Chapter 296: The Genie

"I hereby announce that the champion of this year's 'Sinoxia Gourmet Contest' is—"

"The 'Tequila Sunrise' crafted by Jansev Jengst from the kingdom of Lanton!!!"

"This cocktail, evoking the brilliant dawn of Sinoxia, is not only passionate in name but also preserves the unique aroma and taste of tequila!"

On the stage, the host, dressed in a suit, announced the winner of this year's Sinoxia Gourmet Contest after tallying all the judges' and lucky audience members' scores.

Upon hearing the champion's announcement, Shanks, a lucky audience member holding a glass of the winning cocktail on stage, shook his head. Despite the Tequila Sunrise's strong, layered flavor, he preferred the seemingly ordinary Margarita. However, the Tequila Sunrise's win indicated it was favored by the majority.

Jansev Jengst, known as "Sixty-Degree Eyebrows" by the judges, couldn't help but beam a broad smile upon hearing of his victory.

"Happy~ Delighted~"

On the hotel rooftop, Adrian watched the upcoming award ceremony below, filled with criticism but unsure where to begin.

On stage, the host made a gesture, and a group of staff wheeled up a cart bearing a large golden trophy and a small brown wooden box.

"Now, let's award the champion their prize!"

The host, holding a microphone, enthusiastically roused the audience's emotions.

"A gold trophy and the rarest treasure of the sea—a Devil Fruit!!"

The host walked to the cart and dramatically opened the box, revealing the Devil Fruit inside.

"The Paramecia-class Squeeze-Squeeze Fruit, a special Devil Fruit that can extract any juice. For chefs, apart from the legendary fruits, the Squeeze-Squeeze Fruit is a great culinary tool!"

The host looked at the Devil Fruit in the box with a flash of greedy desire in his eyes, a natural human reaction.

"Now, let's witness the birth of a legendary chef and fruit ability user!"

Before the host could take out the Devil Fruit, an unexpected event occurred.

A giant naginata nearly five meters long, accompanied by a powerful heat, roared from the upper right corner of the stage, aiming directly at the award ceremony.

Following closely behind the naginata was a fearsome Genie with a terrifying, grim face. Its lower body was entirely made of thick, light blue smoke, while its muscular upper body had a bizarre dark blue skin. Its face, twisted in a grimace, was adorned with a thick pink beard, and its similarly pink hair was tied into a high ponytail with a golden metal ribbon, flowing in the wind.

At the same time, a cold, merciless male voice echoed throughout the venue.

"Since a champion has been decided!"

"Then both the champion and the Devil Fruit will be ours!"

"This is the order from Totto Land!"

"We want it all!"

At this critical moment, an ancient-looking long sword appeared, intercepting the giant naginata's blade and successfully stopping it.

Clang!

A deafening clash of metal resounded, and the violent force swept through the venue.

The host and judges' faces changed dramatically. At such a crucial moment, someone from the pirate emperor's forces had come to cause trouble.

Shanks, holding a wine glass in his left hand and the famed sword 'Kogarashi' in his right, looked cold and stern. Though not happy about the winner, he wouldn't let anyone harm the chef who provided him with free drinks.

Under the interception of 'Kogarashi,' the giant naginata flew back, spinning a few times in the air before landing steadily in the Genie's hand. The demon twirled the naginata a few times, then pointed its blade at Shanks below.

Shanks narrowed his eyes, discarding the wine glass, and gripped 'Kogarashi' tightly, his muscles subtly tensing in preparation for the next strike.

At this moment, an untimely young male voice suddenly rang out.

"Hey! Is this monster man? It has no legs so why can he fly? Where are it's wing?"

Hearing this nonsensical question, several veins popped on Shanks' forehead as he glared at the speaker, Jansev. Even the Genie in the sky couldn't help but cast an annoyed glance in that direction.

Although the Genie was an entity created by Charlotte Daifuku's Puff fruit's ability, it wasn't a mindless puppet.

On the contrary, the Genie, while instinctively obeying the orders of its creator, actually possesses a certain degree of self-awareness.

An expression of annoyance flashed in the colorful, strange eyes of the Genie. It roared, its unsupported body spinning a few times in the air, and fiercely swung its giant naginata towards Jansev.

Shanks bent his legs slightly, and with a burst of force, he sprinted forward at incredible speed, appearing beside Jansev. He raised his famed sword, 'Kogarashi,' and blocked the Genie's attack once again.

"Run!" Shanks shouted urgently to those still on the final stage.

Seeing this, Jansev remained incredibly calm, unlike the other hosts and contestants who were fleeing in terror.

"Don't be so tense, Straw Hat." Jansev patted Shanks' left shoulder nonchalantly.

"This guy might actually be good! I want to test him out a bit. We can't just assume he's a villain at first glance, right?"

However, the Genie wasn't going to give Jansev any chance to catch his breath.

Seeing its attack blocked again, the anger in the Genie's eyes intensified.

It raised its giant naginata high, focusing all its strength in its arms, and brought it down with lightning speed, delivering a powerful blow.

"Demon Hunt!"

Swoosh—

The speed and power of the giant naginata were so great that it sliced through the air, producing a sharp, piercing sound.

Shanks frowned deeply. This was clearly a powerful attack that couldn't be met head-on recklessly.

He quickly turned his head to warn the champion chef to leave the dangerous area.

As he turned, all he saw was the exaggerated figure of someone flailing their arms wildly, running towards the corner of the stage.

"Straw Hat, run!"

Shanks' mouth twitched uncontrollably, deciding to give up entirely on the bizarre chef he couldn't figure out.

The giant naginata closed in. Shanks took a deep breath, lifted his right foot, and pivoted on his left leg, narrowly avoiding the Genie's thunderous strike.

Boom!!

The giant naginata struck the brick stage, carving a deep gash that spread across half the platform, sending shattered bricks flying and creating a cloud of thick smoke.

Taking advantage of the moment.

A crimson glow flashed in Shanks' eyes as he raised 'Kogarashi' and slashed at the nearby Genie with lightning speed.

Poof—

A soft sound like slicing through smoke spread out.

Shanks' pupils slightly contracted. His seemingly inevitable strike had indeed hit the Genie, but it didn't cause any damage. Instead, the demon's body dissipated into dense, pale blue smoke on the spot.

"Another opponent immune to physical attacks!"

Shanks shouted internally. Ever since setting sail, he seemed to always encounter enemies that swordsmanship alone couldn't defeat.

Whether it was Adrian or Golden Lion, they could completely neutralize sword attacks.

And now, even this Genie!

In just a moment.

The dense smoke around reformed into the massive body of the Genie.

The muscular Genie gripped the giant naginata's handle with both hands, exerting strength in its waist and abdomen, and swung it like an axe. The naginata, carrying a fierce wind, once again slashed horizontally towards Shanks.

"Demon Hunt!!"

Shanks tapped the ground with his toes and simultaneously swung 'Kogarashi' to block in front of him.

Clang!!

A crisp metallic collision echoed.

The giant naginata in the Genie's hands clashed with Shanks' 'Kogarashi.'

After a brief stalemate.

Shanks' body floated gently to the ground like a leaf in the autumn wind, his expression slightly serious as he looked at the Genie opposite him.

Unexpectedly, the Genie's strength and speed weren't as formidable as imagined.

At least Shanks didn't find it very strong.

But the troubling thing was that the Genie's body was constructed peculiarly, seemingly entirely condensed from the pale blue smoke of its lower half, capable of completely ignoring regular attacks like a Logia Devil Fruit user!

That was the real headache!

Shanks frowned, his thoughts gradually becoming clearer.

"Not the ability user… but a special creation of the Devil Fruit? In this case, even Armament Haki might not work… I must find the fruit ability user controlling the Genie!"

With this thought, Shanks' eyes gleamed red, and he activated his Observation Haki, scanning the area.

A familiar noisy voice sounded again.

"Straw Hat, look there, that belly button freak!"