"That's… Doflamingo!!"
Cricket's pupils contracted, and as he recognized the figure flying toward them, the astonished look on his face gradually turned into horror.
Doflamingo was one of the most notorious members among the Shichibukai, and his title of "The Heavenly Demon" was not unfounded. His wickedness and madness gave both the Marine Headquarters and the World Government a headache.
"Hmm? Do you know me?"
With a sinister smile on his face, Doflamingo looked down upon the people at the harbor. Although his tone was calm, the contempt in his eyes showed that he held no regard for anyone present there.
"Yes… yes, I do."
Cricket was sweating profusely as he spoke, even though Doflamingo hadn't released his Haoshoku Haki, the overwhelming dominance and madness emanating from him still made Cricket tremble slightly and he instinctively lowered his head.
Then, Cricket respectfully asked, "May I ask… what brings you to Skypiea Island?"
"Me? Fuf fuf fuffuf fuf!!"
In response to Cricket's question, Doflamingo opened his hands, and his fingers trembled slightly, as he revealed a chilling smile on his face. Suddenly, his smile vanished, replaced by an expression overflowing with killing intent, causing the area around him to change color!
"What kind of person are you to dare question me?!"
Cricket's heart stopped as he heard this and his pupils shrank dramatically. In this instance, it seemed as if he could see his own death.
Shuā!
Parasite String!
Unnoticeable strings shot out from Doflamingo's hands and attached to Cricket. Doflamingo folded his index and middle fingers, leaving only his thumb, forefinger, and little finger extended, shaking them slowly as if playing with a puppet.
"Nani?!"
Clang!
Cricket suddenly found his body out of his control, and he drew the sword at his waist, slowly moving it toward his own neck.
"Damn it! What is this?!"
He could feel invisible threads sticking to his body, and actions completely unrelated to his own consciousness, and completely beyond his control were happening to him.
Cricket gritted his teeth tightly, trying to resist the control, but his strength, while significant in the first half of the Grand Line, was nothing compared to the monsters of the New World, the Yonko, and the Shichibukai who stood on equal footing with the Marines.
"Cricket!!"
Wyper anxiously shouted and took out his burning cannon from behind, aiming it at Doflamingo. "You Bastard! What did you do to him? Stop it!"
"No!"
Unexpectedly, the one who stopped Wyper was none other than Cricket himself.
He had already joined the Marines, and Wyper understood the significance behind the name "Doflamingo." If Wyper were to attack him, it would only be a matter of time before Angel Island, as a non-Allied Kingdom member, was destroyed!
At this point, the blade was already pressed against his neck, pushing down his skin, and causing drops of crimson blood to flow down his body.
"Cricket!"
"Trust me!"
Cricket took a deep breath and turned to Doflamingo. "I am Mont Blanc Cricket, appointed as the Marine Headquarters Great Staff Officer Tsuru's personal Marine G-10 Branch Aircraft Force Security Advisor, under the jurisdiction of Marine Headquarters. Doflamingo-San, are you sure you want to kill me?!"
Kācā!
Doflamingo gritted his teeth ruthlessly as veins popped on his forehead, wriggling like centipedes beneath his skin.
"Tsuru… Rowen… all these annoying people are coming together!"
Sneer…!!
The blade did not retreat but went further, penetrating even deeper into his neck. A large spray of blood splashed, soaking Cricket's clothes.
However, Cricket let out a sigh of relief. His head was still intact, indicating that Doflamingo had made a decision.
"Fuf fuf fuf fuf fuf! I almost forgot I'm not here to cause trouble."
Pū Tōng!
Dīng Dāng…
With Doflamingo's wicked laughter, Cricket regained control of his body. He released his grip on the sword hilt and collapsed to the ground, gasping for breath. Wyper quickly took out bandages and began to wrap them around Cricket, feeling a wave of shock at the injury that had nearly severed his arteries and windpipe.
At this moment, Doflamingo flicked a thread and quickly flew away into the distance.
"I heard that Rear Admiral Drake has betrayed the Marine Headquarters. So, as a Marine lackey and a law-abiding citizen of the Shichibukai… capturing Drake should be within my responsibilities, shouldn't it?! Fuf fuf fuffuf fuf!!!"
Cricket's mind trembled at these words, ignoring his own injuries as he tried to reach for the Den Den Mushi in his pocket.
However, all he found was a lifeless body. Doflamingo had severed the Den Den Mushi that could only contact Rowen during his previous attack, leaving it useless.
"Oh no! He's going to attack the G-10 Branch!"
"Nani?!!"
…
Kenbunshoku Haki is a power known as "hearing" that allows one to gather data by listening to the sounds emitted by the opponent's body in order to predict their next move. It achieves the effects of early warning, reconnaissance, and foresight.
This is an unavoidable process and phenomenon; the body constantly emits faint sounds that are beyond subjective control and Kenbunshoku Haki allows its user to listen to these sounds.
Even the dead are the same… bacterial growth and carbohydrate decomposition are just as clear in the perception of Kenbunshoku Haki.
If someone doesn't make any sound at all, there's no need to doubt that…
They must have consumed the Calm-Calm Fruit…
Naturally, apart from predicting the opponent's actions through the sounds generated by their body, Kenbunshoku Haki has other deeper applications.
Rayleigh once said that Luffy's perception of emotions is even clearer than his perception of sounds, so if he can perceive someone's emotions, he can definitely master Kenbunshoku Haki.
Emotions…
Katakuri can glimpse into the future for about five seconds.
Precognition…
Princess Otohime can hear the inner voice of others.
Mind reading…
And Momonosuke and Luffy can hear the voice of objects.
The Voice of All Things…
It can be seen that Kenbunshoku Haki is not only about collecting and judging sounds but also a profound way of perception that cannot be described in words. Compared to the various branches it has truly developed, a mere prediction ability is actually quite inferior.
Kenbunshoku Haki, which stands alongside Busoshoku Haki and Haoshoku Haki as one of the three great powers of the human body, is far from being as simple as portrayed in the original work.
It's just like Dante now, even if he only has a superficial understanding of its use, he can manipulate Drake effortlessly.
He knows Drake's maximum attack range, attack intensity, and attack methods better than Drake himself…
Although his strength and speed are still far from sufficient, facing someone who sees through you completely, the physical suppression of an ordinary level becomes meaningless.
When Drake prepares to strike with his tail, Dante even knows the attack route he will follow, allowing him to make preparations early on.
This is true dominance!
…
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