Pearl was down. I watched his unconscious form sprawled across the wreckage of Krieg's pirate ship, the flames from his strange shield-like armor flickering and dying like the last embers of a campfire.
The metallic clang of his armor hitting the debris still echoed in my ears, a hollow sound that seemed to punctuate the end of our brief but intense confrontation.
My Severing Tide had done its work as I hoped…Well, I had tested it against Pearl's flying fireballs and found it working.
The theory I had thought of was if all the fire he was spewing from his armor was burning oil, and Hamon is very conductive in oil, could I cut it or conduct Hamon through it?
In the end, it worked. The Hamon passed through flame, cutting it all the way to Pearl himself.
The technique, the Severing Tide, was something I'd perfected over months of training, but it's applications were wide depending on how you use it.
From the beginning, Hamon is very good at transferring and shaping force to a certain extent, for example, the power of the punch or the cutting power of the sword in this case.
With the already fearsome cutting power of the Gryffindor Sword, and by changing its shape to simple shapes like making it a wide arc or a cross shape, what you can do with it becomes much more.
'Hm?'
The area around me had grown unnaturally quiet. I remembered hearing some commotion earlier, distant shouts and crashes that I'd ignored while I focused on my opponent.
Being relatively isolated from the main conflict had its advantages—I could handle Pearl without interference, but it also meant I was somewhat disconnected from the larger battle unfolding around the Baratie.
As I surveyed my surroundings, taking in the full scope of the situation, I realized why the silence felt so heavy.
Everyone was staring at me.
The cooks of the Baratie, still gripping their kitchen knives and improvised weapons, stood frozen with their mouths agape.
The remaining pirates of Don Krieg's crew, those still conscious and treading water around the wreckage, looked at me like I was some mythical creature that had stepped out of legend.
Don Krieg himself, standing on a piece of floating debris with his massive frame casting a shadow over the water, had his eyes fixed on me with an expression I couldn't quite read.
His first mate, Gin, clutching a pair of strange-looking tonfas, seemed to be having some kind of standoff with the blonde cook, Sanji.
And Luffy, that rubber boy with the straw hat, was positioned between Krieg and me, his body language suggesting he was ready to fight.
But it was their faces that told the real story. Expressions of shock varied from complete disbelief to full-blown gawking.
Some pirates were rubbing their eyes as if they couldn't trust what they'd witnessed. Others stood with their jaws hanging open, looking like fish gasping for air. The silence stretched on, heavy with unspoken questions and barely contained amazement.
"Am-Am I dreaming?" one of the Baratie cooks whispered, his voice carrying across the water with startling clarity.
"Did my eyes play tricks on me?" another voice added, this one from among the pirates.
"Is it even possible for a person to cut fire?" The question came from somewhere in the crowd, tinged with genuine confusion.
"He didn't just cut the fire," someone else corrected, voice filled with awe. "He cut Pearl-san right through it. Fire and flesh together."
"Was that even swordsmanship?" This last comment came from one of the older cooks, a grizzled man who looked like he'd seen his share of battles.
Listening to their bewildered commentary, I understood perfectly what had left them so stunned.
'Well, Hamon wasn't exactly a common technique in this world—or any world, for that matter.'
The ability to phase through matter while maintaining cutting force was something that existed in the realm of the impossible, at least by their understanding of physics and combat.
But I had no intention of humoring their amazement or providing explanations. There were more pressing matters at hand.
I leaned down toward Pearl's unconscious form, my movements deliberate and unhurried. The strange shield-like armor he wore was clearly more than just protective gear—it had been the source of his flame manipulation abilities.
Each piece was crafted with an attention to detail that suggested both artistic skill and deadly functionality. The metal gleamed with an inner fire even now, though the flames had died down to nothing more than occasional sparks.
As I began systematically stripping the armor from Pearl's body, starting with the fist shields and working my way up to the chest pieces, I could hear the objections rising from the remaining Krieg pirates.
"Hey! What do you think you're doing?" one of them shouted, his voice cracking with indignation.
"That's Pearl-san's armor!"
"You can't just take it!"
"Somebody stops him!"
Despite their protests, none of them dared to approach. They floated in the water at what they clearly considered a safe distance, their earlier bravado completely evaporated.
I heeded their objections no mind. I don't think anyone would, for that matter.
'A pirate screaming thief, while not a new thing to me, was always a comedy show.'
Also, I am a Treasure Hunter, after all. When I see something that's almost treasure-like, of course, I'm going to take it.
The craftsmanship alone made it valuable, but more importantly, it was clearly a dangerous item. Leaving such a thing in the hands of pirates would be beyond stupid—it would be criminally negligent.
The world was dangerous enough without allowing volatile technological artifacts to remain in circulation among criminals.
As I worked, I could feel the weight of everyone's stares, but I maintained my focus. This wasn't a performance—it was a necessity.
Each piece of armor went into my dimensional bag with practiced efficiency. The front shields, still warm to the touch and humming with residual energy.
The bag could hold virtually anything, regardless of amount or weight, existing in a pocket dimension that I could access from the bag. It was invisible to others, appearing as nothing more than the motion of storing items in my cloak.
'Of course, there are limits. For example, the size of things I can put in one go, or that part of it has to be inside the mouth of the bag. But it is a very useful item.'
With Pearl's armor secured, I stood and walked calmly across the water's surface back toward the restaurant.
When I reached the wooden raft positioned in front of the Baratie's main entrance, Gin stepped forward.
Up close, I could see the strain in his features—this was a man wrestling with conflicting loyalties. The tonfas in his hands were unique weapons in a way that suggested they were custom-made for his fighting style.
"Why did you take Pearl's armor?" Gin asked, his voice carefully controlled but carrying an undercurrent of genuine curiosity.
I studied his face for a moment before responding. "I found them interesting," I said simply. "Besides, he won't have any need for them anymore. He, like the rest of you, will be handed over to the Marines who are on their way."
My words hit the pirates like a physical blow. Gin's eyes widened, and I could see the color drain from Don Krieg's face. The remaining pirates in the water began looking around frantically, as if expecting Marine ships to appear on the horizon at any moment.
"You-You're bluffing!" one of the pirates in the water shouted, his voice shrill with panic. "The-The Marines are too scared of Don Krieg to come after us!"
I turned my attention to him, noting the desperate hope in his eyes.
"We told them that you're some out-of-mill pirates who are mostly injured," I explained with the patience of someone discussing the weather.
"Now that you're without even a ship and most of your crew is down, the Marine Officers who will come will see you as a prime shortcut to get a promotion."
What I didn't say aloud was that since their captain had decided to kidnap me by force and conscript me into his crew, I had no intention of letting them go.
'Leaving a criminal who had threatened you go free like that is something only naive people would do.'
The faces of the pirates turned pale, panic spreading through their ranks like wildfire. They began whispering among themselves, clearly visualizing the prospect of spending the rest of their lives behind bars or worse—execution.
In this world, piracy was a capital offense, and Don Krieg's crew had committed enough crimes to warrant the death penalty several times over.
Gin's face had gone grim, and Don Krieg was looking at me with an intensity that could have melted steel.
His anger and fury were those of a second-rate villain who had watched all his carefully laid plans crumble because of what he perceived as an insignificant side character.
The irony wasn't lost on me—in his story, I was supposed to be a minor obstacle at best.
"Don," Gin said, turning to address his captain with a voice heavy with pleading. "We...We need to stop this. We need to let this ship go. If we...If we don't move now, we'll all be put in jail by the Marines."
Krieg's reaction was immediate and violent. He redirected his anger at his subordinate, his voice rising to a roar that echoed across the water.
"How Dare You Continue With This Bullshit Talk Of Letting The Restaurant Go!" He reached to his left shoulder and withdrew his most feared weapon—a massive shoulder shield that served as both protection and artillery platform.
The shield was an impressive piece of engineering, clearly custom-made for someone of Krieg's considerable size and strength.
'Another interesting piece. But honestly, what's up with these guys and shields?'
As he opened it, I could see the complex mechanism within—multiple weapon systems integrated into a single platform. Gun barrels, anti-armor projectile launchers, and what appeared to be an RPG delivery system all nestled within the shield's interior.
The moment the shield's weapon systems became visible, the remaining pirates immediately reached for their breathing masks.
The motion was automatic, practiced—they'd seen this particular weapon deployed before and knew what was coming.
The masks themselves were not crude affairs, a full-face mask with filters and glass goggles attached would provide good protection against whatever dangerous thing Krieg was planning to unleash.
'From what I remember from his information with the Marines and from the Manga, it was a highly poisonous gas.'
"I have no need for you anymore, Gin," Krieg declared, his voice carrying the finality of a judge pronouncing sentence. "You're no longer part of my crew. Throw away your mask."
The casual cruelty in his tone was chilling. This was a man who viewed his subordinates as nothing more than tools to be discarded when they ceased to be useful. Gin's loyalty meant nothing to him—only immediate obedience mattered.
'A pirate through and through.'
Luffy, who had been watching the exchange with growing alarm, suddenly moved to attack Krieg. The rubber boy's instincts were sound—he recognized the threat Krieg's weapon posed to everyone in the area.
But Krieg was ready for him.
The shield's secondary weapon system activated with a mechanical whir. Spear-like projectiles shot out in rapid succession, each one aimed with deadly precision.
Luffy's rubber body can't deal with sharp weapons, several of the projectiles found their mark, drawing blood and sending the straw-hatted boy staggering backward.
As if that weren't enough, Krieg used his considerable physical strength, added from his arm's exoskeleton and the diamond fist, to destroy the wooden raft Luffy had been trying to jump toward.
The wood splintered and cracked under the impact, sending debris flying in all directions. Luffy, showing impressive reflexes, stretched his rubber arm toward the restaurant's side to avoid falling into the sea—a death sentence for any Devil Fruit user.
Luffy managed to stumble back to our side of the conflict, blood trickling from his wounds, but his stubborn determination undiminished.
He looked directly at Gin, his voice carrying conviction that surprised me. "You don't need to follow the orders of a man like Krieg," he said. "Wait for a moment, I will kick his butt."
Gin's response was immediate and explosive. "Straw Hat, Don't You Dare Insulting Don Krieg!!" he shouted, his voice cracking with emotion. "He's A Man You Can Never Hope To Defeat!"
The outburst bewildered everyone present, including me.
Here was a man whose captain had just ordered him to remove his only protection against poison gas, and he was still defending the man's honor.
It made me wonder if Stockholm syndrome was a factor, or if there was something about Krieg's past that inspired such misguided loyalty.
Sanji, the blonde cook who had been watching this exchange with growing frustration, finally spoke up. "Oi Gin, open your eyes!" he said, his voice sharp with anger. "This shitty guy is trying to kill you too!"
But Gin's response only confirmed my suspicions about his psychological state. "It's my own fault," he said, his voice hollow with self-recrimination. "I'm a failure who broke the law of Krieg's crew."
The twisted logic was painful to witness. Gin had internalized Krieg's worldview so completely that he blamed himself for his captain's betrayal.
'This is a classic example of abuse psychology—the victim defending their abuser even when faced with clear evidence of malicious intent.'
Gin turned to look at Sanji, and I could see the conflict playing out across his features. "As expected, I can't fight you, Sanji-san," he said quietly. "You're my savior. But I also won't fight Don Krieg."
With that declaration, Gin threw away his breathing mask. The small device hit the water with a soft splash, sinking immediately beneath the surface. The gesture was one of resignation, of a man who had given up hope of survival but couldn't bring himself to actively resist his tormentor.
The moment the mask disappeared beneath the waves, Krieg acted. His shield's primary weapon system activated with a sound like a cannon firing.
WHOOSH!
A rocket-propelled grenade shot out from the shield's center, trailing smoke and carrying its deadly cargo toward the Baratie.
'Here it comes!' I thought as I moved.
Panic erupted instantly. The cooks who had been watching from the restaurant's deck hurled themselves backward, seeking cover behind whatever they could find.
The remaining pirates struggled to secure their breathing masks, their movements frantic and desperate.
Luffy was scrambling to snatch masks from the unconscious pirates floating in the water, his earlier injuries forgotten in the face of immediate danger.
Others were diving into the water, hoping the sea itself would provide some protection against the poison gas that was about to be released.
The surface of the water churned with bodies seeking escape, creating a chaotic scene that would have been almost comical if not for the deadly serious nature of the threat.
As for me, I moved swiftly but without panic toward the trajectory of the incoming grenade.
My mind was already calculating angles, timing, and the precise application of technique needed to neutralize the threat.
The Hamon Ether, stored in another specially prepared bottle at my waist, began to flow into my hand as I prepared to deploy one of my higher-level techniques.
It glowed with the characteristic golden color of Hamon energy, but its consistency was more like a cloud of light than the electrical discharge of standard Hamon techniques.
Just as the grenade reached the optimal interception point, I released the Hamon Ether in a controlled burst. The energy spread outward in what resembled a magic circle, creating a complex geometric design that hung in the air like a mandala made of light with my hands behind its center.
The circle was approximately six feet in diameter, with intricate patterns that seemed to shift and move as the energy flowed through them.
'Usually, I won't trust the Hamon Ether barrier to take anything more than a larger bullet, as anything more powerful than that will tear right through it.'
Because, even though it was an amazing container and conductor of Ripples, the Hamon Ether itself is just a liquid, not something known for its durability.
But, in the end, this is a gas bomb. So, it shouldn't have that much power.
'However, I will most likely lose this load of Ether…'
The Hamon Ether, as I called it, was a substance I found by accident in an island famous for clothing material while I was trying to find something suitable for my cloak and hat.
It was a residual substance from dyeing the leather of something called the Foana Earth Alligator.
While rare, it is not unfound, maybe a bit pricy. And with a simple chemical process, I am capable of producing more of it.
'And there is no other choice, chemical weapons are the most dangerous. Without a mask, everyone in their vicinity would die.'
The grenade struck the center of the circle and exploded immediately, releasing its payload of poison gas in a billowing cloud of sickly green vapor. The gas was clearly military-grade, designed to kill quickly and efficiently.
"HIKIGAYA!!"
"Dead-Eyes!"
People were screaming, and I could hear Luffy calling out to me with genuine concern in his voice. The boy had a good heart, whatever his other flaws.
But before the gas could disperse beyond the immediate area around the magic circle, something extraordinary happened.
The poison gas began to move in reverse, swirling and spinning as if caught in an invisible whirlpool.
The pink vapor that had been expanding outward suddenly contracted, forming a tight cyclone with the Hamon Ether circle at its center. It was a high-level application of Hamon energy that could manipulate the movement of gases and liquids.
The cyclone continued to shrink, the poison gas becoming more and more concentrated as it spiraled inward.
The geometric patterns of the Hamon Ether circle pulsed with increasing intensity, the golden light growing brighter as more energy was channeled through the containment circle.
The gas, which had been a diffuse cloud capable of killing everyone in the area, was being compressed into an increasingly smaller space.
I walked forward slowly, maintaining my concentration on the technique while keeping my movements deliberate and controlled.
Everyone was watching me with expressions of awe and disbelief, but I kept my focus on Don Krieg. He was standing on the debris of his ship, his face mask made him look more like a fool.
This was a man who had built his reputation on fear and overwhelming firepower, and I had just neutralized his most feared weapon with what appeared to be casual ease.
The poison gas cyclone continued to shrink until it was no larger than a basketball, contained within a perfect sphere of Hamon Ether.
When the containment sphere was fully formed, I made a motion as if placing the football-sized bubble inside my cloak.
In reality, I was storing it within my Stand, but the observers couldn't see the Stand itself—to them, it appeared as if I had made the deadly weapon disappear into my clothing.
Don Krieg's face was cycling through an impressive range of colors as he processed what had just happened. Purple with rage, red with exertion, pale with fear—he looked like a man on the verge of a complete psychological breakdown.
His most feared weapon had been not just neutralized but completely turned against him, contained and stored as if it were nothing more than a curiosity.
"You..." he snarled, his voice hoarse with fury. "You've defied me again and again! You've ruined my plans one after another!"
I looked at him with the same expression I might give to a particularly annoying insect. "I told you before," I said, my voice carrying across the water with perfect clarity. "I didn't suffer in this sea for the past two years just to be defeated by a weakling like you."
"And only a weakling would resort to something as cheap as poison gas."
Krieg's face went from purple to a shade of red that was almost black, and his hands shook with the effort of containing his rage. He was a man who had built his entire identity around being the most feared pirate in the East Blue, and I had just called him weak in front of his crew and victims.
From beside me, Gin walked forward, his movements unsteady but determined. Despite everything that had happened, despite his captain's betrayal and attempted murder, he was still trying to be the voice of reason.
"Don," he pleaded, his voice weak but audible. "Please, just stop this. There's no need to continue fighting anymore. We will only make it harder for us to avoid the Marines. Please, let's just go."
The completely furious Don Krieg's response was swift and final.
He drew a pistol from his coat—a heavy flintlock that looked like it could punch through a ship's armor—and fired a single shot.
BANG!
The sound was deafening in the relative quiet that had fallen over the area.
Gin went down hard, blood spreading across his chest as he hit the wooden deck. The bullet had found its mark with deadly precision, and from the amount of blood, it was clear that the wound was serious if not fatal.
The action shocked everyone present, including me. I had expected Krieg to be ruthless, but shooting his own subordinate, his most loyal one at that, and in cold blood was a level of casual cruelty that went beyond mere villainy.
'This was the behavior of a man who had completely lost touch with any sense of humanity or basic decency.'
"GIN!! Get a hold of yourself!!"
Sanji moved immediately, his chef's instincts overriding his fighter's training as he rushed to Gin's side. "Patty!" he shouted to one of the other cooks. "Get the doctor! Now!"
Luffy's reaction was more direct and infinitely more dangerous. His face went through a transformation that was startling to witness—from concern to anger to absolute fury in the space of a heartbeat.
When he roared at Krieg, his voice carried a weight of moral authority that was to be expected from a shonen protagonist.
"KRIEG!!!!HOW DARE YOU SHOOT YOUR OWN CREWMEMBER LIKE THAT!!!" The words seemed to echo across the water, and I could see that they had struck home.
Even some of the remaining pirates looked uncomfortable with their captain's actions.
But Krieg was beyond caring about the opinions of others. "I have no need for useless crewmembers," he declared, his voice carrying the finality of a judge pronouncing sentence. "Failures who disobey my orders deserve nothing but death."
The casual dismissal of human life was breathtaking in its callousness. This was a man who viewed his crew as nothing more than tools to be discarded when they ceased to be useful.
The loyalty that Gin had shown, the years of service, the personal sacrifices—none of it mattered to him.
'He had to be taken down, like right now.'
Seeing that there was no point in prolonging this confrontation any further, I was about to step forward and end it. Krieg was clearly beyond reason, and his continued existence posed a threat to everyone in the vicinity.
My hand moved instinctively toward the Sword of Gryffindor, the magic sword seemed eager for action.
But Luffy stepped forward first, his body language radiating determination and barely contained fury. He looked directly at Krieg with an intensity that was almost physical in its force.
"I'll be the one to defeat him," he declared, his voice carrying a conviction that brooked no argument.
'Tsk! It is not the time for this.'
I looked at him with genuine concern. "Krieg is dangerous, and he knows how to counter you," I said, trying to make him understand the reality of the situation. "You have no reason to risk your life like this."
I know he defeated Krieg in the Manga, but this world is no Manga. You are not protected by plot armor here, and the enemy won't hesitate to kill you. No, he will do everything in his power to take your life.
But Luffy refused to be dissuaded.
"No! I'll be the one to kick his butt!" he repeated, his voice even firmer than before.
"Also..." He turned to look at me like he wanted to say something.
In the end, he didn't say anything else, he only took off running toward Krieg.
The look he had before he ran puzzled me, it was not the look of blind fury.
There was anger, sure, but it looked like he wanted something else too.
Something from me.
'He wanted...recognition?'
...
A\N: Thank you all for reading!! Hope you enjoyed this one!
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