With a single slash, he sent Tsugikuni Yoriichi flying and rescued Kozuki Oden from certain death. The man who had suddenly appeared before the cave was the captain Shanks and Buggy had been longing for—the man the Marines now called the "Pirate King," Gol D. Roger.
Roger gripped his beloved saber, Ace, in one hand and waved at Kozuki Oden with a smile.
Kozuki Oden turned his head blankly toward Roger. Aside from surprise and confusion, his eyes were filled with lingering terror.
If he had felt correctly, had Roger not arrived in time, he would probably have been separated from his head by now!
After coming back to his senses, Kozuki Oden suddenly felt something sticky around his neck. He raised a hand and wiped at it, warmth passing through his fingertips.
Looking down at his palm, he found it covered in blood.
He was injured, and it was on his neck.
That Marine's blade had clearly not struck his neck. Yet the Haki wrapped around the sword alone had already injured Kozuki Oden.
Had Tsugikuni Yoriichi hesitated for even half a second longer, Kozuki Oden would already be dead.
But likewise, if Tsugikuni Yoriichi had been half a second slower, perhaps he would have been the one who died!
"Rumble, rumble!"
From within the dust cloud over the distant mountainside came the sound of chunks of earth falling to the ground. A vague black silhouette suddenly emerged from the thick smoke.
Moments later, a young man in a Marine officer's uniform emerged from the dust, a long sword in hand.
Hearing the commotion, Roger turned to look at Tsugikuni Yoriichi. Seeing his condition, Roger was somewhat surprised.
Other than several tears in his uniform and some dust on his body, Tsugikuni Yoriichi showed no other abnormalities.
There was