Taro's words made Mingo's Aura surge, but Taro hadn't finished yet.
"I know many of your secrets even better than Monet does. Do you need me to tell them to you?"
"Goshikito!"
Before Taro finished speaking, Mingo had already let out a loud shout, raising his right hand in a claw-like shape.
A nearly transparent thin string appeared on each of his five fingers. With a powerful downward swing from Mingo, the sharp strings sliced toward Taro like blades.
[Goshikito learned successfully]
"Clang!"
Taro drew his blade with a backhand, blocking Mingo's attack, and at the same time, he raised his right hand.
"Crescent Moon Dunes!"
Internal Energy surged out, wrapping around his right arm and turning into a sharp blade that slashed toward Mingo.
Mingo leaped lightly, dodging Taro's attack.
Taro also took a step back, widening the distance.
"Bullet String!"
Mingo extended his right hand, tapping his index finger. A string at the fingertip shot out at high speed like a gunshot, heading straight for Taro.
[Bullet String learned successfully]
"Finger Pistol: Flick!"
Taro raised his right hand and flicked his index finger. A wisp of Internal Energy shot out from his body.
"Puff!"
With a muffled sound, Taro's Internal Energy bullet collided with Mingo's thin string.
"Parasite!"
Mingo obviously didn't think he could defeat Taro with just Bullet String, so after the Bullet String was released, he didn't withdraw his arm.
Instead, he waved his large hand, scattering dozens of thin strings in the air, which then fell like a meteor shower.
Taro's protective Internal Energy fluctuated violently, resisting the erosion of the thin strings. After a period of stalemate with the Internal Energy, the thin strings drifted down powerlessly.
[Parasite learning failed!]
[Missing the latter part of the Move, unable to analyze, learning failed!]
Taro understood what the System's prompt meant. For Mingo's Move, the subsequent finger movements were the key to this technique. By flicking the fingers, one could control a person's movements like a puppet.
"Gear Third!"
After blocking Mingo's several attacks, Taro held his right arm horizontally and launched a counterattack. His entire body's Internal Energy surged frantically, condensing into a massive blue-white fist phantom on his right arm.
Then he pulled his arm back, the blue-white Internal Energy restless and twisting, coiling together, and he threw a punch with all his might.
"Gomu Gomu no Gigant Rifle!"
"Spider's Web!"
Facing Taro's counterattack, Mingo didn't panic at all. He casually extended his left hand, emitting many strings from his palm. Those strings, like spider silk, intertwined to form a spider web structure.
"Sizzle sizzle sizzle!"
The punch condensed from Internal Energy smashed into the spider web, the vortex rotating and erupting with even more violent destructive power.
However, the defensive power of Mingo's Move was also astonishing, easily blocking it.
[Spider's Web learned successfully]
The two traded Moves from a distance. For a moment, neither could do anything to the other. Taro withdrew his Internal Energy and stopped attacking.
Taro felt the current situation was okay; after all, he was stealing techniques.
Mingo, however, felt a bit uncomfortable. Before coming here, he had thought Taro would be difficult to deal with, but he hadn't expected him to be this troublesome.
Now it seemed that without getting serious, it would be impossible to take down Taro.
"Overheat!"
Thinking of this, his expression turned cold, and he stretched his right hand backward, a movement much like many of Luffy's skills.
Then, dozens of strings sprayed from his palm, intertwining to form a thick pillar of string.
Those strings stretched back an unknown distance. In short, wherever the strings passed, the trees in the forest were all cut down, as if a path had been cleared.
Finally, the strings were pulled back and struck directly at Taro.
[Overheat learned successfully!]
The wind-up for Mingo's attack was very long, and Taro was already prepared to dodge.
But behind him was that small town. If he dodged, those civilians would likely suffer collateral damage. He cursed inwardly.
"Damn it."
Taro sheathed his sword, compressing his entire body's Internal Energy into his internal organs and then refilling his limbs and bones.
"Second Gear"
"Gomu Gomu no Jet Bazooka!"
Internal Energy gathered in both arms as they stretched backward, then suddenly struck forward!
"Bang! Chhhh~"
Two palm phantoms condensed from Internal Energy collided head-on with the thick pillar of string, letting out a roar as the massive forces reached a stalemate.
Taro's gaze narrowed. The follow-up power of Mingo's Move was immense and continuous; he couldn't block it with just "Gomu Gomu no Jet Bazooka."
Thinking of this, he withdrew his Internal Energy, moved his feet, and flashed to the side.
The thick pillar of string, no longer obstructed, pierced forward with an unstoppable momentum.
"Gravity Rebound!"
Taro gave a low shout, drew his blade with a backhand, and Internal Energy overflowed from his back. After the blue-white vortex circled a few times, a blue-purple halo spread, and a massive repulsive force suddenly erupted.
"Hum~"
The repulsive force vibrated the air, pushing Mingo's attack toward the sky.
"Boom rumble~"
The terrifying cutting ability of the string pillar instantly sliced through several earthen buildings on the edge of the town before the repulsive force changed its direction, piercing into the sky.
The attack range of Mingo's Move was extremely long. Taro took a quick glance and roughly estimated it to be at least several thousand meters long!
The New World is full of monsters!
In the first half of the Grand Line, where could such means be found?
Mingo saw that Taro's series of actions were meant to save those civilians, which made him even more furious. His entire face contorted with rage, and he erupted with an Aura like a wild wolf.
"Taro, at a life-or-death moment, you still have the mind to care about those people's lives. This hypocritical face of yours really makes me sick!"
"Weaklings who care about the pain of others are just seeking their own deaths!"
"After all, the weak don't even get to choose the way they die, fufufufufu!"
Saying these words, the current Mingo finally completely overlapped with the image of the arrogant, evil, and overbearing Mingo in Taro's memory.
Taro's face darkened as he gripped the sword hilt.
"Donquixote Doflamingo, those with different paths cannot make plans together. There's no use saying more. Whether I am weak or hypocritical... Heh."
"I remember you said something at the Marineford War: 'The ones who stand at the top can rewrite good and evil.' You call me hypocritical; do you think you're'standing at the top'?"
Hearing Taro's words, Mingo's eyes narrowed behind his sunglasses.
"Don't you know a lot? Whether I'm standing at the top, you know very well!"
Taro chuckled, a bit disdainfully. "Yes, I know very well!"
"You think you're the one holding the reins of those monsters? Tsk, those reins are also binding you!"
Mingo's face instantly stiffened, and his expression became sinister.
"You're looking for death!"
With a roar, he kicked off the ground, covering dozens of meters in an instant and appearing in front of Taro.
He raised a leg in a horizontal sweep, creating eight thin strings at the tip of his foot. With the support of the sharp strings, the kicking technique carried terrifying destructive power.
[Athlete learned successfully]
"Armament Hardening"
Taro raised his left arm, and blue-black Armament Haki instantly attached to it.
"Clang!"
The explosive power of Mingo's strike was extremely strong; even Armament Haki couldn't completely block it.
Taro's Internal Energy fluctuated, and he used the force to retreat more than ten meters before standing firm.
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