The Battle Begins!

"An explosion?"

Vivi cried out in surprise. On closer inspection, the barrel in Dorry's hand had actually exploded!

Fortunately, Zero had slashed out a blade of light a step ahead, shattering the barrel and detonating the bomb early, so Dorry was not affected. If Dorry had drunk it, the consequences would have been unimaginable!

"Who was it? Who would do something like this?!"

Luffy shouted angrily, his fists clenched tight. He was clearly furious about this sudden turn of events.

Vivi said, "Could it have been Brogy?"

Dorry immediately objected. "Impossible. Brogy would never do something like that. You gave me this barrel of liquor. What exactly are you trying to do?"

Faced with Dorry's angry questioning, Zero leaped onto his shoulder and said, "Dorry, don't let your anger cloud your judgment. If it had been us, I wouldn't have shattered the liquor barrel before you drank it. Think it through!"

Little Red Sparrow also landed on Zero's shoulder at that moment. After Zero finished speaking, it chirped at Dorry as though it were defending them as well.

Luffy said, "Right! Nami and Usopp wouldn't do something like that either!"

After Zero and Luffy's reminder, Dorry finally calmed down. He plopped down on the ground and said to them, "Sorry, I really misunderstood you. If it wasn't you, then..."

"I'm afraid there may be someone else on this island besides us. They may even be after both your lives. You and Brogy need to be careful!"

Dorry pondered for a moment, just about to say something, when he suddenly saw the volcano before him erupt again!

This was another signal for a duel!

Vivi said, "Again so soon?"

Before everyone, Dorry had already risen to his feet once more. He grabbed the axe and shield beside him, preparing to fight Brogy again.

As though remembering something, he said to Zero on his shoulder, "Young man, you said you wanted to take our Permanent Pointer, right? Then come along!"

"Mm, I've been waiting for this!"

Hearing Zero's answer, Dorry burst into laughter and strode toward Brogy. His gaze was resolute, as if the explosion earlier had been nothing worth mentioning.

Vivi was somewhat worried.

At that moment, Luffy pulled down the brim of his straw hat and looked in the direction Dorry had taken Zero, seemingly talking to himself. "Zero is one of the strongest members of our pirate crew! I've always believed in him!"

Vivi nodded, seemingly deep in thought.

Dorry and Brogy, the two giants, stood facing each other.

Brogy also noticed the unfamiliar face on Dorry's shoulder. Dorry introduced Zero to him and mentioned that Zero wanted to compete for the Permanent Pointer as well.

"Ha ha ha ha! Interesting, young man. In these hundred years, you're the first one to say that. But think carefully—you could lose your life if you're not careful!"

Zero answered Brogy with a firm nod.

"Dorry, this guy has quite the resolve!"

"Ha ha ha ha, right?!"

Dorry then explained the qualifications for obtaining the Permanent Pointer. Zero had to defeat one of them, because the two had been tied for a hundred years. As long as he defeated either one, he would naturally qualify.

But Zero disagreed. He actually told both giants to attack him together!

Dorry and Brogy had initially wanted to say something, but when they saw Zero slash out a blade of light that cut the distant volcano in half, they exchanged a glance and accepted Zero's "unreasonable request."

"I wonder if I'll be able to fight with everything I have this time. I'm really looking forward to it!"

Zero was somewhat excited. Little Red Sparrow on his shoulder also gave a joyful cry, as if it could sense the excitement in Zero's heart.

How long had it been...

Ever since fighting Hawk-Eye Mihawk, Zero had never gone all out in battle again. Even against Smoker, he had merely caught him off guard with Armament Haki and defeated him!

By this point, he did not even know what level his strength had reached. He could only hope Dorry and Brogy would be formidable enough to let him properly experience the pressure of the Giant Tribe!

Of course, he was not overly confident in his own strength. In the original story, even Luffy had managed to knock the severely wounded Dorry to the ground and temporarily render him unable to fight.

Not to mention that after a hundred years of battle, their weapons had long since worn down. No one knew how much of their fighting strength remained, so Zero had not made this decision without reason.

Just as the two giants prepared to fight Zero, a voice rang out in Zero's mind:

"Ding! Side quest activated: Defeat Blue Ogre Dorry and Red Ogre Brogy. Completion reward: 1,500 EXP and 150,000 Beli!"

Somewhere on Little Garden.

"What's going on? My plan..."

MR.3 stared in shock at the lively and energetic Dorry. He clearly did not look like someone who had suffered serious injuries.

His mind was full of confusion, while MISS. Goldenweek beside him stared at the coffee in his hand, looking as though she wanted to taste it but did not dare to.

After thinking for a long time, MR.3 still could not figure out what had gone wrong with his flawless plan. He could only put the question aside for now and focus on the battle that was about to begin, searching for a chance to strike.

Elsewhere.

Usopp suddenly ran over to Luffy in a panic, shouting that Nami had been eaten or something like that, leaving the two utterly confused.

Vivi told Usopp to calm down and guessed that Nami might have been targeted by Baroque Works. Even the barrel bomb might have been arranged specifically against them!

Usopp found the mention of the barrel bomb strange. Only after hearing Vivi's explanation did he learn that such an incident had occurred, and he was immediately terrified.

"Good thing Zero dealt with that bomb afterward. Otherwise..."

He could almost imagine it: without Zero, Dorry would have been seriously injured by the bomb. Even if Brogy won, he would not feel any pride in it. He might even be ashamed of it!

Only then did Usopp realize that he had not seen Zero at all from earlier until now. He hurriedly asked the two, and when he learned that Zero had gone to challenge the giants, he was once again left dumbfounded!

Luffy said, "When I saw Zero going to challenge them, I wanted to fight alongside him too. But Zero got there first, so I could only give him the chance. What a shame..."

Vivi and Usopp said, "..."

They did not doubt for a second that Luffy would do such a thing, but they wanted even more to tell him not to cause them trouble at a time like this. Seeing Luffy's dejected expression afterward, though, they decided it was better not to say it.

At that moment, the three noticed movement in the bushes behind them and turned around. The next instant, they saw the battered Karoo being thrown out, followed by two familiar figures.

"You are—"