It was an unusually hot day in the Conomi Islands, but that wasn't the reason why all the villagers were sweating. No, the reason was that they were watching an incredibly crazy battle concerning people who were so strong it shouldn't even be possible. To the villagers, who were all gathered at the entrance of Arlong Park, it was as though they were seeing something from another world.
One of their number happened to look behind them. She gasped and said to her friends, "Look! It's the red haired girl from earlier who was holding the sword and controlling water!"
"What?!" said the village doctor.
Another man sighed in relief and turned to look at the redhead. "So she's okay. That's good."
"She doesn't look too good, though," the doctor noted. All the villagers looked at the pirate. He was right. The girl's shirt was all ripped up, and she was covered in black and red blood. She had a bruise visible on her side through her ripped shirt and her eyes were wide with horror, noticeable even from this far away. It looked like she was gonna throw up.
"Hey, is she gonna be alright?" someone asked.
His friend standing next to him nodded. "She looks like she's been stuffed in a washing machine."
"What's a washing machine?"
"Who knows."
"I don't think all that blood is hers," the doctor put in. "If she's only as injured as it looks from that bruise and those cut wounds on her body, she should be fine in a few days."
The girl stopped stumbling over the field and bent over, throwing up.
"What happened to her?" one of the villagers asked.
The doctor closed his eyes and bent his head. "Probably shock. She must've had her first kill. For any normal person, that's an understandable reaction. Still, the wounds will have to be disinfected and that bruise will have to be tended to... She'll probably have some scars, too..."
The villagers turned away from the girl and looked at her friends. Zoro was lying, injured on the cement foundations of Arlong Park and Sanji was still locked in battle with Kuroobi, the fishman with giant muscles, a long ponytail, and protruding elbows, though they'd just come out of the water and Sanji had nearly won. Arlong was still sitting against the fence, glaring at the two pirates.
***
"Ugh, that was disgusting," I muttered, wiping my mouth clean of puke. I still had a sour taste from it, though, and would have to take a glass of water the first chance I got.
I stood up and stumbled over to the road that led to Arlong Park. A hundred meters away, all the villagers were watching the battles inside. I wondered what time frame I was in now. Has Zoro already won his battle? What about Sanji? I pushed through the villagers and saw Johnny and Yosaku kneeling on the ground, glaring out at sea like they'd wanted to go there but couldn't for some reason.
I looked up and saw Sanji beating up that Gorilla Chest bastard's ass. I tried to remember the dude's name from the anime. What was it...? Ah, never mind. Zoro was kneeling in front of the rectangular pool, panting and holding the wound he'd gotten from Mihawk. He didn't look very good, but then again, I didn't look much better, probably.
"Mutton Shot!" Sanji roared, and delivered a stunningly powerful fly kick to his opponent. WHAM! The fishman was sent flying and smashed through the walls of Arlong Park, clear to the other side. My jaw dropped. That was one powerful kick!
"Ah, Yuril-aneki!" Yosaku said, noticing my arrival. "Yuril-aneki, you've gotta help! Lucy-aneki is trapped under water, thrown into the sea and stuck in a cement block! She's gonna drown!"
My eyes widened and I looked down at Yosaku. "WHAT?!"
I glared at Arlong, knowing by instinct and sudden anime memory that he'd been the perpetrator. I clenched my fists and swaggered forward as Sanji knelt next to Zoro. "Oi, fish stick bastard!" I called, glaring and pointing at Arlong. "What the hell did you do to my captain?!"
"Kuroobi," he muttered. "Hatchi. Fennu."
"In the end they're just 'seafood salad,'" Sanji remarked smoothly, stuffing his feet into his black designer shoes. "A fish taking on a cook? Never in a hundred years. He turned to Arlong and squeezed his hand into a fist triumphantly. "This game is ours!"
Arlong got to his feet and stepped forward, a look of pure and utter hatred in his eyes. His webbed fingers shook with anger and he spat, "You bastards! You killed so many of my beloved brethren... One after the other! Don't you think you've gotten a little caught up in the moment!?"
"Caught up in the moment?" I growled. "Killed your beloved brethren? You killed more humans than we have fishmen, you bastard! If I had to take a guess, I'd say your old captain, Jinbei, would've thought this was a fair trade!"
His pupils dilated in anger. "JINBEI?! That good-for-nothing, flower-picking, weak old bastard?! I don't give a shit of what he thinks! He's a traitor to fishmen! A damned man who is doomed to Hell for the things he's done!"
A wave of anger roared in my ears—no, not an emotion, a literal wave. Water rose up from the pool and barreled into Arlong, pushing him back into a piece of overhang. He sat up looking totally fine.
"DON'T YOU DARE CALL JINBEI A TRAITOR IN FRONT OF ME!" I exploded. "JINBEI WAS ALWAYS ONE OF MY IDOLS! EVEN THOUGH HE'S A FISHMAN, HE'S TOTALLY AWESOME AND WILLING TO LOOK PAST THE DIFFERENCES IN OUR RACES TO SEE THAT, HALF-FISH OR NOT, EVERYONE IS EQUAL!"
Sanji and Zoro were ignoring our shouting match, getting ready to dive into the pool to save Lucy.
"I'll distract him with Yuril," the swordsman offered, though he looked like he didn't like it.
Sanji nodded. "Thanks." He dived into the pool as Zoro got up.
"JINBEI DIDN'T DESERVE TO BE CALLED A FISHMAN!" bellowed Arlong. "HIS SINS WERE TOO GREAT! HE DIDN'T EVEN COMPARE TO FISHER TIGER! WHAT DID JINBEI EVER DO?!"
"FISHER TIGER WAS THE SAME WAY!" I fumed. "HE DIDN'T JUST SET FREE FISHMAN SLAVES, HE SET FREE THE HUMAN SLAVES, TOO! IT DIDN'T MATTER TO HIM WHAT RACE THEY WERE! IN HIS VIEW, EVERYONE DESERVES EQUAL FREEDOM!"
"ALL HUMANS EVER DID TO US WAS KILL US AND ENSLAVE US! NEXT TO THAT, A FEW DEATHS IS NOWHERE NEAR JUST PUNISHMENT!"
"AQUA FIST!" I roared, wrapping water around my fist and throwing a powerful hay-maker at Arlong. Nothing happened, though. My arm was suddenly stopped and my fist exploded in pain. The fishman leader had simply raised his hand, blocked, and crunched down.
"YARGH!" I screamed, tears building in my eyes. Arlong released me and I stumbled backward, nursing my right hand. It felt as though it were on fire, like the hellhounds I'd killed not too long ago. I could hardly move my fingers without licks of pain igniting. "IT... IT FUCKIN' HURTS!"
"Weakling," the shark fishman spat. "How the hell Fennu lost to you, I have no idea."
"Bastard..." I gasped, willing myself not to cry. "You... You bastard... I won't... Let you get away with this..."
SLAM! A fist exploded into my face and I was thrown backward, soaring through the air and smashing through the wall behind me. I hit the ground hard and rolled a few feet until I stopped, laying on the ground and coughing blood, my whole body roaring in pain.
"Dammit..." I cried, clutching my side, which still aches from Fennu's kick. "I am I really... this weak...?"
"Yuril!" I heard Zoro shout angrily. "WHAT THE HELL DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING?! STAND UP AND FIGHT, IDIOT!"
My vision was flickering, fading in and out from darkness. I squeezed my eyes shut, forcing myself not to cry. I struggled to get up to a kneeling position, and even that seemed to take all my energy. Still, I pressed on, remembering Nami crying and looking so desperate. No way would I let Arlong live after he hurt my nakama so badly! There would be hell to pay! The thought drove away some of the pain and I shakily stood up, swaying and almost falling again.
"She's alive!" one of the villagers shouted in surprise.
"But that punch was enough to decimate Susan's mansion..." someone else muttered.
"These people must be monsters! Just who the hell are they?"
"You wanna know who we are...?" I rasped, coughing more blood. "WE! ARE! PIRATES!" As I yelled the last part to the heavens, a warm breeze danced across the road, rippling my torn-up shirt. The villagers muttered amongst themselves. I somehow made my way back to Arlong Park, but as I did so, a pained shout rose up.
"Not good," I gasped. "That was Zoro!"
I pushed through the crowd to see Zoro laying on his back on the cement, blood trickling out of the corners of his mouth. His eyes were closed. Sanji was kneeling not too far away, body shaking in pain.
"HEY!" I screamed. "WHAT THE FUCKIN' HELL DID YOU TO MY NAKAMA?! ARLONG!"
"Humans," he snorted. "Can't even survive a few water droplets. What inferior beings."
"I feel faint..." Sanji gasped. "Was that a dream...?" He stood up, shaking as badly as me. "I'd even started to have hopes for this battle..."
"That shark dude," Yosaku said behind me. "What's he doing?"
"No clue!" Johnny admitted. "It looked like he was just throwing water around! But then the two of them started bleeding!"
Throwing water around...? I stepped backward, a memory stabbing through my mind like a lightning bolt. Fennu had used an attack like that!
I regained my balance only to have a relentless barrage of high-powered water droplets pound into me. Pain flared through my body as it shook with the force of the attack. I nearly bit my tongue.
Had Arlong used an attack similar to that one? If so, then this could get ugly...
Arlong smirked evilly and raised his hand. I could sense water inside it. My eyes widened in horror. In Sanji and my current states, we might not be able to survive another attack like that. I charged forward, sending my thoughts to the ocean, and swept my hand. The ocean mimicked my movements, swooping out of the pool and creating a watery curtain of a shield just in between Arlong and Sanji and myself.
But I was too late.
WHAM! The water smashed into us and we were thrown a foot back, gasping in surprise. It may've just been water, which shouldn't have even been able to hurt me because of my demigodishness, but it felt like a freakin' shotgun! My water shield, released from my mind, splashed down and washed over the cement.
How can anybody defeat a monster like Arlong? I found myself thinking. If he can cause this much damage with just water...
"Your lives aren't all that important anyway," Arlong said.
"ARLONG!" a female voice shouted. My eyes widened. It was Nami! I coughed blood and rolled over to get a better view. There was the ginger headed navigator, wearing Lucy's straw hat and my leather jacket proudly. She carried her bo staff and her shoulder, the one that had Arlong's mark on it, was bandaged.
"Nami-aneki!" gasped Johnny and Yosaku in unison.
Sanji's body shook. "Nami-chan!"
"Get the fuck away!" I groaned. "You'll just get hurt, and what good will that do?!"
"Ah, Nami!" Arlong laughed. "I was just giving some loser pirates a demonstration of our unbeatable power. What brings you here?" He chuckled, but Nami's expression was set.
"I'm here to kill you," she informed him calmly.
My eyes widened. "EH? If... If Zoro, Sanji and I... couldn't even hurt him... just what makes you think... you can kill him, idiot?! At this point... our only hope is Lucy!"
Arlong laughed, pleased. "Ha! Listen to the girl! She's given up all hope!"
"Who said I've given up all hope, fish stick?" I muttered. "I've simply realized... that you're out of my league. But you're still not... invincible. Lucy will beat your ass!"
"So, Nami," he continued, ignoring me. "You say you're here to kill me? JYAHAHAHA! You still haven't given up, unlike these puny humans. How many times have you tried to kill me these past eight years? Murder, poison, assault. Has it ever worked? You should know better than anyone else that we fishmen can't be killed by you humans so easily."
"And she doesn't care!" I cut in, my body shaking in pain. "She keeps trying because she's brave! She's braver than any of us could imagine, because although she's not strong, although she doesn't have the incredible stamina of these guys"—I motioned to Zoro and Sanji, and Lucy out beyond the fence touching the rectangular pool— "she still tries her very hardest to save her town! But Nami... you've gotta calm down now. You'll just freakin' die, and then all our effort would be for nothing!"
He stepped on my back and pressed down, making me scream in agony.
"You can never kill me," Arlong agreed. "You can never run away. Nami. You will remain here forever as my cartographer. Besides, you know I've been good to you. I really hope that you'll continue making maps for me, if at all possible. JYAHAHAHA! So how does this sound?
"Because of what's happened here," the bastard said, "I'd normally kill all these people, except you. However." Nami's eyes widened in horror and anger. "If you make a decision now to return to the Arlong Pirate crew, and to continue drawing maps for me... I'll spare the people of Cocoyashi Village." The villagers tensed. "But these pirates won't be spared. They were too foolish." He rolled Sanji aside with his foot, then kicked me into the wall of Arlong Park. I yelled again, and I knew my ribs had shattered. My whole body was on fire. "So, it's your choice. If you choose me, the people of your village will be safe, but the pirates will die. Or you could choose to fight me. But these guys are in such bad shape... I don't think there's any way that this could not end in tragedy."
My vision was blurred over. I couldn't see what was going on, but I knew whatever it was, it had to be bad from the dialogue.
"We... may have been... defeated..." I admitted, panting with the effort of keeping myself conscious, "but there is still... one other person... that you haven't killed yet..." But my voice was so weak nobody heard me.
"Nami. Are you my nakama, or are you theirs?
"You bastard!" the villagers roared.
"Yeah! No matter what you say, you just want to keep her!"
"Give her a better choice, you fish-faced reject!"
"Everyone!" Nami said over the shouting of her village's people. "I have decided." There was a tense moment in which everyone wondered just what she would say... then her voice yelled, "Will you die with me?"
"YOSHA!" All the villagers exploded.
I smirked. Stupid... ugly... fish stick... Nami had sided with Lucy and us Straw Hats! Ha!
"So you wish to be slaughtered," Arlong mused.
My vision was finally clearing, and I could see Nami turn to us and point her bo staff at Arlong. Suddenly, though, there was an explosion of water and everyone flinched. My neck was tingling in excitement and I looked out to sea. A huge fountain of water was shooting upward, spraying everywhere.
I grinned. Serious shit was about to go down.
"What?" Arlong said, turning to the source of the sound as well.
"There she is," Sanji murmured. "All that's left for me is to break that cement block on her feet."
"What?" said Zoro, too, rolling over. So he was alive after all. Whatever. I didn't really care either way. "Ah, I get it now."
"Can it be?" Yosaku asked.
He and his friend danced around happily. "Yeah! It's Lucy-aneki!"
"I don't remember putting a fountain over there..." the last fishman in Arlong Park muttered.
"Thirty seconds," Zoro commented. "I can't hold on much longer than that."
I struggled to my feet, swaying. "Me neither."
"Zoro... Yuril..." Nami grinned in relief.
"We don't die so easily," I croaked, my mouth tasting sour from coughing blood and my body still on fire.
Sanji kicked off his shoes and dived into the pool before Arlong could react. "Thirty seconds is more than I need!"
The fishman turned to the sea and prepared to follow the cook, but Zoro jumped up and cut a thin line under the bastard's eye. I followed suit, drawing water from the ocean and wrapping it around my arms. Touching the water gave me more strength, and the pain started fading a little. Not much, but enough for me to fight.
"We'll be your opponents!" the two of us announced collectively.
"Lucy isn't what you should be worried about, you half-fish bastard," growled Zoro through Wado Ichimonji, which was being held in his mouth. How he was able to fight like that, I had no idea. He must have some serious neck muscles.
"Didn't I tell you never to use that word again?" Arlong growled. "Looks like you're about finished, Zoro and Yuril!"
"Yeah, fish stick," I agreed. "Who you should be worried about is US! AQUA BOXING!" I wrapped water around both of my fists and charged, but froze as something flashed out of the corner of my eye. I glanced at the object and saw that it was... a raw egg?
"Sure-Kill Egg Star!" Usopp's voice yelled.
Arlong raised his hand to stop it. The egg smashed and broke all over his hand, a stink raising up in the air. I wrinkled my nose in disgust.
"I've got you covered Zoro, Yuril!" claimed Usopp, and I glanced over, looking for him.
"Usopp-aniki!" said Yosaku, looking for him too. "Are you alright?"
"Wow, you're so brave!" Johnny cheered. "Standing up against Arlong with no fear!"
We all found him at the same time and sweatdropped. He was standing behind the hole I'd made when Arlong punched me into the wall a minute ago, giving a thumbs up and grinning. He was covered in dirt, water, and... blood? Ketchup? Knowing Usopp, probably both.
"Yosh!" he agreed. "The great Captain Usopp always fights without fear!"
"WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING OVER THERE?!"
I rolled my eyes. "You call that 'without fear?'"
"Usopp!" Nami said, grinning widely.
The long-nosed sniper laughed. "Ha! Hey, Nami! Check it out! One of their guys—one of the fishmen was defeated by me! Me, of all people! These mermen are NOTHING!" He pulled his lips out, stretching them like he was Lucy. "He had a face like this... HAHAHA!"
Arlong glared at him in anger. "Chew?! You killed Chew?! You bastard!..."
"You betcha! My appearance signals the climax of this battle! Ha! Get ready for the big finale!"
"Zoro-aniki, Yuril-aneki!" Yosaku called, pumping his fist in the air. "Stand fast to stop Arlong!"
Pinkie... no, wait, I just remembered his name from the Fishman Island and Return to Shaboady Arcs! It was Hatchi, right? Yeah, Hatchi! Hatchi struggled to get up, blood dripping out of his mouth, which made me feel a little sick and a little guilty, too. Hatchi was actually a good guy. "Not a chance, you bastards," he groaned.
"Oi, ARLONG!" Usopp shouted. "Over here, you dork!"
"Idiot," I sighed, shaking my head.
"Usopp-aniki!"
"Wow, so brave!"
"You dare to stand in my way?" Arlong laughed, turning to the local Marimo. "Very well, you shall be the first to die, Roronoa Zoro. Then I shall kill your friend Yuril, and then your long-nosed friend. And finally, if that rubber bitch is still alive, I'll save her for last!"
A flame of anger burned in me. Oh, no he didn't! He did not just call Lucy a bitch!
"Usopp... Rubberband! Now go, Zoro and Yuril!" The rubberband he had been aiming simply dropped to the ground in front of the hole. Everyone sweatdropped.
"HEY! WHAT ARE YOU TRYING TO DO?!" Nami shouted, annoyed at his stupidity.
"I will not die." said Zoro, panting. "Allow me to break that ugly nose you love so dearly!" He gave a head cut to the jagged nose and a metallic clang rose up, but either Johnny or Yosaku's sword (I wasn't sure which was which because they looked the same) was stopped by Arlong's nose.
"That's one sharp nose," I muttered.
"Idiot!" Arlong snickered. "I love it because it is unbreakable."
"AQUA BARRAGE!" I yelled again, pounding my fists into the fishman's unprotected back. He stepped forward in surprise, but seemed otherwise unhurt by the barrage.
"Ha! What weaklings you two are!" he said. "If you weren't hurt so badly, you might've been able to give me bruises or even a scratch on my nose... but that's not the case now, is it?"
Arlong threw his fist back. It smashed into my chest with a sickening CRUNCH and I was thrown backward again, groaning in pain. I landed hard and slid into a piece of overhang. Then he stabbed downward and ran forward. Zoro managed to block, but he was pushed to the edge of the pool, his eyes glancing down in panic.
"Oi, fish stick bastard!" I called, getting to my feet once again. I wasn't gonna go down without a fight!
"Yuril-aneki!" Johnny yelled to me. I blinked and turned. "That squid dude is getting up again!"
"Crap!" the 'squid dude' said. "I thought a rubberband was coming at me!"
"WHAT THE HELL?!" The villagers deadpanned.
"What?" Usopp's jaw dropped and he burst into laughter. "Of course I was aiming for him!"
"Didn't you shout 'Arlong?'" Nami pointed out.
"Eh, Hatchi can't fight with those wounds," I said with a shrug. I turned to Arlong and gave a Aqua Fist to the face. He grunted in surprise, and I actually made it powerful enough to throw him into a piece of overhang! Wondering how I did that, I released my tension, panting.
"Thanks," Zoro said.
"Don't make me save you again, bastard," I muttered. "Oi, fish stick! You're so uncool, you couldn't even get Hyouzou to join you! You promised Fisher Tiger to make peace with humans but seeing as how you basically made them slaves—well, I guess that goes to show how much a promise to a brother means to you! It's NO WONDER FISHER TIGER'S FAVORITE WAS ALWAYS JINBEI!"
"Why, you..." Arlong growled, giving me a look of pure rage. A shiver of fear ran down my spine. "How the hell do you know all of that, bastard?"
"I'M A PSYCHIC!"
"Well, SHUT THE HELL UP!" Arlong threw some water (where did he get that?) at me and I squeaked heroically. WHAM! It smashed into me with all the force of a shotgun and threw me to the side.
"Oi, you alright?" Zoro asked quietly.
"It's fine," I replied, "I'll survive."
"Roronoa Zoro!" said Hatchi, all of his six arms jabbing at the swordsman. "I won't let you get away with this! Watch how I kill your nakama underwater!" He jumped into the rectangular pool and Zoro's eyes widened.
Arlong got to his feet, chuckling and approaching us darkly. "Don't worry," he reassured us. "Don't get frustrated! You'll all be dead soon enough." He suddenly dashed forward and jabbed down with his nose before Zoro had time to react. The swordsman was speared through the shoulder, making him yell in pain and drop Wado Ichimonji and the bounty hunters' swords.
"ANIKI!" Johnny and Yosaku shouted.
"No way!" I gasped. "ZORO!"