Starting as a Roger Pirates Apprentice

Chapter 578: Chapter 578: Nika Form Appears, Hunger Sickness Erupts

Facing such a terrifying attack,

Luffy stepped forward at this moment.

The ultimate move, [King Cobra], was gathering power in his hands, and the power of Conqueror’s Haki erupted within it.

Among the people present, only he had the ability to block this slash imbued with King-level Conqueror’s Haki.

"Straw Hat boss!!!"

"Luffy-kun!!!"

Everyone looked at this scene and couldn’t help but turn pale with shock, especially Law—he knew very well that rubber feared slashing attacks the most.

But Luffy couldn’t care about that now.

His strongest strike violently collided with the hundredfold Rankyaku. They didn’t even truly touch—Conqueror’s Haki clashed in midair.

Although Luffy was at a disadvantage, he was ultimately using his real body against a Rankyaku that had already lost its follow-up force. At this moment he continuously wore down its remaining power.

In theory, this should work. At the very least, it could block the attack.

But...

"Although the mission is to force out the fruit’s awakening, if he gets beaten to death, there’s nothing we can do about that, right..."

"After all, it’s not easy for me to control my strength right now."

While everyone was resisting the hundredfold gigantic Rankyaku, Dante took out the lollipop stick he had left.

[More-More · Fiftyfold Form]

The stick that had originally been only a few centimeters long instantly expanded fifty times and was gripped in Dante’s hand. Clusters of Conqueror’s Haki condensed and began to gather.

"Nani?!!!"

Seeing the figure charging toward him with the black-and-red stick raised high, Luffy—who had just barely resisted the Rankyaku—felt his pupils tremble. Even Law was shocked.

He immediately teleported Luffy to another location.

But...

"It’s useless."

"The future has already appeared before my eyes. No matter where you run, it’s useless."

With the blessing of hundredfold speed and Future-Sight Observation Haki, Dante could see through everyone’s movements.

Including the position where Luffy would be teleported in the next second.

"[Thunderous Bagua]!!!"

Unlike the [Human · Thunder Bagua] Yamato had used before, the posture and aura Dante displayed were almost identical to Orin.

The stick wrapped in black-and-red lightning storms was gripped in Dante’s hand as it flew straight toward Luffy.

With just this one strike...

The child of destiny, Luffy, fell to the ground, unable to rise again.

[World’s Strongest Creature] Dante VS [Straw Hat Boy] Luffy

Dante wins.

...

"So the winner has already been decided?"

In the distance, a masked man wearing a white coat and suit was observing the situation.

Aside from Guernika, the other CP0 members were currently stopping Sanji’s actions. Guernika had come here alone to complete the mission.

Looking at Dante—who had just smashed Luffy with a single blow, leaving him half-dead and now standing there with an unpleasant expression—

Guernika felt that this was an opportunity.

Stepping with Soru, he rushed forward at incredible speed. His Finger Pistol was already covered in the thickest Armament Haki, determined to immediately take Dante down and then leave Wano.

"Dante..."

Guernika instantly arrived beside him, and the Finger Pistol thrust straight toward Dante’s chest.

But the result was...

"Crackle—"

A burst of sparks sounded. Guernika’s expression changed, clearly not expecting such defensive power even under these circumstances.

He immediately tried to withdraw and retreat.

But the chance was already gone.

"Whoosh—"

Dante’s eyes now carried a faint crimson ferocious light. Almost instinctively, he threw a punch toward Guernika.

With the blessing of hundredfold power, even though Guernika had Armament Haki covering his body, he felt as if at least half the bones in his body had shattered.

His consciousness quickly faded. His body kept smashing downward, drilling through the ground until it punched through Onigashima and crashed onto the ground of the Flower Capital.

"Damn it... I’m starting to lose control..."

The clarity in Dante’s eyes was fading more and more, while the red ferocious light of frenzy grew stronger.

"I just wonder if the old man in this world can still hold me down..."

Just as Dante clutched his head with an ugly expression,

Luffy, who had collapsed unconscious on the ground, suddenly began to emit a rhythmic drumbeat from his body.

And at that very moment, high in the sky, the Den Den Mushi paused slightly, its gaze turning toward the direction of the drumbeats with a complicated look.

"Joy Boy..."

Orin could never forget that sound.

After all, that fruit was simply too absurd.

At this moment, on the devastated battlefield of Onigashima, the Nine Red Scabbards wept bitterly after losing their young lord. Law’s expression was grim and solemn.

And the two main combatants now showed completely opposite expressions.

One was Dante, whose face looked ugly as he tried to suppress the anger in his heart.

The other was Luffy, whose hair had begun turning white while a grin spread across his lips.

"Ah—hahahahaha!!"

A burst of exaggerated laughter—no one knew why he was laughing, but it was incredibly over the top—rang into Dante’s ears.

Suppressing the fury in his heart, he looked over.

A completely white figure was bouncing up and down on the ground while laughing endlessly at him.

"What’s so funny?"

"Did your friend dying make you that happy?"

Dante had already guessed that the other party had likely awakened.

That meant he had completed his mission.

But what he couldn’t understand was why the guy kept laughing so wildly. Just moments ago, before being knocked down, he had been grieving over his friend’s death.

Now after transforming, he was just endlessly going "Ah—hahahahaha."

It was like... he had been possessed.

Dante, in any case, would never allow his own will to be influenced by some so-called Devil Fruit.

Even if he had hunger sickness.

Even if his overwhelming strength left him lonely and bored.

He would never allow some strange thing to reshape his personality.

The reason he had reached Yonko-level Conqueror’s Haki at eighteen or nineteen years old was because he had never intended to inherit anyone’s will—not even Orin’s.

What he possessed was only his own will.

An absolutely invincible will.

Facing this guy who only jumped around laughing annoyingly, Dante’s already barely suppressed anger finally surged upward.

[More-More · Hundredfold Speed]

[More-More · Hundredfold Power · Serious Punch]

The punch slammed into Luffy’s body. His eyeballs, tongue, and teeth were blasted out—only to grow back immediately. Like a rubber ball, he bounced around on the rubberized ground.

The strange elasticity completely neutralized the monstrous force. Even after taking a Haki-infused blow, he acted as if he felt no pain, still twisting his head around and making ridiculous expressions.

"Damn it... cream puffs... I’m so hungry..."

At this moment, Dante was already dizzy from annoyance at Luffy’s behavior. The scarlet ferocious light gradually completely covered his reason.

Conqueror’s Haki began to spread, and the More-More Fruit was pushed to its absolute limit.

In his eyes, Luffy had become the one who stole his orange-flavored fruit cake.

Conqueror’s Haki comparable to Garp’s condensed onto his fist, the sheer pressure making even Law struggle to stand.

[More-More · Hundredfold Speed · Hundredfold Power · Galaxy Impact]!!!

"I will absolutely..."

"...kill you!!!"

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