Sorbet Kingdom

Luo Ya stood on the deck, letting the salty sea breeze wash over him. His destination, the Sorbet Kingdom, was a winter island, so he had changed into his cold-weather gear early. While his body was naturally resistant to the cold, not dressing for the climate would have been pure stupidity.

Of course, there were plenty of people who insisted on dressing for the sake of looking cool, like Crocodile, who insisted on wearing a fur coat in the sweltering desert just to maintain his image.

After three days of sailing, he reached his destination, where Hafiz was waiting anxiously at the docks.

Luo Ya moored his ship and walked toward Hafiz and his group.

Snap! "Heh, don't tell me you've already been pushed back to the royal palace," Luo Ya said, exhaling a cloud of smoke.

"The royal capital is on the verge of falling. We're only holding on because the city guard is stalling his advance. If you hadn't arrived, we would have been ready to flee by sea."

"Fine. In which direction is the palace?" Luo Ya asked. Hafiz and the others hurriedly pointed the way. Luo Ya nodded and sprinted toward the palace.

Along the way, nobles and merchants were everywhere, dragging their families and luggage as they fled. There were even large groups of soldiers in uniform armor running toward the docks.

Finally, Luo Ya heard the thunderous sounds of battle and rushed toward the noise.

Coming into view was Bartholomew Kuma, whose nearly seven-meter height was incredibly intimidating.

Facing him was a bearded, burly man over two meters tall, clad in battle-damaged armor that was riddled with cracks and stained with dust and blood.

Kuma didn't react when he saw Luo Ya, maintaining his blank expression, but the burly man was overjoyed. "It's the Black Flame Swordsman, Luo Ya! I am Devon, a general of the kingdom. Quickly, strike now and let's take down this traitor together!"

Hearing this, Kuma halted his assault and turned his deadpan face toward Luo Ya. Devon took the opportunity to gasp for air and recover his strength.

"Heh, don't look at me. Continue," Luo Ya said, shrugging at their stares before sitting down on the ground.

"What is the meaning of this? King Berkley hired you to deal with him, not to watch a show!" Devon demanded.

"Kuma, can you get rid of this annoying fly? Otherwise, I'll just take care of both of you," Luo Ya said with a chilling grin.

Kuma paused at these words, then snapped back to reality and launched a fierce attack on Devon.

Devon's strength was already far inferior to Kuma's, and after years of living in luxury, he had long since forgotten how to fight.

At this point in time, Kuma was likely in the midst of his revolutionary activities, lighting the fires of rebellion everywhere he went.

Comparing the two, Devon was only holding on by relying on the foundation he had built in his youth, and after fighting for so long, he was being pushed back step by step.

"Pirates are pirates after all—a bunch of treacherous animals!" Devon cursed at Luo Ya, unleashing a heavy, powerful attack to force Kuma back.

His muscles bulged, stretching his once-fitting armor to the bursting point, and a pitch-black character for "King" appeared on his forehead.

Fine, short fur covered his body in black and yellow stripes. It was clear at a glance that he possessed a Zoan-type fruit, the Tiger model.

Transformed into a tiger-man, Devon opened his jaws wide and lunged at Kuma with both claws, accompanied by a deafening tiger's roar.

Kuma extended his paw-padded palms and struck at Devon; the incoming, ferocious tiger was sent flying back instantly.

Luo Ya watched clearly from the side: the moment Devon made contact with the pads on Kuma's palms, all his force was reflected back at him, rendering his sharp tiger claws completely useless.

Taking advantage of Devon being airborne with no way to brace himself, Kuma crouched slightly and pressed his palms forward, firing two giant, paw-shaped bubbles.

"Is this the Pressure Cannon?" Luo Ya said excitedly. He remembered that this technique could pass through a human body to inflict damage on the entire frame, created by compressing air with the Paw-Paw Fruit.

Bang! With a muffled thud, Devon, having been pierced by the two Pressure Cannons, landed on the ground, his fruit transformation dispelled.

The blood he spat out stained his meticulously groomed beard, and his exquisite armor finally gave way, shattering into pieces.

"Heh, truly useless. I thought I'd get to watch a good show, but you went down in one hit," Luo Ya mocked.

Unfortunately, Devon, who had already breathed his last, couldn't hear him; otherwise, he surely would have cursed Luo Ya up and down.

If I could beat him, would I have needed to pay a fortune to hire you? He would have had a mountain of insults ready.

"Black Flame Swordsman Luo Ya, did you also accept King Berkley's commission to maintain his tyrannical rule?"

"Heh, I'm not interested in his rule. I'm interested in you, Bartholomew Kuma. I hope you can keep me entertained. Hahahaha!"

Support Slash!

Luo Ya laughed, unleashing a violent flame-infused sword beam as he drew his blade and flew toward Kuma, simultaneously pushing off the ground to charge forward and slash diagonally at him.

Kuma coated his soft, pink paw pads with pitch-black Armament Haki, the dark sheen highlighting the level of his hardening.

The moment his right palm touched the sword beam from the Support Slash, he deflected it away. With a metallic clang, his left palm grabbed Scorching Cloud directly, causing wisps of white smoke to rise.

Luo Ya was shocked. He knew that Ryujin Jakka was permanently housed within Scorching Cloud; beyond its own thousand-degree heat, the blade's sharpness was greatly enhanced by such temperatures.

To be able to grab it directly—it could only mean that Kuma's mastery of the Paw-Paw Fruit had reached its peak.

Taking advantage of Luo Ya's momentary lapse, Kuma kept his left hand clamped on Scorching Cloud and struck at Luo Ya's chest with his right palm. Of course, "chest" wasn't quite accurate; given Kuma's seven-meter height, his palm only looked small, but in reality, it was nearly the size of Luo Ya's entire upper body.

As the gale-force wind struck, Luo Ya snapped back to reality and delivered a direct kick into the center of Kuma's palm. The moment they made contact, the immense force sent Luo Ya flying backward.

In the clash of strength, Kuma couldn't withstand the heat of Scorching Cloud and released his grip. His palm was unscathed, save for a few wisps of white smoke.

"Heh, second round, then." Luo Ya sheathed Scorching Cloud in the distance.