Kaya showed far more restraint in her words than usual, aware of Lami's presence and the emotional weight of the situation. Her tone remained gentle, composed, almost academic, as she exchanged with Law about precise medical points she still lacked. She listened with sincere attention, mentally noting every detail, fascinated by the rigor and clinical experience of the young surgeon.
"I know anatomy well and the basics of emergency care," Kaya explained calmly, "but I've never been able to practice on cases as severe as the ones you've had to face. Battlefield medicine… it's very different."
Law nodded slowly.
"You already have an excellent level. With a bit more experience, you could assist in complex operations without any problem."
Beside them, Lami listened in silence, hands clasped against her chest, visibly impressed. Law glanced at his sister, his expression darkening slightly.
"Actually…" he continued after a brief pause. "I think it would be better if Lami stayed somewhere safe. The sea isn't a place for someone who's never fought. I don't want to put her in danger."
Before Lami could even protest, Kaya smiled softly and nodded.
"Jordan will agree. He has a perfectly secured base camp, with trustworthy people and the means to train or study without risking her life. She'd be safe there."
Lami lowered her head for a moment, pensive. A faint disappointment could be read in her eyes, but she eventually looked up again, determined.
"Alright…" she said softly. "I'll stay there for now."
Then she clenched her fists, a new spark lighting her gaze.
"But I'll become stronger. I'll learn to defend myself, to heal, to survive. And when I'm ready… I'll sail the seas with my big brother."
Law remained silent for a few seconds, as if Lami's words took time to sink in. Then he raised his hand and gently placed it on his sister's head. The gesture was awkward, almost hesitant, but deeply sincere. A rare, fragile smile curved his lips.
"That's all I could have hoped to hear."
The moment shattered abruptly.
Usopp suddenly froze, his pupils tightening as his Observation Haki flared. Without warning, he drew his bow and loosed an arrow that shot at full speed between Kaya and Law, whistling so close it could have been taken as a provocation.
"Usopp?!" Law blurted out, spinning sharply, already in a defensive stance.
But it wasn't Usopp he saw.
The arrow had embedded itself just in front of a grotesque-looking man: an adult dressed like a baby, pacifier in his mouth, bonnet on his head… whose body was half-emerging from the ground, as if he were swimming through the earth itself. The man had frozen in place, stopped just centimeters from the group.
Law's blood ran cold. He stepped forward, instinctively placing himself in front of Lami.
"…Señor Pink."
His voice was low, tense.
"Did you come to kill me?"
The man chewed on his pacifier before answering in a deep, gravelly voice, steeped in calm contempt.
"To take you in, kid. The young master wants to see you. He's decided to settle some old scores."
Kazuki wrinkled her nose, disgusted.
"What is this guy, dressed like a baby? Seriously…"
"Really weird," Nojiko and Elise added almost in unison, instinctively moving closer to Usopp and Charles.
Charles, for his part, had gone pale. His hands were already trembling as he activated his armor almost by reflex.
"He's a member of Doflamingo's crew," he said in a tense voice. "A Warlord. Actual bounty: fifty-eight million Berries… but frozen, like the rest of his crew's."
Before anyone had time to react further, Usopp felt something falling.
His Haki screamed.
"EVERYONE, GET BACK!!"
He leapt backward, grabbing Charles along the way and pulling him with him. Elise instantly liquefied, her body turning into translucent honey as she swept Nojiko along. Kazuki, carried by a burst of wind, slid back as if the ground itself were pushing her away.
A monstrous whistling cut through the air.
The impact was titanic.
The street exploded in a deafening crash, stone shattering as a colossal mass slammed down exactly where they had been a second earlier. A crater formed, blasting dust and debris in every direction.
At its center… a gigantic, obese man slowly rose, an enormous shield still embedded in the ground.
Charles swallowed hard.
"…Machvise."
Around them, the sound of footsteps multiplied. A crowd of armed men poured out of the surrounding alleys, quickly regrouping to encircle the group. The trap was closing.
Usopp took a deep breath, his mind racing at full speed.
"Law! I've got a plan!" he shouted.
Then, without taking his eyes off the enemies:
"Kaya, bring Lami here!"
Kaya obeyed immediately. She pulled Lami toward her, bringing her to Usopp, who whispered a few words to her before giving her a fleeting kiss. She immediately went back to Law to support him, positioning herself at his side facing Señor Pink.
Law clenched his teeth.
"Penguin, Shachi, Bepo. I'm counting on you. Protect my sister."
"You can count on us, Captain!" Bepo replied firmly, stepping into position at once.
Usopp turned to Elise.
"I need you as support."
She nodded without hesitation, her body already ready to transform as needed.
Then Usopp looked at the three members of Law's crew.
"Mind having one more person to protect?"
"Not at all," they answered in unison, drawing their weapons.
Nojiko knelt down, took Lami in her arms, and held her close to reassure her, while Penguin, Shachi, and Bepo formed a protective triangle around them.
Kazuki, already surrounded by slicing air currents, gave a nervous smile.
"I'll handle the underlings. Charles, you've got my back?"
The former Marine slammed his gauntlets together, a determined smile on his lips.
"With pleasure."
Usopp charged straight toward Machvise, his boots pounding against the shattered stone of the street. The colossus, already slowly rising into the air, snickered as he adjusted his massive shield against his chest.
Usopp drew his bow on the fly and loosed a magical arrow. The projectile streaked forward, charged with energy, then exploded in a burst of light… without producing the slightest effect. The impact dissipated against Machvise's shield like a wave against a rock.
"You'll have to do a lot better than that, nihihihihihi!" Machvise mocked as he climbed even higher.
His shadow stretched across the ground.
"10-TON VISE!"
He let himself fall like a meteor.
The ground trembled under the pressure of his imminent descent, but Usopp had already seen the attack coming. His Observation Haki screamed a warning a split second in advance. He pivoted to the side and sprang away in a smooth leap, letting Machvise crash heavily into the spot where he had stood moments before. The street cracked under the impact.
Usopp didn't wait. He shouldered his rifle and fired almost point-blank.
The shot cracked sharply, but the bullet once again ricocheted off the shield, leaving only a superficial mark.
"Tsk…" Usopp clicked his tongue.
That was when Elise moved. Her body partially transformed into shimmering honey as she launched herself toward Machvise. A viscous torrent burst from her arms, seeking to glue the colossus in place and pin him to the ground.
"Try moving now," she murmured, focused.
Machvise growled, then his body suddenly grew heavier. The ground sank beneath his feet; the honey tore apart, unable to withstand the brutal increase in his mass. With a violent motion, he broke free and lunged forward, his fist blackened with Haki slicing through the air straight toward Elise.
Usopp reacted instantly. He threw himself in front of her without thinking, activating the power of the Kachi Kachi no Mi. His body became covered in a dark, solid shell, like living stone.
The blow landed.
A dull shock rang out, making the air vibrate. Despite the protection, Usopp was hurled backward like a rag doll. He flew several meters before Elise caught him just in time, using the elasticity of her honey to cushion the impact as she retreated with him.
They slid together across the ground before coming to a stop.
"Aaah…" Usopp groaned as he painfully pushed himself up, one hand clenched against his side. "That really hurts…"
He lifted his head just in time to see Machvise slowly gaining altitude again. His deep laughter echoed through the torn-open street, rolling like diseased thunder between the ruined façades. The giant's shadow spread across the ground once more, crushing Usopp and Elise beneath its oppressive weight.
Machvise spread his arms wide, his body already poised to fall again like a living weapon.
"HAKAI NO SENTON VISE!!"
The air trembled. The colossus's mass came crashing down.
Usopp and Elise barely dodged in time, each diving to opposite sides—but at the exact spot where they had been a fraction of a second earlier, something appeared.
A Heartless.
A Black Fungus, erupting as if summoned by the catastrophe itself.
At the precise moment Machvise collided with it, the Fungus abruptly changed appearance. Its surface turned silver, smooth and flawless, as if coated in absolute metal. A cold gleam ran across its body.
Invincibility.
Machvise didn't even have time to understand what was happening.
His speed was too great.His mass, too heavy.His body, unable to bend or alter its trajectory.
The impact was absolute.
The silver Fungus did not move a single millimeter. In contrast, Machvise's body was pierced clean through, impaled from end to end as if he had struck a divine spear. A dull, wet sound echoed as the man was literally skewered on the Heartless.
Machvise's eyes flew wide open, his mouth opening in a silent, voiceless gasp.
The Fungus then returned to its normal black color, its state of invincibility instantly dissipating. By reflex, it tried to leap away as it always did after an attack… but it couldn't.
Its body was chained to Machvise's flesh, trapped within his insides, deeply embedded in his torso.
Then the Fungus did what it truly existed for.
It released its poison.
A dense, unnatural torrent of toxins spread directly inside the colossus's body. Machvise's veins blackened, then took on a sickly violet hue as the corruption advanced before the eye. His skin cracked, his shield fell heavily to the ground, useless.
Machvise tried to scream. No coherent sound came from his throat.
The poison reached his heart.
His body convulsed one last time… then went still.
A heavy silence fell over the street.
The transformation began at once.
Darkness burst forth from the corpse, completely enveloping it. Flesh warped, stretched, hardened into a monstrous silhouette. When the light settled, Machvise no longer existed.
In his place stood a gigantic Heartless, massive, twisted by its former power. In its hand hung a thick chain, at the end of which swung an enormous iron ball—a grotesque and sinister reminder of its former ability.
Usopp, still on his knees, watched the scene in silence, short of breath.
Elise slowly rose beside him, her gaze fixed on the creature.
"…Looks like," she murmured, "he'll never fall from the sky again."
Señor Pink was already wavering dangerously. Law's Room neutralized a good part of his abilities, disrupting his swimming through the ground and making every movement heavy and imprecise. At the same time, Kaya gave him no respite. Her precise, methodical attacks targeted nerves and vital points without the slightest hesitation. Blood now flowed freely from several open wounds, seeping into Flevance's white dust.
Señor Pink turned his head just in time to witness Machvise's fall.
His eyes widened in horror.
"Machvise…" he breathed hoarsely.
Then he screamed—a raw, visceral cry, mixed with rage and panic—before his legs gave out beneath him. Blood loss overcame his will, and he collapsed heavily, unconscious, his body still twitching by reflex.
At that precise moment, the battlefield shifted.
Black Fungus erupted from the shadows, followed by Ballads with floating silhouettes. They poured into the alleys like a tide of darkness, throwing themselves mercilessly upon the underlings already battered by Kazuki and Charles.
"What are those things?!" one man screamed before being struck down by a Ballad's lightning.
"Fall back! FALL BA—"
His cry was cut short when a Fungus released its poison, transforming his body into yet another heartless silhouette among so many others.
Kazuki, panting but resolute, drove back a wave of enemies with a slicing gust.
"They don't stand a chance anymore," she called to Charles.
"Yeah… and I won't feel sorry for them," he replied, knocking out a final opponent with a gauntleted blow. "But how did the Heartless reach North Blue? Do you think Sora entered this sea?" he asked.
"Probably. He must have finished East Blue," Kazuki answered, herself unaware of Jordan's secret.
Strangely, the Heartless went around Señor Pink without paying him the slightest attention.
Kaya watched the scene, then lowered her weapon. She approached the unconscious man and let out a small sigh.
"He's out of the fight. And even if he's responsible… I don't want him to die here."
Law stepped forward in turn, casting a cold but weary glance at Señor Pink.
"…I have no reason to protect him. But I don't feel like piling up corpses today."
He then turned his head toward Kaya.
"Do whatever you want. As long as he doesn't get back up."
Kaya nodded and quickly took out bandages, stopping the bleeding with almost clinical professionalism, despite the chilling contrast between her calm gestures and the carnage surrounding them.
"There," she said simply. "He'll live. But he'll remember this defeat."
Law added nothing. He looked away, then headed toward his sister, who was still being protected by Nojiko and the crew. When his eyes met Lami's, his expression softened immediately.
Behind them, the screams of the underlings faded one by one, replaced by a heavy silence. The street of Flevance was now empty—save for the Heartless, wandering aimlessly in their new forms.
(Author's note: I hope you enjoyed it. I'm leaving you Machvise's Heartless here. I also have a question for you two, "ssdxd" and "HarkenEliwood": aside from Nami, Luffy, Usopp, and Koby… have I revealed Sora's origin to the others yet? I can't remember.)