"Fufufufu! You didn't expect this, did you? Not only did I survive, but I've also gained even greater power!" Doflamingo sneered, his voice echoing across the battlefield.
As Wood hovered in the air, maintaining his altitude with Moonwalk, Doflamingo pulled out another pair of flashy sunglasses from his pink feathered coat, replacing the ones that had been shattered. Who knew that the infamous Heavenly Yaksha carried spare sunglasses?
But what was worth noting was that even as Doflamingo swapped out his shades, Wood didn't catch a glimpse of his eyes. In the brief moment of Wood's distraction, Doflamingo had already put on his new sunglasses, crushing the broken pair underfoot with a confident smirk.
With his new sunglasses in place, Doflamingo seemed to regain his composure and confidence, almost as if he had rediscovered his sense of superiority.
It turns out the rumors among fans in his previous life were true: Doflamingo's sunglasses were his true essence.
Moments earlier, Doflamingo had thought his death was certain, but a surge of overwhelming resentment and the anger of betrayal had fueled his will to survive.
This intense hatred and fury had become the catalyst, pushing his Devil Fruit abilities into a new realm—a state known as awakening.
Though Doflamingo wasn't entirely sure what had happened, one thing was clear: he could feel an enhanced mastery over his String-String Fruit, his powers now responding to his will with even greater ease.
As Doflamingo grew more accustomed to his newly awakened abilities, an increasing number of strings began to wind their way toward Wood. At first, they emerged from the ground, but soon even the plants and other objects around them were transformed into strings, all converging on Wood's position with lethal intent.
Despite the serious injuries he had sustained, Doflamingo's confidence only grew. He believed that with his newfound strength, he could secure a dominant position in the underworld.
The Birdcage still enveloped all of Minion Island, and though Corazon and Law had fled, as long as the Birdcage remained, no one could escape his grasp.
All he needed to do was eliminate Wood, and the outcome of everything would remain unchanged.
"So, you awakened your Devil Fruit power in the face of death, huh? Seems like it's not just protagonists who are hard to deal with—those famous villains get their own plot armor too. But do you really think you can beat me with your injuries and this newly awakened ability?" Wood's voice was cold, calculating.
If Wood had been facing another awakened Devil Fruit user, one whose abilities were unknown, he might have been more cautious. But Doflamingo's awakened powers were not unfamiliar to him.
The ability to manipulate the environment and turn it into strings was certainly impressive, but a person's focus and control were limited. Doflamingo had only just awakened his power, and his proficiency was clearly lacking, as was the strength of his strings.
Determined not to give Doflamingo any more time to adapt to his new abilities, Wood decided to end this quickly.
He began removing the heavy equipment he had been wearing, letting it fall to the ground with a thud that kicked up a cloud of dust. At the same time, the runes on his chest, which had dimmed earlier, began to glow once more.
With his weights discarded and the power of his Divine Heart amplifying his abilities, Wood's speed surged beyond supersonic.
As Doflamingo commanded the white, wave-like mass of strings to crash down on Wood, he realized with shock that Wood had vanished from his sight in an instant.
"So what if you've awakened your Devil Fruit? While it's true that such an ability is rare and formidable on the seas, it doesn't make you invincible. As you said before, the world is vast, and right now, you're just a frog in a well," Wood's voice suddenly rang out right in front of Doflamingo, sending a jolt of fear through him.
At the sight of Wood's reappearance, Doflamingo's hands slammed to the ground, summoning two massive, jagged waves of white strings that surged up to protect him.
"White Shield!"
The waves of strings converged into two massive shields that rose between Wood and Doflamingo. Doflamingo didn't believe that Wood could slice through the dense mass of strings that made up his shield.
Indeed, the White Shield had the strength to withstand Wood's slashes. Even if Wood's attacks managed to break through, the remaining power would be too weakened to harm Doflamingo.
However, Wood had never intended to cut through Doflamingo's defense head-on. His sudden appearance before Doflamingo was meant to demonstrate that, even with awakened powers, Doflamingo was still at a disadvantage.
As the White Shield shot up from the ground, Doflamingo was shocked to see Wood's figure vanish from in front of it.
By the time Doflamingo's Observation Haki detected Wood again, he had already reappeared behind him, swinging his blade down with deadly precision.
While the awakening of the String-String Fruit allowed Doflamingo to manipulate the environment and turn it into strings, even if he transformed everything around him into strings, controlling them would still take time.
Though Doflamingo's mind could keep up with the speed of his thoughts, the strings themselves could not match the speed of Wood's movements.
As Wood's sword struck Doflamingo's back, blood sprayed from the wound, adding to the injuries that already covered his body.
But Doflamingo was nothing if not tenacious. Even as Wood's blade dug deep, nearly hitting vital organs, Doflamingo didn't let out a single cry of pain. Instead, he used his Devil Fruit powers to rapidly stitch the wound shut.
As Wood's blade landed, a fountain of white strings erupted from the ground, quickly forming a large cocoon around Wood, intending to trap him.
However, before the cocoon could fully enclose him, Wood sensed Doflamingo's intent. His twin blades flashed as he spun, tearing through the delicate walls of the string cocoon, shredding it into a thousand strands that scattered into the air.
"Even if you can keep stitching your wounds closed, so what? Closing a wound doesn't mean you're healed. You might have incredible willpower, but if you lose enough blood, you'll die just like anyone else."
Though Doflamingo was a formidable opponent, Wood knew that even the most powerful villains had limits. He continued to press his attack, determined to wear Doflamingo down physically while chipping away at his resolve with his words.
He wouldn't give Doflamingo a chance to recover or pull off another miraculous comeback.
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P/S: If you are interested, you can read up to chapter 330+ at p@treon.com/Betek and change @ to a