This was an uninhabited island, a place where countless feral beasts roamed, making it a death trap for the average sailor and nearly inaccessible to the world. At this very moment, however, the local wildlife had fled in terror as a colossal battle tore through the landscape.
"Sister, have you reached Lord Drake yet?" Sandersonia asked, looking at Marigold with frantic eyes.
"I got through! He responded, but everything depends on how fast he can get here," Marigold replied, her voice trembling as she clutched the Den Den Mushi.
BOOM!
Hearing the thunderous echoes of the clash in the distance, Kikyo's face paled. "If this keeps up, Lady Snake Princess won't be able to hold out much longer."
Gripping her snake-bow and notched arrows, Margaret stepped forward with fierce loyalty. "Lady Sandersonia, Lady Marigold, let us join the fray! We cannot leave her alone!"
"Yes! Let us fight! We swear to protect the Snake Princess!" The other Kuja warriors cried out in unison, their faces etched with grim determination.
Sandersonia turned on them, her voice sharp with desperation. "Do you think we're staying back because we want to? Don't you realize we would only be a nuisance to her right now? She sternly ordered us to stay away for a reason—don't let her sacrifice be in vain!"
Marigold stomped her foot, bitterness dripping from her words. "If we could just get to the ship, we could escape and bring back reinforcements, and this would all be over!"
"But if we board the ship and that man uses his Devil Fruit ability, we'll all be sitting ducks. We'd die at sea before we even cleared the calm belt," added a girl who looked nothing like the other Kuja.
She was Guarana, a slim woman with short hair—bright pink on top and blonde at the edges. She wore a magenta long-sleeved shirt and shorts, reinforced with silver armor over her chest and shoulders. A former officer of the Cidre Guild, her life had changed when her guild crossed paths with the Kujas. After being decimated by Hancock, she had surrendered and, surprisingly, had been folded into their ranks.
Guarana was pacing back and forth, her breathing shallow. "What do we do... what do we do? We're trapped!"
At that moment, a mocking, high-pitched laughter drifted over the battlefield.
"Gijigijigiji... Boa Hancock, you are no match for me. Just give up!"
The man laughing was a bizarre, towering figure with a long pink tongue and puffy, neon-pink hair. He wore a flamboyant, rainbow-colored jacket over green pants, topped with a green chameleon-like helmet with orange goggles. This was Chameleone, a former member of the Whitebeard Pirates and a man who believed himself invincible.
"You've seen my power now. I am the strongest in this world! And since you are the most beautiful woman in the world, you are destined to belong to me," Chameleone shouted, throwing his arms wide. "The moment I saw your picture in the newspaper, I was captivated. Boa Hancock, become my woman! I can give you the world!"
"Slave Arrow!" Hancock hissed, completely ignoring his ramblings. A massive pink heart manifested before her; she pulled it back like a bowstring and unleashed a barrage.
Swish! Swish! Swish!
A storm of pink arrows, moving with the speed of lightning, rained down upon Chameleone.
"Useless! Everything you do is in vain because I have already copied your fruit!" Chameleone sneered. As he spoke, an identical pink heart appeared before him. He mimicked her movements perfectly.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
The arrows collided in mid-air, shattering against each other and sending shockwaves through the atmosphere. The sound of constant explosions filled the clearing as Hancock's signature move was neutralized by its own mirror image.
"As long as you are a Devil Fruit user, there isn't a single skill I cannot replicate," Chameleone bragged, shoving his hands into his pockets. He was in no rush; he wanted to break her spirit.
"People talk about Whitebeard's Gura Gura no Mi being the strongest Paramecia? A joke! Mythical Zoans? Logias? They are all garbage compared to my Kopi Kopi no Mi!"
Chameleone stared at Hancock with the predatory eyes of a wolf cornering a rabbit. "You are exquisite, truly. Boa Hancock, be my wife. I will treat you like the queen you are. It's incredible that a woman this perfect actually exists. You belong to me, and only me! Hahaha!"
Hancock stood before him, her long black hair flowing in the wind, her flawless, angelic face contorted with rage.
"You disgusting cur!" she spat, her tone icy enough to freeze the surrounding jungle. "You dare dream of making this Empress your wife? To possess me? You are nothing but a common bandit!"
"This Empress will end you! I will tear you apart!"
Chameleone laughed like a maniac. "You don't understand, Boa Hancock. If I weren't holding back, you'd already be lying at my feet, unable to speak. If you were a man, I would have slaughtered you the second you crossed my path."
He looked her up and down slowly. "But you're too beautiful to break. I don't want to hurt you. If even a single scratch touched your skin, I wouldn't forgive myself. So, follow me. I swear I'll be good to you—I'll even listen to you! A woman like you is worth any price!"
Hancock frowned, her mind racing to find a counter-strategy, but her thoughts were shadowed by a grim reality. She had claimed she would kill him, but she knew they were empty words.
I can't do this alone...
This lizard-like freak was simply too strong, and her abilities were being used against her. She felt a burning sense of humiliation. She had promised to leave Amazon Lily and shake the very foundations of the sea, to make the world tremble at her strength. Yet here she was, before even reaching the New World, stopped cold by an opponent she couldn't overcome.
Her pride, which usually stood as tall as a mountain, was crumbling. She realized she had been arrogant. She had underestimated the monsters that roamed the Grand Line.
"What do you say? Will you accept my offer?" Chameleone asked, admiring her defiant posture.
"Gijigijigiji... fine, take your time. We have all day."
He began to pace, his eyes never leaving her. "I've traveled with Whitebeard; I've seen every 'beauty' the four blues and the Grand Line have to offer. I thought I'd seen it all... until I saw you. I've never seen anyone like you."
He began to describe her with a hungry intensity. "The softness of your hair, those charming eyes, that fair skin... you're so perfect I can't find a single flaw. My God... how can something so perfect exist? I love you to death, Boa Hancock!"