"Big Brother Jinbe!"
The violent gust of air blew the Sun Pirates' ship away. The Fishmen aboard saw the terrifying scene and cried out in alarm.
Over the sea beside the beach, the Fire Tornado collided with the water below, and great clouds of white steam spread out.
The swirling flames spun inside the steam, tinting the white mist orange-red.
The rotating air carried the white mist outward.
Dunn, wreathed in flames, held Flame, which was likewise wreathed in fire, and watched the scene Taimatsu had created.
With Observation Haki, he could clearly see what was happening inside.
"Just as I thought!"
Dunn muttered under his breath.
He had already suspected that the Flame-Flame Fruit wasn't especially advantageous in a fight at sea.
After all, seawater countered fire.
That wasn't because seawater countered Devil Fruit Users. Water simply countered fire.
Unless he could eventually develop his flames until seawater evaporated before it could get close, or even set the sea ablaze.
But this planet was covered in oceans. He might not have enough stamina to pull off something like that.
"Water Heart: Ocean Current Shoulder Throw!"
A loud shout rang out from within the flames. Then a vast quantity of seawater seemed to be hauled up by an invisible hand.
The rising seawater smashed through the fiery tornado and surged toward Dunn.
The mass of water rushed forward with tremendous force.
Dunn raised his hand and brought down his long, flame-wreathed sword in a mighty slash. A wave of fire shot out, cleaving the oncoming water apart.
The divided seawater split, and the force behind it crumbled with that single slash. It crashed down on the ground on either side, shattering into sprays of water.
Jinbe's upper body emerged from the water. He stared hard at Dunn, his expression grave.
"A Devil Fruit User?"
The first thing that came to Jinbe's mind when he saw someone controlling flames like that was that Dunn was a Devil Fruit User.
Quite possibly a Logia, too.
Jinbe didn't dare come ashore.
In the water, he could use the sea to counter the flames.
But if he left the water and faced a man who could control fire, and might even have a Logia ability, he had no confidence he could win.
Especially since their brief exchange had also shown that his opponent was a skilled swordsman.
Cheers erupted from the pirate ship nearby.
Dunn, who had been facing off against Jinbe, turned toward the ship and slightly raised Flame in his hand.
Jinbe noticed the shift in Dunn's attention.
His heart tightened, but the next moment, Dunn was already moving.
Whoosh!
A plain, unadorned slash cut through the air and streaked toward the pirate ship floating on the sea.
Jinbe's expression tightened. He slapped the water with both hands and shot across the surface, blocking the slash. He crossed his arms, coating them in Armament Haki.
"Plum Blossom Skin!"
He held his arms in a defensive stance, and Dunn's slash struck them head-on.
Bang!
Jinbe was sent flying by the blow and crashed into the water beside the pirate ship.
The cheers aboard the ship stopped abruptly.
"Get out of here!"
Jinbe surfaced again and immediately ordered the Fishman pirates on the ship to leave.
"Boss Jinbe!"
The Fishmen started to protest, but another slash came at them.
Jinbe's expression tightened, and he surged forward again.
The result was exactly the same as before: Jinbe was sent flying and crashed into the water.
The pirates aboard the ship finally understood. This man was clearly using them as targets to attack Big Brother Jinbe.
The pirates were furious, but there was nothing they could do. They could only follow the order and sail away, so they wouldn't become targets for Dunn's attacks on Jinbe.
As the pirate ship moved off, Dunn looked at Jinbe in the water, feeling somewhat troubled.
Get in the water and fight him?
Impossible.
He had been deliberately training his swimming, and with his current physique, he could stay in the water for an hour or two. But fighting a Fishman Shichibukai with Two-Color Haki in the sea?
Dunn knew enough about Jinbe.
Jinbe was at the peak of his strength—or, rather, had only just entered his prime. With Fishman Karate and his ability to manipulate water, his fighting power increased enormously in the sea.
On land, even without activating Indomitable, Dunn could fight him with his powerful physique and Devil Fruit ability. He might not necessarily lose.
But in the ocean, at least before he gained the ability to set the sea ablaze, his Devil Fruit power would likely be of little use.
Of course, that was without activating Indomitable.
If he did activate it, the terrifying strength and all-around boost might let him defeat Jinbe in an instant.
But Dunn had no intention of activating Indomitable casually.
To be honest, it wasn't worth it.
And after activating Indomitable, he'd be weakened for a time.
Dunn stood on the shore, facing Jinbe in the water. Then Jinbe spun around, dove beneath the surface, and disappeared.
Had he left?
Dunn waited for a while, but Jinbe didn't reappear.
Neither Dunn nor Jinbe had fought in earnest. At most, they had tested each other.
Dunn sheathed his sword, let the flames around his body die down, and turned back toward the village.
The villagers who had been captured were still gathered where they'd been left. When they saw Dunn, they finally breathed a sigh of relief.
Dunn walked over, glanced at them, and then headed in a certain direction.
Everyone's eyes followed him as he entered the village chief's home.
On the ground lay a smashed Den Den Mushi. There was also an old man whose arm had been cut off and whose chest bore a deep, diagonal slash. He was already dead.
Dunn lowered his head slightly and stood there for a moment before turning toward the tall figure in a Marine uniform at the doorway.
"Come to think of it, are the Marines always one step behind?"
Dunn looked at him and asked directly, his tone quite unfriendly.
Unexpectedly, the blunt old Marine outside didn't get angry. He looked at the dead man in the room and sighed.
"There's nothing we can do. The sea is too vast. Even the Marines can't control everything. Besides, some Marine soldiers..."
Garp started to say something, but then fell silent.
He looked at Dunn.
"You fought Jinbe?"
"You saw?"
Dunn was taken aback. He was certain Garp hadn't arrived while he was fighting Jinbe.
Or rather, Garp had been outside the range of his Observation Haki.
"I received word that Jinbe came to the East Blue looking for a group of Fishmen. They were the ones who died outside, right? He couldn't take their bodies with him. There are signs of a fight by the shore, and burn marks from flames."
Garp looked at Dunn.
Dunn lifted Flame and rested it on his shoulder, then walked past Garp.
"Yeah. I don't want to fight that guy in the sea. I'd be at a disadvantage."
Garp watched Dunn's straight-backed figure as he carried the sword on his shoulder, then glanced at the dead man in the room.
"Did you know this man?"
"No. I'd just exchanged a few words with him earlier."
Dunn paused, then turned to look at Garp.
"Honestly, I don't like pirates. And I don't like you Marines, either. So don't bother me from now on."
Garp's expression stiffened.
Dunn's words left Garp at a loss for how to respond.
"I'm borrowing your ship to head back. Also, turn these Fishman pirates into bounty money for me. Use half of it to rebuild this village."
As he spoke, Dunn headed toward the shore.
The Marine warships were anchored out at sea. Small boats filled with Marines were heading toward the island.
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