William was never one to work in isolation. In his previous life, he had cultivated the habit of gathering subordinates for brainstorming sessions, harnessing the power of collective intelligence.
By combining multiple perspectives and allowing ideas to collide, he consistently achieved greater insights. After arriving in this world, William maintained this practice, though the focus shifted from business strategies to martial techniques.
Swordsmanship, Six Powers (Rokushiki), Life Return, Fish-Man Karate, and even methods for developing Devil Fruit abilities—William regularly assembled his key officers to refine and innovate these techniques together.
Among all his subordinates, the one William most enjoyed collaborating with wasn't Aramis, who had been with him the longest, nor Edmond, one of his strongest fighters, nor even Harden or Selkirk. It was Dampier.
As a researcher, Dampier shared William's boundless imagination and experimental spirit when it came to developing and utilizing martial techniques.
William's ability to integrate his Devil Fruit powers with Fish-Man Karate and Life Return to modify the Karakusa Warabite Seiken, and his fusion of his Devil Fruit abilities with the Tempest Kick (Rankyaku) from the Six Powers, exemplified his talent for cross-disciplinary innovation.
Dampier possessed a similar mindset. Recently, he had been experimenting with incorporating the Finger Pistol (Shigan) technique from the Six Powers into his swordsmanship.
Finger Pistol was a technique that concentrated the user's entire bodily strength into their index finger, delivering a lightning-fast strike with the power of a bullet—capable of piercing human flesh with terrifying ease.
The key to mastering this technique lay in the hardness of the finger combined with exceptional speed and strength. Without these elements, its reputation for bullet-like power would be meaningless.
Due to his innate talents, William possessed extraordinary aptitude for swordsmanship and could easily adapt techniques from various disciplines. While developing the finger strength needed to pierce flesh required years of dedicated training, William already possessed a solid foundation in swordsmanship. He began experimenting with incorporating the Finger Pistol's principle of concentrating power into a single point and delivering it with lightning speed into his sword techniques.
Dampier, also skilled in swordsmanship, found William's concept fascinating. Unlike William, Dampier wielded a rapier similar to the épées William had seen in his previous life—a weapon specifically designed for thrusting attacks. This made it an ideal instrument for integrating Finger Pistol principles. Dampier had already conducted extensive experiments and developed significant insights.
As Dampier approached Arlong, he assumed his stance. He bent slightly at the knees, keeping his upper body perfectly straight and turned sideways toward his opponent. His sword arm bent slightly at the elbow, holding the rapier horizontally at chest height with the blade pointed directly at Arlong, almost parallel to the ground.
William's foundational understanding of swordsmanship came from Koushirou and the One-Sword Style. Although he had since experienced countless battles and encountered various sword styles—some unrefined, others with unique characteristics—William had begun refining his technique based on his own understanding, tailoring it to better complement his abilities.
Nevertheless, no matter how much he evolved, his foundation and initial impressions of swordsmanship remained deeply influenced by Koushirou. This influence ran so deep that William instinctively viewed techniques deviating from these principles as "inelegant."
To William's eye, Dampier's stance appeared somewhat "awkward," though he recognized its tactical merit.
Arlong, seeing that it wasn't William who had approached him, coughed and sneered. He felt both humiliated and enraged by what he perceived as dismissive treatment. Through gritted teeth, he growled, "You humans... so full of... tricks and schemes..."
Before Arlong could finish, Dampier struck. He was no gentleman—anyone capable of spearheading the development of the M.H.5 poison gas, even at William's suggestion, clearly possessed a ruthless streak. Seizing the moment when Arlong was distracted, Dampier launched his attack.
With a powerful push from his rear leg, Dampier propelled himself forward. It was as if an invisible hand had gripped the tip of his rapier, pulling it forward—as though the blade itself led the charge rather than the swordsman. His elbow, shoulder, and center of gravity all surged forward in perfect unison, driven by an unstoppable momentum.
A flash like lightning cut through the air as the gleaming tip of Dampier's rapier shot toward Arlong's abdomen with blinding speed.
The velocity of Dampier's thrust was astonishing. William could clearly see that while Dampier's stance offered no advantage for slashing attacks, it allowed him to channel his entire body's strength into a devastating thrust.
Moreover, Dampier had incorporated elements of the Finger Pistol technique. Combined with Arlong's compromised state—his breathing labored and eyes burning from the effects of the M.H.5 poison—the fish-man was caught off guard. Though he managed to twist his body slightly, he couldn't fully evade the attack. Dampier's rapier pierced cleanly through his side.
Arlong let out an agonized scream as Dampier swiftly withdrew his blade. His body, which had extended fully for the thrust, retracted with remarkable speed. Like a compressed spring suddenly released, he immediately launched another lightning-fast thrust toward Arlong's left chest.
This time, however, Arlong was prepared. He responded in a way that stunned everyone present, including William.
Arlong lowered his head and opened his massive jaws, clamping down on the blade itself.
With shark-like teeth that were both razor-sharp and incredibly strong, and with a bite force far exceeding that of humans, Arlong snapped Dampier's rapier in half. His face contorted into a feral grin as he lunged at the now unarmed Dampier.
Arlong's nose, resembling that of a sawshark, was as hard as steel and could easily clash with bladed weapons. Combined with his immense strength, his nose became a fearsome weapon capable of impaling enemies with the same deadly efficiency as the Finger Pistol technique.
Just as Arlong was about to skewer Dampier as he had countless enemies before, a sudden explosion rang out. A wave of heat swept through the air, momentarily blinding the fish-man. When his vision cleared, he found William standing directly before him, the Wado Ichimonji already drawn, its blade intercepting Arlong's nose.
To Arlong's shock, the tremendous strength he had always taken such pride in proved utterly ineffective against this human.
"Arlong," William said with a cold smile, "I won't kill all your comrades. I still have use for them. But precisely because of that, I'll need your head."
As the words left his mouth, William moved with lightning speed. His hand transformed into steam, growing massive as it enveloped Arlong's head and covered his eyes.
Arlong's eyes, already tortured by the poison gas, now suffered the searing pain of high-temperature steam. Before he could even cry out in agony, Aramis, who had been observing from the sidelines, suddenly sprang into action.
Aramis charged forward, drawing his blade mid-stride. With a single, fluid motion, he raised his sword high and brought it down with devastating precision.
Shing!
William stepped back two paces, Arlong's severed head still clutched in his steaming hand. Before him, Arlong's headless body spun once before collapsing to the ground. Blood gushed from the severed neck, rapidly forming a crimson pool beneath the corpse.
Having terrorized the East Blue for years after arriving from the Grand Line, the fish-man pirate Arlong, with a bounty of 20 million Beli, met his end that day in the very waters he had sought to dominate.
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