One-Punch Man in the One Piece World

18. Zoro joins the party

Deep in the forest, the light is filtered and fragmented by the layers of tree canopy.

In this almost eternal darkness, the two figures moved so fast that they were just afterimages.

The battle between the ninjas and swordsmen has reached its most intense stage!

Sasuke drew his sword, the ninja blade tracing a strange arc!

Zoro slammed his right foot into the ground, twisting his body at an incredible angle, and narrowly blocked the attack with Wado Ichimonji.

Sparks from the metal clashing hit his face, causing a burning sting.

"To have survived my ninja sword for so long..." Sanosuke jumped back to create distance, his voice as cold as ice, "Truly remarkable."

Zoro was panting heavily, his hands trembling slightly—not from fear, but from the physiological reaction of his overly tense muscles.

Sweat mixed with blood streamed down his forehead, stinging his eyes as it slid into them.

He had been fighting this damned ninja in this damned forest for over twenty minutes.

Twenty minutes feels like an eternity in a life-or-death battle between masters.

"You're not bad either..." Zoro spat out a mouthful of blood.

This is not a compliment; since becoming a bounty hunter, Zoro has never encountered anyone who could withstand ten of his attacks.

But this ninja is different!

Sanosuke is like a real shadow. Every time Zoro thinks he has caught him, he slips away through the gaps in the blade and attacks from a completely unexpected angle.

What alarmed Zoro even more was the rhythm of the battle—Sasuke had completely taken control of the pace of the fight.

Fast and slow, offense and defense, appearance and concealment...

Every switch is as precise as a clock!

"But your breathing is erratic," Sanosuke suddenly said.

Zoro's pupils contracted.

It's now!

Sanosuke moved.

It wasn't the ghostly stealth of before, but a violent, straight charge forward!

He held a kunai in each hand and bit the ninja sword in his mouth—he was actually imitating Zoro's three-sword style stance!

"Ninpo Technique: Shadow Fang Three Flashes!"

Three cold lights flashed simultaneously! They blocked Zoro's escape routes from three directions!

Zoro roared and charged forward with three sword strikes!

clang!clang!clang!

Three explosive sounds rang out almost simultaneously! The shrill whistling sound that tore through the air shook countless leaves to the ground.

This time, instead of retreating after one strike, Sanosuke pressed down with his full weight, using his kunai and ninja sword to firmly block Zoro's three swords!

The two entered the most dangerous phase of their struggle.

The blades scraped together, producing a piercing sound and sparks flying everywhere.

Zoro could see Sanosuke's eyes, which were inches away...

Those eyes were eerily calm, devoid of anger, excitement, or even a hint of murderous intent that was barely perceptible.

Does this guy... treat fighting like a job?

...

Just as Sanosuke and Zoro were locked in a fierce battle, a figure stood quietly under the shade of a tree high above, watching their fight with great interest.

It was Norton who rushed over upon hearing the commotion.

He had been there for a while, but he didn't rush to stop it.

"Green hair, three-sword style... Could this guy be called Zoro?"

Norton was surprised to find such an unexpected gain in such a remote place, and his mood immediately brightened.

As the second-in-command of the Straw Hat Pirates in the original work, Zoro is known for his great strength and reliable personality.

Norton had no reason not to let such a talent slip by—he wanted to establish his own country and needed someone like Sauron to assist him.

The battle in the arena continued. In Norton's view, it would take several hours for the two to determine a victor.

Their strengths are too close.

Sasuke is faster, but Zoro is stronger.

Sasuke's slight advantage at the moment is largely due to the dim lighting.

If the battlefield were not in a forest, but in a well-lit place, the ninja's stealth technique would not be so effective.

Seeing the battle becoming increasingly intense, Norton finally decided to intervene.

"Sanosuke, let's stop here."

As soon as he finished speaking, Norton jumped down from the shade of the tree and landed between Sanosuke and Zoro.

Sanosuke was stunned for a moment, then quickly realized what was happening and sheathed his ninja sword: "Yes, my lord."

"You too, stop it." Norton looked at Zoro on the other side.

Zoro looked resentful as he coldly sized up the silver-haired young man in front of him—who looked about the same age as him, tall and imposing, with a sculpted, handsome face.

"And who are you? Get lost before I get angry! Otherwise, I won't mind another soul dying under my blade!"

Zoro was furious at Norton for interrupting the fight.

In his eyes, Norton exuded no aura of a powerful figure whatsoever; aside from his handsome appearance, he was just an ordinary person.

"My name is Norton, and I'm the man destined to be the King of the World! What's your name?" Norton smiled.

"The King of the World?" Zoro was taken aback, momentarily stunned by Norton's ambition. Then he sized Norton up and down, questioning, "You?"

"The title of King of the World is barely worthy of me," Norton said with a smile.

"Such arrogance!" Zoro sneered. "Listen up! My name is Roronoa Zoro! I'm the man who will become the world's greatest swordsman!"

It really is Zoro… Norton was overjoyed, but said aloud:

"The world's greatest swordsman? A fine dream. I'm planning to recruit a powerful swordsman; are you interested in joining my ranks?"

"Join your ranks?" Zoro glanced at Sanosuke, who stood respectfully behind Norton like a servant, then looked at Norton himself. "Why should I?"

"It's simple, because I'm better than you," Norton said.

"Stronger than me?" Zoro looked Norton up and down again, then slowly shook his head. "I can't tell."

He still felt that Sanosuke was stronger, but he didn't understand why someone as strong as Sanosuke would be willing to be Norton's subordinate.

"Why don't you give it a try and see? I'll throw a punch, and if you can catch it, you win," Norton said.

"Don't look down on people!" Zoro frowned.

Norton didn't reply. He turned to Zoro and threw a punch.

The punch was so slow, as if it were being slowly pushed towards Zoro, an incredibly slow pace. But in Zoro's eyes, the punch felt as heavy as a falling mountain!

In just a moment, Zoro felt his hair stand on end, as if the whole world was pressing down on him, and he would be crushed to dust in the next second!

This intense sense of oppression caused Zoro to momentarily stop breathing, and the world before his eyes suddenly slowed down.

My mind went blank, leaving only the powerful shock that struck my very soul!

The fist drew ever closer, but Zoro couldn't even dodge—his body was completely out of his control, frozen in place.

Finally, the fist hovered less than an inch in the air in front of Zoro.

Norton slowly withdrew his fist: "Looks like I won."

As Norton withdrew his fist, the oppressive feeling that seemed to come from the entire world vanished instantly.

Zoro felt no frustration at losing; instead, he was completely filled with shock and excitement.

I thought Norton was just an ordinary handsome man, but I never expected him to be a stronger person than Sanosuke!

Sasuke's strength was already on par with his, but Norton's strength far surpassed Sasuke's!

Zoro had never seen such a powerful man.

"Your name is Norton? I challenge you!" After being shocked by his power, Zoro's heart was filled with a burning desire to challenge him.

"Challenge me?" Norton raised an eyebrow, revealing a hint of surprise.

Despite the intent he had just displayed in his fist, Zoro had not lost his fighting spirit.

It should be noted that even ferocious sea kings would instinctively flee in the face of his serious release of fist intent.

This is not speculation—over the past two years, whenever he has been practicing his boxing skills with concentration on the shore, sea creatures and birds within a radius of several miles would keep their distance and dare not approach.

"That's right! I challenge you!" Zoro repeated resolutely.

"Knowing you'll lose, you still want to take on the challenge?" Norton raised an eyebrow.

"If you back down because you're afraid of failure, you'll never become stronger!" Zoro's answer was filled with stubborn seriousness.

He was not without defeat; he had even lost to a girl once. But each fall brought him one step closer to the top.

"Interesting." Norton's lips curled into a smile.

"If you want to challenge my lord, you'll have to get past me first!" Sanosuke stepped in front of Norton, his tone cold and hard.

He finally found an opportunity to demonstrate his loyalty.

Norton's power meant he didn't need Norton's protection, which often made Sanosuke feel that his presence was somewhat superfluous.

Norton gently pushed aside Sanosuke, who was blocking his way, and said to Zoro, "Then come aboard my ship. Once you're on board, you can challenge me anytime, and I'll be happy to oblige."

He knew what Zoro truly desired—to become stronger and reach the pinnacle.

Now, he has laid out a path to a higher level before Zoro, and Zoro cannot resist this temptation, just as Nami cannot resist glittering treasure.

"Can!"

As expected, Zoro readily agreed. But he immediately added a condition: "However, I want to retain the freedom to disembark at any time!"

He didn't want to be tied down by anything; he had his own dreams to pursue. Besides, he did need a boat to take him off this deserted island—which suited his immediate needs.

"Of course, you are free to come and go as you please," Norton nodded in agreement.

Once Zoro boards his ship, he is confident that he can keep the swordsman there forever.

Because his power is limitless!

Zoro can never truly defeat him.

After reaching an agreement, Norton led Zoro and Sanosuke back to the camp.

The carcass of the tiger that caused the fight was also brought back—at this point, the reason for the fight was no longer important; they had become friends through a fight.

Zoro also generously gave away his prey to everyone.

Time quietly slipped into evening.

The people who had gone to explore the island returned one after another. After the headcount was confirmed, everyone gathered around the roaring campfire.

As night fell completely, the bonfire on the beach was burning brightly.

The tiger meat was roasted until crispy on the outside and tender on the inside, with the fat dripping into the fire and making an enticing sizzling sound, its aroma wafting far and wide on the wind.

The cooks brought out vegetables and bread stored on the ship, and even opened a barrel of cider. It was Funing's private collection, but she generously contributed it this time.

Zoro's appetite shocked everyone present.

In just half an hour, the green-haired swordsman devoured five kilograms of roasted meat, three loaves of bread, and two plates of vegetable salad. He was now gnawing on his sixth roasted rib, his face glistening with oil.

The bones piled up around him were like a small mountain, and a wine barrel was completely empty.

"Are you a reincarnated starving ghost?" Nami couldn't help but retort.

"Fighting takes a lot of energy," Zoro mumbled, then tilted his head back and gulped down another mouthful of wine.

Norton smiled, not paying much attention.

In fact, his appetite was even more astonishing than Zoro's in his early years. However, after breaking through certain physical limitations, he was able to precisely control his metabolism, digesting food and converting it into energy almost 100%.

Now he can go for long periods without eating, only needing to maintain the bare minimum of bodily functions.

Fu Ning sat on a chair a little further away, taking small bites of the food on her plate, her gaze occasionally shifting between Sauron and Norton.

She could clearly sense that this new swordsman was very strong.

It wasn't the kind of hidden danger that Sasuke exuded, but rather a sharp, almost savage, strength.

"So, it was that gang of pirates who stole your knife?" Norton asked casually as he cut the meat on his plate.

"Hmm." Zoro swallowed his mouthful of food. "It's a decent knife. More importantly, they stole it while I was completely drunk. This is unacceptable!"

Upon hearing this, Norton subconsciously glanced at Nami, thinking to himself that her style of doing things was quite similar to someone else's.

Nami keenly caught his gaze and immediately glared at him: "What do you mean?!"

"It's nothing, eat meat, eat meat." Norton chuckled, stuffing meat from his fork into Nami's mouth before turning to Zoro. "Remember which direction they escaped in?"

Zoro tapped his forehead with his oily hands, looking exasperated. "I don't know anything about directions... I only remember their ship was a sloop with a red skull and crossbones emblem painted on the stern. The captain was a fat guy with a flail, and his bounty was 3.2 million Berries."

He ended up on this island because he lost track of his target during the pursuit.

Norton nodded, then turned to Nami: "Nami, I'm leaving her to you."

"Leave everything to me!"

Nami was furious. "You don't even know which way those pirates ran! I'm just a navigator, not a god! How am I supposed to find them for you?"

Norton stood up, gazing at the dark sea in the cool night breeze, then casually pointed in a direction: "Over there! Which way is it?"

"That's northeast!" Nami replied irritably.

"Then let's head northeast and set sail first thing tomorrow morning!" Norton announced confidently.

Nami helplessly covered her forehead, wondering what all the high spirits were about.

"Hey! You really believe him that much?" Nami looked at Zoro with an incredulous expression.

"As long as someone leads the way, it doesn't matter if the direction is right or wrong, I don't know anything about it anyway." Zoro took a sip of his drink, his tone casual. "Maybe we'll get lucky and stumble upon something?"

Upon hearing this, everyone exchanged bewildered glances. Sanosuke quietly lowered his head.

Good luck? That word probably has little to do with their ship.

Nami sighed, and finally took out the nautical chart and compass from her pocket, beginning to calculate by the light of the campfire: "The current is southwest, with moderate wind speed. If it moves northeast..."

Zoro glanced at Nami, then at Norton, and suddenly said, "Your navigator is good. Much better than those pirates' navigators. Their navigators can't even tell the difference between high and low tide."

Nami paused, then slapped Zoro on the head, her face slightly flushed: "Don't think you can eat and drink for free just because you praised me! Also, the fee for leading the way is 100,000 Berries!"

"You shrew!" Zoro covered the small bump that had suddenly swelled up on his head, glared at Nami, and gritted his teeth.

"Hahaha!!" Norton slapped his thigh and laughed. The scene before him gave him a sense of familiarity and joy.

The banquet continued, and the pirates sang vulgar yet heroic songs, while the shipwrights and cooks began to drink heavily.

Sasuke remained quietly seated in the shadows, not participating in the commotion. As a ninja, he had to stay alert at all times, and Sasuke never drank alcohol.

After only a few drinks, Funing became quite drunk and was carried back to the cabin by Norton to rest.

As night deepened, the campfire gradually died down.

Most of them were drunk and lay sprawled on the beach.

Zoro also leaned against the tree trunk and fell into a deep sleep, still holding the empty wine barrel in his arms.

Norton sat alone by the dying fire, silently adding a few more pieces of firewood.

Just then, he heard a faint noise.

It wasn't the sound of wild animals, nor the wind; it was the sound of deliberately lowered footsteps, coming from the direction of the tents and slowly moving towards the reef area.

Norton did not get up immediately.

He waited until the footsteps had gone some distance before slowly standing up and silently following them.