Starting as a pirate, he rose to become the strongest Shinigami in Soul Society.

Chapter 274 The Death of Katakuri, Roronoa's Victory!

Even with his extremely powerful Observation Haki, Katakuri was unable to perceive anything around him.

But when the first wave of pain hit him, he seemed to hear Roronoa Zoro's voice.

"A faint rumble of thunder."

The famous sword, Yuki-zuri, pierced Katakuri's abdomen.

"Overcast sky."

The famous sword, Sandai Kitetsu, followed closely behind and pierced Katakuri's waist from behind.

"But I hope for wind and rain."

The famous sword, Shusui, pierced Katakuri's ribs from the left.

"I'm glad you'll stay here."

The famous sword, Wado Ichimonji, was gently pushed by Zoro into Katakuri's right side.

Then, the world went dark.

No, it wasn't that the world had darkened, but rather that the indigo world of thunder had dissipated.

The surging, spreading, and dense thunder element that filled the entire island burst open with a snap, disappearing in an instant, like a dreamlike bubble.

It was only at this moment that Katakuri regained his sight and was able to see everything clearly in front of him.

Skånach Island was like a living hell, completely charred, and everything he could see was radiating an intense heat.

He himself was the same.

Katakuri seemed to only then notice that his body was damaged beyond repair, his whole body exuding the smell of burnt 'cooked meat', and faintly visible arcs of electricity flashing by from time to time.

Four sharp blades pierced his body from four directions, taking away his last chance of life.

Perhaps because Zoro was to his right, or perhaps because he was unwilling to show himself, Katakuri did not see the Marine Vice Admiral who had defeated him.

In these final moments, he seemed to want to say something, but his cracked and charred lips moved slightly before crumbling and falling away. At this moment, Katakuri could no longer utter a sound.

A hint of regret flashed in his eyes, Katakuri slowly closed them, and then, his life ended.

Only then did Zoro stagger back two steps, his steps faltering, before he slowly squatted down on the ground. Sweat streamed down his forehead, his once rosy complexion turned deathly pale, his lips turned purple, and he looked as if he had just been pulled out of the water, his clothes completely soaked with sweat!

He didn't even have the strength to take his own sword from Katakuri's body.

It is clear that although this attack possessed earth-shattering power, the surging elemental energy within it also completely drained him of all his strength!

"Looks like we won't need this thing." In his other hand, Zoro held a potion, which was the black technology that Fubuki had mentioned before, capable of forcibly stimulating life force and restoring condition and injuries.

Zoro's original plan was that if Katakuri was really that strong and could withstand his attack, then he would have to inject the drug and risk his life again!

At the same time, as the dense lightning element on the island instantly dissipated, Fubuki and Dol leaped off the warship and rushed towards the island at an extremely fast speed.

Moments later, Fubuki and Dol set foot on Skånezi Island, which had been transformed into a hellish landscape.

"No wonder he wouldn't let us get involved. If I hadn't retreated during such a thunderous attack, I'd probably be reduced to ashes by now," Dor thought to himself.

Even though the terrifying lightning had dissipated, the temperature on the island was still terrifying. Just as he landed, Dor could feel the soles of his shoes melting. He had no choice but to apply his Haki to resist the high temperature of the ground.

The rocks surrounding the beach are completely crystallized, and the sand itself is like an irregular glass world, refracting the firelight from all directions.

Without any delay, the two soon found Zoro slumped on the ground in the middle of the island, and Katakuri, who was still standing in the same spot but charred and had four swords stuck in his body.

"I didn't expect you to be able to kill him so quickly. I heard Katakuri is quite powerful, isn't he?" Fubuki stepped forward to examine Katakuri's corpse, then turned to Zoro and said.

Although he had no strength left, Zoro's expression remained aloof, and he said in a very pretentious manner, "He is indeed strong, but unfortunately he met someone even stronger than me, that's all."

"Why are you sitting on the ground?" Fubuki looked Zoro up and down, then asked with a wicked smile.

Zoro's pale cheeks twitched slightly, his arrogant expression crumbling as he revealed weakness. "You're a Logia type too. If that energy surge had happened to you, could you have withstood it?"

"I simply can't do that," Fubuki said, shaking her head to spare Zoro's pride.

However, in reality, she doesn't have Zoro's physical strength to unleash such a surge of elemental energy in an instant.

After a slight pause, Fubuki asked with great curiosity, "When did you develop such a powerful move? What was your thought process behind it?"

"I had this idea a long time ago, and I even discussed it with Bane. More than two hundred years ago, there was an admiral in the Marine Headquarters who was also a user of the Rumble-Rumble Fruit. He recorded some of the uses of the Rumble-Rumble Fruit in his notebook. The Headquarters has relevant information, and the information mentions that he had a move called 'Heavenly Bull,' which is also a massive amount of lightning element that is poured out in an instant, covering the entire island. I probably borrowed some of those techniques," Zoro explained casually.

As for his strategy for this attack, it was actually quite simple: to launch an extreme attack, using the overwhelming power of the Rumble-Rumble Fruit to force the enemy to have nowhere to hide and nowhere to retaliate, leaving them only with a passive defense.

At the same time, by harnessing the boundless energy of thunder, one can seize all of the opponent's senses, immersing them in a sea of ​​lightning and further disrupting their defensive rhythm.

Finally, relying on the characteristics of his own abilities, he instantly closed in on his opponent and "assassinated" the enemy.

That's the idea. This is the first time Zoro has demonstrated this move in actual combat. As it stands, there are many flaws that can be improved, but the basic goal has been achieved: to decide the outcome with one blow and kill Charlotte Katakuri!

The Central Front of the New World.

A massive fleet of dozens of Navy Headquarters-standard warships, with unparalleled firepower, blasted more than a dozen pirate warships flying the flags of the Beasts Pirates and the Big Mom Pirates, as well as the War House, into rubble on the sea.

On the flagship's deck, Bane, a cigarette dangling from his lips, arms crossed, calmly asked, "Is this the final wave?"

Issho, also a Marine Admiral, stood half a step behind and to the left of Bane, his eyes closed, but seemingly aware of everything. He nodded and said, "This is the last sizable fleet the pirate alliance can muster within a seven-day voyage around here. The rest are just scattered forces."

"Then let the flying squirrels and the others clean up this battlefield. Don't linger. The fleet is disbanded. Continue working according to your respective strategic plans. We'll set off immediately for Butter Island!" Bane said, a glint of light flashing in his eyes.

With Bane's order given, the massive fleet of dozens of warships quickly began to separate in an orderly manner. Vice Admirals such as Momonga and Fire Mountain each took some warships to further clean up the battlefield and eliminate the remaining pirate 'remnants' in the naval-controlled area.

Not a single mistake, not a single poem, not a single post, not a single piece of content, not a single look!

Meanwhile, the five warships, led by the flagship of Bane, quickly approached and assembled, forming a new small fleet. Without stopping, they continued to advance towards the sea ahead.

"Young Master, Marshal Sakazuki has sent a message saying that he is about two days behind us and we should wait for him." Ain said as he walked out of the cabin, holding a fax paper in his hand.

Without turning his head, Bane said, "The opportunity is fleeting, we can't wait for him. Let him accelerate on his own, we'll clear the way ahead first!"

Hearing this conversation, Ichisawa, who had just sat down and was eating ramen on the deck, couldn't help but say, "Mr. Sakazuki is, after all, a marshal. You should show him some respect."

Bane laughed heartily and said, "Laugh! I'm the commander-in-chief!"

"You're pretty good, okay?" Ichisho retorted, but didn't continue talking about Sakazuki. After slurping a couple of mouthfuls of ramen, he said, "I'm afraid even if we speed up, we might not be able to reach Butter Island before Kaido and the others."

"It doesn't matter who goes first or last, it won't change anything." Bane said confidently at first, but after a moment, his expression turned serious. "You need to rest well these next few days. The upcoming battle is no joke."

"If I could find a place to gamble a couple of times, my condition would definitely be even better," Yi Xiao said with a smile to Bane.

Just then, Nami excitedly emerged from the cabin, waving a copy of the latest battle intelligence report: "Good news! Zoro killed Charlotte Katakuri on Skanazi Island half an hour ago, and Fubuki, along with Vice Admiral Smoker, Vice Admiral Doll, Vice Admiral Poon, and others, also took down Charlotte Smoothie. With this, the southern front has achieved a complete victory!"

Upon hearing this news, Bane's eyes lit up, and he exclaimed, "Hahaha, I knew Zoro could do it!"

Nami then gave a detailed account of the battle report from the other side. When Bane learned that Zoro had defeated Katakuri in a one-on-one fight, he was even happier.

"Being able to defeat Katakuri single-handedly, Zoro has finally reached the threshold of becoming an Admiral, hasn't he?" Bane remarked with a chuckle.

"No." Ichisho finished his bowl of noodles in one gulp and then said, "You have to understand, it was within thirty minutes that he killed Katakuri. Although he also lost his fighting ability afterward due to complete exhaustion, it is still undeniable that his speed of victory was beyond imagination. It can't be said that he touched the threshold of our admiral, but I think Zoro has already stepped into it."

"Hahaha, yes, yes, you're right!" Bane nodded in agreement, a smile playing on his lips. "Now that he's gotten this far, when I return to the East Sea, I'll finally have the face to face Master Koushirou."

Since leaving the East Blue, both Bane and Zoro have achieved great success, but neither of them has contacted their master Koushirou even once during this period!

They never even sent a letter!

Because they both knew that if anything went wrong with what they were about to do, it would be a huge problem. So before the struggle was truly over, it was best to be a little "cold-blooded" to avoid bringing disaster to the Yixin Dojo in the future.

What's remarkable is that, to this day, Master Koushirou has never taken the initiative to contact the two of them, as if they had no further connection after leaving that door.

It really does prove what he said at the dock.

"If you cause any trouble in the future, just don't mention your teacher."

Standing on the edge of the deck, with the sea breeze blowing, Bane was in a very good mood; everything was going in a positive direction.

He vaguely remembered that when he first arrived at the Grand Line, he encountered Dracule Mihawk, who rowed with the Black Blade Night.

That day, Zoro, that hothead, charged at Mihawk without saying a word.

Back then, I was very worried that something unexpected might happen, but now...

Thinking of this, Bane's lips curled into a slight smile. "Perhaps after the war ends, that kid will draw his sword against the greatest swordsman once again?"

I wonder if he will be defeated this time?

Or perhaps ascending that throne?

(End of this chapter)