Chapter 82: The Hundred-Man Slayer Swordsman! Please Be Quiet, Agents!
On the streets of Whiskey Peak, a full moon hung high above the massive cactus-shaped rocks.
The cold moonlight spilled onto the bluestone road, casting a desolate and murderous aura over the once-boisterous town.
"Hmph... if you're looking for death, then come at me."
In the middle of the street, Zoro untied the dark green bandana from his arm and slowly tied it around his head.
He tightly bit down on the white hilt of the Wado Ichimonji.
With both hands, he drew the two newly acquired sharp blades from his waist—the Skillful Grade sword 'Yubashiri' and the cursed blade 'Sandai Kitetsu'.
Facing him were a full hundred bounty hunters armed with various weapons.
"Go! That's a bounty worth tens of millions!"
"Kill him!!"
The shouts shattered the silence of the night.
However, facing the tide of people surging toward him, Zoro didn't retreat in the slightest; instead, a cold smirk played on his lips.
"Perfect, I'll use you all to sharpen my new blades!"
Swish—!
Zoro's figure moved like a tiger pouncing into a flock of sheep.
Blade light flashed, and blood splattered.
But he was in no hurry to end the battle; instead, he was enjoying the thrill of dancing on the edge of life and death.
The pitch-black 'Yubashiri' in his right hand was so light it felt weightless, moving as an extension of his own arm.
Meanwhile, the 'Sandai Kitetsu' in his left hand, which radiated an ominous aura, was like a bloodthirsty beast; every swing carried a violent urge to cut through everything.
"So this is a cursed blade... truly an untamable wild horse."
While parrying attacks from all directions, Zoro thought arrogantly to himself, "But I'll make you behave!"
...
High up on a domed roof.
Tatsuya was still sitting there, holding a red apple he had swiped from the banquet. He took a bite with a 'crunch', juice spraying everywhere.
His crimson Three-Tomoe Sharingan slowly spun in the darkness, taking in the entire battle below.
"Decent swordsmanship." Tatsuya chewed his apple, having no intention of intervening.
However, just as Zoro was fighting with gusto and found himself surrounded by the crowd.
Several figures who had been lurking in the shadows finally lost their patience.
"Now! Mr. 9!"
"Got it! Miss Wednesday!!"
A figure wearing a crown and a blue-haired girl riding a Spot-billed Duck suddenly rushed out from Zoro's blind spot.
Mr. 9 brandished two metal bats equipped with wire ropes, performing a series of flashy backflips.
Meanwhile, Vivi brandished the sharp blades known as 'Peacock Slasher'. The two of them charged from the left and right, heading straight for Zoro's undefended back!
"And I'll provide a magnificent finale!"
In the shadows on the other side, Igaram (Mr. 8) raised his saxophone. It wasn't just a musical instrument, but a modified deadly firearm.
The dark muzzles were aimed right at Zoro's back.
"Times have changed! No matter how strong your swordsmanship is, you can't dodge a dense barrage of bullets!!"
Igaram's finger pressed down on the keys (triggers), a sinister smile appearing on his face:
"Saxophone Blast—"
Snap.
A crisp snap of fingers rang out abruptly in the night air.
Before Igaram could even shout the name of his move, the figure who had been sitting up high eating an apple vanished into thin air.
The next second.
Mr. 9 and Vivi, who were about to launch their sneak attack, only felt a blur before their eyes.
A black afterimage appeared behind them like a ghost.
"You two little mice should sleep for a while."
Tatsuya's voice was flat and emotionless.
He didn't even draw his sword; he simply reached out and, with movements as fast as lightning, delivered a light strike to the back of their necks.
"Ugh..."
Mr. 9 and Vivi didn't even have time to react. They felt a chill at the back of their necks, their eyes rolled back, and they slumped limply to the ground.
An instant knockout.
"Wh... what?!"
Seeing this from a distance, Igaram turned pale with fright, cold sweat instantly soaking his back.
But he was a high-ranking agent after all, and his reactions were extremely fast.
"Damn it! Where did you come from?!"
Igaram roared, ignoring Zoro and swinging the saxophone muzzles around to point them at Tatsuya.
"Die!!"
Bang bang bang bang!!
Accompanied by the piercing crack of gunfire, countless lead bullets poured out of the saxophone muzzles like a rainstorm, sealing off all of Tatsuya's escape routes.
However, Tatsuya stood his ground, not moving an inch.
Under the gaze of those Three-Tomoe Sharingan, the trajectories of those high-speed bullets were as clearly visible as if they were in slow motion.
"Too slow."
Clang—
Tatsuya slowly drew the long sword at his waist. With a flick of his wrist, the blade light spilled out like flowing water.
Cling cling cling cling cling!!
A series of dense metal clashing sounds rang out.
Amidst the shower of sparks, every single bullet fired at him was either precisely split by his blade or deflected away!
"How... is that possible?!" Igaram's eyes widened in terror, as if he were looking at a monster.
"Blocking bullets with a sword?! Is that even humanly possible?!"
Before he could recover from his shock.
Tatsuya's figure flickered as he activated the Body Flicker Technique.
This time, he crossed a distance of over ten meters in an instant, appearing right in front of Igaram.
The cold tip of his sword rested steadily against the curly-haired man's throat.
Meanwhile, Tatsuya's other hand gently pressed down on the still-smoking saxophone muzzles.
"You're too noisy, curly-haired uncle."
Tatsuya looked at the sweating Igaram and made a smiling "shh" gesture.
"It's the middle of the night; it's not good to disturb the neighbors."
As soon as he finished speaking.
Tatsuya's hand, which was pressing down on the muzzles, suddenly shoved upward.
Thump!
The hard metal body of the instrument slammed heavily into Igaram's massive chin.
"Pugh!"
Igaram's eyes rolled back, and without even letting out a scream, he was knocked unconscious by his own weapon and collapsed with a thud.
...
Although the commotion here was resolved quickly, Igaram's burst of gunfire just now had been far too loud.
"Zzz... meat... don't run..."
At the entrance of the banquet hall.
A round figure, shaped like a balloon, walked out while rubbing sleepy eyes.
Luffy had been woken up.
However, when he opened his eyes and saw the scene before him, all traces of sleepiness vanished instantly.
On the street, the ground was covered with "kind townsfolk" who had been beaten black and blue, groaning incessantly.
Not far away, Zoro was holding his swords, radiating murderous intent.
Tatsuya was stepping over the "kind curly-haired uncle" who had given him meat, still holding a sword.
Boom—
The circuits in Luffy's brain connected instantly.
"Zoro!! Tatsuya!!!"
Luffy's belly puffed up with rage as he let out an angry roar:
"You bastards!! You actually attacked the good people who gave us so much meat to eat!!!"
"Are you trying to repay kindness with enmity?!"
"Huh?!" Zoro and Tatsuya turned their heads simultaneously, looking completely speechless.
"I will absolutely never forgive you!!"
Luffy didn't give anyone a chance to explain. Although his body had become a giant meatball, his explosive power was still staggering.
"Gum-Gum Human Cannonball!!"
He curled himself into a ball and, like a massive cannonball, charged madly at the two of them with a whistling wind.
"You idiot! Listen to the explanation!"
Zoro was forced to turn and meet the attack, raising his swords to parry.
"You want to fight?! I've been annoyed with you for a long time too!!" Zoro's temper was also flared.
"What a pain..."
Tatsuya sighed and stepped aside, easily dodging one of Luffy's charges.
Bang!
Luffy was relentless; he bounced back and delivered a fierce headbutt toward Zoro.
Zoro was sent flying by the brute force, sliding several meters across the ground before stopping.
He wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth, veins popping on his forehead, as he took a serious "Three Sword Style" stance.
"Fine then, you idiot... I'll just have to beat some sense into you!!"
Seeing that the two of them were really about to get serious, Tatsuya shook his head helplessly.
"Although I'd love to see you two fight, now is not the time for infighting."
Swish!
Tatsuya instantly formed hand seals and flickered, appearing right between the two who were at each other's throats.
Facing the charging Luffy.
"Water Release: Water Prison Jutsu!!"
Tatsuya opened one hand, and a massive sphere of water appeared out of thin air, precisely enveloping Luffy's round body within it.
"Glug glug?!"
Luffy was instantly trapped in the water ball. As a Devil Fruit user, the moment he was enveloped by water, the strength in his entire body seemed to be drained away. The feeling of helplessness made him stop struggling immediately.
"Mmph mmph!!" Luffy blew bubbles in the water, his limbs flailing weakly.
"Calmed down yet?"
Maintaining the Water Prison, Tatsuya pointed at the weapons dropped by the bounty hunters on the ground and said helplessly:
"Luffy, take a good look."
"What are they holding in their hands?"
With that, Tatsuya dispelled the Water Prison.
Pwah!!
Luffy fell to the ground, spitting out a large mouthful of the water he had just swallowed.
He lay on the ground and looked closely.
Sure enough, beside those "kind townsfolk" were all sorts of gleaming swords, flintlocks, and even rocket launchers.
Luffy blinked once, then twice.
A look of sudden realization slowly dawned on his face.
"Ah!! So they were bad guys!!"
Luffy slapped his forehead, then immediately switched to a grinning expression, pressing his hands together to apologize to the murderous-looking Zoro:
"Sorry! Zoro! I thought you were bullying good people! Hee hee hee!"
"..."
Zoro sheathed his swords, but his hands were trembling—from pure rage.
His face was darkened with frustration as he turned to Tatsuya and said through gritted teeth:
"Hey, Tatsuya... I want to cut him. Don't stop me this time."
Tatsuya wiped the water from his hands and stepped aside with a smile:
"Be my guest."
Loving Book So Far Check Out 80+ Chapters In Advanced At Pa Treon:
patreon.com/FicTonic1