"What a noisy bunch of insects."
Rody flicked his wrist. A lattice of razor-thin slashes burst from his hand, shrieking through the air like a storm of glass.
In the blink of an eye, Toby and his pirates were shredded into a rain of blood and meat. Bodies fell apart like tofu under a steel racket, scattering in scarlet chunks across the cobblestones.
Windfire Wheel sighed, shaking his head. "See? I told you—one swing from the captain and you'd be minced meat. But no, you just had to try your luck. Well, are you satisfied now, little meatballs?"
Daddy Masterson stood frozen, his breath shallow. "This… this is the Slayer of the East Blue?"
"Too savage," someone whispered before Rody casually waved his hand again—splitting the survivor into ribbons mid-sentence.
Rody smiled lightly. "So… anyone else want to test me?"
To Daddy, that smile wasn't human. Behind Rody, the air shimmered with illusion—or perhaps something more real. He thought he saw a monstrous form rise: a four-armed, four-eyed being with a grinning mouth on its stomach, standing atop a mountain of corpses. Its gaze fell upon him like a weight of the sea, cold and infinite.
Daddy's body locked up. His fingers stiffened around his gun. Sweat rolled from his temple to his chin. Every nerve screamed that if he so much as flinched, he'd join the dead in pieces.
Windfire Wheel's voice broke the silence. "Hey, I heard the pirates calling you a bounty hunter—Daddy something, right? You weren't thinking of challenging our captain, were you?"
He gestured at the gore. "You saw what happened to them."
"You got a kid, don't you?" Windfire Wheel added. "Think about her before you do something stupid. If you fight, you die."
Nami stepped forward, her tone gentle but firm. "You should go. Run. You still have a daughter to look after. Don't waste your life here."
Daddy didn't answer. He didn't even blink, still staring at Rody as if paralyzed.
Rody tilted his head. "I'll give you a chance. Draw your gun. If you can hit me—anywhere—just touch my clothes, and I'll consider it your victory. I'll give you one hundred million Berries and let you walk away untouched. Even if you lose, I won't kill you… but I will cut off both your hands."
He smiled faintly. "Well? Do you want to try?"
One hundred million.
Daddy's breath hitched. That much money was beyond his dreams. Just one shot—just graze him—and he could quit hunting forever. He could give his daughter the peaceful life she deserved.
But instinct screamed louder. His marksman's intuition told him it was impossible. Not a shot, not a flick of the barrel would reach that man. He could sense it—the void between their power. Lose, and he'd never shoot again. Never protect his little girl again. The thought hollowed his chest.
Just then, a calm voice cut through the tension.
"Captain Rody, there you are."
Mike appeared with Carmen, Leo, and Jose in tow, carrying bundles of goods.
"Where's the pirate gang that chased Windfire Wheel?" Carmen asked.
Windfire Wheel pointed at the crimson-streaked street. "Right there."
The group followed his gesture. Their faces paled.
"Th-those… those piles of meat are the pirates?" Carmen stammered.
"Yep. Told them who the captain was, but they wouldn't listen," Windfire Wheel said. "Kept insisting the newspapers exaggerated. Well, now they've learned the hard way. The captain got annoyed and—" he mimed slicing with his hand, "—chop chop, problem solved."
"R-right…" Carmen muttered. She remembered her first day aboard, when her bold challenge had nearly earned her the same fate. Just thinking about it made her skin prickle.
"Since they're dead," she ventured carefully, "shouldn't we leave?"
"There's still the bounty hunter," Windfire Wheel reminded. "Calls himself Daddy Masterson. Says he wants to fight the captain."
Mike blinked. "Daddy… the marksman who carries his child everywhere? The best shot in the East Blue?"
"Forget it," Rody said, his tone bored. "He's not worth it."
Windfire Wheel frowned. "Captain, that's it? You're letting him go?"
Rody looked back at Daddy, eyes unreadable. "He's already bound by his child. His hand wavers, his aim trembles, and his courage has turned to fear. Killing him would be meaningless."
Daddy's fists clenched beneath his cloak until his nails drew blood. He's right, he thought bitterly. I'm not the Marine prodigy I once was. I'm no longer the sniper who stood against Yasopp of the Red Hair Pirates. I'm just… Daddy the bounty hunter. Daddy with a kid.
As Rody and his crew walked past, Carmen paused beside him. Her voice softened. "You made the right choice. Don't let others judge your path. Protect what you've chosen, and pursue it with all you have. That's a life worth living."
Her words landed like quiet thunder. Anger, confusion, shame—all rippled through Daddy's face before fading into calm. His fists loosened. "You're right," he murmured. "I've already found what I want to protect."
He smiled faintly, weary but certain. Maybe the man he used to be could shoot straighter and kill faster. But the man he was now could sit beside his daughter, watch her laugh, and keep her safe. That was enough.
As Rody's shipmates vanished into the crowd, Daddy whispered to himself, "My choice… was the right one."
...
Loguetown, Marine Base
Smoker exhaled a puff of smoke from his twin cigars, the office heavy with the scent of ash and seawater. He had just finished handing Daddy his bounty pay when a soldier burst in, saluting hard.
"Report, Captain Smoker! Pirates sighted on the east street—members of the Boxing Pirates! Their captain, bounty thirteen million, Toby the Boxer, is leading them. They're clashing with an unidentified group. Situation unknown!"
Smoker drew on his cigar again, grabbed his jitte with the seastone tip, and turned to Tashigi. "Rally the marines. We'll capture the Boxing Pirates ourselves."
"R-report, sir," the messenger stammered, "there's more! We've also spotted, near the execution square—fifty-million-Berries wanted man, Rody the Slayer, and his navigator, the five-million-Berries Cat Burglar Nami!"
Smoker froze for only a moment, then gave the soldier a sharp glare. "Next time, lead with that."
He flicked his cigar, sparks scattering. "Assemble everyone. We're not going after the Boxing Pirates anymore."
He rested the jitte across his shoulder, eyes narrowing.
"We're going to capture Rody the Slayer."