Starting with Naruto, I'll become stronger through my own efforts.

Chapter 215 The Tacit Understanding Between the Two Navys

The Pirate Emperor, Shanks the Red-Haired, won, but his victory was anything but easy.

On Shanks' right chest, near his shoulder, a large hole was ripped open by Shaza's counterattack—the kind of transparent hole that allows you to see the other side.

He was careless and didn't dodge.

Shanks' Observation Haki is powerful enough to foresee the future, but in battle, his attention is focused on his enemy.

He "saw" Xia Zuo being hit by [Divine Evasion], and he "saw" Xia Zuo's military uniform, skin, and muscles being torn apart, and even his internal organs being pulverized in the red sword energy.

The joy of victory and the regret of his opponent's fall interfered with Shanks' judgment, causing his Observation Haki to fail to detect the giant bird's long beak that was counterattacking against the red sword energy in time.

When that enormous beak, as large as a towering tree, pierced through the red sword energy and arrived in front of Shanks at the cost of its own layers peeling away, he truly had no idea beforehand.

Upon seeing the blue-white long beak pierce through the red sword energy of [God's Evasion], Shanks instinctively dodged to the left and covered his body with Armament Haki.

His dodge was too late; he barely avoided being hit in the heart.

Furthermore, Shanks' Armament Haki was insufficient; it was torn to shreds like paper in front of the long beak of the Divine Bird of Light, which was also composed of Armament Haki and cold air.

However, despite having a large hole pierced through his body, Shanks was still able to stand and breathe with only half of his lung.

He could even laugh out loud: "Amazing, this kind of desperate fighting style is really deadly."

"But it's rare to see such a courageous navy officer. I haven't even had a chance to properly experience your unique fighting style before you're dead."

"That's such a pity—cough, cough!"

On the other side, Shazo, as the loser, looked much worse than Shanks.

Just as Shanks had predicted, Xia Zuo was struck head-on by the sword energy of [God's Evasion]. His strong body was almost cut in two at the waist. From his ribs to his pelvis, there were no internal organs left, only a trembling spine connecting them.

Even in the pirate world where everyone is a tough guy, this is a fatal injury.

Have you ever seen the seemingly indestructible Portgas D. Ace, the user of the Flame-Flame Fruit, who was killed when a Magma-Magma Fruit user ripped a hole in the center of his body?

Therefore, Borsalino and Shanks both believed that Shazo was dead, and a dead person is obviously the one who lost the battle.

It wasn't until they both heard Xia Zuo's voice, crying out in pain, "It really hurts so much—"

"But to be able to fight the Pirate Emperor was truly exhilarating!"

Borsalino and Shanks suddenly turned their heads and looked at Shazo, who had been floating on the sea surface, motionless like a corpse.

Shaza opened his eyes and pressed his hands against the sea surface to prop himself up, grinning at Shanks.

The eyes of both the Navy Admiral and the Pirate Emperor were focused on Xia Zuo's waist and abdomen, where clusters of fleshy buds were growing from his chest and groin, tentatively approaching him.

The granulation tissue that emerged from the top and bottom grew very quickly. In the blink of an eye, two granulation tissues came into contact with each other and instantly merged together to form a strip of flesh.

Once you have the first one, you'll get the second and the third.

Countless strips of flesh connected together between Xia Zuo's chest and abdomen, like a spider web, linking his severed upper and lower body together.

Borsalino noticed that a layer of white fascia had appeared on Shazo's lumbar spine at some point, followed by the formation of skeletal muscles that covered the white spine.

The slender strips of flesh connecting the body also quickly transformed into slender yet powerful muscles, forming a dense network of muscles.

However, the muscles are still too slender, and through the gaps in the muscle fibers, you can see various internal organs that are wriggling and growing.

Soon, these horrifying images were obscured as the muscles swelled.

Next, the muscles were covered by a layer of skin, and Xia Zuo recovered.

He really recovered, and even bent over and stood up, standing on the sea surface where many ice floes were floating.

Shanks and Borsalino were both dumbfounded. Forgetting about Shaza's ability to stand directly on the sea surface, they asked in unison, "Did you eat the Immortality Fruit?"

Xia Zuo, puzzled, asked in return, "There's also an immortal Devil Fruit?"

Borsalino shook his head and said, "As far as I know, there has never been such a fruit before, but your ability to come back to life far exceeds the level of life return. It looks like the ability of the Immortal Fruit or the Life Fruit."

Xia Zuo shook his head and said, "Admiral Kizaru, you can't just assume that every unfamiliar ability is a result of a Devil Fruit."

""

He reached out and a surge of seawater obediently rose up, then washed the blood off his body and said confidently, "Self-healing is my own special talent, and has nothing to do with Devil Fruits."

In this most irrefutable way, Shaza proved that he had never eaten a Devil Fruit.

Shanks and Borsalino naturally couldn't help but believe it.

Xia Zuo looked at Shanks, whose wound was still bleeding profusely, and suddenly revealed a smug smile: "This time I won."

Upon hearing his words, Shanks and Borsalino, who were still reeling from the miracle of their resurrection, finally came to their senses.

Yes, Shanks has now injured his right shoulder and the right side of his lung, while Shazam, who was about to be dismembered, has recovered completely. Naturally, Shanks has lost this time.

Of course, it's a stretch to say that Xia Zuo won based on this result.

Shazam not only used his unknown talent, but he also took full advantage of Shanks' carelessness and Borsalino's presence to buy himself time to recover, which led to this result.

If any one of the three conditions is missing, and Shanks attacks again during Shaza's recovery process, Shaza will really be split in two, or simply die completely.

But even if it was a hard-fought victory, it was still a victory. Shazam stood there unharmed, while Shanks had lost an arm and couldn't stop the bleeding for a while.

Shanks glanced at Shazam, then looked up at Borsalino who was staring at him, and reluctantly sheathed Griffin. He then pressed his left hand against his straw hat, hiding his face in the hat's shadow.

He smiled and said, "Oh dear, oh dear, this is bad."

"Not only was he injured by the Navy's secret forces, but he was also targeted by Admiral Kizaru, who is the fastest."

"But Red-Haired doesn't want to go to Impel Down; it's too restrictive there."

Freedom is Shanks' lifelong pursuit and obsession; it is his inviolable bottom line and one of his absolute taboos.

Shanks pressed down on his straw hat, smiled, and asked, "Admiral Kizaru, are you really going to arrest me here?"

His laughter was cold and chilling, a terrifying power brewing beneath its calm surface, like a volcano about to erupt.

The cunning Borsalino had already put away his Den Den Mushi. Without Fleet Admiral Sengoku's supervision, he had no intention of fighting a Yonko.

Yes, if he were to fight Shanks, it would be like risking his life.

Of the Four Emperors, Whitebeard is the strongest, Kaido is the most ferocious, and Big Mom is the most insane. All three are stronger than Shanks, but Borsalino is not afraid because his speed is enough to give him absolute initiative.

After all, Kizaru is a shameless old fox, the Navy's number one slacker. He has an absolute advantage in speed, so he can fight or leave whenever he wants without any danger.

But Shanks is different; his Observation Haki allows him to foresee the future, and for quite some time.

No matter how fast Borsalino is, he still needs time to react. Facing Shanks, who can foresee the future, he is very likely to be caught off guard by Shanks's preemptive strike.

Admiral Kizaru is known for his Glint-Glint Fruit ability. His Haki has always been criticized by Chief Instructor Zephyr, who predicted that he would suffer because of it in the future.

If he were captured by Shanks, who rose to the position of one of the Four Emperors through his Haki and swordsmanship, he would definitely be in trouble.

Therefore, Borsalino immediately raised his hands to show that he had no intention of attacking Shanks after hearing Shanks' question.

He chuckled and said, "Don't misunderstand, don't misunderstand, Red-Haired Shanks. Although I am a Marine Admiral and must obey Fleet Admiral Sengoku's orders, the way I obey orders can be very flexible."

"I just have a question I want to ask you."

Shanks removed his left hand from his hat: "That's strange. You're a Marine Admiral, backed by the Navy and the World Government. What questions do you have to ask me, a pirate?"

Borsalino chuckled and said, "There's nothing I can do; only you can answer this question. I have no choice but to ask you."

"Red-Haired Shanks, as the Emperor of the Pirates, have you ever—been kicked by light?"

Borsalino vanished without a sound, his movements accompanied only by a burst of dazzling light.

The next instant, Kizaru's foot stopped right next to Shanks' head, just a hair's breadth away from kicking him.

But Shanks had somehow drawn his long sword, Griffin, its blade covered in a black, imposing aura, and placed it in front of the yellow striped trousers.

If Borsalino hadn't stopped and had continued kicking Shanks' head, his leg would have been severed first.

Shanks looked at Kizaru and asked coldly, "Is this your idea of ​​flexibly obeying orders?"

Borsalino shrugged it off: "Of course, I'm a Marine Admiral. I can't just stand by and do nothing when I receive orders from Fleet Admiral Sengoku."

"Although I'm lazy, I, Kizaru, take military orders very seriously. I will execute any order diligently and will never make the foolish mistake of disobeying orders."

"Yes, I tried my best to fight Shanks, but I was no match for him and could only watch helplessly as he fled."

Borsalino turned to look at Shazo, who was approaching step by step, and added, "You agree, right, Lieutenant Colonel Shazo?"

Xia Zuo stopped in his tracks, twitched the corners of his mouth, and said with an ambiguous smile, "Admiral Kizaru is right. Even you are no match for the Pirate Emperor, so I, a mere Navy Lieutenant Commander, am even more useless."

Hearing the two of them making excuses to let him go, Shanks became increasingly nervous, his aura rising and his power gathering frantically.

He gritted his teeth and cursed, "You two bastards, don't keep giving me these flimsy excuses while you keep getting closer to me!"

Xia Zuo shut his mouth, but he didn't stop walking. He walked steadily on the sea, and with each step, his aura expanded.

His eyes were fixed intently on Shanks, on the wound on Shanks' right shoulder.

Borsalino withdrew his leg in apparent panic, repeatedly apologizing, "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to. I was just too scared, and I lifted my foot involuntarily."

After retracting his leg, Kizaru drifted to the side and rear, but his position formed a pincer movement with Xia Zuo, which looked like he had ill intentions.

Red-haired Shanks was so angry he laughed: "What two two-faced bastards, each with their own unique wickedness."

Without further hesitation, taking advantage of the fact that Kizaru and Xia Zuo's momentum had not yet reached its peak and that their positions were quite different, he suddenly unleashed a [Flying Slash] at Kizaru.

Almost simultaneously, Shanks unleashed two more Flying Slashes into the air, attacking two unoccupied locations, and finally delivered two consecutive Flying Slashes to Shazo.

Borsalino instantly transformed into light and retreated to the sky when Shanks swung Griffin, but he was surprised to find a sword aura aimed directly at him.

Before he could think it through, he instinctively transformed into a flash of light again, appearing in a farther and higher position, only to be hit by Shanks' third [Flying Slash] sword energy.

Instantly, a portion of Kizaru's body glowed, clearing away the sword energy imbued with domineering power.

When Borsalino regained his human form some distance away, his yellow suit was torn and had a small amount of blood seeping out.

Looking at his wound, Admiral Kizaru shouted in an extremely exaggerated and flamboyant manner, "Oh no! I've been injured by Haki! I'm bleeding! How terrible!"

His voice was loud, but there was no sign of tension or fear.

On the other side, Shanks' two sword strikes against Shazam were slightly different in speed, and they caught up with each other just as they reached Shazam, forming an intersecting "X" shape.

However, Xia Zuo was not afraid of this sword aura that did not contain Conqueror's Haki.

He even got into a fighting stance with a bit of excitement, gathering his Armament Haki in his right hand and slashing down fiercely with his hand like a knife.

【Bingluan Baili】

A terrifying, domineering aura converged, using ice shards that had evaporated and then refrozen as materials to construct a magnificent, azure-blue divine bird—the Ice Phoenix.

Bingwan is the son of the phoenix. He combines the Ding Fire of the Five Elements with the ancient ice of the Arctic as his source of power, and blooms with a magnificent azure ice flame that can freeze everything.

The azure divine bird had just taken shape when it emitted a clear and melodious phoenix cry.

The phoenix's cry, imbued with terrifying power, shattered the two sword energies. Then, the ice phoenix, carrying terrifying cold air, rushed towards Shanks, whose momentum had waned after a series of slashes.

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