"Ikki… Zoro… his heartbeat is getting weaker!"
Usopp's voice trembled as he frantically worked to bandage Zoro's wounds.
"Damn it… how could this happen?" Ikki muttered, anxiety creeping into his voice.
In the original timeline, Zoro had suffered the same devastating blow from Hawkeye and survived. So why was it different now?
As Ikki wrestled with this thought, Hawkeye and Luffy approached.
Luffy took one look at Zoro's pale face and bloodied body, and fury boiled over. "That's it—I'm gonna fight him!" Luffy roared, pointing at Hawkeye.
"Wait!" Ikki interjected, stepping between Luffy and Mihawk. He raised his wrist to check the time, a grim realization settling over him.
The duel between Zoro and Mihawk had lasted only ten minutes. Zoro's condition was critical, but if Ikki acted now, there was still a chance to save him.
Zoro had eaten the resurrection candy before the battle. The candy's power would revive him with full health, but only if he died within fifteen minutes.
Ikki's gaze hardened as he picked up Zoro's Wado Ichimonji, his decision made.
Luffy's eyes widened in confusion and anger. "Hey Ikki, what are you doing?!"
Meanwhile, Mihawk observed silently, his expression calm but pensive.
"Did I miscalculate?" Mihawk wondered to himself. "Impossible. My control was precise, as always. Perhaps his vitality is simply too weak…"
His brow furrowed slightly. "No, that can't be it. I even honed Yoru this morning… everything was perfect."
Back with Ikki, Luffy reluctantly stepped aside after Ikki explained the candy's life-saving properties.
"Fine," Luffy muttered, fists clenched.
Ikki didn't wait for Luffy to finish his sentence. He raised the Wado Ichimonji high and, without hesitation, plunged it directly into Zoro's chest, piercing his heart.
Zoro's body jerked violently as his vitality rapidly drained. Within seconds, he lay completely still.
The tension was palpable as everyone held their breath. Usopp, his fingers trembling, kept a hand on Zoro's pulse.
Then, as if by magic, the wounds on Zoro's body began to close. His chest rose faintly as his heart resumed beating.
"His heartbeat!" Usopp cried out. "It's back! He's alive!"
Moments later, Zoro's eyelids fluttered, and he let out a raspy breath.
"I'm awake… I'm really awake…" Zoro muttered hoarsely.
Usopp practically jumped with excitement. "Ikki! You're amazing! You just brought someone back from the dead!"
"Killing someone to save them… that's insane!"
As the noise around him grew louder, Zoro's eyes fully opened. His voice, though weak, carried an urgent tone.
"Kuina… there's danger!"
He turned to Ikki, his gaze sharp despite his weakened state.
"Ikki… what was that knife you gave me? I saw Kuina, and I entered some kind of world inside the blade!"
"There was a monster," Zoro continued, his voice rising. "Three heads, six arms—it looked like an Asura. Kuina's fighting it right now. Tell me… how do I get back there?"
Zoro's words left Ikki momentarily stunned.
Ikki knew about the Zanpakuto, but Kuina's presence? The world inside the blade? And the monster? None of this matched what he understood.
Zoro, seeing Ikki's hesitation, explained everything in detail. He recounted how Kuina had appeared, how she'd fought the monster, and how he'd been pulled away before he could help her.
As Zoro spoke, Mihawk, who had been silent until now, raised an eyebrow. His surprise was evident, though his expression remained composed.
"A world inside the blade…" Mihawk murmured, his sharp eyes narrowing as he scrutinized Zoro and Kunia.
Hawkeye observed Zoro silently, deep in thought. He had encountered many swords with spirits before—most notably, cursed blades.
A sword with a soul choosing its wielder was rare but not unheard of. Yet, a sword with a soul that could converse with its owner? That was entirely new to him.
Mihawk's gaze drifted to his own black blade, Yoru.
"What would it be like," he mused, "if Yoru had a soul?"
The idea was both intriguing and unsettling.
After hearing Zoro's story, Ikki scratched his head, clearly at a loss.
"Well, Zoro… I'm not really sure what's going on with you," Ikki admitted.
"But I don't think Kuina is in danger. If she were, your sword probably wouldn't work at all."
He pointed at Kuina. "If you want answers, you'll need to figure this out yourself. Maybe more training with the sword will reveal something."
Zoro didn't press Ikki further. Instead, he turned his attention to Mihawk, meeting his sharp gaze.
Mihawk, too, stared back. He had been planning to deliver another rousing speech now that Zoro was awake, but… given the crowd, he reconsidered.
'It'd be a bit much to say it all again,' he thought, glancing around at the group that had already heard his earlier declaration.
In the end, Mihawk settled for something simpler.
"Don't let your sword down," he said, his tone firm.
With that, he turned and strode back to his coffin-shaped boat, departing without further ceremony.
With Zoro's recovery, the battle was officially over. Krieg was dead, the Krieg Pirates defeated, and the Baratie stood tall.
Yet for Ikki, there was one lingering frustration: he hadn't gained any Justice Points.
The reason? Almost everything had been handled by Mihawk. Krieg's demise, the destruction of the Krieg Pirates—it was all Mihawk's doing.
The biggest winner of the battle turned out to be Captain "Iron Fist" Fullbody.
Fullbody managed to capture Gin, claim Krieg's head for the Marines, and round up the remaining pirates who had surrendered in fear.
Not only did he gain merit, but his reputation soared.
Fame and fortune—Fullbody walked away with both.
After the dust settled, Luffy's attention turned back to Sanji.
"Sanji… join my crew!" Luffy demanded with his usual determination.
Sanji, however, refused as stubbornly as ever. "I told you, I'll never leave Baratie!"
"I refuse your refusal."
He trailed after Sanji relentlessly, trying every tactic in the book to persuade him.
Ikki, recognizing Luffy's persistence, decided to enlist Zeff's help.
Zeff, understanding Sanji's true feelings, agreed. He knew Sanji didn't want to leave Baratie out of loyalty, but Zeff wanted Sanji to pursue his dream of finding the All Blue.
Together with the other chefs, Zeff staged an elaborate act.
"Your cooking's terrible, Sanji!" one of them shouted.
"You're nothing but trouble for this restaurant!" another added.
"Baratie will be better off without you!"
Sanji, hearing their harsh words, was furious at first. But later, he overheard their true intentions.
The chefs didn't want Sanji to feel obligated to stay. They wanted him to go after his dream—the All Blue.
Moved by their sincerity, Sanji finally made his decision. He turned to Luffy.
"Fine, I'll join your crew," Sanji said, a cigarette hanging from his lips.
Just like that, Sanji officially became the Straw Hat Pirates' chef.
As the celebrations began, two strange-looking fish suddenly leapt onto the deck of the Baratie.
The sight of the two fish caused the chefs to grab their knives and nets, ready to prepare a meal.
"Strange fish jumping into a sea restaurant? That's brave!" Patty exclaimed.
Before anyone could act, the two fish began screaming.
"Boss Luffy! Boss Ikki! Boss Zoro! Boss Usopp! Help!"
The familiar voices stopped everyone in their tracks.
"Wait… what?" Ikki muttered, blinking at the two fish.
Upon closer inspection, he realized who they were.
"Johnny? Yosaku?!" Ikki shouted. "Why are you still like this?"
It had been hours since Johnny and Joseph ate the candies, but they hadn't changed back to normal.
Ikki scratched his head. 'I guess… eating dozens of candies at once might've made the effects stack. Who knows how long this will last?'
Once the chefs learned that the talking fish were friends of Ikki and the crew, they let them go.
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