Starting with One Piece, a Multiverse Simulation

Another extremely crisp sound of metal clashing rang out. As Wood's longsword slashed down, it was blocked by Ironarm Cook's other arm, which was covered in gauntlets.

The blade struck the arm armor, sending sparks flying.

Wood, who was holding the knife with both hands, made a gesture of pressing down on the knife with both hands, but his expression clearly showed that he was struggling.

Clearly, in a clash of strength, Wood, who had just come of age, even after a period of training, still had a certain gap to close with Cook, who had a certain physical advantage.

Wood gripped the knife with both hands, but Cook managed to hold his own with just one hand. This stalemate didn't last long, as Wood soon saw Cook's other fist hurtling towards his head.

Despite being at a disadvantage in terms of strength, Wood did not choose to confront his opponent head-on. Instead, he used a series of agile back jumps to create enough distance between himself and his opponent once again.

"Kid, when I saw you dare to show up in front of our Iron Arm Pirates alone, I thought you were a guy with backbone."

But now he just looks like a coward who runs around aimlessly.

Iron Arm Cook is incredibly strong, and thanks to his specially made pure iron arm armor, each of his punches can deliver tons of power.

However, the opponent is not without its drawbacks. While it is strong, it is completely lacking in speed.

The full-arm gauntlets, made entirely of iron, enhance both attack and defense, yet are by no means lightweight.

Moreover, from the very beginning, Iron Arm Cook had been relentlessly pursuing Wood, and the surrounding ground had long since become uneven and pitted, but he hadn't even managed to touch the hem of Wood's clothes.

From being full of confidence at the beginning to being extremely frustrated because he couldn't attack Wood, Iron Arm Cook is now extremely annoyed!

In contrast to the agitated and angry Cook, Wood remained calm and unconcerned about Cook's words.

This isn't a shonen anime where you just go up and punch the other person to the bone. He's not the chosen one of the world, nor does he have the destiny of an invincible warrior.

In a real life-or-death battle, strength alone is not enough; you also need to fight with your brain.

Facing seemingly weaker opponents, Cook has been unable to achieve any results for a long time, and is now at a mental disadvantage.

Moreover, moving around with such heavy arm armor is a huge drain on physical strength. In comparison, Wood, who was constantly dodging left and right, was far less exhausted than Cook.

When Cook's stamina begins to wane and he can no longer fight calmly, that will be the best time for Wood to strike.

Admittedly, fighting in this way is neither the style of a strongman nor the way a man of the sea fights.

But Wood didn't care at all. Being a little unethical was fine, after all, one only had one life, and the real way to win was to achieve the greatest results with the least advantage.

In fact, with Wood's speed advantage and the sword techniques he had absorbed into his mind over the past year, he had a chance to defeat Cook head-on and did not need to resort to such methods.

However, it is only a hope, and after defeating Cook, he will definitely have many injuries.

Furthermore, Wood's opponent is not just Cook alone, but the entire "Iron Arm Pirates".

If you defeat Cook but are also badly injured, then what's the difference between winning and losing?

Don't forget, the only fighting force that Red Leaf Island can currently offer is himself. Once he and Cook fall together, the other residents won't have much power to resist the other pirates of the "Iron Arm Pirates".

"Captain Cook, if this brat is so despicable, then why don't we just target the people on the island?"

We're a pirate crew, who says we have to have one-on-one duels?

Besides, we don't necessarily have to defeat the brat in front of us to enter the town on the island.

The speaker was the vice-captain of the Iron Arm Pirates. Compared to the somewhat dim-witted Cook, the other man often served as the pirate crew's strategist.

Upon hearing Ironarm's words, both Wood and Cook showed a significant reaction.

Wood's expression was grave; what the other person said was exactly what he had been worried about.

That's why Wood kept mocking Cook from the beginning, his goal being to draw hatred to himself and forget about the others on the island.

Wood couldn't possibly not know Iron Arm Cook, even though in the timeline Wood was familiar with, there was no such person as him on the high seas, confirming that he was indeed just a minor character.

However, ever since the system gave him the mission to protect Red Leaf Island, Wood has been collecting bounty posters for many new pirates from all over the world.

And the infamous Iron Arm Cook, with a bounty of 20 million Berries in front of him, is naturally one of them.

It was because he had learned about Iron Arm Cook beforehand, and because of their brief previous contact, that Wood made those series of moves.

However, it seems that the plan to drag Cook down to the point of losing his composure and being completely exhausted is clearly not feasible. We must strike first!

Unlike Wood, who looked solemn at the moment, Iron Arm Cook's eyes lit up immediately after hearing the first mate's suggestion, and he revealed an extremely cruel smile.

"Kid, you can keep hiding if you want. I'll deal with you slowly after I kill everyone on the island."

"Men, go and kill all the children and old people on the island. Keep the men to help us cut down trees, and keep the women to cook for the brothers."

The Iron Arm Pirates have a number of members, not many, but not few either, totaling nearly a hundred.

At Cook's command, they immediately shouted and rushed toward the town.

Upon seeing this, Wood naturally had no time to deal with Cook and instantly appeared in front of the first wave of pirates.

"Itto-ryu·Iai·Luo Ying!"

A sharp flash of light exploded in the air. As Wood sheathed his longsword, the nearly ten pirates in front of him were covered in crisscrossing flashes of light.

As Wood's longsword was fully sheathed, their wounds burst open in an instant, and the spurting blood was like cherry blossoms blooming in the air.

The Iron Arm Pirates were clearly taken aback when they saw Wood display such swordsmanship.

Previously, Wood had only had the chance to run away with his tail between his legs in front of their captain, which gave them the illusion that the other party's strength was only so-so.

But now it seems that it's not that the other party is weak, but that they have been hiding their strength from the very beginning!

Chapter 7 Naval warships enter the Red Leaf Island area

(Thanks again to the silly brother for the donation, and thank you to the old friend Qianmo (▽｀))

Wood had just finished off nearly ten members of the Iron Arm Pirates when he suddenly felt a series of alarm bells ringing in his mind as he sheathed his sword.

Soon after, Cook's enormous fist came again with a whooshing sound.

Unlike before, this time Cook was waiting on the sidelines from the very beginning for Wood to appear.

So when Wood started killing the other pirates, Cook, who had been waiting for a long time, couldn't hold back and made his move.

"Boom——————!"

Faced with this heavy punch, Wood had no choice but to take it head-on. The crudely made lacquered wooden scabbard also shattered as it blocked Cook's heavy arm armor strike, sending wood chips flying everywhere.

Despite Wood's physical and strength advantage, he managed to block the attack with his scabbard, but the impact sent his feet sliding several meters across the ground.

Feeling the slight numbness in his arm, Wood couldn't help but feel relieved. His decision not to rashly confront the other party was definitely the right one.

The opponent was able to shatter the mangrove scabbard with a single punch and knock me back so far; in terms of strength, they were far superior to me.

Moreover, this was because I had initially exhausted the other party's energy by walking them around like a dog.

If it were Cook from the beginning, and he had taken that punch head-on, not only would his scabbard have been shattered, but he might have also suffered some internal injuries.

Seeing that the all-out attack had only managed to push Wood back without causing any real damage, Cook couldn't help but show a look of anger on his face.

Even if he wasn't the sharpest brain, he now understood that the other party's purpose in provoking him from the beginning was not only to protect the other islanders, but also to lure him into attacking continuously, thereby depleting his stamina.

Because of the heavy iron arm armor, each of his punches, though incredibly powerful, required a greater expenditure of energy.

Now, due to the significant decline in his physical strength, the power of his punches is clearly less than half of what it was at the beginning.

Meanwhile, as Wood and the Iron Arm Pirates were engaged in a fierce battle on Red Leaf Island, several warships that had left Marineford, the Marine Headquarters, entered the waters near Red Leaf Island after sailing for several days.

"Reporting to Admiral Zefa, our ships have now passed through the waters of Paracia and are about to reach the area where Red Leaf Island is located."

On a large naval warship, a soldier dressed in naval uniform was reporting the situation with a respectful expression to a burly man with an extremely resolute expression, a tough-guy style, and a head of short, purple hair.

"Inform the soldiers on board to be aware of the surrounding waters at all times. Although this is the first half of the Grand Line, do not let your guard down."

That damned Roger! Even in death, he left our Navy with a huge mess. Because of one sentence he uttered before he died, pirates have suddenly become rampant again on the high seas.

The other warships behind them are all for future outstanding marines, so please keep a close eye on them, captains of the main ship.

Upon hearing the order from the purple-haired tough guy in front of him, the naval soldier straightened his back and respectfully accepted the command before leaving.

Before leaving, the somewhat youthful-looking naval soldier secretly glanced at his tall superior, his expression one of extreme excitement.

It would be impossible not to be excited. As a newbie who had only been in the navy for a few years, this newbie had already heard of the reputation of the admiral in front of him.

Black Arm Zephyr, that is the name of the naval admiral in front of us. To most naval soldiers, he is an extremely remarkable hero.

Vice Admiral Garp, a naval hero, is the idol and object of worship for most naval soldiers. However, the one who has made the greatest contribution to the navy is not Vice Admiral Garp, but Admiral Zeff in front of us.

Because most of the Navy's outstanding officers today, such as Rear Admiral Akainu and Rear Admiral Kizaru, were trained by Admiral Zephyr.

As for the admiral of the Navy Headquarters, and Zephyr who is in charge of training the Navy, there is a reason why he would appear in such a small place.

Thanks to a single sentence from Gol D. Roger, the Pirate King, the seas have now entered the "Great Pirate Era".

Faced with a sudden surge in the number of pirates, the Navy's previous deployment and control over the seas are clearly no longer sufficient.

Moreover, with the number of pirates increasing significantly, if the Navy's strength is not improved, the pirate forces on the high seas will eventually break free from the Navy's control.

Therefore, Zephyr's purpose in leaving the Marine Headquarters and sailing the entire Grand Line was to recruit excellent marines.

Furthermore, the Navy's control over the Grand Line has been too weak in the face of the coming "Great Pirate Era".

Faced with the sudden surge in pirates, in addition to replenishing the navy's personnel, the navy branches in various regions also need to be increased.

Establishing naval branches in various locations is no trivial matter. Choosing locations and allocating personnel, and selecting an underqualified naval officer for evaluation, is clearly impossible.

Therefore, after some hesitation, the current Fleet Admiral Kong finally entrusted this important responsibility to Admiral Zephyr.

Moreover, the reasons given by Fleet Admiral Kong are quite valid. The training of new recruits in the Navy was originally carried out by Zephyr. Now that the Navy is expanding its recruitment, is there anyone more suitable than Zephyr?