After the banquet ended, deep into the quiet night, the Straw Hat crew—warmly hosted by the townsfolk—drifted into deep, smiling slumber.
A few figures huddled sneakily outside, whispering among themselves.
"What a bunch of gluttons and guzzlers, especially that orange-haired woman. She's a total monster. Even with my foam tea, I could barely keep up…" The speaker was the dark-faced nun who had gone drink-for-drink with Nami until the very end. With a flick, she shed her nun's habit, revealing a body rippling with powerful muscle.
"But Mr. 8, did we really need to welcome them like that? They're just a bunch of runts." The muscular woman flexed as she turned to a curly-haired older man. "We could've just taken them out on the shore and been done with it."
Mr. 9 and Miss Wednesday exchanged a wary glance before speaking, still shaken. "No way. That glasses-wearing guy's a Devil Fruit user. He looks seriously strong."
At that, Miss Wednesday hurriedly turned to Igaram for confirmation. "Mr. 8, are they all definitely asleep?"
Igaram nodded, then pulled two wanted posters from his coat. "Remember this, Miss Monday: never judge by appearances. This time, we've hooked two big fish."
The group passed the posters around and immediately erupted.
"No way! Thirty million and seventy million—that's a hundred million Berries total!" Mr. 9 gaped, clutching his head in disbelief.
"Good thing we didn't rush in! Who'd have thought that goofy-looking guy was worth thirty million?" Miss Monday said, a shiver of belated fear running through her.
Miss Wednesday clamped a hand over her mouth, sweating profusely as she stared at Sherlock's poster. "We actually survived that pirate…"
"Ahem, mama" Igaram cleared his throat with a few warm-up curls of his tongue, then smirked disdainfully. "High bounties don't mean a thing. They're still just greenhorn rookies."
He turned to the gathering bounty hunters behind him and barked, "Tie them up. We want them alive. Kill them, and the bounty drops by a third."
"Sorry to interrupt, but the morning sail wore them out. Let them rest." A low, masculine voice drifted down from above.
Igaram and the others looked up in alarm. There, perched on the rooftop, sat the green-haired swordsman of the Straw Hat Pirates. A full moon hung behind him, its clean light edging his silhouette in a hazy white glow. He held a long sword aloft, grinning wickedly down at the crowd of bounty hunters.
His gaze cut like a blade.
"Weren't you dead drunk?" Igaram swallowed hard, stunned.
"As a swordsman, I stay sharp no matter what. Getting drunk? That's for idiots."
Rising, sheathing his blade with a smooth snick, Zoro glanced down. More and more townsfolk emerged from nearby houses, but gone was their daytime hospitality. In its place: murderous glares and gleaming weapons.
"So this is a bounty hunter den."
"Rookie pirates sail into the Grand Line full of dreams and bravado, and you lot pick on the newbies for cheap thrills. Pathetic." Zoro's grin turned playful, dangerous. "You've got… what, a hundred people here? Perfect. Let me play with you all…"
"Baroque Works!"
The bounty hunters below blanched.
Pinned by Zoro's sword-like presence, Igaram couldn't meet the man's eyes. Sweat poured down his face. "How did you know?!"
"Well, I used to be in the same business. Your company once tried to recruit me. I turned them down."
Zoro was about to spill more of Baroque Works' dirty secrets when a voice from thin air cut him off.
"Need a hand?" Sherlock, still invisible, spoke calmly to Zoro. (PS: The alcohol Sherlock drank never reached his stomach—it was stored in mirror space.)
"Knew it. You weren't drunk either." Zoro's lips curved in a faint smile; he didn't turn. "Nah. I need these guys to test my two new blades."
"…As expected." Sherlock had anticipated the answer. He glanced at the swarm of bounty hunters below, then slipped away as silently as he'd arrived.
Feeling Sherlock's presence fade, Zoro snorted. "Guy's like a damn ghost." He drew Yukisuke from his hip, a bloodthirsty, Asura-like grin splitting his face. Then he leaped, diving straight into the crowd…
Explosions, gunshots, clashing steel, and screams erupted in rapid succession.
Beneath the full moon's watchful eye, Zoro's hundred-man slash began!
While Zoro clashed with Baroque Works' bounty hunters, a certain orange-haired beauty was busy with her own get-rich-quick scheme.
"Ugh, these bounty hunters are broke." Nami sighed at the box of loose change on the table. She'd ransacked several houses and barely scraped together 100,000 Berries. The greedy navigator was thoroughly depressed.
As she scanned the room for anything worth taking, a deafening BAM! shook the walls. The door flew open. Nami whipped around—two towering bounty hunters filled the frame. Panic surged.
"No way! Didn't Zoro draw all the bounty hunters away? Why are they here?!" She assessed her situation in a heartbeat. The only exit was blocked. Gritting her teeth, she yanked her collapsible staff from her belt and struck a fighting stance, ready to go down swinging.
The two hunters—originally chasing Zoro—hadn't expected to find the pirate ship's navigator here. They froze, then exchanged a vicious grin and drew their weapons.
But before they could move, their eyes bulged in terror. They looked down.
Nami followed their gaze. Two razor-sharp daggers had materialized out of nowhere, plunging deep into their hearts. The blades sank to the hilt, then vanished like phantoms. Hot blood sprayed. The hunters crumpled, dead before they hit the ground.
Sherlock's form shimmered into view beside the corpses. He adjusted his glasses, glanced at the very dead bodies, then at the box of coins beside Nami. His brow furrowed. Finally, he met Nami's still-shocked eyes.
"Phew… Thanks, Sherlock." Nami exhaled, wiping sweat from her brow. She managed a grateful smile, though her face was pale—probably from Sherlock's eerie assassination technique.
"No need. Aren't we crewmates now?" As he spoke, Sherlock was already rifling through the room at blinding speed, tossing drawers and cabinets like a seasoned thief. Even Nami, a veteran pickpocket, was impressed.
This guy's got the makings of a master cat burglar. Fast hands, and he can turn invisible… Nami thought. Aloud, she said, "Hey, you're not here to loot too, are you? Save your energy—these guys are dirt poor."
"Mm, I know." Sherlock didn't pause or look up. "If they had money, they wouldn't be after that whale."
Nami tilted her head, puzzled. "Then what are you looking for?"
"Intelligence." Sherlock scooped up a thick stack of files, flipped through them briefly, and continued, "Most of the time, this stuff is worth way more than Berries. Especially for Grand Line newbies like us. Local snakes like these gather priceless data. For example…"
He rattled off a long explanation, then turned to Nami, who looked half-confused, half-blank. His deep black eyes were as calm as ever.
(You money-grubbing idiot would never understand!)
Locking eyes with him, Nami once again read his unspoken insult loud and clear. It drove her up the wall, but she couldn't snap—he hadn't said anything.
Did I accidentally eat a Devil Fruit that lets me read this guy's mind when he trash-talks me behind my back? Nami's mouth twitched, her face a mask of exasperation.
Meanwhile, on Zoro's battlefield…
"AAAAAAGH!" Miss Monday's shriek cut through the night before Zoro crushed her skull in his grip and knocked her out cold.
She never imagined the green-haired swordsman could take her iron punch and keep coming—like a tiger. And his grip strength was monstrous.
"When you throw a punch, be ready to take one!" Zoro licked the blood from his cheek, grinning wickedly at Igaram and the others in the distance.
"Damn it! Did the Marines mess up the bounty posters?!" Igaram stared at the demon-like man, face ashen. He scanned the chaos but saw no sign of the blue-haired figure. His blood ran cold.
"Could the princess have been…?"
Seizing Mr. 9 by the collar, he roared, "Where… where did Miss Wednesday go?!"
"Huh? Miss Wednesday? She went to find her duck."
Igaram released him with a long, relieved breath, leaving Mr. 9 and the distant Zoro utterly baffled.
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