Jaya Island, Mock Town.
On the street.
Both sides of the street were crowded with people.
In the center of the crowd, Luffy and Bellamy stood facing each other.
"Hey! What happened?"
In the crowd, someone who didn't know asked.
"I heard Bellamy is challenging Straw Hat!"
"Straw Hat? Which Straw Hat?"
"Idiot! You don't even know Straw Hat? It's the Straw Hat who defeated Crocodile, one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea, a few days ago, the world-renowned Straw Hat!"
"No… no way?! That Straw Hat actually came to this town? I heard he's a super pirate with a bounty of 500 million Berries now!"
"I really don't know what that Bellamy guy is thinking, daring to challenge Straw Hat! Isn't he looking for death?"
"Who said he isn't!"
At the very back of the crowd, a few people stood together, listening to the discussions of those in front.
"Captain! Should we set our target on Straw Hat? A 500 million Berries bounty is enough to exchange for a Shichibukai position, right!"
A muscular big man said to a pot-bellied man with a tuft of Blackbeard next to him.
If Luffy saw these people, he would definitely recognize them as Blackbeard's crew.
And that big man was Burgess, known as the Fighting Champion.
Blackbeard glanced at the motivated Burgess, a look of contemplation in his eyes.
He had also watched that live broadcast, and Luffy's Haoshoku Haki Infusion had truly shocked and intimidated him a bit.
His Dark-Dark Fruit could nullify the abilities of other Devil Fruit users, but it had no effect on techniques like Haoshoku Haki Infusion.
Just then, Van Auger suddenly looked up at a rooftop and said.
"Captain, look at that."
When everyone looked as he said, Van Auger continued.
"Isn't that woman Alabasta's Princess Vivi?"
"She has also joined the Straw Hat, and her bounty is over 100 million."
"If we capture her, we can also get a Shichibukai position, right!"
Blackbeard was delighted when he saw Vivi and said.
"I know that woman."
"I heard she has no combat ability at all."
"Her high bounty is only because she brought the Straw Hat to Alabasta, which ultimately led to Straw Hat defeating Crocodile."
At this moment, the battle-ready Burgess spoke up.
"Captain, let me go!"
"I'll go capture that woman!"
Blackbeard smiled and nodded upon hearing this, saying.
"Sneak up from behind, don't let Straw Hat discover you."
Burgess chuckled and then left them.
...
On Luffy's side.
Bellamy's face was full of fighting spirit, with excitement and elation in his eyes.
He stuck out his tongue like a hyena, his expression arrogant, and said.
"Straw Hat, your reputation, in my opinion, is completely exaggerated."
"I've seen your data."
"You haven't defeated many decent opponents at all."
"The only one with some fame was that Crocodile, who seemed to be the weakest Shichibukai."
"So…"
"Straw Hat! I will definitely defeat you and gain that man's approval."
By the end of his speech, Bellamy's expression was incredibly resolute and ruthless.
Luffy, on the other hand, looked impatient and casually said.
"Alright, stop wasting time!"
"Let's get started quickly!"
Seeing Luffy's attitude, Bellamy's eyes immediately filled with anger, and he snorted coldly.
"Hmph! I'll let you know…"
"The consequence of underestimating me, 'Hyena' Bellamy!"
"Spring Hopper!"
Bellamy roared, transforming his legs into springs, squatting to gather strength, and then launching himself forward violently.
The ground instantly shattered, and his figure shot out like a bullet, turning into a blur in the air.
He rushed to a nearby wall, re-accumulated strength with his springs, and repeated the motion.
This was to maximize his power.
Soon, everyone present saw Bellamy's figure seemingly form dozens of illusions around him, making it impossible to capture him with the naked eye.
This scene left everyone present dumbfounded.
"So strong! As expected of a great pirate with a 55 million Berries bounty!"
"I can't see Bellamy's figure at all, it's too amazing!"
"This move is Bellamy's strongest, and so far, no one has been able to stand up after being hit by this move of Bellamy's."
"Why isn't that Straw Hat moving at all! Bellamy could attack at any moment!"
"I don't know! But Straw Hat is a great pirate with a 500 million Berries bounty after all, even if he gets hit by one of Bellamy's moves, he should still be able to stand up, right!"
"Probably…!"
While continuously gathering strength, Bellamy looked at Luffy, who stood still, and immediately laughed.
"What's wrong? Straw Hat?"
"Are you scared by this move of mine?"
"Crocodile's ability can't even compare to this move of mine, can it?!"
"I already said it, I will definitely defeat you, step on your head, board that man's ship, and become the leader of the new era of pirates."
"Hahahahaha….."
"Die, Straw Hat!"
Bellamy roared, and after his final charge, he attacked Luffy.
Luffy, however, remained expressionless. As Bellamy charged at him, he slowly clenched his fist.
Then, at a certain moment.
He threw a punch.
Bellamy's face instantly caved in and deformed, teeth and blood flying out of his mouth, his eyes rolling back and bloodshot.
Boom!
A loud bang.
Bellamy fell to the ground with a thud.
Leaving a deep crater in the ground.
Luffy shook the blood from his fist and said lightly.
"A normal punch is enough to deal with trash like you!"
Silence!
The entire place was dead silent.
Everyone stared blankly at Bellamy, lying motionless on the ground, their eyes filled with fear and shock.
"It's… it's over?!"
"No way?! That 55 million Berries Bellamy was… one-shotted?!"
"Is this the man worth 500 million Berries?!"
"It's truly astonishing!"
"Hey! Look quickly, Bellamy seems to have stopped breathing!"
Someone suddenly exclaimed.
Everyone immediately observed Bellamy closely.
And then very quickly, terror crept onto everyone's faces, and cold sweat broke out on all of them.
"He's… dead!"
"Such an ordinary punch… just… killed Bellamy!"
"Straw… Straw Hat killed Bellamy!"
Just as people were in shock and a daze, someone suddenly screamed in terror.
"Run! Straw Hat killed Bellamy, he's going on a rampage in this town!"
Upon hearing this, countless people immediately ran into the distance.
"Run!"
"Straw Hat is indeed an unblinking demon, just as the reports said!"
"Is that the Worst Generation? It's really too terrifying!"
The entire street was filled with fear of Straw Hat.
Luffy, however, remained calm.
The people in this town were basically all scumbags and thugs anyway, so he didn't care what they thought of him.
Besides, he had made it clear to Bellamy before the duel that it was the other party who ultimately decided to continue the duel with him.
So he wasn't indiscriminately killing innocent people.
Just as Luffy was about to find Vivi to leave together, his gaze suddenly sharpened.
He sharply turned his head, looking at the rooftop where Vivi was standing.
He saw a burly man quietly approaching Vivi from behind.
Vivi had just been taught Haki by Luffy and had only just entered the threshold of Haki, not yet formally mastering it.
So she hadn't yet noticed the person approaching her from behind.
"Vivi, watch out behind you!"
Luffy frowned and warned her.
He had already clearly seen the man approaching Vivi, it was Burgess of Blackbeard's crew.
When Luffy reminded Vivi, she turned around.
Burgess immediately burst into laughter.
"It's too late!"
As he laughed, Burgess reached out to grab Vivi.
Such a weak woman, he could easily capture and take her away.
The Blackbeard Pirates, hiding in the chaotic crowd, watched as Vivi was about to be caught, and a look of joy appeared on all their faces.
However, Burgess, and everyone in Blackbeard's crew, suddenly had their pupils constrict sharply, their expressions filled with horror, as if shocked beyond recovery.
Just as Vivi was about to be caught by Burgess, she suddenly leaped up, transforming into a firebird burning with green flames.
The green flame firebird was incredibly fast, and in the blink of an eye, it had already flown a hundred meters above Burgess's head.
And before Burgess could react, a huge ball of green flames shot out from the firebird's mouth, sweeping down from a hundred meters above, engulfing Burgess and the house beneath his feet.
"Ah ah ah ah..."
A terribly miserable wail came from within the green flames.
A humanoid shadow of green flame frantically danced within it, screaming as it leaped out of the green flames.
What shocked the Blackbeard Pirates even more was that the green flames burned much faster than ordinary fire.
In just a few seconds, the house was completely incinerated.
And before Blackbeard could go to save Burgess, Luffy flashed over first, arriving beside Burgess, who was wailing and struggling in the middle of the street.
"You're courting death!"
Luffy's expression was furious, his eyes filled with killing intent.
He would never let go of anyone who dared to have designs on his crewmates.
Luffy suddenly clenched his fist, and surging energy immediately concentrated in his fist.
The next second, a black aura appeared on it.
Following that, an energy resembling a dark red halo enveloped his fist.
Ryou!
Against such trash, Haoshoku was not even needed.
Aiming at Burgess, Luffy unleashed a powerful punch.
The red halo, like a water ball, immediately moved from his fist to Burgess's face.
Boom!
A violent roar.
Burgess fell to the ground with a thud.
He lay there motionless.
And the still burning green flames quickly burned his body, emitting a nauseating burnt smell!
Blackbeard Pirates, Burgess, dead!
Straw Hat killed another person, and everyone on the street instantly went crazy, fleeing and screaming wildly.
·····
"Oh no! Straw Hat has killed again!"
"Run! Straw Hat has gone mad with killing!"
"Run!"
The crowd screamed incessantly, while the Blackbeard Pirates were now dazed and mixed in with the crowd, secretly observing Luffy.
"Captain, that guy killed Burgess, should we avenge Burgess?"
Van Auger asked.
Blackbeard's eyes were filled with anger at this moment.
How could he not be angry seeing his recruited subordinate killed in front of him?
However, just then, another anomaly occurred.
The Blackbeard Pirates saw a figure in a pink mink coat, passing by them in the chaotic fleeing crowd.
He was moving against the crowd, slowly advancing towards Straw Hat's direction.
The man wore sunglasses and had a faint smile on his lips.
And the moment they saw that man, all of Blackbeard's crew felt their pupils constrict.
Van Auger, even more so, exclaimed in disbelief after the man had moved a little further away.
"How could he be here?"
"That Shichibukai... Doflamingo!!!"
Blackbeard also had a look of doubt in his eyes at this moment and said, "I'm not sure! In any case, let's leave here first and observe from the shadows."
With that, Blackbeard led his other subordinates into a dark alley.
Meanwhile, on the street, Sarquiss and the remaining members of Bellamy's crew were terrified, frantically fleeing from Luffy with their heads down.
They were afraid of being killed by Luffy in a fit of rage, just like Bellamy, in public.
"Fufufufu..."
"Where are you going, Sarquiss?"
Just as Sarquiss was fleeing in a panic, he suddenly heard such a voice.
.. ... 0
And upon hearing this voice, his face instantly turned pale.
He was too familiar with this voice.
He suddenly looked up.
He saw Doflamingo in front of him, smiling, his pink sunglasses staring intently at him.
"Do... Doflamingo!"
Sarquiss cried out in panic, his eyes filled with fear.
Compared to Luffy, he was more afraid of this man.
Because he and Bellamy had borrowed Doflamingo's mark.
And they understood this man best.
They knew what the outcome would be for shaming his mark.
In an instant, Sarquiss's face was covered in terror and fear, and he said tremblingly, "I... I was just about to return to base!"
Upon hearing Sarquiss's words, Doflamingo maintained his faint smile and said, "Is that so? Where's Bellamy? Isn't he with you?"
Sarquiss's body trembled at the words, his eyes filled with horror, and he stammered, "Be... Bellamy was killed by Straw Hat!"
No matter how bold Sarquiss was, he dared not lie to Doffy.
Doffy, upon hearing this, still maintained his smile and slowly said, "Is that so? Bellamy was killed!"
"So..."
"Are you running away now?"
When he spoke the last sentence, Doffy's smile faded, turning incredibly cold.
This change made Sarquiss and all his subordinates extremely terrified, trembling non-stop.
Sarquiss quickly changed his words and said, "No... no! We're going back now to kill Straw Hat and avenge Bellamy!"
With that, Sarquiss quickly led his subordinates to turn back again, heading towards where Luffy was, intending to kill him.
As for Luffy, he had seen Sarquiss and the others turning back from a distance.
Although he had doubts, since the other party had come to provoke him, he naturally wouldn't show mercy.
Bang!
Bang!
A few swift and decisive punches sent everyone sprawling to the ground.
Clap! Clap! Clap!
Just then, Luffy suddenly heard the sound of applause from above his head.
He looked up and saw someone he hadn't expected sitting on the roof!
Before Luffy could speak, Doflamingo leaped down and sat on a nearby wooden barrel.
Then he looked at Luffy and said, "As expected of the Worst Generation, Straw Hat Luffy!"
"Did you start a massacre as soon as you arrived in this place?"
"Fufufufu..."
Luffy looked at Doflamingo, and although he felt surprised, an idea he had long harbored ignited within him at this moment.
That was the question of Devil Fruit awakening.
According to common sense, Devil Fruit awakening requires the ability user to grow to a certain level to reach the awakened state.
However, for the current Luffy, his own conditions should have been met long ago.
But his Devil Fruit had shown no signs of awakening.
This led Luffy to speculate that it might be because when he grew to meet the awakening conditions, he had not encountered an opponent with matching abilities, an opponent strong enough to trigger his awakening.
Besides this, Luffy had also thought of another awakening method.
That was to witness someone else's awakening once through his heaven-defying comprehension.
Perhaps he could also awaken his own Devil Fruit through this.
And now, Luffy had set his sights on Doflamingo, wanting to force him to use his awakened ability.