Barjes froze for a moment at Laina's casual taunt.
He stood there speechless, staring at the blond man's face full of disdain.
A flush of anger crept up his neck until it reached his ears.
"You arrogant brat! Name yourself! I'll make you pay for that mouth of yours!"
"Hey—no need to wait. Come on."
Laina smirked and crooked a finger at him.
"Strike while it's hot—come get your face smashed."
"Bastard! You dare look down on me!? Fine! I'll crush you into meat paste today!!"
Barjes gritted his teeth, took a long step forward, bent his knees, and launched himself with explosive force.
His massive right arm drew back across his chest and shot forward in a devastating elbow strike.
But before he even reached Laina—
A blur burst from the shadows behind him!
"Who—?!"
Barjes had no time to react.
Blue Oni's round shield slammed into him with crushing force.
BOOM!
The charging Barjes crashed face-first into the obsidian-shaded shield.
His flesh seemed to ripple like mud hitting a wall. A few bloody teeth flew from his mouth as his eyes rolled back, nearly knocking him out cold.
Blue Oni's arm flexed again, muscles bulging as he hammered forward.
Air itself rippled from the force.
In the next instant, Barjes was sent flying like an arrow loosed from a bowstring—skimming across the ground, smashing through several buildings before finally collapsing amid a cloud of debris.
Laina didn't even flinch.
Barjes, at this point in the timeline, didn't even have his strange mechanical arm.
All he had was brute strength and some decent fighting technique.
Against monsters like Blue Oni and Red Oni—whose physical might and centuries of combat experience forged them into living weapons—he was outclassed.
Sure, later he'd eat the Strength-Strength Fruit and lift a mountain, but… as Diamond Jozu would say—
"Do you really need a Devil Fruit for that? You've got hands, don't you?"
"Die!!"
A rasping roar broke out.
From the side, Poison Q hurled several of his explosive apples!
Another blur appeared—Red Oni this time.
He raised his greatsword and swung, creating a blast of wind so strong that the bombs were blown right back.
"W–Wait!!" Poison Q screamed.
Too late.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
The apples detonated around him.
Laina just sneered.
"That's all you've got? Pathetic. Red Oni—clean him up!"
He never underestimated anyone—especially not the Blackbeard crew.
Even Poison Q, frail and coughing blood, wasn't simple.
In this world, coughing blood barely counted as a scratch.
"Over here!"
A shout came from behind the smoke.
Barjes had returned—blood trickling from his mouth, but still full of fight.
"Hey, you damn plague! You still alive?!" he barked at Poison Q.
For all his insults, he didn't plan on abandoning his crewmate.
At least, not until things got truly hopeless.
"Cough—of course! It'll take more than that to kill me... cough cough..."
The two stood side by side, covered in dust, glaring at Blue and Red Oni.
"We're with the Blackbeard Pirates," Barjes growled.
"Who the hell are you guys!? I've never heard of you before!"
Laina's eyes lit up. Time for his favorite part.
He stepped forward and declared dramatically:
"We may be unknown now, but remember these names! Blue Oni and Red Oni! Someday, they'll shake the New World to its core!"
Barjes snorted through the blood on his lips.
"Blue and Red Oni, huh? Hah! Big talk—but that punch… damn, it nearly broke all my ribs."
Behind him, Poison Q slowly unwrapped the long object he carried on his back, revealing the dark glint of his scythe-like weapon.
"Heh… if I'm still alive," Poison Q rasped, "then it means fate isn't done with me yet... cough…"
"Hope your fate's as strong as your nonsense!" Barjes bellowed and charged again.
Laina smirked.
"Guess some people just don't learn."
Blue Oni and Red Oni shot forward beside him, wind howling around them.
Meanwhile—far away, atop a clock tower overlooking the town—
a man in a crescent-moon hat and elegant black coat crouched with a long rifle resting on his shoulder.
Through his monocle scope, Van Augur, sniper of the Blackbeard Pirates, watched the chaos unfold.
"Didn't expect to find someone this strong here," he muttered.
"Those two idiots may be troublemakers, but if they die, the captain won't be pleased."
He adjusted his aim.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
The shots were silent—no muzzle flash, no sound.
Bullets cut through the air faster than wind itself.
Blue Oni's sword slashed deep across Barjes' chest, leaving a gory wound.
Red Oni's kick came down like thunder, snapping both of Barjes' forearms despite his guard.
"AAAAHHH!!!"
As Barjes screamed, three sparks flared—one right behind Laina.
Blue Oni and Red Oni raised their weapons just in time to deflect the bullets.
Even Laina's shadow formed a barrier of dark sand infused with Armament Haki, catching the last shot midair.
He turned his head slowly toward the distant clock tower.
Through the rising dust, he could clearly see the man on the rooftop.
"Van Augur, huh," Laina murmured. "Sniper of the Blackbeard Pirates. Guy could hit a seagull from an island away."
He smirked.
"Well, guess I'll return the favor."
He raised a pale spectral spear—its tip glowing with eerie blue light.
"One big happy family should stay together."
He hurled it.
RUMBLE!!!
Twin spears of death streaked across the sky.
A heartbeat later—
BOOOOOM!!!
The entire clock tower exploded into rubble!
Laina clapped his hands together.
"Alright, we're done here. Let's go meet up with Sanji."
He gathered his supplies and walked off, leaving the shattered ruins behind.
The Blackbeard Pirates were dangerous—but right now, they were still weak.
Aside from Teach himself, the rest were just getting started.
To be fair, so were they.
Only his undead—Blue Oni, Red Oni, and the Mage Wraiths—had real power.
The rest of the crew, including Laina himself, were still just small fish in the Grand Line.
He chuckled.
"Yeah… too green to get cocky. The road's still long."
"Oi! Laina! Over here!"
Sanji's voice called out.
He came jogging up, arms full of food bags, a huge black bear slung over his shoulder.
"Oh, nice haul."
"Thought I heard explosions," Sanji said, shrugging. "Anyway, I picked this guy up—heard it took three pirates to bring him down. Perfect for dinner with the apemen."
"Always thinking ahead, huh? Let's head back."
They followed the map toward the shore.
On the way, they passed a crowd gathered around a destroyed street corner.
"What happened here?"
"This was Executioner Rossio's turf, right? Looks like a warzone."
"No—it was Bellamy! The Hyena Bellamy did this!"
"What?! Rossio had a bounty of forty-two million! Bellamy killed him?!"
Curiosity piqued, Laina and Sanji listened quietly, piecing together the story.
Laina tapped a young man on the shoulder.
"Hey, brother, mind telling me where Bellamy's crew hangs out?"
"Whoa! You scared the hell out of me!" the guy yelped.
Laina slipped a few Berries into his shirt pocket with a polite smile.
"I just want to know."
The young man hesitated, then nodded knowingly.
"Ahh, got it—you want to join them, huh? Well, Bellamy's crew is vicious, man. You don't really look the type…"
He coughed awkwardly, then added,
"Their base is down by the coast—the Tropical Hotel. They've got the whole place to themselves. Actually, they just headed that way."
"Appreciate it."
Laina waved and started walking.
"Hey!" the young man shouted after them. "Don't say I didn't warn you! You'll get yourselves killed!"
"Relax—we're not going there! Thanks, brother!"
Laina and Sanji waved without looking back, the little twin-tailed girl trotting between them as they walked toward the Going Merry.
As they passed another street—
A booming, carefree laugh echoed from the tavern ahead:
"THE NEW AGE, THEY CALL IT—BUT IT'S NOTHING BUT CRAP! ZEHAHAHA!!"
A MAN'S DREAM—
WILL NEVER DIE!!