Chapter Forty-Five: One Word—Kill

"Hey, where's your boss Arlong? I have business with him."

Luo Lan swaggered into the midst of the fish-men, picked a chair at random, and sat down, glancing at Kuroobi and Chuu as he spoke. He barely spared a thought for these small fry. A Chuu—Usopp could beat him. As for Kuroobi, he faced Sanji twice, dragging him underwater both times, yet the moment they fought on land, Sanji defeated him with ease. Back at Baratie, Sanji couldn’t even win against himself. These two were so weak, Luo Lan had no need to worry about them at all.

Perhaps only Arlong, the former member of the Sun Pirates, could rouse a flicker of his interest in this whole Arlong Park.

"Bastard, do you really see us as nothing?"

Kuroobi's already dark face twisted further as he watched Luo Lan's casual manner. On top of that, the thick scent of his kind's blood that clung to Luo Lan’s body fanned the flames of his anger to the breaking point.

"Thousand Tile True Fist—!"

With a furious roar, Kuroobi launched a punch at Luo Lan’s face, swift and brimming with power.

"Yes! The Thousand Tile True Fist, that's Kuroobi's strongest move!"

"He's using it right away—there's no way that man survives."

"Look at that guy, he hasn’t even moved—must be scared stiff."

The fish-men around them cheered, their spirits lifting. In their fish-man karate, a basic punch’s strength was measured by how many tiles it could shatter. A Thousand Tile True Fist, as the name implied, could smash a thousand tiles with one blow—a terrifying force. In their excitement, they seemed to forget how Hachi had died, or at whose hands. All they felt was confidence in Kuroobi and faith in fish-man karate.

"Really now, is that speed and strength supposed to be a child’s game?"

Just as Kuroobi’s fist neared, Luo Lan suddenly moved. His face calm, his hand shot up at some unknown moment, effortlessly catching Kuroobi’s attack—a flicker of disappointment crossing his face.

"How…how is this possible?"

Kuroobi’s pupils contracted, his face stricken with shock. It was one thing for his Thousand Tile True Fist to be blocked, but now, he couldn’t even pull his fist free from Luo Lan’s grip. This was unthinkable. He wasn't the top fish-man karate master, but his strength was second only to Arlong in all of Arlong Park.

Cold sweat broke out across Kuroobi’s forehead, dousing his rage with a bucket of icy water. Only now did he recall: this was the demon who had killed Hachi and slaughtered so many of their brethren with strength to spare. If it came to a real fight, even if he and Chuu worked together, even if all the fish-men here banded together, they wouldn’t stand a chance.

"Sluuurp—"

From a distance, Chuu the kissing fish-man, witnessing the scene, spat a high-pressure jet of water from his mouth straight at Luo Lan.

"Saliva, huh? Disgusting…"

Sensing Chuu’s attack, Luo Lan’s expression changed. Getting hit by a water jet was one thing, but being struck by spit was quite another—the latter was a magical attack. With a yank, he pulled Kuroobi in front of him, using him as a shield.

The powerful water shot slammed into Kuroobi’s back, leaving a deep dent.

"Kuroobi—!"

Chuu, already hot-tempered, was now livid—Luo Lan not only disregarded them but used Kuroobi as a shield against his attack. His fury boiled over. Eyes bloodshot, Chuu charged at Luo Lan.

Though his forte was water attacks from his mouth, he wasn’t helpless in close combat.

"I told you, you small fry are utterly uninteresting. Just call Arlong out already."

Luo Lan had no interest in Chuu, who had all but lost his mind. Standing up from his chair, he casually flung Kuroobi at the onrushing Chuu.

As the two tumbled into the water together, Luo Lan’s patience began to wane. He’d been here so long and Arlong still hadn’t appeared—most likely the guy wasn’t in the park at all.

Concerned for Nami, Luo Lan decided to end the fight quickly. If the park was destroyed and all the fish-men were dead, Arlong would have no choice but to come looking for him.

Drawing his short shark blade from the system space, Luo Lan’s eyes narrowed, his aura shifting dramatically.

"Well then, enjoy your final moments—"

The dark red blade flashed as Luo Lan appeared in front of a fish-man, a savage grin on his face, and brought the weapon down. A cold gleam flashed; the fish-man split in two under Luo Lan’s sword, collapsing in terror. Blood sprayed forth, painting Luo Lan’s white suit crimson.

For some reason, ever since fish-man blood splattered his face, Luo Lan had grown to relish the sensation. He felt exhilarated—especially when the blood drenched his body, the thrill only intensified.

"A-all together now…"

A trembling fish-man shouted, weapon raised, and lunged at Luo Lan. The situation was clear: this human intended to kill every one of them. Rather than wait for death, it was better to attack all at once—maybe, by some stroke of luck, they might injure him.

Spurred by his cry, the other fish-men responded at once, drawing their long swords and charging at Luo Lan. Some even drew pistols, hoping to catch him off guard in the chaos.

"Come, let me enjoy this—"

Luo Lan moved at lightning speed, weaving through their attacks, heading straight for the fish-men wielding guns. He wasn’t worried they’d hurt him, but he despised the sudden appearance of a stray bullet in the heat of battle.

Slashing four or five times in quick succession, he hacked the nearest gun-wielding fish-man to death. When faced with these fish-men, there was only one word for Luo Lan: kill.

From the docks onward, he had savored the thrill of slaughter—it was a sensation he’d never felt on Krieg’s ship. Back then, he’d killed pirates to cow them into submission. Now, killing fish-men was pure enjoyment.

When Chuu finally dragged Kuroobi from the water, the blood-soaked carnage in the park left him dumbstruck. Moments ago, these fish-men had stood beside him, united against a common foe; now, they all lay dead in pools of blood.

The nearest corpse was slashed with four or five gaping wounds, the death gruesome.

The thick stench of blood reignited the rage in Chuu, who had almost regained his senses. Hauling Kuroobi back into the water, Chuu opened his mouth wide and began to gulp water frantically.

The water level dropped rapidly, visible to the naked eye—his water shot would grow more powerful the more he drank. Usually, he’d never take in so much, but now, his fury left no room for restraint. The brutal deaths of his comrades sent his anger sky-high. Even as the massive volume of water threatened to crush his ribs and chest, he did not stop.

He knew just how terrifying this human was—so he intended to unleash his most powerful attack, hoping to finish him in one blow.

"Giant Water Cannon—!"

After draining two-thirds of the pool, Chuu surged from the water and, with a furious roar, spat out all the water at high pressure.

Watching the oncoming wall of water, Luo Lan finally showed a spark of interest. Those earlier feeble attacks—what were those? Child’s play.

Grinning wickedly, Luo Lan dashed forward, short shark blade in hand, charging straight into the tidal wave. The powerful impact scoured the blood and the outer layer of Luo Lan’s suit away, leaving him pristine. Yet he burst through the wave and brought his blade down on Chuu.

"That level of attack was exhilarating—so I’ll grant you a swift end."

With that stroke, Chuu’s rage vanished; as he watched his body collapse into the pool, his consciousness faded away.

"Damn him—what on earth is going on here?"

At the main gate of the park, a towering fish-man stared at the carnage within, eyes blazing, face ashen.