"Bastard!!"
"You damn bastard!!"
"Damn Straw Hat Boy!"
"Damn Ninja!"
Moria roared in fury, wishing he could devour Luffy and Meiser alive.
But he knew he had to find a way to stop Oars now—otherwise, falling into the sea would be the end.
Yet Oars was suspended midair with no leverage, helplessly watching as they drew closer to the ocean.
"No... We absolutely cannot fall into the sea..."
If Oars fell into the sea, he would follow.
At that point, it wouldn't just be about the zombies being purified—he would drown along with them!
He hadn't even avenged his comrades yet—he couldn't die here!
Driven by sheer desperation, Moria frantically searched for a way to survive.
Then, an idea flashed through his mind.
"Oars, use the power of rubber!"
"But..."
"NOW!!"
Though he didn't understand why his master was ordering this, Oars obeyed, relying on the vague memories in his mind to activate the power of the Gomu-Gomu Fruit.
"Rubber... Twin Spears!!"
His enormous legs stretched downward like rubber, plunging deep into the ground below.
But due to inertia, his body didn't stop—it kept flying forward.
"Pull back!"
With an anchor point secured, Moria immediately used the power of the Shadow-Shadow Fruit to reel Oars in.
"BOOM!!"
Seawater erupted as part of Oars' upper body plunged into the ocean.
A massive tidal wave surged, flooding a portion of the forest!
"Gurgle gurgle gurgle..."
Lying on his back, Oars instinctively gulped down seawater, the sound nearly giving Moria a heart attack.
If he swallowed too much, even a zombie as massive as Oars would be purified!
Glancing at the rising seawater now past his knees, Moria bellowed, "You bastard, get back here!"
"Vwoom—"
The Shadow-Shadow Fruit's power activated, and Oars' stretched legs rapidly retracted, forcibly dragging him out of the sea.
"Cough... cough..."
Back on land, Oars gasped for air, overwhelmed by the relief of survival.
"That... that was close..."
"Whew..."
Moria exhaled deeply—his precious Oars hadn't been purified.
After going through so much to revive him, he couldn't let him turn back into a corpse.
"Seems Moria has some tricks up his sleeve," Meiser remarked from the other side of the forest, narrowing his eyes. "Luffy, you saw that, right?"
"Yeah."
Though he didn't understand why Oars also had the power of the Gomu-Gomu Fruit, that alone wasn't enough to defeat them.
At the end of the day, he was just a cheap imitation.
Casually tossing the Grass Sword to Meiser, Luffy said, "Meiser, throw me over!"
"Got it!"
Meiser caught the sword with his left hand and swiftly enlarged it using the Expansion Technique.
Then, with his right hand open, he caught Luffy and made a throwing motion, saying, "Don't you dare fall into the sea, kid."
"Got it!"
Muscles bulging, Meiser aimed at Oars and hurled Luffy with all his might!
"Nightmare Meteor!!"
"Whoosh~"
Like a cannonball, Luffy shot through the air at an incredible speed, rapidly closing in on Moria in the distance.
"Moria!!"
"You bastard, you think I'll fall for that trick again?!" Moria roared. "Take him out, Oars!"
"Oargh!!"
Oars bellowed, swinging his massive arm back and flinging it forward. His enormous limb spun wildly through the air like a rubber arm before smashing toward Luffy!
"Rubber Revolver!!"
"Boom!!"
Their fists collided mid-air with such force that the resulting shockwave sent trees flying in every direction!
"Guh..." Moria's face twisted as he felt the tremors. "Why does this brat have so much power?!"
Upon closer inspection, he realized what was happening—the boy had used shadows to enhance his strength?!
In other words, he'd turned Moria's own Devil Fruit ability against him?
The thought filled Moria with rage.
"Damn you, Straw Hat Boy! Oars, knock him away!"
"Yes, Master!" Oars roared. "Straw Hat Boy, you... get lost!!"
"You're the one who's getting lost!!" Luffy shot back. "Moria, I'm gonna send you flying!!"
This bastard hadn't just stolen their shadows—he'd tried to take away his most important nakama... There was no way Luffy would tolerate that!
"Dammit, why is his strength...?"
Oars' expression changed as his arm was gradually pushed back. How could this tiny runt overpower him?!
"Boom!!"
In the end, Luffy's superior strength won out. His devastating punch sent Oars skidding backward toward the coastline, on the verge of plunging into the sea!
"Again?! You're really trying to purify my Oars?!" Moria snarled. "Not happening!!"
"Crash!!"
As Moria's voice rang out, shadows surged from the ground, forming an enormous curtain of darkness.
"Thud!"
Oars' colossal body slammed into the shadowy barrier, distorting it to the point of near-shattering.
"Oars, you idiot, push harder!!" Moria yelled.
"Oargh!"
Drawing strength from the force behind him, Oars raised his fist and smashed it into the ground.
"Kaboom!!"
The impact was so tremendous it carved out a massive crater.
"Phew..."
Finally, through their combined efforts, they came to a stop right at the water's edge.
"That was too close..."
Oars glanced at the seawater lapping at his heels and sighed in relief. He hated the feeling of falling into the ocean—the taste of saltwater was awful.
"Oars, hurry! We need to get back to the for—"
Before Moria could finish, an enormous sword appeared in the distant sky.
And that sword was none other than Meiser's Grass Sword!
"Thud!!"
The sharp Grass Sword pierced straight through Oars' chest!!
Even though the weapon began shrinking the moment it struck Oars, the tremendous momentum still sent him flying backward toward the sea!!
"It's over..."
Moria's face paled. He knew his Oars was lost.
At this distance, even if he wanted to use his Shadow powers to pull Oars back, it would be impossible—Oars was simply too heavy!!
Now he had to make a choice: either fall into the sea together or leave immediately.
In the end, Moria chose the latter.
After one last glance at Oars' body, Moria gritted his teeth and manipulated his own Shadow to withdraw from Oars'. Just before the Shadow crossed the coastline, Moria swiftly dashed to the shore.
"Damn it!!"
"Damn it all!!"
"Shadow Dancer!!"
With a roar, Moria's body instantly swapped places with his Shadow, returning to the coastline.
His Shadow, now inside Oars' body, transformed into a swarm of bats. They burst out of Oars just before he hit the sea, flying through the air back toward Moria.
The next moment...
"BOOM!!"
Like an enormous, terrifying bomb, Oars crashed violently into the distant sea, sending up a massive spray of water!
"Oh no..."
Watching the towering wave rushing toward him, Moria's face turned pale. If he took that hit head-on, wouldn't he be finished by the seawater?!
His mind raced, and Moria quickly thought of a way to survive.
"Shadow Rope!"
"Whoosh~"
The Shadow in midair rapidly morphed into an enormous bat, lowering a rope made of shadows.
Moria grabbed the rope and was swiftly pulled toward the forest, escaping the incoming tidal wave.
Meanwhile, Luffy instinctively retreated from the oncoming wave, but without the ability to fly, there was no way to avoid the seawater's assault.
"Damn it..."
"BOOM!!"
With a deafening crash, Luffy was swallowed by the massive wave, struggling helplessly in the water.
The next moment, an enormous figure appeared—Meiser, who had just arrived!
Ignoring the waves crashing against him, Meiser scanned the water, searching for Luffy.
"Found you!"
Spotting Luffy, Meiser swiftly reached into the sea with his massive hand, grabbing Luffy with precision.
"Thud!"
"Cough... cough..."
Pulled out by Meiser, Luffy coughed violently, his Nightmare state nearly collapsing.
"Are you okay?"
"Co... cough... I'm... fine..."
Lying in Meiser's palm, Luffy desperately coughed up the seawater he'd inhaled, finally feeling better.
"Thanks, Meiser," Luffy said with a relieved sigh.
For a moment, he'd thought he was going to drown.
"As long as you're alright."
"Damn you, Straw Hat Boy! Damn you, Ninja Meiser! This isn't over!!" Moria roared.
Seeing Meiser here as well, Moria abandoned his last shred of hope.
Even if Oars could swim back up, this ninja would never let him return to shore alive.
Oars being purified... had become inevitable.
At this thought, Moria felt an unbearable heartache.
Hearing Moria's furious roar, the two looked up at him in the air.
"This guy's Shadow-Shadow Fruit abilities are truly something else," Meiser remarked.
He could actually fly?
Though he hadn't grown wings, gaining flight capability was still incredibly impressive.
"Moria!" Luffy stood up and shouted, "Our fight isn't over yet!"
"Catch me first if you can!"
With that, Moria decisively manipulated his shadow to fly toward the castle.
As a Devil Fruit user, fighting ninjas near the sea was too disadvantageous—he needed to get away from the coastline.
'That Straw Hat Boy used shadows to enhance his body—not a bad idea,' Moria thought coldly. 'But I'm the Shadow-Shadow Fruit user! The power I can wield far surpasses his!'
With this in mind, Moria yelled, "Straw Hat Boy, come after me if you dare!"
Once he defeated these pests, he'd figure out how to recover Oars' body.
"Just wait, Moria! I'll knock you flying!!" Luffy bellowed.
Then, Luffy leaped up, stretched his arm to grab Meiser's, and catapulted himself forward.
"Whoosh—"
Like a cannonball, Luffy shot after Moria.
"Splash... splash..."
The moment Luffy left, the sea began churning violently. Oars' massive body surged up from beneath the waves, thrashing wildly as if struggling to swim back to shore.
"Damn it, I hate seawater the most!"
"He wasn't purified after all...?" Meiser muttered in surprise.
Watching Oars desperately swimming back, Meiser narrowed his eyes.
If salt could purify zombies, seawater should have the same effect. Yet Oars remained unpurified... Had he not ingested enough?
Glancing at Oars, still full of vigor, Meiser wondered if he had held his breath in time, avoiding swallowing too much seawater.
Or perhaps... as zombies, they didn't need oxygen like living beings, so their intake of seawater was naturally limited.
If that were the case, simply throwing him into the sea wouldn't be enough to purify him.
"You damn bastards, just wait till I get up there!" Oars growled.
"Gurgle..."
"I'll help my master crush you!"
"Gurgle..."
Realizing that speaking made him swallow more water, Oars shut his mouth and stopped wasting words.
Paddling with his arms and legs, he began moving across the sea, charging toward the shore.
Meiser paid no mind to Oars' threats. Instead, he walked to the shoreline and dispelled his Expansion Technique.
Eyeing the Grass Sword still embedded in Oars' body, Meiser said, "I don't know if you need to breathe, but... leaving you to soak in seawater for a while should solve the problem."
"BOOM!!"
A deafening crash echoed as Oars' massive palm slammed onto the shore, leaving a giant hand-shaped crater in the ground.
"Pant... pant... Finally made it to land..."
Oars let out a long sigh, then noticed the now-shrunken Meiser. His expression instantly turned to shock as he exclaimed, "Huh?!!"
"You've gotten so small?!"
Oars stared at Meiser in utter disbelief, completely unable to process what had happened. Just moments ago, the man had been a Giant like himself—how had he turned into such a tiny speck?
"I told you, I'm a Ninja. Did you forget?"
"So cool!!"
"Can you show me that trick again?!" Oars asked excitedly.
Seeing Oars' genuine enthusiasm, Meiser suddenly smiled. Even with his lost memories, this guy's personality was just like Luffy's.
But... he had no interest in continuing this fight with Oars.
With the ocean at their feet, victory was already his.
"Hey, Oars."
"How about I show you something even more interesting?"
As he spoke, Meiser stepped onto the surface of the water, leaving Oars utterly stunned.
"You... you can stand on the sea?!" Oars gasped in amazement.
For a moment, he even forgot about climbing back to shore, simply gaping at Meiser in awe.
Then, Oars exclaimed eagerly, "Is this also the power of a Ninja?"
"Incredible!"
If he could stand on water too, wouldn't that mean he'd never have to worry about falling into the ocean?
"Exactly—this is also a Ninja's power," Meiser confirmed with a nod.
"Now that's really fun!" Oars laughed heartily.
But he quickly snapped back to reality, glancing toward the forest. "Oh right, now's not the time for this. My master ordered me to take you down."
As he spoke, Oars began struggling to climb back ashore, intending to resume their battle on land.
Unfortunately, Meiser had no intention of giving him that chance.
"Listen carefully, Oars. The sea is roaring."
"What?"
Oars gave Meiser a puzzled look, not understanding his meaning.
But soon, Oars sensed something was wrong—the ocean surface began trembling violently, as if some terrifying beast were stirring beneath. His expression darkened. Was something down there about to attack him?
The next instant...
"BOOM!!"
The sea erupted as several massive torrents of water surged upward, rapidly coiling around Oars.
"THUD!!"
The water slammed into Oars, knocking him off balance and sending his head plunging back underwater.
"Gurgle gurgle..."
The sudden assault enraged Oars, but before he could react, he realized he was airborne.
"Huh?"
Baffled, Oars instinctively looked up—only to freeze in shock. Why was he floating midair, completely encased in seawater?
"BOOM!!"
"Super Water Prison Technique!"
Meiser's calm voice rang out as he stood effortlessly on the waves.
Just like that, a colossal water sphere over a hundred meters in diameter trapped the massive Oars entirely underwater, ensuring every inch of him was submerged.
Sensing the danger, Oars thrashed desperately. But the Super Water Prison Technique's binding force was terrifyingly potent—designed specifically to restrain enormous creatures. Even Oars couldn't break free immediately.
Moreover... Meiser wouldn't give him any chance to escape!
"Enjoy the taste of seawater, Oars!" Meiser shouted.
Under the influence of Chakra, the seawater within the water prison began forcing its way into Oars' mouth, flooding his body.
Even as Oars desperately clenched his jaws shut, he couldn't stop the water's invasion. The gaps between his teeth were simply too large!
"Gurgle gurgle..."
With massive amounts of seawater entering his body, Oars' fate was sealed.
'Damn it, I...'
Sensing the danger, Oars struggled even more violently, but it still couldn't stop the seawater from filling him.
As time passed, Oars felt his body growing weaker and his consciousness fading.
Am... am I going to die?
Master... I'm sorry. I failed the mission you gave me.
With these final thoughts, Oars' consciousness sank into darkness, and his body became nothing more than a corpse.
At that moment, Luffy's shadow emerged from Oars' mouth, swiftly escaping the seawater and flying into the distance.
Watching the receding shadow, Meiser remarked, "I see. Once separated, shadows aren't afraid of seawater after all."
This was just as well—it saved him the trouble of having to retrieve the shadow.
Shaking his head, Meiser dispelled the water prison technique, allowing Oars' massive body to return to the ocean's surface.
"BOOM!!"
With a tremendous crash, Oars' enormous corpse struck the sea, sending massive waves surging outward.
Meiser immediately leaped into the air to avoid the waves while activating his Sharingan to locate his Grass Sword on Oars' body.
Once he found it, he landed on Oars and pulled out the Grass Sword just before the giant sank beneath the waves.
"Relying on zombies to become the Pirate King..." Back on shore, Meiser shook his head. "Moria really is naive."
Creatures with such obvious weaknesses were meaningless against true power—they were only good for clearing out small fry.
After sheathing his Grass Sword, Meiser glanced toward the castle, where the sounds of battle could now be heard.
Clearly, Luffy and Moria had resumed their fight.
"Let's go take a look."
With a swift motion, Meiser activated the Body Flicker Technique and vanished.
Meanwhile, Kuma, who had witnessed everything, frowned deeply.
"The power to control seawater..." he murmured. "What a terrifying ninja..."
Fighting someone like that at sea would be a severe disadvantage—he was practically the natural enemy of Devil Fruit users!
Most importantly, Kuma suspected Meiser might not even be a Devil Fruit Ability User.
When he had gone to catch the Straw Hat Boy, Meiser had waded through seawater, letting the waves crash against him without any reaction.
Was it sheer willpower... or was he truly not a Devil Fruit user at all?
Instinctively, Kuma pulled out Meiser's Wanted Poster again, his eyes lingering on the words "Capture Alive."
It was clear that the World Government didn't want this kid killed—they wanted him alive... which likely had something to do with his abilities.
Not to mention... the orders the Five Elders had given him not long ago... There was a real chance this guy might possess some kind of special bloodline!
Not someone who gained abilities by eating a Devil Fruit, but a person who inherently possesses various special powers!!
This explains why the World Government wants to obtain them.
They desire the power to wield formidable Release Techniques without relying on Devil Fruits!
Especially... the Water Release that can manipulate the sea!
"No wonder the Five Elders thought of using the Royal Seven Warlords of the Sea to tempt that kid," Kuma muttered. "But... your plans will likely fall through."
Recalling how Meiser had unhesitatingly declared, 'Luffy is the man who will become the Pirate King,' just moments ago, Kuma's lips curled upward uncontrollably.
Would a man like that willingly become a pawn of the World Government?
He... absolutely didn't believe it!
Of course, there were still some things he needed to do.
With that thought, Kuma vanished from the spot in an instant