In One Piece, as Hashirama Senju

[79] Random Encounter (1)

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Chapter 79: Random Encounter (1)

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In the heart of the Boin Archipelago forest, there existed a magical grove where the trees were unlike any other. Their branches were made of sturdy wood, their leaves a vibrant green, just like normal, yet their fruits were a sweet, savory, and magical delight.

The boughs were laden with cakes, pastries, and chocolates of every kind, and their delicious scent perfumed the air. The magic continued even at the few spring lakes one could find, where the water ran yellow and its depth was infused with the savory flavor of ramen noodles.

In hindsight, this was a place where wonder and reality collided, indulgence met nature, and the forest whispered with the joy of discovery. This may just have been the idea of heaven in a lot of people's heads.

However, in truth, the Boin Archipelago was far from that.

– Dhiingg!

– Boom-Boom!

– Sha-Sha-Sha!

– Ting-Tang-Ting!

The parrying sound of Hashirama's punches, Nami's explosions, Mikita's wind blades, and lastly, Vivi's nunchucks' blows against the large beetles' black armor sounded out through one part of the entire archipelago.

Robin stood protected in between them, sitting on top of Karoo, as the four were circling around her, and she looked a little embarrassed. Karoo had gotten used to large clashes by now, and after being chased by Sea Kings for two months, her mentality was quite strong now. So she managed to keep Robin in the center, safe from any stray enemies by moving to the side.

Hashirama hadn't allowed Robin to fight. The technique that allowed her to transform into a battle machine was a double-edged sword, so there was no need to use it here.

The ones who were the least effective against the beetles were Nami and Mikita, and it wasn't only because they were weaker than Hashirama and Vivi. While the latter two were pure monsters, with movements fast and explosive, the former two also had a disadvantage against the beetles.

The beetles' scales were too hard for them to be cut by mere wind blades. At the same time, it was aerodynamic in shape and its scales were a very smooth surface – so Nami's explosions just brushed on top of it, slipping past easily.

So against the twelve beetles that had attacked the crew, it was mostly Vivi and Hashirama who took care of them. Their direct blunt attacks cracked the shell of the beetles easily, crushing their brain and killing them in moments.

In just under three minutes, the beetles were dealt with. As the last corpse fell to the ground, Mikita dropped to her feet, and the group gathered around Robin, who was still sitting on top of Karoo. Robin handed over paper towels to the sweaty fighters, as she asked the captain what the next course of action would be.

"So what's the plan, Hashirama?"

"If I remember right, this island has a number of bandits on it. They're basically the people who got stuck here and never got to leave due to these beetles."

Hashirama shifted his head to the side, not accepting the paper towel since he wasn't really sweating, and said, "Ah-huh."

"Are they not bad people if that's the case, then?"