Paper Paper Fruit In One Piece

Meanwhile, 

In three other battlefields. 

"Ittoryu—Okogarasu!" 

A massive flying slash ripped through everything, unstoppable! But despite the sword beam cutting through it all, the giant rock face with a cross-faced helmet simply raised its right hand to grab it. 

The stone hall built from rocks seemed to come alive, with the ground rising and falling like waves. Countless solid rocks shot up from the ground like giant lotus petals, forming a protective wall around the helmeted giant face. 

Though Zoro's sword strikes were powerful, the layers of rock created a sense of 'cutting without end.' Especially since the walls that had just been slashed immediately closed up again, making Zoro groan. 

"This is endless! Can't you just come out and fight me directly?" 

"Well," 

The calm voice of the pigeon-keeper floated by. 

"That guy is a Devil Fruit user, so he's relying on his powers to fight. As for fighting fair—when you face a master of kicks, I don't see you putting away your swords." 

"....." 

Zoro rolled his eyes. *Roman, are you just standing over there?* 

"Need me to help you pinpoint his position?" 

The way Pica used his rock-based guerilla tactics was indeed a headache for anyone, but don't forget Roman's Observation Haki gave him 'x-ray vision'! While it might not allow him to 'see' Pica's exact location, roughly pinpointing it wasn't a problem. 

"No, I'll handle it myself." 

Though the 'rock man' who could control the entire palace was a bit tricky, it was still only 'a bit.' It wasn't time to call for Roman's help just yet. 

"Good luck, I'm rooting for you~~" 

The pigeon-keeper gracefully dodged flying sword beams and debris, her focus shifting to another part of the battlefield. 

— 

"High-speed movement!" 

"Sky walking!" 

In front of the Toy House, Dellinger and Sanji were moving so fast they disappeared from everyone's view. Only the continuously exploding streets and collapsing buildings were evidence of the fierce battle! Both of them were speed-based fighters, masters of kicking techniques. One wore red high heels, the other black boots. One was fierce and cold, the other energetic and bold. Both had strong Haki, so the battle was evenly matched for now. 

"Boom—Ten-ton Biceps!" 

Facing the giant Machvise crashing down, Violet danced gracefully, spinning away as the giant's attack futilely created a deep crater in the street! 

Their battle was a typical example of a fragile assassin versus a heavily-armored warrior—one couldn't hurt the other, and the other couldn't land a hit. They could only stall and wait to see who made a mistake first. 

These two locations didn't need much worry, but... 

The pigeon-keeper looked toward the third battlefield, which was a much tougher fight for the Straw Hats. 

"Painful Back—Undying Warrior's Agony!" 

With the silly name of the attack came a similarly silly movement, but the damage was anything but funny. Lao G, with his hunched back, collided with Chopper, who had activated his 'Rumble Strengthening.' Chopper coughed up blood as he was hit hard in the abdomen with several punches. He barely survived the blows thanks to his Zoan-type Devil Fruit's powerful defense. 

'Rumble Strengthening' was a new skill for Chopper, where his body widened without changing much in height. It greatly boosted his martial arts power, making his attacks much faster and stronger, accompanied by a "Wah... Chaa" sound as he struck. 

In short, it was a sort of 'kung fu fighting' enhancement. But... 

"As if someone like me could compare to a lifetime of 'Earth Grandpa Fist' mastery?" 

Physically, Chopper under 'Rumble Strengthening' wasn't much weaker than the aging Lao G, but when it came to hand-to-hand combat, Lao G was the 'fighting coach' for Doflamingo's family. Everyone's combat skills came from him. Chopper, on the other hand, was just a doctor. Though Roman had intensively trained him over the past two years, catching up to someone who had been a combat expert for a lifetime... 

"Huff, huff, huff," 

"Good thing I'm just using regular 'Strengthening' now, or I might have already lost, huh?"

Chopper secretly breathed a sigh of relief. Of course, he still had his "Monster Strengthening" technique—where he uses the Rumble Ball to transform into a giant reindeer. But not only could that form only last three minutes, it might even hinder his teammates in a 4v4 battle like this. 

It looks like I'll have to stall for time and hope the others can settle things first... Chopper needed to buy time, waiting for the others to come and help— 

Roman was thinking the same thing. He turned his attention to the last battlefield: 

"Flash!" 

Franky ripped off his outer clothing and fired two laser beams from his chest! It's hard to say how powerful they were, but they were definitely bright enough to blind people—literally. 

"Diaper Bomb!" 

Senor Pink twisted his waist, shooting out several star-patterned round bombs from his diaper. Again, it's hard to say how powerful they were, but they were definitely enough to make people facepalm. 

This... 

Forget it, forget it, I don't understand this weird world. 

Roman decisively switched to the last battlefield, not wanting to continue watching and risk mental contamination. 

——— 

"This can't be real, it's just an illusion!" 

"I am the heartthrob, the 'noble son' Cavendish..." 

A wobbly toy figure stumbled out of the command tower. After being turned into a toy, he finally understood what all the toys in this country represented. And his fate— 

"Wake up from this nightmare! I don't want to spend my life as a toy laboring away!" 

Meanwhile, many of the contestants who had been turned into toys were already working, hauling cargo. Though many of them had come to the underground weapons market with this goal, 

"Is this where the weapons are exported to other countries?" 

Chinjao's goal was to destroy this weapons market, and now he was right in the middle of his target. But... 

"I have no freedom here, I can only let others control me..." 

"Damn it, I need to figure out how to contact Sabo and Koala." 

Hack, the Fish-Man Karate instructor from the Revolutionary Army, was carrying goods too. His purpose was also to investigate, but: 

"I have no freedom to move at all!" 

"Damn you, Doflamingo! I'm the king of the Kingdom of Prodinus!" 

Other contestants were just out of luck. 

"Work as a toy for the rest of my life? Are you kidding? Someone, save me!" 

As many of the arena's top fighters became toys or struggled in despair, they all knew deep down that if nothing unexpected happened, the fate of these forgotten toys would be to labor until they died. Without any way to send a message to the outside world, the toys who had been working for ten years would be their grim role models. 

Damn Doflamingo! We will never forgive you!! 

------------------ 

Sadly, the curse couldn't kill anyone; their lives were already ruined. Unless... 

"Report to Lord Trebol, there was a conflict with the 'Ibu's Pirates' in the fourth district of the trading port!" 

"They caused a scene because they were dissatisfied with the transaction amount and demand to speak directly with the family's officers." 

Trebol, wearing a cloak with circles painted on it and pretending to be a sleazy fat old man, stood up at the news. 

"Oh, someone dares to disrespect 'Joker'? They sure have guts..." 

"Trebol, we've already had injuries. Please, you need to step in!" 

At the report from a disguised Robin, Trebol nodded. 

"Lead the way!" 

As Trebol left, only the small girl, Sugar, in a red cloak with a crown-shaped hood remained. She wore a monocle over her left eye and had a bobbed haircut. 

"Good, the high-ranking officer Trebol has been diverted," 

The leader of the Tonta Corps, Leo, took out a grape and explained to Usopp. 

"Sugar loves grapes. She almost never lets go of them, and she likes to insert them between her fingers and eat them one by one." 

"This is our special 'Babasco Chili Ball.' Eating it will definitely make someone faint. There have been 18 cases where people almost died from it. If we force Sugar to eat one, all the toys will be freed!" 

"Wow, you've even tested it." 

 "We're in!"

"Hmm, you guys go ahead, I'll keep watch."

In Usopp's view, even though these little humanoid creatures were only about the size of half a palm, their strength and speed were far beyond that of an average strong man! With their power, they should be able to easily handle a 'little girl'— 

However, the reality was: facing the swarm of little soldiers, the girl-like Sugar simply smiled coldly.

"Looks like I've really been underestimated."

With a swift motion, her arms moved like the hands of a thousand-armed Avalokiteshvara! Numerous handprints filled the space in front of her, and though they were just small childish hands, they were the most dangerous, lethal 'weapon' in the world. If anyone was touched by them:

"Teddy bear toy!"

The tiny soldiers, so fast that ordinary people couldn't even see them, fell to the ground, turning into little teddy bear toys. Then, "Obey my command until you die."

With the 'contract' made, Sugar pointed forward.

"Kill them!"

The remaining little soldiers immediately lost all memory of their 'companions' just moments ago and began attacking their former allies with their knives! This made the pigeon, who was crouching on the rooftop, glance with a murderous intent.

'Toy-Toy Fruit,' this ability is really a cheat! It truly deserves the title of 'Devil' fruit. Not only can it turn people into obedient toys, but it can also erase the memories of those affected from the minds of others. This is even more terrifying than killing—it's a true form of 'mind execution'! Sugar... The pigeon lowered its eyes. If Usopp and the others can't handle this, Roman will have to step in to kill! 

Even though this goes against the Straw Hat crew's 'style,' Roman wouldn't take Sugar's ability lightly. And once he made a move, whether with the 'Super Electromagnetic Sword' or 'Quake Shock,' he would go all out.

"Hey, hey, hey, no way? That little girl somehow made so many toy soldiers?"

Looking at Usopp, who was stunned from the 'forgetting' effect, the pigeon closed its eyes.

Roman wasn't afraid of Sugar's 'forgetting' ability, because as long as he still had his memories from his past life, and the memories of the other Straw Hat members, even if Usopp and Robin were affected, Roman would easily figure out something was wrong with his 'memories.'

—Just like now, he paused for a moment and then realized that those teddy bears were actually part of the little soldiers.

Well, I hope I don't have to step in... 

This...

(End of chapter)

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