"Mmph mmph..."
Sabaody Archipelago, Grove 4.
Having already stuffed his mouth full of food, making him look like a big-headed man, Luffy happily enjoyed the delicious food.
But beside him, Zoro's expression wasn't very good.
"What a pity, Zoro."
Chopper, carrying medicinal herbs, took light steps while muttering. "We clearly found that previously famous sword shop, but it was actually already closed..."
"That can't be helped."
Beside Chopper, Reiju in a long pink dress chuckled. "After all, the price of truly famous swords isn't cheap. With the Celestial Dragons no longer coming to the Sabaody Archipelago recently, it's normal for them to close down due to lack of customers."
"However, Zoro-kun — you shouldn't be in a hurry to buy a sword, right?"
She looked at Zoro.
"Mm."
Zoro nodded, then lowered his head to look at the three swords at his waist — Wado Ichimonji, Yubashiri, and Sandai Kitetsu. These were his current swords.
But as they traveled deeper into the Grand Line and his sword skills gradually improved, Zoro had realized that Yubashiri among these three was already somewhat inadequate.
He didn't have plans to change swords just yet, but as a swordsman, he had already taken it to heart — especially after learning that the Sabaody Archipelago had the largest 'Sword Auction House' in the entire Paradise. He had originally been looking forward to coming here very much.
Seeing Zoro's face sink like water, Reiju smiled again. "Speaking of which, when I traveled the Four Seas with my father before, I also collected quite a bit of intelligence, including intelligence on some famous swords... mm, but they are basically all in the New World..."
"Let's set off immediately! To the New World!"
Before she could finish, Zoro had already excitedly grabbed Luffy's shoulder.
Luffy: "Oh, sure."
Chopper: "Are you two idiots? You completely ignored what Mr. Rayleigh and Miss Shakky said earlier, right — heading to Fish-Man Island from this island recently is no different from seeking death, I don't want to die... mmmph!"
Halfway through his sentence, Chopper's mouth and nose were covered by Reiju's hand.
A look of terror appeared in Chopper's expression — could it be that Reiju had also been assimilated by Luffy and Zoro?
But immediately after—
"Chopper, quiet."
Chopper heard Reiju's lowered voice.
Chopper: "?"
He was puzzled, but then immediately noticed — Luffy and Zoro, who were originally talking nonsense, also seemed to have sensed something, and their expressions turned serious simultaneously.
Luffy uncharacteristically stopped eating, and Zoro grasped the hilts of his swords.
"Hey, Luffy... there are incredible guys fighting ahead."
"Mm!"
Luffy swallowed the food in his mouth, an excited light flashing in his eyes. "Let's go take a look!"
As the words fell, the three headed forward amidst Chopper's muffled sounds of "Mmmph mmph mmph" — Wait, we clearly agreed with Nami not to mess around.
Soon, they saw a ruin.
The nearby buildings had long collapsed, and the people seemed to have already been evacuated.
Luffy and the others lowered their bodies, using the collapsed buildings as cover to continue advancing, and soon saw the two people in the center of the battlefield.
"White Fist: Jitte Thousand Fists!"
One of them was completely covered in billowing white smoke.
His lower body had completely turned into smoke, while his upper body was a burly man with a cigar in his mouth, holding the Seastone weapon named Jitte in his hand.
His figure continuously shot and flew through the air.
While flying, intense Armament Haki coated his entire body, and countless fists condensed out of thin air within the smoke, bombarding his opponent from all directions.
"That guy — is the one from Loguetown..."
"It's the smoky guy!"
Luffy and Zoro instantly recognized Smoker.
Especially Zoro, who noticed that the military uniform on Smoker had completely changed.
He was no longer wearing the Marine Headquarters Captain uniform from before, but was dressed in a dark blue uniform adorned with the brilliance of stars.
But at the same time, their attitude towards Smoker was unified — wariness.
They both still remembered this guy.
Back in Loguetown, the other party almost wiped them all out.
And now they knew — the other party was a Logia Devil Fruit user, the strongest type of Devil Fruit.
And on the other side of Smoker—
"That guy is a Fish-Man?"
Zoro frowned, looking at the person opposite Smoker.
That was a massive Fish-Man with dark blue skin.
He was wearing a kimono and looked quite rotund.
But the knotted muscles on his body were full of explosive power.
"Fish-Man Karate: Arabesque Brick Fist!"
Facing Smoker's stormy attacks, he merely sank his waist, took a stance, and threw a punch.
BOOM!
A massive shockwave instantly erupted with his fist as the center, completely dispersing all the giant smoke fists Smoker had thrown.
Seeing this, Smoker didn't panic either, but deeply exhaled a puff of smoke, raising the Jitte high and smashing it down again.
"White Fist Style: Hand Sever!"
"Shark Brick Fist!"
The Fish-Man used both palms like blades, raising his hand and chopping horizontally.
The next instant—
BOOM!
The palm blade and the iron rod collided, and a massive shockwave instantly spread towards the surroundings.
Their figures leaped backward respectively, each stomping massive deep craters into the ground.
"S-So strong!"
Chopper watched intently without blinking. "That smoky guy is the Loguetown Marine you two were talking about... he's this strong!?"
"..." ×2
Luffy and Zoro were silent, not replying.
They had fought Smoker, so their understanding was even clearer — the strength Smoker displayed right now had already far exceeded their cognition from Loguetown. At least at that time, they could be certain Smoker had absolutely never used Armament Haki.
"He got stronger... a lot stronger!"
Zoro tightly gripped the swords in his hands.
Along this journey, he figured he had seen countless powerhouses and fought many battles, and his sword skills had made considerable progress.
He also always believed that if he encountered Smoker again, the situation from Loguetown would absolutely not repeat itself.
But looking at it today, the situation might not be as he thought.
They were improving, but Smoker was also improving.
Even the extent of his improvement was not at all inferior to theirs.
"That guy's opponent..."
But Reiju, who didn't know Smoker, looked sharply at the other person. "That Fish-Man seems to be..."
She had clearly already recognized that Fish-Man.
"Knight of the Sea Jinbe."
And exactly at this moment, Smoker spoke in a low voice.
"I heard you fled to Fish-Man Island. Why did you suddenly come here to attack me?"
He bit his cigar, looking at the Fish-Man before him.
"It's not an attack."
Jinbe, standing in front of him, spoke seriously. "This old man merely wants to understand the reason your side appeared here — you are an officer of the Star Hunter Unit. You should be able to give this old man an answer."
"If you are willing to tell this old man, this old man will leave immediately."
His expression was solemn.
Just as he said — he only left Fish-Man Island today to head to the Sabaody Archipelago.
His purpose was to confirm the reason for the existence of the Star Hunter Unit in the Sabaody Archipelago, as well as the army gathered in Mary Geoise — whether they came for him or for Fish-Man Island was very important to Jinbe.
But he had to say, Jinbe himself hadn't expected it either.
The first Star Hunter Unit officer he encountered after arriving at the Sabaody Archipelago would actually be this strong.
"Ah, that won't do."
Hearing Jinbe's words, Smoker grinned. "You are no longer a Seven Warlord of the Sea now — I don't have the habit of exchanging intelligence with pirates."
He similarly tightened his grip on the Jitte. "However, I can tell you this... appearing on this island now, the possibility of you escaping smoothly is not high."
While speaking, he could also feel the pain coming from the webbing between his thumb and index finger.
He inwardly noted — as expected of a Warlord.
Back in Loguetown, he had put down his pride and followed Roy and Garp to undergo grueling special training.
Whether it was physique, Armament Haki, or combat skills, he figured he had improved considerably.
But under such circumstances, during his battle with Jinbe just now — although it looked like the two were evenly matched — Smoker knew very well that he had merely relied on the ability of his Logia fruit to barely create this stalemate.
If it were a true life-and-death battle, he probably wouldn't be Jinbe's match.
However, he wasn't in a hurry either.
Just as he said — on this island now, the one who needed to be anxious was not him, but Jinbe.
"The message has already been sent back to headquarters. News just came from Hansfall and Lanli — they led their troops and seem to have each caught a bunch of pirates. They're currently hunting down the bosses of those two pirate groups, so they probably don't have time to come support."
"So, mm... is that guy coming to support personally?"
Thinking of this, the gaze Smoker directed at Jinbe became increasingly sharp.
"Ah, this old man understands."
Hearing Smoker's words, Jinbe nodded. "As long as I can get the intelligence and ensure the safety of Fish-Man Island... this old man's life is not that important of a thing."
He took his stance again. "Since you are unwilling to tell me the intelligence, then this old man won't hold back!"
"Fish-Man Karate: Five Thousand Brick Hand Chop!"
And while the battle between the two continued—
"It's actually the former Seven Warlord of the Sea, Knight of the Sea Jinbe."
Reiju, hiding behind the ruins, had sharp eyes. "He actually appeared in Sabaody — according to what Mr. Rayleigh and Miss Shakky said, he should have come to gather intelligence because of the matters concerning Fish-Man Island."
As one of the smartest and most well-informed members of the Straw Hat crew currently, Reiju immediately realized Jinbe's purpose.
"Eh? That Fish-Man uncle is a former Seven Warlord of the Sea? No wonder he's so strong!"
Chopper's little mouth opened wide.
Luffy beside him had some excitement in his eyes. "Hey, Zoro — that Fish-Man uncle looks super strong."
"Mm. I heard my teacher mention the Knight of the Sea Jinbe... he is indeed a very strong guy."
Zoro watched Jinbe throw a palm strike carrying a wave to blast Smoker away, and nodded.
"Hey, haven't you guys understood the situation yet? We have to leave immediately!"
Reiju put away her usual gentle demeanor and spoke seriously.
"Leave?" ×3
Chopper, Zoro, and Luffy were immediately stunned.
For a battle of this caliber, they naturally wanted to continue watching.
"Mm."
Reiju had clearly realized the crux of the problem. "A former Seven Warlord of the Sea appearing on the Sabaody Archipelago — this news will quickly reach the Star Hunter Unit, and they will quickly dispatch support."
"And given the strength of the Knight of the Sea Jinbe, the guys coming here definitely won't be weak... staying here will only become dangerous for us."
But she didn't have time to finish.
Because right now—
"This old man knows your support should be on the way."
After blasting Smoker away, looking at Smoker — whose entire body was drenched in seawater and had temporarily lost his elementalization ability — Jinbe withdrew his palm and stood still.
"Although this old man considers his strength not bad, I don't think I can survive your side's encirclement, so... this old man won't hold back."
His aura had already become steady as an abyss.
VMMM!
An unprecedented spirit converged in his hands, and accompanying it was a water sphere condensed to the extreme.
Jinbe tightly gripped that water sphere, his hands even trembling from exerting force.
Intense, visible ripples began to appear in the air. That fierce and powerful Armament Haki even stirred up the low sound of a tsunami in the surrounding air.
"Hoo..."
Jinbe deeply exhaled a breath, his voice almost synchronized with the tsunami. "Fish-Man Karate · Secret Art..."
"Vagabond Drill!"
The words falling, he threw a punch.
That was a strike sufficient to blow away even an Emperor of the Sea — one of the strongest secret arts of the Fish-Man Karate he practiced.
"!!!"
Smoker's expression changed drastically — he could perceive the power contained within this strike.
Even for him, if hit head-on, even if he didn't die, he would absolutely lose his combat ability.
"Trying to defeat me quickly, take me away, and then extract intelligence from my mouth?"
Smoker realized Jinbe's purpose. "How could such a thing be possible!"
He growled, the smoke on his body beginning to churn violently.
But just the next moment—
"If you forcefully take this strike, you'll have to lie in the infirmary for a long time, Smoker."
A calm and clear voice came.
"Step back. Leave it to your most respected superior."
Accompanied by such a voice—
"Hadoken · Sky Thrust!"
From the canopy of the sky, a magnificent golden wave had already descended.
(End of Chapter)
☆☆☆
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