In the deep ocean, Xia Qiu's massive form began its counterattack.
He wagged his tail, twisted his body, endured the pain, opened his gaping maw, and with a turn, lunged at the man on his body.
But the moment Xia Qiu turned, the man reacted in time, suddenly slipping his body, rolling downwards along Xia Qiu's body.
He dodged Xia Qiu's attack, clinging tightly to Xia Qiu's body, and thrust the harpoon in his hand fiercely.
Not good.
The instant he turned, Xia Qiu sensed the change in water pressure and discovered the man's move.
So Xia Qiu instantly closed his mouth, rotated his body, and thrashed violently.
Bang.
The harpoon struck Xia Qiu's body, but under Xia Qiu's rotation, a tremendous force was transmitted, and his smooth scales deflected the harpoon.
But even so, the harpoon's spike pried up Xia Qiu's scales, leaving a bloody gash.
Pain.
Xia Qiu was injured again, pain flooding him, but the pain didn't make him flinch; it made him more ferocious.
Xia Qiu turned to bite the opponent, but Lieutenant Colonel Berio, wielding the harpoon, circled Xia Qiu's body and dodged Xia Qiu's attack.
Damn it.
Xia Qiu's own body was too long.
His six-meter-long body was being used by the opponent as a pivot, using the current generated by his movement to dodge to the side.
After dodging, Lieutenant Colonel Berio's harpoon struck again.
Thwack.
This time, Lieutenant Colonel Berio's harpoon pierced Xia Qiu's body, sinking in deeply.
Ah!
Xia Qiu cried out in pain, his body thrashing, but Berio held the harpoon firmly, dragging it along his body with Xia Qiu's movements, carving a bloody gash.
Damn it.
Xia Qiu was in immense pain and furious, wanting to attack, but Berio circled Xia Qiu's body, launching continuous attacks.
Leaving one bloody gash after another on Xia Qiu's body.
The pain made Xia Qiu angrier, but a hint of panic also surfaced in his heart.
What should I do?
At this moment, Xia Qiu realized a problem.
He dared to jump into the sea to attack him because he was confident he could defeat him, or at least wouldn't fear sea fish of the same size.
And the facts proved it.
His strength could break through Xia Qiu's scale protection, his speed was slower than Xia Qiu's, but by using Xia Qiu's inertia, he could entangle him.
His timing for attacks was exceptionally precise, using Xia Qiu's body to evade and attack his flanks.
He had rich experience, repeatedly suppressing and injuring Xia Qiu in battle.
In just half a minute, he had left several bloody gashes on Xia Qiu's body.
So how should he deal with him?
Where was his advantage over sea fish of the same size?
Xia Qiu instantly thought that he was fundamentally not a fish, not driven by instinct. Just now, he had easily detected their bait and trap and avoided subsequent attacks.
If it were any other fish, it would have been killed by now.
His strengths lay in his human soul, his observation skills, his thinking ability, and his adaptability.
More importantly, the opponent's assumption that he was just a fish.
These were his true specialties.
Xia Qiu knew he couldn't be angry; he had to be calm and carefully consider his strategy.
Although he was at a disadvantage, the opponent couldn't kill him. Such injuries would only wound him even after three or five minutes.
But could the opponent last for three minutes?
In the water, under continuous exertion, oxygen consumption would greatly increase.
Even in the world of One Piece, where physical limits were extreme, he still needed to breathe.
Xia Qiu didn't believe he could be worn down to death.
Therefore, after the entanglement, he would definitely change his combat method.
He would attack his vital points, attempting to kill him with a single blow.
Xia Qiu thought of this, and several countermeasures already formed in his mind.
Boom.
Xia Qiu twisted its body, opening its maw again to bite at Berio.
But Berio immediately dived underwater, twisting with Xia Qiu's body, causing Xia Qiu to miss its bite.
Coming to Xia Qiu's side, Berio raised the harpoon in its hand, aimed at Xia Qiu's body, and thrust it fiercely.
But at that moment, Xia Qiu suddenly twisted its body in the opposite direction.
Berio didn't take it to heart, its head was still on the other side. It twisted its body, unable to bite itself at all, just a meaningless struggle.
But with Xia Qiu's movement, its massive pectoral fin slapped fiercely at Berio.
"Huh?"
Berio was slightly stunned and instinctively raised its left arm to block in front of itself.
Bang.
After a muffled sound, Berio felt as if it had been hit by a shield.
What great strength.
Berio's movement faltered. It never imagined that a fish would use its pectoral fin to strike.
At that very instant, Xia Qiu swung its body and swam forward, its tail whipping out as it moved.
Berio had intended to pursue Xia Qiu, but feeling the water pressure surge towards it, it quickly brought its hands up to block.
Boom.
The immense force struck Berio, sending its body skidding several feet sideways, its arms going numb from the impact.
But it wasn't injured.
Such force couldn't harm it yet.
But Xia Qiu had already shot out, creating distance.
"It ran away?"
Berio saw this and felt a sense of regret. It gripped its harpoon and intended to swim towards the surface.
But at this moment, Xia Qiu circled around underwater and swam rapidly towards the sea's surface.
"What is it trying to do?"
Berio was a bit confused, but in an instant, Xia Qiu reached the area near the surface, blocking Berio's path. It lowered its head, staring intently at Berio.
Berio tried to swim upwards, but was blocked by Xia Qiu.
It was blocked.
Berio's expression turned grim. It hadn't expected its opponent to be so clever, directly blocking it at the surface.
Berio moved left and right, but its opponent shadowed it, constantly swimming around near the surface, always keeping its head aimed at Berio.
Berio ascended slightly, and the black fish opened its massive jaws, its menacing teeth aimed at it.
"It's trying to force me to run out of oxygen underwater."
Berio's face was grim. It had been underwater for a long time, nearing its limit.
If it didn't ascend soon, the consumption of oxygen would cause its physical strength to plummet rapidly. Eventually, without even needing an attack, it would suffocate underwater.
I can't wait any longer.
Berio gritted its teeth, gripped its harpoon, and charged at the black fish.
Seeing Berio charge, Xia Qiu opened its maw and lunged to bite.
Berio pushed off the water with its legs, angled its body, and dodged Xia Qiu's mouth.
Success.
As long as it dodged the first strike, it could get close and wait for an opportunity to attack, even surfacing.
But in the next moment, Xia Qiu continued to charge forward, tilting its body slightly, and its massive pectoral fin slapped towards Berio's body.
Bang.
The pectoral fin struck Berio's left arm, directly forcing its body sideways.
At this instant, Xia Qiu continued to swim forward, its tail swinging and lashing out at Berio.
Bang.
Berio was directly hit, spitting out a string of bubbles, its strength gone.
But it held its breath, seized the opportunity, pushed off with its legs, and swam towards the surface.
Splash.
The moment Berio burst out of the water, Xia Qiu had already turned back and bitten its leg.
Crunch.
Its sharp teeth clamped down, its lower leg disappearing instantly, blood gushing out.
"Ah!"
Lieutenant Colonel Berio roared, gripping his harpoon and thrusting it downwards fiercely.
Clang.
The harpoon struck Xia Qiu's forehead, but Xia Qiu's forehead had a massive protrusion.
Starting from a meter long, Xia Qiu's forehead began to bulge, gradually becoming enormous, now resembling a large lump.
Lieutenant Colonel Berio's harpoon only managed to break the surface before being stopped by bone.
Then Xia Qiu continued to bite, swallowing Lieutenant Colonel Berio's thigh along with his waist and abdomen into his mouth.
"No, no, save me."
Lieutenant Colonel Berio felt his waist being enveloped and shouted loudly.
But in the next moment, sharp teeth closed.
Crunch.
Everything below Lieutenant Colonel Berio's waist vanished, entering Xia Qiu's belly.
Puff.
Blood spread through the seawater, and Lieutenant Colonel Berio's body stiffened.
But the hunt was not over. Xia Qiu swallowed Lieutenant Colonel Berio's waist and continued to devour, swallowing Lieutenant Colonel Berio's upper body into his stomach in two bites.
When Lieutenant Colonel Berio's head was crushed, the sound of shattering bones and the spread of brain matter across his tongue caused Xia Qiu to pause slightly.
He had eaten him.
He had actually eaten a person.
Xia Qiu, who was once human, felt a sense of unease and a wave of guilt washed over him.
But in an instant, Xia Qiu's eyes turned fierce.
I am not human now, I am a fish.
You wanted to kill me, so how could I just lie down and die?
You injured me, so I will tear you to shreds and swallow you whole.
Xia Qiu snorted coldly, baring his terrifying teeth in a wide grin, then flicked his body and swam away into the distance.
At that moment, thwack, thwack, thwack, crossbows and spearguns shot into the water, hitting Xia Qiu.
Thwack, thwack, thwack.
The arrows struck Xia Qiu, but were deflected by his scales. Occasionally, one would wound him, but it couldn't penetrate his thick muscle.
They can't kill me yet.
Xia Qiu thought, slowly diving down and swimming away from the seabed.
...
"It's been a long time, Lieutenant Colonel Berio is still underwater."
At the bow of the ship, a sailor stared downwards. The white shadow in the water seemed so small against the backdrop of the massive black shadow.
"Don't worry, Lieutenant Colonel Berio has the upper hand."
Though he was reluctant to admit it, Kurume knew that Lieutenant Colonel Berio was extremely powerful, having once hunted a seven to eight meter long tiger shark. His combat strength was immense.
As long as that black fish was entangled by Lieutenant Colonel Berio, it would have no chance of escape.
That blood was proof.
But at this moment, the black fish suddenly separated from the white shadow.
"It's trying to escape."
The sailor shouted.
But as it broke away, the black fish swam back towards the surface, blocking Lieutenant Colonel Berio.
"What is this?"
Kurume's eyes narrowed as he realized the black fish's intention – to block Lieutenant Colonel Berio.
Such a clever fish.
Lieutenant Colonel Berio had been underwater for nearly a minute now. If this continued, he wouldn't be able to hold on.
"Captain, should we help Lieutenant Colonel Berio?" a sailor asked Kurume, raising his crossbow.
"There's no need."
Kurume's eyes narrowed, and he shook his head. "You've already tried. Our crossbows and spearguns can't even wound it. Let's wait and see. We have to trust Lieutenant Colonel Berio."
"Yes."
The sailor lowered his weapon and waited quietly.
Not long after, Lieutenant Colonel Berio burst out of the water. The sailors looked overjoyed, but then he let out a cry of pain.
"Lieutenant Colonel!" the sailors shouted, raising their spearguns and aiming downwards.
The other sailors also drew their crossbows.
"What are you doing?"
Kurume pushed down the harpoon in the sailor's hand and shouted, "Vice Captain Berio is above, what if you hit him?"
Kurume's words made them hesitate to act.
But the next moment, Berio was dragged into the water by the black fish and completely devoured.
Seeing this, Kurume secretly chuckled but shouted, "Vice Captain Berio was killed by the black fish! Attack, avenge him!"
Following Kurume's words, the crossbows fired, hitting the water and striking the black fish.
But the black fish was unharmed and slowly swam away.
Seeing the black fish swim off, Kurume's expression turned sad, and he said, "Vice Captain Berio was killed by the black fish."
However, where no one could see, a smile appeared on Kurume's lips.
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Translation by: randomtranslator.com
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