Zoro instinctively coated his arms with Armament Haki and held them in front of him.
Crack!
Thunder roared, and Zoro's body convulsed violently under the onslaught of lightning.
After a series of electric bursts, Zoro's body was scorched, his form now shaking uncontrollably.
He staggered a few steps before collapsing to the ground, gasping for air.
The numbness and pain in his body were overwhelming. If not for his Armament Haki, he might have lost consciousness already.
Enel, equally exhausted, stood panting. The wound on his chest bled intermittently, despite his attempts to cover it with lightning. The scar remained, a constant reminder of the battle.
Enel took deliberate steps toward Zoro. "You're impressive. You're only the second person to wound me like this. You've earned my respect!"
When Enel reached Zoro, he lifted a stick, which crackled with lightning.
"Thunder Lance!"
A surge of lightning enveloped the stick, transforming it into a trident. Enel aimed it menacingly at Zoro.
"Die!"
Suddenly, a fist shot through the air, striking Enel and sending him crashing backward into the trees.
A familiar figure appeared by Zoro's side. "Zoro, are you okay?"
"Ah! He's not dead yet!" Zoro chuckled weakly.
"Leave the rest to me, Luffy!"
"Got it! Leave it to me!" Luffy grinned, cracking his knuckles.
Luffy headed toward the spot where Enel had landed.
Zoro closed his eyes and relaxed. With Luffy on the scene, he knew the battle was in good hands. Fatigue overwhelmed him, and he drifted into sleep.
Nearby, Kai, who had been observing from a tree, couldn't help but smile at Zoro's determination.
"You've got some guts, Zoro!"
Kai had arrived shortly after the battle began and had been watching the fight closely. Even if Luffy hadn't shown up, Zoro wouldn't have been finished off easily.
Kai jumped down from the tree and approached Zoro. Setting up a chair and table with a thought, he prepared for a long wait.
He sipped his tea, watching the ongoing clash between Luffy and Enel, his thoughts silent but focused.
With Luffy's current strength and his immunity to lightning, it seemed likely that Enel wouldn't last much longer. If Luffy hadn't been immune, his performance might not have been as effective against Enel.
But the Nika Fruit's abilities were proving to be a game changer. Once Enel's lightning lost its effectiveness, his overall power diminished significantly, given that most of his moves relied on his Thunder-Thunder Fruit.
Indeed, under Luffy's relentless attacks, Enel was being pushed back, bleeding and struggling.
Frustration mounted for Enel. It seemed everyone he faced lately could touch his Logia form.
The first opponent had overwhelmed him easily, barely giving him a chance to react.
The second had managed to inflict damage but was still within acceptable limits, as Enel could beat him.
But the third? Enel was at his wit's end.
"It's so infuriating!" Enel fumed. "This is outrageous!"
His lightning was useless against Luffy, who was completely immune. If things kept up like this, it would be a slap in the face.
Desperate, Enel saw a glimmer of hope: the person in front of him wasn't so fast that he couldn't react.
Enel retreated and activated his Observation Haki. "Heart Network!"
With his Observation Haki active, Enel dodged Luffy's attacks with ease.
Luffy, narrowing his eyes, murmured, "Are you using Observation Haki?"
Excitement lit up in Luffy's eyes. Enel's strength was just right for him to test his own skills and possibly master his Observation Haki further.
Pumped up, Luffy resumed his attack with renewed vigor.
After several failed attempts to land a hit, Enel realized he couldn't keep dodging forever. He needed to take action or risk being continuously battered.
As he dodged Luffy's next strike, Enel's body turned into lightning, appearing behind Luffy and landing a powerful blow with his trident.
Luffy was knocked back but bounced up immediately, smirking. "That hit won't do much to me!"
"Striking is useless, so how about stabbing?" Enel replied, turning his stick back into a trident and thrusting it at Luffy.
Luffy dodged the thrust with ease, grinning. "Seems like slashing is your weakness!"
Enel couldn't help but feel a pang of frustration mixed with a hint of relief. "Finally, some hope!"
He reflected on how quickly he'd gone from being an invincible god to a fighter being challenged by anyone who came his way.
But not everyone could use him as a stepping stone. To use him as such, one had to be prepared for a fierce fight!
Enel's eyes hardened with resolve as he gripped his trident and charged at Luffy.
Luffy skillfully avoided the trident's jabs, focusing on learning from the fight rather than retaliating.
Gradually, Luffy became more adept at dodging and even closed his eyes at one point, still evading every attack.
Enel was bewildered by this development.
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Power Stones would be appreciated if you liked the story.