From their vantage point on the distant hill, Ray watched the conclusion of the battles with a calm, analytical gaze.
He had naturally watched the entire sequence of events unfolding between the "Weak Trio" and their CP9 opponents.
Chopper had won through sheer, overwhelming strength.
He looked incredibly cool during the fight, utilizing his forms perfectly—though he completely lost his dignity at the end by getting caught in a trap while trying to rescue Usopp.
Zoro, who had initially nodded in approval of his little reindeer's power, now wore an expression of utter disdain.
"That idiot..."
As for Nami, her combat intelligence was genuinely impressive.
She feigned weakness to lower the enemy's guard, used the enemy's own charging momentum against them, hid her Armament Haki until the critical striking moment, and used wind pressure to accelerate and enhance her piercing power.
Moreover, her spear-and-staff combat style was fluid and graceful, making the entire battle a visual pleasure to watch.
Sanji was completely captivated.
He had hearts in his eyes, swooning over Nami's victory. "Oh, Nami-swan! Your violence is so beautiful!"
However, the cook paused for a moment while lighting a cigarette.
"Though... I do feel quite sympathetic toward that Kalifa woman. Being electrocuted like that isn't a good way to go."
As for Usopp... well, he was Usopp.
He was a sneaky, underhanded fighter who gave the enemy absolutely no chance to counterattack once they fell into his rhythm.
But in a pirate fight, that was a good thing to do.
Buggy was practically vibrating with excitement. He expressed that he admired Usopp the most out of everyone.
"That long-nosed kid is a genius!" Buggy shouted, wiping a tear from his eye. "He fights just like me! Traps, lies, and distance! That is the man who will achieve great things in this world!"
Ray smiled faintly.
All three of them—Nami, Chopper, and Usopp—had confirmed that their enemies had no means to turn the tables before going all out.
They didn't rush. They were becoming more and more mature as fighters.
As for the remaining battlefields, Ray naturally wasn't worried either.
...
The Plaza
In the center of the stone plaza, the battle had turned into a terrifying game of "the floor is lava."
Robin stood calmly in the center, her arms crossed over her chest.
Using her Hana Hana no Mi, she had turned the entire ground into a forest of limbs.
Wherever a hand could grow, a slender arm would emerge, ready to grab, twist, or crush ... on some family jewels.
Kaku and Blueno had both used Geppo to fly up into the sky. There was simply no way to stay on the ground without getting grabbed.
"NICO ROBIN!" Kaku shouted, kicking the air to stay afloat. "Have you no shame, woman?! Where the hell are you aiming your attacks?!"
Kaku was so angry that his rectangular nose was almost crooked.
He still felt excruciating phantom pain in his penis from a near-miss earlier.
As for Blueno beside him, his eyes were still rolling back in his head, his face pale.
He was clearly struggling to maintain consciousness after a particularly vicious grab.
Seeing their terrified condition, Robin simply revealed an enchanting, yet demonic smile.
"To win and survive by any means necessary," she quoted softly. "Isn't that exactly how you evaluated me when we first met? I'm just living up to your expectations."
The two agents were immediately left speechless.
Indeed, they had said exactly that to Robin's face when they blackmailed her. Now, they were paying the price for their own philosophy.
Looking down at the sea of arms covering the ground, Kaku and Blueno didn't dare approach Robin directly.
Those hands struck too fast!
After some frantic thought, Kaku steeled himself and whispered to Blueno.
"Hey, Blueno. I have a plan. Use Tekkai to protect your crotch."
Blueno's eyes widened in horror.
"Are you insane?!" he hissed. "I refuse! Doing that might affect... future functions!"
"What are you talking about?"
"Think about it!" Blueno argued. "Tekkai involves contracting muscles to their tightest, hardest state. The size... it would become smaller! What if it doesn't return to normal after contracting?! I can't take that risk!"
"And besides," Blueno added, shivering, "even if I use Tekkai, getting grabbed there would still hurt terribly! It's a matter of pressure!"
Kaku was speechless. "You and your weird logic... fine! But we can't just stay floating in the sky forever. We'll run out of stamina."
They had already tried using Rankyaku from the air, but they simply couldn't hit Robin from this long distance.
She could spawn hands to block the air blades easily.
Suddenly, Kaku thought of something.
He noticed that every time he used Rankyaku against the ground, the flower arms in the area about to be hit would dissipate on their own, then regrow afterward.
"Could it be?" Kaku's eyes lit up. "If those sprouted arms are attacked... does the damage return to her main body?"
Hearing Kaku's analysis, Blueno also realized the problem.
That was the weakness of the Hana Hana no Mi.
"Then what are we waiting for?" Blueno shouted, regaining his confidence. "Let's shoot the bitch!"
"It's the only way! ora ora ora!"
Kaku and Blueno began to spin wildly in the air.
They frantically swept their legs, unleashing a barrage of sharp blue air-blades formed by Rankyaku toward the floral arms on the ground.
SLASH! SLASH! SLASH!
What they were waiting for was the moment Robin dispersed her arms to avoid the pain.
The second the ground was clear, Blueno would use his Door-Door Fruit ability to open a door in the air, appear right beside Robin, and knock her out.
In this way, they could evade that dreaded "balls-crushing" attack and close in for a strike at the fastest speed possible!
Unfortunately, would Robin really give them such an opportunity?
"Enough," Robin sighed, watching them flail about in the sky. "I've played around enough. Time to end this battle."
Just as Blueno was about to activate his Door-Door ability and Kaku was still wildly sweeping with his legs, they suddenly felt their bodies tighten.
They looked down.
Robin's arms hadn't sprouted from the ground.
They had sprouted from their own bodies.
Feeling the black, Haki-coated arms covering their chests, necks, and joints, cold sweat poured from the two agents like waterfalls.
"Holy shit!" Kaku screamed. "TEKKAI - STEEL!"
"TEKKAI! STEEL! STEEL! STEEL!" Blueno panicked.
At this point, they didn't care about potential shrinkage of their penis—they had to harden every single part of their bodies to survive!
Robin shook her head with a gentle smile. She crossed her own arms.
"Two Hundred Blooms: Dragon Claw!"
Instantly, the hands on Kaku and Blueno formed into dragon grips.
CRACK-CRUNCH!
"OWWWWWW!"
"GYAHHH!"
Both Kaku and Blueno felt their bones grinding.
It felt as though they each suffered one hundred simultaneous attacks. Their eyeballs nearly popped out from the sheer pressure crushing their Tekkai.
Then, their eyes rolled back.
They completely lost consciousness and collapsed from the sky, hitting the ground with a heavy thud.
This scene made the spectators on the hill extremely uncomfortable!
Buggy felt a distinct chill down below.
He crossed his legs involuntarily and stammered, "R-Ray... how much does Nico Robin hate men? Was she hurt by a man before? That was brutal!"
Luffy, Zoro, and Sanji stood side-by-side, muttering to themselves with pale faces.
"That looks so painful," Zoro whispered, clutching his swords.
"Ray," Sanji said, his cigarette trembling. "The self-defense techniques you taught the women are... a bit too extreme."
"Ray," Luffy asked innocently, turning to his mentor. "You must have been hit by Robin and Nami before during training, right? Did it hurt?"
POW!
Before Luffy could finish the sentence, a fist buried itself in the top of his head.
Ray had just knocked Luffy unconscious with a single punch.
The other two, seeing this scene, immediately zipped their mouths shut.
They sighed internally.
Serves him right!
Ray didn't bother with them further, however, deep down, he felt some contemplation.
'If Robin continues growing like this... could she eventually become stronger than Luffy? Her Devil Fruit is terrifyingly versatile. If her Haki keeps getting stronger, it's definitely possible.'
...
High above the ground, the final battle was reaching its climax.
Chouchou, in his massive Demon Dog form, was still exchanging blows with Rob Lucci, who was in his Leopard-Human hybrid form.
"Demon Beast Roar!"
"Maximum Output - Rokushiki Ogi: ROKUOUGAN!"
BOOM!
Their attacks collided once more.
The massive shockwave rippled through the air, sending the dog and cat flying in opposite directions.
Lucci landed on a high wall, gasping for breath heavily.
He was bleeding from several cuts, and his suit was shredded. He felt quite astonished and humiliated.
'I can't even kill a mere pet of the Straw Hat Pirates?' Lucci thought.
'Impossible! Absolutely impossible! I am the ultimate killing machine!'
On the other side, Chouchou floated in the air, looking completely calm.
He stared at Lucci with disdain and spoke in a deep, gravelly voice.
"A cat will always be a cat," Chouchou scoffed. "Forever inferior before us dogs!"
This statement nearly made Lucci die from anger!
"Today, I will definitely slaughter you!" Lucci roared. "You are just Straw Hat pet dog! Do not look down on me!"
Lucci let out a primal scream. His muscles tensed throughout his body as his power visibly increased.
Suddenly, his arms and claws turned a glossy, pitch-black color.
Zoro and Sanji, watching from afar, immediately frowned.
"Armament Haki!" Zoro noted. "He knows it too."
"Ray," Sanji asked, concerned. "Can Chouchou handle this?"
Hearing their questions, Ray remained perfectly calm, his arms crossed.
"Although Chouchou doesn't know Haki yet, his Demonic Power has been continuously getting stronger since we left the island," Ray explained. "And..."
He stopped talking.
After waiting two seconds with no further response from Ray, the three grew anxious.
"And what?! Just say it already!" Buggy yelled.
"I hate it when people only say half of what they mean!" Sanji complained.
"Exactly, you get our curiosity up and then say nothing more!" Luffy added while rubbing the bump on his head.
"Just watch," Ray replied.
Up in the air, Lucci was extremely displeased, but also somewhat anxious inside.
'I haven't mastered Haki for long,' Lucci thought, staring at his black fists.
'It drains my stamina rapidly. I can't maintain it for too long. I must end this quickly.'
No sooner said than done.
"SORU!"
Lucci used Geppo and Soru simultaneously to dash forward at blinding speed.
His Haki-coated claws aimed straight for Chouchou's throat.
"SHIGAN: MADARA!"
He attacked frantically, appearing as a blur of black claws.
Chouchou, however, didn't dodge.
Chouchou raised his right paw as it began to glow with a sinister, green energy.
He slowly spoke, his voice echoing around the rooftop.
"Soul-Scattering... Iron Claw!"