The rapidly moving legs of the CP0 officer created a wide area of slashing waves that surged towards Wood.
At this moment, the exhausted and battered Wood barely managed to steady his fatigued body, raising his dual swords in front of him to completely shatter the incoming slashing wave.
Almost simultaneously, the CP0 officer who had been fiercely battling Wood for a long time suddenly appeared behind him using Soru (Shave).
With his Kenbunshoku Haki (Observation Haki) alerting him, Wood instantly turned and slashed his sword towards the CP0 officer's fist, causing an invisible shockwave to ripple between them.
However, unlike before, when Wood had the upper hand, his situation had changed. Due to the prolonged, intense combat and the numerous wounds on his body, Wood's condition had worsened significantly.
Although Wood managed to block the CP0 officer's iron fist with his sword, the impact still sent him flying several meters away, his feet dragging out two clear parallel lines on the ground.
"Enough with the probing, you coward. His body's been pushed to its limits after fighting for so long. Let's take him down together quickly and go after the other Fish-Men, or else we'll both be severely punished," the CP0 officer who had been fighting Wood earlier complained, clearly annoyed with his colleague's cautious approach and urging him to get serious.
"Shut up! I'm not a coward! This guy dared to kill Celestial Dragons, who knows what other tricks he has up his sleeve? What's wrong with being careful?" The tall CP0 officer snapped back, his words laced with irritation, but his actions didn't lag behind. With a flash, he positioned himself in another direction, ready to attack.
His arm suddenly darkened to a metallic hue as he covered it with Busoshoku Haki (Armament Haki). When he launched a punch at Wood from a tricky angle, Wood's expression immediately became serious.
Armament Haki!
Clang—!
The sound of metal clashing echoed through the air as Wood used his sword to barely block the punch coated with Armament Haki. It felt like he had been struck by a massive Sea King, and his body was involuntarily sent flying at high speed.
This newly arrived CP0 officer was not only proficient in Busoshoku Haki, but his mastery of it was also at a high level.
Busoshoku Haki, as the name suggests, is a type of Haki that differs from Kenbunshoku Haki, which allows one to predict and evade attacks. Busoshoku Haki is used to reinforce the user's body.
Basic Busoshoku Haki typically has two applications: coating and hardening.
The coating type of Busoshoku Haki is often used on weapons, like enhancing the destructive power of arrows.
The other application, Busoshoku: Koka (Hardening), makes the user's body as hard as iron, increasing both their defense and offensive power.
Busoshoku Haki is a bane for Devil Fruit users, especially those with Logia-type abilities. It's one of the main ways to counter them, besides Seastone.
Wood wasn't a Devil Fruit user, so he didn't have to worry about being countered, but Busoshoku Haki's primary function is to increase the user's attack and destructive power, making it a formidable technique.
Busoshoku Haki shares some characteristics with Tekkai (Iron Body), but in terms of enhancing destructive power, Tekkai is no match for Busoshoku Haki.
These two CP0 officers were both highly skilled. One was proficient in Busoshoku Haki, capable of breaking through Wood's defenses, while the other excelled in using Soru.
Working together, even with Wood wielding dual swords, he was completely on the defensive.
As CP0's elite, both of these officers had mastered all six techniques of Rokushiki (Six Powers) and could use them flexibly in combat.
Meanwhile, Wood, who was still pretending to be a Fish-Man, couldn't use the Rokushiki techniques openly and had to rely solely on his physical abilities to fight back.
The battlefield had turned into a chaotic melee, with punches meeting blades and kicks clashing with feet. Each collision between them sent invisible shockwaves rippling through the surroundings.
The two CP0 officers used Soru repeatedly to move at high speeds, while Wood relied on his years of rigorous training, Kenbunshoku Haki, and exceptional reflexes.
In short, the battle between the three of them kept accelerating, reaching a point where even the regular CP agents couldn't join in. They simply couldn't keep up with the speed, not even able to track the movements of the three fighters with their eyes.
But human endurance has its limits. Wood had sustained too many injuries earlier, and after fighting against numerous CP agents for so long to buy time for Tiger and the others, his condition had deteriorated further.
The situation was increasingly turning against him. Even though Wood had Kenbunshoku Haki, it too had its limits.
If he were only facing one opponent, Wood might have been confident in his ability to win, even in his current weakened state. But against two such powerful opponents, with their rapid and well-coordinated attacks, Wood was struggling to hold his ground.
Facing an unwinnable battle, Wood naturally wanted to escape, but the two CP0 officers were relentless in their pursuit.
Now, he was exerting all his strength just to defend himself. If he showed any intention of fleeing, exposing his back, he would only lose even faster.
This wasn't a "life simulation." If he died here, it would truly be the end of everything.
"Wood, didn't you say you'd bring a gift for Ain when you return to Maple Island?"
"Wood, didn't you promise you'd come back safely? You liar!"
"I don't know why, but I always thought you'd become someone great one day."
"..."
As time passed, the number of wounds on Wood's body increased, and the severe blood loss made his body heavy. His consciousness began to blur, and his vision dimmed.
Like the protagonists in most hot-blooded anime, a dazed Wood started to see familiar faces, like Aine and Gion, flash before his eyes.
Although he hadn't been in this world for long, it seemed he had made quite a few connections, unlike in his previous life where he had no attachments.
"I used to think the whole 'life flashing before your eyes' thing was nonsense. I didn't expect to experience it myself. So, does this mean… I'm really about to… die?"
Note: If you are interested, you can read up to chapter 168 at patreon.com/Betek