The deck of the World Government warship stank of polish and arrogance.
Dozens of men in black suits and bowler hats stood in ranks, forming a wall of human obedience. At their center, moving like a god behind glass, was a figure wrapped in an absurd bubble helmet. His steps never touched the planks directly—two servants even laid cloth beneath his boots as he passed, as though the ocean air itself might taint him.
"Lord Charlmarco," one of the black-clad men approached, bowing low, voice tight. "A vessel spotted ahead. One thousand meters. Unfamiliar design."
The Tenryuubito did not even glance at him. His pale, slack face reflected in the helmet glass as he extended a hand. "The glass. Give it to me."
The man rushed to place the telescope in his hand.
Charlmarco peered through the lens, saw the black dragon-headed prow of the Eternal Life, and his lips curled.
"Hmph." He lowered the telescope, exhaling frost against the inside of his bubble. "This… garbage sea breeds audacity. A mere commoner ship, and yet its hull towers larger than a World Government vessel. Larger than my vessel. Unacceptable. Insulting."
The suits bowed their heads lower. They had heard this tone before.
"Sink it," Charlmarco ordered. His voice carried like the swing of a blade. "Crush it beneath the waves. I will not tolerate the stench of peasants polluting my horizon."
One of the older men in black—a scarred veteran, eyes hard with experience—stepped forward. He chose his words carefully. "Lord Charlmarco… forgive me. But a vessel of that size… whoever owns it may not be ordinary. Striking first could provoke a complication. For your safety—"
The Tenryuubito's helmeted head snapped toward him.
"You dare lecture me? In this trash heap of a sea? East Blue spawns only insects. Even if it produced a lion, lions kneel before gods." His voice pitched higher, trembling with outrage. "Now obey. Fire."
The veteran's jaw tightened. He could feel every gaze on him. He bowed stiffly. "…Yes, Lord Charlmarco."
Then, louder: "Cannoneers! Target the approaching vessel! Sink the dragon-prowed warship!"
The soldiers scrambled. Heavy wheels creaked as cannons rolled into place. Gunpowder hissed.
And then—
On the Eternal Life, Jin sat cross-legged in the crow's nest, sipping coffee, newspaper open across his lap.
A ripple cut across his senses—sharp, jagged, unmistakable.
Killing intent. Multiple.
He folded the paper silently, stood, and peered out across the sea. His face darkened.
"...Idiots."
The first cannon blasts split the sky. Black iron balls screamed through the air.
"Roar!"
Kuma's bellow shook the deck below. The giant bear-man sprang from his meditative seat, his massive frame blurring as his instincts flared. Both palms swung wide, striking three cannonballs mid-air like they were pebbles.
Boom. Boom. Boom.
The detonations ripped the sea apart, geysers of spray hammering against the Eternal Life's hull, but the ship held steady, rocking like a predator annoyed by flies.
At the mast's peak, Jin tilted his head back, staring into the storm of black iron. A smile stretched across his lips. Not a kind smile.
"Why," he murmured, voice carrying like frost, "do fools always line up to die in front of me?"
More cannonballs screamed overhead. Jin dropped lightly from the crow's nest, his body a blur of violet shadow.
"Rankyaku—Ransetsu."
His legs carved the air, blades of compressed wind shredding the incoming rounds. Explosions ripped open the sky, flashes of orange against the dark water. Shards of iron rained like burning hail.
Below, Kuina stepped from the hall, sword across her shoulder. She looked up. "What's happening?"
"Nothing for you to bother with," Jin answered coldly, without looking down. His voice carried the tone of steel. "Go back inside."
She studied him, caught the edge of real anger in his tone. For once, she didn't argue. "…Alright." She turned back inside.
The shelling continued, but Kuma stood like a wall at the bow, slapping every stray ball into the sea. His roars echoed between blasts, primal and unyielding.
On the Government warship, the veteran in black was sweating now. The cannon fire had done nothing—less than nothing. Their enemy wasn't evading. He was dismantling their barrage like a child batting toys from the air.
"Damn it," he thought, chest tight. "We've stumbled into a monster."
Still, duty shackled him. He raised his hand. "Prepare for boarding! Close distance!"
Six men in tailored brown suits stepped forward. Each moved with the weight of killers. The leader, a pale-faced man beneath a white fedora, adjusted his tie, eyes colder than ice.
Their ship groaned, drawing closer. Six hundred meters. Five hundred. Four.
The cannons fell silent. Grappling lines glinted in the hands of soldiers. They meant to take the dragon ship by force.
But Jin didn't wait.
His body vanished from the mast.
By the time he reappeared, the air itself was cracking beneath his steps. Every press of his foot against nothing left shockwaves rippling outward.
"Moonwalk," someone whispered in terror as his silhouette streaked across the open sky.
Kuma followed, his enormous frame slower, heavier, but relentless. Each stomp of his paws shattered air, leaving visible ripples as he lumbered in pursuit.
Jin landed first.
The boards of the World Government ship groaned under the sudden, weightless impact. He straightened, purple eyes scanning the suited men like a blade being drawn. His tone was cold enough to bite flesh.
"The World Government… grows restless."
A murmur spread. Soldiers shifted uneasily.
Behind them, Charlmarco twitched, shielded by his guards, his voice shrill within the bubble. "Do you have any idea what you've done? Vermin! You dare set foot here? You dare stand before a Celestial Dragon? On your knees!"
The ship shook again.
Boom.
Kuma landed like a thunderclap, his massive weight cracking planks beneath his paws. Splinters flew.
Jin didn't even look at the Tenryuubito. His lips curled, voice suddenly smooth, mocking. "So it's one of you. A Celestial Dragon. I was wondering what kind of parasite barked loud enough to order cannons on me."
Charlmarco shrieked louder, clutching at the nearest guard. "Kill him! Kill them both! Do it now!"
Jin's smile vanished.
"...Kuma," he said quietly. "Leave the bubble-wrapped pig. And his lapdog. The rest—kill them."
The bear-man's chest rumbled like a war drum. He grinned, teeth like fangs. "Understood, boss."
He launched forward.
The pale man in the white fedora rasped, "Intercept him!" His voice was a snake's hiss.
The other five brown-suits leapt to meet Kuma's charge, bodies moving with the speed of trained assassins.
Steel rang.
And the deck became hell.
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T/N :
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