Cover Story: Momonosuke, Part 12 – "Huh? Someone else already peed here?"
"Damn it, I lost to Kuina again! Damn it, damn it!"
It was early morning, and Zoro was still reeling from the sting of yesterday's defeat. He stomped along his morning training path, only to realize the dojo was nowhere in sight—instead, he'd wandered into some unfamiliar wilderness.
"Shit! Lost again!"
Annoyed, he turned to head back, but then a sudden pressure hit—he really had to pee. After glancing around and confirming no one was nearby, he hurried over to a small mound, unzipped, and let loose with relief.
But just then, he noticed something odd—the soil was unusually damp, completely inconsistent with the dry ground around it…
...
Katakuri's voice was flat and emotionless.
For someone as naturally proud as him, calling Nao "father" was clearly just sarcasm. There wasn't even a hint of genuine respect in the title.
Meanwhile, Nao was still in a state of stunned disbelief.
Wait, wait, wait... I didn't mishear that, right?
The Charlotte Family deployed such a massive force, and the reason was simply because Big Mom had taken a liking to him and wanted to marry him?
What kind of joke is this?!
He was Nao Natsuya, twenty years old, a blooming Rear Admiral of the Marines with a future as bright as the sun.
He'd have to be out of his mind to become a boy toy for a wealthy pirate old hag!
Not to mention the hag's appearance… A sudden recall of Big Mom's image made Nao's eye twitch, and he shivered.
"It seems you're a bit unwilling…"
Nao's reaction was observed by Katakuri. His expression remained impassive, as if he had expected this. He said calmly: "But it doesn't matter. Once I bring you back to Whole Cake Island to meet Mama, I believe you will be captivated by her beauty and sincerely marry her…"
"Katakuri, why are you wasting so much time talking to this brat!"
Before he could finish, his hot-tempered triplet brother Oven, who had long run out of patience, grinned and powerfully smacked his fists together in front of his chest:
"He's a Marine. A lapdog of the World Government. No point wasting words. Just sink the ship, wipe out the crew, knock this guy out, and drag him back!"
The moment he finished speaking—
His pupils suddenly glowed with crimson flames, and his two thick, powerful arms clenched into fists. Standing at the edge of the dark cloud, he slammed them down towards the sea below.
"Heatwave Onsen!"
BOOM!
The ocean roared violently. The moment Oven's fists slammed into the surface, the temperature of the surrounding waters skyrocketed in seconds.
The sea itself began to glow red.
Gurgle...
Boiling currents surged. Fish and shrimp cooked alive floated up to the surface, lifeless.
Dozens of meters away, the Marines aboard the ship were already feeling the sweltering waves of heat rolling in. Glancing at each other, their faces paled.
"Hah! I knew it," one pirate laughed from the Charlotte Family's ship. "I knew Brother Oven would be the first to lose patience!"
"He's a monster with the Heat-Heat Fruit. His bounty just got bumped up to 300 million recently. Honestly, he's only slightly behind the Sweet Commanders."
"Don't think Brother Katakuri even needs to step in. Brother Oven alone can probably wipe that whole Marine ship out."
But then—
Zzzzzap!
A flash of brilliant white sword energy exploded across the sea like a shooting star. As it passed, the boiling water around it recoiled and parted in terror.
Oven, crouched over the waves and heating the sea with his arms, felt his instincts scream.
He jerked up to shield his chest—but it was too late.
The slash slammed into him, sending him flying through the air with a howl.
On the dark cloud.
Katakuri furrowed his brow slightly but did not move. Instead, he whispered a command to Zeus, who cheerfully peeled off a small cloud from its main body and zipped over to catch the falling Oven just before he could crash into the sea.
"Phew… that was close…"
Oven glanced at the roiling sea beneath him, drew a sharp breath, and scrambled back to his feet. He looked up at the Marine ship—only to find Nao was gone.
That was because Nao had already stepped off the deck, walking on air with Moonwalk. Now he hovered fifty meters away, eyes calmly locked on Oven.
"I don't get it…"
"Katakuri at least had the courtesy to talk first. But you? A nobody like you, coming straight at my ship like that—where do you get the balls?"
"Nobody?"
Oven froze—then turned livid.
He was Big Mom's fourth son. One of the highest-ranking executive in the Charlotte Family. No one had ever dared call him that.
"You little punk…"
His voice was cold and murderous. "You're just a Rear Admiral. Don't think that beating a few small-time names makes you hot shit here in the New World. In front of the Charlotte Family—"
Before he could finish, he lunged.
A fist engulfed in burning heat rocketed forward.
"Stop pretending to be tough!"
Crimson Heat Fist!
BAM!
Nao didn't dodge. Oven's punch slammed directly into his chest with a heavy thud.
But instead of sending Nao flying—Oven's eyes went wide.
Not only was there no injury—there wasn't even a dent in the man's torso.
Worse, his own hand ached, like he'd punched solid steel.
"…?"
Nao glanced down at his chest, then at Oven, his gaze mildly curious.
Oven's face turned black.
What the hell kind of body is that?!
He'd expected his attack to be dodged—or maybe deflected with swordplay.
But for the guy to just stand there, take the full force of it… and walk away without a scratch?
It was like watching a baby punch a grown man's chest—embarrassing beyond words.
And Katakuri saw that... and Smoothie, too…
Shame flared in his chest. Driven by rage, Oven decided to stop holding back.
"Boiling Surge!"
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
He punched the sea again. The temperature spiked wildly, and enormous pillars of superheated water—each as thick as a giant tree trunk—shot up toward Nao in rapid succession.
"So we're going there already, huh…" Nao muttered.
No longer standing still, he reached for the hilts of his twin swords—Wind Sword and Azakana. His gaze locked on Oven, who now controlled the boiling sea like a conductor.
"The Charlotte Family is powerful…"
"But if you think someone like you is qualified to speak for them—"
The blades flared with light as Nao slashed downward.
"You're not even close!"
Buzz! Buzz!
The moment the sword blades slashed down, a magnificent hurricane surged forth. The previously turbulent sea, as if intimidated by some terrifying presence, suddenly quieted.
And the imposing crimson hot water pillars were instantly cut into several sections, turning into a sky full of fragmented red rain, falling scattered.
But it wasn't over yet.
After shattering the hot sea, the residual sword energy remained extremely penetrating, heading straight for Oven below.
Oven's expression changed slightly. He hurriedly pulled back, attempting to evade, but before he could retreat a few steps, he felt a jolt in his back, as if he had hit something.
"You're too slow."
A voice whispered behind him.
Oven's skin crawled. He subconsciously turned around, only to find that Nao had appeared behind him at some point, and the dark red blade of Azakana was already resting on his shoulder.
"You…"
The chilling sensation of the blade spread from his neck throughout his body. Oven swallowed, his body frozen in place, large beads of sweat rolling down his forehead.
"Does anyone actually think a bounty of over 300 million Berries is impressive?"
Nao chuckled, casting a glance toward the cloud.
Katakuri still hadn't moved.
"You're just a glorified hotpot fruit user. Don't take yourself too seriously."
"Hotpot fruit?!"
Oven's face turned crimson with humiliation. The Heat-Heat Fruit had always been a point of pride—how had this guy twisted it into something so ridiculous?
Then again…
Considering how he'd been completely wrecked in just a few exchanges—
He really didn't have much room to argue.
"…Enough."
A voice finally echoed from above.
Katakuri stepped down from the cloud, landing on the waves with quiet authority. His eyes locked onto Nao with icy intensity.
"Oven may have been reckless. But you… your strength is more than I expected."
"So let's do this properly—"
"Fight me, Nao. With everything you've got. A real, no-holds-barred battle between men!"
He raised his trident, his presence alone enough to command silence.
"No one else interfere," he ordered. "I want to see if the man Mama is so desperate to obtain… is actually worthy."
GURGLE!
The sea boiled again—not from heat this time, but from transformation.
Dark mochi surged from the waves, rising into towering columns that lunged at Nao like titanic fists.
"Peerless Mochi Powerhouse!"
BOOM!
Armament Haki-covered mochi slammed into the sea—but Nao had already released Oven and leapt skyward, Moonwalking to a height of over 100 meters.
"So he's already awakened his fruit at this point…"
Nao's eyes sparkled with excitement as he watched the aftermath of the mochi attack below.
"Now this is more like it. As expected from the Charlotte Family's strongest Commander."
Ever since his battle with Dugalio in the West Blue, Nao had kept training relentlessly.
But none of his subsequent opponents had been worthy of a serious fight.
Until now.
Today, Oven had been a decent warm-up—but Katakuri?
This was going to be fun.
Down below, Katakuri's attack had missed. But he didn't seem surprised.
He didn't even look at the sea—just calmly raised his gaze to where Nao floated.
"Just like the reports said…" he murmured. "He actually managed to wear down Drought Dugalio to death purely by relying on his speed advantage…"
But if that was all Nao had—he wouldn't be impressed.
After all, Katakuri was nearly thirty years old. A top-tier user of Observation Haki capable of glimpsing the future.
Meaning—
Speed alone wouldn't save Nao from him.
...
Back on the Marine ship, hundreds of meters away—
From the moment Nao had leapt from the deck, a concerned Marine captain had rushed to the communications room and called G1 Branch.
"What?!"
In the highest-level Commander's office, Akainu listened to the voice coming from the receiver. His usually unperturbed expression rarely showed a hint of shock and anger:
"You're saying that on the way back escorting the delegation, the Big Mom Pirates suddenly mobilized half of their executives and surrounded you?"
"Yes, Sakazuki-san!" the captain stammered. "They're after Rear Admiral Nao! He's already engaged with Katakuri—we don't know how long he can hold them off. Please… we need backup immediately!"
"Understood."
Akainu said in a low voice, "Just a mere group of pirates. Do they truly think the New World is entirely their territory now?"
"To dare to lay hands on Nao, if that's the case."
He gently hung up the phone, then suddenly stood up and walked to the window, his gaze fixed on the distant horizon, filled with chilling killing intent. "Then I'll personally go on this trip…"
...
Back on the ocean—
CLANG!
Nao's twin swords met Katakuri's trident with an earth-shaking crash, pushing both men back across the sea's surface.
"Hah…"
Katakuri steadied his breath, adjusting his stance.
"I underestimated you. You're not just fast. Your swordsmanship, strength, and physical resilience… you've grown much stronger since defeating Dugalio."
"Is that a compliment?" Nao grinned, steady and breathing evenly. "Because if it is, you already seem a lot more reasonable than that clown back there."
Oven, now returned to Zeus, flushed with rage.
Katakuri said nothing, eyes narrowing.
They'd been fighting for about half an hour now. Even with his superior Observation Haki and Devil Fruit mastery, Katakuri had barely managed to press an advantage.
He had yet to land a significant blow.
Nao's stamina was a bottomless abyss.
"I'll be honest," Katakuri said, raising his trident. "You're strong. Stronger than anyone I've fought in a long time."
"So from here on out—no more holding back."
"This will be my first true battle in months."
"Funny," Nao replied. "Same here."
He glanced back at the Marine ship in the distance.
"To avoid collateral damage, what do you say we move this somewhere a little farther out?"
"A very reasonable suggestion," Katakuri nodded.
With that, both launched into the sky, heading kilometers away until the ships below looked like black dots.
"Let's continue."
Nao gripped Wind Blade and Azakana Sword tightly, his gaze sharpening.
Until now, everything had just been warm-up.
The real fight—
Was about to begin.
Swoosh!
In an instant, Nao vanished, leaving only an afterimage—and reappeared behind Katakuri, sword slashing toward his neck.
CLANG!
Katakuri had already rotated his trident in defense, blocking the strike at the last second.
Simultaneously, his left hand formed a fist.
BOOM!
From all directions, mochi bullets erupted into the air like a torrential rainstorm, each one the size of a cannonball.
A full display of an awakened Devil Fruit.
Thud! Thud! Thud!
The mochi bullets slammed into Nao's body—but he didn't even flinch.
No dodge. No guard.
His gaze never left Katakuri as he pushed both swords down, forcing the trident lower, inch by inch.
His body's even tougher than I expected…
Katakuri felt a chill. Even his awakened mochi projectiles weren't leaving a scratch.
"Fine…"
Eyes burning with fighting spirit, Katakuri shoved Nao's blades back and leapt backward, stomping the ocean surface hard.
"Flowing Mochi!"
The entire sea around them transformed, mochi spreading for hundreds of meters, replacing the waves with red-brown sludge.
Before Nao could regain his footing—
WHAM!
A tidal wave of mochi surged upward, hundreds of meters tall, and slammed down toward him.
From a distance, Nao looked like a paper boat in a typhoon.
On the Big Mom ship, several Charlotte Family members whistled and grinned.
"It's over. Brother Katakuri's too strong."
"Bet that guy's done for—flattened in one hit."
"Relax. Brother Katakuri wouldn't kill him. He knows how important the guy is to Mama."