Seeing Souta Kiryuu—known as the raging dragon—charge forward with a massive serrated blade, even the fish-men who were used to oppressing Cocoyasi Village trembled. Their hands shook so violently that they could barely hold their weapons.
"I'll only help you this once!"
Boom!!
A surge of black-and-red lightning exploded outward. A wave of overwhelming Conqueror's Haki burst forth, sweeping through the battlefield. In an instant, the fish-men lackeys collapsed, their eyes rolling back as they fainted where they stood.
Even the three high-ranking officers—Hachi, Chuu, and Kuroobi—lasted less than two seconds before they too dropped unconscious along the path of Souta's advance.
"C-Conqueror's Haki?!"
Arlong's pupils shrank in shock as he scanned the crowd of villagers, desperately trying to find the source.
"No…! There's no way someone like this could exist in the backwaters of the East Blue…"
Unwilling to believe what he was witnessing, Arlong muttered these last words before his body gave out. He collapsed heavily, his enormous serrated blade clattering to the ground with a deafening crash that jolted the villagers awake.
"Arlong is down! Arlong has fallen! Hurry—kill him now!!"
The villagers, realizing what had just happened, erupted with emotion. They surged forward, venting eight years of pent-up rage and hatred on their fallen oppressor and his crew.
The darkness that had gripped Cocoyasi Village for so long… would finally end today.
"The East Blue overlord, Arlong, worth 20 million berries, just collapsed… just like that!"
Karina stood frozen, staring in disbelief at the unconscious Arlong. There hadn't been a fight, not even a touch of physical combat—just one overwhelming glance, and the monster who had ruled them for years had fallen.
It was utterly inconceivable.
Turning her head to look for Souta Kiryuu, Karina's heart skipped. He had vanished. Panic and disappointment welled up inside her as she rushed back to Nami's house, desperate to see if the man who had saved them was still there.
Meanwhile, Nami and Nojiko stood among the chaos, watching the villagers unleash their fury on the fallen fish-men. Their eyes trembled with lingering fear—but above all, they felt relief, as if a crushing weight had finally been lifted from their shoulders.
When they realized Souta was gone, they quickly ordered Genzo to make sure none of the fish-men could rise again. Then they hurried back home, determined to thank their savior.
But what they found there was only a quiet Karina, looking forlorn, and on the table: a neatly folded orange-patterned bedsheet, Nami's t-shirt, and a withered flower wreath hat.
"He's already gone…"
Karina sighed, a strange trace of longing in her voice. Somehow, Souta Kiryuu had left an impression on her heart. The man truly carried an aura unlike anyone else she had ever met.
"The Grand Line, huh? You're going after the Golden Emperor Tesoro, huh? And you'll become the world's songstress, huh?" Karina whispered to herself, her eyes firming. "Fine. I'll leave the East Blue someday… and when that day comes, I'll see you again."
"This ragged old hat—this is mine now!"
With a mischievous grin, the little fox Karina snatched the wreath hat Souta had once worn. Before Nami and Nojiko could react, she bolted from the house. She ran straight to the docks of Arlong Park, commandeered a small boat, and even helped herself to some of Arlong's treasure.
"I'm coming for you!"
Laughing boldly with Souta's hat on her head, Karina sailed away from Cocoyasi Village, chasing her new dream.
"That damn little fox!" Nami cursed, but her arms clutched tightly around Souta's discarded t-shirt. His lingering scent on the fabric brought her an unexpected sense of safety.
Nojiko, meanwhile, carefully folded the orange-patterned bedsheet Souta had used. Though they had only known him for a matter of hours, the man had left them both with an impression that would last a lifetime.
He might have been a criminal, a dangerous outlaw—but today, he was Cocoyasi Village's true hero.
He had liberated not only their home, but twenty surrounding villages, freeing countless lives from Arlong's tyranny.
Even the Navy had never accomplished such a feat.
Souta Kiryuu left Cocoyasi Village without a backward glance. He still had other matters to attend to.
Barely two hours later, he stumbled across another Marine branch. Without hesitation, he unleashed a blast of flaming dragon's breath, annihilating Captain Nezumi and his entire warship in one blazing strike.
He didn't bother to pay attention to the fallen Navy. Corrupt Marines weren't worth his time. Instead, Souta continued flying toward Loguetown.
But before he reached it, smoke and cannon fire rose from the sea ahead—pirates locked in combat.
Normally, he wouldn't have cared about these small-time East Blue skirmishes. But then, a golden beam of light shot skyward, accompanied by a booming roar. That piqued his interest.
On the waters below, the Adelargo Pirates had just crushed another crew. Their captain, Adelargo, cut down the enemy leader himself and plundered every scrap of treasure.
"Captain Adelargo is invincible!"
The underlings cheered wildly. Their captain was notorious across the East Blue, his powerful sonic abilities making him feared even among the likes of Krieg or Arlong.
"Eahahaha! Trash like you dare to block my path? You're all asking for death! Men! Let's keep moving—find the trail of the Golden Pirate, Uonan!"
With the powers of the Sound-Sound Fruit, Adelargo felt unstoppable. He was certain no one in the East Blue could stand against him.
"Paramecia-type… Sound-Sound Fruit, huh? Interesting."
A calm voice cut through the air as Souta Kiryuu suddenly descended onto Adelargo's ship, rubbing his chin thoughtfully. His sudden arrival sent a wave of panic through the crew.
"Who the hell?!"
Adelargo glared, but the suffocating pressure radiating from the newcomer froze him in place. His instincts screamed danger.
"C-Captain… that's the God-Slayer, Souta Kiryuu!"
The swordsman Gorath, Adelargo's right-hand man, trembled so violently that his blade clattered in his grip. To him, it was as if Death itself stood before them.
"What did you say?!"
Adelargo swallowed hard, his bravado cracking. Though he had dreamed of surpassing Arlong and claiming the title of East Blue's strongest pirate, he knew he was no match for this monster.
This was the man with a bounty of 3 billion berries—the one who dared to slaughter Celestial Dragons!
"If you make it to Water 7 on the Grand Line," Souta said casually as he stepped forward, "I'll give you a chance to join us."
Without asking permission, he seized Adelargo's hand, sliced his palm open, and collected his blood. Adelargo stood paralyzed, unable to resist.
"Don't disappoint me, little one."
Souta smirked, storing the blood sample in a special container before tossing a glowing dandelion-shaped crystal into Adelargo's mouth. The wound healed instantly.
With that, Souta vanished, leaving the Adelargo Pirates paralyzed in shock.
Only after his aura completely disappeared did they collapse onto the deck, drenched in cold sweat. The suffocating pressure of the God-Slayer was beyond anything they had ever experienced—even far worse than Loguetown's Smoker.
"Captain… he saw potential in you," Gorath stammered, his voice trembling with excitement. "He gave us the chance to join the Kiryuu Pirates! We're no longer small fry—he recognized us!"
"The Grand Line… the Kiryuu Pirates, huh?" Adelargo muttered, still rubbing his healed wound. Slowly, his stunned expression twisted into determination. "Men! Once we secure Uonan's treasure, we're setting sail for the Grand Line!"
"Yes, Captain!"
"Wooo! Long live Captain Adelargo!"
...
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