The sea trembled as Mohmoo, the colossal bull shark, breached the surface of Arlong Park's flooded courtyard, water sluicing from its scarred hide. Its single, baleful eye fixed on the intruders.
Arlong's grin was a slash of saw-blade teeth. "Tremble, humans! This is true power!"
Luffy tilted his head. "Huh. A big fish."
Sanji exhaled a stream of smoke, unimpressed. "Waste of good ingredients. Too tough, all muscle. Probably tastes terrible."
The sheer, dismissive nonchalance from the humans struck the fishman pirates like a physical blow. A stunned silence fell over Arlong's crew. *They weren't afraid.*
"KILL THEM!" Arlong's roar shattered the pause.
With a guttural bellow, Mohmoo surged forward, a tidal wave of teeth and muscle aimed to crush the Straw Hats flat.
Luffy didn't retreat. He *expanded*. "Gomu Gomu no…"
His arms shot out, not to punch, but to *embrace*, stretching impossibly wide around the monster's girth.
"…**WINDDMILL!**"
With a grunt of effort, Luffy pivoted, using the shark's own momentum. He became the axle of a terrifying, living windmill, swinging Mohmoo in a deafening, sweeping arc. The beast became a fleshy wrecking ball. Fishmen screamed as they were plowed aside, the impact sending bodies crashing through walls and into the water. Mohmoo's form sailed over the park's outer wall and landed in the distant bay with a final, concussive *BOOM*.
Beyond the shattered gate, the gathered citizens of Cocoyasi Village stood frozen.
"He… he used the monster as a *weapon*," a fisherman whispered, his voice cracking with disbelief.
Inside the park, dust settled. Luffy stood panting, a grin on his face. The Straw Hats formed a line: Zoro's swords already drawn, Sanji's foot tapping impatiently, Usopp trying to look brave while his knees knocked.
Chew, Hatchan, and Kuroobi stepped forward, fury overriding their shock. "Captain!" Hatchan boomed, his six arms flexing. "Rest! We will scrub these stains from our park!"
Before Luffy could retort, Hatchan's cheeks ballooned. "Ink Cloud!"
A torrent of viscous, pitch-black ink erupted, not a spray but a deluge. It engulfed Luffy completely.
"Ack! I can't see!" Luffy's voice was muffled. He stumbled back, his sandaled feet sinking with a sickening *squelch* into the wet concrete foundation of the shattered tower. It set instantly, trapping him up to the ankles.
"Luffy!" Usopp cried.
"Perfect!" Hatchan boomed. He wrapped four arms around a massive chunk of broken masonry—a piece of the tower Luffy himself had broken—and heaved it overhead. "Now hold still, human!"
The shadow fell over the ink-blinded Luffy.
A blur of black and gold intercepted. "Your manners are atrocious." Sanji's leg descended like a guillotine. "**Collier Shot!**"
The stone slab exploded into dust and pebbles before it could descend a foot further.
Sanji landed, smoke curling from his cigarette. "Picking on a blinded man? And here I thought fishmen had some semblance of honor."
Kuroobi sneered, crossing his muscular arms. "Honor? We are the superior species! This is simple pest control!"
"Superior?" Sanji's eye glinted coldly. "All I see is a bunch of overgrown guppies picking on a village."
While Sanji held their attention, Usopp scrambled to Luffy, desperately trying to dig at the concrete. "Hold on, Luffy! I'll get you out!"
"Hurry, Usopp! It's really sticky!"
Hatchan, ignoring Sanji, grabbed another, larger piece of rubble. "This one will crush you both!"
He never got the throw.
The whisper of steel was the only warning. Three blades crossed, blocking Hatchan's path.
"Your fight," Zoro said, his voice low and final, "is with me."
"YOU!" Hatchan roared, all six eyes blazing with rage. He hurled the rubble at Zoro with terrifying force. "For my crew! For Chuu!"
Zoro didn't dodge. He *cut*. "**Oni Giri!**"
The massive stone block split into three neat segments that clattered harmlessly aside. "Save your breath," Zoro said, not even winded. "Your crew is going down. That's not a prediction. It's a fact."
"Oh, thank the sea, Zoro's got the octopus," Usopp sighed in relief. His grip on Luffy's shoulders slipped.
*SNAP-WHOOSH!*
Like a released rubber band, Luffy's stretched upper body recoiled violently toward his trapped feet. His head and shoulders rocketed backward—directly into the smug face of Chew, who had been creeping closer.
*THWACK!*
Chew sprawled in the dirt, a perfect imprint of Luffy's sandal on his cheek.
A deadly silence followed. Then, a low, trembling hiss. Chew rose, his pufferfish features mottled with purple rage. His eyes locked not on Luffy, but on the sniper who had been helping him.
"You… YOU DARE?!"
Usopp's blood turned to ice. "Uh-oh."
He ran. Chew shot after him, a blur of streamlined fury, past the stunned fishmen, out through the shattered gate.
Chew skidded to a halt before the wide-eyed villagers. He saw their sickles, their spears, their desperate, hardened faces. His lips peeled back. "A rebellion? You pathetic—"
***POW!***
A flaming star smacked between his eyes. *Kaen Boshi!* Chew yelped, batting at the small fire on his forehead.
From behind a broken well, Usopp stood, slingshot trembling but aimed. "Y-your enemy…" he declared, voice squeaking, "…is me!"
For a second, he looked almost heroic. Then Chew's enraged scream tore the air. Usopp's courage evaporated. "GYAAAAAH! HE'S STILL COMING!" He turned and fled into the village streets, Chew's vengeful form hot on his heels, leaving the citizens in confused chaos.
Back in the courtyard, Kuroobi placed a concerned hand on Arlong's throne. "Captain, please, we have this—"
The throne cracked as Arlong stood. The air grew heavy. The casual cruelty was gone, replaced by a focused, predatory intensity. He didn't roar. He simply began to walk forward, each step measured, his shadow long and dark.
Luffy, finally wiping the last ink from his eyes, saw him coming. "Arlong!"
Without hesitation, Luffy launched his fist forward, a stretching rocket of righteous anger. "**Gomu Gomu no Pistol!**"
It was a blow that had shattered rock and metal. It flew straight, true, and devastatingly fast.
Arlong didn't sidestep. He didn't dodge.
His hand snapped up, palm open.
***SMACK.***
The sound was wet and final. The fist stopped dead. Arlong's fingers, thick and powerful as industrial cables, closed slowly, *crunching* down around Luffy's knuckles.
The shock vibrated up Luffy's arm. His eyes widened.
Arlong leaned in, his voice a low, chilling rumble that silenced the entire battlefield. "Strong punch, human." His grip tightened, making the rubber skin creak in protest. "But tell me… have you ever felt your bones *snap*?"
He smiled, and it was the most terrifying thing any of them had ever seen.
**"Let me show you."**