Fish-Men Are Just One-Slash Kills, Aren't They?

If anyone dared resist, their entire village would be destroyed.

So far, no one had dared to truly fight back.

At first, they had held out hope that the Marines would come and defeat these pirates.

But when the Arlong Pirates easily crushed the five warships sent against them, that hope died.

No matter how many Marines came afterward, they were as fragile before those monsters as eggs crushed in a hand.

The villagers realized that humans were no match for the power those monsters possessed.

Worse still, a Marine officer who looked like a rat arrived. Rather than going after the Arlong Pirates, Nezumi used his authority to suppress all news of what was happening here.

Whenever someone sought help from the Marines, he passed word straight to Arlong.

The villager who had asked for help would die horribly, and his entire village would suffer for it.

Just like that, their last shred of hope was gone.

For six years, the island's residents had silently endured this living hell.

And today was the monthly collection day.

A crowd of fish-men, led by two officers, marched into Cocoyasi Village, where Nami lived.

At their head walked a cartilaginous fish-man.

He wore a dark blue sleeveless karate uniform, with his hair tied into two short braids. Two fins shaped like broad blades jutted from his arms, and his muscular body radiated an intimidating presence.

That appearance marked him as Kuroobi, an officer of the Arlong Pirates and a former member of the Sun Pirates.

A step behind Kuroobi walked a fish-man with a prominent mouth, like an archerfish puckering up for a kiss. He wore a blue sleeveless shirt and black shorts, and had short blond hair.

He had to be Chew, another officer of the Arlong Pirates and former member of the Sun Pirates.

The two officers led the fish-men to the middle of the village's only street.

They did not need to urge anyone. The villagers came out on their own, money in hand, and lined up before them.

One by one, they dropped the money they had worked all month to earn into an empty sack held by a fish-man.

"Move it! What are you dawdling for? You short on money?"

The fish-man collecting the money glared at a villager who had been a little slow to pay.

He snatched the money from the villager's hand, weighed it briefly, and tossed it into the sack.

Then he grabbed the villager by the arm and flung him to the ground.

The villager did not dare make a sound. He silently got up and limped toward a nearby house.

The other villagers watched without expression. They were used to it.

They were used to the fish-men's strength, their arrogance, and most of all, their oppression.

Before long, the empty sack was full of money.

Kuroobi swept a cold gaze over the villagers standing on either side of the street. Without a word, he led Chew, who had his hands in his pockets, and the other fish-men toward the Orange Grove.

The last person in the village was there. Even if she was Nami's sister, she still had to pay.

Once they collected that final head tax, their work for the day would be done.

Cocoyasi Village was the closest village to Arlong Park, so they usually collected from it last.

Kuroobi and Chew suddenly stopped, causing a stir among the fish-men behind them.

"What is it?"

They all looked ahead. Outside the village, a young man and a young woman were walking toward them.

They were Kuta and Kuina, fresh from the shore.

They had left their boat at the simple dock outside the village and headed straight in, only to run into the fish-men on their way out.

Kuroobi stared at the two human brats approaching.

"Did we miss two?" he asked the fish-man behind him. "I've never seen these two before."

The fish-man was responsible for keeping count. He hefted the sack of money and answered with certainty.

"We've collected from everyone except Nami's sister at the Orange Grove."

Kuroobi turned back and fixed Kuta and Kuina with a cold stare.

"If the count's right, these two humans came from outside. Kill them."

He meant it. They would not let news of this place get out so easily.

Kuta saw the fish-men stop.

He stopped too, leaving them to Kuina.

He took the Wine Gourd from his waist and stood there, drinking at his leisure. His eyes glinted with amusement as he watched the fish-men and waited for Kuina's performance.

Kuina glanced coldly over the fish-men, then settled her gaze on Kuroobi and Chew.

Of the entire group, those two were clearly the only ones she cared about. Their appearances made them easy to recognize.

Kuina did not stop walking. Instead, she quickened her pace toward them.

The villagers standing beneath the eaves on either side of the street saw her speed up rather than stop at the sight of the fish-men.

Their hearts tightened with worry.

Just then, a middle-aged man in uniform hurried out of a nearby house and reached out to stop Kuina. Four scars crisscrossed his face, and a pinwheel stuck out of his hat.

A smile flickered in Kuta's eyes when he saw the man. He recognized him at once: Genzo, the village sheriff.

Genzo was a deeply kind man, like a father to Nami and Nojiko.

When he saw the young woman heading straight toward the fish-men instead of running, he could not help rushing out to stop her.

These two outsiders were probably here for the first time. They had no idea how vicious the fish-men were, which was why they seemed so unconcerned.

I have to get these two out of the village before the fish-men come over.

Thoughts raced through Genzo's mind.

He fixed Kuina with a stare, deliberately hardening his expression and speaking sharply. "Young lady, outsiders aren't welcome here. Please leave."

Kuina looked at Genzo, and a trace of warmth entered her cool eyes.

His tone was harsh, but he could not hide the urgency and concern in his eyes.

When Kuina glanced his way, Kuta shrugged and walked over, signaling for her to continue.

He put an arm around Genzo's shoulders and drew him aside. "Thanks, sir. We appreciate what you're trying to do, but we know what we're doing."

Genzo froze at those words.

In that brief moment, Kuina had already gone more than ten meters ahead.

Seeing her nearly reach the fish-men, Genzo hurriedly shouted, "Don't go any closer, young lady!"

Kuina looked back and smiled at him.

"It's all right, sir. We came here specifically to deal with Arlong."

"Deal with Arlong?" Shock spread across Genzo's face.

"That's right. Watch." Kuta pointed ahead.

Chew had made his move the moment Kuina turned toward Genzo.

He did not care whether it counted as a sneak attack. All that mattered was taking down the enemy.

He puffed out his gun-barrel mouth and fired a blast of water at Kuina.

It shot toward the back of her head as fast as a bullet from a gun.

Chew watched her eagerly, certain a single hit would finish her.

But things rarely went as simply as he imagined.

As though she had known it was coming, Kuina tilted her head slightly and dodged with ease.

The water shot past her ear and flew toward Kuta behind her.

Genzo's pupils widened as it hurtled toward them, and cold sweat broke out across his body.

He instinctively tried to pull Kuta out of the way. Then he realized the space around him had somehow frozen, leaving him unable to move.

The water hung motionless in front of them, unable to advance another inch.

It might have lasted only an instant. Suddenly, Genzo felt the space around him begin to move again.

With a splat, the water fell to the ground before him.

Genzo stared wide-eyed at the water on the ground.

What kind of power was that?

With power like that, maybe they really could beat Arlong!

A glimmer of hope appeared in Genzo's eyes, only to quickly fade.

No. Impossible. How could humans ever stand against those monsters?

He had suffered too much despair to believe anyone human could defeat Arlong.

He shook his head and looked up at Kuta.

Noticing his gaze, Kuta raised the Wine Gourd and took a sip before turning to him with a smile. "I told you. We came to deal with Arlong."

He paused, his tone growing more serious.

"And we're very strong."

Then he turned back to Kuina, signaling for Genzo to watch.

Perhaps only seeing it happen would convince these despairing villagers that they really could wipe out the Arlong Pirates.

Fish-Men? One Slash Each

The moment Kuta and Kuina appeared, Kuroobi knew they were no ordinary humans.

Their eyes were too calm, so calm they seemed indifferent. They looked at the fish-men as though they were fish waiting to be gutted.

He hated that look. He had seen it all too often in his homeland.

So the instant Kuina dodged Chew's water shot, before she could even turn back, he charged.

With his wealth of fighting experience, he would not let the opening pass.

He would take down the human girl in an instant, then face the boy behind her.

His instincts told him the silver-haired boy was far too dangerous.

"Fish-Man Karate: Wrist Chop!"

Kuroobi was taller than most humans. Standing before Kuina, he looked like a giant, his burly frame casting her completely in shadow.

He raised his arm, exposing the hard, curved fin at his elbow, and chopped diagonally down toward her neck with all his strength.

Red light flickered in Kuina's eyes. She turned and ducked beneath the vicious Slash.

She stepped forward, passing under Kuroobi's arm.

Shing!

Kuina stood behind Kuroobi and drew her blade in a flash. She spun it in her right hand, reversed her grip, and thrust it diagonally up and back before pulling it free. Without another glance at him, she continued toward the other fish-men.

Kuina had taken three or four steps when Kuroobi, still frozen in the pose of his downward strike, finally lost his strength. His legs buckled, and he pitched toward the ground.

Thud!

His body hit the ground with a dull sound, kicking up a faint cloud of dust.

Kuroobi lay face down, his eyes wide with fury and disbelief.

He was a fish-man! How could he fall so easily to a human?