Chapter 368: A Slight Advantage, Ruthless Turn  

The sky darkened as dusk approached. 

"Roman—" 

?! 

"It's almost over." 

Zoro, his upper body wrapped in bandages, stood with his arms crossed, watching Luffy's battle. Roman snapped back to reality and nodded. 

"Yeah, it's almost over." 

Both Luffy and Katakuri were breathing heavily. Unlike in the "original story," where they fought, ate, and rested in between, this was a continuous, high-intensity battle. 

And Luffy wasn't just getting beaten down. His mastery of "Armament Haki projection" had improved during the fight, and with his newly awakened "future sight," Katakuri was struggling too. He didn't show it on the surface, but inside, his body was riddled with tiny wounds. 

"Ahhh!! Stay down already, Katakuri!!" 

Luffy, in his Gear Fourth: Snakeman form, had drastically increased his speed. Now that he could also "see the future," for the first time, he was pushing Katakuri back. But— 

"You're the one who's going down!" 

The fight had reached its final stage. Luffy's punches curved unpredictably, striking from the blind spots of "the future," while Katakuri's right arm transformed into a massive spiked club, coated in jet-black Armament Haki, swinging down with devastating force. 

"King Cobra!" 

"Cutting Mochi!" 

Though both were battered and running on less than a tenth of their full strength, their fighting spirit only burned brighter. Their determination was so strong that their Haki became dense and unshakable, pressing down on the battlefield like iron! Even Roman, watching from the side, unconsciously clenched and unclenched his fist. 

Katakuri's enormous club came down like a collapsing mountain, making it impossible to dodge. Luffy's stretching, twisting punch surged forward relentlessly, determined to change fate! 

Their strongest and final attacks struck each other at the same moment. 

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! 

The clash was more violent than thunder, more overwhelming than a tsunami. The sheer force of their Haki shattered the battlefield inch by inch. Even the air itself was torn apart, leaving jagged black streaks in the sky, creating the illusion that the world itself was being ripped apart! 

"Katakuri!" 

Perospero clenched his candy cane staff tightly. This level of combat had gone beyond his expectations. 

He wasn't new to powerful fighters—growing up in the Rocks Pirates' era, he had been surrounded by the strongest legends of the sea. But now— 

"How is this possible… That Straw Hat kid…" 

For a moment, Perospero thought he saw the shadow of someone else in Luffy—Rocks D. Xebec. 

The man who had gathered Big Mom, Kaido, Whitebeard, Shiki, Captain John, and Wang Zhi under his banner… a man who was nothing short of wild, untamed chaos! 

No, no… That had to be his imagination. 

If anything, Luffy resembled that old bastard, Monkey D. Garp, more than Xebec… 

"Heh, what a terrifying man." 

Meanwhile, Charlotte Smoothie, her abdomen also wrapped in bandages, summoned layers of deep blue energy in front of her. The waves of her ability rippled violently, absorbing the explosive Haki shockwaves from the battle, dispersing them into nothing. 

But when she said "terrifying man," was she talking about her brother Katakuri? Or… Luffy? 

"It's over." 

Roman, though appearing unchanged, was fully prepared to move at any moment. 

As the shaking stopped and the dust settled, two figures slowly came into view— 

Luffy, in his Snakeman form, stood beneath Katakuri's massive club. 

His Gear Fourth fist was pressed against Katakuri's stomach. 

Neither of their attacks had physically touched the other—because they had both used "advanced Armament Haki projection." 

And then—

*Slap, slap.* 

Both of them deactivated their abilities at the same time. 

The next moment— 

*Boom!!* Blood suddenly gushed from Luffy's mouth and nose like a fountain. His eyes rolled back, his injuries far beyond severe. The ground beneath him suffered as well—Katakuri's Armament Haki had completely shattered it! With a thunderous crash, a bottomless crater appeared, and Luffy, with nothing to stand on, fell straight into it. 

"Did we win?" 

Perospero was so stunned that he even forgot his usual catchphrase, "Lick lick~," as he turned his gaze to Katakuri. 

*Thud.* The towering Katakuri suddenly collapsed forward. At the last moment, he managed to support himself with one hand, but the other was clutching his stomach. That last punch from Luffy had nearly turned his insides into mush! 

But in the end, just as he had foreseen, the one lying down was— 

*Slap.* 

The next second, from the hundreds-of-meters-deep crater, an arm shot out and grabbed the edge. Then—*whoosh*— 

Luffy, now out of his Gear Fourth state, bounced out of the pit. His body was completely drained of Haki, and he swayed like a noodle, barely standing. But in the end, he held his ground. 

"…Looks like you saw a future even further than mine." 

*Click.*

?! 

A faint clicking sound from a camera snail caught Roman's attention. In the ruins of the forest, far from the battlefield, a round-bellied figure—no, a bird-like shadow—flashed by. 

Wasn't that "Big News" Morgans…? 

"Roman, the cake is almost ready." 

Sanji's voice came through the earpiece, prompting Roman to walk toward the battlefield. Meanwhile, Perospero immediately moved closer to Katakuri. Both sides' key fighters were exhausted—if anyone made a move now— 

"Luffy, the cake is ready." 

Hearing Roman's words, Luffy nodded. 

"Big guy, we'll fight again next time!" 

Hearing Luffy's words, Charlotte Katakuri stood up, gave a small nod, and replied in a single word. 

"Alright." 

But next time… I probably—no, I definitely won't be able to keep up with you. 

What a terrifying man. 

"Let's go, Luffy." 

*Whoosh!* 

White paper swirled around Luffy, wrapping him up while stabilizing his injuries. Then, it carried him toward Zoro, scooping up the three-sword swordsman as well. The paper transformed into a sleek fighter jet and shot toward Cacao Island! 

"Brother Katakuri," 

Smoothie approached, and Katakuri gave her a calm nod. 

"I lost." 

"Now's not the time to talk about that," Perospero said, licking his candy cane staff, trying to comfort his brother, who had *never* lost before. 

"Who hasn't lost before? Whether it's Kaido, Mama, Whitebeard, Roger, or even Captain Rocks—anyone who's human will lose! Except for that so-called 'god'… never mind. Let's head to Cacao Island too. If Mama eats the cake and regains her senses…" 

Then today's chaos is far from over! 

— 

"So this is the wedding cake?" 

"It's a miracle… They actually recreated Lord Long Bread's masterpiece in just two hours, something that originally took *days* to make…" 

"No, this isn't just a copy!" 

The short, elderly chef—over ninety years old—took a bite of the wedding cake that Sanji had made. Tears immediately streamed down his face. 

"This far surpasses my own cooking skills… I should give up the title of 'chef' and start from scratch, learning how to knead dough all over again." 

"Head chef, don't lose hope—!"

"Just thinking about Big Mom's satisfied smile after eating the cake," Sanji lit a cigarette with a smile, "makes me feel proud." 

Sanji is so cool~~ 

Steam shot out of Pudding's head so forcefully that it blew her chef's hat off…?! When Roman arrived in Chocolate Town in Cacao Island, carrying Luffy and Zoro, this was the chaotic scene he walked into—Sanji looking helpless in front of Pudding, and a group of chefs dragging a long loaf of bread. 

If someone didn't know better, they might think this was some kind of family drama~~ 

"Sanji, I'm starving!" 

The moment Luffy landed, he lunged straight for the giant cake, scaring the chefs so much that they rushed to hold him back. 

"Stop! That cake is for 'Mama'!" 

"No way! This is the last hope of Whole Cake Island—" 

"Luffy," 

Sanji shook his head and carried out a plate of cake from the nearby factory. It wasn't as grand as the giant cake, but it was made with just as much care— 

"I knew you'd be hungry after fighting. This one's for you. Eat up." 

 "Hehehe, Sanji, you know me so well." 

"What about mine?" 

Hearing Zoro's question, Sanji's smile vanished in an instant. He tilted his head up arrogantly. 

"Sorry, this isn't Liquor Island. There's no booze for you here!" 

"Alright, everyone, get ready—" 

"Wedding~~ Cake~~!!" 

Before Roman could even finish his sentence, a massive mirror was carried over under the orders of Charlotte Custard. And from that mirror, Big Mom burst out—her body looking thinner than usual from hunger, making her faintly resemble her younger, more beautiful self. She lunged straight for the giant cake, followed by a group of exhausted Charlotte family members. 

Gulp! 

She grabbed a handful of cake and stuffed it into her mouth like a starving ghost. Then, all of a sudden, she froze. 

Perospero's face darkened. 

"Damn it, was it poisoned after all…?" 

"This happiness… this sweetness!" 

In an instant, Big Mom's fierce expression melted into one of pure bliss and satisfaction. Tears even started rolling down her cheeks. Roman turned to Sanji in confusion. 

"Sanji, did you put some kind of hallucinogen in there?" 

"Are you insulting my pride as a chef?!" 

No, no, it's just that… there are chefs out there, like that guy, who openly put poppy seeds in their dishes— 

"This is~~ the wedding cake!!" 

"It's too good… this sweetness~~ this longing~~" 

As Big Mom returned to her senses, the flowers and plants around them started singing to their queen. 

"So soft~~" 

"Melts in~~" 

"Swallowed whole~~"

"This amazing taste... what kind of flavor is this~~?" 

The singing seemed to come from BIG MOM, but it was obvious that she was too busy devouring the cake to be singing herself. The real voices were coming from— 

"Even rotten puppies dance with joy~~" 

"This is the grand stage of flavor's remains~~" 

The voices came from within BIG MOM's throat. A mass of souls! Countless spirits, the very life forces she had consumed, were now singing praises to their "queen." What a terrifying Devil Fruit. 

Roman lowered his eyes. And this Devil Fruit had fallen into the stomach of a monster—an unrestrained, reckless monster... 

"Sweet~~" 

"Milky~~" 

"Rich~~" 

"Danger~~!!" 

BIG MOM suddenly snapped back to her senses. Her gaze locked onto the Straw Hat Crew, and the killing intent that surged from her was so strong it pierced the sky like a sword, sending cold geckos falling onto her. 

"Ma ma ma ma, this is just too delicious~~" 

In the next second, her plump hand grabbed the pirate hat, Napoleon, from her head. With a swift transformation, it turned into a massive cutlass. 

"Thanks for the meal!" 

Along with BIG MOM's "gratitude," a towering slash came crashing down!! 

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