About two nautical miles northwest of Faris Valley Town, there lay a desolate, uninhabited island.
Sami and Barnes stood roughly a dozen meters apart on a stretch of pale white sand.
The sea wind swept grains of sand into the air, forming a hazy curtain between them.
Far out on the sea, the Swordfish had dropped anchor at a safe distance.
Aldo, Feiqi, and the other officers—along with the injured crew, including Marcus—gathered at the bow deck, supporting each other as they stared intensely at the two figures on the island.
"Aren't you embarrassed, Marcus?" Aldo said.
"You got taken down that easily?"
Marcus didn't retort like usual.
He touched the bandages wrapped around his chest, his expression more serious than anyone had ever seen.
"That guy… is strong."
"His strength… his speed…"
"I underestimated him, but my loss wasn't unjust."
Seeing Marcus react this way, Aldo also dropped his usual casual attitude.
He stared toward the island with a solemn expression.
On the island, Sami loosened his wrists and rolled his neck as he surveyed the surroundings.
"This place is spacious enough… and remote."
"If anything gets destroyed, no one will care."
Barnes grinned widely.
"Perfect!"
"Don't disappoint me, pirate worth 150 million Berries!"
BOOM—
Before his words had even finished, Barnes vanished from where he stood.
The sand beneath his feet exploded into a shallow crater.
Almost instantly, he appeared directly in front of Sami.
His fist shot forward in a straight punch with terrifying kinetic force, the air tearing apart with a sharp cannon-like whistle.
Cannon Punch!
"Such explosive speed!" Aldo gasped from the ship.
Yet facing this lightning-fast attack—
Sami did not dodge.
Instead, he simply threw out his own fist to meet it head-on.
BOOM!!!
The two fists collided like war drums crashing together.
A visible shockwave burst outward from the impact point, blasting sand and dust in all directions.
Barnes' eyes flashed with surprise.
He borrowed the recoil to leap backward lightly.
Shaking his slightly numb fist, the disdain in his gaze faded somewhat, replaced by blazing excitement.
"So you can actually block seventy percent of my strength head-on…"
"Not bad!"
"Looks like your bounty isn't all hype after all."
Sami smiled faintly.
"Your strength isn't bad either."
"Not bad for someone called Mad Shark Barnes, with a bounty of 99 million Berries."
He paused slightly, the corner of his mouth curling upward.
"Honestly, though… your strength deserves a much higher price."
"But you seem very concerned about bounty numbers."
"How interesting."
"A martial maniac like you still cares about the world's price tags?"
Two Hours Earlier – Before Leaving Port
When the Swordfish was preparing to depart, Sami had been assigning personnel.
Some crew members needed to stay behind at the harbor to escort the procurement and leisure teams that hadn't returned yet.
Caheiro and Alberto were assigned to that task.
Before parting, Caheiro handed Sami a bounty poster.
It showed Barnes.
Mad Shark Barnes
Bounty: 99,000,000 Berries
Crimes: Assaulting martial artists and Marine officers. Lone operator. Extremely violent.
Recommendation: Capture Alive
"Boss, be careful," Caheiro had warned.
"His crimes are different from typical pirates who raid towns. He rarely harms civilians."
"That bounty… probably doesn't reflect his true strength."
Back in the present, Sami shook his head with faint regret.
"Honestly, your strength doesn't match your bounty."
"What a pity."
"But…"
"I happen to know a way to raise your value."
It was obvious that Sami was somewhat dissatisfied that Barnes hadn't crossed the 100 million threshold.
"Enjoy this last moment of freedom."
"This will be your final moment in the spotlight."
"What nonsense are you talking about?!" Barnes frowned.
A strange irritation—and a chill—ran down his spine.
The look in Sami's eyes made him feel less like a challenger…
…and more like prey lying on a cutting board.
"Enough talk!"
"Mad Shark Fist Style — Wave Breaker!"
His muscles swelled violently.
The sand beneath his feet exploded again as he lunged forward like a crashing tidal wave.
"Perfect!"
Sami shouted and stepped forward instead of retreating, throwing his own punch directly into the attack.
BOOM!
Another raw collision of strength.
The moment Barnes closed in, he launched a continuous barrage.
His fists, palms, elbows, knees, and legs turned into a storm of afterimages.
Like a raging sea swallowing Sami whole.
"Raging Tide Barrage!"
BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG!
A dense rain of impacts filled the air.
Sami's figure disappeared completely within the violent storm of blows.
"What's wrong?" Barnes laughed arrogantly.
"Is this all a 150-million pirate can do?"
"You can't even dodge this?!"
On the Swordfish, Aldo and the others grew anxious.
"Boss is getting suppressed!"
"This guy… is he really that strong?!"
"No," Hans said calmly, his head wrapped in bandages.
"The boss is definitely stronger."
"The reason he isn't dodging…"
At the center of the battlefield on the beach—
Sami's voice suddenly broke through the storm of attacks.
It carried a faintly amused tone.
"…because my instincts tell me—"
"I don't need to dodge at all."
At that instant—
Ignoring every incoming punch, Sami drove his right fist forward with brutal force.
The blow tore straight through Barnes' airtight offense.
It aimed directly for his chest.
The attack was simple.
But Barnes suddenly felt as if every possible dodge would fail.
His pupils shrank.
All his attacks were forced to stop instantly.
He crossed both arms defensively in front of his chest.
THUD!!!
His arms went numb instantly.
An unstoppable force surged through them, sending him sliding backward across the sand.
Two deep trenches stretched several meters behind him before he managed to stop.
When the dust slowly settled—
Sami casually brushed off the spots on his body where he had been struck.
It looked as if he were simply dusting off dirt.
Then he shook his head at the stunned Barnes.
"Terrible massage technique."
"Mad Shark… decent technique, but zero power."
"With service like that…"
"I wouldn't pay."
The sea wind carried sand against Barnes' face.
The faint sting snapped him out of his shock.
He slowly lowered his numb arms and shook out his wrists.
The arrogance and fury on his face vanished.
What replaced it was deep seriousness.
That punch…
And the way he tanked my Raging Tide Barrage without reacting…
Barnes muttered quietly to himself.
"Zoan-type… Human-Human Fruit…"
"So physical enhancement can reach this level…"
"What a troublesome opponent."
He lowered his stance slightly.
His fists clenched again.
Instead of fading, the fighting spirit in his eyes burned even stronger.
"Looks like…"
"…I'll have to get serious."