Chapter 240: Grinding Experience on the Division Commanders
Who was Fossa?
He was the man who was almost mistaken by the Marines as the mastermind behind the Mary Geoise incident, nearly becoming Ian's scapegoat!
This Fossa was actually a middle-aged man, with a balding hairstyle, thick mustache under his nose, and often chewing on a cigar, even while drinking.
This Uncle Fossa was also a swordsman. His blade was slightly longer than Ian's, and he too could use flame sword techniques. When fighting and cutting people, his entire sword would burn with blazing flames. In this regard, he was more suited for the title of "Burning Blade" than Ian.
And this was what Fossa resented. Damn it, he had fought alongside Whitebeard for so many years, and was a well-known figure even among the Marines. Yet such a title had not fallen on him, but instead on a young man like Ian.
He also knew that Ian's strength was formidable. The recent battle between the Dragon Hunter Pirates and two Marine Admirals had been broadcast worldwide. Ian's title of "Burning Blade" might not be used again in the future; the world would probably give him a new epithet. Still, he wanted to see who was more deserving of this title between him and Ian.
As soon as Fossa stepped forward to challenge, the entire Whitebeard Pirates crew became lively. They clapped and cheered, fueled by alcohol. Such events were common on the Whitebeard Pirates ship, as crew members often fought side by side, and understanding each other's strength was beneficial for battle.
Not only were the Whitebeard Pirates cheering, but the Dragon Hunter Pirates were also joining in. Baby-5 had already drunk too much, her face flushed red, and she was even sitting beside Ace, whistling along with him.
Seeing this, Ian knew he couldn't avoid it, so he didn't refuse. He stood up, burped from the alcohol, and walked out of the crowd.
In fact, Ian was also a bit tipsy. It was well known that people who drink tend to get excited. Ian was also interested in Fossa's flame sword technique, so he was happy to accept the challenge.
The crew quickly cleared a space for them. The Moby Dick was the flagship of the Whitebeard Pirates, so it was quite large. The ship had no raised cabin partitions, and the entire bow was a flat deck, providing enough space for the two to fight.
Standing in the middle, Fossa swung his longsword a few times. Flames shot up, igniting the entire blade. As Fossa swung it, the flames roared audibly.
Ian also drew Thousand Cherry Blossoms from the scabbard at his waist. Using the Evil King Flame Slayer Sword, the entire blade also burst into flames.
The members of the Whitebeard Pirates and the Dragon Hunter Pirates became even more excited, their eyes fixed unblinkingly on the two in the arena. Whitebeard and Fujitora, meanwhile, drank and watched with smiles.
Just from their stances, everyone could already see the difference between Fossa and Ian.
Fossa's sword burned like ordinary flames, the fire rising upward from the back of the blade. But Ian's was different. The flames on his sword were directed forward, and the fire was condensed, without any flickering sensation. At the tip of the blade, an extra point of flame was formed.
"I'm coming!" Fossa said, his heart itching after seeing Ian's flaming blade. He shouted, gripping his sword with both hands, and charged at Ian while chewing his cigar. With a whoosh, he slashed at Ian.
Ian didn't waste words either. He raised his sword to block Fossa's slash, and while deflecting the force, he also fiercely slashed back at Fossa without backing down.
Fossa's swordsmanship followed a path of brute force. In his attacks, thrusts or slices were rare; most were slashes. This uncle, though balding, had arms with muscles that seemed to explode, possessing immense strength. Each of his slashes carried tremendous force, as if he wouldn't stop until he broke his opponent's weapon.
Ian also let loose for once. Now that his own strength was not much less than Fossa's, he abandoned his speed-based techniques and chose to fight Fossa head-on.
Their mutual slashes, accompanied by the endless clanging of metal, made the eardrums of the onlookers ache. Yet despite this, everyone kept cheering and encouraging the two fighters.
Since both used flame sword techniques, each clash sent bursts of flames scattering around. However, the spectators soon noticed that most of these scattered flames came from Fossa's sword. The flames on Ian's sword were more condensed. In terms of flames alone, Fossa couldn't match Ian.
During their exchange, Fossa also noticed this characteristic. The almost solid flames on Ian's blade formed an additional layer of cutting edge. These flames had astonishing cutting power!
If it were an ordinary person's sword, it might have been cut by Ian long ago. But Fossa wasn't worried about his blade at all, because it was also a famous sword! The toughness of the blade, combined with Fossa's Armament Haki hardening, allowed him to keep clashing with Ian.
In just a few minutes of fighting, Ian and Fossa had already exchanged no fewer than two hundred blows. Both felt they had fought very satisfyingly.
Clang! Another collision of immense force. Ian and Fossa locked swords, engaging in a contest of strength!
Fossa exerted all his power, trying to overwhelm Ian. But Ian's arms were also bulging with veins as he firmly resisted Fossa's strength. After a stalemate for a while, Fossa realized that pure strength couldn't defeat Ian. He shouted, "Enough testing! I'm using my ultimate move!"
"Perfect, I was thinking the same!" Ian, fueled by alcohol, felt his blood boiling and shouted back in response.
Their swords suddenly withdrew and separated. Then Fossa used all his strength to deliver a straight downward slash at Ian.
"Purgatory Slash!"
With a boom, a massive pillar of flame erupted from his sword. As Fossa brought it down, it was as if the pillar of fire was collapsing.
Fossa wasn't just about strength; his speed was also astonishing. This slash turned into a flash of flame, so fast it felt impossible to react to.
However, Ian had no intention of dodging. He sidestepped, planted his feet in a horse stance, and using the twisting force of his body, swung his sword upward to meet Fossa's slash.
Fossa's slash had a specific name in swordsmanship: "High Upper Section," while Ian's parry was called "Cutting Defense."
Boom! When their swords collided, the entire bow of the Moby Dick suddenly sank downward, then slowly rose back up. Fossa's slash carried such immense force that if the ship hadn't been on the sea to absorb some of the impact, the deck beneath their feet would have been crushed by this single clash.
Ian blocked Fossa's slash, then suddenly loosened his grip on the sword handle, allowing Fossa's blade to slide down along his own. Taking advantage, Ian stepped forward, spun his body, brushed past Fossa's side, and slammed the pommel of his sword hard into Fossa's right rib.
The ribs are a relatively vulnerable part of the human body. Although Fossa reacted and hardened that area with Armament Haki, he was still knocked flying by Ian, crashing onto the deck.
Since this was a spar, this move decided the outcome. The watching crowd erupted in lively shouts, applauding Ian's victory.
Fossa got up, rubbing his ribs, and grimaced, "Damn it, Ian, don't you know to go easy? I still want this waist to last a few more years!"
Ian sheathed his sword, gave him a sidelong glance, and said, "When you challenged me earlier, did you forget you were an uncle?"
"Hahaha!" Fossa laughed heartily, patting Ian on the shoulder, and said, "Your swordsmanship is better than mine, but it looks like you're hitting a bottleneck, aren't you?"
Ian wasn't surprised that Fossa had noticed his swordsmanship state, so he nodded, "Yeah, I don't know how to improve next."
Fossa pointed at a man in a top hat drinking among the spectators and said, "See that? That's the Fifth Division Commander, Flower Sword Vista. If you want to break through in swordsmanship, you'd better fight him."
As soon as Fossa said this, the crowd started cheering again, shouting, "Vista! Vista! Vista!"
In such an atmosphere of celebration, Flower Sword Vista naturally couldn't back down. He put down his glass and walked out. Fossa grinned, chewing his cigar, and returned to his seat.
Fighting Flower Sword Vista was indeed tempting to Ian. This Fifth Division Commander was also a skilled swordsman. Ian remembered that he had fought Hawk-Eye Mihawk. Hawk-Eye generally didn't bother remembering the names of small fry, but he remembered Flower Sword Vista, showing that Vista's swordsmanship had left a deep impression on Mihawk.
Sparring with him might really help Ian find a breakthrough point in his swordsmanship.
After all, Ian had been stuck at Expert-level swordsmanship for a long time, unable to advance to Master-level. Master Koushirou was nowhere to be seen now, and Ian couldn't seek his advice. If he could gain some insight from sparring with Vista, it would be excellent for Ian.
What excited Ian the most, however, was that after defeating Fossa in the spar, he had received a huge amount of experience.
And the Whitebeard Pirates now had 15 Division Commanders. If he could defeat them one by one through sparring, he could grind experience from them!
So, facing Vista, every muscle and drop of blood in Ian's body was in a state of extreme excitement.
"Please enlighten me!" Ian raised Thousand Cherry Blossoms and said to Vista.