"Enhanced Impact Dial – Elephant Gun!"
With a single palm strike, Usopp sent a group of elite Beasts Pirates flying. His entire arm went numb from the impact, and as he retreated, he couldn't help but complain.
"Seriously, why am I, a sniper, stuck in a chaotic melee like this..."
But he had to admit—high-intensity battles were great for improving Haki. Back in Dressrosa, when he used 'Enhanced Impact Dial – Elephant Gun' against Doflamingo's crew, it left one of his hands completely useless. But now? His arm was still ready for another round!
"Maybe I should go all out with that move..."
Usopp glanced at the chaotic battlefield and decided against using his strongest attack. Instead—
"Special Attack – Green Star: Demon!"
Then—
"Wild Growth!"
Rustle, rustle, rustle—
"Go, my demon army!!"
Thanks to his plant-based abilities, a swarm of man-eating flowers with gaping maws and twisting vines chased after the elite Beasts Pirates, making them scatter in panic. Usopp barely had a moment to celebrate when a massive dinosaur lunged at him, jaws wide open. In a blur of teeth and claws, the beast shredded Usopp's battle plants in an instant. Then, a pair of massive golden eyes locked onto Usopp himself—
?!
"Why are you looking at me? There are plenty of stronger opponents over there..."
While everyone else fought seriously, Usopp was the only one running for his life, being chased by Page One. His frantic shouting added an unexpected bit of comedy to the intense battlefield.
"Roman, is that... long-nosed warrior going to be okay?"
"Don't worry,"
The white pigeon on Kozuki Hiyori's shoulder flapped its wings calmly.
"Usopp always gets chased around in battle..."
Wait, that's not something to be calm about, right? But before Hiyori could question it, the pigeon's next words cleared her doubts.
"But in the end, Usopp always wins."
...So this is what trust in a comrade looks like?
Meanwhile, out at sea, as BIG MOM 'wisely' reduced her involvement in the battle and started slacking off, the three CP0 agents shifted their attention to another battlefield.
"Is that really him?"
"The classified information he took back then is long outdated. He shouldn't be a threat to the government anymore, right?"
"That may be true," the CP0 agent wearing a mask replied, "but letting a fugitive live freely sets a bad example. If possible, we should take him out while we're at it."
"Let's see if he even survives this battlefield first," the leader, a man in a white hat and coat with a black-and-white mask, said while watching the fight.
"His opponent is none other than the former Warlord, Jinbe."
In other words, there was no need for CP0 to step in—because that 'target' was as good as dead.
Their gazes followed the battle between Jinbe and one of the Tobi Roppo—Who's-Who.
Who's-Who wore a bright red horned helmet, had long pink hair, earrings, and a chest tattoo that looked like an eye alongside his name. He dressed in a red suit with matching pants and leather shoes, wore black gloves, and held a long sword in one hand. He had a tall, lean frame, with a cigarette dangling from his lips.
His opponent, Jinbe, stood like an immovable fortress, surrounded by shadows of various sizes. Besides the lower-rank pirates armed with swords, guns, and cannons, there were over a dozen artificial Devil Fruit users with hardened shells and razor-sharp claws. But the most intimidating presence was the massive creature flying above them.
It stood nearly 15 or 16 meters tall, with a humanoid body, clawed limbs, and the face of a grotesquely oversized rat. Its mouth stretched unnaturally wide, almost to its jawline, and two ram-like horns curled from its head. With bat-like wings spanning over 20 meters, it hovered in the air like a giant aircraft, its entire body gleaming like black obsidian.
Despite having wings, it wasn't part of King's forces. The reason? Its massive size made true flight impossible—it could only leap short distances, making it more of a ground-based fighter.
"Hey, Jinbe!"
Surrounded on all sides, Jinbe faced the enemy head-on. Who's-Who grinned, his sharp teeth visible beneath his helmet.
"Not even a single complaint? Why don't you call for help from your crew—"
"I don't need to,"
?
"Strictly speaking, this is my first big battle since joining the Straw Hat Crew."
"At least put up a decent fight."
After the chaotic battle on Whole Cake Island came an escape. Then, at Redfield's place, Jinbe had fought Hody Jones, which was completely one-sided. But now, for the first time, he was facing a real officer-level opponent, so he was giving it his all.
—Even though the enemy had no intention of fighting him one-on-one.
"Get him!"
At Who's-Who's command, a group of Zoan-type artificial Devil Fruit users charged at Jinbe! Leading the attack was a massive obsidian bat, swooping down from above with a high-pitched roar like a fighter jet cutting through the sky. But—
"You're not strong enough."
?!
A figure leaped up, grabbing the giant bat midair. With both hands gripping tightly, Jinbe twisted his body, effortlessly redirecting all of the bat's struggling force. The creature flailed its wings and limbs, but none of its attacks found their mark.
"Fish-Man Jujutsu—Tidal Shoulder Throw!"
Whoosh!!
The enormous obsidian bat spun wildly through the air, completely disoriented, before being hurled thousands of meters away, flying in an arc toward the sea. He desperately tried to regain control, but Jinbe's Fish-Man Karate had already disrupted the fluids in his body, throwing off his balance.
For now, he could only watch helplessly as the ocean grew closer and closer.
Splash!
A Devil Fruit user falling into the sea—like a sinking rock.
If no one fished him out in time, he was as good as done.
"Awwoooo—!"
Leading the charge was a massive werewolf, towering at six meters tall. With every step, the ground trembled slightly, making him look like an unstoppable living war machine as he howled and rushed toward Jinbe!
But after seeing Jinbe take down a giant bat in an instant—someone strong enough to compete for a spot among the Tobi Roppo—there was something unnerving about Jinbe's calm gaze as he landed.
A primal fear made the wolf's fierce roar sound hoarse, like a beast trapped with no way out.
"Step!"
The ground only trembled slightly under the werewolf's steps.
But right after, a sudden violent quake erupted—so strong that the massive wolf instantly lost his balance in confusion.
The tremor was like dozens of cannons firing at the same time, the recoil shaking the ground with intense force!
Even from behind, Who's-Who could clearly see the ground beneath Jinbe's foot sink slightly, as if the earth itself had turned into a thick, elastic mat. Then, like someone flicking that mat, ripples spread out in all directions, with Jinbe at the center.
As the ripples reached the charging werewolf's feet, his legs were lifted more than ten centimeters off the ground. Losing his footing, he stumbled forward—straight toward Jinbe.
Waiting for him was a fist coming right at his face!
"Fish-Man Karate—Tangled Wave Punch!"
Jinbe hadn't even deliberately stomped on the ground—the tremor had come naturally as a side effect of this punch alone. That alone showed how terrifying the power behind it was!
Boom—
Despair filled the werewolf's eyes as the punch came for him.
But at the last moment, the fist stopped just short of his face.
His confused gaze barely lasted a second before his entire body twisted, lifted off the ground, and was sent flying backward!
Crack, crack, crack—
Who's-Who, standing behind his subordinates, could hear a chilling sound—like a sack full of dry twigs being smashed with a heavy iron hammer, the sharp noise of bones breaking one after another.
Flying—flying—flying!!!
In just a moment, every single Zoan user who had charged at Jinbe was sent flying backward!
Blood sprayed from their mouths and noses like they were fountains, their bodies twisting unnaturally. Even with their strong Zoan endurance, none of them would be getting back up anytime soon.
?!
"Soru—!"
A high-speed movement technique let Who's-Who teleport away from the spot where Jinbe's fist had just struck.
Jinbe's Fish-Man Karate had reached such a high level that he could now control the water inside an opponent's body to deal internal damage! The punch he had just thrown would have damaged anything within its range, even if they weren't hit directly.
"Moonwalk—"
But as one of the Tobi Roppo, Who's-Who wasn't going to go down that easily. Leaping into the air, he dodged Jinbe's attack and tensed the muscles in his long, powerful right leg—
"Tempest Kick—Storm Leg!"
A massive flying slash shot toward Jinbe!
But Jinbe simply raised one arm, blocking the attack head-on with his Armament Haki-coated forearm.
"Soru, Moonwalk, Tempest Kick... Just as I thought,"
"You're from CP9? I've heard rumors about World Government assassins escaping from prison... so, did you offend someone important, or did you mess up a mission?"
"Hahaha, I'm surprised you actually know about that."
As he landed, Who's Who's had transformed into a massive, upright-walking... big cat? But the two huge fangs in his mouth made it clear that this wasn't an ordinary Cat-Cat Fruit. It was:
Zoan-Type, Cat-Cat Fruit, Ancient Model—Saber-Toothed Tiger Form! No wonder CP9 was called a 'zoo.' After all, the *Rokushiki* combat techniques paired best with Zoan users.
"That's right! That's me!"
Who's Who's revealed his secret without hesitation: "Twelve years ago, I was in charge of secretly transporting the 'Gomu Gomu no Mi' back to headquarters, but halfway through, that red-haired bastard stole it!"
But he couldn't beat Red-Haired Shanks;
"Later, the Gomu Gomu no Mi, along with Red-Haired's straw hat, ended up with your captain, Luffy!"
And Luffy was still no match for him; "Since you keep saying you're a member of the Straw Hat Crew, I'm here to settle the score with you!"
So, he decided to take it out on Jinbe instead. Too bad he picked the wrong person. If Who's Who's had another chance, maybe he would have gone after Usopp instead.
Usopp: ?!
"Take this—Fang Gun!"
With his mouth wide open, Who's Who's fired a slicing attack shaped like a pair of fangs! This was his own original technique—not as large as a regular Rankyaku or as fast as a Shigan, but all the power was concentrated into it.
Slash!
Even though Jinbe had Armament Haki covering his arms, the attack still managed to cut through his skin—well, barely.
"Hahaha, not bad! You're pretty quick on land too."
"And you're just a fish-man!"
Hearing Who's Who's's taunt, even the usually serious Jinbe couldn't help but roll his eyes.
"Seriously? You're still pulling the whole 'fish-man discrimination' thing?"
Come on, Fish-Man Island had already secured a legitimate seat among the World Government's top fifty nations. What, did the Beasts Pirates' Den Den Mushi all take a vacation?
"Hahaha, my bad, my bad."
The two figures clashed again at high speed, and in the middle of the fight, Who's Who's asked a question that had been on his mind for a long time.
"By the way, when I was locked up, I heard people talk about the legend of 'Sun God' Nika. They said if you couldn't take it anymore, you should pray to that god—"
"And it would bring hope and laughter. Later, the guard who told me this story died, and I felt like I was in danger—so I broke out..."
"Why are you asking me about this?"
As Jinbe was pinned down by Shigan Madara, Who's Who's answered as if it were obvious:
"Because of your 'Sun Pirates'! And weren't you fish-men all slaves? You should know about these legends, right—"
...The so-called 'Sun God' Nika was the very same slave you just mocked. He was once the hero of the Sun Pirates—Brother Fisher Tiger!
"If you don't understand someone's history, don't talk nonsense! I have nothing to say to you."
"But since you like to point fingers so much—"
"AAAAHHH!!"
With a powerful burst, Jinbe forcibly bent Who's Who's's Haki-coated fingers backward! He then took a stance, readying his Fish-Man Karate.
"Let me show you what real 'pointing' looks like!"
(End of Chapter)
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