As they moved through the untamed jungle behind Whole Cake Island, Roger suddenly came to a halt. Rayleigh, walking right behind him, nearly bumped into his back.
Seeing their captain stop so abruptly, the rest of the group immediately grew alert, eyes scanning the surroundings with caution.
Rayleigh asked carefully, "What is it? Did you sense something, Roger?"
Roger rubbed the corner of his eye and muttered, "My eyelid's been twitching. Feels like something's about to go wrong."
"Huh?" Rayleigh's mouth twitched at the answer. "Don't start with that nonsense. It's about to get dark—perfect timing for us to act…"
Roger looked up through the gaps in the thick canopy. A heavy cloud overhead was starting to break apart, and faint moonlight began to peek through, mingling with the last glow of sunset.
"Might rain tomorrow…" Roger said with a grin.
"Speaking of which, it's a full moon tonight," Gaban added, smiling as well.
Without wasting more time, the group pressed forward through the forest.
Strong fighters had sharp senses, but even so, Roger and the others didn't dare to extend their Observation Haki too far. If they accidentally caught Charlotte Linlin in their range, she might detect them. So instead, they limited their Haki to a few hundred meters, relying mainly on Roger's unique ability to hear the voice of all things as they gauged their surroundings.
...
Elsewhere in the same dense jungle, Charlotte Linlin leaned against a large tree with her arms crossed. The fading light of dusk fell just right, casting a soft glow on the ends of her pink hair.
Tonight, she wore a brown pirate captain's hat, the brim wrapped with a blue scarf dotted in pale yellow spots. Cherry-shaped earrings dangled from her ears, and her striking face combined with her curvaceous figure made it hard to believe she was in her early forties—and a mother of several children.
There was no denying it: at this moment, Charlotte Linlin was the kind of formidable woman rarely seen on the seas—one who embodied both power and beauty.
Not far from her, Ortoren sat cross-legged on the ground. His upper body was bare, showing off a muscular, towering frame. He wore black utility pants and a pair of high-top leather boots. The wild, imposing aura he gave off was unmistakable. His war hammer stood upright beside him, the head resting on the ground near his hand.
It was clear that Ortoren was growing restless. A crimson glint occasionally flashed in his eyes, and the typically composed and noble look on his face was beginning to twist with flashes of ferocity.
The full moon was nearly upon them, and Ortoren was already starting to lose control. He was holding back the frenzy in his bloodline with sheer willpower.
Perhaps to help Ortoren calm his rising aggression, Charlotte Linlin glanced at the war hammer beside him and asked casually, "Come to think of it, I never asked—have you named it yet?"
"I... haven't decided..." Ortoren replied, struggling to keep his emotions in check.
"Then how about... Angry Bull? Suits you pretty well, doesn't it? Mamamama..." Charlotte Linlin teased with a loud laugh.
"Shut your mouth, old hag!" Ortoren suddenly snapped, cursing harshly.
Charlotte Linlin paused for a beat, then a wicked grin crept onto her face. "Looks like your rationality is starting to crumble, my dear son. In a moment, Mama—the 'old hag'—will make sure you learn your lesson..."
Ortoren didn't respond. He clenched his fists tightly, fighting the frenzy rising from deep within. As his muscles tensed, veins bulged across his skin, throbbing with pressure.
Charlotte Linlin could feel it—his aura was growing more intense by the second, and the wild, violent energy surrounding him only got stronger. Her expression turned serious. The very air seemed to shift with tension, and even the wind rustling through the trees quieted down.
Then, the clouds veiling the full moon finally parted, and the last trace of dusk sank into the sea.
Silver moonlight streamed down, filtered through the forest canopy, landing squarely on Ortoren.
In that instant, the savage instinct inside him could no longer be held back. Ortoren's eyes flared crimson. The power of the full moon surged through his body, and the blood of the Mink Tribe erupted from within.
The Sulong had awakened!
Almost instantly, Ortoren's dark brown hair turned white and began to grow rapidly, becoming a wild, lion-like mane that draped over his shoulders and reached his lower back.
The horns on his temples twisted and extended, taking on a fearsome, demonic shape. His already massive frame became even more muscular and imposing—each muscle twitching as if it had come alive!
"Hrrraaagh..." Ortoren let out a deep, guttural growl—his last shred of humanity gone. What stood now was a beast. A monster.
His scarlet eyes burned with madness—filled with nothing but bloodlust and destruction.
In a flash, his gaze locked onto Charlotte Linlin. He grabbed the handle of his war hammer.
The moment he moved, a dense coat of Armament Haki enveloped Charlotte Linlin's arm.
The next second, Ortoren lunged like a wild beast, swinging his war hammer with brutal force straight at Charlotte Linlin's head.
Whether it was the speed or the sheer power, as the war hammer cut through the air, it tore the silence apart with a thunderous crack, as if it could crush everything in its path.
It was a devastating blow. With Ortoren's innate strength, the madness of Sulong, and the sheer weight of the hammer, even a warship would be smashed to pieces. Even a Giant warrior known for brute force would be killed instantly.
But Charlotte Linlin wasn't just anyone.
Despite Ortoren's speed, she reacted with perfect precision, raising a hand and catching the hammer's head mid-swing!
A dull boom echoed through the forest as a shockwave burst from the impact, bending nearby trees with the pressure.
The ground beneath Charlotte Linlin's feet cracked like a spiderweb. Chunks of earth and stone shot into the air, a massive cloud of dust rising with them—testament to the overwhelming force behind the blow.
"Is that all you inherited from me? That's nowhere near enough, Ortoren!" Charlotte Linlin's face was still twisted in a fierce grin as she mocked him.
But the words meant nothing. Ortoren's mind was already lost—he couldn't understand a thing.
His instincts, however, pushed him forward. After his first strike was blocked, he let out a furious roar, yanked the hammer back, and swung it around in a wide arc—once again aiming to crush Charlotte Linlin's skull.
Taking a beating—that was part of why he'd come here.
And Charlotte Linlin hadn't forgotten.
Even though Ortoren was fast, and even though he wielded a war hammer—the heaviest of weapons—in the eyes of a top-tier fighter like Charlotte Linlin, he still wasn't fast enough.
Before he could bring the hammer down, Charlotte Linlin countered.
She pressed one hand firmly on the hammer's head, halting it instantly, and with her other fist—coated in dense Armament Haki—she drove a punch straight into Ortoren's nose.
With just that one punch, Ortoren's head contorted, his features twisted grotesquely, and the bridge of his nose shattered with a sickening crack. Blood sprayed out, and the shock of the blow rippled through his massive frame, lifting him off the ground entirely.
The impact exploded through the forest. With his hammer still gripped in Charlotte Linlin's hand, Ortoren couldn't even hold onto his weapon. His whole body was launched like a cannonball, sent flying through the air by that one devastating punch!
"How was that? A little love from Mama—mamamama!"
...
(50 Chapters Ahead)
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