Strangling the Second Generation Out in the Rookie Village

"Damn it."

"Luffy."

Zoro and Sanji rushed forward. Wilton was already walking towards the dispersing dust. If he swung that dumbbell again, Luffy would be in grave danger.

Whoosh--

Zoro used his Two Sword Style, and Sanji delivered a powerful kick. They brushed past each other. Wilton stopped and looked at the torn hoodie on his chest, his stern, handsome face filled with displeasure.

"Hey, hey, hey!"

"This cost me a hundred thousand Belly! I've only worn it for ten days."

He turned.

Wilton looked at Zoro and Sanji, his eyes gradually turning malicious. Zoro and Sanji looked somewhat pale. Sanji's right foot twitched back and forth, and his pained expression showed his agony.

"It didn't work after all."

Zoro's heart sank.

He had slashed the opponent twice, but the expected gaping wounds didn't appear. The hoodie was merely torn. He wasn't sure if it was his imagination, but sparks had crackled between his sword and the opponent's body when he struck.

What the hell.

Is this big guy's body made of steel?

"We're in big trouble."

Sanji lit a cigarette. His right foot seemed to be fractured. That kick felt like hitting a steel plate. If he hadn't eased up at the last moment, he'd be standing on one leg right now.

Wilton was straightforward. He ripped off his hooded sweatshirt, revealing a tight red and white tank top underneath. Beneath the tank top was a body with perfect muscle definition.

His broad chest and eight perfectly aligned abs were impossible to conceal.

Instantly.

A fierce and powerful aura spread throughout the area.

Bang--

His foot exploded.

The hard, thick ground shattered, forming a three-meter crater. Wilton appeared behind Zoro and Sanji in an instant, raising the massive dumbbells in his hands high above his head.

"Zoro."

"Sanji."

Time seemed to freeze.

Nami and Usopp's faces were filled with horror.

Fast.

They were too fast.

Zoro and Sanji's hair stood on end. A chill ran straight to the base of their skulls. Before they could even turn around, an unparalleled force descended, like two heavy trucks crashing down.

The ground within a twenty-meter radius exploded.

Visibly.

Zoro and Sanji were like clowns in a storm, sent flying high into the air, spitting blood. They then turned into afterimages, tearing through building after building of weapon shops before being buried at the end of the dust.

"Zoro, Sanji."

At this moment, Luffy struggled to stand up from the shattered ground, clutching his chest with his right hand. Blood streamed from his seven orifices, his face contorted in pain.

With just one blow, he knew this opponent was stronger than Arlong, not even on the same level. It wasn't a sharp weapon, yet it had inflicted a fatal injury on him almost instantly.

Cough, cough, cough.

Luffy swayed, unable to stop himself from spitting out a mouthful of blood. His face was pale, but his gaze was firm. He hadn't reached the Grand Line yet, and he hadn't become the Pirate King.

He absolutely couldn't be captured here.

Moreover, this big guy had hurt his nakama. Unforgivable.

"I'm gonna blast you away."

"Gomu Gomu no Gatling!"

He roared.

Luffy gritted his teeth in anger, leaning back and clenching his fists. He swung them rapidly at the approaching Wilton. The speed was so great it formed afterimages, like a Gatling gun firing continuously.

A solid, powerful collision.

Wilton held his dumbbells with both hands and didn't dodge at all. He simply walked slowly towards Luffy. The dense barrage of punches landed on his bulging chest with no effect whatsoever.

They couldn't even disrupt his walking rhythm.

As if.

All he had to rely on was Tekkai and Armament Haki. For that, he had focused all his attention on Tekkai and Haki.

Now, he had a mysterious confidence in Tekkai. Combined with his Golden Finger ability, he could sail the seas until he was completely lost.

"Aaaargh!"

Luffy roared continuously, unable to believe his attacks were useless. He sped up his assault, but it couldn't change the facts until Wilton stood before him, looking down from above.

"Are you tickling me?"

Wilton's expression was serious, not trying to show off. Luffy's attacks felt like mere tickles against him, and he hadn't even used Armament Haki yet.

Not to mention the abilities of the Golden Finger, Honor of Kings' Cheng Yaojin.

Luffy at this stage was truly as weak as tofu. The dumbbell he'd used earlier had almost sent him to meet God with just a little strength. If he'd gone all out with his full strength, Luffy might have been bleeding all over the place.

What a shame.

He was still too weak and had to be wary of Monkey D. Garp, and Monkey D. Dragon, who was suspected to already be in Loguetown. Otherwise, he wouldn't mind eradicating this group of Second Generation kids who came out to experience life, right in the Rookie Village.

This group of Second Generation kids was too rowdy.

"Bastard."

"How can he be so hard?"

Luffy was confused. His full-power attacks had no effect at all. What kind of monster was this? Was his body made of steel? But giving up wasn't his style.

"Gomu Gomu no Rocket."

Luffy clenched his right fist and stretched it back, then twisted his entire arm like a corkscrew before launching it at Wilton with extreme speed.

Unfortunately, no miracle happened.

Wilton casually tossed the dumbbell in his right hand and then easily caught Luffy's fist. Without giving the latter a chance to react, Wilton delivered a heavy kick to Luffy's abdomen.

Visibly.

Luffy's face contorted as he bent over, his bulging eyes filled with pain. Veins bulged on his temples. As Wilton released him, Luffy instinctively clutched his stomach, staggering backward, blood spurting from his mouth and nose.

Thump.

His body completely collapsed, and Luffy fell to his knees, his face smashing into the ground as his eyes rolled back, and he lost consciousness.

Wilton caught the dumbbell falling from the air just in time.

"Luffy!"

"This is impossible."

"Luffy's body is rubber, he shouldn't be harmed by anything except sharp slashes."

Nami and Usopp looked on in horror. How could that Marine just kick Luffy and injure him so severely, even causing him to fall unconscious?

They knew Luffy's willpower was strong.

Total wipeout.

Zoro and Sanji, in the distant ruins, were not unconscious yet but had completely lost their fighting strength and couldn't get up. They had been brought to their knees with just one attack.

"Deadly Attack: Smoke Star."

"Nami."

At the critical moment, they didn't falter. Instead, they acted in sync. Usopp pulled out his slingshot and fired a smoke bomb, attempting to obscure Wilton's vision.

Nami quickly stepped forward, grabbed Luffy by his hair, and dragged him like a dead dog. With some unknown strength, she ran incredibly fast. After firing the smoke bomb, Usopp did the same, dragging Zoro and Sanji as they fled rapidly.

Pfft—

Blood spurted high into the air.

Nami and Usopp, who had only run a few steps, spat blood. Their backs felt like they'd been hit by a speeding cruise ship. They were immediately sent flying, crashing heavily onto the ground, blood staining the earth as they cried out in pain.

"Nami, Usopp."

The severely injured Zoro and Sanji struggled to stand up and, using all their strength, ran to Nami and Usopp's side. Not far away, two heavy dumbbells lay on the ground, having sunk deep into the hard earth.

One could only imagine how heavy they were.

"Major General Wilton."

Just then, Tashigi and a group of Marines ran over, panting. They looked at the mess on the ground, at Luffy, Nami, and Usopp lying there, and at Zoro and Sanji, who were clearly severely injured and preparing to resist stubbornly.

Wilton nodded in response.

"Don't move!"

Seven or eight Marines, familiar with the drill, aimed their flintlock guns at Zoro and Sanji, their gazes sharp. If the two dared to make any sudden moves, they would open fire.

"Sergeant Tashigi, these are the Straw Hat Pirates. They recently defeated the Arlong Pirates."

A Marine recognized Luffy and the others' identities, his expression somewhat excited.

They knew these were pirates with a bounty of 30 million Belly. Now that they were captured, they could get a share of the credit. It was no different from pie falling from the sky.

However, Major General Wilton was truly powerful, able to easily defeat pirates with a bounty of 30 million Belly