Loguetown Central Plaza.
"Huff... huff... finally made it!!"
Luffy sprinted all the way until he finally stood beneath the legendary execution platform. He tilted his head back, gazing up at the high stage that had endured twenty-two years of wind and rain, his eyes glittering with excitement.
"So this is where the Pirate King died... It's so high!"
Luffy adjusted his straw hat and began to scramble up using both hands and feet. "I'm going up there to see! I want to see the view Gold Roger saw at the very end!"
"Stop right there, Straw Hat!"
Before he could even climb the first tier of steps, two figures blocked his path once again. It was the persistent duo: Alvida and Buggy the Clown.
"You guys are so annoying!" Luffy, genuinely irritated, didn't hesitate. He swung his arm back and let fly a punch. "Gum-Gum... Pistol!!"
"Useless~" Alvida giggled, puffing out her chest without moving an inch.
Zip!
Luffy's fist struck her skin, which was as smooth as a mirror. Friction vanished instantly, and his arm slid off her shoulder to the side. The momentum pulled Luffy forward into a stumble, breaking his balance.
"Now, Captain Buggy!" Alvida shouted.
"Chop-Chop... Carnival!!"
Buggy, having waited for this exact opening, activated his power. His body split into countless segments. Two hands clamped onto Luffy's wrists like iron shackles, while his two flying feet slammed into the back of Luffy's knees.
Thud!
Seizing the moment, Luffy hit the ground, Buggy manipulated his body parts like a living cage, forcibly shoving Luffy's head and hands into the wooden stocks on the platform—shackles that had sat empty for twenty-two years.
Click!
The heavy wood locked tight, sealing Luffy's neck and wrists.
"Eh?!" Luffy struggled with all his might, but the wood didn't budge. He looked up, completely baffled. "I... I can't move?! Hey! Big Red Nose! You're cheating! Let me go!"
"Wahahaha! Cheating? Don't make me laugh!" Buggy stood on the execution platform, looking down at the immobilized Luffy with a hysterical cackle. "Whether it's cheating or not, a pirate's victory is determined by the result! Victory is justice!"
He pulled a gleaming broadsword from his coat, the thrill of revenge practically overflowing from his painted face. "To end you at the very spot where Roger died... this is the most flashy revenge ever!!!"
Marine Base Loguetown, Captain's Office.
In a room thick with smoke, Smoker sat with his feet on the desk, two cigars clamped between his teeth.
"Captain! It's bad!!" A Marine burst in, panicking. "A massive crowd of pirates has gathered at the execution plaza! It looks like Buggy the Clown's crew! And... and that Straw Hat Luffy with the 30 million Berry bounty is there too!"
"Buggy? Straw Hat?"
Smoker's eyes snapped open. He grabbed his jitte from the desk, and white smoke began to swirl around his body.
He threw on his coat with the word "Justice" emblazoned on the back and strode toward the door, his eyes as fierce as a wolf's.
"So they finally showed their heads... those rats."
"All units, assemble! Target: The execution plaza!!"
"Since they're all gathered together, I'll take this chance to wipe out these arrogant pirates... in one fell swoop!"
Outside the "Ipponmatsu" Weapons Shop.
"Stop lying! You are Crimson Lotus!"
Tashigi took off her glasses, wiped them vigorously with the hem of her shirt, and snapped them back on. This time, her brown eyes held no confusion or daze; instead, they were sharp and filled with indignation.
Her gaze moved past Viktor and locked onto the white-hilted blade at Zoro's waist—Wado Ichimonji.
"That sword... that straight-edge temper line... there's no mistake!" Tashigi's voice trembled with emotion. "That is one of the 21 Great Grade Blades, Wado Ichimonji!!"
Shing!
She drew her blade, Shigure, the sharp tip pointing directly at the space between Zoro's brows. "Why is a noble blade like that in the hands of a villain like you?!"
"A man who became a pirate for bounties and fame, a cold-blooded killer... you don't deserve to hold it! Give it back!!"
Zoro rested his hand on his hilt, looking at Tashigi's face, which was flushed with anger. That face... it was far too similar to Kuina's. Even the angry expression was an exact match. His gaze became extremely complicated.
"Tch..." Zoro clicked his tongue, making no move to draw his primary sword.
"This is a matter between swordsmen." Viktor, standing nearby, took a tactful step back and leaned against the wall with his arms crossed, assuming the role of a spectator.
He glanced up at the thickening dark clouds and said with a smile, "As much as I'd like to just drag you away, it looks like you won't be moving until you settle this."
"I'll give you three minutes, Zoro. Don't let a woman delay the real business."
"Hmph. I won't need three minutes."
Zoro's eyes turned cold. He didn't draw Wado Ichimonji; instead, he unsheathed his newly acquired Yubashiri. "A villain, huh... say what you want. If you want this sword, come and take it with your own strength!"
"YAAAH!!"
Tashigi attacked in a fury, her body as swift as a swallow. Shigure became a streak of light aiming straight for Zoro's throat. The strike was fast, precise, and lethal—far beyond any ordinary Marine.
But in Zoro's eyes...
Clang!
Holding his sword with one hand, Zoro gave a casual flick of his wrist, precisely parrying Tashigi's thrust. "Too slow," he whispered.
"I'm not finished!!" Tashigi gritted her teeth, shifting her stance and attacking again. Her blade fell like raindrops.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
Zoro wielded Yubashiri with one hand, parrying every single strike as if taking a leisurely stroll. Their levels of swordsmanship were simply in different dimensions.
"Is this all you've got?" Zoro's patience ran dry. As Tashigi swung downward once more—
"CLANG—!!"
A sharp metallic ring echoed through the street. Zoro exerted a burst of power, the back of Yubashiri's blade slamming heavily into the guard of Shigure. The massive force instantly numbed Tashigi's grip.
"Ah!" Tashigi cried out as her blade was knocked from her hand, spinning through the air before embedding itself into the ground with a ting.
The battle was over.
Zoro's blade stopped inches from Tashigi's neck, the sharp edge hovering a hair's breadth from her skin. With a single thrust, the young Marine would have lost her life. Tashigi squeezed her eyes shut, waiting for the end.
One second. Two seconds. The expected pain never came.
Sheathe.
Zoro put his sword back into its scabbard with a blank expression and turned to walk away. "I don't kill women. Go."
Those words were like a needle, piercing Tashigi's pride. She opened her eyes, looking at her fallen sword and then at the retreating back of the man. A massive wave of humiliation washed over her. Tears she couldn't control began to fall.
"Why... why won't you cut me?!" Tashigi shouted at Zoro's back, her voice cracking with a sob. "Is it because I'm a woman?! If I were a man, you would have finished me already!!"
"Damn it... I don't need your pity!!" She fell to her knees, clutching the ground, weeping bitterly. "In swordsmanship, in the dignity of a swordsman... I lost everything... uuuu..."
"I train harder than anyone... is it just because I'm a woman..."
Hearing the crying behind him, Zoro stopped. His body trembled slightly. That voice seemed to pierce through time, overlapping perfectly with the memory of a short-haired girl who had been just as unwilling to accept her fate.
—[Girls get weaker than boys as they grow up. I want to be the world's greatest too!]
An inexplicable surge of anger rushed to Zoro's head. He spun around and roared at the kneeling Tashigi:
"SHUT UP!!! Stop blaming everything on being a man or a woman!!"
"You lose, and you start crying? What kind of swordsman are you?!"
"Looking at your face just makes me furious! Just stay out of my sight!!"
Zoro's roar echoed through the street. Tashigi was stunned, her crying halted as she stared blankly at the fearsome pirate.
"Hey, Moss-head." A hand patted Zoro's shoulder. Viktor interrupted the "fated" argument with a smile. "Time's up. We have to go. Luffy's over there."
Viktor pointed toward the plaza, where a deafening roar of noise was already beginning to rise.
"Tch." Zoro gritted his teeth, forcing down his irritation. He gave Tashigi one last look, then turned and sprinted away after Viktor.
Other sides of town.
At the seafood market, Sanji, who was meticulously selecting a prime Bluefin tuna, suddenly heard the massive commotion from the plaza. "Is that... Luffy's voice?" His face changed. "That idiot! Didn't he say he was just going to look and come right back?!"
"This is bad!!" Sanji ditched the tuna and took off like a bolt of lightning.
On another street, Usopp, who had just bought a pair of high-end windproof goggles, saw squads of fully armed Marines converging on the plaza.
"Are those... Marines? That many?!" His legs went weak, but he immediately thought of his trouble-magnet captain.
"Dammit... Luffy... he's definitely caused a mess again!!"
Despite his fear, Usopp gritted his teeth, adjusted his pack, and blended into the crowds, running toward the dangerous plaza.
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