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Chapter 123: Beating Hanafuda
🕑 Added 2025-08-11 14:32:58 +0000 UTCChapter 123: Beating Hanafuda
BOOM!
A blinding, crimson ray shot out from the Tyrannosaurus Rex's mouth!
The world was instantly filled with red light, and a terrifying heat washed over them. The air in the ray's path was instantly distorted and vaporized.
Shane had not expected this at all.
Still gripping the dragon's tail, he had no time to dodge. He simply lifted the tail to block and, with a vwoom, instantly coated both his arms in Armament Haki.
Sizzle—!
The crimson ray slammed into the dragon's tail. The scales were instantly carbonized and shattered, revealing the vertebrae beneath. The smell of burning flesh, mixed with steam, filled the air.
"ROAR!"
The Tyrannosaurus Rex roared in pain, its thick tail thrashing wildly.
And Shane's arms were also scorched by the aftershock, the Armament Haki blocking most of the damage, but his arms were still glowing red-hot.
So hot!
Shane gritted his teeth in pain and glanced at his arms. Large patches of skin were already peeling off like burnt paint.
This feeling was all too familiar.
The heat and destructive power of Hanafuda's attack were comparable to Akainu's magma at close range!
Seriously?!
You're a Tyrannosaurus Rex! How the hell can you breathe fire?!
If he hadn't reacted in time and used his opponent's tail to block most of the damage, his arms would have probably been melted down to the bone by now!
"So you like to breathe fire, huh?!"
He was getting angry now. His veins bulged, and no matter how hard Hanafuda struggled, he held on to the dragon's tail.
In the next instant, Shane put all his strength into it, lifted the entire Tyrannosaurus Rex over his head, and, instead of slamming it back and forth, began to spin it around, like the propeller of a helicopter—
He could clearly feel that after that ray attack, Hanafuda's aura had weakened considerably. And now, under this rapid spinning, it was fading at a visible rate.
VWOOM, VWOOM!
The spinning got faster and faster, and in the blink of an eye, he had completed over a hundred rotations.
Hanafuda's roars of rage, in the high-speed spin, gradually turned into intermittent wails of agony. His already-injured tail was now on the verge of being torn off by Shane.
"GET UP THERE!"
BOOM!!!
The Tyrannosaurus Rex was suddenly released. With the combination of centrifugal force and inertia, the mountain-like beast was sent flying high into the air!
Fifty meters, a hundred meters, the altitude kept increasing—
Shane looked up.
And in the next instant, his knees bent slightly, the ground exploded, and he shot into the sky like a cannonball!
SWISH, SWISH, SWISH!
In a few flickers, his figure had already caught up to the Tyrannosaurus Rex. He raised his right leg high, a tide of black Armament Haki instantly spreading from his ankle to his entire lower leg.
"You like to breathe fire, so why don't you try it again?"
Shane sneered, his knees bent as he descended, his right leg coming down like a battle-axe!
"Tempest Kick: Ripple Meteor!"
BOOM—!!!
The kick slammed into the Tyrannosaurus Rex's abdomen, and a visible ring of air exploded outward.
The scales on the Tyrannosaurus Rex's chest and abdomen instantly caved in and shattered, and its internal organs were nearly displaced by the terrifying impact.
Hanafuda's eyes turned red with pain, and he whipped his head around to bite, but Shane blocked it with Iron Body, the sharp teeth scraping against his Armament Haki-coated shoulder and sending sparks flying.
"No energy to breathe fire, but you still have the energy to bite, huh?!"
Shane's grin grew even more savage. "But a move like that is no threat to me anymore!"
It's time!
He pulled his right fist back, a terrifying aura gathering like a vortex. The muscles in his entire arm bulged, and his veins popped, like coiling snakes.
The final blow!
"Spear of Elbaf—"
Hearing the low cry, Hanafuda looked up in disbelief.
No!
This guy… how does he, like Boss Kaido, know this move?!!!
"—IKOKU!!!"
BOOM!
Hanafuda had no time to react. The surging force of the punch was unleashed on his abdomen!
"ROAR!!!"
With a piercing scream, the Tyrannosaurus Rex's limbs went limp, and its entire body plummeted faster than it had ascended!
BOOM—!!!
The Tyrannosaurus Rex's massive body crashed into the desert like a meteorite, and the terrifying impact instantly sent a massive wave of sand into the sky!
The entire desert exploded as if a small mushroom cloud had gone off. A violent shockwave shot out in a ring, and the yellow sand rose into the sky like a tsunami, blotting out the sun!
Rumble!
The sand within a radius of several kilometers collapsed, forming a massive crater hundreds of meters in diameter. The sand at the edges poured inward like a waterfall.
At the center of the crater, an intense heat was still rising, distorting the air. And when the dust settled, the Tyrannosaurus Rex's body had reverted to its human form.
Hanafuda, covered in blood, lay in the center of the deep crater.
His chest was caved in, his arms were twisted at grotesque angles, and he was still vomiting a mixture of blood and organ fragments.
"Cough… cough, cough…"
After a long time, Hanafuda finally managed to push himself up.
In his blurred vision, a slender figure was slowly walking toward him through the sand, looking down at him.
"See? I said it was over, and it's over. You just wouldn't believe me."
Hanafuda struggled to open his eyes, and he finally saw his opponent's face.
The black-haired young man, though covered in blood, his arms scorched by the intense heat, his aura was even more ferocious than at the beginning of the fight.
His dark eyes were still burning with a fighting spirit that sent a chill down his spine.
Clearly, his opponent still had a little energy left.
That meant that he was superior to him in every aspect: strength, speed, physical techniques… and even his most prized asset, his physique.
"I was outmatched…"
Hanafuda finally gave up all resistance and lay back down, a bitter smile on his face. "Just my luck. I picked a good day to come to Alabasta to collect a debt, and I run into a monster like you… oh well, it's all just talk now. Do it!"
"Don't worry, I'll make it quick,"
Shane said in a low voice.
"Thanks."
Hanafuda grinned and closed his eyes, silently waiting for death.
Shane drew the tachi from his back and took a step forward, his expression calm.
This was the beauty of this sea.
No matter the faction, no matter if they were noble or vile, whether they adhered to their own code or brought harm to others, the ones who had made a name for themselves, who had called themselves heroes, in the end, they all had a bit of pride and backbone. They were all prepared for death.
Of course, there were a few shameless exceptions.
But the Hanafuda before him was clearly not one of them.
...…
A few minutes later, Shane, covered in blood, walked out of the sand pit and to the riverbank.
The entire Sandy River was silent.
The residents of the oasis city on the other side, the sailors and merchants on the ships, were all staring at the black-haired young man's figure, their eyes wide.
"H-He… he won?" someone trembled.
In the next second—
"HE WON!!!"
A deafening cheer erupted from the entire riverbank!
"So strong! That was a Warlord with a former bounty of five hundred million Berries! And he was defeated so quickly!"
"Hanafuda is dead! The Hanafuda Pirates are finished! We're saved!"
"Lord Shane! Lord Shane!"
The sailors on the merchant ships waved their hats in excitement. Some even kneeled on the deck and kowtowed toward the riverbank.
"Thank you! Thank you for saving us!"
"If you hadn't stepped in, we would have never been able to escape! We would have all died here!"
"Long live the Curtain Call Pirates!"
"You idiot! Didn't you hear what Lord Shane said himself?! It's an adventure group!"
"Oh, right, right! Long live the Curtain Call Adventurers!!!"
The cheers swept across the entire riverbank like a tide. Some even jumped into the river and swam desperately for the shore, wanting to get a closer look at the young hero.
However, not everyone felt the same.
On the opposite bank, Shane clearly sensed that many of the local Alabastan residents were looking at him with fear and even hatred.
He had just defeated Hanafuda, who had been about to go on a killing spree, and saved them. And this is the reaction he gets?
Shane shrugged. He had expected this.
After all, this was Alabasta. The country's previous national hero, Crocodile, had just died at his hands a short while ago.
Crocodile had been active in Alabasta for many years, actively hunting pirates and building a good reputation. He naturally had his loyal fans among the locals.
And the battle between him and Hanafuda, in their eyes, was probably just a case of one evil fighting another.
Shane didn't care.
This was the result of the people being manipulated and deceived by a mastermind. The truth would come out one day.
No.
To be precise, the day the truth would be revealed was today.
As if he had sensed something, he turned and looked to his left.
On the riverbank, besides his own comrades, another group of people was already waiting for him.
The blue-haired girl in the lead looked to be only twelve or thirteen. She was staring at him without blinking, and when she saw him look over, she suddenly became excited and began to wave her arm frantically.
"Lord Shane! Over here! Over here!"
Vivi?
Shane raised an eyebrow. He had heard Hanafuda's loud conversation, so he knew that Vivi would be coming to represent the royal family.
But this reaction… was a little strange.
This was the first time he and the little girl had ever met.
Why was she acting like a fangirl who had finally met her idol?
——————
Shane's confusion was soon cleared up.
After the two groups met and were introduced, Vivi immediately latched on to him.
She would pop up on his left one moment, then block his path on the right the next, constantly asking questions.
"Lord Shane! You're so young! You're only a few years older than me! Can I call you 'Big Brother'?"
"Big Brother Shane, how are you so strong?! You can even toss a Tyrannosaurus Rex around! That's amazing!"
"Big Brother Shane, what should I do to become as strong as you?! Can you teach me?!"
"Hey, hey, hey, don't walk so fast, Big Brother Shane! You haven't answered my questions yet!"
"..."
Shane was getting a headache from the little girl's chatter. He would have rather fought Hanafuda again than endure this.
He couldn't help but turn to the captain of the Royal Guard who was accompanying her.
"Uh, old man, your name is Igaram, right? Is your princess always like this?"
"Err, no, Lord Shane…"
Igaram wiped the sweat from his brow and said with a forced smile, "Her Highness Vivi may be young, but she is usually very sensible, strong, and responsible. With His Majesty the King bedridden, she knew the danger, but she still stepped forward to take on this mission…"
"Then why…"
"It's probably because Her Highness was so worried on the way here, afraid that the people near the port had already fallen victim to Hanafuda."
Igaram shrugged. "However, after arriving with such a heavy heart, the scene she saw was Hanafuda being completely controlled by you…"
"So, the tension in her body suddenly relaxed, and she subconsciously turned that relief into admiration and respect for you."
Igaram understood his princess's state of mind very well.
In fact, he had had a similar experience himself.
Unlike Her Highness Vivi, who had not had much contact with the outside world, he had long heard of the terrifying Warlord, Hanafuda.
He had once been a notorious figure in the New World. And the result?
He had just arrived, his heart full of dread, only to see the massive, terrifying Tyrannosaurus Rex on the other side of the river being tossed around like a toy, almost completely helpless.
And in a short time, he had been completely defeated.
The crisis that had been hanging over the country had been averted.
And the one who had done it was a handsome, refined-looking young man who looked to be only seventeen or eighteen.
After witnessing such a shocking scene, who wouldn't be filled with admiration and awe?!
Even a middle-aged man like him was so excited he wanted to clear his throat and sing a song in his honor!
"La, la, la—"
Hearing the low baritone by his ear, Shane's headache grew even worse, and he couldn't help but rub his temples.
Oh, right, I almost forgot this old man is an opera lover. Even in the original timeline, when he was undercover in Baroque Works, he couldn't go a day without singing a few bars.
But after Igaram's explanation, he more or less understood.
Vivi was still young, and under the continuous emotional fluctuations, she was easily influenced by the hero worship effect, the suspension bridge effect, the Tyndall effect, the Pythagorean theorem, and so on.
And that was why she had turned into a starry-eyed fangirl the moment she saw him.
"Speaking of which, you're all very brave, aren't you? For that reason, you dare to approach me?"
Shane shook his head. "Don't forget, I'm a pirate with a bounty of five hundred and forty million Berries. Your national hero, Crocodile, also died at my hands."
"A man who can defeat two Warlords in a row, how strong must you be? If you really had any ill intentions toward our country, what good would our vigilance do?"
Igaram stopped clearing his throat and said solemnly, "And besides, after this contact, your words and actions, your character, haven't they all just proven that our judgment was correct?"
"You, who would step in to right a wrong, who would save so many merchant ships and local residents, are by no means the vicious villain that the newspapers describe!"
"Instead of being wary and on guard, it's better to be open and honest. That is the way of hospitality that we, the people of Alabasta, who grew up in the desert, believe in!"
