Straw Hats Versus Two Warlords Part 5
Vivi screamed as she released her sand in front of Kuma, but it was instantly dispersed when it hit his palm.
Whoosh!
Suddenly, a shadowy figure came from behind. It was the same place where Kuma tore down the walls and stopped before Kuma.
Bang!
Two swords and a palm collided.
Two armaments, Haki, collided. But the next moment, a powerful slash moved out of two swords and pushed Kuma away.
"That's my crew you are attacking. Why don't you face someone of your level?"
As the voice fell, the swordsman landed in front of them. Both of his hands were holding a sword while his third sword was still in the sheath.
"Zoro!"
Vivi, Chopper, and Franky shouted at the same time. Their face beamed with excitement and relief.
"Roronoa Zoro!"
Kuma spoke. His face showed no expression as he quietly put away the book in his hand.
Zoro's appearance meant he couldn't take down these weaker Straw Hats without defeating them.
But did he have a chance of defeating Zoro?
Yes, he had confidence that he could defeat Zoro.
He pressed his foot on the ground, crouched down, and raised both of his hands.
Seeing this, Zoro quickly took out his third sword and put it in his mouth. His Observation Haki captured the track of Kuma's movement.
But even so, it was so fast that Zoro had to rely on his instinct to make any move.
[Slapping Thrust Pressure Cannon]
In an instant, Kuma shot nearly a dozen different air-pressurized bullets in the shape of a paw toward Zoro.
These paws carried so much destructive power and shockwave that Zoro instantly moved forward and shouted.
"Vivi, take everyone away!"
He covered his swords with Armament Haki and spun like a whirlwind.
[Great Dragon Twister]
His spinning created a massive tornado covered with several sword slashes. Those paws were not only unable to escape the tornado but they were also destroyed the moment they entered the tornado.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
The destruction of those paws released so much shockwave that it caused a massive outburst of shockwave.
A large amount of sand caught Franky, Brook, and Chopper before pulling them out of the castle.
Crack! Crack! Bang!
The entire castle began cracking as it slowly dismantled into debris and fell to the ground.
In the middle of the debris, two people were standing, without any trace of injuries or bruises.
"You are strong, Roronoa. It seems like the Marines' understanding of the Straw Hat crew has stuck when they fought in Enies Lobby."
Kuma spoke. Because it wasn't just marine. Even his understanding of the Straw Hat crew's power level was stuck when they fought in the Enies Lobby.
Because Zoro was barely able to defeat a Vice Admiral in that battle.
Considering his strength, Kuma had the power to easily defeat a Vice Admiral.
But right now, he could see just how much Zoro had grown from that battle.
Zoro also understood his statement and spoke.
"After all, our Captain is gonna be King of the Pirates. If we can't even follow in his footsteps, we will be left in the dust."
"Is that so?"
Kuma didn't continue. Instead, he moved himself next to Zoro before Zoro could even blink.
If it wasn't for his Observation Haki, he wouldn't have even sensed Kuma's arrival.
He swung two of his swords to the side and blocked a punch from Kuma. At this moment, Kuma's hands were covered with Armament Haki.
It wasn't surprising considering Kuma's identity.
As the sparks emerged between their Haki, Zoro suddenly released a strange Aura.
This startled Kuma, who tried to back down. But before he could do so, Zoro's Armament Haki flowed outward and started piercing through Kuma's Armament Haki.
But this was Kuma, the top cadre of the Revolutionary and one of the strongest Shichibukai.
He also had advanced armament, which he used to counter Zoro. Unfortunately, he made one big mistake.
Zoro was a swordsman. He had mastered Breath of All Things. This allowed him to find the tiniest of the weak points in his opponent.
At the same time, it also gave swordsmen a unique potential to cut anything, including Armament Haki.
Crack!
Zoro's sword tore through Kuma's Armament and struck his hand. But underneath the skin, Kuma's body turned out to be metal.
"A cyborg like Franky?"
Whoosh!
Taking advantage of the distraction, Kuma used his fruit to back down. He looked at his knuckles that were showing mechanical parts and said.
"I am the first of the Pacifista created by the Greatest Scientist in the World, 'Vegapunk'. Not only do I retain my Haki and my devil fruit powers, but I also have a mechanical body that is hard to destroy."
"Unfortunately...…"
Before he could continue, Zoro said.
"Unfortunately, you met me. A swordsman who can cut through anything. So, even if your body is a piece of metal, it is something I can cut."
Saying so, Zoro lowered his upper body and pressed his left leg back while gaining powerful momentum.
Green energy swirled around him, revealing a shadow behind him that turned into a demonic creature.
His eyes glowed red for a split second before he dashed forward like a shooting star.
[Rengoku Onigiri]
Zoro's slash was demonic. When Kuma sensed the intensity of the attack, he raised both of his hands and gathered a massive amount of air into his paw.
[Bear Impact]
When the moment Zoro's sword reached him, Kuma threw that air paw against him.
Bang!
Zoro didn't even think about doing it. He simply tore through the paw but the moment it broke, a large shockwave was released around it.
Zoro happened to be in the middle of it.
Just when Kuma was about to feel relieved, Zoro tore through the shockwave. His body was no longer clean.
He was covered in bruises and blood, but he didn't care. He just moved forward as his swords slashed Kuma in the middle.
Crack! Crack! Splash!
Despite being a pacifist, Kuma was previously a normal human being. So when he was injured, he was capable of bleeding.
As he wasn't simply made out of machines but also had human body parts, protected by those machines.
Zoro was already behind Kuma due to his speed. He quickly turned around and swung his sword.
Three different sword slashes emerged from his swords and merged into one large sword slash.
[1080 Pound Cannon]
Seeing this attack, Kuma simply raised his hand and deflected the slash without suffering any further damage.
"Tch! Flying slashes do not work then. Then, let's continue with our close combat battle."
Zoro grinned even though a sword was in his mouth. He was a battle maniac and Kuma was a perfect opponent to reveal everything he learned after the battle with the Vice Admiral.
Kuma knew he only had two choices now. Either he could accompany Zoro in this battle, or he could simply leave.
He believed leaving right now would be a better choice. Because he wasn't sure if he could even defeat Zoro.
Not only Zoro was able to release his Armament Haki outward, his attack was also able to pierce his body.
Unlike a normal human body, he had a lot of metal parts covering his body, which made him much more durable.
Combined with his Armament Haki, it was hard to cause much damage.
But Zoro didn't just know Haki Release.
Since he was a swordsman, he could cut anything. Without Haki, he couldn't cause much damage.
But thanks to Haki, he was no capable of destroying something from inside, allowing him to cut even the toughest of the defenses.
Because of this, Kuma didn't think it was a good idea to fight Zoro anymore.
Even if he was sure of a victory, it would come at the cost of his life or even a completely damaged body.
And, he couldn't let that happen. He had one more thing to care about, one more person to watch over.
"Wait a minute!"
Just when Kuma was about to leave, a voice came from the side. As lightning gathered next to Zoro, it turned into Sanji.
He didn't even look at Zoro; instead, his gaze was on Kuma.
"Our Vice-Captain has something to tell you. He knows something that can help you and solve your current situation."
"But it is normal for you not to trust us. So, he told me to reveal some secrets."
"The secret is this: Your daughter hasn't received any of your letters. Saturn was the one who did the experiments that caused Ginny's death through Sapphire Scales."
"Even without the help of Vegapunk, your daughter can be cured. You, who have seen the death of your father in front of you, should know the pain of a child losing his father."
"Do you want your daughter to suffer the same pain? If not, I can help you." This is the message."
Sanji released a deep breath after revealing the entire situation.
On the other hand, Kuma was left stunned and in disbelief.