Chapter 224: Fighting Kizaru Alone?
Faced with Ian’s teasing, Baby-5 was fuming with rage, but she was already locked in combat with Ain and had no time to deal with him, so she could only vent her anger on Ain.
Originally, Baby-5 had been turned into a little girl, and logically speaking, she shouldn’t have been able to win against Ain. However, after watching for a while, Ian noticed that Baby-5 was actually holding a slight advantage.
The ability of the Revert-Revert Fruit was indeed quite buggy, but judging from its effect on Baby-5, there were a few noteworthy points about this ability.
First, this reversion seemed to be purely physical; it couldn’t erase the memories of the affected person. That meant that although Baby-5 had been turned into a six- or seven-year-old little girl, her thoughts and memories remained those of her normal state.
Second, this reversion couldn’t eliminate the affected person’s abilities. Ian didn’t know when Baby-5 had eaten the Weapon-Weapon Fruit, but he figured that at six or seven years old, she likely didn’t have this power. Yet, after Ain reverted her age, the Weapon-Weapon Fruit’s ability was still there!
So, during the fight between Baby-5 and Ain, she cleverly used her Weapon-Weapon Fruit ability to create a large number of ranged weapons, attacking Ain from a distance and never letting Ain get close.
Although Ain could also throw those peach-colored flames like before, unfortunately, Baby-5’s mobility was excellent, as she could transform into missiles at any moment to dodge the attacks.
A little girl with a cigarette in her mouth fighting a beautiful older sister—this scene was quite bizarre. Ian didn’t watch for long before he suddenly made his move!
Taking advantage of Ain’s focus on Baby-5, he flashed over to Ain’s side and struck her neck with a chop.
It was rare for Ian to launch a sneak attack, so he succeeded in one blow. Ain felt a wave of dizziness and stumbled, slowly collapsing to her knees.
Although she was a girl, she had undergone formal Marine training and had some basic physical combat skills, so she didn’t faint immediately. However, the next moment, Ian’s blade was at her neck, and he said, “If you don’t want to die, stay still!”
“You! You actually attacked from behind!” Ain glared hatefully at Ian.
“Sorry,” Ian admitted frankly, “It’s dishonorable to ambush you, but we don’t have much time to waste.”
Baby-5, seeing Ian suddenly knock out Ain, was also annoyed. She walked over, tugged at Ian’s pant leg, looked up with puffed cheeks, and said, “Bastard, what are you doing? She was my opponent!”
Ian looked down at her and said, “Idiot, who knows how long it would take for you two to settle this? Don’t forget, there’s still Marine Admiral Kizaru!”
Hearing this, Baby-5 suddenly remembered and shuddered, falling silent.
Ian thought for a moment, then a bolt of lightning flickered across his empty left hand, striking Ain directly.
Caught off guard by the electric shock, Ain screamed and then was knocked unconscious.
Ian didn’t kill her; he just controlled the voltage to temporarily knock her out and neutralize her as a threat. After all, Ain was one of Zephyr’s right-hand people, one of the few remaining students from that batch alongside Binz. Ian didn’t want to completely provoke Zephyr into an endless pursuit, but he also couldn’t let Ain, a Devil Fruit User, hinder him. So, he had to resort to this method.
“Alright, go help the others!” Ian said to Baby-5.
Then, ignoring Baby-5’s reaction, he rushed toward Ace.
When Ain lost consciousness, Baby-5’s body once again emitted a peach-colored glow, gradually growing back to her original size. This was the effect of Ain’s Devil Fruit ability wearing off.
Baby-5 sighed in relief as her body returned to normal. Then, glancing at Ain, whose hair was standing on end from Ian’s electric shock, Baby-5’s eyes sparkled with mischief. She searched around, found a rope, tied Ain up, and then hoisted her over her shoulder before running off.
When Ian reached Ace, he found the guy staring wide-eyed at his opponent, Binz.
Binz was also a Devil Fruit User. This tall, slender man dressed in flashy ninja attire was a user of the Bloom-Bloom Fruit. He could control the accelerated growth of nearby plants. However, this ability was somewhat awkward—much like Old K’s current Illusion-Illusion Fruit ability—Binz hadn’t developed many powerful applications for the Bloom-Bloom Fruit. For now, all he could do was accelerate plant growth and use them to bind enemies.
But while this ability might be useful against others, it was practically useless against Ace. The plants that bound him would instantly be burned to ashes by the flames on his body.
Both Ain and Binz weren’t very strong at this point. Binz was slightly better, as he seemed to have learned some ninjutsu.
The reason Ace hadn’t finished Binz yet was precisely because of this. Ever since Binz showed off a clone technique earlier, Ace had been completely captivated!
Whether it was due to being influenced by his surroundings, Ace was just like his simple-minded idiot brother, Luffy, in this regard.
“Do it again!” When Ian arrived, Ace was still clapping and saying to Binz, “Throw another shuriken!”
Ian punched Ace in the back of the head. Ace winced, turned around, saw Ian, and excitedly said, “Ian, come look! A ninja! A ninja!”
Ian was furious and sneered, “Yeah, not only a ninja, but soon a Marine Admiral too. Are you sure you want to keep watching?”
Ace scratched his head and thought for a long time without giving an answer. It seemed he was torn between watching the ninja and facing a Marine Admiral, unable to make a choice.
This made Ian want to faint on the spot. So, ignoring Ace’s complaints, he charged straight at Binz.
Seeing Ian coming, Binz knew he was outmatched, so he immediately threw a smoke bomb on the ground, hoping to confuse Ian with the fog.
But for Ian, who had activated his Psychic Field, this was no problem at all. Even if he couldn’t see, he could still sense Binz’s position.
When Binz swung his ninja sword at Ian, Ian simply countered with his blade—Thousand Cherry Blossoms hardened with Armament Haki—cutting Binz’s sword in half. Then, he reached out with his left hand and grabbed Binz by the neck. After that, it was simple: just like with Ain, he electrocuted Binz until he was unconscious.
“I’ll help Fujitora and force Zephyr back. Then we’ll set sail. You go secure the warship first!” Ian said to Ace.
Seeing Ace nod, Ian immediately left and ran toward where Fujitora and Zephyr were fighting.
No one dared to get close to the area where Fujitora and Zephyr were battling, so a large empty space surrounded them. When Ian arrived, he found that Fujitora had the upper hand against Zephyr.
Although Zephyr’s Seastone mechanical arm was highly effective at suppressing Devil Fruit Users, this suppression depended on the opponent. Against Fujitora, this advantage was greatly diminished. Under Fujitora’s gravity control, Zephyr could still move thanks to his incredible physical combat skills, but it came at a huge cost in stamina. Zephyr was old—no matter how strong you were, time took its toll. His stamina had already declined significantly, and fighting under this gravity suppression drained him even faster. So, when Ian arrived, he saw that Fujitora was still fine, but Zephyr was already panting.
“Ian, don’t interfere!” Fujitora sensed Ian’s approach and immediately spoke.
Seeing the serious expression on Fujitora’s face, Ian understood his thoughts. Zephyr was a man worthy of respect, and Fujitora felt the immense fighting spirit emanating from him. Out of admiration for Zephyr, he didn’t want Ian to intervene in this battle.
He wanted to defeat Zephyr on his own.
Ian had no choice but to respect Fujitora’s wishes, so he stood by and watched. Fortunately, Fujitora also knew Ian’s urgency and promised, “Rest assured, I will end this quickly.”
Hearing this, Zephyr laughed heartily, swung his mechanical arm, and charged at Fujitora again. Fujitora did the same, his staff sword carrying immense gravity as it clashed with Zephyr’s mechanical arm. This was how Fujitora could withstand Zephyr’s monstrous strength.
With a loud clang, it seemed Fujitora and Zephyr were determined to fight to their hearts’ content.
Just as Ian was wondering whether to help Sardin and the others, a voice suddenly came from behind.
“Yo, Ian, it looks like you’re free. How about I be your opponent?”
Ian turned around and saw Kizaru, wearing his Marine coat, soaking wet, appearing in the rear. He still had his one-sided sunglasses on, with a casual expression, but as he walked over, Ian could feel the immense anger within Kizaru.
Ian looked around and noticed that Ace was gone, and Fujitora was still locked in a fierce battle with Zephyr.
Damn it! Was he supposed to take on Kizaru alone!?