Pirate Hunter Roronoa Zoro

During the voyage, Rayson had already confirmed through the system:

Although the Seven Warlords were nominally employed by the World Government, they were still pirates by nature and belonged to the pirate faction.

Within that faction, their status was second only to the Four Emperors.

Defeating a Seven Warlord could likewise activate Rayson's Faction Fortune (Ultimate Gold) trait.

That made dealing with Moria a profitable task that killed two birds with one stone.

Moria was currently bottom-tier among the Seven Warlords. He was practically a gift delivered to their doorstep.

But before Moria, they would first have to get past another troublesome opponent.

The wielder of the Sand-Sand Fruit, Crocodile.

Rayson narrowed his eyes.

Even among Logias, the Sand-Sand Fruit was unquestionably a top-tier Devil Fruit. Its abilities alone were enough to guarantee combat power at the level of a Seven Warlord.

With advanced Haki to complement it, reaching the level of a Yonko Commander or even an Admiral candidate would not be difficult.

Of course, among Logias, the fruit Rayson truly craved was the one considered invincible within its class: the Rumble-Rumble Fruit.

Speed, destructive power, and attack range combined into one. Its calamitous destructive might was like a natural disaster, making it a nearly perfect Devil Fruit ability.

That was a trait Rayson had to get his hands on.

After studying the system over the past few days, Rayson had confirmed that he really could possess multiple Devil Fruit abilities at once.

The Strongest Trait System could convert fruit abilities into traits for plundering. Every ability he plundered was listed as a separate trait in the system.

More importantly, he was plundering traits others already possessed and equipping them, rather than directly consuming the fruits.

When Rayson used these fruit traits, he would not suffer ordinary side effects such as fearing seawater or being unable to swim.

Even if he plundered multiple fruit abilities, he did not need to worry about them rejecting one another and causing his body to explode, since they existed as separate traits.

Compared to Blackbeard, who needed a peculiar physique just to bear two Devil Fruits,

Rayson's system, which could convert abilities into traits while eliminating all side effects, was clearly superior in terms of mechanics.

In theory, there was no limit to the number of fruit abilities he could control.

In that case... the Sand-Sand Fruit, the Rumble-Rumble Fruit, the Tremor-Tremor Fruit, the Human-Human Fruit, Mythical Zoan, Model: Nika...

He wanted every one of those powerful Devil Fruit abilities!

But before achieving those grand ambitions, Rayson needed to build a solid foundation.

After all, in the future, both Crocodile and Enel had largely been defeated in the original story because of Luffy's protagonist's halo.

Rayson preferred to hold his fate in his own hands.

Furthermore, using Devil Fruit abilities required immense stamina and a resilient physique as support.

Therefore, traits capable of strengthening the body were the missing pieces Rayson urgently needed.

And coincidentally, aside from Luffy, the Straw Hat Pirates would eventually gain another tough man with one of the most terrifying physiques on the sea.

Pirate Hunter Roronoa Zoro. Rayson wondered what traits worth equipping this man, known as the backbone of the Straw Hat Pirates, possessed.

Rayson guided the small boat toward the shore. Looking at Shells Town ahead, a teasing smile appeared on his face.

"Strange. Why were the townspeople so terrified when they heard the name of the Marine captain?"

While searching for Zoro, the naturally outgoing Luffy directly asked passersby for directions.

It was understandable that people feared Zoro's name, but when they heard the name of Morgan, the local Marine captain, the townspeople became even more terrified.

"For civilians, the Marines do not necessarily represent justice. A corrupt scumbag in the Marines can cause far more harm than ordinary pirates," Rayson said casually as he followed at an unhurried pace.

Being familiar with the plot, he naturally knew that Captain Morgan ruled the town through tyranny and brutally exploited its residents.

Pirates were certainly detestable to civilians. After all, most pirates were not like Luffy and his crew, who were essentially more like adventurers pursuing their dreams.

However, aside from a small number of vicious criminals who raped, plundered, and acted with brutal cruelty, most pirates mainly went out raiding for money.

After all, the more evil they committed, the higher their bounties rose, drawing stronger Marine forces and bounty hunters eager to claim them.

Seeking money was still vile, but at least it followed a pattern. Compared to a warlord like Morgan, who used his authority to bleed civilians dry, it was nothing more than a minor evil beside a great one.

Not to mention trash like Captain Mouse, who allowed Arlong to run rampant in Nami's hometown. That was a true nightmare.

When civilians encountered savage pirates, they could still hope for good Marines to uphold justice. But if they encountered greedy scum like this, there was truly nowhere to turn.

As a transmigrator, Rayson despised this kind of scum more than anything.

As they spoke, the two had reached their destination.

The Marine branch base in Shells Town.

At the center of the courtyard, a man was tightly bound to a wooden post.

Pirate Hunter Roronoa Zoro.

"Look, Rayson! That guy must be the person we're looking for!"

Rayson followed Luffy and nimbly climbed the high wall overlooking the Marine base's inner courtyard. From above, he examined the man tied to the post. Even with his head hanging low, the man still faintly radiated a tangible, beast-like pressure.

For Rayson, who possessed the Savage Beast Strength (Blue) trait, that aura felt even more pronounced.

No wonder he had been called a "humanoid demon" from the moment he set sail.

Rayson silently praised Zoro's imposing presence, then murmured inwardly.

"Inspect traits."

----

> Zoro's traits: Three-Sword Style (Deep Purple), Demon Physique (Deep Purple), Ashura Aura (Special), Conqueror's Haki (Unawakened) (Pale Gold).

> Three-Sword Style (Deep Purple): A unique killing swordsmanship in which he wielded one blade in each hand and clenched a third in his mouth. His bite force surpassed that of an adult hyena.

> Demon Physique (Deep Purple): The body of a rakshasa clad in human skin. No matter how extreme his training, no matter how severely his bones and muscles were damaged, he could fully recover and emerge even stronger.

> Ashura Aura (Special): A unique, ghostly divine power. When incorporated into his techniques, it could unleash destructive force far beyond mortal limits.

----

Sure enough, Zoro really did possess Conqueror's Haki.

Looking at the entry labeled Conqueror's Haki (Unawakened) (Pale Gold), Rayson nodded silently.

As one of the Straw Hat Pirates' main three powerhouses and the universally acknowledged second-in-command in the original story, Zoro had always been positioned as the counterpart to the Pirate King's right-hand man, the "Dark King" Silvers Rayleigh.