The sea darkened suddenly.
A gigantic shadow glided between the waves, trailed by ten ships bearing sails adorned with playing card symbols.
Aboard the main warship, a feminine figure advanced with a sway, her heels clicking like cracking whips.Her silk coat slipped slightly, revealing skin that gleamed like icing sugar and eyes that instantly froze even the boldest sailors.
"It seems we've found a new prey…" murmured Honey Queen, lips curling into a vicious smile."I can't wait to see what treasures they've got hidden on that big boat."
At her feet, a massive form rose, rattling the steel chains around its arms.Boo Jack, the blue-skinned behemoth with the breath of a bull, sniffed loudly, making the entire deck vibrate.
"Gnnnh… Honey… Just tell me who to crush first."
She leaned in, pressing a delicate finger against his tattooed chest."Patience, my dear Boo Jack… Soon you'll get to unleash yourself on their ship. But Bear King needs treasure… and maybe a pretty woman or two, so try to hold back for now, okay?" she whispered sweetly.
On deck, the Trump Family's men sprang into action, cannons deploying all at once.The Merry could already be seen in the distance — a small white dot facing down a monstrous fleet.
Raising her sparkling fan, Honey Queen said in a silky voice:"Let's welcome them properly. Bring me the sound-transmission Den Den Mushi."
She held out her hand absently, not even looking at the panicked soldier who rushed to deliver it.Pressing the Den Den Mushi to her lips, a venomous smile played on her face.
Meanwhile, the ships closed in dangerously.At just 200 meters away, the Trump fleet formed a tight wall, their card-themed sails snapping in the wind like the opening deal of a rigged game.
Honey drew a breath, and her voice rang across the bay, amplified by the Den Den Mushi:
"Pirates, listen well. Hand over your goods, your weapons, your ship… and your pitiful lives. Everything now belongs to the future Pirate King — Bear King!"
Her syrupy laughter drifted through the air.
Aboard the Merry, I leaned down toward the little human-like form of Merry, standing near the mast, hidden behind her shy white bangs.Officially, to Charles, she was our adopted little sister — an explanation that had surprisingly worked quite well.
I whispered to her:
"Gently activate and manipulate the current. Keep it subtle. I'll give the others the support they need."
She nodded timidly, and with a small gesture, summoned the little azure dragon that glided through the air to scout the fleet.
Then Luffy stepped forward to the very tip of the figurehead, his foot resting on the iconic sheep's head — somehow still intact despite the ship's many evolutions.The wind billowed his open vest, and he roared:
"THE PIRATE KING WILL BE ME!!!"
A wave of shocked silence swept through the Trump fleet.
I immediately resumed command:
"Nami! Usopp! You're with me to block incoming attacks!Everyone else — pair up! No solo play today!"
"Not a single Berries leaves this ship!" shouted Nami, already in position, the Aerith Staff in hand, magic crackling around her like a contained storm.
Usopp took a deep breath.
"Zoro, LAUNCH ME UP!"
Zoro silently clapped his hands together, assuming the position of a human catapult.
Usopp ran, jumped, planted a foot into Zoro's palms
and shot skyward like a human arrow, landing in the crow's nest with the grace of a wild cat.
He immediately armed his bow, perfectly positioned to shoot down anything incoming from above.
"Luffy!" Zoro called. "Take me to the main ship!"
"Great idea!"And in an instant, Luffy grabbed Zoro by the waist and rocketed off with a Gum-Gum Rocket, shooting toward the flagship.
On the opposite side, Kuina, Kazuki, Kaya, Sanji, and Koby jumped straight into the sea.The moment they hit the water, Meumeuh burst through the surface, scooping them up on his back to carry them swiftly toward the ships on the left.
Charles, completely overwhelmed by the speed of execution, just stood there, the photo Den Den Mushi trembling in his hands.
I gently patted his shoulder."If you want to be useful… film it.You'll be more helpful that way."
He nodded frantically and started recording every movement, hands shaking but full of determination.
And then—The Trump Fleet's cannons roared.
The sea erupted under a rain of cannonballs.Usopp fired instantly: his arrows struck the incoming projectiles, deflecting them just enough for them to splash harmlessly into the water.
Nami raised her Aerith Staff:Stalactites burst from the air, piercing or blocking cannonballs flying directly toward us, turning the sky into a deadly field of crystal shards.
As for me—I saw three ships on the right attempting to flank us.I couldn't let them get close.
I extended my hand, letting my hybrid form unfold:My body stretched slightly, muscles tightening, black scales thickened, and violet flames poured from my shoulders like a living aura.
The heat shimmered in the air.A massive fireball formed in my palm.It grew… and grew… until it was the size of a burning battering ram.
"Here you go."
With a sharp motion, I hurled it.The lead ship didn't even have time to scream before it exploded in a red-orange blast, the hull melting instantly and sinking in a cloud of steam.
"It's starting…" I murmured.
Behind me, without a single enemy noticing, the Merry subtly rippled, shifting side to side, dodging major barrages.With each strange current shift or improbable wave, the ship adjusted as if guided by instinct.
I didn't worry.Still in hybrid form, I hurled two more fireballs.Smaller, but powerful enough to incinerate the other two ships trying to flank us.
Explosions lit up the entire right side of the Trump Fleet.
And in the middle of the chaos…Honey Queen and Boo Jack froze as they saw their own flagship being stormed directly.
Luffy and Zoro had just landed—like two meteors.
Luffy smashed enemies with his shield, sending them flying into the sea like bowling pins.Zoro spun through the pirates, slicing everything in his path.
Just then, a News Coo seagull landed beside Honey Queen, completely unfazed.It dropped a rolled-up wanted poster.
Honey Queen unrolled it absentmindedly.She saw the 85 million bounty.
"Boo Jack!! They're out of our league! MANEUVER 3!"
Boo Jack, now rolled into a spiked ball, launched himself at Luffy like a cannonball fired at full speed.
Luffy raised his shield—CHONG!
He blocked the impact.Despite the sheer force, despite the monster's momentum, Luffy only stepped back once.
"You're fast!" he grinned, ready to counterattack.
But then Honey Queen entered the fray.
Usopp aimed at her shoulder.His glowing arrow shot through the air—
PIU!It pierced Honey Queen… but her body instantly liquefied, melting into a stream of pink honey and reforming moments later, completely unharmed.
"Logia…" Zoro growled.
She took her chance to strike.
Her arm turned into a torrent of pink honey that lashed out like a serpent.
Zoro tried to slice it—Luffy tried to block it—But the honey split, slid, wrapped, and clung.
Zoro was ensnared, slammed against the deck, half his torso trapped in hardened honey.
Luffy narrowly dodged thanks to his budding Haki, but his shield strike passed straight through her.She was already gone.
She had slipped into a metal duct, flowing like living liquid through the flagship's pipe system.
A moment later—She burst out on another ship, the one where Kaya and Koby were fighting against the Trump Fleet.
"That's her!" Koby shouted, backing away.
A wave of pink honey surged over them.In a fraction of a second, Kaya and Koby were engulfed, dragged backward by Honey Queen's crew.
"IMMEDIATE RETREAT!" Honey Queen shouted, growing impatient.
Boo Jack leapt, curled into a ball, and was catapulted onto the same ship, landing with a heavy, grinding thud.The pirates cut the moorings, tossed barrels overboard to lighten the load.Then—
Honey Queen unleashed her power.A torrent of pink honey poured from the stern, mixing with the sea and creating a staggering propulsion.The ship shot forward like an arrow fired by a giant, fleeing the battlefield in mere seconds.
But on the already troubled waters, a new problem emerged:The pink honey left in the sea formed a massive sticky slick, blocking Meumeuh and preventing our reinforcements from following.
"Jordan!" Usopp screamed. "They took Kaya and Koby!!"His voice cracked with rage.
Even Kazuki, Sanji, and Kuina, still far off, froze at the sound of it.
I turned around.My heart turned black.The air around me shimmered with pressure.
"We follow them."Even Charles, still filming with one of his trembling Den Den Mushi, shivered at my voice.
Then I added, even colder:"But first…We sink all their ships.I want no one at our back."
Nami slammed her staff to the ground."Blizzard!"The sea froze, trapping the pink honey like gleaming scales.Meumeuh was finally able to advance.
And we unleashed hell.In less than five minutes, the entire remaining fleet was destroyed—burned, shattered, or drowned.
When the sea finally fell silent, only one direction remained:
(Author's note: See you next week! ^^)