Kuzan clenched his fist and met Blaize's punch with his own punch, with nothing but raw power. 'Boom!' As their fists collided in mid-air, it created a shockwave that cracked and shattered the ice around them.
A simple exchange of physical power. But, the force of the impact pushed Kuzan back while his arm was reeled back failing to withstand the power.
Kuzan was slightly surprised, experiencing Blaize's overwhelming physical strength for the first time. It's far greater than he presumed. He could tell his physical strength is just short of Kaidou's.
Blaize didn't wait for Kuzan, he used the full might of 'Soru' and leaped forth, rushing towards the latter at the maximum speed tearing through the air itself.
'Swoosh!'
In mid-way, his arms rocked back and forth, raining air-pressured punches at Kuzan. Blaize didn't use Haki nor the devil fruit power in his attacks, just physical power.
It's the only way to push himself and transcend the limits.
'Bang! Bang! Bang!'
Explosions and shockwaves created a crater below where they fought and lifted a cloud of mist while the ice ground quaked from the impact.
Blaize didn't use Haki, but it doesn't mean Kuzan would do the same. He doesn't have any reason to hold back his power so he fought back with everything he got.
Evading Blaize's attacks with ease, Kuzan lunged forward while the entirety of his right arm transformed completely into Ice. The air around became super cold as the temperature dropped instantly to the freezing point.
A massive wave of ice that formed the shape of a pheasant blasted towards him. Blaize balled his fist and struck the air with all his strength.
Unlike the previous attacks, he used Haki this time, in the form of emission. A fist-shaped compressed air shockwave fired from his arm and took the form of a dragon head.
A thunderous 'boom' sounded, accompanied by a powerful shockwave that swept all directions while large strands of lightning birthed as an outcome of a clash between two Haki users.
The two strikes battled in mid-air, one trying to push the other. Eventually, Blaize's Dragon head was completely frozen by Kuzan's Ice pheasant which emerged as the victor.
It didn't surprise Blaize as Kuzan's attack is the extension of his arm so he can use it to his advantage and exert more power as he wishes, which he did.
Gaining momentum, Kuzan's attack traveled fast freezing everything in its way. In the blink of an eye, it reached Blaize who faced it head-on without evading.
Blaize instinctively projected his Haki outwards and formed a thin layer of invisible shield around him, guarding against the potential freezing wave that could turn him into an ice sculpture.
At the same time, his Observation Haki predicted Kuzan movements but he was surprised by the find. Because the latter is just centimeters away from him, using the freezing wave as the cover.
Blaize successfully blocked the freezing wave but he couldn't evade the latter's attack so close. An arm suddenly hugged his neck, while he heard a murmur, 'Ice Time'.
The next moment, a chilling sensation crept over him, and in no time, he was entirely frozen by Kuzan's Ice-Ice fruit ability. Even his thoughts began to freeze.
"No..." Blaize screamed while an overwhelming wave of Conqueror's Haki erupted from him and destroyed the freezing process.
With a thrust to the ground, Blaize leaped back and built some distance from Kuzan while breathing hard. He was nearly frozen to the bones and would have turned into an ice sculpture if he was second later.
'Fuck!' Blaize mentally expressed. 'I being too careless!' The power of ice-ice fruit is a lot deadlier than he imagined and Kuzan's rich combat experience is terrific.
'This bastard, he's hiding his strength and portrays weak front. Just because he's too lazy to show them around. No wonder he can fight Sakazuki to the standstill.
I am going to have a hard time fighting against him, without using my devil fruit ability. But, isn't this what I want? Now it's getting exciting.' Blaize mused.
"It's time to get serious." Blaize grinned while an overpowering haki burst out of him. Feeling the pressure, Kuzan's face turned solemn.
Blaize raced forward, while a golden sheen of Busoshoku[Armament] Haki covered his legs with a thought. Just as he was a meter away from Kuzan, he launched a kick horizontally.
As Blaize put everything in the attack, the air itself began to shake followed by a whizzing sound. As the kick was too concentrated, it created just a thin, thread-like line that extended outward.
'Ara-ra...' Kuzan's expression turned grim and he instinctively used his devil ability as he had no time to react. An ice pillar shot from below his feet, propelling him upwards.
Even so, Kuzan sensed a razor-sharp line zipping past him. Sweat formed on his face, if he was a fraction of a second late to react, he would have been injured heavily.
"Blaize, are you trying to kill me? This isn't what we agreed on!" Kuzan vented his frustration but what he got in reply was a punch to his face.
"Kuzan, you are the one who's not taking this seriously. I already told you to strike with the intent to kill." Saying this, Blaize once again charged forward.
Their battle went on for hours, morning turned afternoon, then afternoon turned evening. But, there's no sign of their battle coming to end. In fact, their clashes turned more aggressive as time passed.
--
In the distance,
Kuina, Regis, Rosinante, and other marine soldiers stood on the deck of the ship that's docked a little away from the Ice surface created by Kuzan.
They gazed at the roaring clouds at the center of the icefield, formed as the result of the clash between two strong Haki users.
Shockwaves, tremors, or some occasional powerful breeze that swept past them nearly toppled the ship a few times. This kind of battle is above their league.
"The sun will set soon but Blaize-san and Admiral Aokiji are still fighting," Kuina exclaimed.
"I don't think their battle will end anytime soon," Regis commented, as he knew very well how strong both of them are.
"We are still too weak. If not for trying to protect us, Blaize-san wouldn't have been overwhelmed by those Crystal pirates." Remembering what happened the week ago, Regis clenched his fist.
He won't ever forget what happened that day. The sorry sight of Blaize's body drenched in blood and a gaping hole in his chest. He knew it's them who let him down.
"The next time we meet the Crystal Pirates, even if it means death I won't go down without taking ten of them with me!"
"Yes," The Marine soldiers present on the deck bellowed in unison with burning eyes.
---
"Come on, Kuzan. Don't tell me this is best you can do?" You are starting to bore me." Blaize teased, gasping for a breath.
Kuzan's eyebrow twitched while he too panted slightly. 'Why am I even bothering myself with him, I should have rejected Sengoku-san's request and peacefully slept in the office. He's taking this way too seriously!'
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