Bang! Bang! Bang!
The punches were raining sideways like crazy. Both were fighting with each other, without caring about the outcome.
Luffy's punches were heavy, strong, and a bit reckless. Every punch he threw was coated in Armament Haki.
Sometimes Naruto would respond with a simple push, while other times he would return it with his own punch.
Every time Naruto tried using Rasengan or Rasenshuriken, Luffy would either destroy it or fight back.
While Rasenshuriken could injure his cells, he could also use Armament Haki to block the power of those wind needles.
On the other hand, Luffy's special attacks were punches and kicks coated in Conqueror Haki. This made those attacks specifically powerful.
Naruto had to rely on the advanced sensory capabilities of this new mode to dodge those attacks or block them with his own Tailed Beast Ball.
Even then, he would always be the injured one.
Every time he shot a Tailed Beast Ball at Luffy, it would be encountered by a nuclear bomb-like fist.
Its power was so immense that a slight movement of his fist would create a hurricane.
This was a difference between Luffy and Naruto.
Naruto was a planetary or even a solar-system-level character.
His powers were truly high, but his attacks, except for Tailed Beast Balls, didn't feel that devastating.
That's why most people think Naruto was strongest during his fight with Sasuke at the Valley of the End.
That's not true. Naruto's strongest boost was before he lost his Six Paths Senjutsu Chakra.
The only reason Naruto felt strong during that fight was that he used an explosive-type attack.
That attack wouldn't even be able to destroy the moon, but in the last movie, Naruto was able to block an attack that could cut the moon in half with just his palm.
Not only that, but he was also able to defeat a Pseudo-Six Paths-level character with just one punch.
Naruto was powerful, but his punches wouldn't feel impactful because he was increasing the strength of his punches with Chakra.
That would make his punches devastating but also controlled.
On the other hand, Luffy was overall strong. He was a tank-type character. His attacks weren't amplified by any kind of energy.
Even Armament Haki and Conqueror Haki were a boost. It was just like how Naruto's Sage Mode or Kurama Mode would make his punches stronger.
But it was still Chakra that made Naruto stronger. But Luffy was physically a monster.
So every time he threw a punch, he could create an air fissure so strong that it could not only detonate the Beast Ball in the middle but also send back its explosion.
This forced Naruto to use the Tailed Beast Ball less, but by doing so, he was getting wrecked by Luffy.
Now that Luffy's strength had reached his level and he had also improved it using the Second Gear, Naruto's attacks could barely reach him.
But all of Luffy's attacks would reach Naruto.
Because Luffy could see what Naruto was planning to do. The only reason Naruto wasn't defeated was that he was a Ninja.
A Ninja fights based on intelligence.
So, he could create shadow clones and use transformation to fool Luffy. Of course, this wouldn't work on Future Sight.
But Naruto could also fool Luffy by relying on his calculative moves. He would use the shadow clones to attack Luffy.
The attack was real, so Luffy had no choice but to block it. Naruto would use Luffy's distraction as an opportunity to launch a sneak attack.
This was frustrating for Luffy, who was used to defeating his opponent with sheer strength.
Not only was Naruto able to use his intelligence, but he was also relying heavily on his instincts and sensory capabilities.
If he lacked any of those, he would've been instantly defeated by Luffy.
"Hey, you are too cunning. Why didn't you fight me straight up?"
Luffy stopped for a moment, putting his hands in front of him as he asked.
Naruto stopped as well, wiping away the blood from the corner of his mouth. Even with his regeneration, some of Luffy's punches felt heavy.
"I am a Ninja. N.I.N.J.A! This is how Ninjas fight."
"Damn! I almost forgot you are a Ninja."
Luffy grumbled with a frustrated expression while also showing longing on his face. He truly wanted to become a Ninja.
He loved ninjas.
But suddenly, his body vanished.
This made Naruto's eyes shrink rapidly as he tried to sense Luffy's presence.
Just when he thought he had sensed Luffy's presence, Luffy had already appeared in front of him.
This speed was so fast that Naruto wasn't able to move his hands to use any Jutsu, forcing him to block the attack using Chakra Arms.
But Luffy suddenly grabbed his head with both arms, pulling him into his knee.
Bang!
Naruto's head flung back as his body lost control. Luffy took advantage of it, jumped, and spun in mid-air before kicking Naruto in the guts.
Bang!
'No…I'm losing consciousness.'
Naruto felt so heavy because of that attack that he almost lost his mind.
'How did he get so cunning with his moves? He didn't even announce his attacks.'
Naruto barely managed to maintain his consciousness while his body was flying back like a broken kite.
He crossed several kilometers before colliding with a torn mountain. His body caused the mountain to crack into dust before he fell to the ground.
"Cough! Cough!"
His teeth turned red as he started losing blood from his mouth. His regeneration kicked in and healed his injuries.
Just when he thought he could rest for a moment, his extraordinary perception gave him a strong warning.
He forcefully gathered some Chakra, forming two Chakra Arms that he used to smash the ground.
The impact sent his body flying into the air while Luffy crashed to the ground.
Bang!
Luffy's kick created a crater nearly the size of a tens of thousands of times bigger than the previous mountain.
But in just a few minutes, the ground recovered quite a lot.
At this moment, the Straw Hats watched the sheer destructiveness of the battle from afar.
"We can't participate in this battle."
Zoro muttered.
"Looks like Luffy lost his fruit."
Sanji released some smoke from his mouth as he spoke.
"Thank goodness!"
Robin patted her chest and sighed a breath of relief. Although Luffy lost his fruit, he didn't lose his life.
That was enough for her.
"You guys….You realize this is just a temporary boost, right? I can feel that strength fading away. Although it is slow, it will eventually disappear."
Usopp's voice trembled a little as he shouted.
"Yohohoho! We don't need to worry about this, Usopp-san. Captain is strong with and without his Devil Fruit."
Brook replied.
Chopper shook his head. His eyes showed concern as he spoke.
"No, there will be some repercussions. Liam and I discussed this before. Luffy is too young, far too young to handle this kind of strength without his Devil Fruit."
"If he loses this strength, he will go from the strongest person in our world to the weakest Yonko. Even the injured Whitebeard will be able to defeat him with ease."
"Don't worry, Chopper! This is our Captain. If he gets weaker, then he will just train to get stronger."
Frank patted Chopper on the back and said.
Nami crouched down and patted Chopper on his head, calming his worried mood.
"Luffy is not the type to rely solely on his Devil Fruit. Yes, the Devil Fruit is strength, but if he loses this, he can always find another one."
"You are worried that his body hasn't trained enough to handle his current Haki, right? So, we will just find him a Mythical Zoan."
"It might not match Luffy's fighting style, and it might not be good for him, but don't forget, once we win here, we will get Liam back."
"He will know what fruit will be good for Luffy."
Hearing that, Chopper calmed down.
On the other hand, Sanji frowned.
"Why is Luffy holding back?"
Zoro's eyes twitched. He hadn't noticed this, but realizing the difference in their Observation Haki, he didn't comment on Sanji's statement.
Instead, he logically answered his question.
"Luffy knows the opponent is also holding back. That's the only reason why he is holding back. At least we are here to save Liam, so he knows what's important right now."
Zoro wasn't wrong.
At this moment, Luffy could tell that Naruto was holding something back.
After losing his fruit, Luffy truly wanted to fight Naruto at his peak. So, he didn't understand what Naruto was holding back.
"Hey! Don't make me look down on you! Fight me with all your strength!"
Luffy shouted, turning his head towards Naruto, who had landed on the ground.
Naruto took a deep breath and asked.
"Kurama, do you think it will work?"
"Naruto, here, side effects do not exist! Come on, Naruto!"
Kurama roared inside his seal while clapping his hands together.
Naruto released a deep breath, locking his eyes on Luffy as he said.
"Then, I will use it. As long as my body doesn't collapse, I can use the Jutsu I always wanted to use."
[Eight Inner Gates]
[First Gate- Gate of Opening]
[Open]