Chapter 145: Jojo, Don't Blame Me—I’m Heartbroken Too!

Page (1/3)

This counterfeit version’s strength compared to the previous one remains uncertain. As for Argulos possessing Jojo’s data, it all depends on what Jojo and Gaia had done. When they were fighting Mimos, the two Ultramen had grabbed each other and together slammed him onto the ground more than a dozen times. Nobody could endure such humiliation. While Mimos died before them, he secretly transmitted the collected data to the Destruction Entity, including the entire battle process between him and Jojo. Although he was constantly on the receiving end of the blows, the data was indeed gathered.

Now, Argulos truly is a low-grade version of Jojo, so much so that Risa Nanase was a bit confused when she saw him. Luckily, Joe was right beside her, otherwise she would have been utterly bewildered. Argulos hovered mid-air, energy converged at both wrists suddenly forming a cross, and the Spacium Ray was unleashed! However, this beam was merely superficial, a standard Spacium Ray without the unique qualities that Jojo’s version possessed. But the beam’s release was so swift, almost instantaneous, that Aguru and Gaia couldn’t react in time.

The two Ultramen were each struck in the chest, sparks flying from the impact. Fortunately, after learning the Ripple technique, Myou’s physical condition improved greatly, and Gaia became more resilient after transformation. After this beam attack, they only staggered slightly. Aguru, being naturally sturdy, was barely affected by the beam at all.

While Argulos attacked, the Lightning Squadron was also active. The three fighter jets formed a formation, and Kajio issued an order: “Switch to beam attack mode!” “Understood!” came two replies. The Lightning Squadron’s three jets simultaneously fired orange laser beams. Daikawara fixed his gaze on Argulos: “How dare you imitate Jojo! You cosmic freak! Show your true face!”

The three laser beams struck Argulos’s back, causing an explosion. This time, the upgraded jets didn’t just scratch the surface like before. “Ugh!” Argulos let out a pained scream, his body shaking violently. Perhaps Daikawara’s words provoked him, as he immediately turned around and launched a glowing blade attack. An orange, flat-shaped energy blade flew out. Daikawara scrambled to maneuver his jet to evade, but the right wing of Lightning Three was still hit.

“Lightning Three under attack!” As they reported, Daikawara quickly pressed the eject button, but nothing happened. “Eject system malfunction!”

Page (2/3)

Lightning Three, billowing black smoke, triggered the crash protocol again, nose-diving toward the ground. Gaia was right there and couldn’t bear to see a teammate sacrificed. With a great leap, he caught Lightning Three. Seeing this, Argulos tried to seize the moment to ambush Gaia, but Aguru suddenly emitted a blue glow and instantly teleported above Argulos’s head.

Like a crow taking flight! Actually, it was an Ultra flying kick, accompanied by Aguru’s battle roar: “Ryaah!” His enormous blue foot struck Argulos’s face fiercely. Aguru’s kick was delivered with such ‘affection’. Argulos’s fake Jojo face sparked with flying embers and crashed to the ground, creating a huge crater.

Aguru landed and immediately spun around, taking a running start toward Argulos, clearly intending to press the advantage. However, Argulos quickly got to his feet and twirled an energy disk in his hand. As Aguru approached, Argulos swung a horizontal slash at his waist. A flash of light particles erupted, and Aguru was hurled backward.

“Gah!” He fell to the ground, painfully clutching his waist where energy was leaking. “Aguru!” Gaia had just secured Lightning Three and turned to see this. His eyes widened as he glared at Argulos: “You bastard! I won’t let you get away with this!” With fists crossed over his chest, energy gathered and transformed him into his red Berserker form. “Ka!” An Ultra battle cry, Gaia assumed a fighting stance.

Aguru suddenly remembered something and hastily warned, “Don’t engage it in close combat!” But Gaia was already charging straight at Argulos. Aguru worriedly activated the Ripple technique to recover. “Hoho—” Argulos mocked, suddenly his hands became afterimages, unleashing a flurry of punches like rain. Caught off guard, Gaia couldn’t launch his own Ripple combo in time and could only block with crossed fists at his chest, leaving his shoulders and abdomen vulnerable. He was struck and violently thrown backward.

Argulos attempted to pursue, but Aguru, having recovered his waist, formed an energy blade in his palm and unleashed a cutting slash. The blue blade struck Argulos’s back, causing him to stagger.

Page (3/3)

Argulos threw an energy disk, but it was neutralized by Aguru’s cutting blade. Aguru continued to release his cutting blade repeatedly, forcing Argulos to defend by wielding the energy disks. Meanwhile, Gaia, half-crouched, also gathered energy in his palms, releasing red cutting blades in succession.

Caught in a pincer attack, Argulos was driven into a miserable state. Frustrated, he swung his fist violently, launching several energy disks forcing Gaia and Aguru to dodge. At this moment, Argulos’s body began to liquefy and ripple, then split into two fake Jojos. Obviously, he was imitating the Stand ability, but since Argulos lacked a true Stand, he could only resort to creating clones.

The two fake Jojos attacked simultaneously. Gaia and Aguru, each facing one-on-one, gradually fell behind. There was no choice—the fake Jojos were swift and agile, dodging many attacks, while their every strike was deadly. With energy disks in hand, they were formidable melee weapons. Aguru could counterattack with his energy sword but couldn’t land a hit on the clones, and Gaia was unarmed.

The two Ultramen found themselves at a disadvantage. As their energy timers flashed red, signaling imminent defeat by Argulos, the two fake Jojos suddenly retreated simultaneously. Joe noticed and activated the sapphire ring on his wrist.

He hadn’t been idle earlier; he was giving Fujimiya and Myou a chance to shine, while also observing their growth. With the Ripple technique, Gaia and Aguru could handle most foes. But this Argulos, who was essentially a copy of his former self, was naturally beyond their current capabilities.

The sudden retreat of the two fake Jojos wasn’t to spare Gaia and Aguru. During the battle, Argulos had been collecting their data and was now preparing to fuse. Under the heavy breaths of Gaia and Aguru, the two fake Jojos liquefied into metallic fluid, then red and blue lights flared. The two light masses merged, and the form of a fake Gaia Ultraman appeared.

Immediately, it radiated light and instantly transformed into its ultimate form! Gaia: “???”

(End of chapter)