Chapter 219: Obstacles on the Return

Zoro, who had spent over a year struggling at sea and had recently secured second place in the Pokémon League Tournament, had finally made a decision—he would resurrect his childhood best friend and bring her back to the world of the living!

The destination of the cargo ship was Kuina's hometown, the place where Zoro first learned kendo: Shimotsuki Village, home to Isshin Dojo. It was also where Zoro's master, Koushirou Shimotsuki, Kuina's father, still resided. Zoro felt that such an important event—the resurrection of his master's daughter—shouldn't be done without Koushirou present to witness the miracle.

That's why Zoro had taken such a large amount of treasure from the Kingdom of Coast and set off. He was confident in his strength and reputation, especially in the East Blue. He believed no one would dare attack their cargo ship.

However, what Zoro didn't know was the truth of Murphy's Law—the more certain you are that something won't happen, the more likely it is to occur.

——

The cargo ship, disguised as a simple merchant vessel, sailed smoothly through the calm waters of the East Blue. Zoro's two companions, Johnny and Yosaku, were diligently steering the ship. Johnny was at the helm, while Yosaku kept watch from the observation deck. They worked well together.

After confirming their course, Yosaku was about to leave the deck for a drink when something strange caught his eye on the horizon.

"What's that?" Yosaku muttered, squinting at the blurry, unfamiliar shape in the distance. He grabbed a monocular to get a better look.

Even through the telescope, the object was still unclear. "Looks like a giant snail… Is that some kind of Sea King?"

As Yosaku continued to examine it, a sense of familiarity began to gnaw at him. "Where have I seen a Sea King like this before?"

"What's up, Yosaku?" Johnny, still steering the ship, asked curiously, noticing Yosaku's silent contemplation.

Meanwhile, Alvida and Koby, who had been awestruck by the treasure in the cabin, had followed Zoro onto the deck, hoping some fresh air would clear their heads. But as they stepped outside, Yosaku suddenly slapped his thigh.

"I remember! It's not a Sea King—it's a ship! That strange, huge ship!"

As the object drew nearer, Yosaku's memory clicked into place. Just a month ago, they had seen a similar ship docked at Baratie, the floating restaurant. That ship, with its giant snail and the castle-like structure on its back, had left quite an impression.

Zoro, intrigued by Yosaku's excitement, placed his hand over his brow to shield his eyes from the sun as he gazed into the distance. "Oh? Looks like we've got something interesting coming our way."

——

Aboard the Snail Ship

At the same time, on the deck of the approaching snail ship, a man with distinctive ring-shaped eyebrows—much like Sanji's—stood at the top of the castle, scanning the horizon. He was dressed in a form-fitting, bright red combat suit emblazoned with a large "66" on the chest.

This man was none other than Vinsmoke Ichiji, Sanji's older brother and one of Judge Vinsmoke's successful experiments.

Judge Vinsmoke had mobilized all of Germa 66's main forces and sailed to the East Blue in search of Zoro, driven by a desire to obtain the miraculous, mysterious essence of life. But despite their extensive search through East Blue's intelligence networks, they had found no trace of Zoro or his crew.

The East Blue, unlike the other seas, was much more peaceful. Even the local intelligence agencies lacked the strength and ambition of their counterparts in more dangerous waters. No one dared touch a man as powerful as Zoro, and those who did know of his whereabouts remained silent, fearing the deadly consequences of crossing him.

After half a month of fruitless searching, the Vinsmoke family decided to split their forces. Germa 66 divided into 30 massive snail ships, each carrying 500 modified soldiers. Armed with full-body photos of Zoro, they scoured the seas and islands, confident that they would eventually find him.

But as a full month passed, they had searched nearly the entire East Blue and still had not located Zoro.

——

"Really, it's been a whole month. Where on earth could that bastard Zoro have gone?" Ichiji grumbled. "Could he have already left for the Grand Line?"

If Judge hadn't assured him that they had already stationed troops there, Ichiji might have been tempted to give up the search entirely. Despite being engineered as an emotionless war machine, Ichiji still retained feelings like pride, cold-bloodedness, and even lust—emotions Judge deemed useful.

The monotonous month of searching had left Ichiji bored and irritated. But, as it was his father's order, he continued to carry it out dutifully, despite his growing frustration.

Just as Ichiji was brooding over his boredom, a soldier in a similarly strange combat uniform approached. The soldier saluted in a robotic manner, devoid of any emotion.

"Lord Ichiji, we've spotted a medium-sized cargo ship ahead. Should we move to investigate?"

"A cargo ship, huh?" Ichiji's eyes gleamed with amusement as he grinned. "No need for you to go—I'll handle this myself."

Finally, something to break the monotony. Laughing, Ichiji activated the mechanisms in his boots, which released sudden bursts of energy.

Boom! In an instant, Ichiji launched himself from the castle's balcony, soaring high into the sky. A trail of flames followed as he rocketed toward Zoro's cargo ship, ready to entertain himself with this new "toy."

  ...

  ...

"Huh?"

Yosaku suddenly exclaimed in confusion, his face showing a hint of shock. Without hesitation, he reported to Zoro:

"Brother Zoro, a man shooting flames just flew out from that ship. It seems like he's coming for us!"

Having followed Zoro for over a year and watched the entire Pokémon League Tournament, Yosaku was hardly surprised anymore, even by the sight of someone flying in the sky. His heart only rippled slightly at the sight.

When Zoro heard this, a strange look crossed his face. The smile that had been at the corner of his lips vanished, and his hand instinctively moved to rest on his sword, Wadou Ichimonji. He murmured to himself:

"Shooting flames? And flying? Why does that combination sound just like that annoying guy...?"

By now, Ichiji had begun using his flame powers to accelerate, making his approach clear to Zoro and his companions, who could see the flames streaking through the sky.

In no time, Ichiji was hovering right above the cargo ship, propelled by his combat suit and flames. Still some distance away, he hadn't yet noticed the green figure on the deck—Zoro—the man he'd been searching for all month.

Ichiji's intent was simple: he wanted a little fun to break the monotony of his search. Treating human life as nothing, a smirk curled his lips as he unleashed a powerful blast of fire from his hands, aiming directly at the cargo ship below.

"Feel the flames of Germa!"

Boom!

Two massive fireballs shot out like missiles, hurtling toward the ship.

Just as Ichiji expected to hear the screams of the East Blue sailors from the ship, something unexpected happened.

"One-Sword Style: 180-Pound Phoenix!"

Whoosh!

A storm of slashes appeared, spinning rapidly and forming a massive whirlwind above the cargo ship.

In just one month, Zoro had grown significantly stronger. Before the tournament, he had already reached a top-level strength of 40. But after fighting against powerful opponents from all corners of the world during the competition, he had pushed past the level 50 threshold. 

Now, with a month's worth of experience and the enhancement from the essence of life, Zoro's strength was closing in on level 60! Combined with his mastery of Armament Haki and Observation Haki, Zoro's power rivaled even some of the weaker Warlords of the Sea, like Crocodile or Gecko Moria.

And he hadn't even used his special skills—Bond Evolution or MEGA Evolution—yet.

Boom!

The whirlwind of slashes clashed violently with Ichiji's flames, the two forces creating an explosive roar in the sky. Under the force of the slashes, Ichiji's fire slowly faded away, as if it had been swallowed by the void.

"Huh?"

Ichiji, now stunned mid-air, had not expected a cargo ship to unleash such a powerful counterattack.

"Isn't the East Blue supposed to be the weakest of the seas?"

Confused, Ichiji descended toward the ship. As he drew closer, the figures on the deck slowly came into view.

"Wait… is that...?"

Ichiji's eyes widened in disbelief, a rare emotion crossing his face.

"Roronoa Zoro!"

He shouted in surprise.

"Huh?"

Zoro, who had been about to ask Ichiji why he attacked, was momentarily taken aback. He rested the still-unsheathed Wadou Ichimonji on his shoulder and grinned.

"That's right. It's me."

Since Kuina's death, Zoro had sworn to make his name known across the world. Being recognized in the vastness of the sea was, to him, a small pleasure.

But the next moment—

A surge of intense flames erupted.

Ichiji, now descending like a meteorite wrapped in flames, charged directly at Zoro without a word.

"What the...?"

Zoro, not expecting such a sudden attack, was caught off guard. But he quickly gripped his sword with both hands and shouted toward the descending figure:

"One-Sword Style: Blue Whale!"

Boom!

A faint blue aura emerged from Zoro's blade, and with a surge of sword energy, he leapt up like a massive blue whale charging toward Ichiji.

The two forces collided with a deafening impact mid-air. The resulting shockwave hit the cargo ship like a hurricane, causing it to rock violently.

Mid-air, Zoro noticed that the man attacking him bore an eerie resemblance to Sanji, but quickly dismissed the thought. The aura surrounding Ichiji was entirely different.

"Who are you? Why are you attacking me?" Zoro asked, raising an eyebrow.

Ichiji, still engulfed in flames, smiled smugly, his face calm and relaxed.

"Roronoa Zoro! We've been searching for you for a long time!"

Boom!

Another burst of power erupted from Ichiji, forcing Zoro, unfamiliar with aerial combat, to plummet like a cannonball toward the sea below.

Splash!

The sea churned as if a giant fist had punched a hole in it. Moments later, a massive wave more than ten meters high rose up, slamming into the cargo ship and forcing it off course.

After sending Zoro crashing down, Ichiji didn't follow up. Instead, he activated a device on his wrist that looked like a strange microphone.

He shouted into it:

"This is Ichiji! I've located Roronoa Zoro. Sending coordinates now!"

A strange electric current flashed through the device, converting into an electrical signal that spread out in all directions.

Following Judge's orders, Ichiji had immediately reported Zoro's location, even though he hadn't fully gauged Zoro's strength yet.

With his combat suit on, Ichiji's power had surpassed level 60, placing him at around level 61 or 62. This strength was a direct result of Judge's experiments and research.

Even though Zoro had reached peak stage 50, Ichiji believed he still held the upper hand before Zoro could unleash his full potential.

But Zoro's latent talent was extraordinary. Even though Luffy's official journey wouldn't begin for another two years, Zoro's current strength was already enough to shock the world!

And that wasn't even his full power.

Whoosh!

Suddenly, a burst of light shot up from the water.

Zoro, holding his doublade, emerged from the sea. Using doublade' buoyant properties, he propelled himself back into the air.

Dripping wet from the surprise attack, Zoro's expression grew cold as he glared at Ichiji.

"Though I don't know who you are, I understand one thing…"

"You're an enemy!"

Boom!

An immense aura erupted from Zoro's body.

A translucent, barely visible connection formed between Zoro and doublade.

"Bond Evolution! Doublade!!!"

Without hesitation, Zoro activated his Bond Evolution with the Pokémon. The once bulky doublade transformed into two slender swords.

Zoro's strength surged, quickly surpassing Ichiji's and continuing to rise, leaving him far behind!

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