The wind shifted in Loguetown's plaza, brushing through vendor tents and lifting stray leaves that danced across the cobblestones. The steady rhythm of daily life slowed as people began to sense something was off. Conversations grew quieter. Stalls paused mid-sale. Heads turned toward the open square.
At the center of it all walked a boy with a straw hat.
Luffy's steps were calm, measured. Each tap of his sandal echoed unnaturally loud in the space between merchant cries and distant bells. His coat swayed slightly with the wind, and his hands remained loose at his sides.
He didn't look around.
But he felt the air change.
The moment was drawing near.
The shadow at Luffy's feet rippled.
With a mental command, darkness surged outward and coiled around a nearby wall. A deep, misty figure pulled itself from the surface—silent and deadly.
Arlong's black-armored silhouette emerged, hunched and ready, glowing eyes cold and empty of thought. He didn't speak. He didn't need to.
[Shadow General – Arlong: Active]
[Mode: Stealth-Combat Ready]
[Monarch Sync: 95%]
[Status: Awaiting Command]
Luffy gave no verbal signal.
The general sank back into the shadows, completely invisible to the civilians nearby, ready to strike at the first flicker of danger.
From above, a blur of smoke streaked across the rooftops.
Smoker descended like thunder.
He reformed mid-air, boots slamming against the plaza stones with a crack of impact. Vendors yelped and backed away, baskets and crates tumbling from startled hands.
The square began to clear.
People knew a fight when they saw one.
Luffy stopped walking, eyes meeting the Marine captain across the plaza.
"You're Straw Hat Luffy," Smoker said, his voice rough and heavy, cigar smoke swirling in tendrils around his shoulders.
Luffy tilted his head slightly. "And you're the one chasing ghosts."
Smoker stepped forward, boots grinding grit underfoot. "You've caused a lot of trouble in East Blue. I thought I'd find another reckless kid… but I've seen your trail. Arlong. Morgan. Krieg."
He exhaled smoke from his nose. "You're different."
"I get that a lot."
Smoker's grip tightened on the jitte at his side. "So tell me—what's with the shadows?"
Luffy's lips barely moved. "Mine."
Smoker didn't waste another word.
He lunged.
In an instant, Smoker transformed—his body twisting into smoke that launched across the plaza like a living cannon. Civilians screamed and scattered as the impact zone cleared.
Luffy didn't flinch.
A shadow moved.
Arlong burst upward from the ground between them, intercepting the smoke. His black-armored fist swung through the swirling fog, forcing Smoker to partially reform to maintain speed and control.
Luffy sidestepped and spun away, reading the smoke trails like a second language. His eyes never left Smoker's form as it solidified behind Arlong.
Smoker swung his jitte wide, slicing through part of the shadow general's torso—but it reformed instantly.
"You're not a Devil Fruit user," Smoker growled. "What are you?"
"An evolution," Luffy replied.
Smoker launched again, reforming mid-air, his jitte crackling as he dove toward Luffy. Luffy ducked, slammed his palm into the ground, and activated the shadows again.
Three black tendrils speared upward in a spiral.
Smoker dodged the first.
Dodged the second.
The third grazed his side—enough to disrupt his smoke form and force him to land.
Hard.
The plaza trembled beneath them.
People screamed and scattered. Vendors fled, carts overturned. A mother grabbed her son by the collar and dragged him away from the square.
A group of Marines on patrol turned the corner and froze.
"Captain Smoker's engaged!"
"Should we assist?!"
Smoker's voice came through the Den Den Mushi clipped to one of their belts.
"No one intervenes."
He rose to his feet, brushing dirt from his coat, his glare fixed on Luffy. "This one's mine."
Luffy's breath was steady.
Arlong returned to his side like a silent sentinel, posture crouched, waiting for the next order.
Luffy's mind clicked.
He didn't need to overpower Smoker with strength alone.
He had something better.
He reached down, pressed his palm to the ground.
[Shadow Arsenal – Unlocked]
[Deploy: Multi-Weapon Constructs?]
[Confirmed – Spear, Blade, Whip, Tendril]
The shadows bloomed.
From beneath his feet, weapons formed—dark, serrated shapes that shimmered like obsidian steel.
One by one they lifted into the air—floating, circling Luffy like a halo of death.
Smoker's eyes widened. "What the hell are you—"
Luffy raised his hand.
"All of you," he said.
The weapons froze midair—then snapped forward like fired arrows.
"Attack."
[End of Chapter 91]
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