Chapter 22: Arc 2: Explosion! The Three Swords Style! Zoro vs. Baroque Works!

"Hey, sorry, but," Zoro voiced from the rooftop, after overhearing Igarappoi's plan to capture the crew alive. "Do you mind letting them sleep? They're all exhausted from the journey this afternoon."

"You bastard..." Igarappoi glared. "I thought you were completely asleep."

"Swordsmen never make the mistake of letting their guard down that much." Zoro smirked. "So, let's see if I've got this right. This is a nest of bounty hunters. You dupe pirates who are in high spirits after having just entered the Grand Line. Looks like there're about 100 bounty hunters here. I'll fight you all, Baroque Works."

"You bastard!" Igarappoi exclaimed. "How is it that you know our company's name?"

"When I used to be in a similar line of work, I was recruited by your company once." Zoro admitted. "Naturally, I rejected it. Employees don't know each other's identities and are called by code names. Of course, the boss' whereabouts and his identity are also a mystery, even to them. Baroque Works is a criminal group that just faithfully carries out their orders. Was it a secret?" he smirked.

"Oi oi, do you intend on keeping the fun to yourself, Zoro?" Sasha tsked, taking her place beside the swordsman.

"I thought you were asleep." Zoro noted.

"Unlike aniki, I practice moderation." Sasha shrugged.

"This is surprising." Igarappoi admitted. "If you know our secrets, then we have no choice but to kill you. Another two gravestones will be added to the Cactus Rocks. Kill them!"

"Ex-quip!" Sasha followed Zoro's example and jumped into the air. "Dragonite's Wheel Armor!" she donned her spiked metallic blue metal armor with numerous swords circling her at increasing speed. "Circular Blade!" she unleashed the blades in a disc formation, sending them flying at the gathered bounty hunters and knocking down the underlings.

"Let me ask you a question." Zoro rested one of his swords against Igarappoi's ear. "Are you sure you need to add only two gravestones?"

"Idiots!" Igarappoi panicked when some of the unharmed hunters pointed a shotgun at them. "Are you gonna shoot me too? Igarappa!" he bent backwards, retaliating with a spray of bullets from his saxophone and Zoro and Sasha took the opening to hide. "Do they seriously think they can fight all of us by themselves?" he growled. "It's hard to believe that they challenged us, even knowing we're with Baroque Works."

"Zoro, please stop teasing." Sasha chided, Zoro rocking a ladder one of the bounty hunters chasing them was climbing on back and forth, the pair having made quick work of the lower ranking bounty hunters.

"Sure." Zoro shrugged and pushed the ladder off the building.

"Trinity Blade!" Sasha's delta-shaped energy blade cut through the falling hunters.

"Two Sword Style: Hawk Wave!" Zoro jumped over to the next building, his attack taking out another group of hunters. "Watch out." he warned, walking away from another group of hunters that had jumped down from a building, having cut a hole on the roof. "That place is unstable."

"Don't try our patience." Miss Monday warned, slipping on a metal sheath on her hand after forcing Zoro to duck a swung ladder. "There's no man who can best my strength. This is the end of you." she lifted Zoro by the neck. "Superhuman Brass Knuckles!" she slammed Zoro onto the ground and slammed her fist at him.

"What's wrong, muscle woman?" Zoro retorted, his hand closing on her skull in response. "Didn't you want to have a contest in strength?"

"Pentagram Blade!" Sasha ended the standoff by taking out the oversized female with five sword slashes to form a pentagram.

"Shall we continue, Baroque Works?" Zoro smirked. "Fighting isn't a joke. Okay, done." he declared, taking out Igarappoi, Mr. 9, and Miss Wednesday.

"How pitiful, losing against just two pirates." Mr. 5 tsked as he and Miss Valentine appeared before the beaten trio. "Are you guys kidding around?"

"After all this is the difference between our rank and yours, isn't it?" Miss Valentine mocked. "We're here under our mission."

"There're criminals here that are big enough for the boss to send us to deal with." Mr. 5 stepped forward. "These're the boss' words: They've found out my secrets. Of course, I don't know what kind of secrets they are, but our company's motto is 'mystery'. No matter whose identity it is, the rule is that you never nose around. If someone finds out about the boss' secrets, that's of course, a sin worthy of death."

"So, when we carefully investigated who learned his secrets," Miss Valentine laughed. "We found out that a VIP from a certain kingdom sneaked into Baroque Works."

"The sinners are those who're missing from Alabasta Kingdom right now." Mr. 5 added.

"Die!" Igarappoi stood up and fired his bullets at the two agents. "Igarappappa! I won't let you lay a finger on our princess! On my name as Squad Captain of Alabasta Kingdom Security!"

"Igaram, the Squad Captain of Alabasta Kingdom Security." Mr. 5 stated, the pair were unscathed from the gunfire. "And it's princess, Nefeltari Vivi. In the name of the Baroque Works boss, we'll eliminate you two."