One Piece: Gambling To The Top

"Well, well…" Josh said slowly as he turned to the person who appeared. "If it's not the Blackbeard." 

"Zehahaha… The Gambler, you and I are fellow Warlords, and you seem to be a strong person. Now the strongest swordsman in the world." Blackbeard said as he opened his arms. "I must say, I'm rather surprised that little guy like you managed to do it." 

"Hey! Don't call him Little Guy!" Hancock said, pointing her finger to Blackbeard and staring at him with flames in her eyes. 

Josh let a sigh and patted Hancock on the back. "It's okay honey, let him. This guy can't pick up on girls from his size, so he likes to tease short guys, because deep down inside, he knows, he is not big." 

If one remembered the Anime correctly, Blackbeard had a harem of girls shorter than his leg. 

"Ouch…" 

Came to a voice behind a house in the town, as if sympathising with Blackbeard. 

"Come on, I was just being welcoming. No need to take things this far." Blackbeard didn't seem to be offended. He opened his mouth and had a long laugh. Deep down, he wondered if this is the case for all of the big guys. But he couldn't just blow up his plan yet, after all, he is a man who chases a dream. 

[Ding, a new Gamble is available] 

Josh resisted the urge to flinch at the notification. He needed to keep his emotions from appearing on his face. The system had always been a good way to detect danger. 

"So, you've said you have a proposition for me," Josh said. "Why did you fire at us, then. I assume that the sniper belongs to you." 

Josh extended his hand in one direction. Shaking his hand, a quick air blade left his fingertips and flew, cutting the edge of a few houses. 

The sound of steps of someone running above the buildings could be heard. 

"Come on. The strongest swordsman would be able to feel that. Do you think I didn't put that in the calculation?" Blackbeard smiled widely as he stretched his arms up. "About my proposition, you seem to be quite curious." 

"You don't say." With that being said, Josh was thinking about what the system had told him. 

[Ding: System has a new gamble for you. 

Blackbeard had set eyes on your Devil Fruit, knowing its potentials that surpasses Conqueror Haki. 

Blackbeard wants to take it from you. However, he wants to get it as easy as possible, knowing your potentials as a swordsman. 

Objective: Fend yourself against the man who injured a Yonko and defeat him. 

Rewards: 

- x4 Mystery Boxes tier 5

- 1500 Points

What you are betting on. 

- Your life and your girls. 

- 5000 Draw Points. 

Do you accept (y/n)] 

Josh felt angrt after seeing the notification. Now he knows why Blackbeard had appeared. It's to ambush him when he let his guard down the slightest. The fact that someone wanted to harm his family got him pissed off. 

However, he didn't want to start the fight yet. 

Hancock may be very strong, especially since Josh upgraded her speed. And she wasn't very dependable on her Devil Fruit in the first place. 

However, the same can't be said with Robin. She may get harmed if Blackbeard used his Darkness Darkness Devil Fruit. 

That's why Josh was acting calculative. 

"Zehahaha." Blackbeard's loud laugh could be heard through the town. "Let me ask how are you feeling, first. A few hours ago, you won against the Strongest Swordsman and gained his recognising. I bet you're quite tired.' 

It was a hint to know if Josh can fight or not. No one knows for sure that Josh has a very strong healing factor. 

"Not really." 

Josh turned his head toward Robin and Hancock. He stretched his hand, extending it to Robin. 

Josh continued as Robin held his hand.

"I have had made love, ate, and everything feels good." 

While talking, Josh was moving his finger on the top of Robin's hand, writing something. 

He believed that Robin was a very smart girl, to understand the message that he is trying to convey. 

'Robin, he has the strongest Logia Devil Fruit, his fruit can disable yours. Don't involve him. Hide in the corner and use your Devil Fruit wisely.' 

"I see. That's why you're holding your woman's hand firmly." Blackbeard smiled. "You had a good time, Zehahaha!" 

"I see, you are a man of culture as well," Josh said as he looked at Hancock and held her hand, letting Robin's. 

Blackbeard opened his mouth widely, pointing to Josh. "Don't tell me you too are dating this little — Ahem, big boy."

"Humph." Hancock scoffed at him. She brought her finger next to her lips and kissed it. 

A big heart appeared, and Blackbeard rubbed his throat, observing the most charming woman, and how delicate she looked, how pretty her lips looked. 

"Pistol." Hancock aimed her finger at him and shook it. A pink bullet flew very fast, faster than it would be usually if not for Josh's pills, and headed to Blackbeard. 

Blackbeard opened his eyes widely, seeing that his chest was turning to a stone. The rest of his skin was trying to turn into a stone. He opened his eyes widely, and around him, pitch-black fog danced and crawled on his body. Once the black fog vanished, Blackbeard's body was fine again. 

"Hey, that wasn't nice." Blackbeard, angry, extended his hand toward Hancock. Darkness danced there, and it held a strong gravity attraction. "Come here and let me touch you." 

"Hancock, move!" Josh put his hand on Hancock's chest and pushed her. 

Hancock was surprised as she looked at Josh. 

Josh, quickly, turned into his Demon's form as his body was being pulled by a vortex that appeared on Blackbeard's body. 

"Zehahaha. No need for me to bluff you any longer, now, Demon-san." 

Josh saw the future, and he knew things won't be nice. The moment he approaches Blackbeard, he would lose his Devil Fruit transformation. 

Clenching his fists, Josh decided not to use his Devil Fruit ability, since that it would be useless. 

Josh extend his arms and brought his fists together. When he was a centimetres away from Blackbeard, he unleashed a strong shockwave. 

"Useless!" 

Yelled Blackbeard as he clenched his other fist and punched Josh on the face, sending him flying while a wall of darkness appeared between them. 

Josh lost his Zoan's form, becoming a human again. He glide on his feet, 10 meters back, before he found balance. 

Blackbeard, on the other hand, was protecting himself with a dark wall. That darkness can absorb any attack. 

The wall fell. 

"Aaaa…; This hurts!" Blackbeard said, holding his nose as it was bleeding. 

Josh had a smirk on his face. "You know, you should know that shock waves don't come from one direction," Josh said, knowing that he had done internal damage to Blackbeard. 

He tried to turn back into his Demon form. But alas, he couldn't. He has to wait for a few seconds, it seems. 

Blackbeard raised his fists, covering them in a dark matter. 

"Tsk, what an idiot! It's only my Devil Fruit that amplifies the damage I took." Once Blackbeard finished his words a pretty figure appeared next to him. He couldn't see her moving. 

"How dare you hit Joshy!" Hancock raised her foot and kicked Blackbeard in the stomach, sending him gliding on the ground, crushing 20 houses with his back. 

Blackbeard spat blood as he fell. He put his hands on the ground and pushed himself to stand up while glaring in Hancock's direction. "You bitch!" 

From his hands and on the ground, the dark fog started expanding. 

"Hancock, jump out of your place!" Josh yelled as he had seen the future. "Don't get near!" 

Josh seemed to be worried. He quickly appeared next to Hancock, lifted her, and moved backwards. Extending his hand to the left, he summoned his Great Devil Sword. 

"Don't worry, Joshy!" Hancock said. "Let me. I'll kick his ass if he thinks he can punch your cute face." 

As Josh was talking, he found a few bullets heading toward them. Using Shave, he moved along Hancock to another place. But few other bullets headed to their feet, almost getting them. 

"He's annoying," Josh said. 

"I'll take care of him," Hancock said, before giving one last glance at the spreading darkness and the panting angry black beard. 

She made a heart shape with her hand, creating a pink heart in the air, before firing an arrow toward Blackbeard. 

But, it seemed to be a useless attempt as the darkness absorbed the arrow. 

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AN: Advanced chapters ahead at patréon

www..patréon.com/Blazuki