"What?!"
"Tashigi?"
Smoker clearly had not understood the situation. He had no idea who this woman, who looked exactly like his subordinate, actually was.
But when he saw Law, who had remained calm in front of them until now, suddenly drenched in cold sweat and visibly tense, he realized something was wrong.
Especially that man.
Smoker looked toward "Ozz," who stood in the distance as if watching a show, and his expression turned ugly.
Why was that man here too?!
Things seemed to be turning in the worst possible direction.
After encountering Ozz, Smoker, who cared deeply for his subordinates, even began thinking about retreating.
But Law's explanation stopped him in his tracks.
"This is my Devil Fruit ability. I can separate a person's consciousness from their body and swap them. Right now, Mr. Ozz is probably inside that lady's body."
Law stared at the woman walking closer with a blade in hand, fully on guard.
His peripheral vision swept over Smoker and the others.
"How about it? Want to team up?"
"Mr. Ozz is one of the targets your Marines are supposed to capture, isn't he?"
Law had actually invited the Marines to cooperate.
That alone showed how much pressure he was under.
Even if the other party was only an unknown female swordsman, as long as the soul inside was Ozz, Law had to stay alert with everything he had.
"What?!"
Hearing this, Smoker's step froze completely. He turned back in disbelief, and even the cigar in his mouth fell to the ground.
The thought of leaving that had been in his mind was instantly severed.
"Trafalgar Law, is what you said... true?!"
"Absolutely."
Smoker could no longer remain calm.
Because he had thought of a possibility.
A possibility that filled him with excitement.
A possibility of ending the legend of an entire era.
"You mean, if we take this woman down here, it would be the same as taking down Black Gun?"
Looking at the woman who looked exactly like his subordinate Tashigi, Smoker's eyes filled with something called excitement.
Law instantly broke into a cold sweat when he saw that expression.
"Hey, Marine! What are you thinking?"
He had only called Smoker over to split the pressure. This guy could not possibly be thinking...
"White Snake!"
That was right.
Smoker believed this was an opportunity.
A chance to capture the legendary pirate, the one person the Marines dreaded most.
Black Gun Ozz!
Seeing their superior make a move, Tashigi and the others naturally would not stand aside. They immediately prepared to face the enemy.
The scene left Law stunned.
These Marines...
They could not possibly think this level of strength was enough to take down Mr. Ozz, could they?
Cold sweat ran down his face as he looked toward "Kuina," who stood there quietly with a long blade in hand.
Mr. Ozz...
He was still smiling calmly.
"White Snake!"
A fist of smoke, like a white serpent, shot directly toward Ozz's face. Just before it struck, he tilted aside and dodged it.
"How impatient."
"Kuina" spoke faintly.
"I thought Kuzan was the only one in the Marines who hated me this much. I did not expect there to be another expert."
Ozz did not even need to think about it. If Kuzan knew there was such a perfect chance to capture Ozz while his soul was away from his own body, he would probably make a move at any cost.
After all, that might be the closest Kuzan would ever come in his life to successfully taking Ozz down.
"Stop pretending, Black Gun! Any Marine who took part in the Summit War would never let a chance like this pass!"
Smoker gripped his Seastone jitte. His lower body turned into smoke as he flew forward, stabbing straight toward Ozz.
Ozz only extended Wado Ichimonji and held the blade before him.
The sharp sound of metal striking metal rang out as the two weapons locked in a contest of force.
"Surrender, Black Gun!"
Smoker increased the strength in his hand and drove the jitte forward.
Wado Ichimonji began to tremble slightly, causing a trace of surprise to appear on Ozz's calm face.
"As expected, this body is still a little too weak."
Even the muscles were trembling. It was obvious this body could not match Smoker's strength.
Ozz coated his foot in Armament Haki and kicked Smoker back. Then his expression turned serious.
He held Wado Ichimonji horizontally before him. His gaze grew deep as black demonic aura, driven by spiritual power, began to spread across the blade.
Demonic aura and Conqueror's Haki worked on the same principle. Both emerged from the nature of the soul.
Clang.
Although its intensity was not high, Armament Haki instantly wrapped around his arm and Wado Ichimonji's blade, turning it into a black blade.
Wrapped in demonic aura, holding a black blade, and draped in a black cloak, "Kuina" had now activated a true heaven-tier battle technique.
"One-Sword Style."
Black aura rose from "Kuina's" body. Scarlet pupils stared fixedly at Smoker as Wado Ichimonji gathered power inside its sheath.
Clang.
Armament Haki concentrated on the blade's edge. The wrist holding the black blade suddenly exerted force.
Smoker's eyes changed instantly. Feeling that power, blood vessels crawled across his eyeballs.
"Cherry Blossom's End, Black Light."
Splurt.
The black blade slowly returned to its sheath.
Along with the jitte, Smoker's chest was cut open in a straight line. Blood spilled from his mouth.
At that moment...
"ROOM!"
A transparent sphere expanded instantly and enveloped "Kuina."
Immediately after, the sound of a blade slicing through the air rang out.
By instinct, Ozz bent backward.
The stone beside him was sliced neatly in two by the Op-Op Fruit's power.
"Oh my... without the Teleport-Teleport Fruit, this really feels inconvenient."
Ozz had already pushed this body to its limit. After all, this body was not even as strong as he had been during his time with the Roger Pirates.
"Mr. Ozz, forgive the offense..."
Amid the flying snow, Law appeared in a corner of the ROOM. The blade in his hand reflected a cold light.
"Oh? It seems I have truly been underestimated."
"Kuina" slowly turned back and revealed a faint smile.
In the next instant, black-red lightning exploded from that slender hand, then wrapped around Wado Ichimonji's blade.
A slash at the level of a master swordsman formed and flew out in an instant, tearing the entire ROOM apart.
And just after that slash was released, a strange force vanished.
Their consciousnesses gradually returned to their own bodies.
Kuina opened her eyes in shock.
Before her was a canyon that had split half of Punk Hazard apart.
"It seems I played a little too hard."
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