The Invitation / Returning Home in Glory

The dark green slash, taller than a person, was cleaved in two by Atlas, flying backward with undiminished momentum before plunging headlong into the sea!

Splash!

Two narrow slits suddenly appeared on the calm sea surface, and they slowly healed only after the force of the strike subsided.

"That's the feeling..."

Hawkeye felt his blood surging; the feeling of constantly challenging stronger opponents was simply too intoxicating.

"The best is yet to come!"

Atlas grinned, maintaining his forward momentum.

His swordsmanship skills are indeed inferior to Hawkeye's. His style has never been delicate and exquisite. He is neither as meticulous as Hawkeye nor as flashy as Vista.

There's only one word: reckless!

If I'm strong enough, I can kill you!

"The Waterfall!"

In a split second, Atlas flashed above Hawkeye and delivered a downward slash—without any skill or grace, only extreme power!

"This Swordsmanship..."

Hawkeye could say he had never encountered Swordsmanship like Atlas's in all these years. This kind of power was completely unrestricted by swords; he could probably unleash the same mightiness with a spiked club. If he pursued the ultimate in technique, then Atlas represented the ultimate in power!

A heavy sword has no edge; true skill lies in simplicity.

"However... there is no superior or inferior in swordsmanship!"

Hawkeye raised the blade and slashed upwards!

When!

The sound was crisp and clear. Although his arm trembled slightly, he held the knife firmly and blocked the attack!

Seeing his legs sinking deep into the ground, Hawkeye immediately held the blade horizontally in front of his chest, and with a burst of leg strength, pulled himself back!

Atlas, however, sneered inwardly.

It truly lives up to its reputation as the World's Strongest Black Blade; its hardness is unmatched even by the Sandai Kitetsu. Fortunately, its Haki is of exceptional quality; if it were Vergo, the sword and its inhabitant might have been destroyed.

"Your knife is not suitable for you!"

Hawkeye said calmly, "Who would believe that a swordsman worthy of being called a great Swordsman doesn't even have a sword that suits him?"

"I told you, I am not a true swordsman. To me, swords are merely weapons."

Atlas turned his blade and squinted as he spoke.

Swish!

Without continuing the conversation, Hawkeye's 'Black Blade Night' was already slashing down!

A dark green Flying Slash rapidly extended, with black Haki leaping merrily within it. The force of the gust of wind swept in, and every detail of the slash emitted a terrifying shriek.

It was as if this slash was composed of countless tiny slashes, with a high level of Armament Haki tightly wrapped around it.

"No enemy is spared, no one is cut down..."

Atlas remained completely unfazed, his Haki intensifying with each Haki of the Sandai Kitetsu, and the muscles in his arm bulged rapidly.

"One Sword Style Secret Art Technique: Blood-Red Skyline!"

A blood-red slash tinged with deep black light shot into the sky!

If 'Thousand Slashes in an Instant' is the ultimate Secret Art of Atlas's speed, then 'Blood-Red Skyline' is the ultimate Secret Art of his power!

PS. Thanks to the book friend "Zhaotian Gang·Zhang Qiling" for providing the name. There is still another chapter today. Let me rest for a while. Why don't you all pause for a while and take an intermission? I feel that my brain is a bit exhausted.

Chapter 125 Invitation

Boom!

The red slash quickly collided with the dark green slash. The powerful force only caused the two to stalemate for a moment before Hawkeye's slash suddenly collapsed!

However, in a dramatic turn of events, the scattered slashes did not dissipate; instead, they transformed into countless tiny slashes, like mosquitoes and flies, which then quickly clung to the red slashes.

Sizzle! Sizzle! Sizzle!

The two quickly wore each other down, Atlas's slash still carried immense power as it hurtled towards Hawkeye!

Clang!

Swords clashed!

As expected of Black Blade, it blocked the attack without sustaining a scratch.

"What fierce Swordsmanship! Indeed, only by dueling with such a master Swordsmanship can I grow rapidly!" Hawkeye unconsciously tightened his grip on the Black Blade once more.

Since he set sail, he has challenged various Swordsmanship styles and even nameless swordsmen. Apart from Red-Haired Shanks, whom he met before, who could excite him so much, only the Navy in front of him can put pressure on him.

Swish!

Almost simultaneously, the two struck again with perfect coordination!

Clang! Clang!

When metal and steel collide, sparks fly.

In a contest of strength, Hawkeye was far inferior to Atlas, but with his superb Swordsmanship, his blade moved like a slippery fish, managing to deflect most of the force. However, the remaining force still forced him to take two steps back.

"It's not over yet!"

Atlas, seeing that his attack had succeeded, grinned maliciously and held his sword upright in front of him with one hand!

"Twenty Moments in a Finger Snap; Twenty Thoughts in an Instant; Ninety Kshanas in a Thought; Nine Million Births and Deaths in a Kshana..."

At that moment, time and space seemed to become disordered, and the whole world seemed to stand still.

"One Sword Style Secret Art: Thousand Slashes in an Instant!"

In an instant, Hawkeye felt as if he were in a prison of swords and blades, with countless sharp energies piercing his heart, leaving him no way to avoid them!

"That's the feeling!"

Hawkeye showed no fear whatsoever; instead, his usual coldness vanished, replaced by a fiery glint that crept across his face!

Swish! Clang! Clang!...

Hawkeye seemed to unleash a single sword strike, yet it also seemed to unleash countless sword strikes. Hundreds of metallic clangs converged, leaving only a clear, lingering sound!

You've lost!

Atlas appeared behind Hawkeye and said casually.

"I've lost!"

Hawkeye did not deny it, but instead slowly turned around to face Atlas behind him.

In Swordsmanship, victory or defeat can be decided in an instant. Hawkeye couldn't fully parry Secret Art's ultimate technique; there was no way around it, as Atlas's speed and strength were clearly far superior.

For a swordsman, failure is not terrible.

However, a wound on the back is a swordsman's shame!

What are you doing?

Atlas looked at Hawkeye, who had his eyes closed and arms outstretched, looking like he was being submissive, and his expression was rather strange, as if he had just eaten two pounds of excrement.

Does Hawkeye have some kind of weird fetish?

"Cut me down! For a swordsman, a wound on the back is a disgrace!"

Hawkeye, unaware of Atlas's thoughts, explained earnestly that even with his last breath, he would probably fight Atlas to the death.

"Forget it, your swordsman tactics don't work on me!"

Atlas waved his hand in refusal, then a mischievous glint appeared on his face. "Eh? You're practically my prisoner now, so how about you grant me a request?"

Strictly speaking, Hawkeye could easily escape if he wanted to. As Hawkeye said, a wound on the back is a swordsman's disgrace, so Hawkeye would rather be slashed in the face by Atlas.

"What's up?"

Hawkeye wasn't stupid; he didn't immediately agree.

"It's a small matter. You probably don't want to be targeted by the Navy or the World Government right now, do you? Bounties are always a troublesome thing for you."

Hawkeye nodded in agreement. If he were constantly surrounded and hunted by the Navy, he would waste a lot of his time and energy on such trivial matters! In matters of the sword, he always had only one goal: to reach the pinnacle of swordsmanship, or rather, to constantly seek breakthroughs in swordsmanship.

Otherwise, this guy wouldn't be so bored! He ran to the East Blue to find an unknown swordsman to play with and raise.

"I have a way to get rid of this trouble for you, so it's a win-win situation for you."

Atlas's tone was somewhat seductive.

He wasn't lying; the benefits of becoming Shichibukai are incredibly attractive.

"Shichibukai?"

Hawkeye raised an eyebrow and slowly uttered three words.

"Huh? How did you know?"

Atlas was somewhat surprised; he hadn't expected Hawkeye to be so attentive to the world situation.

Hawkeye didn't answer. Instead, he looked at Atlas with an expression as if he were an idiot. He usually subscribed to newspapers and had his own judgment on the world situation.

"Cough cough..."

Atlas didn't seem to mind and coughed awkwardly.

Although Hawkeye would eventually become Shichibukai, Atlas had a sudden idea after meeting him.

First, the power to appoint and dismiss members of the Shichibukai does not lie with the Navy, but is directly controlled by the World Government. Furthermore, this system cannot be abolished, at least not given the current situation.

However, Atlas disliked Ambitious Strategist like Doflamingo and Crocodile. These people usually had their own motives for becoming Shichibukai, which was never a good thing for the people. Even Sengoku couldn't control such matters.

So, what if we fill all the spots before Doflamingo and his crew become Shichibukai? Or... perhaps we could eliminate them beforehand?

A shut-in like Hawkeye would be perfect for this role. He doesn't need any so-called Legal Plunder; he spends his days either looking for people to fencing with or staying at home.

"Can."

Hawkeye did not refuse. Becoming Shichibukai was already within his consideration, and now that he was going along with it, agreeing to Atlas was no big deal.

"Alright! It's settled then. You just need to hunt down a few notorious Pirates and hand them over to the Navy. I'll take care of things for them."

Although he had expected it, Atlas couldn't help but feel a surge of joy.

We can just give Sengoku a call and mention it later. Of course, we can't let him do this alone; mobilizing the navy is the right approach.

Haha, you may have your ways, but I have my clever plans!

World Government... Little Dole.

P. S. There shouldn't be any more today. I'll check the backend again; if there are, I'll update again tomorrow. This is my first time posting 10,000 words a day; my hands are practically falling off.

Chapter 126 Returning Home in Wealth

"Hey, are you sure you don't want us to give you a ride?"

Atlas watched Hawkeye coolly walk onto the coffin ship and extended a warm invitation.

"Need not."

With a concise answer, Hawkeye simply sat down on the chair with his back against the cross mast on the boat and closed his eyes to rest, but he did not take out the 'Black Blade Night' from behind him to row the boat.

"Um?"

Suddenly, Hawkeye opened his sharp eyes and looked at Atlas with a puzzled expression.

"It's nothing, I was just looking," Atlas waved his hand, secretly hiding the Camera Den Den Mushi he had just asked Smoker to bring behind his back. "By the way, why aren't you rowing?"

Hawkeye ignored him, closed his eyes again, and let the ship drift with the current until it was out of the warship's sight.

"Has this guy discovered something...?"

Atlas muttered with some doubt.

I was originally planning to film some dirt on Hawkeye, thinking that maybe after he becomes the World's Greatest Swordsman, I could sell it to the World Economy News Paper for a hefty sum.

Smoker, who was standing nearby, seemed to have heard Atlas's whisper, and the corner of his mouth twitched discreetly a few times.