"AHHHH—!"
Piercing screams echoed across the deck of the Black Cat Pirates' ship.
Under the coordinated, overwhelming assault of the elite Marines, Kuro's crew was brutally subdued, collapsing one by one with no hope of fighting back.
"Damn it! How could they be this strong?!" Kuro gritted his teeth, his cat claws barely fending off the relentless onslaught from Commander Hayes.
His eyes, filled with shock and rage, darted around, desperately searching for an escape route that didn't exist.
'This is impossible! The Marines of the East Blue are supposed to be incompetent fools!' he thought, his mind reeling.
'These men... they're from Headquarters!'
"Why?!" Kuro growled, his face twisting with disbelief.
"Why would the elites of Marine Headquarters appear in the 'Weakest Sea'? Is heaven itself determined to destroy me?"
His expression darkened, a hint of madness flashing in his eyes.
He glared at the officer before him, whose "Justice" cloak billowed like a harbinger of doom.
If this continued, he'd be captured and thrown in a cage for the rest of his life.
He wanted to live!
"There's only one move left!" Kuro snarled.
"Shakushi!"
An immense surge of power erupted from his body.
He vanished into a high-speed blur, his claws slashing through the air indiscriminately, a chaotic whirlwind of lethal strikes so fast that even he couldn't predict their path.
"All of you, just die!"
The moment Kuro unleashed his desperate assault, a faint smirk flickered in Commander Hayes's eyes.
He calmly analyzed the technique. "Shave? No... a crude, self-taught imitation of it."
With a slight sidestep, he cleanly parried Kuro's first strike.
Then, before Kuro could react, Hayes stomped the deck—and vanished.
"Shave!"
In the blink of an eye, he reappeared directly in front of Kuro.
"What?!" Kuro's eyes widened in horror.
'He didn't just block it, he closed the distance instantly?!'
"BAM—!"
Hayes's fist slammed mercilessly into Kuro's stomach.
A wave of excruciating pain flooded his body, sapping all his strength.
He crumpled powerlessly onto the deck, his breath stolen from his lungs.
The Commander gazed coldly at the fallen pirate, a trace of admiration in his eyes.
"You have decent talent, to grasp the essence of Shave on your own." He added, "No wonder Captain Mike sees potential in you. He's already preparing to petition for your bounty to be revoked."
"Captain... Mike?" Kuro gasped, his mind swirling.
This man who defeated him so effortlessly... wasn't even the one in charge?
There was someone even stronger?
Was this the true power of Marine Headquarters?
Tap, tap, tap—
The steady tread of military boots echoed across the deck.
Mike's figure gradually came into view.
With a cigar clenched between his teeth, he glanced at the subdued pirates and curled his lips into a satisfied smile.
Watching HQ elites handle East Blue pirates was like watching a lion hunt mice.
He had enjoyed the spectacle from the comfort of his own warship.
This feeling of controlling everything without lifting a finger—it was truly magnificent!
[Ding!]
[Host subdued Kuro without lifting a hand. Mood: Pleased. Happy Points +500.]
Kuro knelt on the deck, disheveled and panting.
He forced himself to look up at the remarkably young, handsome man who approached him with an air of lazy confidence.
'This is Captain Mike?'
Mike stopped in front of Kuro, studying him with a scrutinizing gaze.
Then, he slowly reached into his pocket and pulled out a small, ornate badge.
With a casual flick, he sent it spinning through the air.
"'Captain' Kuro of the black cat pirates," Mike's voice was quiet, but it carried an undeniable authority.
"Do you want to die... or live?"
****
Meanwhile, at the Baratie...
"Cough—!" Zoro's chest heaved violently, blood seeping from his wounds.
A single slash.
That was all it took.
The gap between them wasn't just a gap; it was a chasm.
'Too strong... this man is on a completely different level.'
For the first time, Zoro truly felt his own powerlessness.
And that technique Mihawk had used... it was something beyond his comprehension.
Was this the move wielded by the man Mihawk had mentioned... Mike?
The seas were indeed vast.
But witnessing such strength didn't break him.
It ignited a fire in his heart!
'Mike! Mihawk! Both of you are opponents I will surpass!'
"Is that all?" Mihawk's voice cut through the air.
The boy's techniques weren't bad, but they lacked the ingenuity and brilliance he had witnessed from Mike.
"Hey! There's a limit to looking down on people!" Zoro gritted his teeth, his eyes blazing.
"I'll prove myself with my strongest move!"
He shifted into his stance, spinning his two swords like a windmill.
With a low roar, he channeled every ounce of his being into one final, devastating strike.
"Three-Sword Style Secret Technique: Three Thousand Worlds!"
Zoro surged forward like a storm, his blades tearing through the air with unstoppable force.
Mihawk watched the attack, a glimmer of appreciation in his eyes.
"Passable," he nodded.
He crouched slightly, gripping the cheap cutlass, and regulated his breathing.
"Then let's try this."
"Haa—" With an exhale, Mihawk erupted into motion, his body transforming into a bolt of lightning as he flashed past Zoro.
"Thunder Breathing, First Form: Thunderclap and Flash!"
Craaack—!
The sound of two swords shattering echoed through the air.
Both blades in Zoro's hands were cleanly severed.
The next moment, a deep, gruesome wound was slashed across his chest, intersecting with the first cut.
"Cough—!" Zoro spat out a mouthful of blood, his face instantly paling.
Complete, utter defeat.
Wado Ichimonji slipped from his mouth and clattered onto the deck.
His body tilted forward, but with his last ounce of strength, he twisted, falling onto his back.
He would not show his back to the world's strongest.
"Oh?" Mihawk raised an eyebrow. "A will that refuses to turn away, hmm? Not bad."
"My skills are inferior... this time, I lost! But I won't stop here!" Zoro's voice was ragged but resolute.
With a trembling hand, he groped for Wado Ichimonji, raised it high, and shouted.
"I will surpass you! And I will surpass that man, Mike!"
Mihawk's lips curled into a rare, appreciative smile.
"Your will... I acknowledge it." He paused. "Boy, tell me your name."
A faint grin appeared on Zoro's lips. "Roronoa Zoro!"
"Very well, Roronoa Zoro," Mihawk said, his voice as sharp as a blade. "Keep moving forward. Strive for the title of 'World's Strongest.' Before the boy Mike surpasses me... try to surpass me first."
Zoro panted, "Who is this Mike you speak of? Were those techniques... his?"
"Yes," Mihawk nodded. "Both originated from his Breathing Style. But there's one more of his techniques I am still trying to comprehend."
The image of the Sun Halo Dragon Head Dance resurfaced in his mind.
Even for him, its intricacies were complicated.
Zoro's eyes widened in shock.
'A technique even he can't decipher?! Just who is this Mike?!'
The name was now etched deeply into his heart.
The passengers aboard the Baratie, who had been watching in stunned silence, finally erupted into murmurs.
"My God! Even Mihawk, who just destroyed 'Pirate Hunter' Zoro, admits there's a swordsmanship he hasn't mastered?"
"Who the hell is this Mike? Another master swordsman?"
"Why have we never heard of him?"
"Wait... Mike? That name sounds familiar..." a passenger from near Branch 186 pondered aloud.
"I think the Marine Captain near my home is also named Mike!"
"No way!" another scoffed.
"You mean the 'Shame of the East Blue Navy'? The guy who just lazes around and sleeps on duty?"
"Yeah, I've heard the rumors! Spends all his time after work in the Red-Light District!"
"Is it possible he's just hiding his strength?"
"Impossible! If that lazy bum has that kind of power, I'll eat my own boogers!" the passenger thumped his chest.
Mihawk slowly tossed the broken cutlass onto the deck, a faint smile on his lips.
Today had been enjoyable.
Time to go home.
"Just who is Mike?" Zoro muttered, his voice weak.
Mihawk turned to glance at him one last time, his lips quirking as he spoke with deliberate, world-shaking meaning.
"Keep sailing, Roronoa. One day, you'll meet him."
"His name is Captain Mike, of Marine Headquarters."