Shiganomi Island – Southeast.
—You! Get away from there, idiot! You two, flank them, don't just stand around!"
Olaf barked orders left and right as he rushed through the ruined town. His men were coming and going, fiercely fighting what little remained of Jeres' loyalist forces and the Marines who had landed barely an hour ago.
—Has anyone seen Kael?! And where the hell is Arlen?!— he shouted to one of his men, just before drawing his sword to block a Marine's incoming slash.
His blade countered with a sweeping cut that threatened to split the poor bastard in half.
Boom!
Before his strike could land, the Marine in front of him simply exploded.
Blood, bone, and viscera sprayed everywhere.
Olaf staggered back, stunned. Something—or someone—had torn through the poor bastard like a missile, leaving behind nothing but human remains and a trail of destruction.
A second later, that thing crashed into a nearby house, which gave way with a sharp crunch.
—Eh? Was that… Arlen?"
He turned toward the destroyed house in disbelief, his wrinkled face contorted in confusion at what had just happened.
—N-no way, Arlen wouldn't be taken down like that…"
His voice faltered for a moment before he forced himself to calm down. He couldn't give in to panic—not when the fate of an entire nation rested on him, Arlen, and Kael.
Even if it was Arlen, he trusted his unnaturally sturdy body to survive any fight he was in. If that failed… then no matter how many orders he gave, they'd all be screwed by the end of the day.
—Well, looks like today's my lucky day. You must be another one of the brains behind this little rebellion."
A grizzled voice echoed from the end of the street, cutting through the noise of war around him. It made Olaf's skin crawl.
—What's that friend of yours made of? My fist was coated in Haki, but I can still feel it going numb."
Olaf turned his pale face over his shoulder to see the old man slowly approaching, the Marine cloak on his back billowing in the breeze.
—Come on, don't be rude. Answer your grandpa when he's talking to you."
A gentle smile crossed Raya's features—one that meant absolutely nothing, as his overwhelming bloodlust spilled into the area without restraint, thickening the air with his mere presence.
All fighting within a 300-meter radius came to a complete stop. Marines and revolutionaries alike were paralyzed, unable to move a single muscle.
It was a blatant show of power, aimed at anyone foolish enough to stand too close. That was Raya, after all—a veteran who understood just how disposable life truly was.
—Y-you've got to be kidding me, you bastard old man!"
Olaf roared after a moment, blood dripping from his clenched fists. His sword had simply slipped from his weakened grip. His face twisted in rare defiance, a show of courage that didn't quite reach the rest of his trembling body.
—Men! Anyone who still can—shoot him! Give Arlen time to get back up!"
His voice reached his men, but none moved. Who could, in the face of bloodlust forged over decades of killing?
But then...
Bam!
.
.
.
Behind an overturned cart crouched a young soldier, barely fifteen years old—a simple kid who had joined the fight with nothing but the hope of giving his mother and little brother a better future.
He really thought it would be easy. The leaders were the strongest fighters on the island, and everyone knew about Arlen's strength. He thought things would go smoothly...
He was wrong.
And now he was hiding, hoping no one would find him, too afraid to even take part in the battle.
When the air became too heavy to breathe, he could only tear up. He was scared. He didn't want to die.
But it was the shout of the man he admired that pulled him from his despair. The air was still heavy, and he was still afraid—but the desire to do something was stronger. Maybe he didn't have to be useless anymore. Maybe this was his chance to do something for his people… for his family.
The rifle in his hands stopped shaking. He stepped barely out of hiding, aimed at the old man's back and—
Bam!
.
.
.
An aged hand grabbed his head.
His skull cracked under the pressure.
—M-mom-"
Crack.
—You people… Do they really recruit them this young?"
Raya sighed in frustration. He almost sounded regretful for what he'd done. Almost.
His bloodied hand wiped itself lazily on the side of the cart, his wrinkled eyes filled with contempt.
A deathly silence fell over the area. Olaf, frozen, could only watch in horror as the old man turned his back on the corpse, the word "Justice" printed on his coat facing Olaf like a cruel joke.
Justice? That man was anything but...
Crash!
At blinding speed, a blur shot past Olaf, kicking up wind and tearing up the ground beneath his feet as it rushed toward Raya.
—Well, took you long enough, I must sa-"
Raya was cut off, forced to turn and block the charge before it bulldozed him, his Haki-coated fist firing out as his eyes flashed red for a second.
Surprise lit up his expression as his punch hit nothing but air. His Observation Haki—once powerful enough to glimpse faint traces of the future—had failed him in something as simple as predicting an attack.
—Shit."
Arlen, crouched in an awkward position, twisted his body at inhuman speed. His shoulder cracked as his arm whipped upward in a monstrous uppercut toward Raya's jaw. Bloodshot eyes burned with fury as he struck.
Boom!
Raya was launched into the sky in an arc, his body twisting midair until it crashed ten meters away into a pile of rubble. A cloud of dust exploded outward.
"Old man," Arlen's voice rang out deeply as he stood upright, a faint scratch on his cheek the only mark left from Raya's earlier monstrous punch. "If that's the full power of your Haki, you won't even scratch my skin."
Arlen hadn't arrived in this world with some divine gift. From the very beginning, all he had were his memories of this world, raw talent…
And this monstrous body.
—Ugh… You kids these days hit hard. I'm old, you know? Not built to take damage anymore."
The dust cleared with a single swipe of Raya's hand as he rose slowly, his tone betraying a trace of annoyance.
—If I were just three—no, two years younger… I would've ended this farce a while ago."
Raya muttered to himself, ignoring Arlen as he reached for his fallen coat and draped it once more over his shoulders. Thin streams of blood dripped from his lips as his jaw, blackened by Haki, returned to normal.
Arlen frowned, fists tightening as he stood in a stance that, to a veteran like Raya—who was secretly watching—left a lot to be desired.
"Olaf! Now's not the time to freeze! Keep fighting while I hold this old man back…"
Olaf, shaking off his horror, didn't hesitate to obey. His eyes locked onto Arlen's powerful back, courage returning to his chest.
—All of you, don't hesitate! Don't think! Just fight! Fight for a better tomorrow for Shiganomi!"
Chaos erupted once more.
And as the war cries returned to fill the skies above Shiganomi, one thing was clear to everyone still able to wield a weapon.
The real battle had only just begun.
To be continued.