Killua and Gon watched the two men step forward, then simultaneously turned their gazes toward Kael.
They could clearly sense that although the two before them were determined, their overall strength was still far from enough to rival them.
Kael studied Sanji and Zoro—the future core combatants of the Straw Hat Pirates.
Although they were still immature at present, their deeply hidden potential was like an unsheathed blade whose cold gleam was already beginning to show.
In Kael’s plans, they would become excellent whetstones for the future.
But for now, they first needed to understand the gap between them.
Only after tasting defeat could they develop an even stronger desire to grow.
Kael gave a slight nod.
The moment Kael gave his approval, Killua’s sly, catlike gaze immediately fell upon the green-haired swordsman, Zoro.
Three swords… He’s a skilled swordsman.
Meanwhile, relying on his beastlike instincts, Gon sensed that the curly-browed man, Sanji, was probably a capable hand-to-hand fighter.
That was exactly the kind of opponent he needed.
On the broad deck outside the restaurant, the two pirate crews stood opposite each other.
The customers who had originally been dining inside also came outside one after another.
They formed a circle around the fighters, eager to watch this sudden confrontation.
Nami glanced at the three calm and composed boys across from them, then looked toward the solemn Zoro.
Unable to suppress her curiosity, she asked quietly, “Zoro, are they strong?”
Zoro did not answer.
Luffy, however, could not contain his excitement and answered first.
“They’re really strong!
I lost to them before!”
There was not the slightest hint of discouragement in his voice.
Instead, he sounded eager to fight them again.
“What?
You lost?!” Nami’s eyes widened in shock.
She looked again at Kael, Killua, and Gon in disbelief.
Usopp’s legs had already begun trembling uncontrollably.
“Monsters who can defeat Luffy… Is Zoro really going to be okay?”
He knew exactly how powerful Luffy was.
While the others were tense, Luffy himself looked completely relaxed and expectant.
“Kael, which one of us goes first?” Killua asked, rubbing his hands together impatiently.
If the deck had not been so limited in space, he would have preferred an all-out three-on-three brawl.
That way, he could take advantage of the chaos and steal a victory for himself.
“Killua, you go first,” Kael said with a smile when he saw how eager he was.
“Remember, you’re not allowed to use Nen or Haki.”
The current Zoro had not yet learned Haki.
Using those powers against him would be nothing more than crushing him with an overwhelming advantage, which would defeat the purpose of a spar.
Killua waved dismissively.
“You’re seriously underestimating me.”
With that, he stepped forward.
His voice rang clearly across the deck.
“My name is Killua Zoldyck, the number two of the Hunter Pirates.
Which one of you wants to be my opponent?”
“The number two?”
Zoro stepped forward without hesitation.
Under normal circumstances, Sanji would certainly have fought him for the right to go first.
This time, however, he saw the unquestionable resolve in Zoro’s eyes and unusually chose to remain silent.
He merely lit another cigarette.
Gon did not object to Killua calling himself the number two.
At present, Killua truly was stronger than him.
However, Gon believed that he would definitely catch up.
Luffy pressed down on the straw hat atop his head and shouted toward Zoro, who was about to enter the fight.
“Zoro!
Good luck!”
After being tempered by his encounter with Hawkeye, the world’s greatest swordsman, Zoro’s resolve had already undergone a transformation.
Every muscle in his body instantly tensed as he entered a battle-ready state.
Killua examined Zoro.
One sword was held in each hand, while a third was clenched firmly between his teeth.
An interested smile tugged at the corner of Killua’s mouth.
He slowly raised his right hand.
A moment later, his finger joints made a faint clicking sound.
The nails on all five fingers lengthened at a visible rate, becoming narrow and razor-sharp.
They gleamed coldly like five finely honed short blades, seemingly even sharper than ordinary swords.
At the same time, several guests among the crowd finally recognized Luffy from his wanted poster.
One of them pointed at Luffy with a trembling finger, his voice warping with fear.
“Th-That man in the straw hat… He’s the great pirate with a thirty-million-Berry bounty—’Straw Hat’ Monkey D.
Luffy!”
“Thirty million Berries?!”
Cries of alarm spread through the crowd like ripples.
In the relatively peaceful East Blue, a bounty that large was enough to terrify ordinary people.
The crowd that had gathered to watch immediately descended into chaos.
Most of the guests fled the restaurant deck in terror, scrambling over one another in fear of being caught up in a conflict between pirates.
However, a few bolder individuals remained, along with several reporters driven by the promise of profit.
They quickly pulled out notebooks and Camera Den Den Mushi, their eyes shining with excitement.
“A public duel between the crew of a thirty-million-Berry pirate and another pirate crew… This is huge news for the East Blue!”
“Once we report this, it’ll sell for a fortune!”
Kael was more than happy to let them record everything.
He needed their publicity to make the name of the Hunter Pirates famous in a single stroke.
A crew capable of defeating the main fighters serving under a captain with a thirty-million-Berry bounty would naturally receive rapidly rising bounties of their own.
Kael could already imagine the number on his first wanted poster.
It would surely begin at no less than fifty million Berries.
At the center of the deck, Zoro solemnly stared at Killua’s inhuman claws.
He gripped the hilts of his three swords so tightly that they creaked.
His gaze was as sharp as a hawk’s as he focused completely on detecting even the slightest movement from his opponent.
Suddenly, Killua moved.
His footwork became bizarre and unpredictable.
With a flicker of his body, dozens of afterimages appeared across the deck, each one so lifelike that it was impossible to distinguish real from false.
Like ghosts, the afterimages rapidly circled Zoro, stirring up faint currents of wind.
“Whoa!
My eyes… I can’t see straight!” Luffy exclaimed as he vigorously rubbed them.
Sanji forgot to take a drag from the cigarette between his lips.
His brows furrowed tightly.
“What the hell is this?!”
Standing at the center of the afterimages, Zoro felt the pressure multiply.
His vision had been completely deceived.
He could not determine which one was Killua’s real body.
Cold sweat slid down his temple.
I can’t just stand here and wait!
Zoro hardened his resolve, aimed at one of the speeding afterimages, and slashed with all his strength.
Whoosh!
The blade passed through the air without resistance.
He had missed.
At the very instant his old momentum was exhausted and his new strength had yet to gather, Killua’s true body appeared behind him as though he had teleported.
Had this been a battle to the death, Killua’s claws could already have torn Zoro’s heart from his chest.
However, he did not deliver a killing blow.
Instead, his stabbing motion became a push.
His palm appeared to land lightly against the center of Zoro’s back.
Thud!
Zoro felt an overwhelming force crash into him like a surging mountain.
His entire body flew forward uncontrollably and slammed heavily into the restaurant’s thick wooden wall with a heart-stopping crash.
He fell to the deck.
A metallic sweetness filled his throat, and he could not stop himself from coughing up a mouthful of blood.
“Zoro!”
The Straw Hats cried out in alarm.
However, Zoro used Wado Ichimonji to support his body and stubbornly forced himself back to his feet.
His eyes had not dimmed in the slightest.
Instead, an even fiercer flame burned within them.
The absolute resolve contained in his gaze caused even Killua to look slightly impressed.
“It’s not over yet…” Zoro growled.
He once again assumed a distinctive stance.
The muscles in both arms bulged.
The swords in his hands began spinning at high speed like windmills, generating increasingly powerful currents of air.
“Three Sword Style: Three Thousand Worlds!”
With a furious roar, Zoro moved together with his blades.
He transformed into a green whirlwind and charged toward Killua with unwavering determination.
The three swords intertwined into a deadly net of steel, as though they would slice everything in front of him to pieces.
Faced with such an imposing attack, a hint of admiration flashed through Killua’s eyes.
Yet rather than retreating, he stepped forward.
At the final instant before the net of blades reached him, his right hand—covered in hardened claws—shot out like the most precise surgical instrument.
With lightning speed, he thrust directly toward the central point where the power of all three swords converged.
Clang—!
A piercing metallic screech exploded across the deck.
Sparks scattered in every direction.
Zoro’s eyes widened in disbelief.
His supposedly decisive Three Thousand Worlds had been seen through.
Then came a sound that shattered his heart.
Crack…
Crack…
Two of his swords could not withstand the terrifying pressure focused upon a single point.
Spiderweb-like cracks instantly spread across their blades.
With a mournful cry, both swords snapped apart.
Only Wado Ichimonji endured the pressure.
Killua looked surprised by the blade’s hardness.
He twisted his right hand, instantly forcing Wado Ichimonji aside.
His sharp claws, like fatal fangs, stabbed straight toward Zoro’s heart.
“No!” Nami and Usopp screamed.
The excited smile on Luffy’s face disappeared completely, replaced by rage and alarm.
Sanji had already leaped forward to save Zoro, but the distance was too great.
He would not make it in time.
At the split second before Killua’s claw touched Zoro’s skin, his hand shifted subtly once more.
The thrust became a push.
A second burst of carefully controlled force struck Zoro squarely in the chest.
“Guh—!”
Zoro flew backward like a kite whose string had been severed.
A large spray of blood scattered through the air before he crashed onto the deck.
He stared at the broken swords still clutched in his hands, then lost consciousness.
“Zoro!”
Luffy and Sanji rushed to his side immediately.
After carefully examining him, Sanji let out a breath of relief.
“He’s only unconscious.
A few ribs might be broken, but his life isn’t in danger.”
The entire deck fell into deathly silence.
Those who had remained to watch stared with their mouths hanging open, almost unable to believe what they had just witnessed.
That silver-haired boy had defeated the primary swordsman of a thirty-million-Berry pirate crew in only two moves.
And he had done it cleanly and decisively.
Was this truly the strength a boy could possess?
The sea breeze swept across the deck, carrying the salty scent of the ocean—and an endless sense of shock.
(End of Chapter)