Several days later, a crisp dawn breeze carried the scent of blossoms through the sun-lit air.
Genzo hummed a tune, hands clasped behind his head as he strolled on his daily patrol.
The unbroken peace of Cocoyasi Village had been his pride for decades.
Nearing the gate, he meant to check the docks for the fishermen's catch—until he saw the harbour kids scrambling toward him in blind panic.
Tears streaked their faces, terror had erased every trace of their usual mischief.
"What's wrong? Why the rush?"
His heart lurched as he hurried to meet them.
"Uncle Genzo! Something awful!"
The leader sobbed, barely able to breathe,
"Pirates! A pirate ship—huge, really huge!"
"Pirates!"
The word detonated in his mind and Genzo froze.
He grabbed the boy's shoulders. "Are you sure? Which flag?"
"Black flag… and the prow… a long, pointy nose…"
The child shivered too hard to finish.
Colour drained from Genzo's face. Forcing calm, he roared, "Run! Tell everyone—hide! Go!"
The children bolted, their screams shredding the morning quiet.
When their wails faded, Genzo turned, trembling, toward the harbour. He clenched his teeth, dread icing his veins, feet too heavy to move.
At the same moment, behind the village.
Ryoma had just finished morning drills, savouring the sea wind. He felt every surge of strength, his mana ever more attuned to the world's laws.
Then his relaxed look sharpened.
In his mage-sight, powerful, bestial malice raced across the waves. Greed, cruelty, naked contempt for the weak—nothing hidden.
His gaze snapped to the port.
A colossal pirate ship rammed the little harbour, its unmistakable jagged prow a serrated nose.
Shark Superb.
"Finally."
Ryoma's grin curved in welcome.
After three months, the greedy shark had delivered his starter funds.
With a flicker of light, he vanished from the cliff.
CRASH!
The Shark Superb ignored the pier, ploughing straight through it. Splintering wood shrieked, then shattered into drifting chips.
Planks slammed down and dozens of hulking figures leapt onto Cocoyasi soil.
Scales, fins, razor teeth—every one of them obviously non-human.
The Fish-Men looked around and burst into raucous laughter.
"Shahahaha! Nice village, chu!"
Chew glanced about, tagging his tic to every sentence.
"Let's collect some protection money, chu!"
"Scout first."
Kuroobi kept his cool, sharp eyes scanning the road.
"Why bother?"
A finned Fish-Man shoved a comrade aside. "These lowly humans only know how to hand over treasure—let's grab it all."
Arlong pointed at the village, grinning. "Move, strip every coin! Let them taste the terror of the superior Fish-Men!"
"Yeah! Show these humans the might of the noble Fish-Man race!"
"Money! Women! Ours!"
Howling, the crew advanced, certain this hamlet was just another hunting ground.
They hadn't gone far before every stride froze.
Up ahead, a youth stood hands-in-pockets, relaxed—as if out for a stroll, yet clearly waiting.
The Fish-Men blinked, then roared even louder.
"Oi, look! A fearless little human!"
"Tsk, all alone? Here to welcome the great Arlong Pirates?"
"Hahaha! Planning to stop us single-handed?"
Jeers flooded the harbour.
They stared at the lone figure like he'd jumped into a hunter's jaws.
Ryoma ignored the noise, gaze sweeping the crew and settling on Arlong, smile unreadable.
Officers present, dozens of solid grunts—good haul.
"Excellent." He murmured the word, still smiling.
The cryptic comment cut their laughter short. They exchanged baffled looks, then burst out again twice as hard.
"Must've snapped, scared stupid, chu!" Chew pointed, doubling over,
"Talking nonsense!"
"Humans! Cowards to the core!"
A hulking grey-skinned Fish-Man cracked his knuckles and stepped forward.
"Arlong's waiting for good news, no time for trash."
He bared serrated teeth. "I'll toss this pest into the sea like garbage."
The ground fractured beneath his charge and a grey blur shot at Ryoma, his fist aimed for his face.
The rest of the fish-men wore cruel, sneering grins. They could already picture this clueless human's head exploding into a bloody mess from a single punch.
But contrary to their expectations, the fist froze less than an inch from Ryoma's face, as though it had slammed into an invisible wall of steel.
The burly fish-man's grin was replaced by utter shock and agony.
Crack!
A crisp bone-shatter rang out.
His thick arm twisted back at a grotesque angle, jagged white bone piercing through gray skin.
The next instant, a force far wilder than his charge rebounded from the unseen barrier. His massive body shot back like a gray cannonball, bowling over seven or eight Fish-Men too slow to dodge, the lot of them tumbling in a heap.
In a heartbeat, the dock's raucous laughter died.
Every fish-man froze, guffaws stuck in their throats, staring in disbelief at the unscathed youth and then at their howling comrade on the ground.
"What happened?"
"He got… bounced back?"
"What did that human brat do? I never even saw him move."
After a brief hush, louder waves of doubt and fury erupted. One of their own had been hurt by this human without a clue how.
"Interesting, chu."
Chew's unique lips parted slightly as he stepped forward, eyeing Ryoma with curiosity.
Kuroobi beside him looked far graver. He rolled his wrists into Fish-Man Karate's ready stance, muscles tensing for a personal strike. He sensed no aura of power from Ryoma, yet that bizarre scene left him wary.
Ryoma finally pulled his hands from his pockets, languidly stretched, and sighed in boredom. "Troublesome."
That airy remark froze both Chew and Kuroobi mid-motion.
"What?"
Ryoma looked the fish-men over as if appraising cargo, finally settling on the tallest silhouette.
"I said, one by one is too much trouble."
He flashed a bright grin. "I'll give you a chance. Let that little shark in the back lead you riffraff and come at me together. One pot to cook the lot, saves me time."
The words plunged the pier into eerie silence once more.
"Little shark?"
"Riffraff?"
The fish-men exchanged blank stares, unsure who the insults meant—until they noticed their boss, Arlong, his face darkening.
Only then did they realize this lowlife had dared to insult Arlong himself.
"You damn bastard!"
"Die! How dare you insult Arlong!"
"Kill him! Now!"
"You've pissed me off, human trash!"
Chew roared, sucking in a huge breath that puffed his cheeks, his tubular lips locked onto Ryoma.
"Insult Arlong? Die, chu!"
"Water Gun!"
A water jet powerful enough to pierce steel burst from his mouth.
"Fish-Man Karate – Hundred-Tile True Punch!"
Kuroobi moved too, flashing to Ryoma's flank and driving a force-packed fist toward his ribs.
To the fish-men, the two officers' combined assault could obliterate any foe.
Yet both the cutting water and the heavy punch slammed into the unseen wall a foot from Ryoma, splashing and gusting without ruffling his clothes. He didn't even glance at the attacks, merely picked his ear, annoyed by the noise.