An eagle high above let out a sharp screech, spotting a natural predator, and frantically flapped its wings to flee the airspace.
Hundreds of meters away behind an earthen slope, the pirates placing bets felt a cold chill shoot straight up their spines.
Even though they hid far away while the black-haired youth just stood there, the piercing sensation of being watched felt real and heavy.
"He... saw us?" The pirate holding the binoculars trembled, nearly dropping the heavy lens in the dirt.
Zaraki withdrew his gaze, the corners of his mouth curling into a ferocious grin.
Being treated like a circus monkey for others to watch pissed him off!
If they wanted to watch the show, they needed to prepare to lose their heads!
"Hah—"
Zaraki let out a heavy breath as the surrounding air grew thick.
A dark golden aura erupted from the black-haired youth.
This aura felt savage and heavy, as if it could crush the bones of every living thing in the area.
The mutated giant bear beside him, roaring just moments ago, whimpered and collapsed to the dirt.
Its thick muscles convulsed.
The leaves stopped swaying, the wind itself freezing under the crushing weight of his presence.
A sharp whistle tore through the dead silence.
Fast.
So fast it pushed past the limits of human vision.
The bushes to the side exploded, and a dark green blur carrying a foul, bloody wind shot straight for Zaraki's throat.
It was a giant mantis over five meters long, pumped full of IQ drugs.
Its scythe-like forelimbs gleamed with a cold, eerie blue light under the sun.
"Yes, kill him!" A pirate behind a telescope cheered. "This Death Scythe is a top-grade specimen! It can cut straight through steel!"
'He's done for! The kid didn't even react.'
In the pirates' eyes, the afterimage flashed, making them think they could already hear the sound of spurting blood.
The expected scene never happened.
Clang!
A piercing metallic ring shook the trees, sending leaves raining down.
The scythe, capable of slicing through thick armor, halted just centimeters from Zaraki's neck.
An arm blocked the strike.
Zaraki had raised his left hand.
His skin now wore a layer of pitch-black Busoshoku Haki, withstanding the lethal strike without a single spark flying.
A flicker of astonishment flashed in the mantis's emotionless compound eyes. It pressed down with its scythe, the sharp serrations grinding against the black skin.
The friction let out a teeth-grating screech, yet the blade couldn't advance even a fraction of an inch.
"Too light."
Zaraki tilted his head, eyeing the insectoid face mere inches away. "Aside from decent speed, the force feels like a damn tickle."
Before the words faded, his right hand gripped Yubashiri at his waist.
"Shatter!"
He swung the blade out.
A dark golden wave of sword slash erupted.
The giant mantis had no time to scream before the force blasted its upper body into a shower of minced flesh and green fluid.
A massive shockwave swept backward, plowing a trench several meters deep into the dirt and extending into the dense forest.
Boom!
Several thick trees collapsed under the residual force of the strike, stirring up heavy clouds of dust.
A dead silence fell over the distant earthen slope.
Several pirates stood with their mouths hanging open, their telescopes clattering to the dirt unnoticed.
That was a mutated beast capable of slaughtering a full Marine squad!
And yet... he killed it with one strike?
"Is... is he a real monster here?" one man's voice trembled.
Zaraki shook the green slime off Yubashiri with a frown.
Trash of this level provided pitifully low proficiency.
He raised his head, his battle-hungry eyes looking past the corpse to lock onto the palace sitting at the center of the floating island.
A powerful presence waited up there.
Shiki.
Only by cutting down that old man would the template progress bar start moving again!
"Since I'm here, no point wasting time." Zaraki grinned.
The ground beneath his boots shattered.
He shot forward like a cannonball, ignoring the rough terrain as he charged straight for the castle.
The dark golden aura swirling around him snapped the trees along his path as he carved a straight line through the jungle right toward the throne.
Watching the approaching figure on the surveillance screen, the pirate leader hiding in the shadows swallowed hard.
His trembling fingers frantically smashed a row of red buttons on the console.
"Hurry, open all the cages!"
"Release all the Experimental Subjects! Don't let him near the palace!"
As the orders went out, heavy roars echoed one after another from deep within the island's forest.
The ground trembled, sounding like a massive horde of beasts waking up.
The escaped eagle let out a final shriek before vanishing into the high sky.
ROAAARRRR—!
The beast's roar rumbled like thunder, making the gravel at Zaraki's boots tremble.
A foul, bloody wind swept over him, carrying the heavy scent of rotting leaves and wild beasts.
'All the cages are open? Perfect!'
Zaraki lowered Yubashiri in his hand, a surge of restless heat stirring in his chest.
The bushes to his left exploded.
A silver-backed giant wolf, large as a truck, burst through. Its crimson eyes held nothing but a raw desire to kill.
It opened its bloodthirsty maw, saliva dripping from its fangs, and lunged straight for Zaraki's head.
It moved fast, its fur gleaming with a metallic coldness under the sun—clearly another product of the IQ serum.
"Too slow."
Zaraki tilted his body, casually raising Yubashiri in his hand.
Yet this casual strike wore a coat of pitch-black Haki.
BOOM!
The massive wolf's head exploded on impact!
The sticky, red-and-white mixture didn't even hit the dirt before the violent sword pressure blew it into a bloody mist.
[Template Compatibility slightly increased...]
A stream of information flashed through his mind, and the smile on Zaraki's lips widened.
"Is there more stronger monster than this? This level isn't even enough to sharpen this blade!"
He laughed a manic laugh and took a step forward, acting like he was stepping on the pulse of the entire forest.
The trembling of the earth grew intense.
Directly ahead, a Mutated Giant Rhinoceros clad in bone armor roared as it charged out of the dust.
Countless red-eyed fierce beasts followed right behind it, surging like a wild torrent to drown the human in their path.
"Perfect timing!"
Zaraki advanced instead of retreating, his blade carving a dark golden crescent through the air.
The rhinoceros's charge hit a dead stop before Zaraki.
Yubashiri shattered its bone armor, slamming its massive body into the dirt. The muffled sound of rupturing organs sent a chill down the spine.
Then came the second, the third...
Blood began to pool at Zaraki's boots, staining the surrounding vegetation a dark crimson.
Severed limbs and broken bodies flew through the air. Each swing of the blade carried the crisp sound of shattering bones.
That figure charging through the horde of beasts with a single sword created the most gruesome scene.
Several kilometers away in the monitoring room.
The pirates stared at the blood-soaked figure on the screen.
Their faces looked as pale as paper.
The black-coated swordsman on the screen wore a coat of blood, yet not a single drop belonged to him.
He was laughing—a smile reveling in the slaughter, making him look more like a monster than the mindless Experimental Subjects!
"Who... who is the real beast here?" a pirate asked, his voice dry.
"Damn it!"
At the main console, a pirate with a golden hook for a hand slammed his fist onto the panel, denting the metal.
"Those useless beasts can't stop him! At this rate, he'll tear right through the defense zone!"
The golden-hooked pirate watched the young man on the screen standing atop the rhinoceros's corpse.
The swordsman's gaze seemed to pierce straight through the lens.
The corner of the pirate's eye twitched.
The simple beast tactics failed!
"Spread the word. Since Boss Shiki personally brought that brat here, don't treat him like an ordinary opponent."
The golden-hooked pirate's face darkened.
He grabbed the communicator, keeping his voice low and deliberate.
"If beasts won't work, then prepare him a... more refined gift."
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