Chapter 356: The Unreliable Savior

Chapter 356: Chapter 356: The Unreliable Savior

Chapter 356: The Unreliable Savior

"More than one assassin?"

Vivi stared at Bon Clay, unable to understand what he was trying to do.

He had infiltrated their group while disguised as Koza. That alone proved he was deeply involved in whatever had happened to her childhood friend.

Yet now he was warning her about another assassin.

Was he genuinely helping them?

Or was this simply another trap?

Bon Clay saw the hesitation on her face and grew impatient.

He knew a few rushed explanations would never be enough to earn her trust.

"Fine, then."

He raised his hands.

"I’m going to attack you now. If you want to run, run."

Vivi immediately tensed.

She had no idea what he meant, but staying cautious was never a mistake.

Her gaze flicked toward the door behind her.

The hotel room was small. A few quick steps would get her there.

Bon Clay advanced.

Vivi and Chopper retreated together.

Then Vivi moved first.

She drew a Peacock Slasher and sent it spinning toward Bon Clay while grabbing Chopper with her other hand.

"Go!"

They rushed for the exit.

Vivi had checked the room thoroughly when they arrived.

The door was only a wooden panel a couple of centimeters thick. Even if it was locked, breaking through it would not be difficult.

The real problem would be the noise.

In Rainbase, attracting attention while Crocodile controlled the city was the last thing she wanted.

Bang!

The door exploded inward.

Vivi reacted on instinct.

She yanked Chopper aside just as the shattered panel flew past them.

A man stood in the doorway.

A thin black coat hung from his shoulders. Gray trousers were secured by a white sash, while cloth bindings covered his ankles.

Bon Clay’s expression changed immediately.

"Mr. 1!"

Vivi’s Peacock Slasher was still caught in his hand.

Mr. 1 stepped into the room without paying any attention to the guests drawn by the commotion outside.

No weapon hung from his waist.

He did not need one.

"Do you remember when I injured you before, Mr. 2?"

Bon Clay stiffened.

Mr. 1 interpreted his reaction as resentment.

"It was the boss’s order."

"Only a genuine wound would prevent suspicion."

Bon Clay snorted.

"I know."

"You held back anyway."

Mr. 1 seemed slightly surprised by how easily he accepted the explanation.

Then again, it made things simpler.

"You’re still injured."

He looked toward Vivi and Chopper.

"I’ll finish the mission."

Chopper had already shifted into his larger human form.

The moment Mr. 1’s attention settled on them, every instinct in his body screamed danger.

His fur stood on end.

"Vivi, be careful!"

Vivi nodded.

She did not need the warning.

Mr. 1 looked between them.

"A killer eliminates the weakest target first."

His gaze settled on Vivi.

Then he started walking toward her.

Bon Clay suddenly spoke.

"Mr. 1."

Mr. 1 stopped.

"Let me do it."

Bon Clay’s expression was difficult to read.

"They treated my injuries, after all."

"I should repay them personally."

Mr. 1 studied him for a moment.

His mission was to ensure Princess Vivi died.

Who delivered the final blow did not matter.

"Fine."

Bon Clay walked toward Vivi.

His steps were light and almost theatrical.

Vivi and Chopper kept retreating until there was nowhere left to go.

Then Bon Clay attacked.

Whoosh!

His arm snapped forward.

Vivi raised her hands defensively.

But the attack slipped past her.

At the same moment, Bon Clay pressed the Peacock Slasher back into her hand.

Then he spun.

His swan-shaped strike slammed directly into Mr. 1’s abdomen.

Boom!

Mr. 1 was launched backward.

"RUN!"

Bon Clay shouted.

Vivi stared at him.

"You..."

There was no time to ask.

She grabbed Chopper and sprinted toward the broken doorway.

Before she could escape, something swung down from above.

Mr. 1 had caught the doorframe with one arm.

A deep blade mark ran across the floor beneath him where his body had skidded.

He dropped back into the room.

His face had darkened.

"Mr. 2."

His voice was low.

"Do you understand what you’re doing?"

"Are you betraying Baroque Works?"

"Betraying the boss?"

Bon Clay planted himself between Mr. 1 and the others.

"Isn’t that obvious?"

He spread his arms.

"Why bother asking?"

Mr. 1’s expression hardened.

"Then you’ve chosen to die."

He attacked.

Bon Clay moved at the same instant.

Mr. 1’s arm shot forward like a thrusting sword, fast and brutally precise.

His movements were those of a professional killer who had refined every strike through years of bloodshed.

Bon Clay’s combat style could not have looked more different.

He twisted aside on one foot, his body spinning with the graceful rhythm of ballet.

The blade-like thrust missed him.

Mr. 1 immediately attacked again.

Bon Clay danced around the strike.

"You only injured me last time because it was a surprise attack!"

He spun away.

"This time, I’m ready!"

"If I cut you once..."

Mr. 1 lunged.

"I can cut you twice."

His speed increased sharply.

Bon Clay barely slipped sideways.

Splat!

Blood sprayed.

A shallow slash opened along his side.

He clenched his teeth but continued the movement, turning the dodge into a spinning kick.

Bang!

His foot struck Mr. 1 in the abdomen and knocked him several meters backward.

Bon Clay retreated as well.

Then pain shot through his foot.

He looked down.

A clean slash had opened across the sole where he had kicked Mr. 1.

Bon Clay frowned.

There was no sword.

Mr. 1 saw the confusion.

"I ate the Dice-Dice Fruit."

He raised one hand.

Its edge sharpened like steel.

"Every part of my body can become a blade."

He paused.

"I suppose using an actual weapon when I ambushed you before was unnecessary."

That was all he cared to explain.

Mr. 1 had never been particularly talkative.

There was no reason to discuss an enemy he intended to kill.

Vivi watched the exchange carefully.

Bon Clay was really fighting for them.

That much was undeniable now.

And although Mr. 1 seemed to hold the advantage, the difference between them was not overwhelming. Bon Clay was already injured, yet he could still exchange blows with him.

If Vivi and Chopper helped...

Maybe they had a chance.

A woman’s voice came from outside.

"Mr. 1."

Everyone looked toward the ruined doorway.

A tall woman with blue, curled hair stepped inside.

Miss Doublefinger.

She walked in leisurely, looking almost amused.

"It’s unusual for you to take this long with a mission."

Mr. 1 barely reacted.

"Mr. 2 betrayed Baroque Works."

Miss Doublefinger’s eyebrows rose.

"Really?"

Her surprise lasted less than a second.

Then she attacked.

Sharp spikes erupted from her fingers as she thrust toward Bon Clay.

He had already anticipated it.

Ignoring the pain from his injuries, he spun aside with another step of Okama Kenpo.

Chopper leaned closer to Vivi.

"What do we do?"

Vivi had no answer.

One senior Baroque Works agent had already been dangerous enough.

Now there were two Devil Fruit users.

Their only real hope was Axel.

Wherever he was.

Miss Doublefinger glanced at Mr. 1.

"Stop wasting time."

"Finish the mission."

Mr. 1 resumed walking toward Vivi.

She and Chopper backed away.

Bon Clay immediately tried to intercept him.

Miss Doublefinger stepped into his path.

"Stay here."

She smiled.

"Play with me."

Bon Clay’s expression hardened.

He had already decided how he felt.

Vivi and Chopper were his friends.

Whether they considered him a friend in return did not matter.

And he would not stand by while his friends were killed.

"Okama Kenpo!"

Bon Clay planted his foot.

"A fighting art built from blood, sweat, and tears!"

He stopped dodging.

Miss Doublefinger’s eyes widened.

Bon Clay drove his bare arm directly against her spike-covered strike.

Blood burst from the impact.

"What are you doing?!"

Miss Doublefinger stared at him.

"Trying to destroy yourself?"

Mr. 1 glanced toward them.

His instincts warned him immediately.

Something unexpected was happening.

He accelerated.

One moment he was several meters away.

The next, he was already in front of Vivi and Chopper.

Vivi threw her Peacock Slasher.

Mr. 1 swept his arm.

Clang!

The spinning chain was cut cleanly in half.

He continued forward without slowing.

Chopper stepped between him and Vivi.

He seized Mr. 1’s wrists.

Blood immediately ran from his palms.

Blades had formed along Mr. 1’s hands.

Holding him was like gripping sharpened steel.

"Let go."

Mr. 1’s voice was emotionless.

"If you keep holding me, you’ll lose your hands."

Chopper gritted his teeth.

"The mission only requires Princess Vivi’s death."

Mr. 1 looked at him.

"Release me, and I can spare you."

"No!"

Chopper tightened his grip despite the blood pouring from his palms.

"If I let go, you’ll kill Vivi!"

He had dreams he wanted to achieve.

He needed his hands to become a great doctor.

But what good were those dreams if he abandoned a friend standing right in front of him?

Mr. 1 regarded him without emotion.

"Then I’ll kill you first."

"And her afterward."

To him, it made little difference.

Vivi saw what Chopper was doing and moved immediately.

She drew another Peacock Slasher.

This time, she did not throw it.

She spun it faster and faster around her hand until the chain became a blur, building momentum through centrifugal force.

Then she struck Mr. 1.

Clang!

A metallic crash filled the room.

Vivi’s eyes widened.

The Peacock Slasher broke.

Mr. 1’s body carried only a pale scratch.

"How...?"

"Any part of me can become a blade."

Mr. 1 looked toward her.

"My body is steel."

"Unless you can cut steel, you cannot cut me."

Chopper’s grip was weakening.

Blood continued dripping from his hands.

His vision blurred.

Mr. 1 felt the pressure lessen.

He tore his arms free.

His leg sharpened.

Then swept across Chopper.

Slash!

Blood sprayed across the room.

Chopper was launched backward and smashed into the wall hard enough to leave a deep impression before falling to the floor.

A severe slash had opened across his abdomen.

"Chopper!"

Vivi rushed toward him.

Mr. 1 turned to her.

"Your turn."

His arm transformed into a blade.

He raised it without hesitation.

Bon Clay saw what was happening.

Miss Doublefinger had already been subdued enough for him to break away.

He moved to help.

Before he could reach them...

A brilliant beam tore through the hotel wall.

Boom!

It struck Mr. 1 directly and blasted him across the room.

The wooden wall exploded apart.

A familiar voice followed.

"Seriously."

Heavy footsteps came through the smoke.

"Did you people really think King Wapol didn’t exist?"

Wapol emerged through the newly created hole.

Vivi stared.

"Wapol?"

Her surprise was understandable.

Wapol was one of the last people she would ever expect to come charging in to save someone.

But this was hardly the time to complain about the identity of their rescuer.

Vivi immediately knelt beside Chopper.

His medical kit was near the bed because he had been using it repeatedly while treating the fake Koza.

She had assisted Chopper often enough during their journey to recognize the basic emergency supplies.

Vivi quickly began treating his wounds.

Across the room, Mr. 1 pushed himself back up.

His gaze settled on Wapol.

"One more target."

Wapol frowned.

Then casually picked his nose.

"Hmph."

He looked down at Mr. 1.

"If King Wapol hadn’t been asleep earlier, you wouldn’t have gotten the chance to act so impressive."

....

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