28. What Kind Of Creature Is This!
Shanks, standing not far from the restaurant, glanced over at Tom's ship with interest. He then gave Buggy a friendly pat on the shoulder and burst into laughter:
"Buggy, we're lucky we got here in time. These two pirates sure are something!"
"Would've been a shame to miss out!"
Buggy's mouth twitched, and he grabbed Shank's collar, grumbling:
"I can see just fine, thank you very much!"
As he spoke, Buggy's gaze remained fixed on Al and Tom, his nerves starting to get the better of him.
Why would someone so strong end up in the weakest sea like this?
Could there be treasure involved?
With this thought in mind, Buggy rubbed his hands together, a sinister grin spreading across his face.
Seeing his expression, Shanks took a step back, repulsed. "Buggy, your grin gives me the creeps."
"Shut it, Shanks!"
Just as Buggy was about to angrily reach for the throwing knife at his waist, Beckman suddenly interjected, "Hawkeye and that swordsman are about to duel."
Shanks grabbed Buggy's arm excitedly. "Is it finally happening?"
They both watched as Tom arrogantly lifted his head, pacing in front of Hawkeye. Then, with a sudden gesture, he signaled to Yoru, and a lightbulb appeared above his head.
Immediately afterward, to the astonishment of everyone present, Tom pulled out a massive sword nearly 10 meters long from behind him!
Perhaps due to its immense weight, Tom staggered a bit as he first wielded the sword, struggling to maintain his balance.
After finally steadying himself, Tom wiped away his sweat, extended his feline claws, and beckoned arrogantly to Hawkeye.
"Wow!"
Luffy's eyes sparkled like stars as he gazed enviously at the enormous blade in Tom's hand, shouting with excitement.
Zoro's eyebrow twitched slightly, puzzled. "What's this guy up to?"
Al was also taken aback by Tom's move, his mouth twitching in surprise.
"I think Tom is confusing Hawkeye with that worthless Krieg?" he muttered to himself.
Seeing this, Shanks burst into laughter. It was the first time he had encountered such an amusing cat.
Meanwhile, Buggy and his crew, along with the patrons of the restaurant, shared synchronized expressions of shock, mouths agape as they exclaimed:
"Whoa!"
"Where did that giant sword come from?!"
Hawkeye paused for a moment, a mix of emotions swirling inside him. With a cold snort, he unsheathed his black blade, Yoru, and effortlessly sliced Tom's massive sword into pieces, as if cutting through melons.
However, Tom had his eyes shut tight at that moment, completely unaware that only the handle of his massive sword remained in his grasp.
"Aha!"
Tom lifted the handle of the sword and, with a sudden motion, flung it forward due to inertia.
Feeling his hands now empty, Tom opened his eyes in confusion. Glancing around, he suddenly realized that his sword had been sliced into pieces.
Before Tom could react, the handle of the sword, which had just been thrown, was intercepted by Hawkeye and struck Tom squarely on the head, sending him tumbling away with force!
As Tom picked himself up, a sizable lump had formed on his head.
Feeling the bump, Tom adjusted his cap, then clapped his hands together, his expression turning sour as he glared angrily at Hawkeye.
Tom, who didn't believe in backing down, retrieved an even larger and longer sword from his back!
The moment the sword appeared with a loud bang, the entire sea restaurant was plunged into darkness!
Everyone in the restaurant was momentarily stunned, and Luffy questioned suspiciously, "Who turned off the sun?"
"Don't be ridiculous! How could someone turn off the sun!" Usopp snapped, his teeth bared. "It's that massive sword the cat pulled out! It's blocking the sun!"
As soon as Usopp finished speaking, everyone gasped in astonishment and scrambled out of the restaurant one after another.
Looking up at the enormous sword, which obscured the sky, they huddled together in fear as they ran back into the restaurant.
Tom wore a confident smile; he refused to believe that Hawkeye could sever such a colossal blade!
With a demonic laugh, Tom swung the massive sword with his small frame, slashing at Hawkeye!
Hawkeye raised a disdainful eyebrow and remarked casually, "Nice try."
With a few swift slashes, the enormous sword was reduced to pieces, sinking into the sea. Simultaneously, Hawkeye aimed a slash at Tom.
Tom was momentarily stunned, then gazed at Hawkeye in disbelief as his body instinctively split into several smaller pieces, narrowly avoiding Hawkeye's attack by sheer luck!
Witnessing this, Al couldn't help but cover his face, suppressing a smile.
"I must admit, Tom sure knows how to put up a fight!"
Observing Tom's unconventional tactics, Buggy, from afar, was stunned, his limbs splitting in shock as he exclaimed, "That guy can actually separate his body!"
Seeing Hawkeye's stunned reaction, Shanks burst into tears of laughter.
Just as Tom was preparing to make his escape, fragments of the sword rained down from the sky, crashing onto the deck.
"Is he... dead?" Everyone in the restaurant pondered.
However, in the next moment, something completely unexpected occurred, defying their understanding of reality!
Tom, who had been flattened into cat pancakes, miraculously crawled out from beneath the deck. With one paw grasping the front and the other the back, there was a sudden sound, resembling the popping of a bubble.
To everyone's astonishment, Tom managed to pull himself back into his original form, all the while staring at Hawkeye in horror!
The onlookers were left dumbfounded, struggling to believe what they had just witnessed.
"It's hilarious, Shishishi," Luffy and the red-haired man in the distance chuckled, wiping tears from the corners of their eyes simultaneously.
Usopp, Buggy, and the patrons in the restaurant rubbed their eyes in disbelief, their jaws dropping to the ground in shock.
Meanwhile, a chorus of astonished voices erupted:
"This can't be real! What kind of bizarre creature is this?!"
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