Jin didn't pay much attention to what the others were thinking. Instead, he quietly pondered the situation.
Using this method to gradually eliminate the enemy's fighting force… he thought.
Sanji probably knew that the people left behind would be dealt with by those chasing from the rear. It was indeed a clever approach.
But there was a prerequisite—
That the enemy didn't have anyone stronger than Sanji.
Yet from what Zoro had said earlier, that didn't seem to be the case.
A trace of worry surfaced in Jin's eyes.
"Tell me about your deployment this time," Jin said. "And what's the situation at Enies Lobby?"
Whether by luck or coincidence, this suited man happened to be one of the ones who knew the most.
"Other than a large number of soldiers…"
"The soldiers on the train don't matter," Jin interrupted.
"..."
"This escort mission is mainly handled by five members of CP9. As for Enies Lobby's standing forces, there are around ten thousand troops."
"I see…"
Jin didn't know exactly how strong CP9 was, but if Zoro considered them formidable, then they were probably not opponents Sanji could handle alone.
At the very least, one against five was impossible.
He could only hope that idiot wouldn't rush in blindly.
As for the so-called ten thousand soldiers at Enies Lobby, Jin didn't take them seriously at all. Without powerful individuals guarding the place, sheer numbers meant little.
After thinking for a moment, he asked, "Are there other CP9 members stationed at Enies Lobby?"
"I'm not sure," the suited man replied. "But CP9's duty is to guard Enies Lobby. I believe there should still be some there."
How many, and exactly who—they didn't know.
Jin considered it.
Since several CP9 members had left Water 7 this time, there were definitely still people remaining at Enies Lobby.
Otherwise, if the island were attacked, reinforcements wouldn't arrive in time.
As for whether anyone would dare attack Enies Lobby…
Tch. Not impossible.
Weren't they about to do exactly that?
While thinking, Jin released the control over the suited man.
He'd already gotten what he needed. The man was no longer useful.
The moment the suited man came back to himself and realized what he had just said, his face went completely pale.
"I…!"
What had he just done?!
He'd actually revealed that much critical information to the enemy?
It was over. Completely over.
Even if he survived today, he'd be purged afterward for sure.
As a seasoned underling, he knew all too well how the higher-ups handled situations like this.
"Before these eyes, no secret can remain hidden," Jin said calmly.
With that, he ignored the man's devastated expression and walked past everyone into the next carriage.
"Luffy, we've got the information we need. We can leave now."
"So Sanji's not here…" Luffy muttered.
"Yeah. He's not."
Looking out through the rear window, Jin gazed at the distant sea.
"Sanji is still on the train ahead. Whether we can catch up before they reach Enies Lobby is still uncertain."
If Sanji charged into Enies Lobby alone, he'd be facing numerous strong opponents—and ten thousand Marine soldiers.
Thinking of that, worry surfaced again in Jin's eyes.
"Then let's go. We need to catch up as fast as possible," Luffy said.
He trusted that Sanji would survive—but if they could reach him sooner and help, that was obviously better.
After climbing onto the roof, Jin looked at the rapidly approaching detached carriage ahead.
"We need to deal with that carriage," he said. "Otherwise, the Rocket Man will be in trouble."
Crashing straight into it wouldn't end well either.
"Leave it to Zoro," Luffy said with a toothy grin.
As if those weren't two train carriages at all—but two pieces of cake.
"Oh? Then alright."
Jin, who had been about to draw his blade, relaxed his hand and calmly watched the approaching carriage.
"Then we'll leave it to Zoro."
At Luffy's call, Zoro stepped onto the front of the Rocket Man, calmly facing the oncoming carriage.
At the moment of impact distance—
Zoro moved.
"Two-Sword Style: Iai — Rashomon!"
A flying slash shot forward, instantly cleaving the two carriages clean in half!
The sight left the conscious people inside completely dumbstruck.
"T-The carriage… got cut open!!"
What kind of cursed fate was this?
They'd barely escaped one demon, only for the train itself to be sliced apart next.
"That's insane!!"
Zambai and the others stared in disbelief.
So this was the true strength of the Pirate Hunter?!
"And someone that strong… isn't even the captain…" Zambai swallowed hard.
No—wait.
That was actually even better!
That meant the chances of rescuing their boss were even higher!
The thought alone made Zambai tremble with excitement.
"So this is a swordmaster's slash…"
Back on the Rocket Man, Jin curiously studied the two blades in Zoro's hands.
His Sharingan had clearly captured the flying slash earlier.
It was somewhat similar to the Wind Release he unleashed with the Kusanagi Sword—
Yet fundamentally different.
Zoro's slash had no elemental attribute at all. It was pure, refined cutting power.
His own slashes, on the other hand, carried chakra nature.
Zoro calmly sheathed his swords, not even sparing a glance at the train cars flying apart to either side—as if he'd done something utterly trivial.
Then he looked at Jin.
"You carry a sword too…"
"I'm not a pure swordsman," Jin shook his head. "Don't forget—I'm a ninja."
To him, swords and blades were merely tools for killing. There was no essential difference.
If anything was special, it was that the Kusanagi Sword in his hand could conduct chakra.
"That makes sense," Zoro nodded in understanding.
After all, Jin wasn't a dedicated swordsman like him. It was only natural he wouldn't fully understand the path of the blade.
"This is a swordmaster's attack," Zoro explained. "After reaching the level of cutting steel, taking another step forward lets you release flying slashes."
"Once you reach that point, you can basically be called a swordmaster."
Beyond that was the realm of the great swordmasters—
Like Dracule Mihawk, whom he'd once faced.
The world's greatest swordsman.
One day, he would surpass him.
"Flying slashes, huh…" Jin stroked his chin and nodded. "Got it."
Then, by that logic—
Could he also be considered a swordmaster?
The wind blades he released could easily cut through steel.
"Strange. Why is there a giant Sea King corpse here?" Barry said in confusion.
The Rocket Man sped forward, quickly leaving the sliced carriages behind.
Ahead, however, lay the body of a Sea King—split cleanly in two.
"Looks like there's another expert up ahead," Jin said, glancing at the massive corpse. "Someone who could do this is at least swordmaster level."
"Leave it to me," Zoro said, nodding.
When it came to facing another swordmaster—
That was his fight.
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