Crack... crack...
The sound of bones and joints twisting echoed out.
Barobar clenched his fists tightly and loosened up his body, bouncing lightly in place.
As his body moved, the fat on his belly jiggled up and down, and heavy thudding sounds rang across the deck.
After stretching himself out, Barobar glanced at the densely packed pirates around him and roared angrily.
"You idiots, get out of the way! I'll deal with these two fish-men myself!"
The surrounding pirates showed no disappointment at all when they heard that. Instead, they happily retreated to a safe distance, clearing out the huge deck.
Only then did Barobar roll his shoulders, spread his arms toward Jinbe and Arlong, beckon at them, and say arrogantly through the cigar clenched in his mouth,
"Come on. Let me see what fish-men are capable of. Just don't disappoint me!"
"What an annoying bastard. He's just some human!"
Arlong's face was full of irritation, while Jinbe remained grim.
At the same time, around the pirate ship, the battle between the Sun Army and Neptune Kingdom army against the human pirates had already begun.
The sea truly was the fish-men's domain.
In terms of numbers, even combined, the Sun Army and Neptune Kingdom army did not amount to even one tenth of the human pirates. But with their agility in the ocean, the cannons on the pirate ships could not hit them at all.
Instead, under the attacks of the merfolk and fish-men, one pirate ship after another was having its coating destroyed.
If the battle kept going this smoothly, then the Sun Army's prestige on Fish-Man Island would soar.
At that point...
Suddenly, Arlong thought of something, and excitement surged through him.
"If I'm the one who defeats this human, then maybe... with that fame, I can replace Jinbe..."
At that thought, Arlong's eyes lit up. Looking at the still-motionless Jinbe, he clenched his fists tightly.
"This is my chance..."
Thinking that, he charged out without hesitation and shouted excitedly,
"Jinbe-aniki, leave this guy to me!"
Jinbe was startled, and his expression changed drastically.
"Wait! It's dangerous, Arlong!"
The reason Jinbe had not rushed to attack...was because from Barobar's earlier strike, he had already sensed just how terrifying this man was.
This was absolutely a monster of a human.
But it was already too late.
Arlong shouted without a care.
"It's fine, Jinbe-aniki. He's just a human."
As if in answer to those words, the human facing him did not make any move to defend at all, as if he had frozen in place.
"So that's all you've got?! Can't react because I'm too fast?!"
"Hahaha! Die, human! We fish-men are ten times stronger than you humans!"
As he shouted, Arlong threw a punch and slammed his fist into the human's body.
But at that moment, Arlong could clearly feel that the feedback from the human body in front of him was completely wrong.
Soft...
Elastic!
At the same time, the human's voice sounded in his ear.
"Only ten times? That's pretty pathetic..."
When Arlong looked up, before he could even react, a gigantic fist carrying overwhelming force came crashing down toward his head.
Boom!
The air on the deck shook violently, and the impact swept out in all directions.
At that instant, cold sweat poured all over Arlong's body, and a fear of death unlike anything he had ever felt before descended on him.
But that punch did not hit him.
Because Jinbe had appeared in front of him, both arms raised high, his brows tightly furrowed as he blocked the blow that would have taken Arlong's life.
"I... I made it...?"
In terms of height, both Jinbe and Arlong were close to three meters tall, enough to be called imposing.
But in front of Barobar's massive body, standing seven or eight meters high, they looked small, almost like children.
In a way, the difference in size represented a difference in strength.
And yet, despite that nearly double gap in size, Jinbe had still stopped Barobar.
Even Barobar seemed surprised.
To him, that strike had been effortless.
But the fact that this fish-man had managed to block it was enough to prove how exceptional he was.
However...
"You blocked that one."
"But what about another?"
Barobar raised his other hand and brought it crashing down like a giant hammer.
In an instant, the monstrous force split apart the deck beneath the three of them.
And in that very moment, Jinbe's own strength exploded outward. He shoved Barobar's two arms aside, grabbed Arlong, and rapidly retreated backward.
"Oh!"
Barobar did not pursue them. Instead, he looked surprised as he felt the explosive strength the fish-man had just displayed. Then he spoke again, repeating his invitation.
"That's some impressive strength. I'll ask you again, fish-man. Are you interested in joining my ship? I can give you the position of vice captain!"
Jinbe's expression did not change as he shouted back.
"I must respectfully decline!"
After saying that, he ignored the furious Barobar and turned to Arlong beside him.
"That man is not someone you can handle. Leave him to me."
Arlong was unwilling to accept it, but when he looked again at the human in front of him, he had to face reality. His full-power attack earlier had not even left a scratch on the man's belly.
"Damn it..."
But the one even angrier than Arlong was Barobar.
Being rejected twice pushed him close to losing control.
"Leave him to you? Fish-man, do you really think you can defeat me?"
Jinbe looked straight at Barobar and answered calmly.
"How would we know if we don't try?"
"Try... you bastard..."
"In that case, I'll show you why, among all the captains under Boss Shiki, I am the one who inherited his will!"
"Muscle Enhancement... Tenfold!"
As soon as Barobar finished speaking, the fat covering his entire body began to tremble and compress like waves.
Under the shocked gazes of Jinbe and Arlong, the enormous mass of fat on his body suddenly tightened and transformed into clearly defined muscles.
In the blink of an eye, the previously obese belly turned into visible eight-pack abs.
"Hey... you've got to be joking!"
Arlong's face instantly turned pale.
Jinbe's pupils widened as he muttered,
"A Devil Fruit ability...?!"
Barobar showed a somewhat cruel smile as he answered.
"Since you're about to die anyway, I'll tell you."
"I ate the Gōka Gōka no Mi. I'm an Enhancement Human. I can strengthen any part of my body!"
"Any part!"
Those words made Jinbe and Arlong immediately think of something terrifying.
"Yes, it looks like you figured it out."
"You said earlier that a fish-man's arm strength is ten times that of a human, right?"
"Then..."
"Arm Strength Enhancement... Tenfold!"
"Leg Strength Enhancement... Tenfold!"
"Skin Enhancement... Tenfold!"
"Bone Enhancement... Tenfold!"
...
Each time Barobar spoke, a different part of his body visibly changed.
The fat man from before disappeared completely, replaced by a monstrous body packed with bulging muscles. Steam-like mist rose around him.
"Now then... let me show you what real terror feels like."
The moment those words fell, Barobar vanished from where he stood with a speed completely inconsistent with his massive body.
Then he threw a punch.
"That's impossible..."
In that single instant, Arlong suddenly felt a terrifying force slam into his abdomen.
The pain shot straight from his stomach to his brain.
Before he could even react, he spat out blood as his entire body was blasted away like a cannonball.
He shot through the bubble coating around the ship and flew in an arc before crashing back into the sea.
Jinbe's pupils shrank instantly.
Barobar's massive shadow completely enveloped him.
"Now then... you're next, fish-man."
"I hope you can entertain me for a while longer."