A miracle?
Zoro stared at Bai Yu, uncertainty stirring in his heart.
He had only seen it once and personally experienced it once in battle.
Yet that was enough to learn the realm of Cutting Iron, something many people might spend their entire lives unable to comprehend.
Was that really possible?
Zoro knew that even Koshiro, who had spoken those words, would not dare imagine such a thing.
"Haha, hedgehog head, did you just say I only dared clash head-on with you because of this training suit?"
Bai Yu took another swig of liquor, the cruel, bloodthirsty grin on his face growing wider.
"I happened to think these clothes were getting in the way, too. Thanks for reminding me."
As soon as he finished speaking, Bai Yu planted the wooden sword in the ground and began stripping off the heavily modified training suit he had only recently put on.
But this action was undoubtedly more than the Marines could accept.
He had a rare piece of special protective equipment, yet he was voluntarily taking it off just because of something his opponent had said.
Wasn't that idiotic?
"Hahaha, you stripped after a single remark? Are you stupid, brat..."
Treasure burst out laughing.
But his laughter soon stopped dead.
He stared, dumbfounded, at the outer garment Bai Yu had removed and dropped heavily onto the ground.
Bam!
The three-hundred-kilogram outer garment hit the ground.
It crushed the paved ground into a depression, sending spiderweb cracks spreading outward.
At the same time, the immense Spiritual Pressure suppressed inside him by the modified training suit poured out without restraint.
Boom!
A golden ribbon of Spiritual Pressure shot up, piercing heaven and earth.
As the resulting wind and waves swept outward in every direction,
Bai Yu reached back and snatched the wooden sword from the ground.
For an instant, everyone seemed to see an asura roar as it surged out of Bai Yu.
The immense pressure crashing toward them made the legs of every pirate on the docks, and even the Marines, tremble slightly.
Gold was a sacred radiance.
Yet at this moment, the sight of Bai Yu enveloped in that golden light made their scalps prickle.
"Zoro, what's happening to Lord Bai Yu? Why does he look stronger?"
Carina's expression froze, and she could not help asking.
When they first met, Bai Yu had felt very strong to them as well.
But compared with the nearly suffocating pressure before them now, that had been far too weak.
Zoro's face had also gone a little pale. He had personally witnessed the fight between Koshiro and Bai Yu just now.
Yet just as Carina said, Bai Yu was clearly another notch stronger now.
"Heh, looks like this brat was still holding something back when he fought me."
Koshiro gave a dry chuckle.
"All these years holed up here, I've certainly enjoyed a peaceful life. Unfortunately, I've also missed the exciting world outside."
"Zoro, it's time you went out and had a look, too. The East Blue is far too small."
"As for Bai Yu, he's always been strong. He's simply too battle-hungry, so he's been using external means to suppress himself. Those wrist weights earlier, and this training suit, probably suppressed two-thirds of his strength."
"Only now is he truly an unleashed savage beast!"
Carina was stunned!
No!
Rather, everyone was dumbfounded.
He had restricted himself because he was too strong.
What kind of logic was that?
At least Treasure, feeling that terrifying aura, now wished he could slap himself.
Of all the people he could have told to strip, he had to tell a man to strip.
This time, he had truly stumbled headfirst.
"All right, let's keep fighting to the death!"
Bai Yu loosened his shoulders, and the instant he stepped forward-
Bam!
Only a deep footprint remained in the ground. By the time they came to their senses, Bai Yu was already in front of Treasure.
Without the slightest flourish, the wooden sword in his hand erupted with dazzling golden light.
Treasure's expression changed sharply, and he hurriedly raised his arms to block.
Boom!
An explosive storm swept across the entire dock.
Like a cannonball, Treasure crashed headfirst into the reefs dozens of meters away.
The immense force poured out, smashing a large stretch of reef to pieces with a crash.
At the same time, Bai Yu swiftly followed like a ghostly shadow, bringing the wooden sword in his hand down again.
There was nothing fancy about any of his attacks.
There was only a relentless bombardment!
In just over ten seconds, Bai Yu unleashed more than a hundred slashes.
Every strike carried tremendous weight and force.
The only thing Treasure could do was defend, then defend some more.
The chains wound around his body did indeed seem indestructible.
But that did not mean they could completely cancel out the impact of every slash.
Feeling the blood churning violently inside him, Treasure roared urgently.
"Naolai, hurry and cover me!"
Bam!
The wooden sword slashed down again. Treasure could finally no longer suppress the surging blood within him and spat it out.
Far away, Naolai had been watching the battle all along. The drunken look had long since vanished from Naolai's face, and Naolai hurriedly drew a bow, nocked arrows, and shot at Bai Yu.
Whoosh! Whoosh!
The sounds of arrows splitting the air rang out one after another.
Seven arrows in succession-this was Naolai's strongest attack.
They closed the few dozen meters in the blink of an eye.
Looking at the incoming attack, Bai Yu merely raised his head slightly and watched it land.
Boom!
The explosion rang across the entire dock.
Flames soared skyward, completely engulfing Bai Yu.
A successful hit!
Yet there was not the slightest smile on Naolai's face.
Naolai stared fixedly at the figure gradually becoming clear within the flames.
The sight shook Naolai completely.
Pitch-black Armament Haki covered his entire body.
He looked as though he had been cast from steel.
He had emerged from that attack entirely unscathed.
"Full-body Armament Haki! You-you're definitely not some rookie from the East Blue! Who exactly are you?!"
Treasure was shocked. Even he could not pull off something like that.
He absolutely refused to believe that the youth before him truly hailed from the Weakest Sea.
"It doesn't matter who I am. But you seem to have strayed from the original purpose of a fight to the death. Doing that will get you killed!"
Bai Yu looked slightly disappointed.
Sure enough, an opponent who relied solely on a Devil Fruit ability was still not fit to take the stage.
Treasure was dumbfounded. As a treasure hunter active in the first half of the Grand Line, he had always been the one to toy with others.
When had anyone ever belittled him in public like this?
Seeing that flicker of disappointment cross Bai Yu's bloodthirsty face was nothing short of a monumental humiliation.
"You damned brat! You dare look down on me? I'm the great treasure hunter, Lord Treasure! You'll pay the price for underestimating me!"