Swoosh!!
Zabuza flashed into the crowd, twin kunai spinning in his hands as he tore into the mass of Marine soldiers.
Steel danced—blood scattered in arcs across the deck.
Thud.
Thud.
Thud.
…
One Marine after another collapsed under Zabuza's merciless culling.
In the end—
These Marines were nothing more than ordinary soldiers.
Especially since they belonged to Colonel Nezumi's command.
Compared to the elites under Garp or the Admirals, these men couldn't even be considered half-trained.
Their strength?
Not even at Extraordinary-grade .
Most were stuck at plain Ordinary level , and not even the elite tier of that.
Their combat ability came mostly from the rifles in their hands.
Take away their muskets or their sabers, and their power plummeted.
Barely different from average civilians.
So—
Facing Zabuza, they had virtually zero chance to fight back .
Was a ninja fast?
Naturally—blindingly fast.
Once he activated Body Flicker, his speed surpassed what these Marines could even perceive.
Comparable to Soru from the Six Powers?
Not impossible.
Of course—
Zabuza's Body Flicker wasn't on the level of Naruto's Nine-Tails Chakra Mode, nor the Fourth Raikage's lightning-fast bursts.
But how do I deal with this group?
It was overkill.
This wasn't a fight.
This was a professional stomping newbies in a beginner's lobby.
Some Marines tried desperately to aim their rifles at Zabuza, firing wildly in hopes of hitting him.
They forgot one thing:
Zabuza was simply too fast.
Without Observation Haki—without even basic predictive instinct—how were they supposed to track his movements, let alone land a shot?
The result:
The Marine warship fell into a one-sided slaughter.
Under Zabuza's twin kunai and the massive Decapitating Great Blade strapped to his back, life after life was reaped.
"Kill him! Kill him now!!!"
Colonel Nezumi's face turned ghost-white as he screamed at his men.
Only now did fear finally hit him.
He realized he had provoked someone he absolutely should not have provoked.
But what could he do?
It was too late to regret anything now.
"Shoot! Kill that bastard!!"
"Useless! You're all useless trash!"
"Whoever kills him—I'll give them one hundred million berries!!"
Nezumi shrieked desperately, spittle flying.
For a man who loved money as much as his own life, offering a hundred million was already tearing out a piece of his soul.
But it changed nothing.
Over a hundred Marine soldiers—
Collapsed one after another, their numbers dwindled rapidly.
In Zabuza's hands, slaughter looked like some twisted form of art.
The deck of the warship was already drenched in fresh blood.
Nezumi's terror rose with every passing second.
Then—
"R-report! Colonel Nezumi! Bad news—the pirate ship is approaching!"
A Marine stumbled to his side, voice trembling.
Compared to Marines who charged bravely into battle…
The Marines of the 16th Branch —including their commanding officer—were nothing but cowards.
So in this situation?
Panic.
Confusion.
Mindless terror.
That was all they had to offer.
"W-what!?"
Nezumi whipped his head around—
And his heart sank.
Just as the Marine said, the pirate ship— Arlong's old vessel , now in Adrian's possession—had drifted right beside them while they were distracted by Zabuza's assault.
Too close.
Far too close.
His fear reached its peak.
But before he could even think—
A figure leapt from the pirate ship.
A figure wielding a blade glowing bright red, heated like molten steel.
Yoriichi landed lightly—
And began cutting down Marines instantly.
In just a single blink—
More than ten Marines were dismembered.
Nezumi was stunned.
This was too exaggerated.
Even that masked demon who attacked first only killed one man every second or two…
But this one?
One or two seconds—
ten men dead?!
You're giving me too much credit. I'm just Colonel Nezumi! How am I supposed to handle monsters like this?!
In less than a minute—
Every Marine on the ship was dead.
Every one except Colonel Nezumi, who curled up in a corner, shaking violently.
Yes, he was a colonel.
But that didn't mean he had the strength of a Headquarters Colonel.
In fact—
Marines from the Blues who transferred to Headquarters dropped three full ranks .
Which meant—
His rank of "Colonel" in East Blue…
Was only equivalent to a Headquarters Lieutenant .
And even that rank didn't reflect true combat ability.
In the East Blue, titles were often bought or earned through connections.
Case in point?
Colonel Nezumi , standing right here.
He had no real power.
Only background.
Connections got him where he was.
But now—
He wished more than anything that he had retired early.
If he had…
He wouldn't have a massive blade resting on his neck right now.
"Good sir, please spare me! Spare me!!"
Nezumi cried out on the spot.
This was not a joke.
The masked demon before he had slaughtered half his ship without blinking.
There was no reason to believe he'd show mercy.
Back then, he cooperated with Arlong for two reasons:
He loved money.
He feared Arlong's strength.
A coward and a greedy rat.
Becoming Arlong's protector was the easiest choice.
"Less talking. Move.
If you fall behind, I'll cut you down."
Zabuza grew coldly.
The threat worked immediately.
Even though he had peed himself, even though his legs were trembling—
Nezumi forced himself to stand and staggered toward the pirate ship, following Zabuza's orders.
…
On Arlong's old pirate ship—
Adrian watched Nezumi being dragged aboard.
This idiot really had guts.
But he was also unbelievably stupid.
To think he dared provoke Adrian.
Well, now he had delivered himself right into the jaws of the wolf.
Originally, Adrian planned to go find Captain Kuro next.
But it seemed another bandit operation had presented itself right to him.
"Bb-boss, I didn't mean it! Please spare this dog's life!"
The moment Nezumi saw Adrian, he immediately realized Adrian was the leader.
He dropped to his knees instantly.
Marine Colonel?
No pride.
No dignity.
Not even a speck of shame.
Exactly what you'd expect from Nezumi.
…
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