Either You Kill Me, or I Kill You

"Zoan-type Cat-Cat Fruit: Lion Form."

"So this is the power of a Devil Fruit?"

"Zoans can boost all kinds of defenses, attack power, and recovery. It's too soon to tell how this will turn out."

"That Gild Tesoro guy could be a Devil Fruit user too. Most likely a Paramecia."

Gappa's transformation immediately caused an uproar.

The Devil Fruit, the great treasure of the sea, was priceless. Even the most worthless ones could fetch over a hundred million Berries at auction. They weren't something just anyone could afford.

They were an extravagant fruit.

Some people might go their whole lives without ever learning what the great treasure of the sea, the Devil Fruit, was.

But one thing was certain: as soon as someone ate a Devil Fruit, they gained power beyond that of an ordinary person.

It was a shortcut to gaining power and changing one's fate.

"Kid, I'm going to tear you apart!"

Gappa looked down at Chaos, his fierce, savage face looming over him like a shadow blotting out the sun.

Chaos felt a faint sense of pressure.

His guess had been right. Only a strong opponent like this could help him improve. Poison Fang and the mustached man from before hadn't even made him break a sweat.

"Either you kill me, or I kill you."

Chaos's upright hair fluttered as he lowered his hands, his expression cold and proud.

He was arrogant.

"Your wish is my command."

A ferocious roar nearly burst their eardrums. Gappa's right claw, thicker than a man's thigh, shot toward Chaos like lightning, aimed straight at his throat. He clearly intended to kill him in one blow.

Chaos had already tensed his whole body and prepared himself. The instant Gappa moved, he clenched his right fist and met the attack head-on, neither dodging nor retreating.

A tremendous collision rang out. Cracks spread across the ground beneath them, and Chaos couldn't help stumbling back two steps. Pain throbbed in his fist.

Gappa, meanwhile, sneered with his jagged maw. His thick, powerful legs hadn't moved an inch.

Whoosh—

A sharp rush of air swept in. Gappa lunged forward and scythed his right leg across the ground. Chaos leaned backward, but Gappa was faster. Turning back around, he hooked his five claws like sharp sickles and slashed at Chaos's chest.

Chaos reacted quickly. He leaned back and spun a full 360 degrees in midair to evade the strike. Then he braced his left hand against the ground, brought his legs together, and fired them toward Gappa's chest like a cannonball.

The muffled impact was even more powerful than the last. Gappa crossed his sturdy forearms in front of his chest to block it, but his feet dug into the earth as he slid sideways, leaving two furrows behind.

Chaos flipped upright and crossed the five meters between them in the blink of an eye, unleashing a left hook with a sharp whoosh.

Gappa's eyes were filled with menace. Chaos's speed was beyond his expectations. He hadn't thought the kid would be this fast!

But Gappa wasn't a pushover. He had a bounty of fifty-three million, and the Zoan Fruit's boost made his reaction speed exceptionally quick.

Gappa immediately bent down to dodge, then swept his leg across the ground. Chaos jumped to avoid it, but Gappa had anticipated that. His powerful fist slammed into Chaos's crossed arms, which he'd raised to defend himself. A wave of force sent Chaos stumbling backward, putting him at a disadvantage.

"Phew..."

Chaos let out a breath. Those few exchanges had taught him a lot.

His opponent's fighting skills and reflexes were better than his own—in every way, the perfect whetstone.

Chaos had never been more fired up. He was certain he'd grow stronger after this fight.

Using Soru, Chaos vanished from where he stood and launched the first attack, ready to fight Gappa hand-to-hand!

"Keep it up, Captain! I've bet all my money on you!"

"Take that fool down! How dare he provoke the Lion King Pirates?"

Pirates around the outskirts cheered them on. Lion King Gappa clearly had the upper hand, repeatedly overpowering the so-called Gild Tesoro. The latter could only defend himself, and was visibly losing ground.

Many of the pirates were convinced Gappa had already won.

"What an interesting rookie."

But some of the pirates had a sharper eye. On the roof of a nearby building stood a middle-aged man in casual clothes, wearing a round cap with two sickles hanging at his waist.

Watching the fight, with Gappa seemingly in complete control, he looked surprised.

"Reaper Tesys, you've noticed it too?"

Several pirates stood on the roofs of other buildings.

One of them was a fat man in a black suit, puffing on a cigar. He exhaled a cloud of smoke and glanced at Tesys.

The man had a bounty of ninety-three million and was a Paramecia-type Scythe Fruit user. He was a lone wolf!

Pradanite hadn't expected to run into him here.

"Blood Thorn Pradanite. Bounty: eighty-nine million."

Tesys looked back at the fat man, immediately recognizing him.

The man was ruthless. He was a Paramecia-type Thorn Fruit user, and rumors said he'd recently killed a Navy rear admiral. One of the Navy's three Logia monsters, Rear Admiral Sakazuki, was now hunting him down. Tesys hadn't expected to find him in Demon Valley Town.

"Want to bet on who'll survive?"

Pradanite flicked ash off his cigar and casually gestured toward the fight between Chaos and Gappa.

"You've already figured it out, haven't you? I'm sure Zebra Killer Barnkes and Camel Tepieru have too."

Reaper Tesys folded his arms and looked toward the other two men on the roof.

One wore a black-and-white striped coat, while the other wore knee-high boots.

Zebra Killer Barnkes had a bounty of eighty-one million and was a Zoan-type Horse-Horse Fruit: Zebra Form user!

Camel Tepieru had a bounty of seventy-nine million and was a Zoan-type Horse-Horse Fruit: Camel Form user!

Who would have thought such an ordinary fight would draw the attention of these four powerful pirates?

"That kid's using Lion King Gappa for practice. How interesting."

Camel Tepieru sat on the roof with one leg crossed over the other, his expression cold as he pointed out what was happening between Chaos and Gappa.

"Too weak."

Zebra Killer Barnkes wore a wildly arrogant expression, his eyes full of contempt.

As far as he was concerned, both Lion King Gappa and Chaos were far too weak.

"Haha! They say Zebra Killer is arrogant and conceited. Seems they were right!"

Reaper Tesys, the highest-bounty pirate among the four, looked at Zebra Killer with amusement. "If you went down there, you'd lose to that Gild Tesoro guy."

"Hmph. I wouldn't mind killing you right now. I'm sure the Navy would be delighted to receive the head of Reaper Tesys, with his bounty of ninety-three million!"

That was the pirate world for you. The air filled with hostility without the slightest warning.

"I'm not making fun of you. When this fight's over, you can go try for yourself. If you can kill Gild Tesoro, I'll give you fifty million Berries."

Tesys shrugged, perfectly calm.

Zebra Killer's words hadn't angered him.

"I like that bet. You don't mind if I bet on Zebra Killer to win, do you? Same amount—fifty million."

Blood Thorn Pradanite chimed in, exhaling a ring of cigar smoke.

"Thirty million on Zebra Killer."

Even Camel Tepieru joined in, his face cold and his words as brief as ever.

"Fifty million. I'll gladly take it!"

Zebra Killer glanced at Tesys, then watched the fight, a vicious smile appearing at the corner of his mouth.

Such was the law of the jungle: the strong preyed on the weak. Chaos had no idea he'd been marked—not after just a few words, by men he'd never even heard of.

The four of them had no grudge against him, yet they treated his future like a show, and decided his fate all the same...