Well, shit.
That was my only thought as I stared up at the man towering over me, my hands clenching into fists as I froze for a second. I had been confused, nervous, and even somewhat scared more than a few times in this world, as I had faced down Aokiji, Sea Kings, and even Germa soldiers. But, truly, for the first time, I was baffled in this moment.
"A Vice-Admiral?" Was all that came from my mouth, as I was completely off guard.
I had expected a lot of things to come from this meeting: Maybe Daurel would be reasonable, and he'd actually listen to my demands? Or, more likely, he would send all of his soldiers to drag me to a prison, and I'd defeat them before beating some sense into Daurel myself. Or possibly, maybe we wouldn't even get that far, and I'd take him down before he could even call in his guards? Maybe, even, this was just a trap to begin with, and I wouldn't get to talk with Daurel in the first place!
I had a lot of expectations coming into this meeting, but all of them were shattered right now. Never did I expect he would go this far - that this prideful, fat, arrogant piece of shit would actually call in marine assistance to help with a simple fisherman - and not just any marine, but a Vice-Admiral!
"Fisherman?" The massive man's voice boomed as he stared down at me, a grin stretching across his face as he looked down at me, as if I was some sort of amusing little bug, "This is the troublemaker, King Daurel? The man who's been causing so much trouble? I'm surprised you'd need my help to deal with someone like this."
"He's not a normal fisherman!" Daurel huffed from behind me, as I turned to glare at him while he pointed a fat finger at me, "He's a monster! He's a demon in disguise, I tell you! He's a terrorist who attacked a Germa 66 patrol ship, and he's been attacking my guards for days! I demand that you arrest him immediately!"
"A terrorist who attacked a Germa 66 patrol ship?" The giant's grin widened as he looked down at me, a curious glint in his eyes, "Interesting. I didn't expect to find a criminal with that kind of reputation on a little island like this. It seems there's more to you than meets the eye, fisherman."
The giant's words hung in the air for a moment, as I looked from him to Daurel, and then back again. The King was still glaring at me, but the giant's expression was one of amusement and curiosity. He was a Marine, a high-ranking one at that, and he was here to enforce the law. But, as he looked at me, he looked like he wasn't taking this situation entirely seriously.
"Well, little fisherman," The giant continued as I didn't speak, his deep voice rumbling, "You've caused quite a bit of trouble, haven't you? I was told you were assaulting royal guards, and now, it seems, you've even gone and attacked another nation in Germa 66, which is an international issue. You're a wanted man, and it's my duty to bring you in."
He took a step forward, and the ground shook with the impact of his massive footstep. The marble floor cracked under his weight, and the sound of the stone breaking echoed through the massive hall. He was a force of nature - a walking, talking mountain of muscle, and he was coming straight for me.
"You're under arrest," He said, his voice dropping as he turned serious, "I am Vice Admiral John Giant. Don't resist, and I won't harm you."
"Arvel," I responded, my own voice level as I stared up at the mountain of a man, "Just a simple fisherman. I hope we can get along."
"Hah! I like your nerve, 'simple fisherman,'" The giant's lips quirked up into a small, amused smile at my casual greeting "But I highly doubt we'll be able to 'get along,' as you put it. Not unless you intend to turn yourself in right now."
He reached down, his massive hand wrapping around the hilt of the sword at his side. The sword was just as comically large as he was, as the sheath of the weapon looked more like a ship's mast than a blade. The sound of metal scraping against metal echoed through the hall as he drew the sword from its sheath, revealing a long, pitch-black, massive katana.
"I can't do that," I answered, shaking my head as I jerked a thumb towards Daurel, who was still puffing on his throne, "Not when this moron's still ruling over this island. This country is suffering under his leadership, and I'm not going to just stand by and let it happen."
I turned my gaze back to John, my eyes narrowing as I looked up at him.
"Is this the kind of person the Marines want to bet their reputation on?" I asked, my voice dripping with sarcasm, "A greedy, lazy king who cares more about his parties than his own people?"
John's amusement vanished in an instant and was replaced by a cold, hard look in his eyes. He was a Marine, and the Marines were the enforcers of the World Government's law. To question the World Government's allies was to question the World Government itself, and that was a line that he was not willing to let me cross.
"Do not question the Marines, boy," He huffed, his voice no longer sounding very friendly, "We are the justice of this world! We are the ones who keep the peace and protect the innocent!"
He raised his sword, holding it in front of him in a two-handed grip. The blade was so long that it stretched across a good portion of the hall, towering over my head as I was engulfed in a shadow, and the sheer size of it was enough to make any normal man tremble in fear. But I wasn't a normal man. I was a fisherman who had torn his way out from the belly of a Sea King, and I was not about to back down from a fight, not even against a Vice Admiral.
"Imbale is a nation under the World Government's rule," John said, his voice cold and final, "And the king of this nation, regardless of how his citizens feel, is an ally of the World Government. To attack him is to attack the World Government itself, and that is something that I cannot allow."
He took another step forward, the floor cracking even more under his weight, and he raised his sword even higher as he prepared to strike.
"Your twisted sense of 'justice' is a joke," I shot back, my own anger rising as I thought of the people of the south, and of their suffering in the face of such blatant injustice, "Is the World Government's idea of justice protecting a fat bastard who taxes his own people into starvation so he can build a bigger palace? Is it standing by while an entire island suffers?"
"Shut up!" John snarled, his patience clearly running out as I insulted the World Government again, "Criminals like you never understand the true meaning of justice! You only see what you want to see, and you only care about your own selfish desires!"
He didn't wait for a response, and he didn't give me a chance to argue my case. He just lunged forward, his massive body moving with a speed that was completely at odds with his size, and moved like a blur. The blade of his sword whistled through the air as it swung towards me, and the massive blade threatened to squish me into a pool of blood. But, as I watched the blade approach, my lips simply curved upwards into a small grin.
"Honestly, I thought you would be faster," I said simply as I tensed my legs, the marble under my feet shattering into a spiderweb of cracks as I prepared to move, "Is this all a Vice-Admiral can really do?"
John's face twisted into a scowl at my taunt, but it was too late for him to change the course of his attack. The blade was already closing in on me, and he was committed to the swing. I didn't even flinch as I pushed off the ground, my legs exploding with power as I launched myself into the air. I flew over the blade, which whizzed past my feet, a hair's breadth away from taking my legs off, and slammed into the marble floor where I had just been standing. The impact was like a bomb exploding as the marble floor shattered into a thousand pieces, and a cloud of dust and debris filled the air.
I landed gracefully on my feet, a small puff of dust rising from the impact of my landing. I looked up, my eyes locking with John's, and I smirked at his wide eyes.
John was fast - faster than any man that size had any right to be. To a normal person, his swing would have been nothing but a blur, and they would have been cut down before they even knew what was happening. But to me, he was far too slow. I had faced down Sea Kings that were even bigger and faster than him, and I had come out on top. This was just another Sea King - a slightly smaller and slower, yet much smarter and more skilled one.
"You're a quick one, aren't you?" John said, a grudging respect in his voice as he recovered from his surprise, "I'll give you that, but don't think that a little bit of speed will be enough to save you."
He followed up with another quick slash as he stepped forward, the blade moving in a wide, horizontal arc that threatened to cut me in half. I ducked, crouching down as the huge blade whizzed past my head, being so close that I could feel the wind from its passage. The blade slammed into the wall behind me, and the entire palace shook with the impact. The marble wall cracked and groaned, and then it exploded outwards, sending a shower of stone falling down towards me.
"It's not too late to let this go, y'know?" I hummed, still smirking up at the towering man, "Give it up, and you can run back to the World Government with your body intact."
"You little..." John snarled, his face flushing with anger. He was a Vice-Admiral, one of the most powerful men in the Marines, and he was being made a fool of by a simple fisherman. He pulled his sword from the wall, the blade scraping against the stone with a painful screech, and he raised it above his head, preparing for another attack.
As the blade swung downwards, I dashed forward, my feet barely touching the ground as I moved. The ground cracked and cratered under my feet with each step, and John's eyes widened in surprise as I launched upwards and closed the distance between us in a split second, my form becoming a blur of motion. He tried to change the trajectory of his swing to intercept me, but he was too slow. I was already in front of him, my fist raised, and I slammed my punch into his face.
The impact was like a cannonball going off, as my fist made contact with his jaw with enough force to make the air behind him shoot outwards, and a shockwave followed that made every window in the room shatter. John's head snapped back, and he stumbled back a step, his eyes wide with shock and pain as he took a full step backwards. I plummeted back to the floor, landing in a crouch in front of him, a small crater forming under my feet from the impact of my landing.
"You... you really are stronger than you look," John grunted, rubbing his jaw as he glared at me, "But that won't stop me, criminal!"
He tensed, the muscles in his arms and chest bulging as he gathered his strength. Then, he burst forward, moving even faster than before. He was almost a blur of motion even to my eyes, as his sword swung in a series of quick, precise cuts that were almost impossible to track. I dodged and weaved, [Sharp Eyes] activating as my vision enhanced and locked in on the sword. I twisted my body as I kept track of his sword and moved with a grace and speed that I didn't know I possessed. The blade whizzed past my head, my chest, and my legs, but it never made contact.
But John wasn't one to give up. He was a Vice-Admiral, and he was not going to let himself be made a fool by a simple fisherman. He changed his tactics, his swings becoming wider and more destructive as they slammed into the ground next to me, forcing me to leap backwards to avoid the impact, and then, on my side, making me backpedal again. He was no longer trying to hit me, but to trap me, as I was slowly being pushed back towards the corner of the room. He was aiming to limit my movements, and it was working, as suddenly I found myself back into the corner as John stepped forward, thrusting his sword forward as it jabbed through the air. His mouth curved upwards as he knew he had me trapped, but then it quickly shifted into a frown.
I flipped up and backwards, my feet hitting the wall as I pushed off and launched myself into the air. John's sword swung through the space where I had just been, and it slammed into the wall, shattering it into a shower of stone and dust. The entire building shook, and I could hear the sound of screaming from outside as the palace was being torn apart. Daurel, who had been watching the fight from the safety of his throne, finally lost his nerve.
"W-Wait until I'm gone to destroy it, you stupid giant!" He screamed, stumbling out of his throne and scrambling away, his robes tangling around his feet as he sprinted away from the destruction. As he sprinted out of the massive door, his guards finally broke formation and fled after him, their faces pale with fear as they ran after their cowardly king.
I didn't pay them any mind. My focus was on John, who was glaring at me as he pulled his sword from the wall. He was angry, and I knew that this fight was about to get a lot more serious.
"You're a stubborn one, aren't you?" He grumbled, raising his sword as he prepared for another attack, "But your luck is about to run out."
"I'm not lucky," I shot back as I landed in a crouch on the floor, a small crater forming under my feet from the impact, "I'm just stronger than you."
John let out a frustrated growl, and then he lunged forward, his sword swinging in a wide, horizontal arc that threatened to cut me in half. I ducked, crouching down as the huge blade whizzed past my head, being so close that I could feel the wind from its passage. The blade slammed into the throne behind me, slashing through it like butter and sending golden flecks raining around me.
I didn't even flinch as I stepped forward, my movements a blur as I closed the distance between us in a split second while his arm was still extended from the swing. The muscles in my arms flexed as I cocked my arm back, knowing that John was seriously tough. He was a giant, and as a result, his body was supernaturally strong, to the point that even punches that might've one-shot a Sea King were just sending him stumbling. I lunged in front of him, having to leap off the ground as my fist was raised, and I slammed my punch into his gut.
"Tough son of a bitch," I muttered, my muscles flexing as I put more power into the blow. The impact was a loud bang, as my fist made contact with his stomach with enough force to make the air in front of me shoot outwards, and the shockwave that followed made the dust and debris around us fling into the air. John's eyes bulged, and he stumbled back a step, the air forced from his lungs as he coughed, though he didn't fall over.
He dug his feet into the ground, carving trenches beneath him as he fought to keep himself upright, and glared at me.
"You're definitely too strong to be in a sea like this," He grunted, rubbing his stomach as he glared at me with a new look of respect, and maybe even a bit of fear.
Then, he lunged forward again, this time with a renewed ferocity. His sword swung sideways, aiming to cut me in half at my waist, but my legs tensed. I jumped, leaping high into the air as the blade whizzed past my feet. As I soared through the air, I saw it - a change. His other hand, the one not holding the sword, became coated in a strange, black sheen in an instant. My eyes went wide as I instantly recognized what I was looking at.
"You have got to be kidding me," I grumbled, knowing what was coming, but as I was still in the air in front of him, I had no way to dodge. His fist, now coated in what I knew to be Armament Haki, shot forward. I gritted my teeth, barely managing to summon scales all over my frame with [Scaley Skin] to negate some of the damage as his massive fist, which was bigger than my entire body, slammed into me with enough force to send me torpedoing backwards into the wall behind me. The impact was like getting hit by a cannonball, and the wall behind me crumbled on impact. I felt the world spin, a sharp pain in my chest, and then the weight of a mountain as the pile of debris came crashing down on top of me. Marble and stone rained down, burying me under a mountain of rubble and blocking me entirely from John's view.
"Hah..." John huffed as he stared at the pile of debris that I was under, his breathing a bit heavy as he grinned, "If I had been anything less than a Vice Admiral, you would've defeated me. But I can tell you can't use Haki, and you're not used to fighting. That's what separates us."
He paused, his eyes taking on a bit of an impressed look.
"If you could use Haki and knew how to fight for real, you'd be a serious threat. Not just to a Vice Admiral, but... possibly even an Admiral with your level of physical ability."
He stared at the pile of debris, waiting for a response, but there was none.
"It's a good thing I took this call and not another Vice Admiral," He continued, muttering to himself this time, "Any of the other ones... they would've certainly lost here. I've never met anyone this physically gifted... my giant body is the only thing that allowed me to keep up with his strength and speed. Anyone else would've been overwhelmed by the difference in physical ability, even if he's not that good of a fighter and can't use Haki."
Finally, he took a step forward, raising his arm as he got ready to sort through the pile of marble to find my body. But, as he approached, his eyes went wide as the mountain of stone and marble was suddenly sent rocketing outwards, flying all across the room as I burst out of it with my arms crossed in front of me. My face and body were covered in a light layer of dust, but otherwise, I looked completely unharmed.
"You're right, I can't use Haki, but I don't need it for a simple Vice Admiral," I smirked, looking up at John's shocked expression, "Though, I do appreciate the insight, really. It helped me realize something."
I glanced down at my fists, clenching and unclenching them a few times, as a new understanding filled my head. This entire fight, I had been going about it all wrong. John's words, the ones about my lack of fighting experience and excess of physical ability, had resonated with me, because he was right. I'd been fighting defensively, reacting to his movements, and so far, had pretty much just been dodging.
That was for a simple reason - because this was my first real fight. I had taken down Sea Kings, but they were near-mindless creatures who pretty much just charged at me and let me counter-attack. Besides that, the guards and the Germa soldiers were barely more than training dummies in the face of my speed, which meant they couldn't even fight back.
This was my first real fight. My first battle against an equal - someone who could actually hurt me, and who wouldn't just be knocked down with one blow. My subconscious had been focused on self-preservation as a result, as I felt awkward and uncertain in my ability to defeat John. I was nervous in the face of a trained opponent, and as such, I'd been fighting as such. This entire time, this fight had been simple - so simple that I could've ended it in an instant, but I didn't even realize it.
Not anymore.
John's jaw tightened as he saw my smirk, a flicker of unease in his eyes as he raised his massive sword upwards again, "What the hell are you talking about? Just stay down!"
Then, the ground trembled as he lunged forward, his muscles bunching as he brought the colossal sword overhead for one final, decisive blow. The sheer force of the swing generated a wind that swirled around the throne room, and the immense pressure of the shadow looming over me made the very air feel heavy. The entire palace, already groaning from the earlier damage, seemed to sway precariously on its foundations, as if even the building itself knew that this blow would destroy it entirely. This was it, the full, unrestrained power of a Vice Admiral. A blow that could cleave an entire ship in two, which would end the fight in a single, overwhelming display of force. A blow that, in a future that would never come because of my presence in this world, would clash with Whitebeard.
As that blade of pure destruction descended towards me, I didn't dodge. I didn't step aside. I just stood my ground, my smirk unwavering as I looked up at the descending shadow.
"You were right about one thing, Vice-Admiral," I said, my voice calm and clear in the eye of the storm, "I don't know how to fight. All I have... is my own strength."
Then, I moved. My right leg bent, digging into the fractured marble floor and creating a small crater as I braced myself. My right arm cocked back, the muscles in my shoulder and bicep coiling like springs as they stored up an explosive amount of power. My gaze was locked on the center of the blade, a single point in the blur of descending steel. For a split second, the world seemed to slow down, the only sounds being the whistle of the blade cutting through the air and the pounding of my own heart. The sword descended, reaching only inches away from my head.
Then, I slammed upwards.
My fist shot forward, a blur of motion, moving faster than the eye could see, in an uppercut. There was no complex technique, no hidden trick - just pure, raw power, focused into a single, devastating point as my fist met the descending sword.
For a heartbeat, an impossible silence fell. The blade, a mountain of steel imbued with a Vice Admiral's power, stopped dead in its tracks, being held in place by my comparatively tiny fist as it tried to slam downwards. The force of the impact sent a shockwave radiating outwards, cracking the floor around me as I could feel the pressure of death only inches above me. The air itself seemed to warp and bend, unable to withstand the clashing powers.
John's eyes, which had been filled with annoyance, widened in utter disbelief. He stared, his mouth agape, as he saw the impossible. He saw the sword, a weapon that had never failed him, begin to groan and creak under the pressure of my single punch. A spiderweb of cracks appeared on the side of the blade, spreading outwards from the point of impact.
Then, with a sound like booming thunder, my punch burst through. The colossal sword didn't just break - no, it shattered entirely. An explosion of metal fragments erupted outward, launching like shrapnel from a grenade. The larger pieces slammed into the walls, embedding themselves deep in the stone, while the smaller ones rained down on the floor, bouncing and skittering across the marble like deadly hail.
My fist, now free of the obstruction, continued its upward trajectory as my feet burst from the ground, carrying the momentum of the devastating punch. I launched into the air, soaring towards the giant's shocked expression, and then my fist slammed into John's jaw. The giant froze, his eyes wide, as the impact echoed through the ruined throne room. The force of the blow tilted his head backwards, making him stare upwards in awe and disbelief as one of his teeth flew from his mouth. He was sent stumbling backwards, his head snapping back with a crack. His massive body, a mountain of muscle and bone that had no right being moved by a fist as small as mine, was lifted off his feet and sent flying through the air like a rag doll.
He crashed through the already destroyed wall behind him, the stone exploding outwards as he burst through to the outside world. He soared through the air, a massive silhouette against the bright blue sky, before finally plummeting down. He slammed into the hilly ground around the palace, and then his body rolled head over heels, rolling into the massive houses down below. I watched him go, my fist still raised, as I listened to the distant crash and the screams that followed. I slowly lowered my arm, my knuckles raw and bleeding, as I took in a deep breath.
The silence in the throne room was deafening, as I felt a bit strange now after going to an intense battle to just... standing there, alone. I stood there in the destroyed throne room as the victor. I was confident that my punch had at least dazed him, if not knocked him out completely, and he wouldn't be able to recover quickly.
But, although I had defeated John, he wasn't my true opponent here. My fight was with the blob of a king who had caused all of this in the first place. Now, it was time to finish what I had started.
I turned around, shoving my way through the piles of debris scattered across the throne room, which was partially blocking the door, and began my trip back out of the palace. The grand hall was now deserted and eerily silent, as the polished marble floors were coated in a thick layer of dust, as our battle had shaken the very foundations of the palace, and the guards who had been lining the room had fled with Daurel. Without any interruption, I reached the entrance to the palace and, with a heave, shoved open the massive door.
As I stepped out, I saw that my target hadn't gone far. There, at the bottom of the long staircase I had been led up earlier by Rayon, stood King Daurel. He was flanked by the same royal guards who had fled the throne room with him in a loose, nervous formation. As I stepped out into the daylight, my frame casting a long shadow down the stairs, Daurel's eyes went wide. He stumbled back a step, his double chin quivering as he pointed a chubby, accusatory finger at me.
"You! How? How did you... How did you defeat the Vice-Admiral?!" He shrieked, his voice a high-pitched, panicked squeak.
I didn't answer him. Instead, I started to descend the stairs slowly, taking my time as I did. The crunch of my boots on the stone was the only sound in the tense silence, and Daurel's panic grew with every step I took.
"Don't just stand there! Seize him! Take him down!" He screeched at his guards, his face flushing and looking like a fat tomato.
The guards all tensed as they shuffled forward, forming a hesitant barrier in front of their king as they stood between us. However, they didn't charge forward to apprehend me. No one wanted to be the first to make a move and to be the one to face the man who had just defeated a Vice Admiral. As I drew closer, the guards began to take nervous, involuntary steps back, as their spears trembled in their grasp.
"Cowards! What are you doing?! I order you to apprehend him!" Daurel ordered again, spittle flying from his lips as he pointed at me, but the guards still didn't move.
I stopped a few feet from the line of guards, my gaze sweeping over them as my expression stayed firm. Then, I slowly raised my hand and pointed a single finger directly at the cowering king.
"I only want the king," I said bluntly, "Anyone who stays out of my way will be allowed to keep their life. You can die for the fat bastard who doesn't give a shit about you, or you can move aside and live to see your families again."
A moment of silence hung in the air after my words, as the guards stood uncertainly. Then, Rayon, who was standing just a few feet in front of Daurel, broke the spell.
"I-I'd rather keep my life!" He shouted and then darted to the side, clearing out from the formation of guards.
With his words, it was like a dam breaking.
"I-I don't want to die here either!"
"I'm sorry, Your Highness, but if a Vice Admiral can't defeat him, then I wouldn't be able to help anyway!"
"T-That's right! We don't stand a chance, so it's not our fault!"
"W-WHAT THE HELL ARE YOUR TRAITORS DOING?! THIS IS TREASON! TREASON! I'LL HAVE ALL OF YOUR HEADS ON PIKES!" As Daurel stared in horror, screaming at his men for their treason, the rest of the guards followed Rayon's lead. They moved aside, clearing a path as they opened a channel between the now-exposed king and me.
I cut off Daurel's panicked squeals as I lunged forward and covered the distance between us in an instant, looking like a blur of motion. My hand shot out, clamping around the soft, fleshy skin of his neck. I hoisted him into the air, his feet kicking uselessly as I held him up by his neck, choking him. The reality of his situation finally set in as Daurel's eyes bulged, and his face turned a shade of purple. He started to babble, his words a choked, desperate mess.
"W-Wait! I'm sorry! I'm sorry I tried to arrest you! I'll take the blame!" He spat out, snot starting to roll down his face, " S-Spare me! I apologize for what I did!"
In response, I simply shook my head, a small, almost pitying smile on my lips.
"You don't need to apologize," I said, my voice even as my eyes bored into his, "I'm not the type of person to hold grudges, nor to desperately seek revenge against someone who wronged me."
I raised my arm to my side and held up my hand flatly. Sharp scales erupted from my skin, covering the side of my hand in a natural blade. Daurel's eyes went wide with terror as he looked over sideways, taking in the sight.
"This isn't revenge for what you did, Daurel."
My arm moved in a swift, clean arc. The scaled edge of my hand sliced through his neck easily, causing a burst of blood to shoot out as the area went silent. Daurel's fat head flew through the air, flipping over itself as it rolled off his neck, and then landed on the ground with a small thud.
"I'm just doing this because I want to."
I released my grip on his neck, letting the fat, headless body in my hand fall to the ground in a pool of blood. Then, I turned around, looking at the crowd of trembling, shocked, and terrified guards. As I stared them down, I had only one thing to say.
"The King is dead."
Now, there would be a new king in Imbale.
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AN: Thanks for reading! The next chapter will be posted in around a week!
Or, I update this story twice as often on Patreon.com/Koyon ! Up to chapter 12 is on there!