Sherlock strolled through the snow-covered castle, his black leather boots making crisp pat-tap sounds on the greenish-white flagstones.
Judging by his leisurely appearance, he seemed to possess none of the urgency one should feel when an enemy is attacking.
"Huh? Sherlock!"
Luffy came running from behind. When he saw the sorcerer in all black, he immediately rushed up and eagerly asked Sherlock, "Do you have any thicker clothes? It's really too cold outside!"
"That Wapol is here again. Do you need my help?" Sherlock took out a rather extravagant-looking cotton coat from his Mirror World and handed it to Luffy.
"No need!" The Straw Hat Captain deftly put on the coat and gave Sherlock a big grin.
"I'll personally send that sword-eating scumbag flying!" With that, Luffy dashed off outside again in a whirlwind, making Sherlock shake his head.
Sherlock arrived at Nami's room. The orange-haired girl, lying in bed, looked at the person who entered and asked with some confusion:
"Sherlock? Who is that Wapol person? Is there going to be a fight? Why aren't you going to help?"
Sherlock pulled up a chair and sat beside Nami. He felt the navigator's noticeably cooler forehead, then said calmly, "Luffy alone is enough. We'll just watch the show."
"Also, instead of worrying about this, you should worry about how we'll abduct that little reindeer later on!"
As he spoke, Sherlock gently waved his hand. The air rippled like restless lake water, and as the ripples subsided, the scene outside slowly emerged in the empty space.
— Projection Mirror!
(What a convenient Devil Fruit ability...) Nami gazed at the clear image in the Projection Mirror, musing to herself.
Then, the Miss Navigator looked at the sorcerer who had sweets in his left hand and black tea in his right, and her face darkened with exasperation.
(Is it really appropriate for your teammate to be fighting outside while you're here watching so leisurely?)
The flying snow, driven by the fierce cold wind, was slicing like razor blades across the two groups of people confronting each other.
"Now, let me show you the strongest warriors of the Drum Kingdom!" Wapol, who had become as large as a house, chewed on his two reliable subordinates while speaking sinisterly to Luffy and the others.
Moments later, steam burst from Wapol's body like a boiling kettle, and the door on his stomach opened, from which a grotesque figure emerged.
"Chess Piece Morimo!" roared the two-headed, four-armed monster.
"What the hell is that...?" Sanji scoffed, cigarette dangling from his lips. "Isn't that just a regular human pyramid?"
"A Combination! That's amazing!" Luffy's eyes sparkled with stars. It seemed the idiotic captain was extremely interested in things like combinations.
Bang! Accompanied by one of Wapol's cannon shots, the Jolly Roger bearing the cherry blossom petals, which was stuck on top of the castle, fell to the ground.
"This kingdom is mine, and this castle is mine! I will absolutely not allow that quack doctor's flag to taint my castle!"
Chopper stared blankly at the slowly drifting flag and listened to Wapol's piercing taunts. His small body trembled slightly.
(Chopper, did you know? The Jolly Roger is a symbol of conviction! It can turn the impossible into the possible!)
(Doctor...)
(Chopper, don't hate humans. This country is sick. As a doctor, I must save it!)
(Doctor...)
(Chopper! I will make the Winter Island bloom with miraculous cherry blossoms!)
Chopper's body instantly transformed into his human-grizzly form. He roared at Wapol in fury, "What did you do to the Doctor's Jolly Roger, you jerk!"
"The Doctor... The Doctor tried to save you too!!!"
"Tch, that quack doctor?" Wapol curled his lip in extreme disdain. However, just as he was about to say more, he was interrupted by a loud, clear voice from the top of the castle.
"Hey! Sword-eating scumbag!" Luffy had climbed to the top of the castle at some point. He held the Jolly Roger with the cherry blossom print, forcefully jammed it into the peak of the castle, and tore off his cotton coat's sleeve to secure it.
"You cowards, who tuck tail and run when faced with a strong enemy, you have no idea what this Pirate Flag means!" the Straw Hat boy announced clearly, gripping the flag pole. His expression was serious, a complete change from his usual goofiness.
"You bastard..." Wapol's forehead veins bulged with anger at Luffy's words. He raised his arm, which had transformed into a cannon, and the dark muzzle aimed at Luffy on the castle top.
"I said, this is my castle! Watch me break your pathetic flag!" With a cannon blast, a cannonball flew towards Luffy, but the latter remained standing there, unmoving as a bedrock.
Boom!! The violent explosion instantly swallowed Luffy. However, after the dense smoke cleared, the sight revealed made everyone present gasp in surprise.
"See? It won't break!" The Straw Hat boy grinned.
In the midst of the flying snow, a slightly battered Luffy was tightly gripping the flagpole. Although the Jolly Roger was slightly damaged, it still stood proudly at the top of the castle, fluttering in the fierce cold wind.
"A pirate's Jolly Roger is..." Luffy took a deep breath, then let out a shout that seemed to come from the depths of his soul.
"The Symbol of CONVICTION!!"
Swoosh—
At this moment, Luffy's soaring fighting spirit was like a ball of golden flame, burning and shining! The onlookers felt as if a brilliant, golden sun was slowly rising from the top of the castle, its dazzling light illuminating this world of ice and snow.
Luffy's roar was like a muffled thunderclap exploding in Chopper's mind. The blood-pumping words echoed ceaselessly in his head, startling the blue-nosed reindeer, who stared blankly at Luffy on the castle peak.
(Jolly Roger, Conviction, Doctor...)
Before he realized it, tears were welling up in Chopper's eyes.
It wasn't due to sadness, but because that sunlight was simply too dazzling.
"Luffy..." Nami stared blankly at the figure standing proudly on the castle top, lost in thought.
Back then, didn't this idiotic captain stand on the ruins of Arlong Park with the exact same aura, shouting that she was his navigator?
"He's certainly a captain who doesn't cherish other people's belongings. I actually quite liked that coat..." Sherlock silently pushed up his glasses while watching the image in the Projection Mirror, a charming curve on his lips.
Just as Sherlock had a presence that was incredibly reassuring, Luffy also possessed a tremendously powerful, convincing infectiousness.
(I must have been infected by his spirit back then, which is why I joined his pirate crew. Really...)
Thinking this, Sherlock looked at Chopper, who was locked in battle with Chess Piece Morimo, and at Wapol, who had secretly snuck into the castle while no one was looking. His dark eyes flashed with an inexplicable light.
(It looks like this little guy isn't going to get away. It's time for me to do my experiment.)
Sherlock glanced at the spaced-out navigator, then quietly disappeared.
"Oh, oh, oh... Seven-stage transformation, that's incredible!" Luffy's eyes sparkled with stars as he watched Chopper nimbly dodging the attacks of Chess Piece Morimo's four giant axes. "I can't stand it! I have to make such an interesting guy my crewmate!"
Dr. Kureha, standing on the immobilized Sanji (who was injured in the spine), turned her head and looked at the dopey captain, whose coolness had lasted less than three seconds, with a strange expression. She wondered, Did this clown really say those nice words just now? The difference before and after is too huge!
Having carried out tyranny in the Drum Kingdom for so many years, Wapol's two henchmen did have some strength. For a while, Chopper really couldn't defeat the two-headed, four-armed monster.
(Damn it, the Rumble Ball's three-minute limit is almost up, I have to finish this quickly!)
"Brain Point!" Chopper transformed once again into the form resembling a small tanuki. He put his two fore-hooves together and aimed at the swaggering Chess Piece Morimo.
"Diagnosis!"
"It's no use!" "We have no weak points when we're combined!" The two heads spoke simultaneously as the monster brandished its sharp axes, charging towards the little reindeer with a fierce gust of wind.
"I am a doctor! I know your body better than you do!"
Chopper gazed seriously at the enemy rushing over with a vicious aura. A resolute look flashed in his round, black eyes.
"Found your weak point! Speed Point!" The small figure instantly transformed into the agile reindeer form, and Chopper charged toward Chess Piece Morimo without hesitation.
The distance between them rapidly closed.
"Chopper!" Dr. Kureha couldn't help but exclaim.
Swish! Swish! Swish! Swish!
Barely dodging the four vicious axe swings, Chopper's body reached the underside of the monster.
"Your weak point is the chin! Arm Point!"
Chopper's body transformed with a thud into his human form. The bulging muscles on his forearms displayed explosive power, and his somewhat small hooves shone with a metallic sheen.
"The Doctor's Jolly Roger..."
A fire seemed to burn in Chopper's eyes. He aimed for the enemy's chin, and his iron hooves, which could easily shatter rock, ruthlessly slammed into it—swift as lightning, powerful as a thunderclap!
"...I will protect it!"
"Engraved Hoof—Sakura!"
In that moment, even the snow flying in the sky seemed to stand still!
Bang! A dull thud! Accompanied by a shriek, Chess Piece Morimo's massive body was sent flying backward, landing on the snow and kicking up a spray of powder. The red mark on its chin, shaped like a cherry blossom petal, was extremely striking.
Poof—Three minutes were up, and Chopper returned to his tanuki-like Beast-Man form.
"Awesome! Reindeer, you're amazing..." Luffy shouted excitedly. Chopper's final, match-winning blow just now was simply too cool.
"Idiot! Even if you praise me, I won't be happy, you Straw Hat jerk..." Chopper wriggled his body happily.
Sanji, lying sprawled in the snow, stared blankly at the dancing Chopper and muttered, "Although that's what he says, his body is very honest about how he feels."
"That idiot..." Dr. Kureha let out a long breath, the heavy stone in her heart finally dropped.
On the other side, inside the castle's tightly locked armory, Wapol was indulging in a gluttonous feast.
"Apologies for interrupting your meal..." An abrupt voice interrupted Wapol's swallowing motion.
Looking back, the glasses-wearing man Wapol had met before was watching him composedly, the deep black eyes behind the lenses showing neither joy nor sorrow.
Having been taught by his father since childhood, Sherlock's noble etiquette was practically ingrained in his bones. Therefore, even though the other party was an enemy, and even though he was no longer a king, Sherlock still offered Wapol an elegant noble bow.
Even Wapol, a complete scoundrel who paid no mind to manners, had to admit that the sorcerer's courtesy was absolutely flawless.
"You're with that Straw Hat kid, aren't you!" Fiercely swallowing the last cannon, Wapol gave a sinister laugh. "Don't worry, your crewmate, the blue-nosed monster, and that old hag—none of them will get away!"
With that, Wapol stretched out his hands, and his entire body began to swell dramatically. All sorts of weapons emerged on his person: giant cannons, muskets, long swords, sharp axes...
"Witness the ultimate secret of the Munch-Munch Fruit!"
"Munch-Munch Factory!"
Sherlock gazed calmly at the "war machine" before him, which was nearly as tall as the warehouse. He pushed up his glasses and said softly, "Would you care for a little post-meal 'dessert,' Your Excellency Wapol?"
As he spoke, the sorcerer took a Rumble Ball from his coat and shook it at Wapol.
"You glasses jerk!" Feeling toyed with, Wapol roared furiously. Hundreds of cannons on his body simultaneously pointed at the "small fry" in front of him.
A strange feeling rose in the sorcerer's heart as he was targeted by the dense array of muzzles. After all, since he had started his career, he had always been the one pointing hundreds of guns at others; today, the situation was reversed.
"It seems you don't want to eat it," Sherlock said, shaking his head without changing his expression. "That's alright. I'll feed it to you!"
"But before that..."
— Mirror Entity!
Sherlock reached out, and five simply shaped Knight Sword images were projected out of thin air, slowly floating in a row in front of him.
— Mirror Fusion!
Sherlock slowly clenched his hand. The five Knight Swords began to interweave one by one, like Venetian blinds being closed.
One, two... up to the fifth one. This was the first time Sherlock had performed a five-fold Mirror Fusion.
The appearance of the five-fold fused Knight Sword image was unchanged, but tiny wisps of black aura were entwined around the blade. As the sword moved up and down, a grating hissing sound could faintly be heard.
This was the sound of the air being sliced!
Sherlock gripped the hilt and swung it hard. A thunderous, explosive dull sound immediately resonated in the air, as if all the air in the entire armory had been thrown into chaos by that one swing. A moon-white slash, seemingly solid, shot out from the blade, leaving a deep gash in the armory's tough stone wall, accompanied by a teeth-grinding shriek.
One truly wonders what Zoro would think if he saw this...
"...Let's have some post-meal 'exercise' to help with digestion first!" Sherlock said earnestly, pointing the sword tip at the greatly changed expression of Wapol.