Mad Shark Squeak, His fist, the size of a stew pot, came crashing down toward Kisame's head.
The surrounding pirates were all grinning with excitement! And yet, The moment they were all eagerly waiting for watching their boss smash the Marine's skull with one punch—never came.
BANG!
Instead, a dull thud rang out as the fist struck something wrapped in misty bandages.
The terrifying force behind the punch shredded through the wrappings.
Kisame was pushed back several steps by the sheer impact.
Drip.
A droplet of blood hit the floor, splattering like a crimson flower.
Squeak stared in surprise at his own fist… then looked up at Kisame again.
What the hell was that thing in his hand?
He himself was a Devil Fruit user—a Zoan-type, famous for his insane defense and yet, he'd been injured from a weapon?
"He… he blocked it?"
The pirates and bar patrons were all dumbfounded. Especially the pirates who knew best just how deadly their boss's punches were.
And yet, It had been stopped so easily?
And their boss even got hurt?
They turned their eyes to that short Marine… a chill creeping into their bones.
Since when were Marines this terrifying?
Kisame ignored all the shocked gazes around him.
He flexed his wrist, which had gone a bit numb from the impact.
Then he looked up at Squeak, who now stood there, furious and stunned and grinned wide, revealing a mouthful of sharp, jagged teeth:
"So this is what 200 million Berries gets you? Not much better than that shrimp-diver I smacked earlier."
His tone was light, almost mocking—but every word hit like a blade to the gut.
Squeak exploded with rage.
Furious, his body suddenly began to change—as if someone had pumped him full of growth hormones.
He rapidly swelled in size.
His already grizzly-like frame doubled in bulk in an instant, knocking over nearby tables and chairs.
A massive, pale-white shark head now sat atop his bloated human body, nearly brushing the ceiling.
Kisame's eyes widened as he stared at the pale-skinned, shark-headed humanoid monster before him.
"That's a Devil Fruit too?"
Now he finally understood, No matter what kind of bizarre thing he ran into, just blame it on a Devil Fruit. That was the safest bet.
Who knows… maybe one day, while casually walking down the street, If a pile of crap suddenly appeared in front of him, it might just be a Devil Fruit user in disguise.
Staring at the pale, fish-headed pirate captain in front of him…
Kisame was at a loss for words. What could he even say?
He could only sigh, "Nature sure is wild…"
Imagine being able to just stop being human altogether!
"I'm an Ancient Zoan-type… Megalodon form!"
Squeak's lantern-sized shark eyes were bloodshot with rage.
"Marine! I'm gonna tear you to pieces!"
Honestly, Kisame didn't even need him to explain it.
The moment he saw those unmistakable shark eyes, Bigger than his! He couldn't help but be a little jealous.
The Uchiha clan had a habit of swapping out their eyes...
Should he consider it too?
Those eyes were round enough… big enough...
Forget it.
Didn't really suit him.
Even if he could install them… he'd stop looking remotely human.
When he thought about it that way, sticking to the original parts wasn't so bad after all.
"That guy's dead meat! Boss is getting serious!"
"We rarely see him enter Megalodon form. Every time he does, it's a bloodbath…"
The pirates, seeing their boss fully transformed, started whispering excitedly, throwing Kisame a few pitiful glances.
In their minds—This Marine was 100% a goner.
Squeak's Devil Fruit was said to be rarer than even some Mythical Zoans—The Megalodon was practically the king of the ocean!
But of course, he was still a Devil Fruit user and anyone who knew anything about Devil Fruits knew:
Touch land, you live.
Touch water, you drown.
Even if Squeak was a megalodon, the moment he hit the ocean, he'd lose all strength.
His only advantage? He could still breathe underwater.
But seriously—what good is that?
Fall into the sea, and sure, maybe he'd last a few years longer than the others, But in the end, still worse off than a motionless turtle!
BOOM!
In his Megalodon form, Squeak grabbed a twisted table nearby and hurled it straight at Kisame.
Then his hulking frame followed close behind, crashing down with thunderous footsteps that splintered the floor.
Kisame dodged the flying table—completely ignoring the tavern lady's shriek from behind him.
Kisame's eyes narrowed slightly.
Staring at Squeak, whose body was several times larger than his own,
his expression remained calm, but deep down, he was silently warning himself
This guy's the real deal. A true powerhouse.
He gripped Samehada tightly, rolling his shoulder a bit.
"Let me see what your 'non-human' form is really made of."
With that, Kisame stomped his foot down and lunged forward, dragging Samehada behind him.
He didn't use any ninjutsu yet— because he simply wanted to test the difference in strength before and after the Devil Fruit transformation.
"Hmm? Looking to die?!"
Seeing Kisame charge at him head-on, Squeak grinned wide, revealing rows of razor-sharp teeth, bloodlust flashing in his eyes.
With a thunderous stomp, he prepared to tear the Marine apart.
BOOM!!
CRASH!!!
"Aaaagh!!"
With a deafening crash and a scream, everyone watched as a massive black shadow flew out of the tavern.
The main door, along with a chunk of the wall was blown open, leaving behind a gaping hole.
"Oh crap…"
Kisame glanced at the wrecked entrance and felt a twinge of guilt—
Wait a sec…
Didn't I say earlier I wasn't gonna wreck the place?
"N-NANI?!"
"No way?!"
Everyone in the bar stared at Kisame, who was still standing in the same position, mid-swing, holding his weapon.
They were all stunned.
Mad Shark Squeak, just now, got sent flying by a single blow?
That… that was terrifying.
Around the room, all the pirates who'd been shouting moments ago suddenly fell silent, as if someone had grabbed them by the throat.
They just stared blankly at the scene in front of them.
They couldn't comprehend what had just happened.
Their boss was effortlessly blown away?
"M-my bar… my precious bar…"
The tavern lady's eyes filled with sorrow—not for the people, but for something far more important:
Money.
Money.
And… MONEY.
Looking at the destroyed entrance, tears welled up in her heart.
She'd worked so hard to build this tavern. After years of effort, she finally had a stable business in the New World.
And now…
This lunatic Marine wrecked it in one hit!!
"If you want my intel… it's gonna cost extra!!"
Meanwhile, Kisame snapped out of his guilty thoughts.
Kicked aside the shattered table by his foot, and began calmly walking toward the hole in the wall.
"Bastard…"
Gotta admit—Zoan-type Devil Fruit users are built different. Even after Kisame smacked him hard with a blow from Samehada, he was still fine.
Dazed, wobbling, swearing… but still got back on his feet!
"Heh…"
Kisame let out a cold chuckle as he stepped through the broken wall,
onto the street, casually glancing to both sides.
The commotion had drawn a small crowd.
Many pedestrians, attracted by the "flying creature" launched from the tavern, now hid far away, whispering among themselves.
"You bastard! I'm gonna kill you! I'll tear you apart!!"
Even though the hit didn't do serious damage, Squeak still felt utterly humiliated.
"Kill me?"
"You might want to save that for your next life."
Without wasting words, Kisame gripped Samehada, flashed forward and appeared right in front of Squeak.
No hesitation. Samehada swung down—straight for the head.
"What?!"
Squeak hadn't expected Kisame's speed to be this fast.
He raised his arm, trying to block the weapon crashing down from above but just as his arm was about to make contact, his shark-like pupils shrunk in horror.
What… what did he just see?
That weapon—it was… blossoming?!
No! sprouting spikes!!
Jet-black, vicious barbs erupted from the weapon,
opening like a living creature.
SPLAT!!
Flesh and blood burst into the air.
A wave of blood sprayed out—thick and heavy.
"AAARGHH!!"
Squeak let out a scream of agony, staring blankly at his now mangled right arm.
The grotesque wounds were shocking, just looking at them made one's scalp tingle.
He couldn't believe it—This guy broke through his defense?!
How is that even possible?!
(End of Chapter)
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