"I know. The Heart Pirates Captain, the Surgeon of Death, Trafalgar Law, a Paramecia-type Ope-Ope Fruit user." Aeridar understood Dalt's meaning and said, "He is a subordinate of Doflamingo, and though they have their conflicts, let Doffy handle him himself. We don't absolutely need that ability, so don't be hasty. We still have time."
"Very well, I suppose I was being impatient," Dalt said, dropping the subject.
"Please hand this over to Dr. Jason for me." Aeridar reached into a small pocket, pulled out a wooden box, and handed it to Dalt. He added, "The Paramecia-type Anes-Anes Fruit. I believe this will also be an excellent match."
"The Anesthesia Fruit! Where did you acquire it? This is absolutely perfect!" Dalt eagerly took the wooden box, opened it, and saw a dark green apple patterned with karakusa swirling gently inside.
"What I want, I always get," Aeridar said with a placid expression, though his tone held a hint of arrogance.
Aeridar continued, "Please take good care of Dr. Hubert for me. We need his assistance very much."
"Captain, I am more aware of that than you are," Dalt replied without formality. "The Bio-Weapon Project is almost complete. With his help, it won't be long before we can fully engage in live combat."
"Hohohoho. Excellent. Then, distinguished Dr. Dalt, I leave everything here in your capable hands!" Aeridar's wide smile was instantly chilling and nefarious.
Ten-odd days later, Enies Lobby.
Shing, shing, shing, shing…
Boom, boom, boom, boom…
Ten Marine battleships of the first-rank surrounded Enies Lobby. Scorching cannonballs were fired wildly at the island. The sound of artillery shook the heavens, buildings continuously collapsed, and great fires engulfed the beautiful Judicial Island. Smoke blackened the sky, making the 'Island that Never Sleeps,' as Enies Lobby was known, look as though night had suddenly fallen.
The Bridge of Hesitation, First Pillar.
Bang, bang, bang, bang…
Boom, boom, boom, boom…
Luffy, his body red and emitting steam, engaged in a fierce battle with Rob Lucci, who had transformed into a Human-Leopard hybrid. The aerial fist-force and vacuum-slashes wreaked havoc on the surrounding walls and floor.
"Gomu Gomu no Pistol!"
Steam poured from Luffy's body. His arm stretched and recoiled at incredible speed, blasting a direct hole in a wall tens of meters away, sending rubble flying.
"You won't be able to hit me!" Lucci moved with lightning speed to one side, grinning menacingly at Luffy.
"Damn it! Why are you like those guys on Skypiea? I think they called it Mantra?!" Luffy ground his teeth, roaring, "Cut the crap, you pigeon-loving bastard!"
"Gomu Gomu no Bazooka!"
"Gomu Gomu no Whip!"
"Gomu Gomu no Stamp!"
"Gomu Gomu no Round!"
In the next moment, Luffy launched a rapid, continuous offensive. The intensity of each attack surpassed the last.
"It's useless! Useless! Ever since I witnessed the effect of Haki eight years ago, I have diligently practiced the Rokushiki to its limit. After that, I dedicated myself to desperately learning Haki. Though I've only just begun to master it, you are merely a novice, far inferior to that man when he first debuted! You cannot defeat me!" Lucci's figure moved with effortless grace, easily dodging Luffy's fierce attacks one after another.
Clang!
Lucci leaped into the air, stepping on the air with Geppo, then swept his leg downward.
"Rankyaku: Gaicho!"
A bird-shaped slash shot forth.
"Oh no!"
Luffy had seen this powerful attack cut steel and dared not take it head-on, rapidly dodging to avoid it.
Boom!
The wall exploded, shards of rock flew everywhere, and the thirty-plus-centimeter-thick granite wall was cleanly sliced through, leaving an extremely long cut.
"Bastard! I'm going to beat you! Gomu Gomu no Gatling!!!" Luffy's eyes widened. He threw out rapid, successive punches that formed a dense barrage, enveloping Lucci in mid-air.
"Child's play!"
Lucci sneered dismissively. He extended his massive arms and punched out quickly, creating countless afterimages as his fists met Luffy's barrage head-on.
Boom! Bang! Bang, bang, bang…
A series of fierce, muffled collision sounds rang out incessantly. The force waves spread, generating violent air turbulence that stirred up large clouds of dust.
After the rapid exchange, Luffy gasped for air, forced to stop his attack.
"Die! Soru!"
Seeing that his opponent's stamina was severely depleted and a flaw had appeared, Lucci's lips curved up. He instantly vanished in mid-air, appearing before Luffy in a near-instantaneous movement.
"Nani!" Luffy was startled, his eyes wide with shock.
"Armament Haki Hardening, Shigan: Kurogan Ken! (Fist of Dark Dominion)" Lucci gave a fierce smile. His right fist, from the wrist down, became black like metal and gleaming with a metallic sheen, as if coated in a layer of black lacquer. He slammed his fist into Luffy's abdomen.
Thud—
"Gukk..."
With a heavy, dull sound, Luffy felt a searing pain, as if his intestines had been ruptured. He was sent flying away with a 'whoosh.'
Crash!
Like being hit by a train, Luffy violently smashed into the wall over twenty meters behind him. The better part of his body was sunken into the impact crater. The wall was covered in dense cracks, and rubble kept falling.
In this moment, Luffy's consciousness began to fade, and his vision blurred.
"No! I have to hold him off! I haven't given up yet! Hold him off!"
Suddenly, Luffy, who was on the verge of unconsciousness, remembered his duty. His awareness snapped back, and his vision cleared.
Slap!
Luffy knelt on the ground, grimacing and clutching his still-aching abdomen. "Damn it, that hurts so much! I'm a Rubber Man! Fists shouldn't hurt me! What's going on?"
"Tch, still conscious, are you…" Lucci watched the still-awake Luffy, curled his lip, and said coldly, "The next move will send you to the grave."
....
Just as Aeridar was secluded, researching the use of the Floating Glove Aelry, another huge news story spread throughout the world.
Enies Lobby, the 'Island that Never Sleeps,' which stood alongside Marine Headquarters Marineford and the Great Underwater Prison Impel Down, had been utterly destroyed by the pirate crew, the Straw Hat Pirates. The thousands of troops stationed there suffered catastrophic losses.
While the true reason was that Enies Lobby was destroyed by the ten battleships under the Marine's Buster Call, the World Government, to cover up the scandal and the facts, pinned the entire destruction of Enies Lobby on the Straw Hat Pirates.
Overnight, the Straw Hat Pirates' bounties soared, making them famous across the world.
Their captain, Monkey D. Luffy, the Straw Hat Boy, saw his bounty leap from 100 million to 300 million Berries, the exact same amount as Aeridar's former bounty.
And Roronoa Zoro, the second-in-command of the Straw Hat Pirates, saw his bounty increase from 60 million to 120 million Berries, officially making him a new member of the Supernovas.
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