Paper Paper Fruit In One Piece

"Hmm, this hand-to-hand combat…" 

It wasn't that Roman wanted to steal Luffy's "role" as a brawler. He just wanted to test his Armament Haki against the standards of the New World. 

Every time he faced Garp, he was beaten outright. Against other Vice Admirals, their fights were more like sparring. 

"So, Vergo's Armament Haki is probably at the level of an elite Vice Admiral." 

Someone who could lead the G-5 base and overpower Smoker must have Haki comparable to a standard officer under a Yonko. 

If Roman's Armament Haki could overpower Vergo's in a head-on clash: 

"Maybe I'm at the level of a senior officer or on the lower end of the Yonko's calamity-ranked fighters?" 

Roman silently compared and came to this conclusion—though it only applied to Armament Haki. 

Actual combat would still depend on various factors: mindset, Devil Fruit compatibility, the environment, and so on. As long as the gap wasn't too wide, no one could claim they'd definitely win. 

As for his Paper-Paper Fruit, Roman was absolutely confident! Unless he ran into someone with the Scissors Fruit, he believed he could take on any opponent, whether they had a Zoan, Logia, or Paramecia power. 

"Alright, I've got a plan." 

As Roman deactivated his Armament Haki, a dozen white doves flew over and assembled a Marine officer's coat on him. At the same time, dozens more doves swarmed Vergo, wrapping him tightly into a "coffin" while sprouting six legs. 

"Paper Dance – White Coffin Spider." 

With this, Vergo, who was already half-dead from Roman's beating, had no chance of escaping—unless he suddenly awakened some cosmic power, received divine intervention, or transformed into a magical girl... 

The wind howled, and snow swirled as icy blades clashed. 

"Snow Peace – Blade Dance!" 

Monet transformed the feathers of her wings into sharp snow blades, slashing at Zoro with precision. Since her wings were her arms, her swordsmanship flowed as naturally as moving her own body. 

*Clang!* 

Zoro blocked her attack effortlessly with his two swords, yet Monet smiled. 

"You've been on the defensive this whole time, not attacking at all..." 

Monet licked her lips, seductive yet icy. 

"Honestly, I don't think I can beat you." 

Though Monet was one of the Donquixote Family's officers and not particularly strong, her judgment was sharp. The green-haired man before her was undoubtedly stronger. 

But still... 

"Maybe the result will surprise us." 

Could this be one of those men who wouldn't, couldn't, or simply refused to cut down a woman? Such naivety was almost adorable. 

"You seem to be mistaken," Zoro said as he calmly sheathed his Wado Ichimonji and Sandai Kitetsu. 

"My job is just to make sure you don't disturb my captain. Luffy can handle that gas guy, Caesar, by himself." 

"So... does that mean you'll keep me company?" 

"Exactly." 

Zoro's grin was wild and commanding, his sheer presence overwhelming Monet. 

"When you realized you couldn't beat me, you should've tucked your tail between your legs and run. To be honest, sometimes I do hesitate to attack. But:" 

"Have you ever seen a beast that doesn't bite?" 

As Zoro slowly drew Shusui, he took one deliberate step after another toward Monet. His calm, measured movements made it feel like the entire world was crashing down on her. 

"I haven't." 

In a flash, Zoro shifted from slow to lightning-fast. Shusui arced through the air in a clean, downward slash. Monet instinctively tried to dodge but found herself frozen—her body refused to move. 

The moment she locked eyes with Zoro's domineering gaze, the Snow-Snow Fruit user felt an icy chill grip her very soul. It was as if she were a rabbit caught under a lion's paw, unable to do anything but watch the predator's fangs close in. 

"Single Sword Style—" 

*Slash!* 

The blade tore through Monet like a knife through butter, leaving a deep cut starting from her forehead, down her neck, chest, and torso. Wings and legs alike—everything was split cleanly in two. 

Clap, clap,

"What... what just happened?" 

Monet collapsed in the snow, her body severed. Zoro hadn't even coated his blade with Armament Haki, yet Monet couldn't pull herself together. 

It felt like the slash wasn't aimed at her body but had struck directly at her soul. 

Zoro's attack wasn't about physical strength or Haki. It was a manifestation of his sheer will and mastery of swordsmanship. He didn't just cut through flesh—he cut through spirit. In the face of such skill, even the intangible, like souls or thoughts, could be severed in two.

"I... I won't let you... get through..."

Even though her body had been split in half, writhing and misaligned, Monet forced herself to stand and lunged toward Zoro. But then—*slap!*—a hand covered in armor grabbed her head from behind. 

"Shockwave—" 

*Buzz! Buzz! Buzz!* 

Without using Armament Haki, just a small dose of the "quake power" knocked Monet unconscious, her eyes rolling back as she collapsed. Behind her stood: 

"The White Knight?"

Zoro glanced at the figure in pure white armor. He could tell it was just a puppet and that Roman wasn't inside. 

*So where did the real one go?* 

"No choice, I've got a lot of loose ends to handle," 

The White Knight sighed in response to Zoro's questioning look. The Straw Hat crew might act heroically, taking down evil and helping others, but the mess they left behind was anything but graceful. Roman had no choice but to clean up after them. 

"Let's go. We should head to where Luffy is." 

---

"Is this enough candy? Should we grab the experiment data too…?" 

Next to a playroom styled for children was a high-tech laboratory filled with various instruments. This was where the addictive, poisonous candy was produced. 

"If I'd known, I would've asked Chopper—or even Franky—to come along!" 

Nami rubbed her forehead. Sanji was a top-tier chef, Robin was the last archaeologist of Ohara, and while Usopp was multi-talented, it was clear none of them had the skills to deal with pharmaceutical equipment, data, or reports. 

"ROOM: Slaughterhouse!"

Just as they were feeling stuck, a figure suddenly appeared out of thin air. Sanji instinctively raised his leg to attack.

"It's me." 

Dressed in a long black coat with a furry spotted hat and carrying the massive blade "Kikoku," Law walked into the room. 

"It's you? Didn't you say—"

Nami began to question him, but seeing the visible injuries on his body, her tone softened. 

"You ran into an enemy?"

"Just a rogue Marine, nothing to worry about." 

Law's reply made Nami tense up, immediately thinking of the worst. 

"Luckily, the famous 'White Dove' saved me. Otherwise, I'd be dead already—"

"What's with those faces?" 

Seeing the awkward, shifty smiles of the Straw Hat crew, Law raised an eyebrow. 

"Ahaha, it's nothing, nothing~~~" 

*So Roman went off to save someone, huh?* 

"You got the poisoned candy the kids were eating?" 

Although unsure of what antics the crew had been up to, Law's attention was already on the chaotic pile of equipment, documents, and materials. He quickly understood the situation. 

"You can't just grab things randomly. Let me handle it."

Law calmly began sorting through the items, selecting what was useful while explaining: 

"I'm not only the captain of the Heart Pirates but also the ship's doctor." 

*In fact, most of the Heart Pirates are doctors.* 

"Then we'll leave it to you." 

Nami breathed a sigh of relief. If they didn't have someone experienced, they were planning to take everything that looked remotely important. Since Law, as an ally, was helping, it saved them a lot of trouble. 

"Phoenix Ember!" 

A blue flame appeared in Nami's hand, and she gently pushed it toward Law. 

"What's this—?"

Law instinctively assumed a defensive stance. But the moment the blue flame touched his skin, a powerful surge of vitality flowed through his body, leaving him stunned as he looked at Nami. 

"It's a healing flame. You seemed pretty injured."

"Revealing such a valuable ability to someone like me so easily," Law lowered his gaze. "Is that wise?" 

"Don't underestimate us," Usopp tipped his hat. 

"We're allies, aren't we?" 

"To Luffy, you're already a friend." 

"Friends? … What a bunch of naive fools." 

—— 

In a hidden control room: 

"Caesar, where are my men?!" 

Brownbeard, who had been used as a "ride" by Luffy and his crew, had quietly sneaked back into the base while no one was watching. Although he wasn't very smart, as a former captain who had sailed the New World, the series of events had finally revealed the true nature of the "benevolent scientist" he once trusted. 

"Brownbeard, what are you talking about—" 

Ignoring Caesar's attempt to dismiss the question, Brownbeard gripped his broadsword tightly. 

"At this point, I won't hold you accountable for fooling me—that's my own stupidity! But what about my men? Even though the Straw Hats stole their clothes, they should have returned here!" 

"Returned here… maybe… maybe not…" 

Caesar's shifty eyes recalled someone pleading for the door to be opened before the poison gas was released. In hindsight, that must have been this fool's men. 

"Damn it, you didn't leave them outside, did you?!" 

As Brownbeard raised his sword, the remaining guards immediately pointed their weapons at him. 

"What are you doing, Brownbeard?" 

"The 'Master' is our savior!" 

"Are you planning to attack him?" 

"You've all been deceived!" 

Facing his former comrades, Brownbeard shouted in protest. 

"Caesar never saw us as his subordinates. He only sees us as test subjects!" 

"???" 

"...Test subjects…" 

"Hey, Brownbeard, what are you even saying?" 

The guards were confused, as Brownbeard's words became increasingly slurred. Meanwhile, Caesar floated over to the now-weakened Brownbeard and whispered like a devil in his ear. 

"Hehehe… That was a muscle relaxant. Can't stand, can't talk properly, huh?" 

"You fools are only fit to be this genius's test subjects. Your men? They've already made a glorious contribution to my experiments…" 

"Gah… Ah… Aaaaah!!" 

As Brownbeard collapsed to his knees, screaming but unable to speak clearly, Caesar once again leaned in, his voice dripping with malice. 

"Oh, and by the way, remember that 'accident' four years ago? The one that left everyone on this island paralyzed? Yeah, that was me." 

With a last burst of strength, tears streaming down his face, Brownbeard swung his sword at Caesar, shouting incoherently to warn his comrades: 

"Run! We've all been fooled! Every tragedy on this island was caused by Caesar! Run, everyone!" 

But their response was: 

"Brownbeard, how dare you swing your sword at the Master!" 

"What are you doing?!" 

"Brownbeard has gone mad!" 

Seizing the moment, Caesar floated away and dramatically pointed at Brownbeard. 

"He must be under an enemy's power! Kill him now!" 

Bang! Bang! Bang! 

Bullets rained down on Brownbeard. Though he had once been a fearsome pirate, the attacks from his comrades brought tears and snot streaming down his face. He wasn't afraid to die—but he couldn't bear for others to die as pathetically as he had. 

"Tch, still alive?" 

Even under the effects of the muscle relaxant, Brownbeard withstood the hail of gunfire, his resilience a testament to his former bounty of 80 million. But then: 

"Let's end this. Gas Explosive Clap!" 

Boom! 

A massive explosion engulfed Brownbeard, filling the hall with flames and lighting up the area in red. The remaining guards were speechless. Brownbeard had always been honest and hardworking—why had he suddenly lost his mind? 

"Hehehehe…" 

Caesar's laughter grew uncontrollable. Toying with these fools was the perfect way to flaunt his superior intellect. In this genius's eyes, everyone else in the world was—?! 

As the flames died down, Brownbeard wasn't reduced to ashes. Instead, he was shielded by a giant hand. The blazing fire seemed to vanish powerlessly against the metallic sheen of the massive palm. 

As the hand withdrew, it revealed the one who had saved Brownbeard. 

"Straw Hat Luffy?!" 

(End of Chapter) 

 ----You can read 10 advanced chapters at my patreon.com/YeyeQiu