22. Duel! Tom Vs Zoro!

As Nami had expected, not long after a loud explosion echoed.

Several chefs from the sea restaurant pulled a boy in a red shirt and a straw hat to the second floor.

Shortly after, a Marine brought his girlfriend to the restaurant and ended up sitting nearby.

"Captain Al, I have this bad feeling creeping in," said Nami, glancing nervously at the Marine beside them.

After taking a sip of the thick soup, Al looked satisfied and offered, "Nami, would you like to taste it?"

Nami covered her face, regretting that she had even asked.

Seeing Nami's worry, Al smiled confidently.

"Just relax and enjoy the delicious food. Tom and I are here to keep you safe," Al reassured.

As soon as he said this, several figures re-entered the restaurant.

Al glanced at Zoro, noticing the three swords at his belt, and Usopp wearing his signature green hat.

Zoro and Usopp caught Al's gaze, exchanging a glance.

Al and Zoro shared a strange smile.

When Usopp spotted Al, his legs shook uncontrollably, but he tried to appear composed and coughed twice before pulling Zoro to an empty seat.

"Hey, Zoro! You're not thinking of picking a fight, are you?" Usopp whispered.

Zoro grunted softly, then his eyes fixed on the western sword at Tom's waist as he muttered suspiciously:

"Is that guy also a swordsman?" Usopp whispered, noticing the determination in Zoro's eyes, which made him immediately anxious.

"Zoro, please calm down!" he urged in a low voice.

Meanwhile, as Usopp continued to persuade Zoro, a Marine who had just arrived at the table next to Al engaged in a heated conflict with Sanji, who was dressed in a black suit.

"Are you kidding me? A mere waiter dares to challenge me!" the Marine captain exclaimed, slamming the table and stepping on Sanji's hand angrily. "I'm going to finish you off today!"

However, what he failed to notice was that Tom was glaring at him while holding a knife and fork.

Just as the Marine captain lifted the table, Tom, who was enjoying a hearty meal, suddenly found himself drenched in flying soup!

The steak he had just bitten into tumbled to the floor!

Before Al could utter a word, Nami stood up and scolded, "Are you blind? Didn't you see someone beside you?"

The Marine captain turned around with a mocking smirk, ready to tease Nami.

But before he could, Tom swiftly pulled out a mace from his back and hurled it at the Marine with all his strength.

"Boom!"

The loud noise immediately grabbed everyone's attention.

A human-shaped hole appeared on the restaurant wall, sending a clear message to everyone: Do not mess with Tom!

Tom nonchalantly clapped his hands, as if it were just a minor inconvenience. He pulled out a pack of tissues from behind to wipe the soup off his face and resumed his meal.

"Monster!" Usopp's face went pale. If Zoro wasn't there, he might have bolted out of there long ago!

However, Zoro seemed excited. He approached Tom and asked, "Are you also a swordsman?"

Tom glanced at Al, then at Zoro, assuming Zoro wasn't referring to him, and simply continued eating.

A slight twitch appeared at the corner of Zoro's mouth. He couldn't shake the feeling that the cat named Tom was underestimating himself.

Just as Zoro was about to speak again, Al couldn't hold back his laughter and patted Tom on the shoulder.

"Silly Tom, he was talking about you!" Al exclaimed.

Tom froze for a moment, looking at Al in disbelief, then pointed to himself and then to Zoro, displaying a puzzled expression.

Observing this, Al pointed to the western sword hanging on Tom's waist.

Only then did Tom realize that he had forgotten to return the sword after bullying the sea beast.

Tom flashed an awkward smile, reaching to return the sword to Al, when suddenly Zoro spoke sincerely, "If you're a swordsman, please duel me!"

Before anyone could react, Nami stood up, baring his teeth and cursing at Zoro:

"I'm talking to you! Are you deaf or something?" Nami exclaimed angrily.

Seeing this, Usopp trembled with fear, then awkwardly apologized and attempted to pull Zoro away.

However, he soon realized that no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't budge Zoro.

Al stared into Zoro's resolute eyes, sensing a pure, confident, and strong will emanating from him.

"Tom, will you accept?" Al inquired.

Tom licked the residue from the corner of his mouth, patting his stomach contentedly. After spinning around once, he swiftly changed into his swordsman attire and bowed to Zoro in a gentlemanly manner.

"As a 30 million berries pirate, allow me to test your swordsmanship!"

Zoro smirked slightly, removing the scarf from his arm and tying it around his head. He then drew three knives from his waist, positioning himself opposite Tom.

Witnessing this, the other diners quickly fled, fearing they might get caught in the crossfire.

Observing the brewing confrontation, the restaurant staff began to intervene, picking up the patrons one by one and scolding, "What are you doing at the Sea Restaurant Baratie?"

Al retrieved a bag of gold coins from his pocket dimension and tossed it at their feet, speaking in a calm tone, "Consider this compensation. Please refrain from interfering in their duel."

Sanji picked up the bag, wearing a perplexed expression. Hesitantly, he returned the gold coin and stated, "I'm sorry, but if you want to fight, do it outside. Please don't disrupt our customers' dining experience. Thank you."

However, Zoro remained undeterred by the staff's intervention. Instead, he voiced his curiosity, "Why aren't you unsheathing your sword?"

Tom shook his head. He was apprehensive that drawing his sword might inadvertently wreak havoc upon the sea restaurant. It's worth noting that Tom's swordsmanship was exceptional on its own, and when combined with the extraordinary attributes of his western sword, it had the potential to cause significant destruction. Destroying the entire restaurant with one swing of his sword wouldn't be difficult at all.

But Zoro was unaware of this, and his expression turned frosty.

"There's a limit to underestimating others!" he retorted sharply. "If you don't draw your sword and end up being defeated by me, don't regret it!"

Oni Giri.

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