At that moment, Arlong was brimming with killing intent.
He grabbed the fish-man by the neck, roaring with a twisted expression, "What nonsense are you spouting?!"
"How could a lowly human possibly eat our comrades?!"
The fish-man trembled in terror, pointing shakily toward the gate. "B-Boss Arlong, it's true! That guy is right outside… he just turned my arm into honey-glazed fish meat!"
He had seen the gruesome scene with his own eyes—his comrade being eaten—and was utterly traumatized by that demon.
As his voice fell—
BOOM—!!!
The courtyard gates were kicked open, massive stones blasted apart, wood splintered, and dust filled the air.
At the same time, several mutilated bodies were hurled in.
They were clearly the fish-man guards—missing limbs and drenched in blood.
Outside was already a warzone. The corpses of fish-men littered the ground, heads cleaved clean off.
"Turns out fish-men are fish after all… not bad flavor."
A deep, eerie voice echoed from the smoke, as a tall figure slowly approached.
"Ahhh!!! That's him! That's the human who ate our comrades!!"
The released fish-man collapsed to the ground, scrambling backward in panic.
Arlong narrowed his eyes and stood from the lounger, his expression grim as he turned toward the gate.
Kuroobi readied his stance, muscles taut.
Hachi summoned six swords out of thin air, his expression hostile.
Chew took his hands out of his pockets, dropping his lazy act to reveal a rare seriousness.
All the fish-men gathered at the edge of the courtyard, poised to strike.
They could feel it—this intruder wasn't ordinary.
Just the dense killing aura around him was enough to set them on edge.
Then—
From within the swirling smoke, the towering figure emerged.
Jin, carrying a piece of roasted fish meat, strolled in unhurriedly.
As the dust cleared—
A sea of monstrous fish-men glared at him with both fear and hatred.
His eyes swept across the crowd.
Finally, his gaze landed on Arlong by the poolside.
A smirk slowly spread across Jin's face.
"Arlong, I'm your daddy."
???
That bastard!!
Arlong's face turned darker, but he didn't respond to the provocation. The killing intent in his eyes surged, yet a flicker of dread gnawed at his heart.
Because this carefree human… reminded him of that sly old marine.
—The old monkey who'd crushed him like it was nothing.
That suffocating, soul-crushing pressure… he'd never forgotten it.
Jin, seeing Arlong stay silent, kept walking casually toward him.
"And to think a bunch of lowly fish-men dare to swagger around human territory?"
"How laughable... You've seriously forgotten your place."
Shave—!
Jin's figure vanished.
The next instant—SLAP!
A resounding smack landed across Arlong's face, sending him flying through the air.
"Boss Arlong!!"
"Damn human scum, how dare you lay a hand on our boss?!"
"Kill him!!"
The fish-men snapped out of it and charged forward, roaring with rage.
Crack! Crack! Crack!
Streaks of dark-red lightning flashed through the air. The attacking fish-men froze mid-charge and collapsed instantly, eyes rolled back in unconsciousness.
"What?!"
The fish-man officers looked on in shock.
None of them had expected this human to knock out half their comrades with just aura.
Jin was unfazed, calmly withdrawing his Conqueror's Haki.
Seeing Arlong lying against the wall, grim-faced, Jin walked toward him with a smile.
"Hiding from reality, playing warlord in the weakest of the Four Seas… you've worked hard."
"What's wrong? Still think fish-men are born superior to humans?"
"Stop deluding yourself. Fish-men were always the lowest of the low."
"This truth… surely Kizaru taught you that."
Arlong's expression darkened to coal. Clutching his face, he staggered to his feet.
Then he glared at Jin and shouted in hatred, "Damn human! You've pissed me off—today you die!"
Hearing that—
Jin's grin deepened.
Without another word, he began walking toward Arlong.
"Stop right there!"
Before Arlong could move, Kuroobi stepped forward with a snort, blocking the way.
"You lowborn scum. If you want to touch Arlong, you'll have to get through me first!"
As he spoke, Kuroobi braced himself, ready to strike as soon as Jin approached.
Fish-Man Karate: Thousand Tile True Punch!
With a roar, Kuroobi unleashed his ultimate technique, aiming straight for Jin's chest.
BANG!!!
But instead of dealing damage, the massive rebound snapped Kuroobi's arm. He staggered backward, eyes wide in disbelief.
"H-How is that possible?!"
The searing pain contorted his expression as he cradled his broken arm.
Jin, frowning slightly at the weak punch, muttered, "You're that weak and still want to act tough?"
"Shut up! Don't look down on me!!"
Face twisted in rage, Kuroobi lunged again—only for Jin's figure to vanish.
AGHHH!!
A sharp, agonizing pain made Kuroobi scream.
He looked down—both hands had been severed at the wrist, blood gushing like fountains.
W-What the…
Silence fell across the courtyard.
Hachi and the others had been watching closely, but none had seen how Jin attacked.
Arlong, standing behind Kuroobi, stared in horror at the blade on Jin's waist.
He had seen it clearly.
In an instant, Jin had slashed Kuroobi's arms clean off, resheathed his sword, and appeared ten meters away.
As easy as slicing tofu—what was that weapon?
How could such a monster exist in the "weakest" East Blue?
Just then—
Kuroobi looked up in terror as Jin slowly turned around and walked toward him.
Each step felt like a nail into his soul.
Then Jin suddenly sped up.
Kuroobi screamed and collapsed onto the ground, trembling.
This once-proud officer had completely lost his nerve.
"Look into my eyes. Why are you running?"
Jin leaned in close like a demon, face-to-face with Kuroobi. "Answer me!!!"
The sudden roar made Kuroobi's pupils dilate in fear.
He screamed, scrambling backward, "D-Don't come near me!!!"
"So pitiful for a fish-man."
Jin stepped on Kuroobi's back and murmured with regret, "You'll never know the joy of spicy braised fish."
Flame Fist!
BOOM—!
A torrent of fire engulfed Kuroobi as Jin's fist crashed down.
His screams echoed briefly before being snuffed out, his body engulfed in flames.
A charred aroma rose from his fishy corpse. He was gone.
At the mansion gates, Nami, Kaya, and Nojiko watched in awe, hands covering their mouths in shock.
And in perfect unison, they gasped:
"He's amazing!" ×3
[End of Chapter]