"Damn that fat balloon—he's standing inside magma! Isn't that cheating?!"
Standing on a floating ice slab, Luffy stared angrily at Achino below.
That guy wasn't afraid of magma at all.
He could even swim freely inside it—absolutely terrifying.
"This is my Devil Fruit ability," Achino sneered.
"How is that cheating?"
"Straw Hat brat, do you know why I chose this place as my home?"
"Why?"
"Because there's an undersea volcano here!"
Achino burst into laughter.
"If I ever encounter a powerful enemy, I can let the volcano swallow them whole!"
"Just like now~"
He casually stirred the magma with his hand, the terrifying heat having no effect on him whatsoever.
"Damn it… using a volcano like that…"
"Hmph. Aren't you relying on that ninja's power too?" Achino snorted.
"Don't act so righteous—we're the same."
In his eyes, as long as the enemy could be killed, any method was fair.
"Straw Hat brat, the ice beneath your feet will soon melt away completely," Achino grinned.
"What awaits you… is death!"
"Then I'll just punch you flying before it melts."
Luffy took a fighting stance.
"I won't give you time to melt the ice."
"Oh? And you think I'll give you that chance?!"
"Scorching Heat Wave!"
"BOOM!!"
Under the influence of Achino's Devil Fruit, the magma below began to boil violently.
It surged upward like a massive tidal wave, rushing straight toward Luffy!
Luffy's expression changed instantly.
He turned and ran, stretching out his arms to grab onto nearby ice—
—but Achino was faster.
The magma sealed off all escape routes.
There was nowhere to run.
"Luffy!"
Nami's pupils shrank as she instinctively pulled out her Clima-Tact.
But it was too late.
"Hahahaha! Die, Straw Hat brat!"
"Damn it—I can't dodge this!"
"Water Release: Water Shockwave!"
BOOM!!
At the critical moment, the water around Luffy suddenly exploded outward.
A massive surge of water rose up, forcibly blocking the magma and sealing Luffy safely inside.
"Jin!!"
Nami looked at Jin beside her in delight, finally breathing a sigh of relief.
As long as he was here, nothing would go wrong.
"He blocked magma…" Achino said warily.
"That ninja brat's technique?"
Even seawater couldn't fully stop magma—so why could his Water Release?
It made no sense.
"Hey, Luffy, what are you doing?" Jin frowned.
"His Devil Fruit's already half-countered—how did you still get pushed this far?"
"Did you even take this seriously?"
He'd thought Luffy would deal with this guy easily.
Had Enies Lobby been for nothing?
"I didn't know a volcano would erupt!" Luffy protested.
"…Forget it. No point arguing."
Jin shook his head.
"Luffy, we've got what we came for. Finish him."
"Yeah, got it!"
"Kid, what did you do?!" Achino's face darkened.
"What happened to my daughter?!"
If Jin was here, that meant Lilu had failed.
That was very bad news.
"Heh. Why don't you guess?"
"You bastard! Even children aren't spared? I'll never forgive you!"
Enraged, Achino raised his temperature again, instantly melting the ice beneath Luffy's feet.
But what happened next made his expression change once more.
"Earth Release: Earth Flow Wall!"
BOOM!!
A massive earth platform suddenly rose above the magma, forming solid ground.
Luffy immediately jumped onto it.
"This is ninjutsu too?!" he shouted excitedly.
"That's awesome!"
Actually creating land—Jin was incredible!
"Luffy, beat him!"
"Yeah!"
"Brat, you think this changes anything?" Achino rose slowly.
"Even if you create land, it'll still be swallowed by magma!"
"And… I won't give you another chance!"
HUM—
His abdomen glowed bright red.
Propelled by superheated air, Achino launched himself forward like a cannonball.
"As long as I don't fear your heat, your attacks mean nothing!"
The water around Luffy immediately flowed back, wrapping tightly around his fists once more.
"Then let's find out!"
Achino roared.
"Maximum Temperature—Impact: Scorching Iron Press!"
"Water Flow—Jet Bazooka!"
BOOM!!!
Water-wrapped fists smashed violently into Achino's abdomen, colliding head-on with his extreme heat.
As the clash continued, Achino's expression grew worse and worse.
He realized it.
He couldn't win.
His temperature couldn't harm Luffy's fists at all.
"Why… why won't my heat work?!"
"Damn you, ninja!!"
"I—I'm not satisfied…!"
With his greatest advantage nullified, Achino's attacks lost all meaning.
He was finally blasted away by Luffy, crashing straight into the Achino family residence.
WHOOOSH—!
BOOM!!
The enormous impact blew a hole clean through the building.
"…Not satisfied…"
Those were Achino's last words before his eyes rolled back and he lost consciousness.
"Lord Achino!!"
The soldiers fighting Pazeru and the others froze in shock.
Their strongest fighter… defeated?!
At that moment, the entire iceberg began to tremble violently.
Something terrifying was awakening.
"Not good!" Nami shouted.
"The undersea volcano has fully awakened!"
"Quick—back to the ships!"
"If it erupts completely, all the ice here will melt!"
"Everyone, move!"
"Yeah!!"
"Luffy, grab on!" Jin shouted.
He caught Luffy's outstretched arm and yanked him back.
"Move—now!"
"We should retreat too," Pazeru said.
The Achino family soldiers had completely lost the will to fight and rushed back toward the building to rescue their people.
From that alone, it was clear the family treated their soldiers well.
Otherwise, they wouldn't risk their lives like this.
"What about the flag?!"
"We'll think about that later—if we die here, the flag won't matter anyway!"
"Captain Pazeru—I'm back!!"
Gino came running, waving the pirate flag excitedly.
He'd snuck inside during the chaos and retrieved it.
The path had been completely clear.
"You idiot… you really make people worry…"
Then Pazeru laughed loudly.
"Gino—well done!"
"I also found our sails!" Ail shouted happily.
"Everyone—retreat!"
"Yeah!!"
After watching the pirates escape, Arubelu tore free of her bindings and ran desperately toward her family.
By the time she arrived, Achino and Lilu had already been carried onto a ship, preparing to flee before the eruption.
"Lady Arubelu, hurry—get on board!"
"I'm coming!"
The moment Lilu saw her sister, she broke down.
"Sister…"
"It's okay. It's okay, Lilu. I'm here."
"…Mm."
After crying for a while, Lilu wiped her tears.
"Sister… are we going to keep being bounty hunters?"
They wouldn't always meet kind pirates like Merry's crew.
If they faced truly vicious ones, they might all die.
"…That depends on Father."
Lilu sighed quietly.
She could only hope they wouldn't meet enemies that strong again.
Merry… I wish you smooth sailing.
The volcanic eruption was terrifying.
In a very short time, the icebergs were completely melted.
Everyone silently thanked their luck for escaping in time.
"That place was terrifying…" Usopp swallowed.
One second slower, and they might've been swallowed by magma.
"Jin!"
Nami dashed over excitedly.
"Did we get the loot?!"
"Got it."
Jin raised his thumb.
"Six hundred million Beli."
"Amazing!!!"
Nami threw her arms around him in excitement.
"With this much money, we can live comfortably for a long time!"
Six hundred million!
Even if Luffy ate without restraint, they wouldn't go broke anytime soon.
"Great job, Jin!"
"We're rich pirates now!"
"Maybe I can buy a good sword…" Zoro muttered.
He glanced at Nami—then quickly swallowed the rest of his words.
"Don't worry, Zoro," Nami said.
"When we reach the next island, I'll help you find a good sword."
Zoro instinctively replied,
"No interest added this time… right?"
"Idiot! I was just teasing you!"
Zoro: ...
It didn't feel like a joke.
"Damn you, Jin!" Sanji gritted his teeth—then looked utterly jealous.
"So… so envious!"
"Nami-swan! I'll work hard to find treasure too!"
"Then do your best, Sanji~"
"Hmph! Next time, I'll find even more treasure than you!"
"Good luck," Jin replied with dead-fish eyes.
"That saves me the effort."
"You bastard—are you bragging?!"
"Hahahaha!"
At that moment, a familiar voice came from afar.
"Hey, Straw Hat!"
"Oh—it's you guys," Luffy said.
"You fixed your ship already?"
The sails were up—it was fast.
"We've got good shipwrights too," Pazeru smiled.
"Then that's impressive."
Pazeru's smile faded slightly.
"You're heading to the New World, right?"
"Yeah."
"Then… let's meet again in the New World!"
"When that time comes—we'll be enemies!"
"Bring it on!" Luffy laughed.
"I won't hold back either—haha!"
He waved his arm.
"Brothers—set sail!"
"Yeah!!"
The Immortal Phoenix—Pazeru—had truly been reborn.
Watching them depart, Luffy smiled.
"They're pretty interesting, huh…"
Then he looked at his crew and grinned brightly.
"Alright, everyone—let's go too!"
"Destination: Fish-Man Island!"
"Set sail!!"
"YEAH!!"
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