Arlong's face turned iron-blue as Noyer pointed and cursed at him.
Seeing his boss insulted, Kuroobi couldn't hold back any longer!
"You lowly human, seeking death!"
Kuroobi raised his fist and smashed it toward Noyer's head, relying on his massive build.
Noyer sneered disdainfully, casually raised his hand, and effortlessly caught the fist — stopping it completely in its tracks!
"What?!" Kuroobi stared at his hand in shock.
He hadn't used his full strength yet, but this human had blocked his attack so easily.
Noyer had no time to worry about what the fish-man was thinking. Grabbing his fist, he pivoted his body and kicked toward his abdomen.
How much strength could a human possibly have…
"Urgh!!"
Kuroobi felt an immense force strike him, as if his internal organs had been knocked out of place. His massive body fell straight down.
Under everyone's shocked gazes, Noyer leisurely retracted his leg.
Two years ago, he might have found this kind of opponent troublesome. But now…
After two years of rigorous training, both his Constitution and Swordsmanship stats had surpassed the 300-point mark — making him even stronger than the Straw Hat monster trio's main fighters who battled the Arlong Pirates in the original story.
Moreover, his Armament Haki had reached the level where he could freely use Hardening and Imbuement, thanks to 〔Supreme King Constitution〕 and 〔Haki Swordsmanship〕.
How could I possibly lose? Huh?!
Kuroobi stood up clutching his stomach, his eyes wide as saucers. With two pigtails sticking straight up from his head, he looked comical — like a New Year's poster child.
He roared, "Human! You're the one asking for death! Killer move! Fish-man Karate!"
◇ Hyakumaigawara Seiken ⥤ Hundred Tile True Punch ◇
Kuroobi took his stance and unleashed his most prized ultimate killing technique.
A smile appeared on Arlong's face, and the Fish-man underlings behind him showed delight.
This was the strongest killing move of Kuroobi, officer of the Arlong Pirates and 40th Dan in Fish-Man Karate. What could that human possibly use to block it?
But in Noyer's eyes, the seemingly fierce punch was nothing more than a paper tiger.
◈ Busōshoku no Haki: Kōka ⥤ Armament Haki: Hardening ◈
Buzz!
With a clear ring, his fist was instantly covered in Haki. He casually threw out a punch at the perfect angle.
Kuroobi, who had pounced like a wolf, was sent flying back even faster the moment they clashed, tumbling like a stray dog.
His body crashed through a building and collapsed under the rubble, already knocked unconscious. His forearm was bent at a horrifying angle — clearly having suffered an enormous impact.
The Fish-men of the pirate crew looked on in disbelief.
The mighty 40th dan karate master Kuroobi — defeated with a single punch?
Arlong's expression darkened. He had seen it clearly — that kid had used Armament Haki!
In this backwater East Blue, why would anyone know how to use Haki?
The officer who had been watching suddenly couldn't stand it anymore. The kiss Fish-man Chew, taking advantage of Noyer's distraction, stuck out his mouth and launched a sneak attack.
◇ Hyappatsu Mizudeppo ⥤ Hundred-Shot Water Gun ◇
Multiple water bullets shot rapidly toward Noyer. With a cold expression, he covered both arms in Haki and crossed them in front of his chest.
A series of impacts rang out, but not a single shot could injure him. Annoyed at being ambushed, he immediately changed direction and charged straight at Chew.
"Stop!" Arlong's eyelid twitched.
He wanted to intercept the charging human, but Noyer was too fast. Ignoring him completely, Noyer punched straight at Chew's face.
Bang!
The annoying mouth was brutally caved in, followed by a knee strike.
With a combo chain of attacks, Chew rolled his eyes back and collapsed — whether dead or alive, unclear.
"Ahhh! Damn it!"
Hatchan, the octopus Fish-man who was also one of the three officers, saw his comrade fall. He charged forward in fury to fight the opponent to the death.
Seeing this face, Noyer did recall that Hatchan seemed to be redeemed later in the story…
What does that have to do with now? As long as they're enemies, they all have to go down.
Hatchan's six arms each held a blade, displaying his Six-Sword Style as he slashed aggressively at Noyer.
A cold light flashed in Noyer's eyes. His right hand reached for his waist, gripped the hilt, and instantly assumed his stance. An overwhelming sword light flared up as the blade cut through the air at extreme speed — a lightning-fast draw strike.
One sword against six. The numbers brought Hatchan no hope for victory.
The six blades shattered into pieces under the draw slash, and a blood-red wound across his chest spurted fresh blood.
With the fall of the last officer, the Fish-men finally began to feel fear.
Their innate racial advantage had led these short-sighted Fish-men to believe their natural physique alone was enough to crush humans. Now a human had shattered that belief with two moves and one slash — and even stomped on it twice for good measure!
How could they not be terrified?
Having dealt with the three officers, Noyer's face showed no trace of pride. In the eyes of these Fish-men, these three might be the ceiling of power.
But to him, they were nothing special.
In the original story, Chew was knocked out by Usopp with a hammer. Hatchan was knocked out twice with one move by the injured Zoro, instantly becoming a secret recipe octopus. Only Kuroobi, using his underwater advantage, nearly drowned Sanji.
But! Ha! There's no water in the village — you mad about that?
If they could be taken down by the Straw Hat crew who had just set sail, the Arlong Pirates were only strong enough to reign supreme in the East Blue.
Not to mention Noyer's inner mockery — Arlong now watched as each of his capable officers had become like dead fish.
He finally flew into a rage!
Arlong glared viciously at his opponent. A goldfish Fish-man at his side brought over the black serrated blade Kiribachi.
After accepting it, he said with a terrifying expression, "Boy! I've changed my mind! I'm going to capture you! Then make you watch as I hack everyone in the village to death, one by one!"
Arlong furiously raised Kiribachi and slashed down with great force. Noyer quickly raised his blade to block, and what followed was a continuous series of slashes and parries.
The sawshark fish-man relied on Kiribachi's special serrated edge to momentarily suppress Noyer, but amid the fierce offensive, Noyer's eyes remained completely calm.
He was adapting to the attack rhythm. After deflecting Kiribachi once more, he swung his blade and launched his counterattack.
Arlong was immediately alarmed. He hastily pulled his sword back to block the long blade aimed at his neck.
Offense and defense instantly switched. Noyer took advantage of Kiribachi's large size and slow recovery, rapidly flicking his wrist and slashing toward Arlong's vital points.
Then Arlong revealed an opening. He forcefully slashed Kiribachi toward the ground.
Noyer seized the opportunity. Armament Haki gushed from his palm and wrapped around his blade. He raised his sword and fiercely slashed at Kiribachi.
After a tremendous crash, the saw-like sword shattered into pieces!
And along with it, Arlong's heart also broke!
He stared at the shattered Kiribachi, feeling so heartbroken he could almost bleed.
The sword wasn't made from precious materials, but the manufacturing process was troublesome, and it was perfectly suited to his fighting style.
Besides, it had accompanied him for many years! This was like Noyer destroying Arlong's mistress!
Veins bulged on Arlong's head. His steel teeth were nearly ground to pieces, and his bloodshot eyes stared fixedly at his enemy.
"Lowly human! Die!"
◇ Shark on Darts ◇
Arlong's blue head suddenly thrust forward, his serrated nose stabbing viciously like a spear!
Noyer blocked the serrated nose with his blade. Arlong moved in close and opened his gaping maw to bite at his neck.
Noyer hastily freed one hand and covered it with Armament Haki. His arm hardened and turned black. Arlong's teeth bit down on the iron arm.
Lifting his leg to knock Arlong back, Noyer quickly retreated.
'This guy's entire body is a weapon…' Noyer frowned.
Arlong also felt the human before him was extremely difficult to deal with.
Arlong had once served as an officer in the Sun Pirates, founded by Fisher Tiger. His experience on the Grand Line set him apart from the sheltered fish-men of the East Blue.
He knew about Haki, but as a racial supremacist, he relied solely on his fish-man physique and never bothered training other abilities.
After Tiger's death, Arlong was arrested by the Marines, then rescued by Jinbei after he became a Warlord of the Sea. But instead of continuing on the Grand Line, Arlong retreated.
He returned to the weakest sea — the East Blue. With that kind of mentality and experience, his strength had an obvious ceiling.
Arlong slowly reached toward his mouth, gripping his neat, sharp teeth.
Noyer: ???
"Are you hungry?"
Arlong froze. A massive "#" of veins bulged on his head. He yanked out his teeth, which immediately regrew in his mouth.
◇ Tooth Gum ◇
He pulled out a full set of teeth and clamped them in his palm like castanets.
Noyer applauded enthusiastically, "Wonderful! Is this acrobatics?!"
"Shut up, human!" Arlong snapped, ignoring the sharp-tongued brat, "This is the advantage of fish-men. My entire body is a weapon. I have many ways to kill you!"
Noyer shrugged, "So what?"
Arlong gripped the tooth set and charged forward, roaring, "Take this!"
◇ Same no Ha ⥤ Shark Teeth ◇
Noyer lifted his blade and parried left and right. Despite Arlong's fierce assault, he couldn't break through the simple defense.
Noyer's blade slashed down, pinning the iron teeth. Then he swiftly changed direction and knocked them away. Arlong lost his weapon.
Noyer seized the opening. His black blade, wrapped in Armament Haki, delivered a horizontal slash. A deep wound opened across Arlong's exposed chest.
Bright red blood poured freely from the fish-man. The onlookers could almost see jagged white bone beneath the torn flesh.
"Ahhhhh!!"
Arlong clutched his wound and collapsed to his knees, screaming.
Noyer shook the blood off his blade and sheathed it, staring at the monster before him without a trace of pity.
He smirked, "When's the last time you actually trained? You've just been relying on your fish-man body to beat up weaker humans. Did you forget you're supposed to keep getting stronger? You're out here trashing humans when you haven't improved at all."
Arlong's blue face flushed red, "Shut up, shut up! Shut up!"
He leaped high, opened his sharp teeth, and started spinning — rolling toward Noyer!
◇ Shark on Tooth ◇
'This guy really doesn't learn…' Noyer thought disdainfully.
He slowly extended both hands, intending to catch Arlong barehanded.
Arlong roared while spinning, "Stop looking down on me!"
But then Noyer's form swelled. Brown coarse fur sprouted across his body, and his handsome face transformed into a bear's.
◆ Kuma Kuma no Mi ⥤ Bear-Human Form ◆
Thick bear paws caught Arlong's tooth gearwheel. Noyer looked at the utterly bewildered fish-man and revealed an honest yet cunning smile.
He shook his head dramatically and shouted:
◆ Kuma Kuma no Mi: Kuma Daki Ryū Satsu ⥤ Bear Hug Dragon Kill ◆
What?!
Confusion flashed across Arlong's face as Noyer spread his bear arms and pulled him into an embrace.
Arlong instantly felt warm and cozy… The bear fur was even a bit prickly.
But then his eyes widened. Noyer tightened his grip and hugged the fish-man with all his might!
"No… don't!!"
Noyer ignored Arlong's cries. Like someone unleashing an ultimate move, he shouted with passion, "It's over, Arlong!"
Creak creak — crack!
First came the sickening sound of bones dislocating, then the sharp crack of bones breaking!
Noyer slowly loosened his arms. Arlong fell from his embrace like a puddle of mud — like a dead fish.
"Damn… human!" Arlong cursed weakly.
Noyer said in surprise, "He's still not dead?!"
The fish-men's racial talent really was impressive. Could he copy a fish-man talent from Arlong or something?
Just as Noyer reached out to lift the half-dead fish, Arlong suddenly pulled out a capsule from who knows where.
This thing is…
Noyer's pupils constricted.
Arlong threw the capsule into his mouth. His body surged with a final burst of energy, and he slapped away the bear paw and retreated.
His eyes filled with hatred. He wanted nothing more than to tear this brat into a thousand pieces.
But he knew he couldn't — not now. Fortunately, his comrades from Fish-man Island had sent him an experimental prohibited drug called Energy Steroid (ES).
It granted tremendous power for a short time by consuming life force.
Originally, the proud Arlong would never use this kind of drug! But he'd been forced to this point!
Having temporarily recovered his fighting ability, he no longer wanted to continue the battle.
He roared at his subordinates, "Go attack the villagers!"
Seeing their leader recover, the fish-men were overjoyed. They immediately understood and rushed toward the villagers.
Noyer's eyebrows furrowed. Drawing his attention?
Arlong had seized his weakness. He couldn't ignore the villagers!
Noyer had no choice but to abandon the fight and turn to protect the villagers being attacked by the fish-men.
Swatting away a fish-man with one claw, he firmly protected the villagers. Arlong took advantage of this moment to run to where the three officers lay.
Hoisting them onto his shoulders, he turned and ran. Seeing the officers rescued, the fish-men stopped restraining Noyer and immediately turned to leave.
The Arlong Pirates didn't even take their pirate ship. The fish-men fled into the water, diving down like shadow arrows.
Noyer chased to the shore and watched speechlessly as the fish-men scattered and fled.
Damn it, they still managed to escape?
◈◈◈
T/N: Comment, give me Power Stones, like and favorite, it all supports me and makes me go foward with this. Appreciate my other stories as well, I guarantee the good work!
If you want to enjoy a large catalog of good novels with excellent translations: MrBlackWing
That's it and happy reading! (-‿◦)