Chapter 132: Zoro vs. Sanji!

In the next instant, their ultimate techniques collided, blade and foot meeting in midair...

Boom!

Crimson flames exploded, and the two figures instantly engaged in a fight of extreme intensity on the arena floor.

After two months of arduous training, Zoro and Sanji's combat power had both advanced to the Bronze level.

With their talents and strength extremely close, their full-power eruption instantly left countless craters and slash marks on the arena ground.

Even the mere scattered sword intent and flames forced the surrounding crowd to flee in disarray to the arena's edge, fearing they would be caught in the crossfire of the two.

Yet one unlucky soul was still affected by Zoro's sword intent and Sanji's kicking technique; a momentary slip sent him falling into the water, forcing him to withdraw in regret.

Boom!

Boom!

Boom!

Amidst their increasingly fierce exchange, both subconsciously unleashed their full strength, determined to decide the victor here.

As the battle on the arena grew more intense, the spectators on the sidelines roared with deafening volume!

"Monsters!"

"These two, whether the blonde or the green-haired one, are monsters just like the previous Kuro, Xiang Keluo, and Dellinger!"

"A swordsman who commands flying slash attacks and a warrior who uses flame kicking techniques!"

"This is the battle with the closest strength since the Martial Arts Tournament began, and naturally, the most intense one among them!"

"Fight! Fight! Fight!"

In the spectator stands.

A unified chant rose, and everyone felt their blood boiling hot.

But Brookley, standing on the arena at this moment, did not think so.

Watching Zoro and Sanji's increasingly fierce exchange, his heart held only unspeakable dread.

He had a precise judgment of his own combat power; he was far stronger than the other small fry around him, but absolutely unable to compare with these two before him.

If I take either of these two alone, I am no match for either one!

Under normal circumstances, I have absolutely no chance of winning this fight; since that is the case...

A dark shade flashed in Brookley's eyes; he suppressed his own aura and, like prey, searched for a suitable moment.

Seizing the instant when the two, after unleashing their full power, could not react, he would knock them both out of the arena, then clear out these small fry.

This is the only way I can advance!

As time passed, Brookley even suppressed his own breathing, leaving not a trace of presence on the arena.

Finally.

The two fighting in the arena unleashed another even more powerful shockwave.

Flames swept out, exploding from the center; sword intent swirled, and even in its shattered state, it cut cracks into the reinforced stone slabs of the ground.

A sudden gust of air exploded in the arena, blowing everyone's eyes shut!

"Now is the time!"

"Moon-Shooting Flying Kick!"

Brookley murmured the name; his disproportionately large legs folded, pushing his body forward like a spring as he charged toward Zoro and Sanji in the center.

This strike.

He held nothing back, betting everything on it!

Only in this way could he barely force both of those two out of the arena!

In the next instant...

"Who?!"

Two slightly puzzled voices rang out simultaneously beside Brookley's ears; his pupils suddenly contracted, and his back grew cold.

For Zoro and Sanji were completely unaffected by the collision of the previous strike, turning their heads in unison to look at him.

"Don't get in the way!"

The two voices almost overlapped, and what followed was three blades and a black foot landing on Brookley simultaneously...

Sss!

A burst of blood mist suddenly exploded from his waist; immediately after, Sanji kicked him flying, sending him to the distant spectator stands where he lost consciousness on the spot.

Several spectators were instantly frightened into losing consciousness by this scene, while many more became so excited they were nearly mad.

"This is what I wanted to see!"

"Now, no matter what happens, it was worth the ticket price!"

"The trip was not in vain!"

"Such a battle is what men pursue; evenly matched, fighting with all their might!"

On the arena.

After suffering Brookley's surprise attack, Sanji and Zoro both stopped simultaneously.

Their gazes met.

The two said in unison:

"As expected, I am the least compatible with you, you guy!"

Having said that.

The two stopped simultaneously, feeling the air grow quiet.

A few seconds later.

The two of them spoke again at the same time:

"A guy who bullies women (hinders the way of the sword) — I will absolutely never forgive him!"

The voice fell.

The surroundings fell quiet once more.

The few surviving competitors on the field looked at the two of them, momentarily at a loss for words.

"Aren't you two perfectly in sync?!"

"Him?!"

The two of them simultaneously turned their heads away, their movements and rhythm perfectly identical.

If not for the two of them looking utterly different in appearance and bearing, the onlookers would almost have taken them for a pair of twin brothers.

One of them twitched the corner of his mouth, judged himself hopeless to advance, and didn't want to keep watching the two bicker, so he simply turned around and jumped into the water, directly declaring surrender.

The others followed suit, all losing the will to fight and directly giving up.

After all, if just the stray shockwaves from their clash could instantly kill you, then if they really fought, surviving at all would only be because the other side was showing mercy.

A few breaths later, the only ones still standing on the field were Zoro and Sanji.

Seeing this, there was no need for them to keep fighting either; they turned around at the same time and walked down the arena amid bickering.

Zangao watched the two treasures, and a smile couldn't help but creep onto his face:

"Saying things like 'I hate you' out loud, but in your heart you're the one who acknowledges him the most… what was that word the captain used last time?!"

"Oh, 'tsundere' has already fallen out of fashion."

"What's that muttering about?!"

Molli leaned her head over, and Zangao shook his head:

"Nothing." Then he picked up the microphone and announced loudly:

"Today's final preliminary match, the West District bout, concludes at this moment!"

"The winners are:"

"Roronoa Zoro and Black-Leg Sanji!"

The scene erupted in thunderous cheers.

Today's preliminaries left the attending audience immensely satisfied; they even began looking forward to when the next match would be held, and to what level the fighting would be pushed to.

The crowd's cheers continued for a full several minutes before slowly subsiding.

Zangao took the chance to announce:

"To allow the competitors to recover their best condition, heal their wounds, and formulate tactics, the finals will be held two days from now!"

"Please continue to show your support!"

Another wave of cheers rose from the crowd, marking the official end of the preliminaries.

Zangao also relaxed at this moment; reaching to touch his vest, he discovered it was already soaked through with sweat — but not from nervousness, but from excitement!

!

And it was at this moment.

He made up his mind to stay here, to stay in Raven Harbor, to stay at the martial arts tournament, to witness one martial arts tournament after another unfold.

Molli looked at Zangao's back, and only felt that he now had something on him that she herself lacked.

Then she remembered.

It was the exact same bearing as when Gasha had once decided to pursue the power to protect everything.

A person with a goal, with desire, who knows what it is they are pursuing — even the way they walks is completely different from that of someone lost.

Steadfast, steady, without the slightest room for hesitation.

The present Zangao was just like that — he had found the thing he was willing to stake his life on doing.

Those cheers and applause were precisely the pursuit of his life.

……

……

……

The next day, late at night.

Even though it was already past two in the morning, Raven Harbor was still brightly lit, the streams of people flowing to and fro converging like a shining river.

Countless tourists were still enjoying themselves in the harbor, tireless of it.

Tireless of it.

In the harbor.

In an unremarkable corner, a strangely shaped ship slowly docked there; the hull was predominantly pure white, with conspicuous swan decorations.

And the most eye-catching thing was the man standing at the bow, dressed in a bizarre swan costume and wearing heavy makeup.

"Since it's little Zero's request, even if this one doesn't want to, I can only come in person~"

"Who told me I'm already in the East Sea, not far from here~"

The man was none other than Baroque Works' Number Three, Mr. 2, codename Feng Kelei, real name Bon Kurei.

He had previously been carrying out a mission in the East Sea, but now had received Xiang Keluo's order to come to Raven Harbor and seize that Devil Fruit.

The place where he was on mission was already not far from Raven Harbor to begin with; a little over a day's travel was more than enough.

"However."

"Even Mr. 1 couldn't handle it?!"

Thinking that this time the opponent he had to face was one that even the man who firmly outranked him within Baroque Works couldn't handle, a smug smile gradually spread across Feng Kelei's face:

"At a time like this, for a task like this, only my abilities can accomplish it~"

"Oh~"

So saying.

Feng Kelei stood on one leg and immediately began dancing ballet right there.

His posture was graceful.

But paired with his hairy legs, it instead appeared exceptionally awkward.

This behavior of his naturally drew scorn from passersby nearby; they all cast looks of disgust and hurried away.

Facing such reactions from the crowd.

Feng Kelei didn't care in the slightest; he finished dancing a ballet piece on his own before finally coming to his senses and turning his attention to his current mission.

He had the people on the ship pose as a dance troupe coming to perform locally, while he changed his face and quietly mixed into the crowd.

Following the intelligence provided by Sash and Daz Bonis, he walked quickly toward the core location of Raven Port.

"According to the intelligence, that fruit is most likely not in the Lord's Manor, nor in the Raven Arena, but within the gathering place of the Gao Wen Pirate Crew."

Accompanying his murmurs, Feng Kelei moved constantly through the crowd, his palm seizing the opportunity to brush past one face after another.

"Hm?!"

"Who touched me?! I don't know~"

"Damn it! Who poked my butt?"

Within the crowd.

A man subconsciously clenched his buttocks, turned around, but discovered nothing; then, as if thinking of something, he shivered, struggled, and squeezed his way out of the crowd.

……

By the time Feng Kelei emerged from the crowd, his appearance had undergone several transformations; even the most professional detective would be unable to track him.

This was the great strength of the Clone-Clone Fruit regarding infiltration.

Not just a person's appearance, but even physical characteristics, voice tone, pupils, fingerprints—everything seen by eyes, heard by ears, and perceived by skin—could be made exactly identical.

Used for infiltration, assassination, or intelligence gathering, it was an exceedingly suitable ability.

In merely a few minutes, he had mixed all the way into the area where the Gao Wen Pirate Crew resided, his entire person having changed again into the face of a pirate.

"Executing a mission is this simple~"

Yet at this moment.

In an open-air tavern in a corner.

A figure with blinded eyes paused slightly, instinctively facing the direction where Feng Kelei stood, the corners of his mouth curling into a meaningful smile.

(End of Chapter)