Capítulo 280: Sweet Veil and the "unreliable" Caesar
"What's happening?! There are enemies!" The Minks, sensing something unusual in the distance, instinctively used their sense of smell to search for enemies in the dark night. However, this only accelerated the inhalation of the knockout gas, and they too fell asleep and collapsed.
These were Caesar's specially designed incapacitating agents, known for being potent enough to even incapacitate Giants. As swathes of Minks fell, the once lively gathering underwent a massive change.
However, near the bonfire at the center, Zeraora remained unaffected. This was because Setsuna's Alcremie had the Sweet Veil ability, preventing all nearby allies from falling asleep.
The people it considered friends were automatically regarded as allies, so Caesar's knockout gas had no effect here at all.
Originally, their plan was to abduct a few Minks while they were asleep, but the Minks' party caused them to change their plan. Caesar's talent in this regard far exceeded others, and after incapacitating the Minks, they could slowly choose suitable test subjects.
Their objective was to capture them alive, as dead Minks held no value for them. However, there were more than a hundred Minks in the central area who remained awake, which was somewhat unexpected.
"Ceasar is really unreliable. There are still so many Minks unaffected."
"Perhaps these few are stronger. Nevertheless, it's good this way; more test subjects mean Ceasar now can't shift the blame."
During this time, Ceasar had been blaming Rear Admirals for issues such as flawed test subjects or incomplete varieties of test subjects, refusing to acknowledge any issues with his own skills.
Since they were not an expert in science experiments, they couldn't counter him effectively, especially since some of his abilities were highly valued by the government.
With the change in the original plan, the number of Mink they intended to take away also increased. After all, they had invested so much effort; it was only natural to take away a sufficient number in one go.
As a large number of Mink succumbed to the effects of the knockout gas and fell into slumber, they emerged from the darkness. Seeing that even the Minks in the distance were affected, they hadn't anticipated encountering this group of outliers.
Seeing the enemies, Hitsugisukan was surprisingly angry.
"You ba*tards! Musketeer Squad, prepare to face the enemy! Guardians, protect the citizens!"
With the number of Minks, they couldn't possibly have gathered around a single campfire, so there were more than one bonfire lit.
Both the Musketeer Squad and Guardians hold higher status among the Minks, and Zeraora, as an outsider, had a similarly higher status. So, they were all near the bonfire at the center, and were thus unaffected by the knockout gas due to Alcremie's ability.
Hitsugisukan issued his orders. While the Musketeer Squad and Guardians were elite fighters among the Minks, they usually had different responsibilities. The Guardians protected Whale Forest, while the Musketeer Squad was more active within Kurau City.
Setsuna and Zeraora initially also rose to their feet but Hitsugisukan stopped them.
"There's no reason to have guests fight. Setsuna, you too. After all these years, you've finally returned home. Just stay here quietly."
Then, he picked up the staff he carries with him, then he removed something from it and the staff transformed into a copper hammer about the size of a watermelon. He swung it rapidly, creating a whirlwind.
"Sheep's Gentle Breeze!"
Though the citizens had fallen unconscious, their bodies remained safe. It was clear that they had been drugged, and he intended to blow away whatever had affected them.
"Whoosh!" A powerful wind swept across the road ahead, but it didn't have much effect. The type of knockout gas Caesar had created, while potent, had a very short duration and lost its effect shortly after affecting most of the Mink.
"Attack!"
Under the influence of static electricity, Hitsugisukan's fur seemed to puff up, and lightning spread across his hammer. He took the lead and charged toward his enemies, with members of the Musketeer Squad following closely behind.
The members of the Guardians, on the other hand, concealed themselves in the darkness to investigate the situation of the Minks further away.
Apart from Hitsugisukan and a few leaders of the Musketeer Squad wielding metal weapons, most Minks were unarmed. Metal weapons were a scarce resource in this place.
"So troublesome, Let's finish this quickly. Who knows how long Caesar's knockout gas will remain effective."
Caesar had claimed that Giants couldn't wake up for 12 hours after being exposed to his drug, but the unexpected events made the World Government's team question the credibility of his words.
In their view, the people before them were the last fighting force of the Minks. Once they dealt with them, the entire Mink population would be at their mercy.
However, as soon as he finished speaking, Hitsugisukan swung the hammer at his head. As the iron hammer flashed by, his head exploded and like a cloud, dispersed into the surroundings.
"Logia-type…who are you, and why are you attacking Zou Island?"
Hitsugisukan quickly turned around. This time, his hammer had turned pitch-black. Zou Island has a systematic Haki training method, and being the Duke of the island, he naturally knew how to use Haki.
The World Government agent did not respond to him. Instead, he waved his hands, releasing large clouds. Hitsugisukan thought those clouds would collapse with a single blow, but his hammer failed to disperse them.
"Boom!"
Although they were clouds, they were as hard as iron. These are the unique Iron Clouds found only on Sky Island, representing one of the elements of the natural world and aligning with the development direction of Cloud-Cloud Fruit.
After two simple clashes, Hitsugisukan realized that this enemy wasn't easy to deal with. However, his attacks became even more fierce. If he were to retreat, who would protect the others on Zou Island?
Meanwhile, on the other side, the warriors of Zou Island had the upper hand for the moment. While these people were government trained agents, not all of them have reached the level of CP0 or CP9. Many of them here hadn't even mastered Rokushiki fully; most were proficient in only a couple of techniques.
While Mink attacks were infused with lightning, greatly enhancing their combat capabilities.
Hachi seemed unusually energetic today, perhaps because his future son-in-law was watching from behind. He wants to show off his strength. With a single punch, he knocked down his opponent who had used Tekkai, then began searching for his next target.
Soon, he found his target: a big shirtless man about four meters tall. Many Mink warriors had already fallen around him.
Seeing his back turned, Hachi thought he had an opportunity. After a brief dash, he raised his sword to chop his neck. It was a high-quality weapon forged in Wano Country, a gift from Setsuna.
"Szzz."
In mid-air, a blade crackled with lightning wrapped around it as it slashed toward the man's neck. However, he didn't succeed. The blade struck the man's body, just like it had previously struck that man who had used Tekkai, but it was without any effect, and the problem was that this time even the lightning failed.
The man retaliated with a backhand strike to Hachi's head, sending him flying.
This man was a special devil fruit user that the World Government had prepared specifically to counter Minks. He was a Paramecia-type ability user with the "Store-Store Fruit," allowing him to transform into a battery-like entity and nullify all of the Minks' electric attacks.
Electricity, flames, hurricanes - anything without a physical form fell within his range of storage. The downside was that he couldn't store the raw power of physical attacks.
So, when choosing a user for this ability, the World Government intentionally selected someone like a human shield. He was a CP agent specializing in Tekkai, and his usual duties mostly involved being a bodyguard.
This ability, combined with his natural physique, created a perfect synergy, compensating for Tekkai's weakness against elemental attacks.
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