One Piece: Bai Ye Deputy Captain of the Straw Hats

Translator: PapaSmurf0700

Inside the casino, the man in the purple kimono nodded appreciatively at Zoro and said, "Thank you for the drink. I truly appreciate it."

"Don't mention it," Zoro replied indifferently. "This sake was brewed by a crewmate of mine. I prefer it to anything they serve here."

"A friend's sake? Then I'm even luckier, hahaha!" The man laughed heartily.

"It's you," Zoro observed, looking intently at the man. "With your Observation Haki, you should have realized that you lost those bets because the others thought you were completely blind."

Zoro had offered the drink because his instincts as a swordsman had told him there was more to this man than met the eye when he entered the casino.

"Hahaha, using such power for gambling would spoil the fun," the man chuckled initially, but then his smile faded into a more somber expression. "Moreover, not seeing can sometimes be a blessing."

"There are too many... filthy and despicable things in this world. Not having to see them can be a relief."

"I chose to close my eyes."

It was clear what he meant. Overwhelmed by the world's injustices and corruption, he had chosen blindness.

Yet, Zoro scowled. "So you deceive yourself? What's the point of that?"

The man didn't shy away from acknowledging the self-deception. "Is there a point?" he mused, knowing well it didn't change the reality. He then lifted his long blade and said, "Even if I can call down meteors from the heavens, I still can't envision a future where this chaos is resolved. Closing my eyes was the decision I made."

Opening his closed eyelids to reveal sightless eyes, he asked, "As a pirate from the Worst Generation, what is it that you seek?"

Hearing the man's question, Zoro gave a confident smile and said simply, "To be the strongest."

"Is that all?" The man seemed let down by Zoro's answer, expecting something more profound from a pirate of the Worst Generation.

"How disappointing," he murmured quietly. "In a world so full of corruption and chaos, you're focused only on personal ambition."

Zoro could hear the sincerity in the man's tone, but also sensed that it wasn't just criticism; the man had hoped for more from him.

But Zoro remained unswayed. "Being the strongest isn't just about me. It's a promise I made, and I'll risk everything to keep it. I don't care if that disappoints you."

He stared back at the man. Despite the man's blindness, Zoro felt his gaze piercing through him.

"No wonder you irritate me. You think like the Marines—praising self-sacrifice as if it's the only way. You believe that everyone who fights is just trying to sort out the world's mess."

Zoro got to his feet, his annoyance growing.

"I'm not sure if your way is right, but for me—"

Just then, Zoro's intense aura flared, sensed even by the man's keen Observation Haki. For a split second, it seemed as if a spectral demon loomed behind Zoro, a phantom with three heads and six arms, filling the space around them.

"If you don't like something—cut it down!" Zoro declared with a grin, his words echoing through the casino.

After absorbing Bai Ye's worldview and meeting the man in purple, Zoro's perspective had subtly changed. If Bai Ye were there, he'd have recognized it as a significant shift in Zoro's understanding, not of a new fighting technique, but of his own philosophy.

"This world... if it's truly a purgatory, if the sea is rotten, if everywhere we look there's injustice and pain..." Zoro's voice deepened, each word intensifying the ominous aura that surrounded him. It was a palpable force that sent shivers down the spine of everyone nearby, causing them to scramble away in terror.

Zoro lowered his gaze to meet the man in purple, who sat calmly, seemingly unaffected. "Then kill! Kill until purgatory is emptied! Kill until the rot is cleansed! Kill until injustice vanishes!"

As he spoke, the demonic aura enveloping him seemed to shatter the very ceiling of the casino, shooting into the sky, his presence overwhelming.

"To endure all kinds of suffering without yielding—that is the path of Ashura," Zoro continued, his voice fierce. "If you're unhappy with the world—then tear it down. Destroy it and rebuild it as you see fit!"

"Unfortunately, you won't be able to see it," he added, a hint of pity in his tone for the man's blindness.

With that, Zoro calmed his aggressive aura, settling back into his normal, relaxed demeanor. But both he and the man in purple understood the significance of their conversation. For Zoro, already immensely powerful, this moment marked a profound escalation in his journey—a rare and striking breakthrough, influenced in no small part by the man in purple.

Before leaving, Zoro simply said, "Thanks." What he was thankful for might only be clear to him.

"Do you really think you can achieve it?" The man in purple called out as Zoro approached the exit.

"This isn't about believing," Zoro responded, pausing at the doorway without turning around. He drew the Wado Ichimonji, holding it aloft. "It's about certainty. I won't stop until I die."

The man sensed Zoro's ironclad determination in that single declaration.

"My name is Issho," the man introduced himself, acknowledging he knew who Zoro was. "I look forward to seeing your swordsmanship again, Roronoa Zoro."

Zoro just nodded in response, then stepped out of the casino and melted into the bustling street.

Left alone, Issho downed his sake in one gulp, a thoughtful expression on his face. "To endure suffering without yielding," he mused aloud, chuckling. "Perhaps I've been walking the wrong path all along."

Laughing softly, Issho was impressed. "Such a philosophy, drenched in the will to fight. That's truly the mark of Ashura. But I'm not out of the game yet."

"Roronoa Zoro!" he called after the departing figure, a smile playing on his lips.