Chapter Serial – Lovesick Serialization Paused Temporarily 13: Laughing Until You Cry
A small boat followed the direction of the Pose Log, heading toward the Burujoa Kingdom mentioned in the missing persons poster.
On the deck, second-rate hypnotist Tilda dangled a pendant in front of wandering painter George, swinging it slowly back and forth in front of his eyes…
After a while, she covered her face and said she couldn't hypnotize him; his expression kept distracting her.
So George took his paintbrush and doodled all over his own face.
Tilda raised the pendant again and tried once more. But as she stared at the goofy graffiti on his face, she suddenly burst into tears…
…
World's Greatest Swordsman Tournament – Match 1:
Right out of the gate, the first match featured none other than Hawk-Eye Mihawk, one of the favorites to win the whole tournament.
Instantly, all eyes were on him.
And just as many were watching his opponent.
Not just the regular audience, among the other quarterfinalists, Shiryu of the Rain, already determined to kill Giorno, naturally wanted to take out his female captain too. He stood by the arena, cigar clenched between his teeth, watching intently.
Elsewhere, across a resort island, high-ranking Marines like Onigumo, Gion, and Garp, as well as Marineford HQ figures like Sengoku, Aokiji, Smoker, and Hina, were either watching the broadcast live or getting real-time updates from their subordinates, all with their attention locked on this very match.
Even Charlotte Amande, wearing her wide-brimmed round hat and seemingly indifferent to anything not named Hawk Eyes, spared a glance at Mihawk's opponent, especially lingering on the iron staff partially hidden under the young woman's wide sleeve.
"That Giorno… he's impossible to ignore," Mused the Ghost-like Lady Commander, smoke curling up from her cigarette. "It's rare to see someone develop that kind of strength in just a few short years. He'd definitely carve out a spot for himself in the New World… If he joined us, he'd be on the front line for sure. But his captain… she's different. I can't see through her at all. In this world, when someone strong still remains unreadable…"
'It can only mean one thing: Devil Fruit powers.'
That thought crossed Mihawk's mind just as he raised his massive Black Blade "Yoru", slicing horizontally toward the woman across from him.
Robin flicked her wide sleeve. Hidden beneath where no one could see, her originally slender, delicate white arms and palms were now cloaked, replaced, by Liam's muscular arms and large hands, summoned using her Hana Hana no Mi (Flower-Flower Fruit) powers.
She had manifested "Liam Armor", perfectly wrapped around her own limbs.
Gripping the iron staff tightly, she instantly coated it in Haki from within the "armor" and met Mihawk's sweeping slash head-on!
Clang!
Black blade met black staff in a direct collision!
On the sidelines, Liam, with his arms crossed, suddenly twitched his right hand in sync.
Robin had created this replica of his body with Hana Hana no Mi. The shockwave from the collision between her black staff and Mihawk's Black Blade transferred to her, and in turn, fully transmitted to him.
"Tch… shame," Liam muttered, carrying Robin's one-shoulder bag on his back. He watched as Robin was pushed back slightly after the clash. "With her experience piloting B.I.B., she understands and uses Busoshoku Haki (Armament Haki), or at least my Haki, better than most people. But against Mihawk… she's outmatched."
Compared to Giorno, she still had a long way to go… You could tell just from one of Mihawk's slashes.
Robin took a few quick steps back, gripping the black staff. Twisting her body in one fluid motion, she vanished from the ring. To the average spectator, it looked like she'd simply disappeared into thin air.
But Mihawk saw everything.
With Kenbunshoku Haki (Observation Haki), he tracked her movement perfectly, and predicted the direction of her next attack with deadly precision.
Clang!
Robin reappeared in a flash, swinging her staff, but Mihawk raised his Black Blade to block it with ease.
She vanished again.
Then reappeared. Swung again.
Still, Mihawk didn't move from his spot. He simply stood within his tiny space, defending himself with that massive blade. In an instant… the air around Mihawk was filled with Robin's shadowy afterimages, flashing between bursts of black staff and black blade, clashing with sparks flying in every direction.
"Such insane speed!" Exclaimed Charlotte Monde, completely astonished.
Even Shiryu of the Rain looked surprised; he hadn't expected that the captain with a bounty lower than Giorno's could move this fast.
The other two New World Swordsmanes, Pathser Wen and Bai Tour, also wore shocked expressions.
"She's way stronger than we thought! I figured her 160 million bounty was all thanks to her crew…"
The frightening speed Robin displayed on the stage, unlike Mihawk, they probably couldn't handle it.
Not with their sword skills and certainly not with the same composure as Mihawk.
And that staff in her hand, coated pitch-black, was clearly hardened with Armament Haki.
Getting hit by something like that… wouldn't be pretty.
"Too fast! Too fast! What an unbelievable match! Can this speed even be considered human? Even more incredible is that Hawk-Eye Mihawk doesn't seem surprised at all by Jolyne's speed! He remains calm and collected, standing in place, swinging his sword with equally unbelievable reflexes, perfectly blocking every single one of Jolyne's rapid attacks without missing a beat!"
The commentator was roaring with passion, practically spitting into the air, while the amplifying Den Den Mushi in his hands maintained a blank, emotionless stare...
"Close, but not quite," Said Liam, while simultaneously experiencing the electric sensation of Robin's ultra-fast movement coursing through his body, the familiar gale-force velocity, and the jarring tremors from each clash between the black staff and Hawk Eyes' Black Blade. He was also quietly evaluating how Robin was managing his stamina and physical capacity.
"Since my fight with 'Hakuba,' my speed's made another leap. Robin still can't fully harness that enhanced speed using B.I.B..."
The body's strength was absolute, and with her battle experience using the B.I.B. armor, Robin theoretically should have been able to unleash 100% of the physical capabilities of Liam's stand-in, on par with Liam himself stepping into the ring.
'But that's just theory, ' Liam thought. 'Reality… is a different story.'
"My battle instinct… and experience… are still way behind Liam's," Robin thought with a bitter smile, while using Hana Hana no Mi's "Flower-War Armor" and techniques similar to Rokushiki's Soru to move at lightning speed around the arena.
In a flash of movement, just as she darted past Mihawk,
"You still have time to let your mind wander?" Came his cold voice.
Robin's emerald eyes narrowed. In the instant she was moving, she saw it, A slash of black sword-light coming straight at her.
His Kenbunshoku Haki (Observation Haki) is insane! He's completely locked onto my movement pattern!
The black blade flashed larger and larger in her pupils.
At that very moment, in the backpack on the sidelines where Liam sat, Little Green detected that another human heart and set of limbs had materialized in the workshop space inside Castle-Castle Fruit (Shiro Shiro no Mi), Showtime! Little Green quickly transformed various tools to get to work.
Back on the field, Mihawk, who had been expressionless the whole fight, suddenly twitched, his face tightening with a brief flash of pain. His brows furrowed.
Not good… In that split second, Mihawk realized something was wrong: A searing pain in his chest, his heart.
And in that very moment, his blade slowed, even just a hair.
That was all it took. His Black Blade missed.
FWOOOSH---!
The enormous sword, having missed its mark, unleashed a ferocious gust of wind that ripped through the audience like a shockwave.
It was like a tidal wave of air rising in folds, crashing through the stands. The crowd erupted into chaos, screams echoing, hats, glasses, and accessories were swept into the air and scattered like leaves.
Robin, with a calm look on her face, ducked low and suddenly appeared right in front of Mihawk. His expression was dazed, the pain from the internal explosion in his heart clouding his focus.
Robin surged all her power into the Flower-War Armor, gripping the black staff with both hands, and swung.
CRACK--!
The staff, wreathed in black lightning, smashed squarely into Hawk Eyes' bare abdomen.
BOOM!
Hawk Eyes Mihawk was sent flying off the platform.
The entire arena… fell silent.
(End Of This Chapter)
You can read ahead up to 30 chapters on my patreon https://www.patreon.com/marvel6395