"What's going on?! There are enemies!!" The Fur Race members in the distance instinctively used their sense of smell to search for enemies in the night, but this instead hastened the inhalation of the anesthetic, causing them to fall down and sleep.
It was Caesar's specially made anesthesia capture agent, touted as a potent anesthetic capable of taking down even the Giant Race. The Fur Race fell en masse, and the once lively venue underwent a dramatic change.
However, near the central bonfire where Zeraora was, nothing happened, because Setsuna's Alcremie had the ability Sweet Veil, which prevented all allies within a certain range from falling asleep.
Those it considered friends were automatically treated as allies, so Caesar's anesthetic was completely ineffective here.
Their original plan was to sneak and kidnap a few Fur Race members while they slept, but the Fur Race's revelry activities made them change their strategy. Caesar's talent in this area far exceeded in other areas, so slowly selecting suitable test subjects after subduing the Fur Race wasn't a bad idea.
Their goal was to capture them alive; the dead Fur Race held no value for them, although the over a hundred still conscious Fur Race members in the central area were somewhat unexpected.
"That guy Caesar really can't be relied upon, there are so many unaffected Fur Race members."
"Maybe these few are just stronger, but this is good too, more test subjects mean it's harder for that guy to shirk responsibility."
Recently, Caesar often dumped problems on them, claiming things like the test subjects were flawed or not diverse enough, all without acknowledging his technical issues.
And since they weren't skilled in scientific experiments, they couldn't really refute him, especially since some of his abilities were valued by the government.
With the original plan revised, the number of Fur Race members they intended to take also increased; having expended so much effort, they naturally wanted to take away as many as possible in one go.
As many Fur Race members were affected by the anesthetic gas and fell asleep, they stood out in the open because they saw that distant Fur Race members were affected, not expecting there to be such a different group.
Seeing these enemies, Hichugiskhan was unexpectedly enraged.
"Bastards... Firearms Team, prepare to engage! Knights, protect our citizens!"
The number of Fur Race members couldn't possibly all gather around a single bonfire, so there was more than one bonfire burning.
And the Firearms Team and Knights had relatively high status among the Fur Race. Zeraora, as a foreign guest, also had high status, so they were all near the central bonfire, unaffected by the anesthetic thanks to Alcremie's ability.
Hichugiskhan also issued his order; the Firearms Team and Knights were elite warriors of the Fur Race, they just usually appeared in different locations. The Knights guarded the Whale Forest, while the Firearms Team was more active within Claw Island.
Setsuna and Zeraora also stood up, but Hichugiskhan stopped them.
"There's no reason for guests to fight. Setsuna, you too, you've finally come home after so many years, just stay put for now."
He then grabbed his scepter, removed some things, and it transformed into a copper hammer the size of a watermelon, which he swung rapidly in his hand, quickly creating an air vortex around him.
"Yoki Menmen Fu!"
The citizens, though unconscious, were in stable condition, clearly under the influence of some kind of drug, and he aimed to blow those substances away.
"Whoosh!" The strong wind swept across the path ahead, but it didn't have much effect. Although the anesthetic made by Caesar was potent, its effects were short-lived, and it lost its potency after felling most of the Fur Race members.
"Attack!"
Hichugiskhan's fur seemed to fluff up under the static, and lightning spread across his hammer. Hichugiskhan was the first to charge at his enemies, with the Firearms Team members following closely behind.
The Knight Fur Race members melted into the darkness, heading to check on the Fur Race members further away.
Other than Hichugiskhan and a few leaders of the Firearms Team wielding metal weapons, most of the Fur Race members were unarmed, as metal weapons were also scarce resources here.
"Troublesome... make it quick, who knows how long Caesar's anesthetic will last."
He claimed that even the Giant Race wouldn't wake up for 12 hours, but the unexpected events made the World Government team start to question his reliability.
In their view, these men were the last viable force of the Fur Race; once they were dealt with, the entire Fur Race would be at their mercy.
But just as he finished speaking, Hichugiskhan already swung a hammer at his head, and with a flash of the hammer, his head burst with a boom, exploding into clouds around him.
"Logia-type... who are you people, and why are you attacking Zou?"
Hichugiskhan spun around with his hammer, which had already turned pitch black. Zou had a systematic method for training Haki, and as the Duke here, he naturally knew how to use Haki.
The World Government people didn't answer him but instead released a large amount of clouds with their hands. Just as Hichugiskhan thought those clouds were vulnerable, his hammer couldn't disperse them.
"Boom!"
Although it was a cloud, it was as hard as iron; iron clouds only existed on Sky Island and were one of the elements of nature, also within the developmental scope of the Cloud-Cloud Fruit.
After two simple exchanges, Hichugiskhan realized this enemy would not be easy to deal with, but his offensive became even more fierce; if he backed down, who would protect the rest of Zou?
Meanwhile, elsewhere, Zou's warriors temporarily held the advantage. Though those people were government-trained agents, not all agents could reach CP0 or CP9 standards. Many hadn't even mastered all the Rokushiki techniques, mostly knowing only two or three styles.
And the Fur Race's attacks were naturally accompanied by electricity, greatly enhancing their combat power.
On this day, Hatch was unusually energetic, possibly because his future son-in-law was watching behind him, inspiring him to display his strength. After knocking down an opponent who used Tekkai with a single punch, he began looking for his next target.
He soon found his target, a shirtless giant about four meters tall, and many Fur Race warriors had already fallen beside him.
Seeing him with his back turned, Hatch believed he'd found an opportunity. After a quick sprint, he lifted his blade and aimed for the man's neck. It was a high-quality weapon forged in Wano Kuni, a gift Setsuna had brought him.
"Zzzap..."
The electrically wrapped blade in mid-air cut toward the man's neck, but it didn't succeed. The blade hit him just like it hit Tekkai before, without effect, and this time even the electricity failed.
The man swung back and struck Hatch on the head, sending him flying.
He was the Fruit Ability User the World Government prepared specifically to counter the Fur Race, a Paramecia-type Store-Store Fruit User, capable of turning himself into a battery-like existence, nullifying all of the Fur Race's electric attacks.
Electric currents, flames, cyclones—these intangible things were all within his storage range, but the drawback was that he couldn't store the force of physical attacks.
So when choosing a user, the World Government specifically picked such a tank-like Ability User; he was a CP Agent specializing in Tekkai, mostly working as a bodyguard.
This ability combined with his physique formed a perfect match, compensating for Tekkai's insufficient resistance to elemental attacks.