OP: AMP Ch. 220

With the ankylosaurus held down by Bon Kurei, a man stepped forward from the remaining defenders. He was tall enough to match a Marine Admiral's height, his presence commanding attention.

"You're useless," he said flatly, not even looking at his struggling comrade. "Leave the rest to me."

As he took a step forward, everyone noticed something off about his proportions. His legs were abnormally long, accounting for nearly two-thirds of his total height.

A member of the Longleg Tribe.

"I'll take him," Sanji said, eyes locking onto the long-legged fighter.

Their gazes met for a split second. Then both vanished.

The Longleg tribesman swept his leg in a wide horizontal arc, clearly intending to take out multiple targets with one strike. But Sanji was already there, blocking the attack before it could reach anyone else.

The collision of flesh against flesh rang out like metal striking metal.

CLANG!

The Longleg pirate's expression shifted slightly. Not because the kick hurt, in that instant of impact, he'd realized something troubling. Their strength was in the same league.

How was that possible?

The moment the Straw Hats had broken into the fortress, he'd already known who they were. He'd made it his business to know, specifically because of one crew member: the so-called "Miracle Maker."

As the largest criminal organization in the North Blue after Doflamingo's fall, his intelligence network was extensive. Before joining Shiki, he'd specifically researched every rising pirate crew that might pose a threat or opportunity.

The Straw Hat crew stood out immediately. Not because their bounties were especially high, but because they'd debuted with nearly one hundred million berries in total rewards. That was unprecedented for complete unknowns. Pirates with that level of bounty usually had their crimes plastered across every newspaper. Robin, who'd supposedly destroyed dozens of ships at age eight. Crocodile with his 81 million berry bounty from his prime years. Whether it was Robin or Crocodile, they all had eye-catching records, had challenged famous figures, or had served under notorious captains.

But the Straw Hats? None of them had appeared in major newspapers before their bounties were issued. Which meant something significant had happened somewhere out of the public eye.

He'd dug deeper, looking for clues. And he'd found them, the "alive" stipulation on certain bounties, the "miracle" that had supposedly occurred in Arabasta, and Crocodile's removal from his position as a Warlord of the Sea.

After piecing everything together, he'd concluded that Marcus, the Miracle Maker, would join Shiki's fleet. The logic was simple: across all the seas, only the Golden Lion could truly protect someone the World Government wanted that badly.

He'd gotten inside information that the "capture alive" order hadn't come from any allied nation, but from higher up, the Celestial Dragons themselves.

In this world, when the Celestial Dragons wanted something, it didn't matter how much you resisted or how desperately you fought. Eventually, it would end up in their hands. A rookie pirate who'd just set sail would be captured one hundred percent of the time, then enslaved for whatever purposes the World Nobles had in mind. While many organizations and forces could evade or delay capture, only Shiki could protect Marcus, and potentially enable him to accomplish great things in the future.

But when he'd arrived here, Marcus was nowhere to be found. And somehow, the Straw Hats were enemies instead of allies. It had confused him, but he hadn't dwelled on it too much. Wasn't it better to have one less "Miracle Maker" to compete with?

Sure, Marcus' burst of Conqueror's Haki had shocked him earlier. But the rest of the crew should've been fodder.

Except...

"Not bad," the Longleg pirate said, his voice taking on a harder edge. "No wonder you had the balls to oppose Shiki. You've got some skill."

Veins bulged along his legs as muscle swelled beneath the skin.

"But this is as far as you go."

BOOM!

Their feet collided in mid-air, Armament Haki intertwining in a violent clash. Shockwaves rippled outward.

WOOOOONG!

A deep, bell-like resonance exploded against their eardrums. The collision of Haki-reinforced limbs sounded like massive church bells being struck with sledgehammers. Everyone nearby winced from the sheer volume.

Sanji took a long drag from his cigarette, the burning ember brightening as he inhaled. Then he exhaled slowly, smoke drifting from his lips.

"That's it? I was expecting you to be tougher than this."

The words had barely left his mouth before both fighters vanished again. What followed was a relentless exchange of blows too fast for normal eyes to track.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

The air itself seemed to ripple and distort from the impacts. Two fighters who relied exclusively on kicks were colliding at incredible speeds, attacking while simultaneously probing for weaknesses, testing defenses, searching for that one opening that would end the fight.

The Straw Hat crew advanced once more, leaving Sanji to handle his opponent.

Only five defenders remained between them and Shiki.

Indigo and Scarlet watched everything unfold. The former looked thoughtful, analyzing the situation. The latter looked eager to jump into the fray, his breathing becoming heavier as his gaze settled on Robin.

Shiki himself observed the Straw Hat crew, surprise crossing his features.

This crew possessed this level of strength?

Based on his intelligence reports, they should've been limited to watching from their ship while Marcus handled everything. But here they were, pushing through his defenses like a well-oiled machine. Seeing that neither the ankylosaurus pirate nor the Longleg tribesman could stop the advance, one of the remaining defenders stepped forward.

He wore a black suit tailored for combat, and a long blade hung at his waist. His posture radiated the coiled readiness of a swordsman.

"Pathetic," he said, voice flat but dripping with scorn.

The two fighters still engaged in battle wore ugly expressions. They knew exactly who he was talking about.

But with Bon Kurei and Sanji keeping them occupied, there was nothing they could do about it.

"He's mine." Zoro said, already tying his bandana around his head. His eyes gleamed.

WHOOOM!

Blade light erupted in an instant. Two flying slashes burst forth simultaneously, colliding in mid-air with enough force to shake the corridor. The attacks ground against each other, perfectly matched, neither giving an inch.

Zoro's grin was feral.

"Demonic Aura: Three-Sword Style: Oni Giri!"

As the words left his mouth, demonic energy spread from Sandai Kitetsu throughout his entire body. A dark purple aura began emanating from his form, visible even to those without Observation Haki. Beneath his bandana, his normally bright eyes now burned with an eerie crimson glow, as if something inhuman was looking out through them.

He looked like a demon that had crawled out of hell itself.

"Light Slash!"

The enemy swordsman's blade seemed to draw in ambient light before releasing it. The slash was so bright it left afterimages on everyone's retinas.

Light and darkness collided.

For a moment, the world itself seemed to lose all color from the sheer impact of their clash.

CRACK!

The stone floor beneath them splintered. The walls developed hairline fractures. Support beams groaned from the pressure.

"What a blade!" The swordsman stared at his own weapon, eyes wide with shock.

His blade was wrapped in Haki and had nearly deformed from the impact. Though it hadn't chipped thanks to his Armament coating, that single collision had revealed a critical gap in their equipment.

His great-grade sword had lost in both hardness and overall quality. And this was even with his Haki being stronger than his opponent's.

Three Supreme Grade blades? Could a rookie pirate really possess such treasures?

As confusion warred with understanding, greed began filling his eyes. Weapons like that should belong to someone worthy, someone like him.

"Hey!" he called out, unable to help himself. "Leave those swords behind, and I might let you live!"

Zoro's crimson eyes showed nothing but contempt. "You want them?" His voice was hoarse, distorted, barely human. "Kill me and take them yourself."

The swordsman, blinded by greed, completely missed the warning signs in Zoro's demonic appearance.

Blade light flashed as both fighters unleashed flying slashes while still engaged in their clash. The technique required immense physical strength and perfect control, releasing ranged attacks while maintaining pressure in close combat.

Both attacks erupted simultaneously.

BOOOOOM!

The shockwave didn't just damage the corridor, it sliced through the adjacent buildings. The entire structure was cut into four sections, three of which immediately burst into flames.

"Those are all cursed blades?" The swordsman's voice carried a note of genuine alarm now. "Are you trying to get yourself killed?"

He felt a chill run down his spine.

He'd sensed something odd during their earlier exchanges but hadn't paid it much attention. Now, after another collision and separation, he finally recognized what he was seeing.

This was the appearance of demonic possession, when cursed blade energy overwhelmed the user's body and mind. As a strong swordsman himself, he was familiar with cursed blades. He even had several in his personal collection back on his home island.

Naturally, he'd heard all the legends about cursed blades killing their masters. But to him, it was simply the demonic aura draining the wielder's life force. Those too weak to withstand the drain would die, earning the blade its cursed reputation. That drain existed to unleash even more powerful attacks when needed. It was a trade-off, life force for power.

Most swordsmen who mastered cursed blades learned to control a single one. That was already considered an impressive achievement.

But this man before him was wielding three cursed blades simultaneously?

Had he completely lost his mind?

Did he not value his own life at all?