Chapter 32

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East Blue – Baratie 

"What's so funny?", Don Krieg asked, restraining himself from killing the brat in front of him. 

"Shishishishi, no, it's just really funny that you think you're the strongest man in the world when people like Whitebeard, Shanks, Kaidou, and Garp are out there. Besides, you won't find the One Piece or become the Pirate King because I'll be the one to do that", Luffy explained, a playful grin on his face. 

"Hahaha, you? A brat who hasn't seen anything of the world is going to become the Pirate King? Don't make me laugh", Don Krieg sneered. 

"Well, you better listen to the old man, take the food and get out, or I'll throw you out myself", Luffy said, standing up from the floor. 

"Ha! I'd like to see you try, brat", Don Krieg said, taunting Luffy with his arms wide open. 

"You asked for it", Luffy replied, suddenly appearing in front of Krieg and delivering a punch straight to his solar plexus, creating a hole in his armor the size of a watermelon, both in the front and the back. 

Though it didn't tear through his body like it did his armor, a dark purple bruise immediately appeared at the point of impact. Krieg vomited several mouthfuls of blood and passed out instantly. 

His body flew out of the restaurant, crashing through the wall and only stopping when it hit one of the masts of his ship, which, already in poor condition, split in two from the impact. 

"Here, Bin, give this to your friends so they can eat, then you can leave", Luffy said, handing Gin the sack of food that Zeff had prepared. 

Gin immediately stood up with some effort, took the sack, and ran to feed his companions. 

Suddenly, Luffy sensed a powerful presence approaching the restaurant using his Observation Haki. 

Luffy moved outside the restaurant, waiting for the arrival of this powerful presence. 

At that moment, all the customers took advantage of the brief calm to flee to their ships, knowing that a storm was likely on the horizon. 

Seeing Luffy staring intently at the horizon, Zoro asked as he approached, "What are you looking at, Captain?" 

"Someone really strong is coming", Luffy replied, putting his crew, Sanji, Zeff, and the chefs on alert. 

A few minutes passed as Gin fed his starving crewmates, and then a small coffin-shaped boat appeared on the horizon, approaching the restaurant. 

"Looks like you'll get your fight sooner than expected, Zoro", Luffy said, watching the boat draw closer. 

"Is that Hawkeye?", Zoro asked, gripping the hilt of one of his swords tightly. 

"Yes, and I should warn you, you're going to lose", Luffy said seriously. 

"I know", Zoro said, pulling the bandana off his arm and tying it around his head in preparation for Mihawk's arrival. 

"And you're still going to fight him?", Kaya asked, worried. 

"My dream is to become the greatest swordsman in the world, and for that, I need to defeat this guy. Besides, a swordsman doesn't run from a fight, whether weaker or not than their opponent. I don't run from battles", Zoro said, his eyes burning with determination. 

"You're crazy, you know that? And you, Luffy, aren't you going to say something to stop him?", Nami asked, concerned. 

"I don't stand in the way of my crew's dreams, Nami", Luffy said, gently patting Nami's back. 

=Scene Break= 

A few minutes later, Don Krieg's pirates finished eating and fully recovered. 

"WE'RE ALIVE!" 

"WE SURVIVED THAT HELL!" 

Suddenly, they noticed their captain lying on the deck in a pool of blood from his mouth. 

"CAPTAIN? WHAT HAPPENED TO HIM?", one of the pirates asked, worried. 

"He got beaten up. Now we better get out of here so we can treat the captain", Gin said, not wanting to cause trouble for Sanji. 

Suddenly, their ship was sliced in half by Dracule Mihawk, who had just arrived. 

"Usopp, go check if the Merry was damaged", Luffy said, unfazed by the violent waves caused by Mihawk's attack, which split Don Krieg's ship. 

Once the sea calmed, Usopp returned and said, "The Merry's fine, just a bit messy from the waves knocking things over." 

"No worries, we'll tidy it up later", Luffy said, patting Usopp on the shoulder. 

"What the hell, did that guy follow us?", one of the pirates asked, noticing Mihawk after managing to stabilize himself. 

"WHY DID YOU ATTACK US IN THE GRAND LINE?", one of the pirates yelled at Mihawk, wanting to know the reason for the attack they had suffered almost immediately upon entering the Grand Line. 

"You woke me from my nap", Mihawk said in a bored tone. 

"WHAT THE HELL?", The pirates were outraged by this answer, realizing their entire fleet had been destroyed for nothing. 

"And why did you follow us here?", Gin asked, confused about why Mihawk had come all the way here. 

"I was bored, so I decided to kill some time, but it seems I found someone interesting", Mihawk said, glancing at Luffy, who was standing on the Baratie's entrance deck. 

Noticing the familiar straw hat on Nami's head, Mihawk said, "That straw hat looks familiar. Is it yours, girl?" 

"The hat's mine, why?", Luffy asked, crossing his arms. 

"So, you're the boy Shanks talked about?", Mihawk asked, intrigued by Luffy. 

"You know Shanks?" 

"The Red-Haired was the only one who could keep up with me in a sword fight. Then one day, he shows up missing an arm, saying he bet it on the future of a boy from the East Blue. From what I see, you're quite strong for your age", Mihawk said, assessing Luffy. 

At that moment, Zoro stepped forward, drawing Mihawk's attention. "Dracule Mihawk, also known as Hawkeye, I've been searching for you for a long time." 

"And what do you want from me, boy?" 

"Your title", Zoro said, drawing his swords and placing Wado in his mouth. 

"How original", Mihawk replied in a monotone voice. 

"You've got some free time, right? Well, I, Roronoa Zoro, challenge you to a duel", Zoro said, determination written all over his face. 

"Interesting. Is this will to fight me, even knowing the outcome, born from your heart or your foolishness?", Mihawk asked, intrigued by the young man in front of him, determined to fight even though he knew he was too weak to face him. 

"It's my dream and a promise I made to someone dear", Zoro said, getting into the stance for the fight he'd trained for his whole life. 

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(AN: 1,085 Words)

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