CHAPTER 43: CHAPTER 43: KARL’S STRATAGEM

"Bruno, why the sudden contact?"

"Someone’s trying to assassinate you? Who is it?"

"You don’t know... then go find Kalifa and have her investigate."

"......"

Half an hour after Karl struck at Bruno, Lucci received Bruno’s message. With help from the Door-Door Fruit, Lucci and Kaku—both wearing CP masks—arrived at Bruno’s bar, discussing Karl.

"...Who was it?"

Just as Lucci was about to hand the task of investigating Karl to Kalifa, the secretary working under Iceburg, his expression shifted beneath the mask.

Swoosh—crack!

Without a moment’s hesitation, he used Soru, burst through the window, and in a few flickers landed on the rooftop outside the bar. Staring at the cloaked figure peeking from the roof, he said coolly, "You?"

"It’s me. One person."

Using the Door-Door Fruit to bring Kaku along, Bruno nodded heavily.

"I got scared earlier. I won’t run this time."

Karl drew a brand-new dagger and pointed it at Bruno, shouting, "Go ahead and bring help, I’m not afraid—prepare to die!"

"...Bastard, who are you?!"

Watching Karl’s still off-kilter, almost taunting manner, Bruno could no longer hide his anger. His face darkened.

"Don’t get angry. He’s deliberately provoking you."

Lucci rebuked him mildly, then said, voice turning cold, "Kill him. Once we know who he is, report up the chain. Move!"

Swoosh, swoosh—

With that, Lucci led with Soru, charging at Karl.

Kaku followed close behind.

Bruno slipped into the interspace with the Door-Door Fruit, seeking a chance to ambush Karl.

Since Bruno wasn’t posing as a Galley-La employee, and Lucci and Kaku wore masks, they had no fear of exposing their identities—both men went full power from the start.

"Shigan!"

Just like Bruno, Lucci flashed to Karl’s front and jabbed for his heart.

This time, Karl didn’t dodge. He spat out two words that made Lucci and Kaku blanch: "Tekkai."

Clang!

His already steel-hard, bulletproof body layered with Tekkai sent his defense soaring—nearly on par with Armament Haki hardening.

Tekkai is, in essence, a diluted form of Armament.

Lucci’s finger strike hit Karl like an unyielding steel plate. The rebound force stung even Lucci’s finger.

"Keep up!"

Seeing Kaku halt from deploying Rokushiki, and Lucci recoil a step despite ignoring the pain, Karl’s voice timbre changed again. Leaving behind an icy line, he vanished from the rooftop in a blink: "Follow me."

Lucci and Kaku exchanged a glance and wordlessly gave chase.

The formidable Tekkai and that cold tone pulled them neatly into Karl’s trap, making them subconsciously assume he was "one of theirs."

After all, no one knew about the CP9 operation embedded in Water 7 except those above. And since the opponent used Rokushiki, it wasn’t strange they fell for it.

First ambush Bruno to learn a few Rokushiki moves, then use Bruno to draw Lucci out of Galley-La, and finally impersonate a Mariejois CP officer, using a "test" to steal all of Rokushiki and Seimei Kikan...

A plan Karl prepared by exploiting his transmigrator’s advantage.

Karl rarely shows his clever side—he’s been nurturing Carina.

But once he chooses to leverage that advantage, he becomes the strongest schemer on the seas.

With a light touch, he fooled Lucci and Kaku.

All of Rokushiki and Seimei Kikan were within reach.

On a desolate shoreline of Water 7, Karl looked at Lucci, Kaku, and Bruno, who’d emerged from the interspace, and said evenly, "Use your full strength. Let me see if two years undercover left you rusty."

"Headquarters only gives one shot at evaluations."

"Soru!" ×3

Hearing "two years" and "evaluation," the trio no longer doubted Karl’s identity. With three shrieking sonic snaps, they flashed toward him.

This time Kaku took point, Bruno close behind.

Lucci flashed once and then vaulted into the air, tracing razor arcs through the sky—constantly shifting position while searching for an opening to strike Karl.

This technique—Lucci’s fusion of Soru and Geppo after mastering Rokushiki—was his special Soru: "Razor."

Seeing him stride on air, Karl’s eyes brightened beneath the mask.

Good—Geppo, acquired.

And not just that: the combined Soru–Geppo technique, too.

"Rankyaku: Storm!"

"Rankyaku!"

"Rankyaku: Blue Bird!"

With Lucci’s Shigan repelled earlier, Kaku and Bruno didn’t dare close in. Once in range, they unleashed Rankyaku in unison.

Kaku leapt, kicking out two wide slashes.

Bruno sent a standard blade.

Lucci carved a gigantic bird-shaped slash.

Three Rankyaku—standard and special variants—made Karl’s eyes gleam again. Another Rokushiki branch and extension, learned.

Only Kami-e and Seimei Kikan remained.

Alright... those two I’ll take next.

With five Rokushiki forms already in hand, Karl glanced at Kaku and Bruno, thinking to himself.

Then, so his clothes wouldn’t be shredded by the incoming Rankyaku—and to deepen their impression that he was a powerful superior—Karl thrust out his right hand from the cloak’s sleeve. Golden, flowing Haki rippled forth.

Boom!

An invisible shockwave erupted from his palm, shattering the converging Rankyaku into a storm of whetted wind that howled away in all directions.

To Lucci’s trio, it looked like this: Karl barely moved—just raised a palm—and in a gold flash, their Rankyaku dissolved into a blade gale and vanished.

Swoosh—

An instant later, Karl’s figure disappeared.

As if splitting into two, he reappeared behind the not-so-distant Kaku and Bruno, chopping the back of each neck with a hand edge.

Those casual knife-hands carried force neither Kaku nor Bruno could resist.

Their eyes rolled white; both collapsed on the spot.

"Extraneous pieces off the board. Now for the main event."

Felling the two, Karl looked up at Rob Lucci flying with Razor and said, calm as ever, "Rob Lucci, you’re the one I came for."

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