Chapter 31 - Busoshoku Haki

(Note: I modified Jason Wiley's bounty to 400 million, since he can use Haki and he has a Zoan devil fruit and he is from the New World I thought it was too low)

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The whole battlefield was in silence while observing the massive figure that appeared. An abnormally huge animal that resembles an elephant, but with a little bit of difference, it has large tusks, short dense hair that covers its body and a stocky muscular build.

[Zou Zou no Mi, Model: Mastodon]

"A Zoan devil fruit user?" I watched him in awe, as he easily stepped on the buildings around him, smashing them with ease. After that he proceeded to swing his large trunk at my direction with a high speed.

I used Soru to avoid it, but I was surprised at how fast it was, considering his size it's seems that his speed increased along with his power.

When I got away, I gathered flames around my palms and fired several consecutive fireballs at his direction.

When they were about to make contact with him, he proceeded to dismiss them using his trunk.

'Zoan users are insanely durable, but he is also using armament on top of that' I thought as I kept attacking him without a rest. I was able to land some hits, but they didn't do a lot of damage.

"I'll be going all out…DAI ENKAI!" I started creating a large, spiraling fire centered in my location and amassing it around me, then I focused all of it into my right hand.

"ENTEI!" I turned my flames into a gigantic fireball resembling the sun, and then I proceeded to hurl it towards him. When he saw my attack his eyes widened in shock, as he tried to defend himself.

"ROOAAARRR!!!" He let out a loud roar as he took the attack directly. He used his brute strength to stop it while using his armament to protect his skin from burning.

"HAAAAAA!!" I kept pressing the ball at him with all my might, until it eventually ended in a stalemate as my fireball exploded at him, causing a few burns in his skin. Without giving him any time to rest, I created another gigantic fireball and launched it at him.

Once again, he managed to stop it with his sheer power, but only for a few seconds before he got pushed back.

*BOOOOM* When it exploded at him this time, he looked a little bit shaken, so I took the opportunity and started sending consecutive slashes of compressed wind using Rankyaku.

*BAM-BAM-BAM* As I expected, they weren't able cut his thick skin, so I proceeded to gather flames on my right hand again and launched them towards him "Hiken!"

He used his trunk to split my flames into half, after that he started transforming back to his human form.

"Huuh!...That was pretty close, you're fast" He said, before he went to a squatting position "I can't avoid your attacks in my beast form even if I predict them" He started flexing his leg muscles to the point where the ground he was standing on started cracking.

"WRAAAAAA!" He screamed loudly before he launched at me at a superhuman speed.

*SWOOSH* He was a lot faster than before. When he got close to me, I tried using Kami-e to dodge his attacks, only to get hit and sent crashing into a building.

"*CRASH!!*…Shit! I forgot…he can use observation haki" The moment I got on my feet again, he was already beside me throwing a left punch.

I immediately used Tekkai since I didn't have enough time to dodge it, but it wasn't enough. Because he was using armament, his punch managed to get through my defense and hit my stomach.

"AAARGHH!!" I coughed blood as I was pushed back. After that, I gathered flames around my index fingers and launched them at him at high speed like a gun "HIGAN!".

*BAM-BAM-BAM* He easily dodged all of them without taking any hit, and then he lunged at me again, throwing fast consecutive punches wrapped with Haki.

I tried to release heat from my body so I could force him to step back.

He retreated a few meters back until the heat disappeared before he came charging at me once again. He wasn't as fast as me, but his observation Haki make up for it as he could easily predict where I would attack, or dodge.

After clashing with each other for a while, we were both standing in the middle of the battlefield, I was drenched in sweat and covered with bruises and blood. Jason was able to quickly adapt to my speed and with his Haki I wasn't causing much of a threat to him anymore.

On the opposite hand I can't even hurt him properly since he protects himself using armament.

"You're strong I'll give you that" Jason said before he got ready to attack me again "But not strong enough" he quickly dashed at me, leaving behind him a strong gush of wind.

I also used Soru and met his attack in the air. As we both started exchanging blows, I started imbuing my attacks with flames and releasing them upon contact.

*BOOOM*

*BOOOM* The engagement was causing a tremendous air pressure, and the area around us became very hot due to my constant flame attacks.

"Hiken!" When I released the dense flames, it flew directly to his position forcing him to evade it.

"Huff…huff…I need to become faster…faster to the point where it won't matter if he could predict my attacks" I rushed at him once again using Soru 'If I want to become faster, kicking the ground ten times won't do' I thought as I kept attacking him without a stop.

'I'll shoot flames from my whole back if I have to!' My facial expression changed as I turned my whole back part of my body to flames to increase my speed.

*SWOOOSH*

'Not enough, I'll kick the ground 15 times!'

*SWOOOSH*

"?!!…How are you getting faster?!" Jason asked in surprise as he was dodging, I didn't mind him and kept carrying my attack without a stop.

'If it's not enough then I'll kick it 20 times! No, I'll keep kicking the ground until my legs explode!' I kept increasing my speed time after time, until I was able to land some hits on Jason.

"Aghh!...How are you getting so fast constantly?!!" Jason asked while blocking my punch.

"If that punch isn't enough to take you down, then I'll just have to punch you harder!" I said with a condescending tone of voice. I could feel my bulging forehead and arm veins, I was so enraged for some reason.

I also started using Tekkai in my attacks to do more damage.

As the fight went on, I kept pushing myself more and more to the point where I became so immersed in the fight that I can't see or hear anything other than the enemy before me.

"I'll DEFEAT YOU!!!" as I shouted from anger, before I punched Jason, I started feeling something wrapping around my arm. When I noticed, I immediately knew what it was.

"I'll remember this feeling very well!" When my fist met his, I felt my arm surrounded by some kind of energy, like I was wearing a gauntlet 'Busoshuku Haki!!'.

"Impossible!!!...How can you use Haki?!!" Jason was dumbfounded and had a look of disbelieve, after that clash we were both pushed back.

"Huff…Huff…I'm not done yet…I'll show you why you shouldn't mess with the Ashen Pirates"

"Bring it on kid"

After I awakened my Haki, I started using it with Tekkai in every attack to increase my offense ability, while I also imbue my body parts with flames at the same time and release them upon contact. And with my increase of speed, I was finally able to fight with Jason on equal ground.

Even though his armament is stronger than mine he was still like me, only using Invisible Armor and not Hardening.

Four hours later,

We were both exhausted and full of injuries, I was getting ready to deal the final attack.

"I'll ended it right now!" I declared, as I started amassing flames in a huge circle around us, then I slowly raised them into the sky "DAI ENKEI!!!".

"Bring it on!!" Jason screamed as he got ready to receive the attack.

The flames started merging together in the sky forming multiple gigantic fireballs "FALLEN STARS!!!" The fireballs started falling at his direction one after the other.

*BOOOM-BOOOM-BOOOM* The fireballs exploded upon contact leaving this entire part of town in a devasted state.

"AAAARRRRRGGGHHH!!!" Jason started screaming in agony as he got hit. When the attacks finally ended and the fire disappeared, Jason was lying on the ground without moving an inch.

"Huff…Huff…is it over?" I questioned myself while I kept my eyes on Jason's body. At this point I was barely standing on my feet as the last attack depleted most of my stamina.

I went to check his body to see if he was still alive "I guess he is dead" I sighed in relief as I turned back and left.

'This was such a great fight, I can finally use Armament Haki at will' I clenched my fist in satisfaction.

"Where do you think you're going?..."

"?!!!..." I turned my head back in disbelief when I heard the voice "H-How?!...I was sure you are dead?".

"Xihihi, I guess fate says otherwise" he said, as got on his feet again.

"That's-!!!" I was speechless while watching him. His body was still in his human form, but he had the face, the tail and the legs of an elephant while his body became bulky and covered in hair and his height became enormous.

"It's thanks to you kid that I awakened my fruit…I would have never imagined myself getting pushed back to this point by a fledging" he said with a smile.

"Hybrid form…but you're still in bad state nevertheless" I said to him, he still took a lot of damage from the previous attack.

"Hahha, you're no better"

"Fine, you've just postponed your death for a few more minutes…I'll end you this time"