One Piece: A Warlord's Path

"You're a rookie like us, sure, but the gap between us is astronomical. Someone at your level isn't even worth our captain making a move," Oliver said lazily, resting Nagamitsu on his shoulder. "But hey, if you manage to beat me, I suppose you'll have earned the right to challenge him."

"I thought you had potential," Abel's voice dropped, his eyes flashing with cold menace. "Was going to spare you and make you my subordinate. But now… I'll break both your arms."

"Bring it," Oliver replied, utterly unfazed as he lowered his blade into stance.

"He's making his move!"

"Will Angus Abel get shredded?"

"Commander* Oliver, you idiot—"

"The most ruthless fighter in the Chris Pirates is stepping in!"

The moment Oliver stepped forward, the surrounding pirates erupted in excited shouts. Many among them, swordsmen and bounty hunters alike, stared at him with fervent admiration, some itching to challenge him themselves.

Truth be told, Oliver's strength might not match the post-timeskip Zoro just yet, but compared to Zoro at his peak before the timeskip? Oliver was clearly on another level.

"Die, you bastard, Iron Fist!" Abel stomped forward and launched a punch, a burst of invisible pressure rippling outward like a sudden gust, scattering loose debris around them.

"He's charging in bare-fisted?" Oliver's brow furrowed. Coming at a swordsman like that, was the guy reckless or just arrogant? Still, he didn't hesitate. He raised Nagamitsu and brought it down in a heavy arc.

Clang!

At such close distance, fist and blade clashed in a blink, and shockwaves exploded outward, the clash ringing with the shrill screech of metal. A burst of raw pressure swept out, strong enough to send nearby crates and supplies toppling.

"Nani?!"

The crowd froze in collective disbelief. Many pirates and bounty hunters, not used to this level of force, gawked with bulging eyes.

"Is he a Devil Fruit user?!"

Abel's fist had blocked a named blade, one of the 50 Skillful Grade Swords, Nagamitsu. Aeridar raised a brow in curiosity.

Oliver felt it too. He hadn't put full strength behind that strike, but it should've been enough to cleave solid rock. Yet hitting that fist was like striking tempered steel—it didn't budge.

"Huh. Looks like he's got a decent ability," muttered Bright Ward, watching with growing interest.

Noticing the astonished stares from the crowd, Abel burst into manic laughter. "HAHAHAHA! I'm a Paramecia-type, user of the Steel-Steel Fruit! Think you can cut steel now?! HAHAHA!"

"Paramecia—Steel-Steel Fruit… where have I heard that before…" Aeridar rubbed his chin, thinking. "Ah right! That guy from the One Piece movie—'Bear King' or something. He had the same fruit, body turns to steel, heats up too. Pretty solid power... shame the guy was trash. Got wrecked by pre-Gear 3 Luffy."*

And if this fruit appeared in a future arc, that means… this guy's probably not going to survive.

"Heh… maybe Oliver will end him," Aeridar thought maliciously.

"Steel, huh...? Then let me show you how I cut steel," Oliver's gaze sharpened. He got a little more serious.

He hadn't yet reached the level where slicing through steel came effortlessly, but he was well on his way.

After training under Dracule Mihawk, Zoro had easily surpassed that barrier. Oliver was now approaching that same domain.

The two fighters pulled apart after their initial clash, each retreating a few paces before squaring off again.

Standing three steps away, Oliver suddenly slashed, Nagamitsu cutting through the air in a deadly arc aimed at Abel's neck.

But Abel didn't flinch. His right fist glowed red-hot, steam rising from it like superheated iron. He lunged forward, punching straight ahead with lethal force.

Problem was, Oliver's blade had more reach, by the time Abel's fist was halfway to Oliver's chest, the tip of Nagamitsu was already grazing his throat.

"Shit!" A chill of danger flashed in Abel's mind. He jerked his head back just in time.

Shing—!

The blade passed close, drawing a line of blood across his neck.

"Captain—!"

"No way!"

"Captain actually got hit?! By a swordsman?!"

"Wait, am I seeing things?"

Below the platform, the dozen or so members of Abel's crew were thunderstruck. Their eyes widened in disbelief, faces frozen with shock.

"Oops~ I missed," Oliver muttered, twirling his wrist as he retracted Nagamitsu. A thin sheen of blood glinted on the blade's tip. He stared at it, murmuring to himself.

Abby blinked in confusion. Then came the chill, an icy sting across his neck. Something warm began to trickle down.

He reached up instinctively, fingers grazing the wetness.

Blood.

His palm came away crimson.

Abel sucked in a sharp breath, his gaze sharpening warily on Oliver.

"He actually… cut through steel?"

He'd faced people who could hurt him before, like that one Vice Admiral who'd nearly broken his ribs with a single punch, but someone who could wound him with a blade?

That was new. Even that sword-wielding Rear Admiral from Naval Intelligence had only left superficial welts at best.

"I thought you'd just stand there and take it," Oliver said, casually resting the blade across his shoulder. His tone was lazy, taunting. "Would've made things a whole lot easier if you let me kill you outright."

"Bastard, I'm gonna kill you!" Abel roared, veins bulging at his temples. He stomped down hard, splintering the wooden platform beneath him. With a furious leap, he shot into the air, fist glowing red-hot and radiating steam as it came down in a blazing arc.

Inferno Steel Fist!

Oliver's eyes narrowed, a steely gleam flashing through his relaxed facade. His blade pulsed, then turned pitch black in an instant.

Armament Hardening, One-Sword Style: Gale Severing Strike!!!

Fwoosh—!

In the blink of an eye, Oliver vanished.

A gust of wind howled through the bar. Blades of searing, emerald-blue light danced wildly across the air, too fast for the eye to follow.

"So fast, and he's using a black blade hardened with Haki?!" exclaimed Bright Ward, who'd been leaning idly in the corner. He stood upright, face suddenly serious.

"That sword style… I underestimated him," muttered a man clad in a black coat, lounging in a booth's corner. Now, he sat bolt upright, eyes locked on the duel.

Slice—slice—slice—!

Boom—!

Multiple gashes tore through Abel midair. His eyes rolled back. He plummeted like a wounded hawk, slamming into the platform with a thunderous crash that shook the whole tavern. Dust and debris exploded around him.

"So damn tough… That took way more effort than I thought," Oliver sighed, emerging lazily at the edge of the platform, Nagamitsu resting once again on his shoulder.

"W-Wait, did I just see that right?"

"No way… That was way too easy!"

"D-Did he just… one-shot him?!"

"Am I dreaming? That's the Steel Demon with a 158 million bounty!"

The tavern erupted. Pirates gasped and shouted, some in denial, others in awe. Hushed reverence gave way to chaos as disbelief rippled through the room.

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TN:

*I previously translated Oliver's position as Captain instead of Commander in some of the previous chapters. That was my mistake.

*It is Hard-Hard Fruit or Kachi Kachi no Mi in canon. I don't know if the author intentionally wrote it as "Steel" or at this point of time it was named that way, however, to preserve the narrative flow, I opted for the Steel-Steel Fruit.

*Also, I have noticed many of you were disappointed in Aeridar's strength in the earlier chapters, so I checked the raws and the translation, and it seems it was my mistake. So, for clarification, Aeridar, before he stayed on Shiga Island for a few years, was not any weaker than Luffy when he first set out to sea. His strength, is not less than 10 million berry, and could pummel that 16 million pirate he encountered easily. Also, his first bounty, 40 million, I think is already pretty good in that period of time when compared to Luffy's time.