Chapter 11: Drake: This Rokushiki – Soru Is Ridiculously Fast!
The moment the words left his mouth,
a flash of blood-red light illuminated the entire bank corridor.
Rok gripped the famed sword Undead, transforming into a death god returned from hell. An overwhelmingly powerful presence surged outward, so tangible it forced X. Drake to stagger back several steps.
In that instant,
both Drake and Nami were stunned speechless by the aura radiating from him.
To Drake,
Rok looked like a true deity risen from the underworld, the one destined to toll the death knell for the World Government and Navy Headquarters.
A shiver ran down his spine.
In Nami's beautiful eyes flashed shock… and a trace of deep sympathy.
She had never imagined that the usually cheerful, sunny Rok harbored such rage and bitterness in his heart.
"Rok… some things are beyond our power to change. As a Marine, all I can do is follow orders!"
After a brief mental struggle,
X. Drake finally regained his composure.
He truly pitied Rok's fate, but as he himself had said—
some things were simply impossible for ordinary people to alter.
The Navy might have its flaws and its critics, yet it undeniably protected countless places from pirate raids.
That was why his conviction as a believer in the Marines remained unshaken.
Today, he had to complete the mission entrusted to him by Headquarters: eliminate Rok!
Judging by the sheer presence Rok had just displayed,
if this man ever fully recovered, he would become an absolute nightmare for Navy Headquarters in the future!
BOOM—!
Without further hesitation,
Allosaurus-form Drake kicked off the ground with his massive claws. His enormous body shot forward like a cannonball, jaws wide open as he lunged to bite Rok in half!
"Rok, watch out!"
Seeing the monstrous beast charging,
Nami cried out in worry.
That guy looked terrifying after transforming.
Those jaws and razor-sharp teeth could probably snap an entire pirate ship in two!
Even though Rok's aura was overwhelming, who knew how much strength he actually had left?
For some reason… she was terrified at the thought of him getting hurt.
"ROOOOK!!!"
The gigantic Allosaurus Drake roared, his gaping maw like an abyss, clearly intending to swallow Rok whole.
Yet—
The instant Drake thought victory was assured and prepared to crush his target,
—whoosh!*
In the blink of an eye,
a gust of wind seemed to pass by.
Rok vanished completely from Drake's sight.
That speed—
Drake couldn't react at all.
By the time he registered what had happened,
Rok was already standing behind him!
"Drake… you're too slow."
"Navy Rokushiki – Soru?! How the hell is it this fast?! That's impossible!"
Drake didn't even have time to register the lethal threat now at his back.
He was utterly dumbfounded.
As a former Navy Rear Admiral, he was intimately familiar with the Six Powers.
In fact,
when Rok's batch had first entered the Naval Academy for advanced training, Drake had briefly served as one of the Rokushiki instructors.
He could proudly say
he was one of the people who had personally guided Rok into learning the Six Powers.
But—!
What the hell kind of Soru was this?!
How could Soru possibly be this fast?!
Even the senior who invented Soru probably never reached such speed!
Had this kid actually refined and perfected Soru to its absolute limit?!
Aside from Admiral Kizaru, Drake had never seen anyone move this fast!
Wait—
Hold on. Wasn't this guy supposed to be crippled by that deadly poison?!
How was he still unleashing such monstrous speed?!
Drake had no time to think.
Before he could fully turn around,
the famed blade Undead in Rok's hand slashed down hard across his back!
CLANG—!
"Yes! You're amazing, Rok!"
The moment Rok's blade solidly connected with Drake,
Nami nearly jumped for joy.
If there weren't still enemies around, she would've rushed over and thrown her arms around him in a huge hug.
However…
The next scene left her utterly speechless.
That slash… was pathetically weak.
Compared to the time he had sliced through a massive ship anchor, this attack barely left a shallow scratch on Allosaurus Drake.
Even Drake himself was baffled.
What the hell was going on?
Was this guy injured or not?! Why was he strong one second and weak the next?!
"Not bad for an Ancient Zoan fruit. It actually has some defensive value."
Rok chuckled, giving his casual assessment.
That slash had obviously been a light test—he just wanted to gauge Drake's toughness.
Setting aside the seawater weakness, Devil Fruits really were worth having.
Especially the rare ones.
Take the Rumble-Rumble Fruit, for example—Rok really liked that one. Shame Enel had wasted it.
It would be nice if the system ever rewarded a top-tier fruit someday.
But that was a topic for another time.
The reason he hadn't finished Drake off immediately was simple: despite their opposing sides, Drake was still someone worthy of respect.
So Rok would defeat him fairly and squarely!
"Rok—if you're truly unaffected by the poison, then don't hold back!"
"I won't either. Prepare yourself!"
Drake finally completed his turn and roared at Rok.
No matter what, he had accepted this mission—he would see it through to the end, no matter the cost!
Today, he would take Rok down!
"Fine by me. Here I come!"
Rok stopped talking.
He gripped his sword with both hands, closed his eyes briefly, and wrapped a wisp of Conqueror's Haki around Undead.
When he opened them again—
a blood-red slash erupted like a crimson rainbow piercing the sun!
One-Sword Style – Blood Blade: Blazing Fire
Shhhhing—!
Hummmm—!
In that moment,
under the stunned gazes of Nami and the Drake Pirates who had just caught up,
the crimson slash forcibly reverted Drake from his Allosaurus form.
The leftover force sent him flying unconscious, crashing through wall after wall after wall—until he blasted straight through the entire Sabaody bank!
"CAPTAIN!!!"
Drake's crew cried out in horror.
But the moment they tried to rush to his aid,
another barrage of lightning crashed down.
Nami's Thunderstorm Tempo had been waiting for them.
And before they could recover from the electric onslaught,
an even more terrifying slash silently arrived.
A flash of blood-red light—
every member of the Drake Pirates felt their souls scream in agony before they were all sent flying and knocked out cold.
"Not bad, Nami. Your combat experience is pretty impressive!"
Battle over,
Rok secretly gave Nami a big thumbs-up.
As expected of the Straw Hat crew's navigator—cute one minute, fierce the next, and always ready to fight.
Just… a little too money-obsessed.
"Hmph! As if I need praise from you."
Nami huffed tsundere-style, but the corners of her mouth curled up, betraying how happy she really was.
Buru buru buru buru~
Buru buru buru buru~
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