Chapter 253: Luffy's Free Will, Zoro's Life on the Line?
Although Luffy was usually scatterbrained,
even he could sense something was off—he just didn't know how to put it into words.
Like when they argued during the feast about the term "Pirate King,"
even Luffy himself didn't understand why he suddenly became so obsessed with that title.
He wanted to be the freest man on the seas.
Only the freest man could be the Pirate King.
But clinging so tightly to the title of Pirate King... in that moment, he wasn't free at all.
"Why am I like this?"
Luffy scratched his head.
It felt like there was a voice in his mind telling him:
You must become Pirate King.
Sanji exhaled smoke from his cigarette and said,
"I've heard that Zoan-type Devil Fruits carry the will of their animal forms.
If your mind isn't strong enough, their instincts can mess with your emotions."
"But yours is a Paramecia, right?"
Sanji, as the third son of the Vinsmoke family and a genetically modified human,
had heard plenty about Lineage Factors.
So knowing the secrets of Zoan Fruits wasn't unusual.
It just hadn't come up—none of the Straw Hats had eaten a Zoan Fruit.
Sanji frowned, trying to piece it together.
Luffy scratched his head again and said,
"Mine is a Zoan Fruit."
"What?!"
Sanji froze.
"You ate the Rubber Fruit, didn't you?"
Luffy had always shown rubber-like properties—stretchy limbs, resistance to blunt force.
And now you're telling me you're a Zoan user?
"That's right. The Game panel told me."
On Luffy's Game screen,
the Rubber Fruit's true name was revealed:
Human-Human Fruit, Mythical Type: Nika Form.
Sanji twitched, grabbing Luffy by the collar and shouting,
"Why didn't you tell us something so important?!"
"Is it important?"
Luffy looked genuinely clueless. He really didn't think it mattered.
In truth, the idea that Zoan Fruits housed their own will and could influence the user's emotions
was subtle and rarely known.
Even those who'd heard of it weren't sure it was real.
After all, many people had eaten Zoan Fruits. Their personalities varied too much to confirm the theory.
Besides,
only very rare Zoan Fruits carried wills strong enough to influence the user.
"I don't know…"
Sanji let him go with a sigh.
"The most important thing now is rescuing Mosshead and Nami-swan.
But we've seen how strong Kaido is.
We don't stand a chance."
"We just have to knock him flying!"
"Luffy, I swear to god—"
Sanji looked up, ready to scold him again… and then stopped.
Luffy's eyes were unusually clear and incredibly determined.
Luffy took a deep breath and said,
"Leave fighting Kaido to me."
As the protagonist of the One Piece world,
even without a destiny-bound fruit, Luffy's combat instincts and talent were among the best.
In the Game Shop,
Fang Yi, who had been watching the Straw Hats closely, was slightly surprised.
"So it's his desire to save his friends…
That's what let him resist the will of Nika, even if only for a moment."
Carefree as ever, Luffy had felt something was wrong—
he felt shackled, not free.
But he didn't know why.
It was Shanks' Adventurer Declaration and the crew's confused reactions
that made Luffy vaguely realize he might be… being controlled.
And the will of Nika sensed this.
It had begun to stir restlessly.
The Nika Fruit, bearer of an unshakable destiny, could not allow its path to be altered.
If the course of fate changed, the outcome would vanish.
Luffy had once been the pivot of the world's destiny.
So the will of the world itself would not tolerate his rebellion.
"Nami-swan left us a signal. It's the coat of arms of the Oikot Kingdom. Kaido must be there!"
Luffy and Sanji reached the shoreline.
Near where the Merry had last set sail,
Nami had left a marking carved by hand.
Kaido had noticed, of course.
But he hadn't stopped her—
or rather, he hadn't thought it was worth stopping.
If Luffy and Sanji dared to come after him,
they'd just die.
"Wait! We're crewmates, aren't we?!"
Usopp came running up, panting.
"I want to help save them too! I'm coming with you!"
"You'll die."
Luffy looked at him seriously.
Usopp's legs trembled,
but he gritted his teeth and said,
"I'm the great Captain Usopp! I've seen a dragon bigger than the whole East Blue—I'm not scared of Kaido!"
The Straw Hats had exposed the butler and saved the village—
and him, too.
Even though he was a coward,
he didn't want to run now.
He had a feeling:
if he backed down this time,
he'd never become a brave warrior of the sea.
"Okay. Then let's go together!"
Luffy's arm shot out, wrapped around Usopp's neck,
and the three of them tumbled into a small boat.
They set sail for Oikot Kingdom.
"Luffy, how do you plan to beat Kaido?"
"It's a secret!"
Meanwhile—
Oikot's central city had been taken over by Kaido.
The Beasts Pirates' flag now flew proudly overhead.
This kind of bold move was something no other Yonko would dare.
Their influence didn't stretch far enough.
The Marines would crush them in no time.
But Kaido didn't care.
He wanted to burn the world in blood and war.
Cruelty and chaos were his nature.
In a hastily built arena,
pirates, Marines, even civilians had been corralled in a circle.
At the center stood Zoro and Nami—back to back.
They were covered in wounds.
Blood dripped from their arms, pooling at their feet.
"How's it looking?"
"Two healing potions left.
After another round, we won't last."
Zoro's mouth was full of blood. He bit down on his sword, struggling to speak.
Nami gave a bitter smile.
She was already at her limit, completely out of reward points,
and had no healing left.
"Kaido never meant to let us live, did he?"
"He caught other players—Ghostblades, Arcane Scholars.
We're no longer rare.
We refused to submit.
Of course we're being eliminated."
Nami was sharp. She'd figured out Kaido's plan.
Thankfully,
the others had survived. Not everyone had been captured.
Arlong wouldn't dare trouble Cocoyashi Village again—at least not for a while.
If possible, she hoped Luffy and Sanji could protect it.
"Kill them!"
A roar of bloodlust echoed.
Being noticed by Kaido,
and promised a shot at becoming an executive by killing these two,
was a dream come true for many.
Name recognition meant everything.
Every Yonko who had shown up in the East Blue so far had been terrifying.
Whitebeard, Shanks—
they stood toe-to-toe with the Marines, stronger than even the World Government.
The world was descending into chaos.
Everyone knew it.
Joining a powerful faction was the only way to survive.
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