The Thing's... Is His Head Made of Iron?

Nightin leaped into the air.

Like Sailor Moon transforming, her originally short limbs suddenly lengthened—her arms and legs stretched out!

Not only that, even her chest became fuller and more imposing. It trembled and swayed, drawing everyone's eyes.

Ares was instantly given a whole new perspective. "Nani, what kind of fighting style is this?!"

"It can actually change someone's appearance so drastically!? That's seriously bizarre!"

It completely overturned his understanding of the world. After taking the medicine, the ugly, short-limbed, emaciated woman before him had actually transformed into a tall, curvaceous woman with smooth, fair skin.

It was as if Ares had discovered an entirely new world.

Just as he was marveling at it,

Nightin launched an attack, spitting out a cloud of green poisonous mist.

"Medicinal Poison Mist!!"

Ares hurriedly leaped aside. The wooden planks beneath where he had been standing were instantly corroded and eaten through by the green mist, leaving hole after hole.

While he was dodging, Sebastian suddenly launched an attack.

"Die!! On the ship of the Byrnndi World Pirates, every pirate, no matter who they are, has only one path—the path to death!"

A punch came crashing in!

It tore through the air with a sharp whistle. The punch's fierce force caused layer after layer of ripples to spread through the air.

Seeing that the punch itself had not changed, Ares frowned. As he exerted strength through his arm, chunks of powerful muscle bulged out like protruding bricks.

Even more terrifying was the way his bronze-colored skin turned blood red.

Strands of white vapor rose from his arm.

"Armament—Great Ape King Fist!!!"

That strange and terrifying punch caused the air itself to quake. Ares had thrown it with all his strength!

The air erupted with a fierce, deafening boom.

The gale howled!

The force was overwhelming!

Sebastian's expression immediately changed. From the sheer momentum of the punch alone, he could tell that it was devastatingly powerful!

But since he had already attacked, he had no way to dodge.

He could only grit his teeth and slam his own fist into it.

Bang!!!

Crack!!!

Two different sounds rang out in succession, followed immediately by an agonized, tearing scream.

"Ah!!!"

"My hand!!!"

The enormous fish-man Sebastian was sent flying. With a thunderous crash, he smashed through the railing and fell into the sea.

Just as everyone's hearts turned cold and intense fear gripped them, a loud laugh rang out!

"Haha..."

"I got him!!"

Gai Ram, a commander of the Byrnndi World Pirates, appeared in midair with a gigantic iron hammer in his hands.

He swung the enormous hammer, driving the wind into a furious howl!

His face was filled with the unrestrained, confident delight of someone who had successfully launched a sneak attack. "Die!! You bald, muscle-bound brute!!"

Gai Ram could already imagine the other man's head exploding like a watermelon smashed apart by his hammer!

Clang!!!

The enormous hammer came down with tremendous force, slamming viciously into Ares's head.

But the next second,

everyone was dumbfounded.

Commander Gai Ram's eyes widened, and a powerful doubt arose in his mind. Did I just hit steel?!

"Why is his head so hard?!"

What kind of monster was this!?

He had brought the hammer down, yet the other man had... not suffered even the slightest injury?!

While Gai Ram was stunned, Ares swung a backhand punch. With a bang, it struck Gai Ram squarely in the face, and the terrifying force instantly crushed and twisted his entire face inward.

Spit, shattered teeth, and blood sprayed from his mouth.

Ares sent him flying in an instant, and he plunged directly into the sea.

How terrifying!

Ares reached up and rubbed his completely bald head, muttering with some dissatisfaction, "It still hurts a little. I need to keep training!"

Seeing this horrifying scene,

one pirate immediately wet his pants and urinated on the spot. A foul smell spread through the air before being carried away by the sea breeze.

Another pirate's weapon clattered onto the deck as fear made him drop it.

"Is this guy's head made of iron?!"

"Why was he completely unharmed after taking a heavy blow from Gai Ram's iron hammer?!"

"This is... a monster!!"

Everyone stared at Ares in terror.

Even commander Nightin was no exception. She retreated step by step in her high heels, the sound of her footsteps ringing out as she trembled, "A monster... This guy is a monster."

"How could anyone take a hammer blow to the head from Gai Ram... and remain completely unharmed?!"

She kept backing away until she crashed into the wooden planks at the bow with a bang. Her body trembled uncontrollably.

The burly man before her was far too powerful. Commanders Sebastian and Gai Ram had both been defeated by a single punch from him in succession!!

And at that moment,

a cannonball suddenly slammed into the hull on one side of the ship. A deafening boom erupted alongside a cloud of thick black smoke.

The entire ship rocked violently.

A pirate rolled in terror from one side of the ship to the other and screamed, "What happened?!"

"It's... it's the Navy!!!" A pirate clung to the railing and poked his head out, spotting the enormous Marine warship speeding across the sea toward them.

At the top of its mast fluttered a flag bearing a seagull carrying a set of scales.

"The Navy?!"

Ares immediately looked up. Sure enough, he saw an enormous Marine warship. His eyes lit up. "Ochoku said the Navy is an extremely powerful organization on this sea, with many strong individuals."

"On such a huge warship, there must definitely be some powerful people!!"

The blood that had just settled in his veins began boiling again. These few pirates simply had not been much of a challenge.

Even so, he had still gained quite a lot from them.

And fighting powerful Marines would certainly allow him to learn even more!

Without the slightest hesitation, Ares jumped off the deck and plunged into the sea with a splash.

Seeing Ares leave, Nightin, a commander of the Byrnndi World Pirates, immediately breathed a huge sigh of relief. She wiped the sweat from her forehead, but before she could relax,

a shout from the deck nearly scared her heart out of her chest.

"That's... that's Marine Vice Admiral Garp's warship!!!"

"Garp?!"

Nightin's mind instantly went blank. Marine Vice Admiral Garp!!

He was one of the strongest Marine officers in the Navy at present.

He could be considered one of the few Marine officers that countless pirates least wanted to encounter. The strongest figures in the Navy today were undoubtedly "The Clever General" Sengoku, "Iron Fist" Garp, and "Black Arm" Zephyr.

And Fleet Admiral Kong!

Marine Vice Admiral Garp represented one of the Navy's strongest combat forces.

"Is he here to capture the captain?!" The thought flashed through Nightin's mind, and her heart instantly fell into panic.

Her face filled with anxious alarm. She immediately shouted at the pirates on the deck, "Go get Sebastian and Gai Ram out of the sea!!"

"We have to find the captain and leave immediately!"

If they were captured by Marine Vice Admiral Garp, they would probably be sent to prison—to Impel Down.

At that moment,

Nightin suddenly thought of the nameless kid from earlier, and a trace of relief rose in her heart.

"That monster-like guy probably went to cause trouble for the Marines. I hope he can hold them off a little longer."

"Buy us enough time to escape."

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This is the third chapter today. I hope all you wonderful readers will encourage and support me, for example: send power... Send power!! Send power!!!

I don't have a masochistic tendency. Even if I did, I wouldn't admit it.

Important things have to be said three times.

Thank you, everyone!