The Navy Doesn't Want to Handle It, But I Will! (Seeking Follow-up Reads)

"You..."

Arlong's expression froze, his face turning even uglier as he growled in bewilderment:

"Damn it... why would a guy with your level of strength come to a place like the East Blue!"

"Even the human Navy doesn't want to bother with these people's lives! Why do you have to come here and meddle!"

"Navy?"

Hearing this, Will's face darkened, and he said coldly:

"What the Navy wants or doesn't want has nothing to do with me. How dare you try to use the Navy to pressure me."

With that, his tone suddenly turned serious:

"What the Navy wants to handle, I'll handle! What the Navy doesn't want to handle, I'll handle even more!"

Then he slowly raised his finger, pointing at Arlong, and declared without hesitation:

"And you—this piece of trash who made my navigator suffer—I will never let you off!"

"What did you say? Your navigator?!" Arlong was baffled.

Will said coldly, "What, have you forgotten?"

"The one who made a deal with you to buy back her village for 100 million Berries."

"That is, Nami."

Will's gaze was like looking at a dead man: "I'm sure that name isn't unfamiliar to you."

"Nami?!"

Hearing that familiar name, Arlong was startled, and immediately understood.

He hadn't thought before that the man had come to take him down because of that woman.

Now, Arlong's heart was filled with immense regret.

If he had just killed Nami back then instead of keeping her around to draw Sea Charts, he probably wouldn't have had a powerful human like this showing up at his doorstep right now...

And today's events wouldn't have happened.

That way, his three officers and those fishman comrades wouldn't have died because of this.

He would still be the king of all Arlong Park!

He could still rule over the dozen or so human villages around!

But because of Nami, everything was ruined now...

Thinking of this, Arlong's hatred for Nami surged to its peak, even surpassing that for the man in front of him.

"Will..."

Nami, who had been lying on the wall watching the courtyard, couldn't help a flicker of surprise at Will's words, her eyes filling with gratitude.

Carina saw this and nudged Nami with her elbow, whispering:

"From what Will said, that fishman Arlong won't make it out alive. You can rest easy now."

"Mm!"

Nami nodded seriously, a genuine smile spreading across her face.

The two on the wall were in good spirits.

But Arlong, standing in the courtyard, was far from pleased.

After learning that the man had come because of Nami, Arlong knew he probably wouldn't leave here alive today.

But even knowing he couldn't win, he didn't want to just give up and wait to die.

After that humiliating defeat long ago, Arlong had sworn in his heart never to bow his head to any human again!

So he crouched down, lifted his head, and with a sudden stomp of his feet, shot toward Will like a cannonball.

Will sidestepped slightly.

Whoosh—!

Missing its mark, Arlong flew past Will and plunged headfirst into the pool.

Shh—shh—shh—!!

Before Will could fully turn around, a barrage of water bullets shot out from the pool, flying at Will like dense hailstones.

But Will didn't even dodge, letting the water bullets hit him.

They only soaked his clothes; his face remained expressionless, clearly unfazed by the water bullet attack.

He then lowered his head slightly, looking at the water stains on his clothes, and couldn't help but frown slightly:

"Water fight? A game for kids."

Whoosh--!

The moment Will finished speaking, a blur suddenly shot out from the water, charging straight at Will's head.

Clang--!

But this time, Will still didn't bother to dodge. He raised his hand and instantly grabbed Arlong's sawtooth nose, the palm scraping against the sharp spikes on the nose with a crisp sound.

Then, gripping Arlong's nose, Will hurled the entire man flying, slamming him heavily into the already half-collapsed tower nearby.

Boom--!

Arlong shot up from the rubble, blood streaming from every part of his body, his nose completely bent and twisted.

Blood trickled from the corner of his mouth as he roared with a fierce voice: "Damn lowly human! I'm a fish-man! I will definitely win!"

The moment he finished.

Arlong opened his mouth wide and leaped high, his entire body spinning wildly as he lunged at Will to bite down.

His sharp teeth, spinning in the process, looked like a grinder, utterly terrifying.

Seeing the enemy launch a reckless attack, Will responded in kind, quickly raising both hands and charging forward!

Iron Body · Dragon Bite!

Next.

His right hand was on top, left hand below, fingers clenched, palms straightened, fingers like dragon fangs, both palms like a dragon's maw!

Then his hands struck at lightning speed toward the upper and lower positions of Arlong's head, his entire aura like a ferocious dragon!

Crack--!!

Accompanied by a bone-chilling sound of shattering.

The immense force instantly forced Arlong's mouth shut, and his sharp teeth were completely crushed in an instant!

Even Arlong's eyes were nearly squeezed out of their sockets, and every thought in his mind was scattered by that single blow.

After Will withdrew his hands.

Arlong collapsed weakly to his knees, his entire consciousness already fading into a blur.

Only a shred of obsession and resentment deep in his heart, along with the fish-man's physique, barely kept him from falling outright.

Will stood by, silently waiting, not rushing to execute Arlong, lost in thought.

From his memory.

Arlong, as a fish-man, was once a member of the Sun Pirates and had witnessed firsthand the malice and discrimination humans held toward fish-men.

The death of his most respected elder brother, Tiger, was the main trigger that fully ignited the fury in his heart, ultimately causing him to lose his last shred of restraint.

After Jinbe joined the Shichibukai, Arlong was granted a special pardon and released by the Marines.

Later, after a crushing defeat in a fight with Jinbe, Arlong led away some fish-men who shared his views.

Jinbe, recalling their past bonds, let Arlong and the others go.

Then Arlong brought those fish-men to the East Blue.

He formed the Arlong Pirates and began burning, killing, looting, and committing every evil imaginable.

Inflicting suffering on innocent people who had no power to resist.

Later, he even copied the Celestial Dragons' method of collecting "Heavenly Tribute."

He concocted something called "Tribute," forcibly demanding offerings from the human villages around Arlong Park.

Any village that couldn't pay the "Tribute" would be directly destroyed by Arlong's gang.

Indeed, most weaklings only swing their blades at those even weaker—that never changes anywhere.

If Arlong truly had guts, if he really had any sense of loyalty.

Why didn't he take revenge on the humans who actually oppressed fish-men and trafficked them at will?

It's simply because he knew he was too weak to fight the humans in the Grand Line, yet still needed someone to vent his anger on.

So he deliberately chose to come to the East Blue, the weakest region on the surface.

And there, he unleashed his fury on the weak humans without restraint.