"Tch, just a shabby sword, what's there to show off!"
Sanji felt somewhat displeased. Zoro's rank was actually higher than his; how annoying!
Zoro grinned; he really liked the Damocles Sword in his hand. While weighing the sword, he said: "Curly eyebrows, want to try? Which is faster, my sword or that shabby armor of yours?"
Sanji felt slightly cowed and didn't want to argue further. He waved his hand and snorted coldly: "Don't be arrogant yet. Wait until I fully master this Paladin Armor, then I'll fight you. I'm going to cook first!"
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In the dark underground. In the underground tunnel winding like a labyrinth with interconnecting rooms, Orochimaru and Sasuke were there.
"Kukukuku, truly unexpected, Sasuke. You weren't wrong to be the one I chose. Your potential is actually that high, tsk tsk tsk... If not for me getting this Immortal Human Embryo, you would still be my best reincarnation vessel..."
Orochimaru stared without blinking at a giant egg half a person's height radiating gentle golden light before him. With an obsessed smile, he stroked it slowly.
Sasuke's eyes now flashed with sapphire blue wise light, while lines of blood tears flowed down. After merging with the Eyes of Virtue, he had learned everything his brother did. He understood wholeheartedly the pain Itachi bore. His heart trembled; he couldn't imagine what his brother experienced all these years, bearing extraordinary mental pressure every second.
"Brother..." Sasuke covered his face and slowly crouched.
Orochimaru turned slowly; his eyes rarely showed a bit of emotion. "Sasuke, now I have this perfect Immortal Human Embryo; this is my most perfect vessel. You're also one of the most potential people on the Hidden Expert List; even your rank is higher than mine. Since now we no longer have conflicts of interest, how about... we cooperate?"
Sasuke looked up; his eyes radiated wariness. He held great suspicion toward this cunning man. Though he had obtained the Eyes of Virtue, his strength still couldn't compare with Orochimaru. However, because both were in the protection period, they couldn't hurt each other, so he wasn't afraid Orochimaru would attack him now.
"What kind of cooperation?" Sasuke asked.
Orochimaru smiled wickedly: "You see that Garou at rank seven? His reward is Evolution Keys. If I can obtain those items, I'll surely be able to make this Immortal Human Embryo grow more perfectly. Then if I can steal Hashirama's cells, I'll be able to achieve immortality and become the most perfect human in the world. At that time, nothing will be able to stop me from studying everything!"
His eyes flashed with deep ambition and desire.
Sasuke was silent for a moment. After learning the truth, his desire to attack Konoha had already faded; his vengeance had subsided. What he most wanted now was to find his brother and face everything together.
Seeing Sasuke's hesitation, Orochimaru incited: "I know the outline of what happened to you. As long as you help me, I can help you capture Shimura Danzo. He's the mastermind behind the Uchiha clan's extermination. Of course, your clan's own ambitions are also the root problem. Besides, you're now at rank six; you've become the target of many people. How far can you grow in this one-month protection period?"
"As long as you help me, I can protect you until you help me obtain the Evolution Keys. How about it?"
Sasuke took a deep breath and nodded: "Alright, I agree."
Orochimaru smiled; his long tongue stuck out licking his lips, then he looked back at the Immortal Human Embryo. "Pleasant cooperation... Well then, I'll start merging with this embryo. Please guard me!"
Sasuke nodded; his eyes flashed with sapphire blue hue. He took out a kunai from his leg and was wary of the surroundings.
Orochimaru's body trembled; his skin suddenly cracked and wrinkled; he began shedding skin like a snake. From within that skin, a soft body crawled out and directly charged at the Immortal Human Embryo.
*ZING!*
The Immortal Human Embryo suddenly radiated dazzling golden light. The charging soft body instantly stiffened, then melted like snow.
From within that giant golden egg, heartbeat sounds began to be heard, getting louder and louder, like the sound of drumbeats.
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One Punch Man World, a dense forest.
Garou leaned against a large tree; his body full of terrifying wounds. He panted; blood flowed profusely forming a small pool beneath him.
"Evolution Keys..."
Garou gripped three brilliant golden keys in his hand. His eyes showed deep thought without a bit of pain. He was already accustomed to wounds like this.
"Each key can only be used after reaching the perfect evolutionary stage from the previous key..." Garou read information from the Gold List in his head and frowned.
Originally he wanted to use all three at once so others wouldn't plunder them, but apparently he couldn't.
He guessed in his heart; perhaps it wasn't that he couldn't, but this Gold List deliberately gave limitations so people would come to plunder them.
"Anyway, use one first!"
Garou didn't hesitate; he immediately put one key in his mouth and swallowed it. Though the correct way only needed to attach the key to the body, his method was clearly cruder but effective.
Instantly, Garou's body was enveloped by golden light threads wrapping him layer by layer like a cocoon. Within breaths, he transformed into a giant golden human cocoon. Extraordinary changes were happening within.
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Meanwhile, aboard the Moby Dick. Kaiser's figure slowly faded, as if he swallowed light and disappeared. The next second, he appeared beside Kuro.
"Come with me!" That flat voice carried authority.
Kuro's body trembled; he recognized this voice very well. He immediately turned and saw an oval-shaped man-height light gate appear behind him. Without hesitation, he immediately stepped inside.
Instantly, he appeared above a vast ocean and his body began falling rapidly. He was startled, but quickly transformed his lower body into smoke to stop falling.
"Since you've decided to work for me, I won't treat you badly."
Beside Kuro, Kaiser's figure appeared. His face remained invisible, while carrying a lazy black cat.
"Master!" Kuro lowered his position as low as possible.
He knew everything he now possessed was given by this person, and this man's terror made him very afraid. He felt even if Whitebeard and all other strong people attacked together, they wouldn't be able to shake the man before him in the slightest.