Paper Paper Fruit In One Piece

"Damn it!"

It had only taken a few seconds from Roman sensing the strong enemy and unleashing his full power to defeat the warrior with a single sword strike, to him returning to the flagship using "Soruppo." But:

"Let her go! Golden Lion—"

A figure suddenly descended from the sky, knocking several Marines off the deck, before grabbing Nami as a hostage. The person had a head of golden hair, almost like a cloak, with a ship's wheel stuck on his bald head, and his feet were swords...

Roman immediately recognized who this was.

"More More – 20x Speed Shock Sword!"

Roman's sword turned into a blur of white light, rushing towards his opponent. He wasn't interested in wasting time talking—if he was going to delay, he needed to do it only after Nami was safe.

"Good swordsmanship," 

The Golden Lion only raised an eyebrow and sneered. He suddenly lifted his right foot! 

The Golden Lion had once been a famous swordsman, wielding two legendary swords, "Oto" and "Kogarashi." He had even sparred against Roger and Whitebeard without losing. Even when he later severed his own legs during an escape and used the swords as prosthetics, he remained unmatched.

"Lion Slash Sharp!"

A massive sword aura split the air, crashing into Roman's white sword light without fear.

*Crack!*

With everything he had, Roman clashed with the Golden Lion, who was barely exerting himself. The enormous warship immediately sank. The deck was sliced into chaotic geometric shapes, and massive waves surged in the surrounding sea with a deafening roar.

Even the space around their weapons cracked apart, creating dark "light" that shot in all directions. The red aura was unmistakable:

"Armament Haki, Conqueror's Haki?"

The Golden Lion grinned cruelly, enjoying the shock reverberating beneath his feet.

"A mere Marine Rear Admiral, and you have the qualities of a 'King'? How laughable."

"Old fool!" 

Although it seemed like an evenly matched clash, Roman had already lost. His angry strike was blocked by the Golden Lion, who stood on one leg. At the same time, the Golden Lion's grip on Nami's arm didn't loosen for a moment, and it was clear who was superior. 

"This girl means something to you?" 

The Golden Lion pushed Nami slightly forward, and Roman was forced to hold back his attack to avoid injuring her in the collision's aftermath. As the Golden Lion struck with a leg blade, Roman deflected his sword with a twist and parry. But even then, he was forced to step back.

"Golden Lion!"

Roman, looking at the legendary pirate who had been quiet for nearly twenty years, couldn't understand why this guy had targeted him... no, he meant Nami.

If Roman remembered correctly, in the "original" story, Luffy's trait of attracting enemies was what had drawn the Golden Lion. Now, the Straw Hat crew was simply leveling up and training. How did this guy still appear?

"You were once a legendary pirate, alongside Roger and Whitebeard." 

Since he couldn't win in a direct fight, Roman decided to try his luck with words:

"Why not go find Sengoku or Garp and leave us juniors alone?" As he spoke, Roman glanced at Nami and subtly signaled with his eyes, "Isn't this a bit embarrassing?"

"Use the Door Door fruit!" 

"No, I can't use it..." 

? 

"hahahaha!!!" 

In response to Roman's provocation, the Golden Lion threw his head back and laughed loudly. 

"I am a pirate!" 

"Who cares about your so-called lofty titles? And—" 

With one arm holding Nami, the Golden Lion raised his chin, arrogantly looking at Roman, who was hovering in midair with wings spread. 

"Don't expect this little girl to escape on her own. You've probably heard of Armament Haki, right?—That's right, it's not only useful for attacking, but it also works well for binding abilities!" 

!? 

What the hell? Weren't you supposed to be senile, with your head stuck in a ship's rudder after getting beaten half to death by Garp and Sengoku, and your power weakened after severing your own legs? How are you still... 

Tch, even a dead camel is bigger than a horse. 

Even though the Golden Lion is severely injured and old, with strength barely better than Whitebeard's, he's still not someone Roman can easily deal with! Or rather: 

"An eye for an eye, and—" 

With a flash of movement, the Golden Lion, using Haki to bind Nami, appeared above Roman! 

"I don't like looking up at people. Get down!" 

"Lion's Slash Grab!" 

This mixed attack of kicks and swordplay came crashing down! It cut across the sky with unmatched power, creating an insurmountable line across the ocean as if nature itself had momentarily surrendered to the overwhelming force. 

Even worse, there was no mercy in this strike. With Haki soaring, the killing intent was overwhelming! It carried the destructive force of sweeping through armies, a lion swallowing the world. 

"Air Gate—" 

Crack crack crack!!! 

This strike could cleave the sea and break the sky! But Roman withstood it, his feet shattering the 'air' beneath him like glass. It was the ground he created using his Door Door ability; otherwise, he would have been cleaved into the sea by the Golden Lion's sword! 

"Oh? Your fruit ability has quite a few tricks," 

The Golden Lion's Haki-filled eyes shifted downward, looking down at Roman. 

"Whitebeard's quake quake ability, World's more more ability..." 

These were all powers belonging to the strong people of the same era as the Golden Lion. He certainly recognized them. But: 

"Compared to the 'original', it's far lacking." 

Of course! 

Roman, with a bloodstain at the corner of his mouth, scowled, cursing these old fools! If I just grow stronger in two years... Well, waiting for the enemy to wait for me to grow stronger isn't realistic. What's important now is: 

Roman needs to leave. There are few people in this world who can stop him. But now that Nami is being held hostage, this is... 

"hahahaha~~" 

The Golden Lion noticed Roman's gaze and smiled widely. 

"Emotion, hometown—those are just burdens." 

Swish, 

The 'Sakuragi' on his foot slashed down suddenly. As Roman raised his sword to block, the Golden Lion swiftly flipped and pressed down. Nami, whom he was holding, rushed toward Roman's sword! 

!? 

"Despicable—" 

But the Golden Lion is a cruel, cold-hearted pirate! As long as it gets him what he wants, he doesn't care about using any means. 

In an instant, Roman instinctively withdrew his sword to avoid accidentally hurting Nami. But the Golden Lion smirked cruelly! 

"Look," 

"Lion's Slash Body!" 

With Armament Haki and Conqueror's Haki, the long sword came crashing down. 

Boom!! 

A massive force came down from above. Even though Roman blocked with his sword, the overwhelming pain, like a tidal wave, engulfed him! He held on with nothing but sheer will. 

At the same time, the clouds in the sky were torn apart, and the sea split in two! A deep rift appeared, and before Roman could adjust, he started falling downward. Blood sprayed from his body as the Golden Lion suddenly flew down and touched the sea beside him with one hand. 

!?

"Drifting Serpent!"

Boom—

The surrounding seawater instantly flooded into the chasm, creating violent whirlpools and tsunamis. But under the power of the Golden Lion, the water quickly calmed, turning into a powerful current that pressed Roman relentlessly toward the seabed!

Already gravely wounded from a single blow, Roman had no time to react before his body was swallowed by the rushing sea! The last thing he saw was the smug face of the Golden Lion flying away with Nami in his grasp.

Darkness closed in.

…

"Cough, cough!"

As seawater was forced from his lungs, Roman slowly began to feel the faint sensation of being alive again, with sounds around him gradually coming into focus.

"Boss is awake!"

"Move aside, don't crowd around—"

"Get the ship's doctor! Quickly, treat the boss…"

"I…"

!?

Roman suddenly sat up on the deck, sweeping his gaze over his surroundings. Seeing his pale face, Blue and the others looked down in shame.

"B-Boss, we couldn't stop him from taking Captain Ann…"

"It's not your fault."

Regaining his composure, Roman waved his hand. Blue, Bolkin, and Isuka might be strong fighters, but in front of the Golden Lion, they were little more than fodder. Even Roman himself had been caught off guard...

No!

Roman shook his head, dismissing such weak thoughts. Even without Nami's influence, the Golden Lion's strength was beyond what Roman could handle alone. At most, he could have held out a few moves longer.

"Did you all pull me up?"

He looked at the worn-out faces around him. Considering how Roman and the Golden Lion had collided head-on with Haki, it was impressive that Bolkin and the others managed to rescue him from the seabed so quickly.

"Thanks."

"Boss! We…"

Seeing the guilt in their faces, Roman slowly stood up.

"I said it's not your fault."

"As for Nami… Captain Ann, I'll handle it!"

With Roman's awakening, his recovery accelerated. The blood-replenishing paper began restoring his energy, Seimei Kikan worked on his body, realigning his muscles and bones, clearing out bruises, regenerating cells...

!?

"I'll leave the rest to you. I'm going to rest for a bit."

Watching Roman, pale and walking alone toward the cabin, Bolkin and Isuka silently stepped aside. To them, Roman—a young Rear Admiral of the Marines with top-notch skills and intellect—must be struggling with anger and sorrow, having been attacked by a legendary pirate and seeing his girlfriend taken right before his eyes.

"It's all because we're too weak!" Bolkin ground his teeth in frustration. Without getting stronger, they'd be helpless against stronger foes…

"What are you all standing around for?!"

"Clean up and set course for Marine Headquarters!"

—————

Inside the cabin, however, Roman wasn't as grief-stricken as they imagined. Instead:

"It's me, Roman."

"Roman!! Did something happen to Nami?!"

Luffy's anxious voice rang out through the transponder paper.

!?

"How did you guys—"

"Don't ask how we know. Just tell us what's going on over there."

Sanji's voice cut in.

"What happened? How come you didn't protect her…"

"Cook, shut up!"

Zoro's calm voice interrupted Sanji's questioning.

"Do you know what you're saying? The person most worried right now is Roman."

"·····Sorry,"

After Sanji apologized, the paper of the phone switched to Robin's calm voice.

"It's hard to imagine, Roman actually······ We just received Nami's signal, and the translation is 'Roman is in danger, requesting backup.' That's why we·····"

"Hey, Roman!"

Usopp's voice joined in.

"Tell us who the enemy is! — Or do you think we'll just hold you back?"

"Roman·····"

"Ugh, Roman~~~"

"Roman, now's not the time to stay quiet·····"

"Hah, no."

Roman, sitting in the cabin with his hand on his forehead, had already shaken off the blow of failure and regained his focus because:

"I was just calculating the best route to gather you all."

"···········"

"Hahahaha, just in time to show you all my new weapon—"

"Hmph, my sword is already itching for action."

"Ahh, I'll run over directly! Burn, gentleman's soul!"

"Roman, as reliable as always~~"

"We'll wait for your plan."

"Roman, for my comrades, I'd even walk through fire! Though I only have bones left, yoh ho ho~~"

"Hehehe, then what are we waiting for?"

Luffy's voice gave the final word:

"Hurry up and pick me up, Roman!!"

······

"Alright, wait for me."

My companions, Nami, and—

Golden Lion!

—————

PS: The Golden Lion must have the three types of Haki, no need to explain. I can only weaken him from his hidden injuries, broken leg, and old age...

————— ----

You can read 10 advanced chapters at my patreon.com/YeyeQiu