Roronoa Zoro flew backward through the air. He knew he was about to lose, and a heavy sense of disappointment filled his heart. He remembered the solemn promise he made after his defeat by Hawkeye Mihawk, and he felt a sharp pang of regret. He had promised never to lose again until he faced the world's greatest swordsman, yet here he was, being bested by someone else.
Though Zoro's current strength was not yet enough to defeat every powerful opponent in the New World, he found it impossible to accept this outcome. "I can't just lose like this," he thought stubbornly. "If I'm going down, I'm giving Shiryu one last strike before I make my exit!".
Finding a sudden burst of hidden strength, Zoro kicked the air using Moonwalk—a technique he had picked up after watching others use it so many times. Though he usually pretended he didn't know it because it wasn't a sword technique, he used it now to stabilize himself. He flipped in mid-air and landed firmly on the crumbling arena floor, which groaned and shook under his weight.
None of the onlookers were particularly surprised to see a member of a Yonko-level crew using the Marine Six Styles. Seeing that Zoro still had a bit of fight left in him, Shiryu's eyes turned even more murderous. Without a word, the Rain rushed forward, swinging his blood-stained blade, Thunderstorm, directly at Zoro's neck.
Zoro sheathed two of his swords, Sakura Ten and Dead Wood, leaving only Wado Ichimonji in his right hand. He recalled the lessons Silvers Rayleigh had shared and the techniques Carl had demonstrated. He didn't need perfect mastery of Armament or Conqueror's Haki for this; he just needed to mimic the form of a legendary move.
"Divine Departure!" Zoro roared.
A black wave of energy erupted from his blade and collided with Shiryu's sword. Shiryu felt a massive wall of resistance as the force surged through his weapon and threw him backward. He skidded across the arena, retreating several meters before coming to a stop. Shiryu quickly checked his body and was surprised to find he hadn't taken any actual damage.
"What? Did he just learn that move?" Tashigi gasped in shock from the sidelines.
"Yohohoho! Mr. Zoro's talent is truly extraordinary," Brook praised. "To mimic such a legendary technique is amazing!".
Sanji lit a cigarette, acting cool despite his relief. "Well, he's not half bad," he muttered.
Nearby, Marco, Ace, and Vista were puzzled. The move looked incredibly familiar to them. Ace turned to his brother and asked, "Luffy, what happened? Did Zoro get him?".
Luffy shook his head. "I don't know much about swords, but that's Roger's move. Teacher Carl asked Rayleigh about it and learned it, and it looks like Zoro picked it up too!".
The realization hit the Whitebeard Pirates hard. They remembered seeing the Pirate King use that very move during their battles in the past. Zoro's version was only an imitation, which is why it lacked the power to actually hurt Shiryu, but the fact that he could use it at all was impressive.
"I really want to test my blade against him now!" Vista said, his eyes gleaming with excitement.
On the arena floor, Zoro sighed. He saw that Shiryu was uninjured and realized his "pirated" version of the move could only push an enemy back, not defeat them. "I still have a lot to learn," he thought as his legs finally gave out. The section of the arena beneath him gave way, and he fell helplessly into the seawater.
Shiryu rushed forward to finish him, but Zoro had already sunk below the surface, signaling the end of the match. Shiryu stopped, knowing that if he attacked an unconscious man outside the rules, Luffy would likely retaliate with everything he had.
"He's out of the ring! Roronoa Zoro is disqualified!" Gatz announced loudly. "The winner of Group A is Shiryu of the Rain! Let's have a round of applause!".
"Zoro!" Luffy and the others yelled, racing out of the waiting room.
Tashigi dived into the water and struggled to pull Zoro back to the surface. Fortunately, the Fighting Fish in the water were still unconscious from the burst of Conqueror's Haki Zoro had released earlier.
"Zoro! Hang in there!" Luffy panicked as they pulled him onto the deck. "Chopper! Where's Chopper? We need a doctor!".
Tashigi checked Zoro's wounds, her eyes showing her deep concern. "These injuries are terrible. It's a miracle he's still breathing," she whispered.
Sanji, distracted for a moment, glanced at Tashigi, but Vista quickly stepped in and poked him in the eyes. "A gentleman should show respect to a fellow swordsman," Vista scolded, taking off his coat to cover the soaked Tashigi.
The arena's medical staff arrived to take Zoro away, but Marco stepped forward and blocked their path. "Leave the bandages and medicine here," Marco said firmly. "I'll heal him myself.".
The medical team, terrified of the Whitebeard Pirates' reputation, dropped their supplies and ran.
"Marco, why aren't you letting them help?" Luffy asked, confused.
"Luffy, use your head," Sanji said seriously. "This is the enemy's territory. We can't trust them with our friend's life.".
Luffy finally understood. "Oh, right! Doflamingo is the bad guy!".
Marco smiled. "Exactly. Doflamingo is a snake. He might try to finish what Shiryu started while Zoro is weak. I'm a ship's doctor, and my phoenix flames are better than any medicine they have.". As he spoke, blue and yellow flames flickered over his hands and began to soothe Zoro's wounds.
In the VIP box, Shiryu returned with a dark expression on his face. His teammates, Jesus Burgess and Van Augur, stayed quiet. Even though they didn't fear him, they knew better than to provoke him while he was in such a foul mood, especially with the Whitebeard and Straw Hat crews watching them closely.
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