Lei En Descends! One Burst of Conqueror's Haki, and Every Fish-Man Falls

"What kind of skill is it to hurt yourself instead of calling for help when you're in trouble?"

That lazy, teasing voice came through with startling clarity amid the rumbling thunder.

Nami's entire body stiffened as she mechanically raised her head.

Chunks of rubble poured down from the collapsing tower like a torrential rain.

And amid the swirling dust and lingering azure sparks.

A tall, slender young man in a black trench coat seemed like a demon god stepping out of myth as he descended through the air, slowly landing in the muddy puddle before her.

Lei En paid no attention to the villagers whose jaws had dropped.

He looked down at Nami, who was kneeling on the ground with vacant eyes, blood still flowing from her left arm.

She was one of the Straw Hat Pirates' key figures in the original story, a genius navigator.

But now, she was the Heavenly Court's designated chief steward.

"Y-you... who are you?"

Nami stared blankly at the mysterious man who had suddenly fallen from the sky. Her mind had gone completely blank, and she had even forgotten the piercing pain in her arm.

Lei En did not answer.

He simply reached out and imperiously seized the wrist of the hand that still trembled as it gripped the bloodstained dagger.

"Gasp—!"

Nami winced in pain and tried to struggle, only to find that his hand was like an iron vise. She could not break free at all.

Lei En pulled a clean white handkerchief from his pocket and roughly pressed it against the glaring Arlong Pirates tattoo on Nami's arm.

"It's only a hundred million Berries. I'll pay it for you."

Lei En's voice was quiet, but his tone carried an unquestionable arrogance, as though he were speaking of something utterly insignificant.

"In exchange..."

He bent down slightly, his deep black eyes fixed firmly on Nami's pretty face streaked with tears.

"Your life, and the hand you use to draw sea charts, belong to me from now on."

The words struck Nami's heart like a bolt of thunder.

She looked at the unreasonable, domineering young man before her and did not know how to react for a moment.

Did he know what he was doing?

He was declaring war on the Arlong Pirates, the most terrifying pirate crew in the entire East Blue!

Just then.

"Who did this?! Which worthless human dared to do this?!"

An enraged roar, like the howl of a wild beast, came from the tower that had been reduced to ruins!

Immediately after.

"Boom!"

Massive chunks of stone were forcibly blasted aside by an immense force.

A blue-skinned fish-man nearly three meters tall, with a serrated long nose, burst from the rubble, covered in dust and murderous intent.

It was none other than the East Blue's highest-bounty pirate, captain of the Arlong Pirates, "Saw-Tooth" Arlong!

Behind him came the octopus fish-man Hachi, the kissing gourami fish-man Kuroobi, and hundreds of vicious fish-man pirates armed with weapons!

Seeing their headquarters flattened to the ground, every one of them had red eyes with fury, wishing they could tear every human in sight to shreds!

"Did you lowly pieces of trash do this?!"

Arlong furiously pointed at the distant villagers, then shifted his gaze to Lei En and Nami, who stood at the front.

When he saw the wound on Nami's arm and the black-haired young man standing in the mud without even sparing him a glance.

Arlong laughed in extreme anger.

"Nami! You ungrateful bitch, did you find outside help to rebel against the great fish-man race?!"

Arlong drew the enormous serrated blade Kiribachi, its tip pointed directly at Lei En.

"You're just some human brat with a little skill! Today, I'll chew your bones apart inch by inch!"

"Men! Kill every last one of these lowly humans! Leave no one alive!"

"Roar!"

Hundreds of fish-man pirates let out excited, bloodthirsty roars. Waving their swords and spears, they surged toward the villagers and Lei En like a black tide!

The villagers turned pale at the horrifying sight, clutching their farming tools in despair.

"Run! Everyone, run!" Nami cried in terror, trying to push Lei En away.

Yet Lei En stood as still as an immovable mountain.

He did not even take his hands out of his pockets.

"Lowly humans? Great fish-man race?"

Lei En slowly turned around. Looking at the wolfish fish-men charging toward him, a chillingly cruel and utterly contemptuous curve formed at the corner of his mouth.

"A bunch of sewer trash playing king in the East Blue beginner village."

He sighed, as though already tired of this tedious farce.

"You're not even worthy of making me draw my sword."

The instant he finished speaking!

Lei En's gaze turned razor-sharp, and tangible killing intent gathered madly within his pupils!

"Bzzzz—!!!"

An invisible, dark-red and terrifying aura erupted from his body without warning!

Conqueror's Haki!

Rather than blanketing the sky as it had during the Summit War, Lei En controlled this aura with extreme precision, turning it into an invisible hurricane aimed directly at the soul!

"Rumble!"

Conqueror's Haki swept through the area!

It felt as if the air had been drained away in an instant, as though even time itself had come to a standstill.

The dozens of fish-men at the very front felt as if their brains had been brutally smashed by heavy hammers!

"Urgh..."

The bloodlust and madness on their faces froze instantly.

Then.

"Thud!"

"Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud!"

It was like harvesting wheat.

The hundreds of fish-man lackeys, who had been charging forward with overwhelming momentum and utter arrogance only moments before.

The instant they came into contact with that dark-red hurricane, their eyes rolled back, foam spilled from their mouths, and they did not even have time to let out a scream.

Like puppets with their strings cut, they collapsed in neat waves across the muddy street!

A deathly silence fell.

The charge of hundreds collapsed in less than a second, every one of them unconscious!

The once-noisy Arlong Park plaza now held nothing but the sound of rain striking the ground.

The villagers stood with their mouths agape, hoes slipping from their hands as they stared at the black-haired young man as though he were a monster.

Nami's eyes widened so much that she even forgot to breathe.

Was this... magic?!

"H-how is that possible?!"

Though Hachi, Kuroobi, and several other officers had not fainted, their legs trembled as they knelt on the ground, drenched in cold sweat and gasping for breath.

They stared at Lei En in terror, feeling as though their very souls were trembling.

"Y-you... what did you do to my brethren?!"

Arlong was the only fish-man in the area who could barely remain standing, but cold sweat now covered his once-arrogant face.

Under that terrifying pressure, even his prized fish-man physique gave him the urge to prostrate himself in worship!

He had only felt this way once before: when he had followed Boss Tiger to the New World and encountered the real monsters there!

Lei En looked at Arlong, who was still forcing himself to hold on, and casually flicked the muddy water from his handkerchief.

He slowly walked toward Arlong, his leather shoes making crisp splashing sounds in the puddles.

With every step, the pressure on Arlong increased.

"What did I do? I merely helped you recognize reality."

Lei En stopped five meters in front of Arlong. There was no anger in his deep eyes, only lofty indifference.

"Arlong, since you enjoy playing at racial superiority so much..."

Lei En narrowed his eyes slightly, his tone carrying a chill that made one's scalp tingle.

"Then how about we play a game? Let's see whether your fish-man teeth are harder, or..."