Splat!
What seemed like a light slap caused a terrifying sight.
The Evil Dragon Pirate Crew's second-in-command, Kuroobi, a master of Fish-Man Karate over two meters tall with muscles like a coiled dragon, was actually exploded into a mist of blood by a single slap from a young girl, scattering with the wind.
This terrifying scene caused everyone present, except for Roland, to widen their eyes in unison, their faces gradually filling with shock and horror.
"You guys, neither human nor fish, are truly infuriating!" Miss Tohru said coldly.
Seeing her friend Nami crying in despair from being bullied by the fish-men, Thor's inner rage had already been burning fiercely.
She had only endured because she had no instructions from Roland.
Now, finally able to unleash it, a terrifying dragon's might instantly surged forth.
The oppressive aura from a dragon, the apex predator of the food chain, instantly shattered the fish-men's courage.
"Ah!"
"Ah ah ah!"
"W-w-what… what exactly happened just now?"
"Where's Big Brother Kuroobi? Why did he suddenly disappear?"
"D-d-dead! Kuroobi is dead! Killed by that human girl with a single slap!"
"How can this be? She's just a human, just a mere human, how could she…"
"This guy's a monster! She's not human… she's a monster!"
The fish-men's cries of extreme terror rose and fell, ceaselessly.
"Wow~ Thor is so amazing~" Kuina's beautiful eyes widened, her small mouth forming an "O" shape.
Having spent so much time with Thor, this was the first time she had seen Thor take action.
"Nami, your friend… what exactly is Miss Tohru?" Nojiko asked, stunned.
"I… I don't know either!" Nami shook her head in confusion.
She had never known that the lively and cute Thor, when she took action, could be so… cool.
Simply explosively cool!!!
"Damn human, how dare you… how dare you do that to my compatriot…" The Iron-Cannon Fish-Man executive, Chu, his eyes red, pursed his lips and mercilessly spat out cannonball-like water balls.
Swish!
A flash of ice-blue sword light split the Iron-Cannon Fish-Man's water ball in two.
"I'm also Nami's friend, and since you made Nami cry, I won't let any of you off lightly!" Kuina, with Gan Jiang in her left hand and Mo Xie in her right, fearlessly charged towards the Iron-Cannon Fish-Man executive, Chu.
Although still only an eleven-year-old child, Kuina's talent in swordsmanship was extraordinary.
At the age of eleven, she was already able to defeat adults who also had a foundation in swordsmanship using a bamboo sword.
Not to mention that she now wielded two divine weapons, Gan Jiang and Mo Xie, whose quality was comparable to Supreme Grade Swords, and which inherently carried killing intent.
"Good, human brat, let's start with you!" The Iron-Cannon Fish-Man executive, Chu, sneered, not putting a mere child like Kuina in his eyes at all.
This carelessness sealed his fate.
Splat~
Blood splattered.
In just one exchange, Kuina had chopped off one of the Iron-Cannon Fish-Man Chu's arms.
"Ah ah ah, you damn brat, I'll never forgive you, die, die!" Stimulated by the pain of his severed arm, the Iron-Cannon Fish-Man executive, Chu, went completely insane.
The fish-men's innate ten times human strength indeed put Kuina under immense pressure.
Even the Gan Jiang in her left hand involuntarily slipped from her grasp and flew out.
But...
Kuina's combat power, with only Mo Xie in hand, did not decrease, but instead increased.
Because she had always practiced one-sword style, single-handed swordsmanship.
She was not yet familiar with two-sword style techniques.
Thump!
A dull thud.
The ice-blue Mo Xie pierced through the Iron-Cannon Fish-Man executive Chu's heart.
"Brother Chu!!!"
"How can this be?"
"Even Brother Chu was killed!"
"Monsters! They are monsters!" The fish-men, who had always been high and mighty, viewing humans as useless, now screamed in panic and disarray.
"Bastards, get out of the way!" Arlong, the leader of the Arlong Pirate Crew, roared, grabbing the huge serrated scythe, Zanhou, that a subordinate was carrying.
"Die!!!"
The serrated scythe, Zanhou, mercilessly slashed down towards Roland.
Roland's expression remained as calm as ever in the face of Arlong's enraged attack.
"Sword, come!" Roland raised his hand and lightly uttered two words.
The next second, with a whoosh, the blood-red longsword, Gan Jiang, which was stuck in a nearby stone, came through the air and landed in Roland's hand.
Powerful sword intent surged, and terrifying sword energy rippled.
The male sword, Gan Jiang, transformed into a blood-colored stream of light, shooting forth like lightning.
Attacking with momentum, seeking substance, wielding power horizontally and vertically, the way of heaven and earth.
This was the ultimate killing sword of the Vertical Sword Art from the Ghost Valley Sword Art.
Its name... One Blade to Sever the Throat, Hundred Steps Flying Sword!!!
Clang!
Bang!
Fish-Man Arlong's Zanhou serrated greatsword shattered in response.
Next to be severed was Arlong's neck.
A hideous head flew into the sky.
Pshhh~
Blood spurted several feet high from the cranial cavity.
"Ah!"
"Ah ah ah!"
"Boss… Boss Arlong is dead too!"
"What kind of monsters are they… Why does the East Blue have such monsters!"
"Run! Run away quickly!"
Witnessing Arlong being instantly killed, the fish-men's faith completely collapsed, and they scattered and fled.
"Thor, leave no one!" Roland ordered calmly.
"Understood!" Thor moved like the wind, pursuing them mercilessly.
Roland turned and walked towards Nami, Nojiko, and Genzo, who were stunned into a daze.
"Roland, I…" Nami opened her mouth, but didn't finish her sentence.
"It's not over yet, let's go!" Roland took Nami's cold hand and led the way towards the village.
Nojiko and Genzo exchanged glances, both seeing excitement in each other's eyes.
They both took a deep breath in unison and quickly followed.
Along the way, Roland walked unhurriedly, leading Nami past the village.
At Genzo's call, the villagers of Cocoyasi Village gradually gathered.
Finally, Roland brought Nami to the empty Arlong Park, standing before the giant tower.
"Watch closely, you are now free!" Roland took a deep breath, leaped up, and ascended dozens of meters into the sky.
He held the sword with both hands, and black currents of air wrapped around the blood-red Gan Jiang sword body.
The breath of all things was clearly audible in Roland's ears; this was the realm of the Iron-Cutting Swordsman.
The previous strike that killed Arlong was merely a pure sword technique.
This was Roland's true strongest sword strike.
"Slash!!!" The attack, a fusion of Armament Haki, the realm of the Iron-Cutting Swordsman, and Hundred Steps Flying Sword, exploded.
One sword, severs the tower!!!
Boom!
The giant tower, dozens of meters high, was cut in half, and countless pieces of paper flew into the air.
At this moment, the gloom that had enveloped the young girl's heart for seven years, the shackles that had bound her for seven years, were completely lifted!!!