— — — — — — — —
For most people, this might not seem like a big deal.
But! For the Charlotte Family?
Capturing —no, Finding—a good-looking wife for their eldest brother?
That was something everyone was enthusiastic about.
Especially the men in the family. Joey always nagged them about settling down and starting families by the time they turned eighteen. Well, now the tables had turned.
If he wanted them married at eighteen, fine! They'd make sure he was married before even hitting that age.
Fair play, right?
Everyone had the same thought.
And their target? Gion—Vice Admiral 'Momousagi'!
What happened after she was captured? Well, if the Marines had the guts to storm Totto Land's gates to get her back…Then they better be prepared for Totto Land to storm Marineford the next day.
---
"Ehehehe…"
Cracker crouched slightly, resting his massive sword on his shoulder. His grin was wild with excitement. "Man, this is getting interesting! Today, I'm tying you up and bringing you home!"
"Don't worry—I'll be sure to call you 'sis-in-law' properly in the future. After all, no matter how you look at it, you're Big Bro's woman now."
He was all talk. But his attitude alone was enough to make Gion's blood boil.
Gion—The famed beauty of Marine Headquarters. A powerful vice admiral.
When had she ever been humiliated like this?
And now? Some pirate was saying he'd capture her and make her his brother's wife?
Her fury exploded. "I'LL KILL YOU!!!"
SWOOSH!
A terrifying slash of sword energy tore through the air, roaring straight at Cracker.
But—
With a casual flick of his hand, Cracker deflected the attack like it was nothing.
Standing his ground, he smirked. "Good thing I haven't started my closed-door training yet! Otherwise, you would've gotten lucky escaping from me."
The truth was…Cracker had planned to go into seclusion for training. But—Then the Suna Suna no Mi (Sand-Sand Fruit) showed up out of nowhere.
His second brother immediately stopped him.
Cracker wasn't stupid. The fact that such a powerful Devil Fruit appeared so conveniently was suspicious as hell.
So, he postponed his training.
But—Now that the battle had started, there was no room for distractions.
Despite his cocky words, he knew the truth. Their strengths were nearly equal.
Lightning-like impacts crackled through the battlefield as their weapons collided again and again.
Clearly—
They were evenly matched.
A quick victory? Impossible.
"Hmph!"
"Pretzel Roll!!"
Cracker launched a powerful counterattack.
Gion wasn't careless.
Though she was a monster in her own right…She had to admit. The real monster here was the man in front of her.
No—The entire Charlotte Family was monstrous.
A terrifying bunch of freaks.
How the hell did they all become so strong at such a young age?!
— — —
Meanwhile—
Not far away, Mondée sighed in relief as he watched the battle. "Judging from how things are going, Cracker's got a good chance of winning! Nice! Beat her down and bring her home for Big Bro!"
Hachée and Effilée nodded in agreement.
After all…Joey had always been kind and easygoing.
But when it came to their marriage? He showed no mercy.
Now that they finally had the chance, it was payback time!
— — —
Katakuri narrowed his eyes slightly.
He scanned the three figures in front of him with a sharp gaze.
His tone was calm. "I don't recognize you three. Who are you?"
Despite the casual words—There was an undeniable dominance in his voice.
He was confident.
He had every right to be. At his age, he was already Silver-Rank Level 2.
Honestly— At this level, at this age? He was beyond what this world should be capable of producing.
A terrifying monster. And he had only begun to unleash his true potential.
One of the men shook his head with a smirk. He had a sleazy, almost monkey-like face. "So, this is the first monster of the Charlotte Family? Scary, scary~."
Katakuri's voice remained indifferent. "I'm from the Big Mom Pirates. I'd advise you to watch your words. Saying the wrong thing… won't end well for you."
"Hmph!"
The second man, who radiated a magma-like intensity, sneered. "It doesn't matter who you are. If you're a pirate, you need to be eliminated."
The last man spoke lazily. "Ugh… such a hassle."
Katakuri's smirk deepened.
SWOOSH!
A trident materialized in his grip.
He tilted his head. "Interesting. I don't know who you three are, but you seem strong. Let's see if you can entertain me."
Of course—There was something Katakuri didn't say.
Even though he was already a solid Silver-Rank Level 2…
Something felt off.
It was like his full power… wasn't unlocked yet.
But maybe—These three? They might be the perfect opponents to bring it out.
"Hehehe…"
The sleazy-looking man grinned. "Have you ever been kicked at the speed of light?"
Before his words even finished—
BOOM!
He vanished.
FLASH!
A golden blur streaked through the air. His long leg swung in a deadly arc.
But—
WHOOSH!
He was sent flying back just as fast as he came.
Landing roughly on the warship, he looked up, stunned.
"…Holy crap. That Observation Haki is insane. He actually predicted my movement?!"
Katakuri remained unfazed. "I see. So you ate the Pika Pika no Mi (Glint-Glint Fruit)… A Logia-type… No wonder you're so fast."
As for how Borsalino (Kizaru) still ate the Pika Pika no Mi? Heh, that would be a secret for now.
Katakuri smirked. "Which means… you are Borsalino and the others must be Sakazuki and Kuzan. The three 'Marine Monsters'—the youngest vice admirals in history, and future admiral candidates."
"But you know what?"
Katakuri simply adjusted his grip on his trident and smiled. "Perfect."
"Let's see if you're as strong as they say. Don't disappoint me."
"..."
"Light-Speed Kick!"
Without hesitation, Borsalino took the initiative. His long leg swung out in a sweeping motion, its terrifying speed making it seem like it would pierce through everything in its path.
It was simply too fast. A golden flash streaked forward at a breakneck pace.
But against Borsalino's attack, Katakuri remained unfazed. Not only did he show no fear, but he even exuded a terrifying sense of ease.
Slash!
In an instant, he displayed his overwhelming power. His trident, wrapped in Armament Haki, effortlessly tore through the incoming attack.
Borsalino froze for a moment, shocked.
This was his first time encountering someone who handled his attack so effortlessly.
But it wasn't over yet.
Whoosh!
Katakuri swung his fist forward, and in an instant, it expanded to an enormous size—several times larger than a giant's fist.
Countless mochi globs merged into one, completely enveloping his hand, reinforced by Armament Haki.
In the blink of an eye, the terrifying fist came crashing down, its power enough to annihilate everything in its path.
"Hah! Great Eruption!"
Sakazuki's eyes flashed with a blazing heat as molten magma surged forward, as if it sought to engulf everything in its wake.
"Ice Age!"
At the same time, Kuzan leaped into the air, sending two massive ice pillars downward, sealing off both the pirate ship and the warship.
Boom!
At that moment, the clash between Katakuri and Sakazuki finally came to a halt.
The four combatants locked eyes, their battlefields now frozen solid.
Katakuri landed on the icy surface, his expression calm. "Not bad. This is a perfect battleground for an all-out fight."
From behind him, an ominous dark purple figure began to materialize.
The Invincible Death Stand had emerged.
However, as Katakuri observed the three before him, he noticed something: the death lines were scarce.
There was no denying it—these three Marine Vice Admirals were anything but weak. Each possessed terrifying strength, making it difficult to pinpoint their vulnerabilities.
But Katakuri didn't care. With a decisive step forward, he lunged toward Sakazuki, his trident aimed directly at him.
"Oh dear..." Borsalino was about to move, but suddenly, he sensed something off.
Rip!
The air itself seemed to be torn apart before his eyes. He hesitated, murmuring, "What... the hell is that?"
Kuzan immediately responded, "The Charlotte Family has unique Devil Fruit abilities. Some can make a person's presence undetectable. You need to use Observation Haki to track them. Don't let him grab you directly."
"Got it!" Borsalino formed a hand gesture.
In the next instant, a surge of powerful Observation Haki burst forth, covering everything in its range. It was as if he could now see everything clearly.
And then, he finally noticed the invisible figure moving in the shadows.
Frowning, he muttered, "What kind of ability is this? I should be careful—I have a bad feeling about getting hit by that."
Kuzan nodded. "I agree. I sense the same thing."
"Ama no Murakumo Sword!"
"Ice Saber!"
Borsalino and Kuzan exchanged a glance before simultaneously unleashing their respective weapons.
Kuzan directly engaged the Invincible Death Stand despite not being able to see it with his eyes. However, through Observation Haki, he could track its every move.
Fighting without relying on sight was no problem for warriors of their caliber.
The battle raged on, fiercer than ever.
Sakazuki and Kuzan worked together to fend off Katakuri's relentless attacks.
Sparks flew as they clashed.
None of them relied on their Devil Fruit abilities at this moment. This was a pure contest of physical combat, Haki, and weapons.
And precisely because of that, the battle became even more intense.
None of them held back. They went for the kill with every move.
After all, one was a pirate. The others were Marines.
Why the hell would they go easy on each other? What kind of joke would that be?
That would just be ridiculous!
And yet, it was here that Katakuri showcased his overwhelming strength.
His Stand's power also came into play.
Not only did he possess formidable abilities, but his Stand matched his own strength perfectly. As long as the user was strong enough, the power they could unleash was nothing short of monstrous.
Speaking of which, in the original story, Dio's fighting style always frustrated Joey. "That was an idiotic way to fight," Joey always said.
'He abandoned all his powers, relying solely on his Stand. Did he lose his damn mind?' This was Joey's belief.
But now, at this very moment, Katakuri seamlessly combined his Stand's power with his own, displaying the full extent of his abilities.
Merging his Stand's strength with his own.
The resulting power was self-explanatory.
One versus three?
Piece of cake!
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