Nami's mind flashed with the images of those four, no, those four demons.
Kibutsuji Muzan was at the very top, with the Upper Ranks, the top three, below him. The power of these four demons could only be described as terrifying. Even the weakest of the Upper Three possessed the strength to overpower the entire Gato Group on his own.
As expected…
Not everyone can deal with Kibutsuji Muzan.
Nami's eyes seemed calm and unruffled, as if she had long anticipated this outcome. But deep within her eyes, a hint of disappointment was unavoidable.
If…
If only they could actually defeat Kibutsuji Muzan…
Nami took a deep breath, shaking off the irrational thought from her mind.
"!"
Suddenly, Nami's eyes widened.
Because Zoro, who had been struggling against Buggy earlier, had completely changed his demeanor.
"Your Devil Fruit power certainly counters swordsmen." Zoro suddenly put away his swords, leaving only his black blade, Dark Moon.
"Oh? If dual-wielding doesn't work, are you switching to one sword? It's useless no matter what, you'll never be able to hurt a single hair on my head!" Buggy continued to laugh arrogantly. He had dealt with more than one or two swordsmen, but none had ever managed to harm him, with his Chop-Chop Fruit.
He split off a hand holding a sword and thrust it at Zoro. Zoro let out a cold smile. The next moment, Dark Moon emitted a faint purple light, a strangely evil power surged out. Zoro swung his sword, and the hand lunging at him split further. But Zoro's attack transformed into a crescent moon beam, enveloping the entire area where the hand had been.
Buggy was horrified. He never expected a mere bounty hunter from the East Blue to use such a technique!
Indeed, his Chop-Chop ability allowed him to directly evade sword slashes, but what if the swordsman's slash filled the entire space?
How could he possibly dodge that?!
But Buggy believed such a swordsman couldn't exist in the East Blue, so he had been arrogant. Zoro's attack scared him badly, and he immediately tried to retract that hand with all his might.
Buggy had been on Roger's ship, so his reflexes were naturally quick. At the last second, he desperately controlled the hand to return, but it ultimately didn't escape completely.
The hand returned to his wrist, but a wound now appeared on its back – a wound infused with purple power. And for some reason, ever since the wound appeared, Buggy felt a wave of powerlessness.
"You… you… you…" Buggy could barely speak, his eyes wide. "Who exactly are you?!"
"Huh? Don't you already know?" Zoro gave a wicked smile. "Didn't you just say my name? Pirate hunter, Roronoa Noah Zoro!"
He took a step forward, his blade already raised for another swing. But Buggy didn't dare to fight Zoro anymore.
Facing the closing Zoro, Buggy suddenly turned and flew far away!
He…
He ran away!
"Clown Buggy, what are you doing?!" Buggy's escape stunned Gato. He shouted in exasperation, "Do you think you can escape that great person's grasp?"
A clown who sees only the sky in his well, Clown Buggy cursed inwardly.
Yes, that Demon King was indeed powerful, and he wasn't his match. But at worst, he could just leave the East Blue. Although it wasn't as safe as the East Blue outside, it was still livable.
But if he continued to fight that pirate hunter…
He would surely die, right?!
In normal circumstances, even if the opponent could cut him, Buggy wouldn't choose to flee like this. However, Buggy was no ordinary person. He sensed a very familiar aura from Zoro's sword.
Even though a long time had passed, Buggy had actually gone to Wano Country. Even though he hadn't contributed any effort in Wano Country, he had interacted with Kenshin on Cloud Island.
At first, he hadn't reacted, but as Zoro approached, he finally remembered. That guy…
The feeling his hand gave him was extremely similar to Himura Kenshin!
What the heck? Why is that harbinger of bad luck in the East Blue? Is Zoro Kenshin's disciple?
Once he realized this, Zoro completely lost the desire to fight with Zoro. What a joke. To be an enemy of Himura Kenshin was no different than being killed directly.
Himura Kenshin was the 'Battōsai the Slasher' in Wano Country! His terror was even comparable to 'Sixth Heavenly Demon King' Kozuki Oden. Both were terrifying figures that could make children stop crying – and Buggy had even witnessed his battles firsthand.
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That was too terrifying. He was a swordsman who could be considered a major figure even in the New World. No matter how powerful Kibutsuji Muzan was, he couldn't possibly be stronger than Himura Kenshin. So Buggy directly chose to flee, regardless of offending Kibutsuji Muzan.
However, as he flew, he suddenly felt something was wrong.
Because something wrapped around his body. The next moment, his vision plunged into darkness, as if something had engulfed him.
A giant tentacle coiled around Buggy's body. The terrifying pressure even prevented Buggy from using his Chop-Chop Fruit abilities.
"Mu…"
Buggy groaned in pain. "I… I was wrong! I'll go back and fight!"
But it was too late.
A man emerged from in front of Buggy. He had fair skin, a pair of scarlet eyes, and wore a white top hat. But one of his arms stretched out like Luffy's, and it had become incredibly thick, directly binding Buggy.
"I didn't expect you to know that guy's background."
The man said coldly, "In that case, nothing else matters. It's just his sword…"
"Mu… Muzan, I…"
Buggy tried to say something else, but the man gave him an extremely cold glare.
"Shut up!"
The man exerted a little force, crushing Buggy into several pieces. Then he retracted his arm, looked at Buggy falling on the ground, and kicked his head several meters away.
"Useless trash, you're all worthless now."
The man raised his hands. The next moment, his arms stretched out, and two giant tentacles swept towards the town ahead.
"Luffy, stop playing!"
Zoro's pupils instantly shrank. He felt an immense power approaching and urgently shouted at Luffy.
Luffy also sensed the approach of the giant tentacles. He suddenly threw a punch that hit the Upper Rank Four directly in the chest. The punch, which had been ineffective against him earlier, now unleashed immense power, sending the demon flying…
Into those tentacles!
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