The instant Leno moved, Kuina, Nojiko, and the others retreated to a safer distance.
Sai and Boo's men, however, were swept up by the two colliding waves of Conqueror's Haki and dropped with their eyes rolled white. Only Sai and Boo managed to brace themselves with their blades against the pressure. Catching sight of Leno's crew pulling back, the two shared a look and—dragging the few still standing—rushed straight for Nami and the others.
Boom!
Another collision. Chinjao's eyes were bloodshot as he glared fiercely at Leno.
"Give back my treasure, brat! Otherwise none of you are leaving here alive!"
"Hahahaha… Want my treasure? Come take it. Beat me, and it's all yours." Leno crooked a finger at him, arrogance written all over his face.
"Argh—seeking death! Hasshoken Ogi: Mukiryu Mukirikugi!" (Eight Impacts Fist Secret Technique: Drill-less Dragon Drill-less Nail)
With his "headless drill" hardened in Armament, Chinjao hurled himself horn-first at Leno—
Boom!
"Nice head! How'd you grow that? You train it?"
Leno sidestepped, watching as Chinjao's head punched a crater into the ice, and couldn't resist the jab.
"Curse you! Martial Head Spin)!"
"Swish" "Swish" "Swish"
Chinjao propped himself on the ground with his head and, with his legs spread, attacked Leno like a spinning top.
From afar, it would look like Leno was fighting a gigantic spinning toy—occasionally slapping it so that sparks and lightning flew. Quite the spectacle.
—
Meanwhile, Kuina and Nojiko had already engaged Sai and Boo.
Kuina chose Sai. Seeing the large blade in his hands, she opened with a flying slash—a courteous greeting by her standards.
"I hear you're the current pillar of the Chinjao family. That means you should be strong, right?"
Clang!
"Woman, surrender now. Otherwise I won't hold back," Sai said, catching the slash on his sword.
Kuina's eyes went cold.
Shff—shff—shff—
Several slashes streaked for Sai, and Kuina flashed to the air above him, blade chopping straight down.
"What's a 'woman' got to do with it? Spare me? You'd better get serious—or today's 'current pillar' of the Happo Navy will fall to a woman's blade."
Clang! Clang! Clang!
Harried by the relentless edge, Sai realized he'd underestimated her.
As the cut bore down on his head, he snapped a kick upward. "Martial Leg Heel!"
Clang!
His Armament-hardened heel caught the falling edge, then stomped hard against her blade. "Hasshoken—Armored Heel!"
Bang!
The shockwave blasted Kuina back; the violent tremor in her blade churned straight into her wrists.
"Hasshoken, huh? Interesting. Feels a bit like Ryuo," Kuina murmured, registering the ache.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
Steel rang and air heaved. Kuina frowned. "That massive sword of yours—just for show? Why don't you use it?"
"My specialty is martial arts; holding a sword is just my hobby. Is there a problem?"
Expression blanking, Kuina sank her stance, both hands tight on the hilt.
"Ittoryu Iai: Falling Petals"
A pink gleam blurred before Sai's eyes; before he could react, his chest flashed cold—
Shhk!
Blood spattered. Although he had subconsciously coated himself with Armament Haki, a wound was still cut open, and blood flowed freely.
"Damn it!"
He whipped around with a sweeping cut to drive Kuina back, then planted his sword and flung his body sideways, both feet piston-kicking toward her. "Martial Kick Barrage!"
Clang! Clang! Clang!
Heel and blade hammered together again and again. The battle between the two gradually intensified.
—
With Sai drawn off, Nojiko turned to Boo. …That's it? Her eyes said it before she did.
"Hey, woman—what's with that look? Looking down on me?" Boo holding his longsword, was about to make a move when he noticed Nojiko's disdainful gaze. He immediately bristled. 'Just a mere woman dares to look down on me?'
Nojiko ignored the barking. She only wanted to end this quickly—Leno was facing a legendary great pirate, after all.
She slid her blade free and strolled forward—then vanished. "Soru!" She reappeared suddenly in front of him and swept her sword horizontally.
Clang!
The longsword was blocked by Boo's Armament Haki-covered arm, so Nojiko increased the pressure on her blade.
"Heh… let me show you the taste of the Eight-Impact Fist." (Hasshoken)
"Vmmm—"
The shock pulsing through her blade nearly shook it from her hand. Nojiko skidded back, eyes narrowing. "This shockwave... is pretty powerful,"
In an instant, the clanging of collisions rang out. Armament-enhanced martial arts and the gleam of a sword clashed rapidly.
Their battlefield was filled with flying slashes and scattered shockwaves, exceptionally intense.
—
Nearby, several Happo soldiers ringed Nami and Robin.
"We'll capture you two first—make your captain surrender—and trade you for our treasure!"
"Yeah. Best not resist. Otherwise, this'll get rough."
"Oh my, treating two ladies like this—hardly gentlemanly," Robin smiled, arms crossing over her chest.
"Little lady, don't put up a useless struggle. We won't do anything to you, as long as you obediently return our Happo Navy's treasure."
"What do you mean 'your' treasure?! That's MY treasure!" Hearing their words, Nami was instantly mad. 'Leno worked so hard to collect the treasure, and you just come to snatch it?'
"Looks like you prefer the hard way. In that case, we'll have to get rough," one of them said, and the group prepared to attack.
"Wait!"
"What, having second thoughts? Too late! Brothers, let's go! Take them down first." The men ignored Nami's attempt to stop them and moved forward to capture the two.
"I'm just saying, shouldn't you look up at the sky before you act?"
"Don't try to stall for time! what could possibly be in the sky…" They glanced up—and froze, bodies shaking with terror.
A woman with paper wings hovered overhead, aiming a cloud of fine needles—each rolled from paper—down at their skulls. One twitch and the entire storm would skewer them.
Carmen was feeling very proud; her Devil Fruit training had finally paid off with a new technique. Under Leno's coaching, she'd learned to loiter aloft with paper wings and developed a move he'd praised highly: "Pear-Blossom Storm."
If only she'd mastered Armament already—the technique would be even nastier.
"Hey, you lot—if you don't want to die, squat down and don't move. Or I'll turn you into hedgehogs in a heartbeat," Nami warned, as the men trembled and cold sweat poured down their faces.