A/N: Don't forget to check out my original novel: Can I Magic Please. It's like really good. š
ANYWHOOO. ENJOY THE CHAPTER
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The underground structure beneath Dressrosa shook violently.
Dust drifted endlessly from the ceiling.
Stone cracked beneath distant shockwaves.
Above ground, monsters continued tearing the kingdom apart.
But deep beneath the auction hallā
Another battle was beginning.
Yassop sprinted through the underground corridors with terrifying speed.
His footsteps were almost silent.
His breathing remained calm.
Steady.
Focused.
The sniper's sharp eyes scanned every inch of the stone tunnels around him.
Collapsed pillars.
Twisting passageways.
Shifting walls.
The deeper he ran, the stranger the structure became.
'The entire underground is moving.'
Yassop narrowed his eyes slightly.
That alone confirmed his suspicion.
A Devil Fruit user.
And not an ordinary one.
He slowed.
Then stopped entirely.
The corridor around him fell silent.
Yassop closed his eyes.
For a brief momentā
Everything disappeared.
The sounds of destruction above.
The rumbling stone.
Even the dust drifting through the air.
His Observation Haki spread outward like invisible waves.
The underground network unfolded inside his mind.
Presences.
Movement.
Intent.
Thenā
Something massive shifted within the walls themselves.
Yassop's eyes snapped open.
'There.'
Without hesitationā
He raised his rifle.
BOOM!
The gunshot exploded through the corridor like thunder.
The Haki-coated bullet screamed forward.
KRAAAASH!!
The wall ahead detonated instantly.
Stone fragments erupted outward.
The tunnel trembled violently.
Thenā
RUMBLE.
The walls moved.
The stone itself twisted unnaturally.
Shifted.
Flowed.
A gigantic face slowly emerged from the wall ahead.
Massive eyes.
Jagged stone teeth.
A towering figure made entirely of rock.
Pica.
Yassop's gaze sharpened slightly.
'Stone.'
Before he could reactā
BOOOOOOM!!
A colossal stone fist erupted from the side wall and rocketed toward his head.
Yassop ducked instantly.
The fist grazed above him and obliterated the corridor behind him.
The impact generated a shockwave powerful enough to rip chunks from the ceiling.
Yassop slid backward smoothly.
His rifle spun once in his hands.
Thenā
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
Three shots rang out in rapid succession.
Each bullet struck different sections of the giant stone face.
Explosions erupted across Pica's construct.
Stone shattered apart.
But no blood appeared.
Yassop's eyes narrowed.
'He moved.'
The surrounding walls bulged outward.
Then suddenlyā
SPIKES.
Dozens of enormous stone spikes erupted from every direction simultaneously.
The underground tunnel became a death trap instantly.
Yassop moved like flowing water.
His body twisted between attacks with impossible precision.
One spike narrowly missed his throat.
Another exploded beneath his feet.
Yassop leapt upward.
Mid-airā
He kicked off a falling stone slab.
BOOM!
Another bullet tore through the corridor.
This time aimed not at the constructā
But at a tiny disturbance hidden within the stone itself.
KRAAAASH!!
The wall exploded.
A shadow shifted through the rubble.
Yassop clicked his tongue internally.
'Fast.'
The sniper landed lightly on a cracked pillar.
Below himā
The entire floor suddenly split apart.
RUMBLE!!
Gigantic stone arms burst upward from beneath the earth.
Yassop jumped again.
One hand closed around the pillar he had just stood on.
CRUSH!!
The stone exploded into fragments.
Yassop flipped backward through the air gracefully.
His coat fluttered behind him.
And while upside downā
BOOM! BOOM!
Two more bullets fired.
The shots curved through the narrow corridor with frightening accuracy.
One pierced directly through a stone arm.
The other blasted through the ceiling where Yassop sensed Pica moving.
The giant constructs collapsed apart.
Dust flooded the tunnels.
For several momentsā
Silence.
Then the entire underground structure trembled again.
Yassop looked upward slowly.
The ceiling above him began shifting.
Expanding.
Growing.
A gigantic humanoid figure slowly emerged from the surrounding walls themselves.
Towering.
Massive.
Like a living mountain forcing itself into shape.
Pica's enormous stone arm pulled backward.
Then swung downward.
BOOOOOOOM!!
Yassop vanished just before impact.
The attack annihilated the corridor entirely.
Shockwaves blasted through nearby tunnels.
Stone chunks rained everywhere.
The sniper sprinted across collapsing debris effortlessly.
Every few stepsā
BOOM!
Another shot echoed.
And every single shot targeted where he predicted Pica's true body would be hidden.
Pica adapted immediately.
The giant stone body shifted continuously.
Walls folded inward.
Floors became moving traps.
Stone jaws erupted from corridors.
Massive fists burst from ceilings.
The underground structure itself had become Pica's weapon.
But Yassop continued dancing through the destruction flawlessly.
Sliding beneath attacks.
Running along walls.
Leaping between collapsing stone platforms.
His movements were smooth.
Precise.
Beautiful.
Like a marksman performing choreography written entirely in gunfire.
Neither man gained a true advantage.
Yassop's Observation Haki allowed him to locate Pica repeatedly.
But Pica's mastery over the environment made landing a decisive shot nearly impossible.
Then suddenlyā
Yassop stopped.
His eyes sharpened.
There.
A faint presence.
Hidden deeper within the stone giant's chest.
He inhaled slowly.
The rifle steadied.
Observation Haki focused completely.
For one brief instantā
The world slowed.
Dust drifting through the air.
Stone shifting underground.
The exact location of Pica's true body.
Yassop pulled the trigger.
BOOOOM!!
The bullet tore through the gigantic construct like lightning.
Straight toward Pica's hidden body.
At the last possible secondā
The presence shifted.
The shot grazed past.
A thin trail of blood splattered against the stone wall.
The giant construct froze.
Then slowly cracked apart.
Rubble thundered across the underground chamber.
Yassop lowered the rifle slightly.
His calm gaze remained fixed ahead.
Deep within the shifting stoneā
Pica stared back silently.
And for the first timeā
Both men fully acknowledged the other as a genuine threat.
Yassop slowly raised the rifle again.
His expression remained calm.
But his intent was crystal clear.
He would win this fight.
---
The underground beneath Dressrosa trembled violently.
Stone corridors twisted unnaturally.
Entire sections of the structure shifted deeper underground as the mysterious Devil Fruit user continued moving Roger's cutlass somewhere below.
And sprinting directly after itā
Shanks.
His sandals pounded lightly against fractured stone.
Despite the chaos around himā
He looked calm.
Relaxed even.
One hand rested casually on Gryphon's hilt.
His Observation Haki stretched throughout the underground labyrinth.
Searching.
Tracking.
Then suddenlyā
He stopped.
The corridor ahead darkened.
Heavy footsteps echoed from the shadows.
One by oneā
Figures emerged.
Trebol.
Diamante.
Vergo.
And behind themā
Hundreds.
Noā
Thousands.
Members of the Donquixote Pirates filled the tunnels behind their officers.
Armed pirates packed the underground passageways wall-to-wall.
Guns.
Axes.
Swords.
Bazookas.
The entire Donquixote Family had mobilized.
Trebol pointed forward shakily.
"B-Beheheheā¦"
"You ain't getting that sword!"
Diamante spun his cape dramatically.
"This underground belongs to the Donquixote Family now."
Vergo adjusted his glasses silently.
Unlike the othersā
His gaze remained calm.
Sharp.
Assessing.
Shanks glanced between all of them quietly.
Then sighed.
"ā¦You guys are kind of in the way."
The pirates immediately exploded in outrage.
"KILL HIM!"
"IT'S JUST ONE GUY!"
"TAKE HIS HEAD!"
The underground tunnels erupted into movement.
Hundreds of pirates charged simultaneously.
The corridor shook beneath their footsteps.
A tidal wave of violence surged toward the red-haired pirate.
Shanks simply rested his hand more firmly on Gryphon.
Thenā
The atmosphere changed.
BOOOOOM!!
Dark red lightning exploded outward.
Conqueror's Haki flooded the underground structure like a hurricane.
The walls cracked instantly.
The air screamed.
Hundreds of charging pirates collapsed immediately.
THUD. THUD. THUD.
Bodies crashed against the floor one after another.
Foam spilled from mouths.
Eyes rolled backward.
Entire rows of pirates dropped unconscious before even reaching him.
Trebol's face went pale.
"W-WHAT THE HELL?!"
Even Diamante staggered slightly.
Vergo narrowed his eyes.
'Monster.'
The remaining pirates screamed desperately and continued charging anyway.
Shanks finally moved.
SHING.
Gryphon left its sheath.
A crimson arc flashed through the corridor.
The front line exploded backward.
BOOOOM!!
The slash carved through the underground passage like divine judgment itself.
Weapons shattered.
Stone walls split apart.
Pirates were launched through the air violently.
Shanks walked forward calmly.
Almost casually.
Like he wasn't fighting an army.
A large pirate swung a spiked club downward.
Shanks sidestepped effortlessly.
His fist moved once.
THUD.
The man folded instantly and crashed unconscious into the ceiling.
Another pirate fired a bazooka.
Shanks tilted his head.
The rocket missed him entirely.
Then he appeared beside the shooter.
The pirate's eyes widened.
Too late.
WHAM!
The man was kicked through three stone pillars.
More pirates rushed him from both sides.
Shanks spun once.
Gryphon traced a beautiful circular arc through the air.
SHRAAAAAK!!
A shockwave erupted outward.
Weapons shattered into pieces.
The entire group was blown backward like leaves in a storm.
Trebol unleashed sticky mucus across the corridor.
"Sticky Launcher!"
The slime surged forward like a tidal wave.
Shanks didn't even stop walking.
His sword flashed once.
The mucus split apart instantly.
Diamante appeared overhead.
Steel cape hardened like a blade.
He swung downward viciously.
Shanks looked up lazily.
CLANG!
Gryphon intercepted the attack effortlessly.
The force shattered the surrounding floor.
Diamante grinned.
Then froze.
Because Shanks was smiling.
"Nice trick."
WHAM!!
A kick slammed directly into Diamante's stomach.
His eyes bulged.
The officer rocketed across the corridor and smashed through several walls.
Shanks continued forward without even looking back.
The underground suddenly became silent.
The remaining pirates hesitated.
Fear spread visibly through their ranks.
Thenā
Vergo stepped forward.
Armament Haki coated his body completely.
Jet black.
Dense.
Powerful.
The corridor groaned beneath his presence.
Unlike the othersā
Vergo understood exactly what kind of monster stood before him.
Without hesitationā
He attacked.
Soru.
He vanished instantly.
A hardened fist shot toward Shanks' head.
BOOM!
The impact detonated across the tunnel.
But Vergo's eyes narrowed immediately.
Blocked.
Shanks had intercepted the punch with one hand still resting in his pocket.
Calm.
Relaxed.
Like he barely noticed the attack.
Vergo's instincts screamed.
He retreated instantly.
Too late.
Shanks' sword moved.
Effortless.
SHING.
A thin crimson line flashed across the corridor.
Vergo's eyes widened.
The wall behind him split apart.
Thenā
Blood sprayed from his chest.
Vergo crashed backward violently.
His Armament Haki shattered.
His body skidded across the underground floor before slamming unconscious into a collapsed pillar.
Silence.
Complete silence.
The remaining pirates stared in horror.
Their strongest officersā
Destroyed effortlessly.
Trebol stumbled backward.
Sweating heavily.
"B-Beheheheā¦"
"T-This guy's insaneā¦"
Shanks slowly sheathed Gryphon.
CLICK.
Then he looked toward the deeper tunnels underground.
Where Roger's cutlass continued moving further away.
His eyes sharpened.
"Sorry."
He stepped over the unconscious pirates casually.
"But I'm in a hurry."
Thenā
BOOM!!
The underground exploded behind him as Shanks accelerated deeper into the labyrinth.
Leaving behind over a thousand defeated members of the Donquixote Family scattered throughout the ruins like broken dolls.
---
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