Chapter 225: Scatter, Senbonzakura! (Makeup Update 1)
Ian had almost fired a Black Dragon Wave point-blank at Sentomaru just now. He wanted to see, faced with the situation of his own nephew being killed, whether this guy Kizaru would actually save him or not.
However, considering that the high temperature of the Black Dragon Wave might not have much effect on Kizaru, if he fired this Black Dragon Wave, and Kizaru kicked Sentomaru away while enduring the Black Dragon Wave through elementalization...
Although the Black Dragon Wave was also a high-energy blast that might still be effective against Kizaru, Ian had never actually tested it, so he wasn't sure. To avoid wasting the Black Dragon Wave, Ian restrained himself and didn't strike immediately.
Holding Senbonzakura reversed in his left hand, Ian raised his right hand to the sky. The black fire dragon soared once again above the Salamis Duchy!
Countless people witnessed this scene. Zephyr, who was fighting Fujitora, looked up at the black dragon dancing in the air and exclaimed, "What is that!?"
Fujitora chuckled and said, "Actually, I don't know either. I'm just a blind man..."
Zephyr glanced at him and laughed heartily, "You're blind, and I'm just an old man. Let's fight our own fight!"
"Exactly my thought!" Fujitora replied, and then the two clashed together again.
The black fire dragon that shot into the sky was seen not only by the people on Salamis Island but also by many on the Whitebeard Pirates' ship, which was far out at sea, heading toward them.
"A dragon? A fire dragon? A black fire dragon?" Whitebeard said, standing at the bow with his bisento.
Since the distance was still great, the Black Dragon Wave they saw appeared smaller, but the dragon's shape and form were unmistakable at a glance.
Thus, everyone looked at the phoenix Marco on the ship, thinking that since there was already a phoenix, a dragon appearing wasn't so strange...
But at that moment, the black fire dragon turned in the air and dove straight toward the ground.
Kizaru was also seeing Ian's Black Dragon Wave for the first time. The entire sky seemed to have gained an extra black sun. The scorching heat that seemed to burn the air itself spread through the space overhead, instantly causing sweat to break out.
When he saw the Black Dragon Wave turn and dive down, he quickly pushed Sentomaru away to get him out of the area.
The black fire dragon opened its mouth wide and, with a terrifying momentum, engulfed Ian from above. The spreading black flames, when they reappeared, swirled around Ian's body.
Ian chose to absorb the Black Dragon Wave again, resulting in an instant surge of Psychic Power.
Compared to the last time he absorbed the Black Dragon Wave, Ian's body bore much less burden. During this period, he had been training under Fujitora's gravity suppression, not only in physical combat but also in Nen ability. In fact, with his continuous use of Psychic Power, his expert-level Nen Training had maxed out its proficiency. Although he hadn't advanced yet, his capacity to accommodate the surging Psychic Power had improved.
After absorbing the Black Dragon Wave, Ian immediately gripped his sword and charged at Kizaru. Seeing Ian surrounded by black flames, Kizaru didn't dare be careless. He kicked out a laser kick on the spot, aiming at Ian.
But Ian, with his Psychic Power boosted, instantly set up a Three-Day Barrier Shield in front of him!
Kizaru's laser kick turned into a beam of light flying toward Ian, hitting the Three-Day Barrier Shield head-on, exploding with a bang!
With more Psychic Power supporting it, the Three-Day Barrier Shield wasn't broken by Kizaru's laser, protecting Ian unscathed.
When Ian burst out of the explosion's smoke, he was right in front of Kizaru. The black flames on his sword immediately slashed down at him.
Kizaru leaped up to dodge Ian's attack. He was quite wary of Ian's black flames. From the earlier scene where Ian merely touched Sentomaru's axe and turned it into molten iron, Kizaru knew the black flames were an extremely high-temperature fire, likely even hotter than Akainu's magma. He wasn't sure if such flames could harm him, so to be cautious, he chose to avoid being touched and dodged.
This leap naturally took him into the air. Just as Kizaru planned to float midair and attack Ian with Yasakani no Magatama, he suddenly realized that Ian had followed him and flown into the air!
On Ian's back, a pair of wings formed from black flames carried him aloft. The massive wingspan made Ian look incredibly fierce. Kizaru had to change his move abruptly, pulling his hands together to form the Ama no Murakumo Sword, blocking Ian's thrust!
The two of them thus fought in the sky above the Salamis Duchy, exchanging blows back and forth. Every time their swords clashed, fragments of light and fire scattered through the air.
"Is this... an angel and a demon fighting!?"
Countless citizens of the Salamis Duchy witnessed this scene, staring blankly at the sky, completely forgetting that the Salamis Duchy was in a state of war.
Kizaru wielded a sword of light, while Ian used a sword of black flames. To the people below, their battle looked like an angel fighting a demon...
This mythical scene was recorded by Pritz, who had just woken up in the distance, tremblingly holding a Video Den Den Mushi. The Den Den Mushi's signal spread across the world again, leaving countless people stunned and speechless.
Although he gained a temporary Psychic Power boost by absorbing the Black Dragon Wave, Ian's stamina recovery was also fast now. So even fighting in the air, he could hold out for a long time. He fought Kizaru freely. Kizaru's swordsmanship was strong—after all, the Marines had swordsmanship courses. Even if Kizaru didn't often fight with a sword, after years of immersion, he wasn't weak.
Aerial combat often lacked the horizontal position limitations of ground combat. As they slashed at each other, they gradually rose higher, and the scattered energy blew away the mist and clouds around them.
"Your swordsmanship isn't bad!" Kizaru said to Ian while fighting. "But it's not enough. To beat me with swordsmanship like that, you'd need Hawk-Eye Mihawk!"
Ian didn't respond. He knew his swordsmanship had indeed hit a bottleneck. Although his proficiency was maxed, he still hadn't grasped how to advance.
How does one defeat an enemy with swordsmanship? Perhaps at the start, it relied on exquisite techniques. But as one progressed, the role of techniques gradually diminished, replaced by simpler, faster strikes. As long as your speed was enough, a casual slash could render even the most exquisite technique useless.
This was the principle of speed being unbeatable.
However, facing Kizaru, Ian realized that this speed-based slashing swordsmanship had little effect on him. Because the Glint-Glint Fruit itself was renowned for speed...
So Ian kept thinking: what should higher-level, more powerful swordsmanship be like? Kizaru admitted that to hurt him, it would take Hawk-Eye Mihawk. So what level had Hawk-Eye Mihawk's swordsmanship reached?
During the fight, Kizaru suddenly abandoned his sword and fired countless high-energy beams at Ian, forcing Ian to flip over and fly downward to dodge.
But Kizaru continued to rain beams down on Ian. Some beams, after Ian dodged them, hit the sea surface below, exploding and sending up towering waves. Other beams landed on the ground, causing flashes of explosions.
In the sky, it was like a downpour of explosions. The streets, shops, and various buildings of the Salamis Duchy were all destroyed as a result. If the Salamis Duchy's army hadn't evacuated the people earlier, the casualties would have been enormous.
Kizaru couldn't care less at this point. From his position in the air, he could already see ships appearing on the horizon beyond the island. He knew it must be the Whitebeard Pirates. He had to take down Ian as quickly as possible.
A Marine Admiral going all out finally displayed his terrifying destructive power. A rain of light fell from the sky, making the island feel like doomsday had arrived.
It had to be said, Kizaru had found a way to counter Ian. Ian wasn't skilled at flying, and under such a dense rain of light, his left arm, right shoulder, side waist and abdomen, and left thigh were all pierced by Kizaru's beams.
Although with Orihime Inoue's card, such injuries were no big deal and could heal quickly, Kizaru's relentless attack put Ian in a tough spot.
"Not enough. Just absorbing the Black Dragon Wave isn't enough!" Ian gritted his teeth and suddenly pulled up, flying above Kizaru. Now, if Kizaru wanted to attack him, he'd have to shoot upward.
Kizaru realized this too and paused. Taking this opportunity, Ian began to act.
During the two days he spent on Salamis Island waiting for Ace, Ian hadn't been idle. The 3 billion Berries sent by Doflamingo were partly recharged by Ian. Then, by refreshing the card shop, he bought and synthesized Byakuya Kuchiki's card.
He had originally planned to equip this card as soon as he reached level 20. But after checking, he found that after taking down Ain and Binz, his level had only reached 19, still a bit short of experience.
Left with no choice, Ian first used Twin Heaven Return Shield to heal his wounds, then swapped out Orihime Inoue's card and equipped Byakuya Kuchiki's card.
The next second, under Kizaru's gaze, Ian raised Senbonzakura in front of him and said, "Let me show you something interesting!"
"Oh?" Kizaru smiled. "I'm looking forward to it!"
Ian said, "This is my final trump card... Scatter, Senbonzakura!"
As Ian's voice fell, the Senbonzakura he held upright gradually became transparent and ethereal, and then the blade slowly disappeared.
No, to be precise, it didn't disappear. Instead, it turned into countless pink cherry blossom petals, scattering in the wind!