A breeze twisted through the forest and coalesced into the form of Monkey D. Dragon, materializing beside Zenkichi without warning.

"Monkey D. Dragon," Zenkichi said calmly, watching him appear, "Do you have business with me?"

"I heard from Koushiro that someone extraordinary was here," Dragon said with a polite expression. "Curiosity got the better of me."

Zenkichi smirked, skipping past pleasantries. "The leader of the Revolutionary Army wouldn't come all this way just to satisfy curiosity."

Dragon's brow lifted, amused. "You seem to know quite a bit about me."

"Not much," Zenkichi replied coolly. "Just enough."

Dragon paused for a moment, then cut to the point. "Then I'll be direct. I'm here to invite you to join the Revolutionary Army."

"The world government has grown corrupt. Their rule spreads only oppression. I intend to bring them down… but I need your strength."

Zenkichi didn't hesitate. "I'm not interested."

Dragon blinked, surprised. "Why not?"

"The Revolutionary Army, though new, is already becoming something like the Navy," Zenkichi said. "You follow orders. You operate under rules and discipline."

"And frankly, I don't like being told what to do."

Dragon gave a helpless smile and sighed. "I see. What a shame."

Zenkichi looked at him with a faint grin. "But if you can defeat me… I might reconsider."

Dragon's eyes narrowed with interest. "Are you serious?"

"I don't joke," Zenkichi replied. "Whether you believe that is your choice."

Dragon studied him carefully, then nodded. Koushiro's words echoed in his mind, but he needed to test this strength for himself. Win or lose, the risk was worth it.

"Then I won't hold back."

Dragon's expression turned cold as he released a fierce pressure, his Haki surging with intensity.

Koushiro had said Zenkichi defeated him easily—but Dragon wasn't one to back down because of someone else's words. He needed to judge this man with his own hands.

He launched forward, unleashing his original Dragon Claw Fist skills. His fingers curled into clawed formations, coated in jet-black Armament Haki, and he struck straight for Zenkichi.

Zenkichi didn't flinch. He raised one hand, and a glowing golden light flickered at his fingertip.

A laser beam shot forth—clean and sharp.

"That's Kizaru's ability!" Dragon's eyes widened in shock. He had seen it before—Yasakani no Magatama, the light-speed laser of Admiral Kizaru.

Why did this man have it?

Could he be Kizaru in disguise?

No… that wasn't possible. Kizaru was nothing like the sharp-eyed, composed man standing before him.

"How do you have that power?"

Dragon's Haki-enhanced claw swiped through the air, crushing the laser—but the question echoed in his voice.

Zenkichi smiled. "Is it so strange that I can?"

"But Devil Fruits are unique," Dragon argued. "Kizaru is still alive. How can you use his ability?"

"Who said I'm using a Devil Fruit?" Zenkichi replied casually.

A sword of golden light materialized in his hand. He swung it at Dragon without hesitation.

Their weapons clashed—Dragon's dragon-clawed hands against the golden blade. The shockwave that followed sent Dragon stumbling backward, his body rattled from the impact.

His face turned pale, and disbelief flashed in his eyes.

"You're on a completely different level…"

Zenkichi's body blurred into golden light, and in an instant, he appeared behind Dragon.

Reacting instinctively, Dragon spun and punched, colliding fist-to-fist with Zenkichi's arm wrapped in a glowing white aura—the power of the Tremor-Tremor Fruit.

The impact detonated into a massive shockwave. The ground split, trees snapped, and Dragon was hurled through the air.

"You lose," Zenkichi said, stepping forward, his presence calm and unshaken.

Lying on the ground, Dragon coughed and looked up at him with a complex expression.

"Yes… I lost," he said quietly. "You really did defeat Koushiro easily."

For the first time in a long while, Dragon's sense of confidence wavered. He had always believed he was among the strongest—but now he saw the vast distance between himself and the true peak.

After a long pause, he looked at Zenkichi and asked, "Can you tell me where your power comes from?"

Zenkichi gave a half-smile and shook his head. "That's a secret."

Dragon sighed, then nodded. "I figured as much."

Though a little frustrated, he accepted the answer without protest.

A man like Zenkichi… the Revolutionary Army wasn't prepared to hold someone like him.

In fact, it might be better this way.

---

Read ahead of WN on patreon.com/Zphyr_