One Piece: Nobody knows Devil Fruits better than me.

Chapter 204 My Pain Is Greater Than Yours

Let's rewind the clock to about three minutes ago.

On Montblanc Island, a fierce battle is raging.

"Blackbody Flow - Whale Fall!"

Zephyr leaped high into the air, and the shredder, imbued with intense Armament Haki, crashed down below.

"Boom!"

The earth was instantly ploughed open into a huge crater, and the surging, enormous impact instantly blew everything around it away.

Zefa acted without hesitation—because at this moment, the town that once existed here no longer existed.

It exists here.
Only enemies!

"Mom, it hurts. My body feels like it's going to split open."

At this moment, Weevil, who had been hit by Zephyr's punch again, was now even more severely injured.

At this point, there was almost no intact part of his body, and his limbs were clearly broken.

Zefa could even clearly see that a fifth of Weevil's head had been blown away by that punch.

It's almost unimaginable that anyone could survive in that condition.

But at this time
"Click."

"Mommy. Ouch."

Despite his broken, deformed limbs and fatal injuries, Weevil continued to struggle desperately.

The sutures on his body still maintain his body's most basic form.

"Ha ha."

At this moment, Zephyr, who was also feeling physically exhausted, looked at Weevil in front of him and said, "Just a little bit more."

He can be sure.

No matter how unlike human vitality it may be—once the body is completely destroyed, it is impossible to survive.

"what"

He managed to lift the shredder again, bending low to the ground.

But it is precisely at this moment
"Mom. Mom"

“It’s so noisy, Weevil.”

Besides Weevil's wailing, he suddenly heard a second voice.

That was a voice coming from Weevil's 'mind'.

Zephyr's pupils contracted.

His gaze fell on Webble's shattered head—only now did he notice.

Inside Weevil’s shattered skull, embedded in the skull wall, was a miniature Den Den Mushi.

At that moment, the Den Den Mushi, which looked like an old woman and was full of wrinkles, was making a sound.

"Seriously, looks like it's a failure? The World Government's support is taking so long to arrive. Hey, your intelligence isn't very accurate, Judge? Don't blame me for not being able to preserve a Shichibukai to help your country!"

"There's no other way—I have to give up on Weevil. What a pity, I searched for so long to find suitable material."

She seemed to be communicating with someone, saying things that were completely irrelevant.

then
“Hey, Weevil—untie your ‘threads’.”

Zephyr heard the voice from the Den Den Mushi say this.

"But...but Mom is in a lot of pain, and if the stitches are untied, it will hurt even more for Weevil."

But at this moment, Weevil said this.

Then Zefa understood.

Weebull's seemingly meaningless, childlike 'wailing' was actually a genuine conversation with his 'mother' from the very beginning.

However, the content of the conversation occurred directly in his mind.

"What exactly is this thing?"

Zefa gritted his teeth.

But at this moment, it was clear that no one would answer Zephyr's question.

"It's okay—Weebull, you're used to the pain, aren't you? Untying the stitches will make Mom happy."

That's all the voice on the other end of the Den Den Mushi was saying.

Although she referred to herself as "Mom," the malice and indifference in her words were unmistakable.

"Untie the wires, Weevil!"

"This is what Mom asked for, and once the stitches are removed, you won't feel any more pain soon."

Upon hearing this, Weevil shrank back in fear.

then
"Yes, yes—Mom."

He stood up shakily, raised the huge and sharp naginata in his hand, and slashed it down at a certain part of his body!

"boom!"

The next moment, he ripped open a section of the stitches on his shoulder.

Blood splattered, and at that moment, Weevil let out an unprecedented scream.

"Ouch! Ouch! It hurts!"

The intense pain made his howls sound almost like those of a wild beast.

But that was just the beginning.
"Chi!" "Chi!" "Chi!"

He repeatedly ripped open the special sutures on his body.

As the sutures snapped, a piercing sound of flesh tearing followed.

Right in front of Zephyr, under the watchful eyes of the navy and the evacuated crowd on Montblanc Island.

Edward Weebull's body began to undergo a terrifying transformation.

Shoulders, chest, waist, arms. As every stitch on his body was cut and disintegrated, Weevil's body disintegrated along with it, beginning to take on an unimaginable appearance.

It's like a doll having its stitches torn off, allowing people to see the actual stuffing inside.

"What...what is that thing!?"

At that moment, someone couldn't help but exclaim in surprise.

At this moment, inside Weevil's body...

What they saw was not the usual bones or muscles.

On the contrary—what they saw were countless overlapping bones, and chunks of meat with completely different colors, textures, and sizes.

Some of the meat chunks were muscular and knotted, exuding a sense of power.

Some pieces of meat have delicate and taut tendons and bones, full of explosive power.

His skin alone has at least ten layers, stacked together.

"."

As a veteran who has fought on the sea for decades.

The battle-hardened Zephyr immediately recognized what it was.

"corpse."

Yes—Edward Weebull's body was not alive.

Or to be more precise.

Even after a living being dies, its body can still be considered 'alive' for a short period of time.

He is still alive, but his soul is dead.

That is the essence of Webull.

He is a monster that is 'brought back to life' by stitching together many fresh corpses that have just died but whose life force has not yet completely disappeared.

No, judging from the other party's posture, it's hard to say that he can really be considered a living being.

"Ouch!"

At that moment, amidst the howls of a wild beast that echoed almost throughout the entire island, Webul was filled with a mournful cry.

The lingering voice of the Den Den Mushi in his mind was naturally unheard by anyone.

"It's not easy to find the corpses of strong individuals who can adapt to Newgate's 'bloodline,' let alone 'life stitching' of twelve corpses. Even for me, it's quite a challenge. What a pity."

"But—let it be."

She said coldly, "Weebull, with your pain, make one last big scene."

The words fell.

With a click, the Den Den Mushi ended completely.

then
"Whoa!"

At this moment, Weebuhr's voice seemed to finally snap its last string.

"boom!"

His body was disintegrating at an alarming rate—Zefa could see almost constantly chunks of flesh and strange bones falling and separating from his body.

But it comes from Weevil.

An even more powerful aura surged forth like a tsunami!
"Roar!"

Weevil suddenly swung the naginata in his hand.

There are no martial arts techniques or moves—it's just the simplest, most casual sweeping.

But
"laugh!"

The blow swept across the air, producing a sharp, explosive sound.

A blood-red slash, visible to the naked eye, suddenly shot out.

Wherever it passed, the wind howled.

The earth was instantly cleaved open, and rubble and debris shattered into dust. "."

Seeing this, Zephyr's expression turned solemn.

He naturally understood.

Now that the stitches on his body have been removed.

Within the monster named Weevil, the remaining life force and power from different powerful beings had also lost their restraint.

They are having a final, frantic outburst.

"Painful Mom Killer"

At that moment, Weevil's last remaining consciousness looked at Zephyr.

Pain was all he was aware of at that moment, and his already confused mind naturally focused on the purple-haired old man in front of him who had been causing him so much pain.

"The final blow?"

Just as Zephyr tensed up again, wrapping Armament Haki around the Crusher in preparation for battle.

"Ho ho ho"

His expression suddenly changed.

The violent breathing burst forth almost uncontrollably, and the domineering aura emanating from the crusher flickered uncertainly.

Zefa clutched his chest tightly with one hand and braced his knee with the other, his face turning deathly pale.

"Teacher Zephyr!?"

On the distant high platform, Ain and Binz, who had been watching the battlefield closely, also cried out in surprise at the same time.

This scene was all too familiar to them.

It was like a replay of that nightmare from four years ago.

Zefa's asthma flared up at that very moment.

"It's been too long! The battle has lasted too long!"

At that moment, Binz gritted his teeth: "Although I made sure the teacher brought enough asthma medication, that bastard's body is tougher than I thought—especially at a time like this."

Yes.

Zefa was certainly aware of his asthma problem.

Therefore, in order to ensure the success of this battle, he carried a sufficient amount of asthma medication.

But it's clear that that's only a temporary solution.

As he gets older, the high-intensity combat puts an immense strain on Zephyr's body.

Asthma medication can delay the onset of symptoms, but it cannot completely prevent them.

At that moment, Hans and Far, who had already begun evacuating the surrounding civilians as instructed by Roy, did not hesitate to pull out their emergency Den Den Mushi and shout into the Den Den Mushi, "Boss! Something's happened—General Zephyr's asthma has flared up!"

And it was at the same moment that Hans's roar was heard.
"boom!"

Weevil's shattered body, along with flying flesh and blood, was already hurtling towards Zephyr!

At this moment
"Boom!"

Above Montblanc Island, black and red lightning roared.

Golden waves, carrying streams of light, streaked across the sky like a meteor tearing through the night, moving at a speed beyond the limits of the naked eye!

The terrifying sense of oppression made it difficult for all the evacuated people on Montblanc Island below to even breathe—even though Roy had controlled his Conqueror's Haki, that aura still almost made them faint.

Besides them, the members of the pirate guerrilla team and the marines in the detention unit naturally knew who it was.

"Boss!"

"It's Lord 'Black Xie'!"

"Lieutenant General Roy!"

Yes—the one who has arrived at this moment, accompanied by a strong wave and Conqueror's Haki, is none other than Roy, who has rushed here at top speed!

"You scoundrel, don't even think about laying a hand on the old man!"

With his five senses enhanced, Roy easily locked onto Weevil on the battlefield below.

His body came to an abrupt stop in mid-air, and the powerful inertia instantly created a gust of wind.

His right fist, wreathed in black and red lightning, clenched instantly.

"Buzz!"

The fist is poised to strike.

However.
"!!!"

In the next instant.

Roy's punching motion abruptly stopped in mid-air!

"Roy, kid! It's you, isn't it?"

Because of his enhanced five senses, he can clearly perceive the sounds coming from the battlefield at this moment.

"Don't make a move."

The source of the sound was the hunched, purple-haired figure below.

"As I have said before—I have not fallen to the point where I need my disciples' help to eliminate pirates."

At this moment, Zephyr slowly stood up, like a lion that was extremely old but still full of fighting spirit.

"This guy, I must deal with him myself."

His sunglasses had fallen to the ground, revealing his eyes.

Those eyes seemed to have something burning inside them.

"You keep saying you're in pain?"

Zephyr's gaze fell upon the monster wielding a naginata, charging toward him.

Zefa was still panting heavily, his body covered in cold sweat.

That means his illness is still flaring up.

But he slowly and firmly lowered the hand that was covering his chest.

"Crack!"

Hold the crusher tightly.

In that instant, Zephyr seemed to have returned to the past.

He seemed to see that place, which could once be called 'home,' burning fiercely.

He saw the bodies of his wife and son, killed by pirates—they died because of him.

In the next instant, he seemed to see another past.

That was a training ship for naval recruits.

The corpses of his disciples, who should have been alive, lay scattered everywhere.

Blood spread across the deck—they died because of him too.

"How ridiculous!"

He let out a hoarse, low roar.

Deafening.

"Roar!"

At the same time, Weevil, holding his naginata high, swung it down at Zephyr!

The destructive blade whipped up Zephyr's short purple hair, causing his tattered navy cloak to flutter wildly behind him.

But at this moment, Zephyr's expression remained calm.

"."

The pain in my body, the discomfort in my heart, the difficulty in breathing.
He felt all of this pain with perfect clarity.

In the past, such pain would have been enough to bring him down.

However, after the military exercises.

After shedding the shackles of responsibility and following one's own heart.

He had already realized that these physical pains were insignificant compared to the 'pain' he had always endured.

"call"

Zefa breathed, like a bellows sucking in all the pain.

With each breath he felt excruciating pain, his back slowly, little by little, straightened up completely.

Yes.

'Pierre Saint' transformed pain into power using ancient technology.

Weebull viewed suffering as a final, desperate madness before destruction.

But for Zephyr...

Pain is fuel.

They burned like a raging fire within him, constantly tempering his soul and will.

Today, it is as solid as steel.

It allowed him to stand here beyond physical pain, and even the betrayal of the World Government could not defeat him.

"Buzz!"

On the shredder, the jet-black Armament Haki was more solid than ever before.

"What kind of resolve do you think I had when I came to this battlefield?!"

Zephyr raised his hand
"If I am defeated again, what right do I have to stand before my disciples?"

"Pirate!"

He threw a punch to meet the incoming naginata.

(End of this chapter)