"What did you say?!"
"How rude! Who do you think you are?! Do you even know who Lady Snake Princess is?! You dare say you'll defeat her?!"
"How arrogant!"
The female warriors all shouted in outrage upon hearing Akemi's words. To them, it was no different from openly challenging the Amazon Lily's pride.
Hancock stood up nonchalantly, moving down the steps toward the arena with elegant grace.
"So beautiful! She's so beautiful!"
"Lady Snake Princess!!"
"Lady Snake Princess herself is stepping into battle! How lucky we are!"
When she stopped before Akemi, Hancock stood proudly, one hand on her waist, the other pointing at him. Her body leaned back slightly, chin lifted toward the sky.
"Man, you're doomed. There isn't a man in the world who wouldn't fall before my charm. Yes, that's right—it's because I'm simply too beautiful."
The Amazon warriors erupted into cheers at the familiar pose.
"Ah! It's that look of disdain from Lady Snake Princess!!"
"She's looking down on him so much she's facing the sky!!"
The Uchiha clan members watching from the side felt the scene was bizarre. Konoha had its share of eccentric people, but they'd never seen a leader act like this.
"Man, maybe your power is strong, and your clansmen impressive enough to defeat my sisters… but since I've stepped in, everything ends here. This farce will end completely."
"I'm not like the others—I am one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea!"
Hancock clasped her hands in front of her chest, forming a heart shape.
"Mero Mero Mellow!!"
She fired a beam of pink heart-shaped light at Akemi. The beam passed through him harmlessly.
????
Everyone watching tilted their heads in confusion.
Hancock's face twisted in disbelief. "Why aren't you turning to stone?! You saw my beauty—how can you feel nothing?!"
Marigold was stunned and quickly denied it. "Impossible, Sister! No man or woman alive can resist your beauty!"
Sandersonia frowned. "Perhaps his fear of death surpasses his desires. A pitiful yet lucky man…"
But the man before them didn't look frightened at all.
"Hey!! Facing a beauty like me and not feeling anything—are you even a man?!"
Hancock shouted angrily.
Akemi's face darkened. For a man, that was the ultimate insult. "If you really want to know whether I'm a man or not, why don't you find out for yourself?"
"Rude!!"
"Vulgar!!"
The stands erupted in protest from the Amazon warriors. Even the Uchiha watching didn't know what to say—Akemi's words were indeed inappropriate for a lady.
"Pistol Kiss!"
Hancock pressed a finger to her lips, forming a tiny pink heart. Then, she aimed like a gun and fired.
Bang!
Akemi tilted his body, dodging easily.
Boom!
The heart-shaped bullet pierced through the stone wall behind him.
Seeing him evade, Hancock pouted, pressing her lips again and forming several heart bullets in a row.
Bang, bang, bang!!
Each heart bullet shot toward Akemi, who darted across the arena, dodging all of them effortlessly.
Whoosh!
In the blink of an eye, Akemi appeared behind Hancock.
But Hancock had anticipated this—she raised her long leg in a graceful arc and kicked backward.
"Perfume Femur!"
Smack!
Her foot struck Akemi solidly, the impact making her smile in triumph. Once touched, her kicks could petrify and shatter whatever they hit.
Crack!
Indeed, the struck part of Akemi's body turned to stone and crumbled—
But then—
Poof!
A puff of smoke exploded, and a petrified log fell to the ground in his place.
A substitution jutsu!
Akemi's voice came from behind her. "Whoa, that was close! One hit from that and I'd be a statue."
"Damn it!"
Hancock twisted her body, placing both hands on the ground and sweeping her long legs like a windmill.
Akemi jumped back repeatedly, dodging each strike with ease.
"Damn!"
Now she understood what her sisters felt earlier. Even when she could predict her opponent's moves, her attacks couldn't connect.
"Coward! Fighting a woman and all you do is dodge—are you even a man?!"
Hancock's taunt made Akemi pause.
A faint smile curled at her lips. Men really were foolish creatures—one bit of provocation and they lost their composure.
"Perfume Femur!"
"Earth Style: Earth-Style Wall!"
Akemi smirked, calmly forming seals.
Whoosh!
A thick wall of earth rose between them.
"So fast! When did he even form the seals?"
Even the Uchiha watching were stunned—they hadn't seen him move his hands.
"That's one-handed seals," said Itachi quietly.
Akemi wasn't just his and Shisui's elder brother—he was their teacher. When Itachi first saw Akemi perform ninjutsu with one hand, it left him deeply shaken. He'd trained in the technique himself, though his speed still lagged behind Akemi's.
"One-handed seals?!"
"Amazing!"
"As expected of Akemi!"
Boom!!
Hancock's kick struck the wall, shattering it instantly.
"You think something that weak can stop me?"
"Sister, look out!!"
Marigold cried from the stands. Hancock glanced up—Akemi's stance had changed.
"Fire Style: Great Fireball Jutsu!"
Fwoooosh!!
A blazing sphere of fire erupted from his mouth. Hancock quickly leapt back—she'd seen Itachi use that same move earlier.
If it hit directly, even she wouldn't escape unscathed.
Boom!!
The massive fireball blasted a gaping hole in the arena wall.
"Wind Style: Vacuum Sphere!"
Before she could counterattack, Akemi exhaled several wind chakra bullets in rapid succession.
Bang, bang, bang!!
Hancock dodged again, each bullet punching holes in the stands behind her—each one nearly as powerful as her Pistol Kiss.
Now it was the Empress's turn to run.
Annoyed and frustrated, she waited for a brief gap in Akemi's attacks before rushing forward, determined to teach him a lesson.
"Giant Perfume Femur!!"
She leapt into the air, ignoring modesty as her long white leg swung down like an axe toward Akemi's head.
Boom!!
The impact was explosive, the sheer force shaking the entire arena.
"Waaah!!"
"Ughhh!!"
The blast of wind threw many spectators off their feet.
Even the Uchiha were stunned—this woman's power was monstrous.
As the smoke cleared, only Hancock's figure stood in the ruined arena.
"Where's that man?"
"Is he dead?"
"No! Look—he's in the sky!"
Someone pointed upward. Akemi floated high above the arena.
Hancock's lips curled into a smirk. "Now you've got nowhere to run. Turn to stone for me!"
She pressed her finger to her lips, forming a massive pink heart and drawing it back like a bow.
"Slave Arrow!!"
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
Countless pink, heart-shaped arrows shot toward Akemi floating in the air.
Akemi raised one hand high. A massive blue energy sphere formed in his palm.
"Giant Rasengan!"
He hurled the massive Rasengan downward.
BOOM!!!
The Rasengan collided with the Slave Arrows. Two opposing forces clashed, creating a massive explosion.
"What?!"
Hancock couldn't believe it. Her technique had been blocked—his sphere could actually counter her power.
"That's enough, Lady Snake Princess. If we keep fighting, things will get ugly. I can't promise I'll hold back next time."
Hancock's expression darkened. "Hold back? You think I'm someone who needs your mercy? I am the Empress of Amazon Lily, one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea—Pirate Empress Boa Hancock!"
Buzz—!
A faint white aura of Conqueror's Haki radiated from her body.
Thud!
Plop!
Many in the audience collapsed instantly. Even some of the Uchiha fainted.
"What is this?"
The Uchiha clan members were shocked.
"Could it be…"
"It's Conqueror's Haki!!"
"The Snake Princess actually used her Conqueror's Haki!!"
The still-conscious Kuja warriors immediately recognized the power.
"Big Sister got serious. That boy's going to lose now."
He had forced their sister to get serious—how strong was he?
Sandersonia's expression, however, was grim. "Not necessarily. That man blocked Big Sister's ability, and did you notice? There's a sword at his waist. That means he's a swordsman—but he hasn't even drawn it yet. More importantly, look at the expressions of his clan: excitement, confusion, shock—but not fear. That means he's still holding back. They have absolute confidence in him."
Marigold was stunned by Sandersonia's analysis.
Hancock looked at Akemi proudly. "See, Man? This is the power of kings—Conqueror's Haki, possessed by only one in a million!"
"So this is Conqueror's Haki?"
Akemi felt a surge of mental pressure crash into his spirit. But it had no real effect on him. Still, he didn't underestimate it.
In the early arcs of One Piece, Conqueror's Haki could only knock out weak-willed opponents—it didn't seem worthy of being "one in a million."
But in the later arcs, its true power was revealed.
Even among those who possessed it, the difference in strength was vast.
Only those who could infuse it into their attacks were true top-tier fighters.
Akemi desired that power deeply.