Being a Hero Isn't That Easy

He tried to struggle, but it was futile. The harder he struggled, the faster his life drained away.

Blood gushed from his mouth, eyes, and ears like a fountain, soon staining a large patch of ground beneath him red.

Finally, his body convulsed violently a few times before falling completely still. The last glimmer of light faded from his eyes.

Only then did everyone see the wound that pierced diagonally upward through the back of Kuroobi's head.

"Kuroobi!"

Chew, a fellow officer who had come with him from the Grand Line, paled and stared at Kuina in horror.

The feeling of facing someone so powerful made him feel as though he were back on Fish-Man Island. Back then, he had been a mere underling who could only hide behind his captain and Arlong.

Ever since

he had come to the East Blue, he had never again experienced this feeling that made his entire body tremble uncontrollably.

There were no vicious pirates here, no slave traders, and certainly no Celestial Dragons. It was like paradise.

Farther down the village road, the villagers stared wide-eyed, as though they had witnessed something impossible.

"Hey! You've got to be kidding! She took out an officer of the Arlong Pirates with one slash!"

Standing beside Kuta, Genzo stared at Kuina's back in astonishment.

"Is she really that strong? That was a monster who could wreck a warship with a single blow!"

Then he turned toward Kuta, a fervent light flashing in his eyes.

Kuta did not turn around. He merely patted Genzo lightly on the shoulder and repeated himself.

"I told you, we're strong! Just watch!"

This time, Genzo finally began to believe that Kuta and Kuina really could defeat Arlong. He turned back toward Kuina, his face brimming with excitement.

That human girl had not only dodged Chew and Kuroobi's killing blows with ease, but had also killed Kuroobi with a single slash.

The fish-men standing behind Chew were both furious and terrified.

Since coming to the East Blue, they had never encountered a human they could not handle.

Even the local Marines had to cooperate with them. Otherwise, crushing those Marines would be as easy as crushing ants.

Over time, the fish-men had grown accustomed to running rampant, becoming increasingly arrogant and brutal.

To them, the humans of the East Blue were an inferior race, while they, the great fish-man race, were humanity's masters.

Killing and plundering humans was no different from slaughtering pigs they had raised.

They had completely forgotten how frightened and lowly they had been on the Grand Line.

Kuina's appearance was like a bucket of cold water dumped over their heads, reminding them all of the terrifying humans on the Grand Line.

"You human... you can't be from the East Blue."

Chew watched Kuina approach, his eyes bloodshot.

Kuina stared coldly at Chew without slowing her steps.

That look. He hated that look, and he feared it more than anything.

"Die, you inferior human!"

He widened his now completely bloodshot eyes and roared furiously, as though doing so could dispel the fear in his heart.

"Hundred-Shot Water Gun!"

He inhaled sharply and puffed out his cheeks, his lips quivering rapidly like the barrel of a machine gun.

Balls of water shot toward Kuina like bullets.

Kuina neither dodged nor retreated. She advanced into the water bullets while rapidly swinging

the sword in her hand.

A flurry of steel flashed.

The water bullets that should have struck Kuina were instantly sliced in half, hitting the ground on either side of her and leaving holes behind.

In the blink of an eye, Kuina rushed forward and stood before Chew.

She held her sword with a cold expression, ignoring his blood-red eyes and his utterly terrified face.

Without giving Chew a chance to retreat, she slashed swiftly upward toward his throat.

"Urgh...!"

Chew stood rigidly in place, clutching his throat with both hands. His skin turned from blue to red. He tried to make a sound, but nothing came out.

Then, as though all his strength had left him, he dropped to his knees and pitched forward.

Thud!

He had followed Kuroobi to his death.

Kuina stood impassively beside Chew and flicked her sword downward, shaking the blood from its blade.

"Chew!"

The remaining fish-men cried out as they watched Chew convulsing violently on the ground.

Then they fled in terror, as though some ferocious beast were at their heels.

From Kuina's approach to Kuroobi and Chew's deaths, it had seemed like a long time, but only ten-odd seconds had passed.

Seeing the fish-men charging toward them, the villagers farther back hurried to either side of the road.

Then they all stared at Kuina in excitement.

Two slashes. With just two slashes, this girl had effortlessly killed two officers of the Arlong Pirates.

They had never seen such a powerful human, nor had they ever seen fish-men wear expressions like those.

So fish-men could feel fear and terror too. They could flee for their lives!

Kuina stood where she was, watching the fleeing fish-men with cold eyes. She felt not a shred of mercy about cutting them down.

She sheathed her sword, bent her left knee, tightened her grip, and raised her head to fix her gaze on all the fleeing fish-men.

Gathering her strength, she shot forward.

Whoosh!

Kuina appeared ahead of the fish-men as though she had teleported.

A flash of steel swept through every fish-man, freezing them all in place as though they had been caught in a binding spell.

Click!

"One Sword Style: Cutting All Things!"

The sound of Kuina sheathing her sword drifted through the wind.

That same sound broke the spell holding the fish-men still.

Splurt!

A line of blood appeared around every fish-man's waist. Then their upper bodies slid neatly to the side, spraying copious amounts of blood.

Kuina turned around. Ignoring the fish-men she had cut in half, she carefully avoided the river of blood on the ground and walked toward Kuta.

Being a Hero Wasn't So Easy

Beneath the eaves on either side of the village road.

The villagers stared blankly at the severed remains littering the ground.

At first, they instinctively stepped back. Then they seemed to realize something.

Their once-numb eyes shone with a light called hope, like mirrors wiped clean of mist.

They watched Kuina walk past the corpses with excitement, not daring to make a sound.

They were afraid.

They were afraid that everything before them was a dream.

They had seen scenes like this in their dreams countless times. Each time, they had woken in excitement, only to discover in disappointment that none of it was real.

This time, they knew clearly that it was no dream, yet they still did not dare break the surrounding silence.

As Kuina approached, the lingering killing intent around her instinctively made Genzo want to step back.

Then he immediately came to his senses. She was not a fish-man, but his benefactor. He had nothing to fear.

He shook his head and stared at Kuina in excitement.

Tenderness flashed in Kuta's eyes as Kuina reached him. He raised his right hand and wiped away a drop of blood that had accidentally splashed onto her face.

"Kuina, now you really are a hero!"

Only then did the cold expression leave Kuina's face, replaced by a smile like a field of flowers bursting into bloom.

That smile lit up not only Genzo's despairing heart, but also those of the surrounding villagers. Only then did they seem to awaken from a dream.

Six whole years!...

It had only been six years, which was not all that long.

But every day had felt like a year!

During those six years, who knew how many families and how many people had died at the hands of these brutal fish-men?

And now, at last, someone had come. Someone like a hero.

She had slaughtered the fish-men as easily as though she were cutting up fish on a chopping board.

They had waited far too long for this moment.

Genzo stared at Kuina, trembling all over as an indescribable surge of excitement filled his heart.

"You... who exactly are you?"

"Us...?"

Holding Kuina's hand, Kuta raised his head and swept his gaze over the villagers' excited eyes.

"You can call us Partners of Justice."

"Justice?"

"Justice...?"

They had never felt justice from the Marines, yet they had found it in two strangers.

By the time they came to their senses, Kuta and Kuina were already walking out of the village.

Watching their retreating figures from afar, the villagers shouted together, flames of hope burning in their eyes.

"Please, you have to defeat the Arlong Pirates

!"

"Partners of Justice..."

Their excitement could be felt even from far away.

Those long-suppressed emotions and impulses had suddenly erupted like a volcano.

Surrounded by those feelings, Kuta and Kuina experienced a sense of spiritual joy unlike anything they had ever known.

Kuina narrowed her eyes in enjoyment. Having people place their hopes in her, so many people at that, was intoxicating. Otherwise, so many people would not dream of becoming heroes.

Then she opened her eyes, turned around, and solemnly addressed the villagers whose eyes were filled with expectation and hope.

"Don't worry! We swear on our lives that we'll slaughter every last member of the Arlong Pirates."

Her voice was not loud, but it rang clearly in every villager's ears.

The villagers stood there for a long time, watching the two distant figures heading toward Arlong Park.

They etched that boy and girl deep into their memories.

Especially the girl.

Her beauty, her cold and composed expression as she slaughtered the fish-men, and that final smile that had shone into their hearts.