One Piece: With Sign-in System-Chapter 201: Rayleigh vs. Enel

At the same time—

Grand Line, Sabaody Archipelago.

The Straw Hat Pirates had barely set foot on the island before they were hit with a shocking piece of news.

Ron—their ally, and now an infamous name—had not only killed Celestial Dragons on this very island but had also fought Admiral Kizaru in a battle that shook the entire archipelago.

On top of that, he had come into contact with other infamous Supernovas of the "Worst Generation".

Just as they were about to look for a coating craftsman to prepare their ship for the New World, another bombshell dropped.

'Fire Fist' Ace is going to be publicly executed at Marineford.

"Ace is going to be executed?!!!"

Luffy's hands trembled as he gripped the newspaper, his pupils shaking violently.

Even someone as powerful as Ace had been captured by the Marines?!

Nami's eyes widened in disbelief.

"There are only nine days left until the execution!"

Usopp's forehead was drenched in sweat.

"A public execution... at Marine Headquarters... This is seriously bad."

Sanji lit a cigarette, his voice heavy.

Zoro frowned, arms crossed.

"...Is Ace really going to die?"

Chopper stared blankly, his expression frozen in shock.

"No way! Ace would never die!"

Luffy clenched his teeth, his grip tightening around the newspaper. His rage, grief, and determination mixed into a single thought as he crushed the paper into a ball.

"I'm going to save Ace!!"

Everyone's eyes widened in shock.

"Don't be ridiculous! That's Marineford! Even if there were ten of you, you'd still be throwing your life away!"

Franky folded his arms and blocked Luffy's path, his face serious. "I don't know what your relationship with Fire Fist Ace is, but I'm not about to stand by and watch you rush to your death!"

Luffy gritted his teeth and stared back at him, fire in his eyes.

"So what? You want me to just sit here and do nothing while Ace gets executed?! He's my brother!!"

"Even so—"

Franky clenched his fists.

"—marching into Marineford blindly is just suicide!"

"Franky's right, Luffy. Calm down."

Zoro placed a hand on Luffy's shoulder.

"There are still nine days left. We should think this through and figure out a real plan."

Luffy lowered his head, fists trembling.

"...Ace..."

"Wait! I've got it!"

Usopp suddenly snapped his fingers, a spark of realization in his eyes.

"Luffy, you know Traveler Ron, right? If anyone can figure out a way to save Ace, it's him!"

Luffy's eyes lit up as if he had just been struck by lightning.

"That's right! Ron is strong and smart! He's bound to have a plan to save Ace!"

"But we don't even know where he is right now."

Nami let out a sigh, crossing her arms.

Zoro and Sanji frowned as well.

At that moment—

A deep, amused voice rang out from nearby.

"So, you're the Straw Hat crew?"

Everyone turned in surprise.

Standing before them was an old man with silver-white hair, wearing a slightly worn-out coat, round-framed glasses, and simple sandals.

He had a warm smile on his face, his hands tucked into his coat pockets.

Sitting nearby, completely uninterested in the conversation, Enel suddenly turned his head and narrowed his eyes at the old man.

The man looked completely ordinary—like any random elderly passerby. But there was something about him... something that made Enel uneasy.

With an easygoing smile, the old man looked at Luffy's hat and spoke.

"You must be Straw Hat Luffy. That hat suits you well."

Luffy blinked in confusion.

"Old man, who are you?"

The old man chuckled.

"My name is Rayleigh. But around here, people call me 'Coating Craftsman Ray.'"

Rayleigh took a few steps closer to the crew, his expression calm.

"Rayleigh... I feel like I've heard that name before..." Nami muttered, trying to recall where.

Luffy, however, got straight to the point.

"Do you need something from me?"

Rayleigh smiled.

"Not particularly. I just happened to hear quite a lot about you from Shanks and Ron. Since I knew you were on the island, I thought I'd come and meet you myself."

Shanks?!

Ron?!

The entire crew froze in shock.

"Wait, you know both Shanks and Ron?!"

Luffy's eyes widened in disbelief.

"Of course. I'm quite close with them."

Luffy's mind was racing.

"If that's the case, do you know where Ron is right now?! I have something really important—"

Before he could finish his sentence—

A deafening crack of thunder echoed through the sky.

A lightning bird, formed entirely of electricity, tore through the air at blinding speed, streaking toward Rayleigh like a spear of pure destruction.

But Rayleigh didn't even glance at it.

His body shifted ever so slightly—

And in the blink of an eye, the attack missed entirely.

The Straw Hats stared, completely dumbfounded.

The hell just happened?!

They barely had time to process it when another voice cut through the silence.

"What do you think you're doing, Enel?"

Luffy snapped back to his senses and shouted toward Enel, who stood not far away, his body crackling with lightning, gripping his golden staff tightly.

But Enel ignored him completely. His sharp gaze remained locked onto Rayleigh.

"I didn't expect to find someone as strong as you on this island. Quite the surprise."

Rayleigh observed him with mild curiosity. "A Logia-type, Rumble-Rumble Fruit user, huh? That's a pretty rare ability."

"You got that right." Enel smirked arrogantly.

Rayleigh raised an eyebrow. "And what's your name?"

"God Enel."

Rayleigh chuckled. "Calling yourself a god? Now that's quite the boast. But you're not part of the Straw Hats, are you?"

"I belong to no one." Enel's tone was filled with disdain. "I came down to this ocean to defeat one man—and while I'm at it, I'll conquer this entire sea."

As he spoke, he raised his finger and aimed it at Rayleigh, unleashing a streak of lightning.

Zzt!

With effortless grace, Rayleigh sidestepped the attack.

"You can dodge that?! Even lightning-speed attacks?"

Luffy's jaw nearly hit the floor in shock.

Zoro and Sanji were just as stunned.

"That old man... what the hell is he?"

Then, a voice rang out from nearby.

"Dark King... Silvers Rayleigh."

The Straw Hat crew turned toward the source of the voice.

Standing at a distance were Kid and Killer, both watching Rayleigh and Enel with intense focus.

"A living legend," Kid muttered. "Never thought I'd see him in person."

Nami, Sanji, Usopp, and Franky all had their eyes widen in disbelief.

"Wait... did you just say Dark King Rayleigh?! As in that Rayleigh?! The first mate of the Roger Pirates?!"

Usopp nearly fainted on the spot.

Nami swallowed hard, sweat forming on her brow.

No wonder the name had felt so familiar!

Rayleigh—Dark King Rayleigh—was a name that had appeared countless times in the newspapers. It was practically legendary.

Meanwhile, Rayleigh continued to dodge Enel's relentless lightning attacks with the same casual ease. Then, in one swift motion, he coated his leg with Armament Haki and delivered a powerful kick—sending Enel flying back over a hundred meters.

BOOM!

A loud crash followed as Enel tumbled across the ground.

"He actually hit him?!"

"What the hell did he do?!"

The Straw Hats, who had never encountered Haki before, looked at each other in complete confusion.

Enel, recovering from the blow, stared at Rayleigh with an incredulous look.

"This power... it's just like that guy's sword. Both of you can actually hit me, even though I'm made of lightning." His gaze darkened. "Old man, just what kind of power is this?"

Rayleigh lowered his leg and shook his head.

"You came here talking about conquering the sea, yet you don't even know about Haki?" He studied Enel for a moment before something clicked. "Wait... no, that's strange. You have Observation Haki, don't you?"

"Observation Haki?"

Enel's eyes narrowed.

The Straw Hats exchanged puzzled glances.

"What the hell is Haki?"

Kid folded his arms, glancing at Luffy. "Straw Hat, I don't know how someone as clueless as you ended up being called one of the 'Worst Generation.'"

Killer turned his head toward Kid. "Captain, you don't even know Haki yet either."

"Shut up." Kid scowled.

Rayleigh chuckled at their exchange before turning his attention back to Enel.

"Observation Haki—it's something like this."

As Rayleigh spoke, his demeanor shifted. His eyes grew sharp, focused—like a predator locking onto its prey.

Enel's eyes widened.

"This... this feeling..."

It wasn't something he could see or hear. But somehow, he felt as though Rayleigh could predict his movements—see through him completely.

He suddenly understood.

The ability he had always known as 'Mantra' back on Skypiea... it was actually the same thing as this 'Observation Haki' Rayleigh was talking about.

"So that's what it is... it's the same thing as Mantra."

Rayleigh smiled. "Seems like you've figured it out. And just so you know, the reason my attack landed on you earlier—even though you're a Logia user—is because I coated my kick with Armament Haki."

Rayleigh casually dusted off his pants before turning his attention toward Luffy.

"Your grandfather and Ron never told you about Haki?"

"Nope." Luffy shook his head, looking completely lost. "Grandpa and Ron can use this 'Haki' thing too?"

"Of course. Your grandpa is one of the greatest Haki users in the entire sea. And as for Ron... Well, from what I heard, he had already learnt Armament Haki by the time he was eleven."

Rayleigh chuckled, his expression calm.

The Straw Hat crew and Enel still didn't fully grasp the weight of his words.

However, a short distance away, both Kid and Killer felt a cold sweat trickle down their backs.

"Eleven years old... and he had already learnt Haki?!"

"That traveler, Ron... he's truly a monster."

"Armament Haki... Observation Haki..."

Enel muttered to himself, surprisingly intrigued for once.

Rayleigh glanced at him before turning his attention back to Luffy and the others.

"Well... explaining everything about Haki would take too long. For now, just come with me. There's someone waiting for you. I think you'll be quite happy to see him."

"Someone?"

Luffy tilted his head in confusion.

Following Rayleigh, the Straw Hat crew made their way to Shakky's Rip-off Bar.

The moment Luffy stepped inside, his gaze landed on a figure he never in a million years expected to see.

"Long time no see, Luffy."

The voice was calm yet warm. It belonged to a tall, lean young man with a confident smile. He wore a black trench coat, and a hat rested atop his golden-blond hair. His deep-set eyes locked onto Luffy with familiarity and fondness.

"You've grown a lot."

Luffy's eyes widened in disbelief as the voice and face triggered memories buried deep in his heart.

"You... No way... Is it really—?!"

The young man lifted his hand and removed his hat, fully revealing his face—a face that carried an undeniable resemblance to someone from Luffy's past.

"Don't tell me you've already forgotten me, Luffy?"

The emotional reunion between Luffy and Sabo was nothing short of overwhelming.

After the initial shock, the two brothers caught up, reminiscing about their childhood and the time they had lost.

Then, Luffy's expression darkened.

He took a deep breath and finally brought up the name that had been weighing on his heart.

"Ace... He's in danger."

Sabo's face grew serious, but he nodded. "I know."

Luffy was startled.

"And Ron knows too."

The moment Sabo said those words, the entire bar fell silent.

The Straw Hats turned to him in shock.

Sabo leaned back against the counter, arms crossed.

"In fact, it was Ron who sent me here." freewebnoveℓ.com

"Ron...?"

Luffy was momentarily stunned.

Zoro furrowed his brows. "Just what the hell is that guy planning?"

Sabo chuckled lightly.

Rayleigh took a sip of his drink before flashing a knowing grin.

"What is he planning...? Haha."

The old pirate set his glass down and looked around at the group, his eyes gleaming with amusement.

"The thing Ron is about to do... it's going to be big—the kind of event that will shake the entire world to its core."

"!?"

The entire Straw Hat crew was floored by his words.

"Shake the world...?"

Chopper gulped audibly.

"Just what is he up to now?"

Nami felt a cold sweat trickle down her temple.

"Could it be... something even bigger than killing a Celestial Dragon?"

Usopp shuddered, unable to even finish that terrifying thought.

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