At the entrance of the dojo.
When Zoro walked out of the dojo, Luffy was still chattering beside him.
He pulled out another string of dumplings from somewhere and ate them, his mouth covered in sauce.
" Zoro, that Oni Giri you just used was so fast! That old man didn't even see it!"
"Shut up."
"But that old man was pretty amazing too; his knife didn't even fall after you hit him—"
"Can you go back?"
"I don't want to."
Zoro took a deep breath, veins bulging on his forehead, about to unleash his power, when suddenly his hand landed on the hilt of his sword.
His keen intuition, typical of a swordsman, immediately detected the anomaly in his surroundings.
Although Luffy was still chewing on the dumpling, his Observation Haki detected it at the same time.
Four powerful auras are approaching from different directions.
"Oops!"
"They actually discovered it right away!"
"Since that's the case--"
The next second.
Four figures landed simultaneously.
One landed on the wall at the entrance of the dojo, one landed on the roof opposite, one blocked the alley entrance, and the other stood on the open ground directly in front of Luffy and Zoro.
Apoo stood on the wall with his arms crossed, a nonchalant smile on his long face:
"Yo~ Straw Hat Luffy, long time no see."
Hawkins emerged from the shadows at the alley entrance, still flipping through his tarot deck, his voice unhurried:
"According to the divination, you will not die today."
Bege stood on the opposite rooftop, his suit open, revealing a dense array of small holes in his chest, each hole from which a dark cannon barrel protruded.
Drake stood in the open space directly in front of them, his fists clenched, silently watching Luffy and Zoro.
Luffy tilted his head, looking at the four people, with half a string of dumplings still dangling from his mouth.
He frowned and thought for a long time before saying something that almost made Apoo vomit blood.
"Hmm? You are... who are you from Sabaody Archipelago again?"
Apoo's face turned pale instantly.
The veins on his forehead bulged, and his already unattractive face was now contorted beyond recognition.
My name is Apoo --!!!
You rubber bastard, remember this well!!!
Before he could finish speaking, his arms had already transformed into two rows of musical instruments side by side.
A small drum, a harp, and a brass horn all grew out of his forearm, like some kind of bizarre prosthetic limb.
He slammed his fist into his chest, and the drum emitted a dull thud.
Sonic explosion!
A visible sonic boom erupted from Apoo's body, hurtling towards Luffy.
The sound waves ripped a deep trench into the ground, sending gravel flying in all directions.
Luffy stretched his neck and pulled his head to one side, narrowly avoiding the sound wave.
Luffy didn't expect them to attack so suddenly, but since they were already making a move, he figured it was a good opportunity to stretch his muscles.
" Gum-Gum-- "
Luffy swung his arm out, drawing an arc in the air before crashing down on Apoo.
Apoo dodged to the side, Luffy's fist slammed into the wall, knocking down half of it.
The battle has officially begun.
Apoo bombarded the area with sound waves from a distance. Each time he struck the drum on his chest, played the violin on his arm, or blew the brass horn, he generated explosive sound waves of different frequencies.
High frequencies are as sharp as a knife blade, low frequencies are as dull as a hammer blow, and mid frequencies can disrupt one's sense of balance.
Luffy dodged left and right through the gaps in the sound waves, his rubber body folding and twisting at all sorts of bizarre angles, with the half-eaten dumpling still dangling from his mouth.
" Gum-Gum Gatling!"
Luffy unleashed a barrage of punches towards Apoo like a torrential downpour, each punch imbued with the dark luster of Armament Haki.
Apoo kept dodging, but Luffy's punches were too numerous; he took several hits and staggered back several steps, clutching his swollen face.
The battle on the other side was a completely different style.
Zoro and Drake faced off in an open area ten meters away.
Drake has activated his Devil Fruit power—his body begins to swell, his skin turns into rough gray animal hide, a row of serrated bone plates grows from his back, and his mouth extends forward into a gigantic dinosaur maw full of fangs.
Zoan, Ancient Zoan, Allosaurus Form.
An ancient behemoth, over five meters long, stood still, exhaling white steam from its nostrils, its reptilian vertical pupils fixed intently on Zoro.
Zoro pressed his hand against the three swords at his waist, and a slow smile crept onto his lips.
That wasn't just a polite smile; it was the genuine smile a swordsman would show when he encountered a worthy opponent.
"Dinosaurs? Interesting."
Drake made the first move.
The Allosaurus pushed off the ground with its powerful hind legs, and the entire behemoth charged toward Zoro like a cannonball.
The enormous mouth, filled with fangs, opened to its limit and bit down on Zoro's head.
Zoro didn't dodge; he immediately drew all three swords, their blades simultaneously enveloped in a dark sheen of Armament Haki.
" Three-Sword Style: Black Rope Dragon Twister!"
The three slashes merged into one, forming a whirlwind of slashing Inazuma imbued with Conqueror's Haki's Haki, which collided head-on with Drake's fangs.
A ring of blinding sparks erupted from the point of impact.
Drake was jolted back two steps, the Allosaurus's heavy claws carving several deep furrows in the ground.
Zoro also took a step back, but his stance remained steady, and the blades of his three swords were still trembling slightly, emitting a buzzing sound.
"Ha--That's interesting!"
Zoro grinned, pushed off with his feet, and lunged at Drake once more.
The two engaged in an extremely primitive yet exquisite close-quarters combat on the open ground outside the dojo.
At that moment, Bege, who had been watching from the rooftop, felt the time was right.
He opened his suit jacket, revealing dozens of small holes in his chest and abdomen, from which dark cannon muzzles protruded, aimed at Luffy who was locked in combat with Apoo.
"Full power."
Dozens of gun emplacements opened fire simultaneously.
The shells, trailing fiery exhaust, Luffy down on Luffy, creating a scene resembling a storm of gunpowder and steel.
" Gum-Gum Balloon!"
Luffy a deep breath, and his stomach suddenly swelled into a giant rubber ball.
The shell hit his belly, but was bounced back by the elasticity of the rubber, flying in all directions.
Several shells bounced back and hit the roof at Bege's feet, sending tiles flying everywhere.
Bege was forced to jump away quickly.
"Damn rubber body." Bege muttered, biting her cigar, her face grim.
Just as Luffy was dealing with the cannonballs, Hawkins made his move.
He silently circled behind Luffy, a long spear woven from straw appearing in his hand.
The spearhead, coated with fine Armament Haki, silently pierced towards Luffy's side.
"Brush--!"
Luffy, who had already sensed everything with his Observation Haki Luffy, dodged Hawkins ' sneak attack in a flash.
"Huh?"
Luffy on the ground, glanced back at the giant scarecrow that Hawkins had transformed into,
"Your ability is so strange."
Hawkins did not respond.
With a flick of the wrist, steel nails were propelled from the fingertips.
Luffy dodged to the side, but the dense steel spikes still grazed his arm, leaving a shallow bloodstain.
Luffy glanced down at the wound on his arm, then looked up at the three Supernovas in front of him, his expression suddenly turning serious.
"Four against one? That's too cunning."