How could such luck be real?
Katakuri, at such a young age, had not only trained his Observation Haki to the level of future sight, but had also awakened his Devil Fruit ability?
That kind of talent... was downright terrifying.
When someone pushes their Devil Fruit ability to its limits, they can reach the stage known as "awakening."
As far as Daren knew, the effects of awakening varied depending on the Devil Fruit type.
For Zoan-types, awakening granted the user incredible regenerative capabilities—so long as it wasn't a fatal injury, they could recover in a flash.
Logia awakenings hadn't been directly shown in the original timeline, but judging from the aftermath of the battle between Kuzan and Sakazuki for the title of Fleet Admiral—which permanently altered the climate of Punk Hazard—Daren guessed that a Logia awakening could impact the weather itself.
As for Paramecia, awakening gave users the ability to change, influence, or even assimilate the surrounding environment.
Katakuri was the perfect example.
The terrain around him had already transformed into sticky mochi, completely under his control.
And yet, Katakuri was only twenty!
For a moment, Daren was thrown off.
Was this the "masterpiece" of the Charlotte family?
Or… had Katakuri just awakened his Devil Fruit mid-battle, triggered by their clash?
Did that make him the "instructor" without realizing it?
That didn't seem right...
No. Impossible.
Daren quickly ruled it out, shaking his head.
He narrowed his eyes, carefully observing Katakuri's current condition and the environment shaped by his awakened Mochi Mochi no Mi. It didn't take long for him to reach a conclusion.
Katakuri's mastery over his awakening was already refined—it was clearly not his first time using it.
In that case... his talent was just plain monstrous.
...
"Get ready to repent, you bastard!!"
As Daren was lost in thought, Katakuri had already launched his next assault.
With a guttural shout, he raised his right hand and slammed it into the ground.
The earth beneath them surged violently.
"Nagare Mochi!"
Sticky white mochi rolled forward like a tidal wave, engulfing everything—ruined buildings, streetlamps, debris—all swallowed into a vast white swamp, trapping everything within!
The wave reached him in an instant.
Daren's eyes flared, and he launched himself skyward. Twisting like a spinning butterfly, he weaved through the surging mochi waves with graceful agility.
While evading, he analyzed Katakuri's rhythm and breathing, trying to extract any insights into how Devil Fruit powers could be used more efficiently.
Both his Jiki Jiki no Mi and Katakuri's Mochi Mochi no Mi were Paramecia-types. Though their manifestations differed, their developmental pathways might share something in common.
And more importantly—his Devil Fruit progress had been stuck at 83 points for far too long.
Even gaining a point or two from fighting Katakuri would be a massive win!
Katakuri's eyes flashed red as he took in Daren's movement.
Both of his hands turned into mochi and slammed into the ground again.
Whoosh!
The ground erupted into dozens of rice cake tendrils, shooting into the air like machine gun fire, targeting Daren with lethal precision.
"Amadare Mochi!"
With his future-sensing Observation Haki, Katakuri's strike descended like a curtain of rain, sealing off every possible escape route for Daren!
"What a brilliant tactic!"
Realizing Katakuri's intention, Daren didn't hold back his praise. Blue arcs of electricity flickered between his fingers.
A black and a white flash of phantom light tore through the mochi rain with overwhelming force and then surged toward Katakuri without slowing.
21 Great Grade Blades, Enma!
50 Skillful Grade Blades, Kariumi!
Under Daren's magnetic control, the two razor-sharp Meito danced through the air with speed and precision, spiraling together like threading needles. Waves of white shockwaves rippled out with explosive force!
So fast!!
Katakuri's bloodshot eyes contracted sharply.
In the "future" he foresaw, facing the blinding speed of these two blades, any attempt to dodge would result in being cleaved in half—his heart pierced through!
No way to dodge!
He had to take it head-on!
The decision flashed through his mind, and Katakuri didn't hesitate. His eyes blazed with fierce fighting spirit.
A blast of wind slammed into his face as he raised both fists in a stance reminiscent of a boxer.
Behind him, the ground shifted. Two massive white mochi masses swelled up.
"Muso Donuts!"
The moment he stepped forward, the giant mochi blobs transformed into two enormous fists, cloaked in gleaming black Armament Haki.
He threw a punch!
Katakuri hurled his fist through the air with brute force.
In perfect sync, the mochi fists mimicked the motion, swinging down just the same!
"Chikara Mochi!!"
Clang!! Clang!!
His fists smashed directly into Daren's twin blades, sending sparks flying as the clash of Haki erupted into a fearsome storm.
Boom!!
Within a kilometer, the ground buckled and collapsed, cracking open with deep, jagged fissures as smoke and debris shot into the sky.
"Mochi Ginchaku!!"
Before the last blow even settled, Katakuri gritted his teeth and launched another attack.
His fists moved like a boxer's shadow punches—so fast they left afterimages in the air.
The donuts mirrored his stance perfectly, unleashing a torrent of fists far fiercer than before, engulfing the Marine Vice Admiral in a storm of strikes.
"Hahahahaha!! Bring it on!!"
Confronted with Katakuri's sudden surge in power, Daren's smile grew wider, even tinged with a trace of madness.
He pushed his Observation Haki to the limit. Merging it with his biological magnetic field sensing, the red of Observation Haki and the blue of magnetic perception blended—his pupils sparking with violet lightning!
Charging head-on into the sea of fists!
Fists collided again and again!!
Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!!
An electrifying clash!!
Observation Haki +0.05
Observation Haki +0.07
Observation Haki +0.06
...
Without even realizing it...
Daren's Observation Haki had already surged to 70 points!
And at that exact moment, a special trait quietly emerged.
Observation Haki: 70 (Magnetic Field Induction)