The Will Within the Devil Fruit

This group was plotting some kind of conspiracy, and having witnessed it all firsthand, Noreen found it hard to believe she would make it back alive.

"Noreen!"

Suddenly, the merchant captain's gentle yet strangely eerie voice rang out.

Noreen felt every hair on her body stand on end as an inexplicable fear seized her heart. Terrified, she hurriedly shrank deeper into the pile of barrels, trying to hide herself.

Unfortunately, fate was not on her side. Before long, the shadow of someone fell over Noreen's curled-up figure.

Noreen trembled as she raised her head. What entered her sight was the merchant captain's fat body and his deliberately kind smile, one that sent chills down her spine.

"Noreen, why are you here all alone? Aren't you lonely?"

"C-Captain, I still have cabins to clean, so I won't be attending the banquet."

Noreen forced a smile and stood up, intending to slip away from the side.

"As the main course, how can you not attend the banquet?"

The merchant captain suddenly grabbed Noreen by the wrist. His expression instantly turned savage as he dragged her toward the cabins below deck.

Noreen struggled wildly, but before the absolute gap in strength, it was completely useless. She could only watch helplessly as she was dragged into the dark stairway leading below.

"Let go of me! Let go!"

"Help!!!"

Her terrified cries for help drew the attention of the pirates and gangsters on deck. They exchanged glances, then all revealed strange smiles.

"Your vice-captain certainly has unusual tastes."

"I'll tell you something, but don't spread it around. They say Vice-Captain Savage Cat was rejected by many women before becoming a pirate because he was so ugly, so..."

"Shh! Do you have a death wish? How dare you talk about Vice-Captain Savage Cat's past!"

"Sorry, sorry. Come on, let's keep drinking..."

The drunken pirate broke out in a cold sweat. With an awkward smile, he raised his cup and shifted everyone's attention.

Not long after, a shrill scream came from the cabin below deck. Just from the sound alone, they could feel how much pain and despair its source was suffering.

The pirates and gang members froze, and when they looked at one another, they could all see the fear in each other's eyes.

The banquet that followed was spent amid screams and wails, making it feel unbearably long.

Time slowly passed, until finally...

"At eight o'clock! A Navy warship in sight!"

At the lookout's shout, the pirates and gang members all breathed a sigh of relief and hurriedly began clearing the deck.

As the saying went, mountains looked close but were far away. The same was true at sea; even after spotting it, the warship would still take some time to approach.

That time was enough for them to prepare.

Before long, the food and alcohol on deck had disappeared, and the gang members were lined up on their knees with their hands tied behind their backs.

They looked exactly like hostages taken by pirates.

"Vice-Captain Savage Cat, how was this main course?"

Just as everyone stood ready, the merchant captain's fawning voice came from the dark stairway leading up from the cabins.

Soon, two figures, one fat and one thin, appeared before everyone.

The fat one was naturally the merchant captain. The thin one was a nimble humanoid tabby cat with bloodstains on his face, pulling up his pants.

Vice-captain of the King Snake Pirates, Zoan-type Cat-Cat Fruit, Cat Form user—Savage Cat!

"Not bad, but I'm more interested in having you bring Sabrina before me."

Savage Cat licked his lips, greed flashing through his beige eyes.

At that, the merchant captain scratched the back of his head. A crafty glint flashed in his eyes as he feigned difficulty.

"Lina's purity was taken by a hateful Navy man. She no longer meets your requirements for the main course."

"What?!"

Savage Cat's face instantly twisted with rage. He grabbed the merchant captain by the collar and lifted his fat body into the air.

"Who was it?! I'll skin that bastard alive!"

"Vice-Captain Savage Cat, don't be hasty..."

The merchant captain raised both hands and desperately gripped the muscular arm clutching his collar, reducing the pressure on it so his fat neck could breathe.

Then he spoke with difficulty.

"That Navy man is this time's target. He's already on his way here."

"Excellent!"

Savage Cat tossed the merchant captain aside, sending him crashing face-first onto the deck. Then his figure flashed as he leaped onto the rail and gazed at the approaching Navy warship on the horizon.

"Men, don't fire yet. I want that damned Navy man to experience pain while he's still alive!"

"Vice-Captain, but..."

"But what?!"

The navigator stepped forward trembling. One glare from Savage Cat made him shrink back in fear.

But remembering that this was the captain's order, he forced himself to gather his courage and persuade him.

"Captain Morgan said that Navy man is very strong. To be safe, we need to lure the warship into Soul-Loss Bay and join forces with him."

At those words, Savage Cat frowned, vaguely recalling that there had indeed been such an arrangement.

Before setting out, Morgan had specifically reminded him.

Seeing that Savage Cat had listened, the navigator secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

According to Captain Morgan's analysis, even if Zoan-type users had not awakened, they were still highly likely to be influenced by the will within their Devil Fruits.

Simply put, cats were creatures with superior appearances but very low intelligence. Affected by the Cat-Cat Fruit, Savage Cat would always do many stupid things.

That was why he, a navigator with considerable standing aboard the ship, had to accompany him and constantly remind and advise Savage Cat.

"Heh, he's just a Navy soldier. I alone am enough!"

Savage Cat merely sneered. He leaped from the merchant ship's rail onto the pirate ship's deck, then raised a hand and knocked down a pirate who was about to climb the mast and lower the sails.

"None of you move. Wait and witness my glorious feat of slaughtering the Navy!"

"Uh..."

Seeing Savage Cat's intelligence being controlled by instinct, the navigator helplessly slapped his own face.

He seriously doubted that Savage Cat was this stupid because of the Devil Fruit. Maybe he had simply been born that way!

The navigator took a deep breath to calm himself and organized his words, preparing to continue persuading him...

Boom—

A black sphere suddenly shot over and exploded the instant it struck the merchant ship's deck, tearing the navigator's entire body into chunks of flesh.

Raging flames swept across the deck alongside the shockwave, engulfing all the gang members kneeling there and putting on an act.

"Th-That was a cannonball?"

The sudden attack gave Savage Cat and the pirates aboard the pirate ship a terrible fright. They only came back to their senses when the rolling heat wave hit them head-on.

Following the direction the cannonball had come from, they saw two figures standing at the bow of the distant warship, seemingly arguing with each other.

At the bow of the warship—

"Get lost! Don't get in my way!"

"John! As your superior, I order you to put down that cannonball! You've already attacked innocent civilians!"

"Get lost! Keep talking, and I'll beat you up too!"

John kicked Reed to the ground, weighed the cannonball in his hand, and drew his body back like a fully drawn bow before hurling it forward.

Fist Bone: Electromagnetic Railgun!