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"Hey, Zoro, are you really going to attack a lady?" Sanji asked with concern. "And Ikki, how can you let such a beautiful lady like Nami fight?"
Seeing this, both Zoro and Nami couldn't help but frown.
"Annoying guy," Nami muttered, pointing Gonryōmaru directly at the sky and whispering, "Pierce, Gonryōmaru!"
As soon as the words left her lips, purple lightning suddenly climbed up the blade in Nami's hand.
Wrapped in these purple lightning bolts, the original Wado Ichimonji transformed into a straight Western-style sword.
Zoro, already irritated by Sanji's behavior, widened his eyes at this sight.
"What's happening? Why did my Wado Ichimonji change like that?!" he demanded. "You—what did you do to my sword?!"
Facing Zoro's questions, Nami smiled slightly, raising her hand to point at the space where Zoro and Sanji stood.
In an instant, a dark cloud formed five meters above them.
Before they could react, purple lightning suddenly struck from the dark clouds, catching both Sanji and Zoro completely unprepared. They received an unexpected session of electric shock therapy.
"Awesome! What is that? Dark clouds appeared out of nowhere above Zoro and Sanji!" Luffy exclaimed, watching with bright, excited eyes. He was clearly very interested in how Nami could summon storm clouds.
"That's... really dangerous. Good thing I'm standing far away," Usopp said, wiping cold sweat from his forehead and silently congratulating himself on his wise decision to keep his distance.
Ikki turned his head and glanced at the excited Luffy, a thoughtful gleam in his eyes.
'Luffy, Rubber Fruit... or I should say the Mythical Zoan Human-Human Fruit Model: Nika. If Nojiko defeated him now, she could use that Nika fruit for Minazuki's Shikai. But that would mean indirectly angering Red-Haired Shanks. If we killed him outright, it would attract trouble from Garp, Dragon, and others...'
With these thoughts, Ikki looked toward the tall buildings of Loguetown. Although he couldn't see anything, he thought that Dragon of the Revolutionary Army might already be in town. After all, in the original story, Dragon came here for some reason and even saved Luffy's group once.
'Forget it, we'll find another Devil Fruit. Using the Nika fruit for a Zanpakutō Shikai would be wasteful.'
The Nika Fruit was already the most special Devil Fruit among all Devil Fruits. Using it for a Zanpakutō Shikai seemed excessive even to Ikki. A normal Devil Fruit would suffice.
Ikki shook his head and turned to look at Nami.
She was examining the Western sword in her hand with excitement.
"This is... so powerful! I can really control thunder clouds!" she exclaimed. "If I were stronger, I might be able to create even bigger storm clouds."
Nami felt thrilled at the thought of controlling thunder and lightning.
"Damn it, what the hell just happened?" Zoro growled, covered in smoke as he pushed himself up from the deck. "Why did Wado Ichimonji look like that, and how can that sword call down lightning?"
He looked at Nami with confusion.
"Hey! You're still standing?" Nami asked with surprise. "I calculated the intensity of that shock carefully."
"Are you trying to knock me out with electricity?" Zoro snarled. "Aren't you a swordsman who can cut iron? Why don't you fight me properly with your sword?!"
On the sidelines, Luffy stretched his arms to pull the stunned Sanji to safety.
Without any further distractions, Zoro rushed toward Nami.
"I won't let you use that weird move again!" he shouted. "Give me a fair duel!"
Hearing this, Nami smiled and took a sword-drawing stance. "As you wish! Thunder Breathing, First Form: Thunderclap and Flash!"
A burst of golden lightning emerged from Nami's body, harmonizing with the purple lightning surrounding Gonryōmaru.
The air filled with a sound like thousands of birds singing in unison.
The next moment, Nami rushed toward Zoro with incredible speed.
Zoro's eyes narrowed, and he instinctively raised his swords to defend himself.
The blades met with a crisp sound, and Zoro felt a powerful force transfer through his swords, accompanied by both golden and purple lightning that left his arms feeling numb.
"So strong!" Zoro grit his teeth, trying to adjust his stance.
But before he could reposition himself, Nami's next attack had already arrived.
After four rapid clashes of metal, Zoro could no longer match Nami's speed. He endured three strikes from her blade against his body.
"That should be enough," Nami said, standing in her final attack position. "This form really drains your energy."
She glanced at Gonryōmaru, released the Shikai, and returned the sword to its sheath.
"You... are you a Devil Fruit user?" Zoro asked, pressing a hand against the wound on his neck. "Did you use some ability to transform Wado Ichimonji like that?"
He looked at the seemingly fragile woman before him with a complicated expression. Despite his questions, seeing Wado Ichimonji returned to its original form brought him some relief.
"Why? Do you think I only won because I used some special ability? You don't believe I could beat you with skill alone?" Nami asked with her chin raised defiantly.
"...No. Defeat is defeat. I lost fair and square," Zoro admitted through clenched teeth.
He never imagined that so soon after declaring he would never lose again at the Baratie Restaurant, he would face defeat—and at the hands of a woman, no less.
Touching the cuts on his neck and the stab wounds on both sides of his body, Zoro understood clearly that Nami had shown mercy. Otherwise, his head might have parted from his shoulders.
"Thunder Breathing, Thunderclap and Flash? Is that the technique you used to defeat me? I'll remember it," Zoro said.
At the same moment Zoro admitted defeat, a system notification sounded in Ikki's mind:
[Ding! Host's partner Nami has defeated Iron-Cutting Swordsman Zoro. Congratulations to Host and Nami for each obtaining 'Iron-Cutting Swordsman Zoro Challenge Permission' x1]
[Since both Host and Nami have already entered the Iron-Cutting Realm, this reward will be available for use by Host's other partners.]
[Note: If you use this challenge permission and win, you can only obtain the swordsmanship realm, not the specific techniques.]
'Thank you, Zoro, for the Experience Gift Package!' Ikki thought, unable to stop the smile spreading across his face as he listened to the system's voice in his mind.