Urgatari gira, I'll use you as the whetstone for my Armament Haki!!"
Kaido leaped into the air and charged towards Zephyr.
Zephyr stood in a lunge stance, showing no fear of Kaido's charging attack.
Using a technique to deflect Kaido's straight punch, he simultaneously slipped his other fist into Kaido's opening and successfully struck Kaido in the abdomen.
"Black Arm - Fist of Justice!!"
The fist, wreathed in Armament Haki, sank into Kaido's abdominal muscles, then twisted slightly.
The powerful twisting force sent Kaido flying like a fan.
It rolled several times on the ice field.
Kaido shook his slightly dizzy head and touched his abdomen.
"A very peculiar technique, it feels somewhat like the martial arts of the Flower Country."
The prototype of the Flower Country is his hometown in his previous life.
Therefore, the one-hit kill technique of the Flower Country martial arts does not simply pursue so-called grand and sweeping movements.
The strategy is more about protecting oneself first, and then exploiting the opponent's weaknesses, using strength to attack the weak in a specific area to achieve a fatal blow.
Zephyr's punch just now hit Kaido's stomach.
The powerful internal destruction from the Armament Haki, combined with the twisting force from the rotating fist, caused a sharp pain in his stomach.
If his internal organs hadn't been enhanced by the system, and if Kaido hadn't paid a lot of attention to training them, Zephyr would probably have ruptured his stomach with that punch.
"Hmm, I didn't expect you to look so honest, but you're actually quite cunning."
Zephyr replied calmly, "When dealing with pirates, using even the most vicious techniques is never excessive."
In the past, Zephyr, because of his belief in not killing, knew these insidious skills honed on the battlefield, but he always disdained to use them.
But after his wife and son were attacked by pirates, his mindset changed, and these skills were naturally unlocked.
Kaido was probably the first person to experience this kind of ruthless technique.
"That's exactly how it should be!"
"Killing those scum pirates countless times is never enough to vent my anger!"
Kaido's words struck Zephyr as odd.
As a pirate, he uttered words that sounded like something a Marine would say...
However, upon further reflection, he thought of the Dragon Kingdom that Kaido had established in the West Blue, and he felt somewhat relieved.
Some old thoughts kept resurfacing in my mind.
Perhaps Kaido became a pirate out of necessity... Is he still a good person at heart?
"Stop spacing out! The battle isn't over yet!!"
Kaido's voice rang out again, bringing Zephyr back to his senses.
"Yes! The battle is not over yet!!"
A serious look appeared in Zefa's eyes.
He thought to himself, 'Let me prove it with my fists! Kaido, your principles of justice!!'
Kaido was unaware of Zephyr's change of heart. At this moment, he only wanted to have a good fight with Zephyr and hone his combat skills and Armament Haki through actual combat.
So, the blue dragonman launched an attack once again.
Boom boom boom...
The ice field trembled, shattered, and then froze again.
Time flies.
The battle between Kaido and Zephyr lasted for a full day and night.
During this time, Kaido frantically absorbed combat experience from Zephyr.
Furthermore, as the battle continued, he constantly restrained his own combat power, coordinating it with the strength that Zephyr could unleash.
In the end, the two fought to a draw.
On the icy plains, a radiant Kaido looked at a panting Zephyr.
He laughed and said, "Why don't we end this battle here? You've already achieved your goal; there's no need to continue!"
Zefa nodded slightly upon hearing this.
As Kaido's opponent, he could clearly sense that Kaido was showing mercy everywhere.
In particular, Kaido barely used his Devil Fruit ability.
Aside from the basic human-beast transformation and lightning power, plus the ice power to freeze the ocean, none of the other attribute abilities were used.
Zephyr knew that the wood-type ability Kaido used in his battle against Lucci Arno was in no way weaker than that of an average Admiral-level Logia-type Devil Fruit user.
"I'll do as you say, that's enough for today!"
Upon hearing this, Kaido instead took the lead and headed back towards the island.
Gazing at his departing figure, a complex emotion flashed in Zefa's eyes.
However, he didn't say anything, and shortly after Kaido left, he turned around and headed back towards the warship.
"General Zephyr!!"
"General, are you alright?"
Back on the deck of the warship, a group of naval cadets immediately surrounded Zefa, showering him with concern and care.
Zefa gently shook his head.
"I'm fine."
He then sighed and said, "I'm sorry to have embarrassed you, but I didn't fight well at all in this battle."
"What are you saying?!"
"This battle was absolutely spectacular!!"
"If it weren't for you, we wouldn't have had the chance to witness a battle between true generals at such close range!!"
"Hahaha……"
Zefa laughed heartily.
"If that's the case, I'm not the only one who deserves credit. You should also thank Kaido for cooperating. If it weren't for him, this battle would have been a true fight to the death."
Upon hearing this, the naval cadets nodded in agreement.