For a moment, Buggy the Clown—who had been dragged into this for no reason—just stood there, dumbfounded.
It took him a second or two to register what happened.
Then, without even trying to dodge, he widened his eyes, grinned arrogantly, and let Kuro slice him into eight pieces.
As Kuro stood there, holding his cat-claw blades and staring in shock at the scene before him, Buggy revealed a smug, almost profound smile.
"Ambush me?"
"You think you can cut me to death? Go on—try slicing me a few more times."
Thanks to the Chop-Chop Fruit, Buggy didn't take Kuro seriously at all.
But his sudden move sent a chill crawling up Kaya's spine.
This man… was dangerous.
"Heh… hahahahaha…"
Kuro looked at Buggy, feeling exactly the same way.
It took him a long moment to steady himself, then he looked away from Buggy's direction.
That red-nosed freak… he couldn't beat him!
So Kuro turned his gaze toward Luffy.
"How did you know I was here? I erased every trace of myself. Did those useless subordinates tell you?"
Luffy shook his head casually. "I lied. I never met your subordinates. Someone reported you were here, so I came to bluff you."
Kuro's smile instantly froze.
Then his eyes snapped toward Usopp.
"So it was you. You knew my identity from the start, so you got close to Miss Kaya and kept provoking me?"
Usopp: o((⊙﹏⊙))o
What?! What does this have to do with me?!
But aloud, his inner show-off awakened.
"That's right, it was me! I knew who you were all along! Hahaha!"
His act earned him several suspicious looks.
"Enough. Talking won't change anything now," Kuro said coldly. "As long as I kill all of you and force Kaya to write a will, I'll still be Klahadore."
With that, he moved—targeting Luffy first.
But a new twist came immediately.
...
Two minutes later.
Kuro stared coldly at the boy who had destroyed his plans, crushed his ambitions, and shattered his dreams.
The fury in his eyes felt so real it was almost tangible.
Beaten and covered in wounds, he glared at Luffy.
"So… are you going to kill me, or hand me to the Marines?"
Those two minutes had driven him to despair.
If he hadn't experienced it himself, he would never have believed it—
This skinny boy was a monster.
No matter how hard he slashed, he couldn't leave even a scratch on him.
And those cat claws, sharp enough to slice iron like bamboo… Luffy had simply snapped them apart.
Even his famed silent footwork—his pride, his trademark—wasn't even in the same league as Luffy's speed.
He, the once-feared pirate with a 16 million bounty, wasn't even worth a single exchange.
They weren't on the same level at all.
"No. My relationship with the Marines isn't what you think. As for killing you… I won't do it."
Luffy shrugged lightly.
To him, Kuro's ability was too inferior, his personality too treacherous.
There was no point keeping someone like him.
But he could still be useful—
as Zoro's whetstone.
"Not killing me, not turning me in…"
Kuro's pupils shrank, and a shadowy grin crept across his face.
"So you want me to serve under you instead?"
"You're overthinking it. We don't need someone like you."
Zoro shot him a disdainful glance.
"A man who abandons his own name has no right to serve under me."
"Exactly," Luffy added calmly. "A pirate discards his name only when he dies. Your resolve is worthless. You might as well die here."
Kuro's expression twisted.
"You dare look down on me?"
His forehead bulged with veins as his gaze darkened.
Eyeing Zoro with murderous intent, he sneered at Luffy,
"Didn't you say you wouldn't fight?"
"I won't."
Luffy lowered his hat slightly. "Zoro, he's yours."
He stepped back, then added quietly—only loud enough for Zoro to hear:
"Don't lose to someone who abandoned the pride of a pirate."
Zoro's expression tightened. He nodded.
This captain might call himself a guide, but to Zoro, he was half a teacher already.
And anyone who made Luffy consider killing them—
had no reason to keep breathing.
Zoro drew his sword, its metallic ring echoing through the empty garden as he stepped forward.
At the center, he planted his blade into the ground and tied on his green bandana.
"Any last words?"
Kuro chuckled darkly.
"Last words? You're the one who's going to die. With him staying out of it, your fate is sealed…"
He shot another nervous glance at Luffy before his expression snapped into pure killing intent.
"Now—let me send you to hell!"
He vanished.
His silent step burst to its limit.
Zoro, however, suddenly closed his eyes.
He whispered:
"I was born in a world of chaos… It's my duty to cut through it. Luffy—if I can't grasp Observation Haki, I have no right to call myself your crew."
The moment he finished speaking, his stance shifted.
"One-Sword Style… Iai… Lion's Song!"
Zoro disappeared.
Kuro's eyes shrank—
a flash of steel passed through him.
Clang!
The blade slid back into its sheath.
A fountain of blood erupted.
Kuro crashed to the ground without even managing a scream, eyes wide open in disbelief.
Dead.
...
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T/N:
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