Bang! Bang! Bang!
The shattered pieces of the saber flew like cannonballs, smashing both n and ship into ruin. Each fragnt carried Rosen's power—no small force.
The luxurious rchant ship slowly sank. The remaining escort vessels didn't even have ti to react. They looked at Hawkeye, then at Rosen, and imdiately turned their bows away.
"Who's that masked man? He's ridiculously strong—must be a Devil Fruit user!"
"No idea, but we'd better not provoke him. We're here for the auction, not trouble. I've heard plenty of powerful people have already arrived at Paradise, even the world's number one beauty." One pirate cast a wary glance, still shaken.
But before he could finish speaking, a black slash cut through the air, aid straight for Hawkeye's head.
"Mihawk! Long ti no see. Let's settle this today—Rending Slash!"
The black slash, crescent-shaped at first, blood into a cross as it neared Hawkeye's head.
"Who is that!? Daring to attack a Shichibukai?"
"What the? That's the world's greatest swordsman!"
Onlookers fled toward the shore. They weren't foolish—whoever attacked Hawkeye, the safest place was far away, lest they be caught in his retaliation.
"What a powerful strike! This attacker is no weakling… and this style feels familiar…" Rosen thought. Then, a figure ca racing over the ground like an untad beast, making the earth quake.
"It's Moris! What's he doing here… and he seems to have a grudge against Hawkeye." Rosen was surprised. Since parting ways in the City of Wine, he hadn't paid much attention to this forr rival.
But Moris was still a force to be reckoned with.
"Let's see if you've improved these past years." Hawkeye raised his black blade and lightly swung, shattering the cross-shaped slash.
His eyes lit with battle intent. Though Moris wasn't purely a swordsman, his strength warranted drawing his blade. Hawkeye never sought to annihilate those he respected—he preferred to wait for them to grow stronger and challenge him again.
Even as the greatest swordsman in the world, he never grew complacent; he constantly sought worthy opponents to hone his skill.
Perhaps that was why he remained at the top.
"Just what I wanted!" Moris closed in, his massive fra cloaked in Armant Haki, his arms wrapped in rending slashes—he was the Rending Man of the Rending Fruit.
"Rending Net!" Black slashes like a lattice of lasers shot from his hands.
Hawkeye struck back, but the attack didn't break instantly. The two forces collided, their Haki-laden impacts rippling outward.
Ships at the port swayed violently as the clash disturbed the sea.
"What do we do?" Xia was uneasy but kept calm. It was hard to fathom—two powerhouses clashing without warning.
"They fight, we handle our business. Actually, this is a perfect distraction—many will be watching from afar. Who could resist seeing the world's greatest swordsman in action?" If Rosen didn't have tasks to handle, he would've stayed to watch.
He didn't plan on making Hawkeye an enemy, but by observing, he could gauge the pinnacle of swordsmanship in this world.
Moris and Hawkeye's fight moved from the port to the outer rim of the island-ship, where the terrain better suited them.
"Fine, but Aberdeen is probably hiding in his safe house now. We'll only see him at the eting."
"Killing him at the eting won't cause you trouble?" Rosen asked.
"No. It might even bring unexpected benefits." Xia smiled coldly.
"Alright."
"Moris, the ex–bounty hunter with a price on his head for killing a Marine Vice Admiral… I think his latest bounty was 520 million Berries!" a bounty hunter at the port exclaid.
"Five hundred… and twenty million!? My god!"
"He's insane—killed a Vice Admiral and now dares challenge a Shichibukai. I wonder who'll win."
Rosen: …
"Do you even need to ask? Hawkeye, obviously. I've never heard of him losing to anyone."
"Not so sure. The man behind the Yordel Trading Company now is Moris. I've heard he's overthrown others outright—he's strong. He might have a chance." Another spoke up, knowing so inside news—Moris had been in Paradise for a while, leading a group of formidable ex–bounty hunters.
Rosen, Xia, her dozens of guards, and Alex headed toward a towering skyscraper in the heart of Paradise.
It was the most luxurious hotel-castle, each floor offering unique services—and the priciest spot in all Paradise.
The top floor was tonight's Grand Chamber of Comrce eting venue.
"It's 8 p.m. The eting starts at 11. Want to eat or play first? Don't worry about expenses—here's 300 million Berries. If you need more, tell ." Xia signaled a subordinate to hand over three suitcases, trailing behind Rosen.
If Rosen wanted entertainnt, he wouldn't need to lift a finger—servants would handle everything.
"No. If you get killed, your promises an nothing. You may be weak, but at least you know Andia Kingdom well." Rosen refused. Paradise's streets were clean, its Gothic architecture soaring with pointed spires, vibrant despite the muted colors.
But inside taverns, inns, and gambling halls, violence still simred—though restrained.
"Hey, could you at least be polite? And I'm not weak!" Xia protested, showing off her ability—though rembering how she failed against Kiel earlier, she quietly stopped.
Paradise didn't care much about personal grudges, but it strictly protected businesses—otherwise, no one would dare invest here.
Rosen saw a burly man beating a woman. She wasn't helpless—she pulled a dagger and stabbed his waist several tis. The man, enraged, drew a machete to finish her.
From a Den Den Mushi on the wall ca a voice:
"Rember to pay the cleaning fee if you kill soone. Of course, Lady Xia is exempt. I'm Coulson, head of Paradise Security. Pleased to et you—and the strong bodyguard."
The man hesitated, perhaps over the cleaning fee, then kicked the woman unconscious and staggered off, reeking of alcohol.
"Woman, have you heard of the Dawn Pirates?" Rosen took a stack of Berries from a case and handed it to her. From her behavior, he guessed she was a bounty hunter—bounty hunters tended to keep up with pirate news.
The man earlier had been a pirate.
"Dawn Pirates? I've heard of them, but they're not in Paradise." She took the money and left.
"So I arrived first… must've been delayed by sothing." Rosen guessed their ship had no Andia eternal pose and was resting on another island.
But then why couldn't the Den Den Mushi reach them?
(End of Chapter)
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