Clang—!
Wado Ichimonji precisely blocked this treacherous sneak attack!
Zoro emerged from the jungle with a swift draw of his sword, positioning himself behind Nami and the others. He then drew his other two swords to block Miss Doublefinger's Thorn Arm, his gaze as sharp as his blades.
"Hey."
Zoro's voice dripped with undisguised contempt as he stared at Miss Doublefinger. "Sneak attacking from behind? Is this how you so-called assassins target injured people?"
Hearing the explosive sound behind her, Nami snapped back to reality, her face pale with fright. She turned around, furious, and shouted at Miss Doublefinger, "We just saved you! Without us, you'd have turned into wax figures! What are you doing?!"
Sanji also stepped out from the jungle, raising his right leg as he said, "Sneak attacking two ladies from our crew isn't very gentlemanly behavior..."
Miss Doublefinger, seeing her attack had failed, quickly retreated, her expression grim. She glanced back at the silent Mr.1, gritted her teeth, and coldly stated, "Blame it on us being assassins..."
Zoro scoffed, then began tying his bandana. With his three swords at the ready, he cast a challenging look toward Mr.1 behind Miss Doublefinger.
"Hey, Octopus Baldy."
He tilted his chin up and grinned. "Got some good news for you—just now, it seems... I might be able to cut through steel too."
Mr.1's gaze finally shifted from Giyu to Zoro. His stern face showed a flicker of surprise. Though he remained silent in response to Zoro's provocation, inwardly, he was affected by the declaration.
...
Meanwhile, on the other side of the battlefield, Luffy's battle with Mr.3 was nearing its end.
A flustered Mr.3 was caught off guard by Luffy's chaotic tactic of using wax against wax, steadily losing ground. He tried creating more wax constructs for defense, but Luffy's assaults grew increasingly fierce.
"Enough! Candle Lock!" Mr.3 panted, attempting to restrain Luffy's feet with Wax Liquid to immobilize him.
"Gomu Gomu! Candle Lock Whip!" Instead of being dismayed, Luffy grew excited upon being bound. He hugged a tree and whipped his lower body like a lash toward Mr.3!
"Damn it! Damn it!"
Mr.3's composure was crumbling. How could his own ability be so inexplicably countered by this Straw Hat Kid's reckless antics?
"Candle Champion·Simplified Version!"
Mr.3 began secreting wax all over his body, forming a rudimentary robot-like figure resembling a boxer within seconds. He sat inside, piloting it as it swung its fists.
"You bastard! Taste the power of the Candle Champion!"
Luffy seized the opportunity, sensing that Mr.3 wouldn't be moving around freely now. He stretched his arms to grab the wax robot and leaped onto its head.
"What are you doing???"
Then, Luffy lifted one leg, extending it infinitely upward into the sky, even piercing through some clouds!
"Gomu Gomu!!!!"
His voice reached Mr.3, who was hiding inside his shell, carrying a sense of fury and unwavering determination.
Mr.3 looked up in terror, only to see an endlessly stretching rubber foot in sandals retracting with unstoppable momentum before crashing down!
"Battle—Axe—!!!"
BOOM!!!!!!!!!
Like a real giant axe cleaving down, the ground was smashed into a massive crater!
Mr.3's meticulously crafted final defense, the wax armor, shattered like a cheap imitation under this blow! He himself was slammed deep into the pit, his eyes swirling as he lost consciousness completely, with only half his body visible above the ground.
"Phew..."
Luffy landed, let out a long breath, and clapped his hands. "Done!"
But before he could fully relax, Nami's even more panicked and urgent shout came from the other side: "Luffy!! It's bad! Giyu... he...!"
Luffy turned to look and saw Giyu over there, coughing violently, even coughing up some Wax Dust.
His face was an unhealthy pale, his body leaning against Nami and Vivi, one hand still gripping his Nichirin Blade.
"Giyu!!!"
Seeing this, Luffy instantly rushed over, scooping Giyu up into his arms. The high temperature he felt upon touching him startled him.
"Hot hot hot!!!"
"What do we do about this, Nami?!" Luffy yelled anxiously at Nami, his voice full of panic as he held Giyu.
"A doctor... We need to find a doctor..."
Looking at Giyu's condition, Nami didn't know what to do either. Though she had some basic medical knowledge, it wasn't enough in this situation.
"I'm fine... Luffy..." Giyu spoke weakly, then tried to use his Nichirin Blade to stand up on his own.
Cough, cough, cough—
"I probably just inhaled too much of that guy's wax earlier. As for the body temperature, don't worry, it should go down soon."
But Luffy loudly stopped him, pushing aside his hand that was trying to support himself with the Nichirin Blade. "What kind of nonsense are you talking?! Don't move!"
Brogy, watching them from the side, scratched his big beard, a hint of helplessness on his giant face. "On this island... there's only the two of us and a bunch of wild beasts. There's never been a doctor here..."
These words poured cold water on the Straw Hat Pirates' hearts. Anxiety was written all over Nami and Vivi's faces, while Zoro and Sanji frowned deeply.
Just as the atmosphere of despair was about to overwhelm everyone,
a familiar, slightly mysterious female voice drifted leisurely from the shadows of the jungle on the other side.
"How about... you all listen to my suggestion?"
Robin slowly emerged from the forest, as if she had just happened to pass by the devastated battlefield. Her posture was elegant, a faint smile on her face as her gaze swept over everyone, finally settling on Giyu in Luffy's arms.
"You?" Nami recognized her immediately. "The vice president's..."
Zoro also became instantly alert, the tip of his sword slightly raised.
Luffy, still holding Giyu, asked directly, "What are you doing here again?" His tone was straightforward—after all, it was her who had captured the guard captain back at Whisky Peak.
Robin wasn't surprised by Luffy's directness. She smiled faintly, her gaze sweeping over the barely standing, nervous Miss Doublefinger and the silent Mr.1 nearby, then stated her condition:
"Simple. Stop your attacks right now, don't harm Mr.1 and Miss Doublefinger anymore, and let me take them both with me. What do you say?"
"Hah? Are you kidding me!" Luffy immediately refused, his face showing slight annoyance as he waved his fists. "They're bad people! They even hurt Giyu!"
"Is that so? What a pity." Robin, however, seemed to have anticipated this. Unhurriedly, she raised her hand, a delicate Eternal Pose dangling from her fingertip as she gently swayed it. "Then what if... I use this as an exchange?"
Her gaze swept over Luffy and Nami, who was more capable of rational judgment.
"This pointer leads to an island... and from what I know, there are doctors there."
Her words carried a peculiar allure. "If you don't believe me and insist on continuing the fight here, or choose to wander aimlessly across the sea searching for a doctor... there's nothing I can do."
Finally, her eyes settled on Giyu's pale face. Though she lowered her voice, it clearly reached everyone's ears.
"However... this samurai's condition probably... can't withstand much more delay, can it?"
These words struck the Straw Hats' hearts like a heavy hammer.
The air instantly froze.
Should they persist in defeating all enemies here, gambling that Giyu could hold on until they found an unknown doctor? Or accept this woman's deal, gaining a clear hope but letting their current enemies escape?
All eyes turned to Luffy, who was holding Giyu.