"Help me!"
"Got it!"
Zoro's desperate cry was met with an immediate response from Kaito Sakamoto. He had been waiting for those words, and now, no matter what, Zoro had to join them on the ship.
Kaito quickly raised his arm, and the bracelet on his wrist instantly transformed into a silver shield, blocking the incoming bullets. The bullets collided with the shield, sparking as they bounced off without penetrating, falling harmlessly to the ground.
"What is this?"
"Where did you pull that from?"
Zoro stared, dumbfounded, at the shield that had appeared out of nowhere.
"This is magic."
Kaito teased, his words hanging in the air. With a quick flick of his wrist, the shield morphed into a long sword. With two swift slashes, the ropes binding Zoro were severed.
"You know how to use a sword?"
Zoro straightened his posture and rotated his wrists.
"A little bit."
Kaito replied with a smirk, taking a step back to distance himself from Zoro.
Zoro, still confused, couldn't understand what was going on.
Suddenly, two arms extended from Kaito's sides, reaching out to grab the wooden stake that Zoro had been tied to.
"I'm coming!!"
Zoro turned to see Luffy charging straight at him.
"Shit!!"
With a loud crash, Luffy slammed into Zoro, sending him back towards the wooden stake.
"Cough, cough."
Zoro coughed twice, wincing from the sharp pain in his chest. He furrowed his brow. "Damn! Are you trying to kill me, you straw-hat idiot?!"
Luffy, grinning and adjusting his straw hat, shrugged casually. "Hahaha, it's just easier this way."
"There were three swords inside. I wasn't sure which one was yours, so I brought all of them."
As he spoke, Luffy pulled three swords from his back and placed them in front of Zoro.
"These three are all mine!"
"I'm a three-sword style user."
And just like that, the three-sword style Zoro made his grand debut.
It was the historical meeting between Pirate King Luffy and Three-Sword Zoro.
Zoro grabbed all three swords back, and Luffy, grinning, said, "Three-sword style, huh? Sounds pretty fun."
"Heh."
Zoro snorted, thinking to himself that it was indeed interesting—but it would be even more fun when he cut Luffy down.
"By the way, what was that arm of yours?"
Zoro asked, adjusting his grip on the swords.
"That's because I ate the Gum-Gum Fruit, and now I'm a rubber man."
Luffy replied nonchalantly.
"A rubber man?"
"Fire! All of you, fire!!"
"Like this!!"
Just as Zoro was about to respond, Monka and his soldiers arrived on the plaza. Upon seeing Kaito and the others, he immediately ordered his men to open fire.
The soldiers, hesitant but obedient, began to fire.
A barrage of bullets was fired at Luffy, but none of them managed to pierce him. Instead, they dented and bounced off, falling harmlessly to the ground.
"Shit!"
"Get out of the way!"
The sailors on the plaza were in a panic, scrambling to avoid the ricocheting bullets.
"What the hell is this monster?!"
As the bullets ricocheted, several soldiers were struck and fell, while the remaining ones stared in horror at Luffy.
Monka, however, remained calm, his face as stern as ever, as if everyone owed him five million.
"Don't panic!"
"He's just a guy who ate a Devil Fruit."
"What?! A Devil Fruit, that legendary Devil Fruit?"
Monka's aide was quick to follow up, playing the role of the comic relief.
"Straw Hat kid, I don't care who you are, if you offend the great me, you're as good as dead."
"And as for Roronoa Zoro, your name might be famous, but to my authority, it's nothing!"
Monka shouted, then signaled his soldiers to attack with knives.
Zoro's surprise faded, and his expression turned cold again.
"So, you're a descendant of the devil."
"Well, since I've already offended the navy, might as well sail with you guys and become pirates!"
"Great!"
"Welcome aboard!"
Luffy and Kaito both grinned, happy with Zoro's decision.
After speaking, Zoro clenched the hilt of his third sword in his mouth, dashing in front of Luffy to block the soldiers' attacks.
"If any of you dare to move, I'll cut you down!"
His domineering presence made the soldiers freeze in fear.
"Although I agreed to become a pirate with you..."
"I have my own dream. I want to become the world's greatest swordsman. No matter whether it's a bad name or a good name, I'll make sure the entire world knows my name!"
"You dragged me onto this ship, and if you try to force me to give up my dream, then you better be prepared to commit seppuku in front of me!"
With all the soldiers' blades aimed at him, Zoro spoke clearly, his voice unwavering despite the situation.
"I'm not that bored."
Kaito replied coolly.
"Hahaha, the world's greatest swordsman, huh? That's interesting. The crew of the Pirate King should be just as excellent!"
Luffy laughed, then, with a whip-like kick, knocked out one of the soldiers behind Zoro.
Monka's eyes bulged in shock, but he quickly ordered the previously reluctant soldiers to commit seppuku.
Both Luffy and Zoro were taken aback—this army was off.
In an instant, they launched a counterattack.
Kebi, who had returned at some point, overheard Monka's orders and, nearly having his faith in the navy shattered, cried out.
"Luffy, hurry up and wipe out these navy bastards!"
Luffy charged toward Monka, dodging a powerful axe swing and, in just a few quick moves, sent Monka crashing to the ground.
The plaza fell silent.