43. Healing Abilities
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Anos had possessed such a great advantage in the beginning, but now, standing battered and broken, he realized how quickly the tides of battle could turn.
He had given his all, leveraging years of experience, yet still ended up in this predicament. The irony wasn't lost on him. But he had no regrets about the injuries that marred his body.
However, now that things had escalated to this point, Anos knew it might become impossible to control what happened next.
The battle had taken an unexpected turn, and if he didn't act soon, the consequences would be dire.
There was no room for missteps anymore, not with the entire Kingdom's future hanging in the balance.
His lack of any superhuman recovery ability meant he had no choice but to endure the pain and fight through it.
Every breath was a struggle, yet he knew that his two opponents weren't going to show him any mercy. He couldn't allow himself to fall now.
"Hufufu… I've lost so many people, yet here I stand, still not dead. Is that such a surprise to you?"
Olvia's voice echoed through the tension-filled air, the gleam in his eyes indicating he felt victory was almost assured.
The werewolf still maintained his transformed state, knowing full well that his strength, speed, and reflexes were far superior when he embraced the beast within.
Whether attacking, defending, or even moving, Olvia, in this form, was the perfect fighter relentless, brutal, and nearly unstoppable.
Anos, on the other hand, was anything but confident. He wasn't getting carried away by the minor victories he had managed to scrape together during the battle.
Each small win had been at a tremendous cost. Despite his serious injuries, his face remained composed. His sharp gaze tracked every movement Olvia made, never letting his guard down.
In the distance, the other figure, Kova, loomed like a shadow, watching Anos with the same predatory gaze.
The air was thick with the sense that one misstep would be fatal.
Anos winced, his voice weak but defiant. "I'm not dead yet… Isn't it a little too early for you to be celebrating?"
His face had begun to lose its colour, pale from the loss of blood. His wounds refused to stop bleeding, no matter how hard he tried to stem the flow.
Just outside the barrier that encased the battlefield, Daiki was anxiously watching, his heart pounding in his chest.
Daiki had sensed the shift in the battle's momentum, rushing to the edge of the invisible barrier that kept him locked out and Anos trapped within. His palms pressed against the surface of the barrier, frustration bubbling beneath his skin.
No matter how loudly he shouted, his voice would never penetrate the barrier. He couldn't be heard inside, and the voices of those within couldn't be heard by those outside.
It was an Impenetrable dome, isolating the events inside from the rest of the world.
"You said it yourself, King Tru," Kova taunted, stepping closer. "In your current state, how do you think you can defeat the two of us? King Tru, you should just give up. Let's end this quickly. There's no need for mercy anymore."
Kova's smile was smug, his confidence swelling as he saw Anos faltering. In their eyes, the battle was already over, and the victory was theirs for the taking.
Anos, though gravely injured, wasn't ready to concede defeat. He leaned heavily on Muramasa, the demon sword that had been his companion through countless battles, struggling to push himself back up.
Anos's muscles screamed in protest, but he gritted his teeth and forced himself to stand.
Time was slipping away, and Anos knew if he didn't act soon, everything could be lost. The fate of his kingdom, his people, and his very life rested on his ability to hold on for just a little longer.
Although his allies were positioned outside the barrier, their strength would mean little if Olvia and Kova decided to flee.
These two weren't ordinary enemies they were powerful and resourceful. If they wanted to escape, the forces waiting outside wouldn't be enough to stop them.
And that wasn't the worst of it. Anos knew that if either of them made it out, they'd immediately contact others through their Den Den Mushi.
They'd summon reinforcements, and Anos's already precarious situation would become a death sentence.
This was why he had kept the barrier up for so long, despite his injuries. The barrier was the only thing keeping his enemies contained.
If he lost consciousness, even for a moment, the barrier would likely dissolve on its own, leaving him and the kingdom vulnerable to a brutal, unrelenting war.
Gripping his sword tightly, Anos resolved himself to keep these two inside the barrier, no matter what. There was no alternative if they escaped, it would all be over.
"System, is there any medicine that can quickly heal my wounds?"
Anos reached out with his mind, calling upon the mysterious system that had been his secret weapon in countless battles.
He wasn't alone in this fight. Though it was rarely seen by others, the system was always with him, offering him advantages no one else in this world possessed. With it, he was a step closer to invincibility.
It wasn't as If he had an easy path ahead, even with the system. No matter how gravely injured he was, Anos could rely on the system to help him recover if he was willing to pay the price.
But what if even with the system's help, the cost was too high?
A voice rang out In his mind, cold and mechanical.
[ If the host is seriously injured, rapid self-healing abilities can be purchased. Your current balance is one billion fifty million Beris. Would you like to choose randomly? ]
A moment of hesitation flickered through Anos's mind. A random selection? Now, of all times? The system's random selections had never been kind to him.
He had spent fortunes on random draws in the past, with bizarre results sometimes useful, often completely ridiculous.
The system wasn't infallible. It was as much a gamble as it was a tool.
He recalled one of the earlier purchases a fully automated textile machine had been his goal, but what he had gotten instead was a set of women's underwear.
It had been an Infuriating and humiliating mistake. Since then, the word "random" has left a bad taste in his mouth.
But now, with two enemies staring him down and the future of the kingdom on the line, there was no time for careful decisions, he had to act fast.
"Agree…" he gritted out, barely able to focus on the system's interface as pain clouded his vision.
As soon as he gave the command, the system's balance hit zero, and a familiar roulette wheel appeared in his mind, spinning rapidly. He didn't even have the energy to watch it unfold.
Outside the barrier, Daiki's frustration boiled over. His fists, now clad in Armament Haki, struck the ground in rage.
Each punch cracked the marble beneath his feet, but it was no use. He couldn't breach the barrier, and with every second that passed, Anos's condition worsened. The helplessness was eating away at him.
Inside the barrier, Olvia, who had been watching Anos in silence, finally relaxed. His confidence surged.
He stopped maintaining his werewolf form, returning to his normal appearance.
Now shirtless, Olvia pulled out a pair of sunglasses and nonchalantly placed them on his face, as if the fight was already over.
"King Tru, by now, you should have accepted your fate. There's no need to keep resisting. Wouldn't it be better if you just surrendered?" Olvia's voice was smooth, but the smugness in his tone was unmistakable.
Kova seemed to agree, nodding in silent approval.
But just as the two of them prepared to finish Anos off, something unexpected happened. Anos, who had been lying on the ground moments ago, suddenly stood up.
The wounds covering his body began to close, healing rapidly right before their eyes. The two opponents froze, their eyes widening in disbelief.
No one had seen this coming.
Among the Devil Fruit abilities in this world, there were indeed those that could heal the user, but Anos had the power of a space-based Devil Fruit.
He wasn't supposed to possess any healing abilities. Yet the evidence was right in front of them his wounds were closing at an astonishing rate.
"Olvia," Anos said, his voice calm but laced with a strange amusement. "Who were you talking about just now?"
Something was unnerving about the way Anos smiled as he stood there, his strength seemingly returning.
Even he was surprised by what had happened. The system had always been unpredictable, but this time, the random selection had granted him something extraordinary. (Ahem!....Plot Ar-)
When the roulette wheel stopped spinning, the ability it landed on was one he never would have expected a healing technique from another world, from the world of Naruto.
This was no ordinary self-healing ability, this was the power of the Sage of the Six Paths, a legendary figure with the ability to regenerate almost instantly.
Anos blinked, still processing the reality of what had just occurred. The balance of one billion Beris he had spent was worth every coin.
He would have gladly paid ten billion or even a hundred billion for an ability like this.
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