Arlong Dies
East Blue · Cocoyasi Village · Coast
"Boom!!"
The flames engulfed everything like raging waves, and on the Scorched Earth, the charred remains were still sizzling and smoking.
Ace slowly retracted his fist, flames swirling upwards from his arm, his eyes icy cold.
The Arlong, Hachi, and Kuroobi stared wide-eyed, completely dumbfounded and utterly shocked!
Not far away, Kinjō, Shioyaki, Pizarro, Kobu, four Fish-Man, had already been reduced to ashes by a single "Fire Fist" attack, not even having time to escape.
"Are you kidding me?!"
The Arlong's eyes widened, its jagged nose trembled violently, its anger tinged with fear.
"Just a... brat?"
Looking at Ace, who stood in the center of the flames with a cold gaze, he felt a sense of "crisis" for the first time.
Ace's lips curled into a slight smile, his expression disdainful. "What? So-called high-ranking Fish-Men, are you scared?"
"Asshole!!"
Enraged, the Arlong roared, leaped up, and slashed down with both hands, gripping its swords.
"Shark ON Gear Car!!"
"Whoosh!!"
The serrated greatsword, carrying a violent vortex that Sky Splitter, slashed down towards Ace's head!
"Laugh!!"
The blade struck, but only pierced through a leaping, blazing flame!
"What?! It's fake?!"
The Arlong's pupils contracted sharply, and in the next instant, the flames reappeared in human form!
"He doesn't even know Haki, yet he's thinking of doing evil."
Ace's voice was deep and resonant. Before he finished speaking, his fist was already filled with blazing flames and slammed heavily into the Arlong's belly!
"Bang!!"
The scorching explosion was like a cannonball hitting its abdomen. Flames surged from its back, Arlong, spitting blood, flew backward, crashing through three coconut trees before finally slamming to the ground with a thud!
"Brother Arlong!!"
Octopus Hachi roared, unleashing six longswords simultaneously, its muscles bulging. "Six-Sword Style - Octopus Pot Cutter!"
Six streaks of light danced like meteors, blocking all directions, and slashed wildly down towards Ace's head!
"Snort!"
Ace's eyes turned cold, and his figure transformed into flames once more, vanishing in an instant!
"Where?!" Hachi exclaimed in surprise and doubt!
"Behind you."
Boom!
As Ace uttered those chilling words, dozens of blazing Fire Pistol exploded behind Hachi!
"Fire Pistol - Rapid Fire!!"
"Bang! Bang!!"
Hachi was directly Impact away by the flames, his six blades exploding, leaving only a charred black shadow rolling to the ground in the afterimage!
On the other side--
Kuroobi VS Luffy!
"Fish-Man Karate - Thousand Brick Fist!!"
With a roar, Kuroobi's right fist was enveloped in water, and the Impact slammed into Luffy like a tsunami!
"Good timing!"
Luffy stomped the ground hard, kicking up dust, his muscles bulging, and his right fist instantly enveloped in a faint Armament Haki:
"Iron Fist - Rock Smash!!"
"Bang!!"
The two fists collided, creating a shockwave that shattered the surrounding sand and gravel!
"Click--"
Kuroobi's arm bone emitted a dangerous sound, and his eyes widened instantly. "W-How could this be... This brat's fist is nothing like a human's!!"
"Again, it's finally my turn to beat someone up!"
Luffy grinned excitedly, and his figure vanished in Instant Flash!
"Shave!!"
The next second, he appeared behind Kuroobi!
"Iron Fist Machine Gun!!"
"Bang! Bang!!"
The punches were like a torrential downpour, the rhythm like drumbeats!
Kuroobi was still blasted back dozens of steps by punch after punch, his body covered in bruises and blood constantly seeping from the corner of his mouth!
"Fish-Man Karate - Water Shot!!"
With a roar, he unleashed a high-pressure water blade, slashing towards the approaching Luffy!
Luffy let out a soft shout and kicked off the ground with both feet, "Geppo!!"
"Shuashua!!"
He performs a triple jump in mid-air, easily dodging the water blades, and then charges up his power to dive down in a circular motion!
"Tempest Kick - Amane Dachi!!"
"Call out!"
A sharp crescent-shaped slash crashed down, Kuroobi had no time to dodge, so he could only cross his arms to block it!
"Boom!!"
The Shockwave swept in all directions!
Kuroobi was slammed into the ground, sending sand and gravel flying everywhere!
"Ahhh!!"
When the smoke cleared, he had both arms fractured and was completely incapacitated!
"Grandpa's loving Iron Fist wasn't for nothing!"
The villagers stared in disbelief, as if they were witnessing a surreal dream.
"These... who are these two children...?"
"... Is it a god?"
Genzo muttered to himself in a trembling voice, his hand holding the shattered harpoon too weak to grip tightly.
Standing amidst the flames and smoke, Luffy and Ace slowly withdrew their fists and turned to look at the horrified Arlong in the distance.
Ace wiped the ashes off his hands and said softly:
"This is... what you call a 'lower race'?"
Luffy scratched his head and added with a grin, "We were trained by Brother Roy!"
The Arlong gritted its teeth, its body trembling slightly, and for the first time, the thought of "escaping" arose in its mind...
The Arlong struggled to its feet, and looking at its defeated minions, fear finally surfaced in its eyes.
"Who... who are you people?!"
Ace and Luffy stood side by side, surrounded by flames and Haki.
Ace chuckled, "Marine Headquarters, Ace."
Luffy, hands on hips, laughs loudly. "I'm Luffy, destined to become Marine Admiral!"
"Now I can command Grandpa, haha!!"
Arlong: "...??!"
"Are all the kids in the navy this terrifying now?!"
Just as Ace and Luffy were about to finish off Arlong--
"Stop!! If you move another inch, I'll kill her!!"
A piercing scream shattered the silence of the Battlefield.
The figure of the chirping creature leaped out from behind the ruins and grabbed a villager by the neck. It was Dr. Nako, the village doctor, whose carotid artery was being pressed against his neck by Dr. Nago's sharp fingernails, and a trickle of blood was seeping out.
"Ugh..." Dr. Nako struggled in terror.
Luffy abruptly stopped, his whole body tensing, his fists clenched so tightly they cracked. "That despicable guy... he actually took someone hostage!"
The bird laughed wildly, "Haha! You two brats are strong... but you're still too green!"
His eyes were bloodshot, and his face was contorted with madness and a ferocious grin. "Go ahead and attack! Aren't you all so powerful?"
Arlong staggered to his feet, his chest charred black, blood still trickling from the corner of his mouth, yet his smile was unusually sinister:
"Kid... this is real combat, not child's play!"
"Hachi!" Arlong roared through gritted teeth, "Don't just stand there, arrest all the remaining villagers!"
Hachi hesitated for a moment, but still walked step by step toward the villagers.
The tide of battle turned suddenly, and the villagers looked on in despair.
Dr. Nako, held tightly in his arms, his face pale, cried out, "Child... go, go! Go!"
"Come on! Come and hit me!!"
Just as Qiu was feeling smug and about to say something about his "victory" --
"Laugh."
A sound so faint it was almost inaudible.
Unbeknownst to anyone, a faint, dark red light emanated from Ace's fingertip and silently flew to Qiu's temple.
It was a firefly smaller than a little finger.
The moment the firefly touched the head of the chick.
"Boom!!"
The blazing white light seemed to tear the air apart in an instant!
An instantaneous high temperature exceeding 3000 degrees Celsius caused an explosive combustion!
Before he could even utter an "ah," his head was precisely detonated, his entire head carbonizing in an instant, turning into a cloud of charred ash that drifted away in the sea breeze.
His body lost its support and he slowly fell to the ground, limp like a headless scarecrow.
"!!!"
The villagers were dumbfounded, and several old men even fell to the ground.
Dr. Nako sprawled on the sand, staring blankly at the sky, looking as if he had just escaped death.
Hachi and Arlong stood frozen in place, their faces deathly pale, their eyes trembling violently, fear gripping their minds for the first time.
Ace withdrew the faint flame remaining on his fingertips, looking at them calmly, his tone as cold as if it came from the depths of a winter sea:
"Brother Roy taught us this from the very beginning..."
"Always be extremely vigilant towards Pirates, and never believe any of Pirate lies."
"What the heck..."
Luffy scratched his head, looking confused. "Did they say that?"
"Bang!!"
Ace punched him on the head, sparks flying. "Damn it! You weren't paying attention at all!"
"Hehe..." Luffy rubbed his head and grinned foolishly, "Can we fight now?"
Ace didn't answer, but walked step by step towards Arlong, flames quietly coiling around his right arm, so bright white that they almost distorted the air.
Arlong forced himself to stand upright, gritting his teeth and roaring, "Stop!! Our leader is Shichibukai!! We Fish-Man Island have a powerful figure backing us!!"
"Don't, don't mess with us!!"
Hachi, trembling, rushed forward, clasped his hands together, and shouted, "Our big brother is Jinbe, who just became Shichibukai!!"
"Shichibukai?"
Ace paused for a moment, then smiled in confusion, "What is that?"
The next second--
"Boom!!"
The fist, enveloped in flames, struck Arlong squarely in the chest. Blazing white flames erupted like a torrent, surging and burning until Arlong's entire chest exploded open!
"Ugh!"
Arlong howled in agony, his voice filled with despair and pain, but it lasted only half a second before he was silently consumed by the flames.
"Bang."
Arlong's body lay stiffly on the ground, his charred armor shattered, his chest blackened and sunken, with only a wisp of ashes drifting in the wind.
The air was so still that you could almost hear the seagulls cries.
Hachi collapsed to his knees with a thud, Kuroobi lay back, stunned, his lips trembling. "Monster..."
Ace turned to look at them and said coldly, "Stop pretending to be some superior race."
"The blood of Pirates is not something to be proud of."