Thriller Bark, Old Castle Hall
The dim candlelight flickered, casting distorted shadows on the stone walls. The air was filled with the scent of dust and decay. In the center of the hall, two figures stood apart, as if time had frozen between them.
Zoro gripped Sandai Kitetsu and Yubashiri tightly, his eyes as sharp as a hawk's. His entire body was on alert, his presence rising, like a sword about to be drawn.
Opposite him, Shimotsuki Ryuma stood in the shadows, his face covered by bandages, revealing only one empty pupil that held an extremely sharp pressure.
"Trespassers... will be cut down."
Before he could finish, Ryuma's figure vanished from the spot. "Hanauta Sancho: Yahazu Giri!" A strange, silent sword light suddenly cut through the air. Before Zoro could react, he felt a stabbing pain in his chest. He leaped back abruptly, only to find that a corner of his clothes had been neatly cut off, and he hadn't even noticed his skin being cut. "This kind of slash... I didn't even have time to feel the pain?!"
Ryuma's figure flashed again, his blade sheathed, and he murmured in a low voice, "Finale—Curtain Call!"
"Swish!"
The sword energy surged, and the air was instantly cut. Zoro's body trembled, and a wound quietly bloomed on his abdomen, blood slowly sliding down his muscles. He gritted his teeth and stomped his foot hard. "Two-Sword Style: Sai Kuru!" His two swords spun like a windmill, creating a defensive barrier that just in time blocked Ryuma's sudden follow-up attack.
But Ryuma did not stop. His blade changed its rhythm, switching like a stringed instrument—"Prelude: Gavotte Bond en Avant!"
"CLANG! CLANG! CLANG!"
Shusui's slashes rained down like a storm, dozens of heavy blows slamming onto Zoro's two swords, making his arms go numb, the web of his hand slightly torn, and Yubashiri even bending slightly. "Trying to destroy my weapons?!"
"You bastard!" Zoro roared and pushed off the ground, his entire body spinning as he leaped up. "Two-Sword Style: 720 Pound Phoenix!" The storm-like slash swept across the entire hall like a vortex. Ryuma's figure became an afterimage and dodged, his blade like a phantom as it slid down from the air. "Revolution Dance: Aubade Coup Droit!" A sharp thrust, like a venomous snake's bite. Although Zoro managed to dodge, a gash was still cut on his cheek, and blood splattered on the ground.
But his eyes grew even more fervent. "It's this kind of pressure—that excites me!"
"Two-Sword Style: Nigiri: Toro!"
"Otoro!"
"Hirameki!"
The three-part slash was like a symphony of thunder. Ryuma's figure was gradually suppressed in the fierce battle, his bandages torn, revealing his noseless face with its stitches and white sideburns.
"Polka Remise!" Ryuma dodged the slash to the side, and with his powerful arm strength, he instantly launched a thrusting attack with Shusui.
Zoro dodged the thrust. "Shave!" He leaped up, bit Yubashiri, and gripped Sandai Kitetsu with both hands. "This one strike, I'll bet all my sword's intent on it!"
"One-Sword Style: Dragon Blaze!!!"
Black Armament Haki wrapped around the blade, and the slash rose like a flame. A roaring fire dragon shot out from the blade, shaking the entire old castle. A look of shock appeared in Ryuma's eyes. He blocked with his sword held with both hands. "BOOM!!!"
The flame exploded, and the castle walls collapsed. Dust and smoke shot into the sky. Ryuma's figure was sent flying, crashing hard into a stone wall, sinking several feet deep.
The hall fell silent, with only the afterglow of the battle's flames burning. In the smoke and dust, Ryuma slowly stood up, his kimono scorched, his body shattered, but a hint of relief appeared in his eyes. "Well done... kid." He slowly held out Shusui, the blade of the sword reflecting a cold, blue light in the firelight. "This sword... is yours."
He handed Shusui to Zoro. Zoro was taken aback for a moment, then finally reached out and took it. The moment the sword was in his hand, it was as if an ancient and solemn sword's intent resonated with his soul. The next moment, Ryuma's body was enveloped in a pale flame. The flame burned quietly, without a sound but scorching. That soul, which did not belong to this era, was finally liberated.
In the pale flame, a blurry shadow slowly drifted from his body, across the hall, through the gloom, and flew into the distance.
—Brook's shadow had returned.
Zoro quietly watched the figure that was burning away, the Shusui in his hand humming softly, as if Ryuma's sword soul were still whispering in it. "Take it... and climb to the top of the world."
A stone pillar in a corner of the hall shattered and collapsed, the dust not yet completely settled. Zoro stood steadily, tightly gripping the famous sword he had just obtained—Shusui. The blade was as black as ink but reflected a cold, blue light in the dim candlelight, like a dragon's cry lurking in the night, cold and murderous. He looked down at this legendary Great Grade Sword, his palm slowly stroking the back of the blade, feeling that heavy presence that was like a sword's soul. A slight smile appeared on his lips. "Finally... the third sword is here."
In a corner of the hall, high above, Enel sat cross-legged, a thundercloud supporting his figure as it floated slowly. He calmly scanned the wreckage of the battlefield, a hint of approval in his golden pupils. "This moss-head... is a lot stronger than when I first met him half a year ago."
His gaze shifted to the other side of the hall—Moria, Absalom, and Hogback were standing there stiffly, in the shadow of a broken pillar, a chill running through them. Those slash marks, that scorched stone slab, that lingering sword energy and residual flame—all of it spoke of the violence and ferocity of the battle just now.
"HOGBACK!!!" Moria's face was green, his body trembling like a mountain of flesh. "You didn't tell me that zombie was that strong!!!"
Hogback was covered in cold sweat, his glasses almost sliding off. "How was I supposed to know?! Didn't you steal the corpse from Wano Country?! I was just in charge of sewing it up!"
Absalom suddenly trembled all over and pointed forward in terror. "B-Boss! Don't argue! That person is coming over!!!"
The three of them turned their heads at the same time, their hearts as if they had instantly stopped—they saw Enel slowly descending from the thundercloud, his steps composed, his face expressionless, lightning appearing at his feet. Each step was as if it were stepping on their hearts, making their breathing more and more rapid.
Moria sensed that something was wrong. His fat body subconsciously shielded the two of them, and he forced himself to ask, "Marine... you've already gotten the sword, right? So you can leave now, right?" His tone was cautious, trying to use his status and position to buy himself some breathing room.
However, Enel stopped in the air in front of them, his eyes looking down, his tone calm. "I hear that you've been... fond of capturing civilians to extract their shadows recently?"
The air was instantly silent. The smiles on the three's faces froze, and sweat dripped down their temples like broken pearls. "How did he know?!"
Moria's gaze flickered. After a moment of silence, he forced out, "Hmph! Just a few ants. I am a Shichibukai. What's wrong with capturing a few civilians for experiments?" His voice was strong, but the slight tremor in his tone betrayed his inner fear.
Just then, Absalom, who was being protected behind him, suddenly screamed in terror. "Boss! That's not right! He's Enel!!!"
"The Marine's 'Thunder God' Rear Admiral who has been on a pirate-killing spree in the New World recently!!!"
"What?!?!" Moria's pupils constricted, and his fat body suddenly took two steps back. "Thunder God... Enel?! The mad Marine who slaughters pirates like dogs in the New World?!"
Enel slowly grinned, a smile without a trace of warmth. Golden lightning flashed in his pupils, dangerous and playful. "It seems... it's confirmed."
"BOOM!!!"
Lightning flashed. The entire old castle hall was suddenly filled with an explosion of lightning, the very sky seeming to be torn apart. Enel was suspended in mid-air, lightning coiling around him, like the scepter of a god's judgment. He looked down at the three of them, his voice echoing like an oracle. "A Shichibukai?" he sneered, the lightning at his fingertips growing even more dazzling. "In front of this 'god'..."
"...what are you?"
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