Lapahns are fiercely territorial and loyal creatures.
Clearly, this group of Lapahns was here to avenge the one Law had taken down earlier.
Law's face grew serious as he eyed the surrounding Lapahns, which were poised to attack, looking ready to tear them apart at any moment.
"Takumi, don't worry, I'll protect you," Law said, gripping his sword tightly.
If it were just a few Lapahns, Law was confident he could handle them. But against a whole pack? That was a different story.
"Perfect chance to test out my new ability," Law muttered, quickly freeing up one hand. "ROOM!"
Suddenly, a transparent, dome-shaped space appeared, enveloping all the Lapahns, and Takumi as well.
Inside the ROOM, Law moved with lightning speed, slicing at the Lapahns around him.
The Lapahns, however, were quick to react, shifting positions with remarkable agility.
Although Law could almost teleport within the ROOM, his strength wasn't on par with the Lapahns.
"Shambles!" Law gritted his teeth as he swung his sword at the nearest Lapahn, neatly severing one of its arms.
The severed arm hit the ground, but not a drop of blood was spilled.
Even the Lapahn, now missing an arm, bore a perfectly smooth cut with no blood loss.
Shambles was an ability that allowed Law to dismember and rearrange objects or living beings within his control. The severed creatures wouldn't die, feel pain, or bleed.
It was an impressive power, but only if Law could actually hit his target.
The Lapahn that had lost an arm briefly hesitated before charging at Law again with a furious roar.
The other Lapahns, having witnessed Law's strange ability, became more cautious. As Law prepared to sever the creature's other arm, a few Lapahns suddenly attacked him from behind, slapping him away with their powerful paws.
"Damn it!" Law cursed, spitting out a mouthful of snow as he struggled to get back on his feet, determined to keep fighting.
But before he could make a move, several Lapahns turned their attention to Takumi, leaping at him from all directions.
"Watch out!" Law shouted.
Takumi sighed as he watched the Lapahns descend on him. With a swift motion, he drew his sword, the Sandai Kitetsu, and used his flash step technique. In an instant, all the attacking Lapahns were sent flying backward.
The remaining Lapahns, seeing their companions taken down so easily, snarled and bared their teeth before rushing at Takumi all at once.
Takumi snorted, unimpressed. Right in front of Law, he waited until the Lapahns were almost upon him, then unleashed another quick slash. All the Lapahns froze in place.
Takumi sheathed his sword slowly. As the sword clicked into place, the Lapahns fell to the ground with a thud.
Law stood there, stunned. "That… that was incredible…"
Without saying a word, Takumi walked past the fallen Lapahns and continued on his way.
Law quickly dismissed his ROOM and hurried after Takumi, not bothering to say anything more.
For the rest of the time, Law trailed behind Takumi, keeping his questions to himself.
He wanted to ask where Takumi was heading, but he knew that even if he did, Takumi probably wouldn't answer. It seemed more practical to just follow him and see for himself.
Walking through the snowy terrain, especially with the wind and snow beating down on them, slowed their pace considerably. Takumi didn't mind Law tagging along as long as he didn't start nagging him.
Thanks to his Observation Haki, Takumi detected several areas where deer were active.
He found a few herds of reindeer but didn't spot Chopper among them. As the day grew darker, Takumi decided to turn back and head toward Cocoa Weed Town.
Law had followed him all day. He still didn't know exactly what Takumi was up to, but from watching him, he had a hunch that Takumi was searching for someone—or rather, some reindeer.
Before returning to the inn, Takumi stopped at a random restaurant for a meal, then hit up a convenience store where he bought a bunch of food and alcohol before heading back.
Once in his room, he stored the food and alcohol in his system space.
For the next two months, Takumi kept up this routine.
Every morning, he would leave the inn early to search for Chopper, then return in the evening, gradually stocking up on supplies.
After two months of consistent effort, his system space was finally full…
One morning, as Takumi prepared to head out and continue his search for Chopper, he hadn't even walked a few steps out of the inn when he noticed a group of men armed with hunting rifles rushing toward the back of the town.
"Did you hear? That snow monster's shown up again," one of them said.
"Snow monster? You mean that blue-nosed freak that looks like a person?" another replied.
"Yeah! That monster! I heard it went to the neighboring town a while back and got hurt by the folks there. It's probably back now to get revenge," the first man continued.
"Huh? If it's looking for revenge, it should go after the guys in the other town, not come here," a third man chimed in.
As Takumi listened to the townspeople talking, he frowned and quickly changed direction, heading toward where they said the "monster" had appeared.
He was certain that the "monster" they were talking about was Chopper, the reindeer he had been searching for.
Law, who had come out of the inn as usual, overheard the townspeople's conversation too. Before he could process it, he noticed Takumi heading off after the group of armed men and immediately followed him.
Takumi and Law soon arrived at the back of the town, in front of a pine forest.
The armed townspeople had their rifles aimed at a large figure hiding behind one of the pine trees.
"Get lost, you freak!" one of them shouted.
"Yeah, get out of here, you monster!" another yelled.
"Scram!" the crowd demanded, anger and fear in their voices.
The creature they were yelling at was Chopper, who had transformed using the Hito Hito no Mi. He was in his human-reindeer hybrid form, with fur still covering his chest and shoulders, and his nose remained a bright blue.
Even from several hundred meters away, with the wind and snow making visibility difficult, Takumi could clearly see the countless wounds covering Chopper's body.
"That's the snow monster they're talking about?" Law said, his voice filled with confusion. "I've read about snow monsters in books before. They're supposed to be some kind of vicious ape-like creature. But this guy… he doesn't look vicious at all. In fact, he doesn't look anything like what the books described. Maybe the townspeople are mistaken?"
Takumi glanced at Law briefly.
At that moment, a gunshot rang out.
One of the armed townsmen had fired at Chopper.
Chopper recoiled in fear, stumbling back a few steps.
But before the bullet could reach him, Takumi was there in a flash, appearing in front of Chopper and effortlessly catching the bullet in his hand, crushing it to dust.
********
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