Snowy Foothills.
The wind is picking up.
What a big wind, it's blowing!
The snowflakes on the ground are being swept up by the wind, swirling into the air, creating visible curves.
Snow Tornado…
That's an unusual weather event that should never occur on Drum Island. It's not naturally formed, but created by human power!
Dancing snowflakes blocked the view.
Suddenly, a harsh metallic sound echoed through the foothills.
Clang!
That was the sound of Armament Haki colliding.
A dark, metallic shine covered the gun barrel and ankles. The two forces clashed, creating several bright sparks.
Boom!
The shockwave blasted away the snow on the ground as if hit by a cannonball, creating a "snowfall" in the wind and snow.
Whoosh…
Two figures retreated violently from either side of the snow blast, their feet dragging two parallel lines in the ground.
After a few breaths, the two fighters steadied themselves, their eyes piercing through the falling snowflakes, looking at each other.
One wore light golden armor, holding a black staff shaped like a long spear.
Ryan Rowan stood on the snowfield!
The other wore a white suit, a mask on his face, and a warm robe.
He was one of the fighters from the CP0 organization!
Right now, he was standing on his toes, gently moving his sore ankle.
So heavy!
The eyes behind the mask stared intently at Rowan.
This guy's attack is excessively heavy!
Not far behind the masked man lay the CP9 fighter who couldn't resist attacking first and was slammed into the ground by Rowan's spear.
Headfirst, stuck in the ground, beyond dead.
The fighter had used Tekkai for defense, but couldn't stop the swing of the Haki spear.
If it weren't for the thick snow and Tekkai absorbing much of the force, he would have been smashed into pieces!
The masked man stomped his foot, then twisted his shoulders, creating a series of cracking sounds.
He muttered, "Ryan Rowan, you're strong."
Rowan scratched his head. "Well... thanks for the compliment?"
"But I have the advantage."
The masked man put his hands behind his back and pulled out two curved blades with cold gleams from under his robe.
Unlike ordinary swords, the blades in the masked man's hands were short and curved, with two special rings on the guard.
"Special weapons?"
Rowan raised an eyebrow and grinned. "Interesting, they look fast."
The masked man nodded, his blade tips down, walking slowly forward.
"They are indeed fast."
"How fast?"
Whoosh!
Before Rowan finished speaking, the masked man suddenly took a step forward, instantly closing the distance to Rowan like a ghost.
Six Styles: Shave!
Clang!
The moment the blades landed, Rowan blocked the two sharp blades with his spear in one hand.
Scrape...
The blades and spear locked, creating a grinding sound that made teeth ache.
Rowan shook his head, looking a little disappointed. "Not bad, but could you be faster?"
The masked man snorted coldly, twisting his body. The two blades struck at Rowan like a whirlwind!
Whoosh whoosh whoosh…
Rowan held the spear and blocked left and right, while slowly backing away, stopping every attack.
Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang...
The piercing sounds of impact rang out repeatedly, echoing through the foothills.
Mixed in was Rowan's voice.
"Not fast enough, not fast enough!"
"Faster, faster, faster! A little faster!"
"Faster! Faster!"
Between the blades and the spear, the speed of the exchange was so fast that it was almost impossible to see!
The CP0 was angered by Rowan's words, their forearms bulging with veins, pushing their blade speed to the limit.
The surrounding snowflakes scattered, creating a blizzard on the ground despite the clear sky.
Around the foothills, the black-suited men standing at the edge of the dense forest couldn't help but swallow.
They were all fighters temporarily assigned from CP9.
Unlike the small number of formal agents, their responsibility as fighters was only to obey orders and destroy the enemy. They were a combat group without any extra functions.
Their mission was to secretly arrest Ryan Rowan of the Gold Dawn, alongside three members of the CP0 organization.
During the voyage, one of the CP0 had stated bluntly that the CP9 were completely useless for this mission, at most, they were tools for moving "goods."
The proud CP9 members naturally disagreed, leading to the scene of the initial, rash attack.
Now, they finally understood the CP0's words.
The battle in the foothills was far beyond their ability to interfere.
These two were ridiculously strong!
They wanted to help, but couldn't even find an opportunity to ambush.
Helpless, the CP9 could only sit still, ensuring that what was happening in the foothills wouldn't be discovered by outsiders.
…
After a while, one of the CP9 fighters noticed movement in the bushes not far away.
He secretly went around and found two people lying in them.
One was an old man in a worn suit, wearing a tall hat, with his hair piled high on the sides and back, a very eye-catching hairstyle.
The other was an old woman with a hooked nose, but a tall figure, wearing a dark purple tracksuit, with sunglasses on her forehead.
If Rowan were there, he would immediately recognize them.
These two were the doctors who, in the future, would have a deep connection with Tony Tony Chopper:
The former thief, now a quack doctor who treats diseases but doesn't want money—Hiluluk.
And the skilled doctor, harsh but kind, actually over a hundred years old—Dr. Kureha.
At this time, Chopper was only a few years old, not yet having eaten the Human-Human Fruit, still the blue-nosed reindeer bullied by the herd.
And Hiluluk and Kureha were still the underground doctors who refused to obey Wapol and were being chased around by the Drum Kingdom's guards.
They were currently lying in the bushes, looking nervous, clearly wanting to escape, but afraid of being discovered.
Unfortunately, despite their best efforts to hide, they were discovered by the CP9 responsible for guarding the area.
The CP9 extended one finger from each hand, preparing Six Styles: Finger Pistol.
What was about to happen in the foothills couldn't be allowed to spread, so the CP9 decided to kill them to silence them.
As he approached Hiluluk and Kureha from behind, the two finally noticed his presence.
Hiluluk pulled Kureha to run, but it was too late. They could only watch as he approached step by step.
The CP9 fired two Finger Pistols at the same time, aiming for the doctors' throats!
Whoosh!
Just as Hiluluk and Kureha thought they were doomed, a spear of sand suddenly stabbed out from the side, piercing his body and pinning him to the ground.
"Ugh!"
The CP9 grunted, but a hand of sand covered his mouth. He couldn't even let out a cry of pain before he died, let alone warn his companions.
Hiluluk and Kureha were stunned by the scene before them.
They looked up and saw a soldier made of yellow sand, holding a spear with traces of blood that had not yet dried.
In a few breaths, the blood was absorbed by the sand, completely disappearing.
Then, the sand soldier turned to look at the two doctors, nodding slightly as a greeting.
Hiluluk mustered his courage and asked, "Please, please, who are you..."
The sand soldier scratched his head, as if struggling to speak.
Then, he clapped, suddenly realizing something. The spear in his hand began to change shape, gradually turning into a "sign" made of sand.
The sand soldier held up the sign, using sand to outline clear words.
It "said":
"Want to sit for a while?"
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