Instantly Taking Down an Officer

When Jingen the Fish-Man launched a sneak attack, Rubick ducked and kicked backward, catching him square in the chin.

Rubick had focused on training his legs lately to master Geppo and Soru. The kick hit with crushing force, wrenching Jingen's neck sideways and sending him flying more than ten meters into the wall around Arlong Park, which shattered on impact.

Rubick pointed his thumb toward the gate behind him. "I'm going to kill Arlong. If you don't want to die, get out of the East Blue."

"He's no ordinary human. Let us officers handle him."

Kuroobi's face was grave. Leaving the East Blue was out of the question. Kizaru had captured the lot of them before, and the Knight of the Sea, Jinbe, had secured their release into the East Blue only by agreeing to become a Shichibukai.

If they returned to the Grand Line, they might not even make it back to Fish-Man Island alive.

Unlike Arlong and the other Fish-Men, Kuroobi was levelheaded and rational. He knew they could throw their weight around in the East Blue, but on the Grand Line, they were nothing.

Kuroobi wore a black karate uniform and had gray skin. Rubick couldn't tell what kind of Fish-Man he was; he only noticed the two protruding fish bones growing from the swollen parts of his hands. From an evolutionary standpoint, those bones had to be weapons.

What drew the eye most, though, were Kuroobi's two topknots sticking straight up like Nezha's.

"If you want to lay a hand on our boss, you'll have to get through us first."

Rubick figured a little appetizer before the main course wouldn't hurt.

So he asked, "And you are?"

"Kuroobi. Officer of the Arlong Pirates. Fortieth-degree Fish-Man Karate. Nine-million-Beli bounty."

Kuroobi took a karate stance, his guard tight.

Rubick thought for a moment. "Rubick. Bounty Hunter. Though you can call me the Grand Magus."

"What kind of ridiculous title is that? Strength is what matters."

Kuroobi wasted no more words. Sensing that Rubick would be troublesome, he attacked first.

He took a long stride and thrust out his right palm in a deceptively simple strike. At two and a half meters tall, Kuroobi was confident his height and reach would let him dictate the pace of the fight.

"Soru!"

"Iron Body!"

Rubick chained the two techniques together and slammed into Kuroobi's chest, every muscle in his body taut. He moved too fast for Kuroobi to react. With his guard wide open, Kuroobi felt as though a man-shaped sea cow had rammed him in the stomach.

"Pfft!"

Rubick was sure he had broken two of Kuroobi's ribs. He relaxed his muscles to return to his best condition and watched Kuroobi fly backward, blood frothing from his mouth.

"Urgh!"

Kuroobi slid five or six meters across the ground before crashing into the wall. One hand clutched his stomach while the other braced against the floor. He strained and struggled, but in the end, he couldn't get up.

Imitating Dio, Rubick pointed at Arlong. "You're next, Arlong."

"Boss, what do we do?"

The speaker was a Fish-Man with exceptionally long, wide lips. Between his red lips, rosy cheeks, and golden center-parted hair, he looked both handsome and tacky.

After seeing Rubick take down Kuroobi in one move, Chew lost his nerve. He was much weaker than Kuroobi.

"Boss, let me teach him a lesson!"

An Octopus Fish-Man stepped forward, each of his six hands holding a sword.

Arlong could no longer sit still. He rose. "Stand back. I'll handle him."

The moment Arlong said that, Chew's expression changed. He could bully ordinary people, but against a powerful opponent, he struggled to find the courage to fight.

Their fight with Kizaru had terrified them. If they hadn't spent years ruling the East Blue, they would have lost all confidence long ago.

Even the low-ranking Fish-Men who had been swimming moments earlier sensed the shift in the air. From the water and the shore, they shouted encouragement to Arlong. They had benefited from their position and had no desire to give up their comfortable lives.

"So you're Arlong?"

"Shahahaha! That's right, human. There's still time to beg me for mercy."

Rubick shook his head. "I don't get it. You used to sail with the Sun Pirates, didn't you? Your captain was Fisher Tiger, right?"

Arlong flew into a rage. "Don't you dare say our captain's name! You humans aren't worthy."

"What I'm saying is, Fisher Tiger lived an honorable life. He even stormed Mary Geoise and freed countless slaves of the Celestial Dragons. How did one of his former subordinates sink this low?"

"I said, don't talk about our captain!"

Arlong crushed the wineglass in his hand and flung its contents with all his strength. The force of his wrist sent a spray of droplets at Rubick like a shotgun blast.

"Iron Body!"

Pat! Pat! Pat!

The droplets struck Rubick and scattered without even tearing his clothes. Sometimes, taking an opponent's attack head-on dealt a far greater blow to their spirit.

Imagine landing your strongest move in full, only to find your enemy hadn't taken so much as a scratch. How would you feel?

You'd lose it on the spot.

And Arlong was close to losing it. He hadn't expected Rubick to be this strong—strong enough to frighten him.

Rubick went on. "You couldn't survive on the Grand Line, and Kizaru rounded up every last one of you. Without Jinbe saving you, would you be lording it over the East Blue?"

"You've ruled this place for nearly seven years. How many humans have you killed? How many families have you destroyed? Did you ever think you might die here in the East Blue?"

Rubick kept talking, wearing Arlong down mentally. Arlong couldn't even beat Luffy when he was starting out, so Rubick was confident he could handle him. He intended to torment Arlong before killing him.

Against Rubick, who knew the truth about Fish-Men, Arlong could no longer fall back on his claim that Fish-Men were naturally stronger than humans. He could see that Rubick truly meant to kill him. The way Rubick looked at him was the way he looked at other humans.

"Damn it! I'm not going to die!"

Arlong sprinted a couple of steps, then shot toward Rubick like an arrow loosed from a bow. This was his ultimate move, Shark on Darts. He launched his body with a powerful push from his feet, using his hardest, sharpest feature—his nose—as the arrowhead and driving it at Rubick with all his strength.

Arlong was a sawshark Fish-Man, and his nose was as sharp as a spear. But Rubick wasn't worried about such a straightforward attack. A simple dodge sent Arlong's thrust wide.

Arlong smashed through the wall, then sprang up again without stopping and hurtled toward Rubick.

Rubick frowned. Having a weapon would be nice right about now. He couldn't use Haki, and Arlong was certainly strong. He had no desire to punch that nose with his bare fist.