Chapter 116: What Exactly Are You Trying to Do? (Make-Up Update 1)

Powerful, ruthless, and never leaving a survivor behind once crossed.

Every piece of evidence suggested that the Marine before him was no pushover, but rather a formidable and thorny enemy. If he had encountered any other Marine, Mr. 3 might not have been so terrified, even if he couldn't win. But with Roland as his opponent, he dared not entertain any delusions of luck, for such a thing simply did not exist. Mr. 3 knew exactly what kind of person he was—far better than anyone else did—and calling himself scum would not be an exaggeration. Therefore, once he crossed paths with Roland, there was only one possible outcome: death. If there were any other result to speak of, it would merely be a matter of how gruesome that death might be.

"Miss Goldenweek, if you get a chance, run! Get as far away as you can. As long as you can escape this place and make it back to Baroque Works, you’ll be safe."

Mr. 3 stared fixedly at Roland, not daring to even draw a full breath, terrified that in a moment of carelessness, Roland would appear before him and end his life with a single stroke of his blade. If given a choice, who would ever want to die? Mr. 3 was no exception; if there was even the slightest chance of survival, he would gamble on it. He would not simply sit and wait for death just because his opponent was Roland.

"I didn't expect you to know so much about me."

Roland held his sword, Nara, and laughed, completely disregarding Mr. 3. Having already defeated a Vice Admiral, it would be no boast to say he could now look down on most enemies. He watched Mr. 3’s movements with his peripheral vision, merely shaking his head slightly, unimpressed. With his Level 6 speed, there was no way Mr. 3 could intercept him before he acted, especially now that he had mastered the Six Powers.

"So, knowing all that you do about me, why do you think you can stop me here? To buy time for her to escape?"

Roland’s gaze pierced through Mr. 3, his words merciless. Mr. 3 did not answer, keeping his eyes locked on Roland’s feet, confident that if Roland suddenly attacked, he would at least not be killed instantly by a single strike.

But before Mr. 3 could make a move, the little girl beside him acted. Miss Goldenweek, who had appeared by his side at some point, held a palette in her hand. With a wide sweep of her brush, she attempted to smear a glob of red paint onto Roland.

But was Roland someone who could be hit by such an attack so easily? Setting aside how Miss Goldenweek had appeared, the very moment she showed up, she had been captured by Roland’s Observation Haki. The only reason Roland hadn't moved was that he wanted to see what the little girl intended to do.

However, once she made her move, Roland decided he wouldn't wait any longer. Although his memories of this particular plot were fading, leaving only a few key figures, he had no intention of taking a hit from an inexplicable attack. After all, this world was filled with the bizarre phenomenon of Devil Fruits; heaven only knew if this little girl was some kind of special ability user. If he were to fall for a trap, even if he didn't lose the fight, those two might seize the opportunity to slip away. They were pirates, and they certainly didn't value their subordinates as highly as the Marines did.

"Didn't your mother teach you when you were little not to smear paint on strangers?"

After dodging Goldenweek’s attack, Roland sidestepped and kicked her, sending her flying. She might have been a little girl, but who knew how many bad deeds she had already committed? Living alongside someone like Mr. 3 and serving as a member of Baroque Works—could you really call her a good person? Just like that user of the Hobby-Hobby Fruit under Doflamingo’s command; if you were deceived by her appearance, your end would surely be miserable. Therefore, Roland felt no pity or sympathy for a little girl who was a pirate and had attacked him first. Besides, she wasn't even as cute as little Donna.

"Miss Goldenweek!"

Seeing his partner kicked away by Roland, Mr. 3 screamed and lunged forward, trying to catch her. But how could Roland let him have his way? Utilizing the *Shave* technique from the Six Powers, Roland vanished instantly in a burst of explosive force. When he reappeared, he was right in front of Mr. 3.

"Trying to save her? You’d better worry about saving your own life first!"

Roland chuckled, drawing Nara and swinging it directly at Mr. 3. He had no intention of holding back; he struck with his full strength. As the air shrieked from the blow, Mr. 3’s face turned deathly pale. He instantly activated his Devil Fruit ability, forming a thick wall of wax in front of him to block Roland’s attack.

However, the wax wall seemed to be of no use. When Nara struck the wax, instead of the sparks Mr. 3 had imagined, the blade slid through as easily as a hot knife through butter.

Fortunately, Mr. 3 had already mentally prepared himself for the worst, never expecting the wall to stop Roland. The moment the wax wall formed, he used the impact to throw himself to the side, simultaneously using his ability to create a suit of armor around his body. He had once used this armor to defeat a pirate with a 42-million-berry bounty, though that strength was insignificant before Roland. Mr. 3 wasn't trying to defeat Roland; he was just hoping to use the distraction to grab Goldenweek and flee. This entire operation to hunt the Blue and Red Oni had been his own private scheme; if they exposed the existence of their "Boss" because of this, they wouldn't live long enough for Roland to kill them. That man was ten thousand times more terrifying than Roland.

With the armor’s aid, Mr. 3’s speed increased significantly. By the time Roland effortlessly cleaved through the wax wall, Mr. 3 had already bolted toward Miss Goldenweek.

"So many little tricks, aren't there?"

Roland looked at the empty space behind the wax wall, sneered, shook his head, and turned to chase after them. Mr. 3’s goal was clear—to let Goldenweek escape—but to Roland, this was exactly his weakness. While he didn't need these trivial games given his strength, one always had to find some amusement in a boring life.

"Six Powers—"

Having captured Mr. 3 with his Observation Haki, Roland used *Shave* to appear before him once more, extending his fingers.

"Finger Pistol!"

As Mr. 3 watched in terror, Roland struck, his fingers thrusting forward in rapid succession. The level of his Finger Pistol was not particularly high, but it was more than enough to deal with this guy. The Devil Fruit ability that had served Mr. 3 so well in the past was failing him again and again in front of Roland. Just like before, the Finger Pistol pierced through his wax armor as if it were butter. With Mr. 3 breaking out in a cold sweat, Roland carefully avoided hitting his actual body, merely reducing the wax armor to a riddled, tattered mess.

"What... what exactly do you want!"

Watching Miss Goldenweek collapse to the ground, spitting blood, and finding himself repeatedly thwarted by Roland, Mr. 3 stopped his movements and glared furiously at him.