The officers of the Roger Pirates began discussing among themselves, showering praise upon their captain.
However, Rayleigh and Gaban remained doubtful.
Neither of them believed that Is could have been defeated so easily.
"Wait... there's no blood."
Rayleigh suddenly realized something and immediately pointed it out.
Hearing his words, the other pirates once again turned their attention toward Is's body, which had supposedly been cut in half by Roger.
Sure enough.
Although Is's body had been severed at the waist, not a single drop of blood had flowed out.
"That's not the real Is!"
Gaban exclaimed in shock.
"So Captain Roger didn't kill him?"
One pirate recalled the mocking words he had spoken moments earlier and couldn't help swallowing nervously.
"Is is the man who ended Rocks."
"How could he possibly be killed that easily?"
Rayleigh reminded them in a deep voice.
The Roger Pirates knew very well just how terrifying Rocks had been.
After all, their crew had nearly been wiped out by him in the past.
"If that's not the real Is, then where is the real one?"
Gaban activated his Observation Haki and scanned the surroundings, searching for Is's presence.
"Still not going to show yourself, Is?"
Standing beside Is's "corpse," Roger gripped his saber and called out.
"You people are quite amusing."
"I wanted to listen to your discussion a little longer."
A voice suddenly came from the nearby forest.
Is walked out with a smile on his face.
"I can't sense his presence!"
The moment Rayleigh saw him, he activated Observation Haki.
Yet within the range of his perception, it was as though Is didn't exist at all.
Hearing this, the other powerhouses also began using Observation Haki.
Just as Rayleigh had said, none of them could sense Is's presence.
It was as if he were completely absent from the world.
"How can paper have a presence?"
Is sneered.
His mastery over his Devil Fruit had reached an extraordinary level.
By covering himself with paper, he could conceal his own aura completely.
After all, paper wasn't a living thing.
The "corpse" beside Roger suddenly transformed into countless sheets of paper that scattered into the air.
The moment Roger's attack had reached him, Is had used a Wood Clone and hidden himself within the forest.
However, a Wood Clone alone would have been too easy to identify as a fake.
So he had also infused it with his Devil Fruit abilities.
Aside from lacking blood and internal organs, it looked exactly like him.
The entire stunt had been nothing more than a way to add some entertainment to an otherwise boring battle.
"This battle is proving far more difficult than I expected."
Roger's expression darkened as he tightened his grip on his saber.
"Is is just relying on a few cheap tricks."
"We can't lose this battle."
Shiki spoke leisurely.
"Well?"
"Aren't you coming?"
"Or are you waiting for me to attack first?"
Is smiled as he looked at them.
Shiki immediately charged forward.
Roger attacked from the side.
Meanwhile, Rayleigh and Gaban circled around to Is's other flank.
The remaining Roger Pirates officers exchanged glances before rushing in as well.
Clang!
Is's blade collided with Shiki's twin swords.
At the next moment, Roger closed in and swung his saber, attempting to cut Is down once again.
Boom!
Is exerted force through his arm and blasted Shiki backward.
At the same time, he raised his sword to his waist and blocked Roger's attack.
Rayleigh and Gaban were now less than a meter away.
Both men swung their weapons simultaneously.
BOOM!
A pillar of purple flames suddenly erupted beneath their feet.
The fire instantly engulfed them.
The intense pain caught them completely off guard, causing them to forget their attacks entirely.
At the same time, the other Roger Pirates officers were nearly within striking distance.
The ground beneath Is suddenly separated into countless sheets of paper.
The paper gathered beneath the pirates' feet, forming giant serpents that wrapped tightly around them.
Whoosh!
Veins bulged across Is's arm as he swung his sword with tremendous force, sending Roger flying backward.
In a single instant, the combined assault of the Roger Pirates and Golden Lion Shiki completely collapsed.
"Damn it, he's way too strong!"
One pirate officer couldn't help complaining.
Their coordinated attack had been dismantled in the blink of an eye.
"You're too slow."
Is spoke casually.
With the Sharingan activated, his perception had become extraordinarily sharp.
To him, the combined assault of the Roger Pirates and Shiki appeared painfully slow.
He had more than enough time to react and counterattack.
"I refuse to believe that so many of us can't defeat a single person!"
Shiki roared, his face twisted with fury.
"Lion Majesty: Earth Roll!"
As Shiki spoke, several gigantic lion heads appeared around Is, surrounding him from every direction.
"Lion Thousand Slice Valley!"
Swish! Swish! Swish!!!
Wielding his twin famous swords, Shiki unleashed countless golden slashes toward Is.
The officers of the Roger Pirates also charged forward once more.
"Wood Release: Deep Forest Emergence!"
Countless gigantic trees burst from the ground beneath Is's feet.
Massive trunks erupted skyward and gathered around him.
The forest blocked the endless stream of golden slashes.
At the same time, the enormous lion heads surrounding him were shattered and destroyed.
◇ I'll be dropping one bonus chapters for every 10 reviews. comment
◇ One bonus chapter will be released for every 100 Power Stones.
◇ You can read the ahead chapter on P@treon if you're interested:
patreon.com/c/GojoSP