Curious residents packed tightly around the square.
"What's going on?"
"Looks like they're going to fight."
"Why would they fight? Didn't they save us together?"
"Just hearsay, but I heard they're pirates!"
"Going by pirate logic, does that mean...?"
"Will whoever wins the duel continue ruling us?"
"Gasp... Morgan's cruel rule just ended. Are we about to be enslaved by pirates again?"
An atmosphere of panic began spreading through the crowd, and some people were already trying to flee.
Seeing this, the Lieutenant Colonel turned to Koby beside him.
"What are they doing?"
Koby sighed helplessly.
"Mr. Zoro asked to spar with Big Brother Can Yue, and Mr. Luffy isn't stopping them. He just keeps saying it's interesting. Those three really are troublemakers."
The Lieutenant Colonel understood at once.
This was probably a spar between swordsmen.
What swordsmen loved most was deciding who was stronger!
"How childish. They're grown men already, yet their desire to win is still this strong."
"But why is my blood boiling?"
For some unknown reason, the Lieutenant Colonel was getting excited.
He picked up a loudspeaker and shouted.
"Townspeople, the three people in the square are the heroes who saved our town!
Now, allow me to introduce the three of them.
The young man in the straw hat is Monkey D. Luffy.
The white-haired swordsman is named Can Yue.
And the green-haired man carrying three swords is the Pirate Hunter, Zoro.
Now, Pirate Hunter Zoro and the white-haired swordsman Can Yue will have a spar between swordsmen.
Let us give them our most enthusiastic cheers.
Everyone, enjoy this passionate battle!"
With the Lieutenant Colonel's excited announcement, the townspeople immediately realized they had overthought things.
What followed was intense excitement.
"Yeah!!!"
The townspeople, who had lived under oppression for so long, had suddenly been liberated.
Their emotions erupted as they eagerly watched the center of the square.
"Who do you think is stronger?"
"I think Pirate Hunter Zoro is stronger. He's a powerhouse who personally captured pirates worth millions in bounty!"
"Tch, obviously Can Yue will win."
"Why are you so sure?"
"Because good looks are justice! Justice always wins!"
"Woohoo! Go, Can Yue! Take down Moss Head!"
In mere moments, a Can Yue fan club formed entirely of women was born!
"Damn Can Yue! My wife is actually cheering him on!"
"We men can't lose either!"
"Go, Zoro! Real men always win! Take down that pretty boy!"
Outside the square, the crowd was roughly divided into two groups.
Most men = Zoro supporters.
All women, along with a small number of men = Can Yue's rabid fans.
Standing on a rooftop, Luffy looked at the scene, giggled, and then shouted.
"A feast! Let's have a feast! Brothers, let's eat meat while watching this exciting spar!"
"Yeah!!!"
The townspeople grew even more excited. In the blink of an eye, all the goods in the market had turned into food and drinks for a feast.
The atmosphere was livelier than ever.
Can Yue and Zoro had already adjusted themselves for battle.
Zoro held his breath and focused, completely ignoring the cheers of the surrounding townspeople.
He tied on his bandanna, assumed the fighting stance of the Three Sword Style, and stared intently at Can Yue.
"Can Yue, here I come!"
Can Yue nodded and drew his sword to meet him.
In an instant, the two collided at incredible speed.
Zoro's attacks were fierce, and his sword swings were incredibly fast.
His strikes appeared chaotic, but their rhythm was meticulous, and each angle was viciously tricky.
Can Yue spent most of his time evading.
The attacks that missed instantly sliced through the marble floor, and the powerful visual impact made the men present howl with excitement.
"As expected of the man I admire! Strength is justice! Take down that pretty boy! Go, Zoro!"
The Moss Head fan club shouted loudly.
Can Yue's rabid fans refused to accept that.
"Hmph, look at how expressionless and calm our husband Can Yue is. He's definitely going easy on that Moss Head."
"Exactly! Husband Can Yue is invincible!"
"Husband Can Yue, I love you!"
At the cries of "husband" from all the women...
Every man in the square broke down.
The Moss Head fan club was living up to its name—green with envy.
"Damn Can Yue! Go, Zoro! Take him down!"
"Beat him, and we'll build you a monument!"
~
In the square, Zoro and Can Yue continued their contest.
"Three Sword Style—Tiger Hunt!"
This was a sword technique Zoro had developed by imitating a fierce tiger pouncing on its prey.
He leaped down from above with tremendous force, relying on sheer power to break through everything.
After Can Yue sidestepped the attack, he seized the brief stiffness following Zoro's landing and swung his sword downward.
Zoro immediately adjusted his stance and barely blocked it with a Three Sword Style guard.
As they remained locked in place, Zoro was deeply shocked.
"So strong. That move was completely useless!"
Growing impatient, Zoro knocked Can Yue's sword away and leaped several meters back.
The instant he landed, he gathered strength in both feet and shot forward.
"Three Sword Style—Onigiri!"
Can Yue raised his sword to block once more.
The violent impact caused visible ripples in the air.
The spectators around them stared in stunned disbelief.
"So strong. They're both so strong."
"But Can Yue can only barely defend himself. The rhythm of the battle is entirely in Zoro's hands."
"Hahaha! Zoro will win! Good looks will lose!"
~
The two separated again. Zoro adjusted his breathing and spoke to Can Yue with a grave expression.
"Can Yue, I'm going to be very serious with this move!"
Can Yue naturally sensed Zoro's dissatisfaction.
For once, he responded, "Fight properly. I've been serious the whole time!"
Zoro froze for a moment, then smiled in understanding.
"One move will decide the winner!"
Zoro spun the swords in both hands, then charged out in an instant at the peak of his momentum.
"Three Sword Style—Three Thousand Worlds!"
Can Yue could tell that this move was exceptionally sharp, so he could only take it seriously.
"Sword Pressure!"
As Can Yue swung his sword down—
Zoro clearly felt a surging force press down upon him from above.
"Boom!"
Their attacks collided.
The powerful clash not only caused the air to tremble.
It also produced several streams of sword energy that flew in every direction.
"Damn!"
Can Yue, Luffy, and Zoro all realized that they had to deal with the escaping sword energy immediately, or the townspeople would be caught in it.
Luffy used a rubber Rocket Punch, launching himself forward and smashing apart a stream of sword energy that was about to hit a woman.
Without even having time to deal with his bloody fist, he turned his gaze toward the other streams of sword energy.
"Damn it, there's not enough time!" Luffy was frantic but helpless.
Zoro was equally anxious, especially when he saw a stream of sword energy flying toward the little girl Rika.
"Can Yue and I are both trapped in the force field from the collision of our techniques. We can't move. Something's going to happen!"
Just then, a white figure shot out in an instant.
While blocking the sword energy about to strike the little girl, he also unleashed even more, faster azure-blue sword flashes that destroyed the other escaping streams of sword energy.
Meanwhile, the townspeople were still cheering excitedly, completely unaware of what they had just gone through.
The speed, as swift as teleportation, and the incomparably sharp sword flashes deeply shocked Zoro and Luffy.
Luffy took a bite out of a slab of meat and said with puffed cheeks, "Can Yue is so strong, and so interesting too. Hehehe."
At first, Luffy had still felt conflicted about Can Yue killing Morgan in an instant. He had been afraid that Can Yue was simply bloodthirsty.
But now, Luffy was very happy. "He's very gentle with ordinary people."
Luffy said this with a smile, then continued eating.
~
A moment later, Zoro recovered his mobility.
Putting away his swords, Zoro slowly walked toward Can Yue.
"Can Yue, you... you weren't serious after all, were you?"
Can Yue frowned and replied, "I've been serious the whole time!"
Seeing that Zoro was still unwilling to accept it—
Can Yue sighed and helplessly added, "I was seriously fighting you in close combat. Your close combat is very strong."
Zoro was stunned for a moment, then burst into laughter.
"I understand! Thanks, Can Yue."
Zoro suddenly understood that Can Yue was indeed far stronger than him and could have won easily.
But Can Yue had not used greater speed or stronger sword techniques to defeat him instantly.
Instead, he had seriously used Zoro's strength in close combat to sharpen his battle reactions.
"Everyone has something worth learning seriously from, regardless of strength. Besides, do you consider yourself weak?"
After saying that, Can Yue turned and walked toward the shore.
Zoro watched Can Yue gradually walk away. After a moment of silence, he called out earnestly.
"Can Yue, I'll keep getting stronger, and then I'll come find you for another spar!"
Before you continue