Chapter 26: Fishman Purgatory
"Look! The sky!"
"What IS that?!"
"Fire... FIRE!!!"
The hundred thousand murloc soldiers who had been burning with battle lust mere moments ago now stared at the canopy of flames spreading above them—and descended into utter chaos.
"Fire of THIS SCALE?!"
Hody had recognized Itachi the moment he leaped. His worst fear was confirmed.
"WHAT THE HELL IS THIS?!"
The officers stared upward, their bravado evaporating. Terror replaced bloodlust.
The fire net fell.
WHOOOOSH!
Flames engulfed Gyoncorde Plaza.
The stage the New Fish-Man Pirates had built for their "new history" became, in an instant, a blazing inferno—a murloc purgatory.
Screams. Roars of agony. The crackle of burning flesh. They merged into a single symphony of hellish noise.
The watching residents of Fishman Island stood paralyzed. This was a hundred times more shocking than Hody's confession about Queen Otohime.
"It's one of the Straw Hats!"
"A bomb?!"
"No—I saw him! A man in black jumped into the sky, and THEN the fire came!"
"WHO IS THAT?!"
On the plaza floor, the Straw Hats stood frozen.
Sanji's cigarette fell from lips gone slack. "This... this is Itachi's true power?"
Nami felt cold sweat drench her despite the inferno's heat. "My Climate Tactics... even at full power... couldn't match one-tenth of this..."
Zoro's heart hammered against his ribs. "Is this man the incarnation of fire itself?"
"How many enemies did that sky fire just kill?!" Brook's bony hands covered his empty eye sockets.
Luffy, Chopper, Franky—all struck speechless.
Jinbe grabbed Luffy's shoulder. "LUFFY! Who IS this Uchiha Itachi?!"
"I—I can't explain! He just appeared on the ship!"
"APPEARED?!" Jinbe's voice cracked. "Do you have any idea what you're saying?!"
His mind raced. "I saw Ace's ultimate move—Entei! The Flame-Flame Fruit's greatest power!"
He stared at the burning plaza. "But this scale... it EXCEEDS Entei! FAR exceeds it!"
Luffy broke out in cold sweat. "Exceeds... Ace's..."
Jinbe grabbed him again. "Is he the new Flame-Flame Fruit user?!"
Robin's calm voice cut through. "No."
Jinbe's head snapped toward her.
Robin shook her head slowly. "Itachi doesn't possess the Flame-Flame Fruit. Initially, I thought he was a Devil Fruit user, but I quickly dismissed that theory."
She counted on her fingers. "Flames. Water. Shaping fire into armor. Expert close combat. And illusion techniques."
"ILLUSIONS?!" Jinbe's confusion deepened.
"Currently," Robin continued, "Itachi appears to be what we might call a 'hexagonal warrior.' No single Devil Fruit ability can explain him."
"Cannot be explained?" Jinbe's voice was faint.
Zoro exhaled slowly, having regained his composure. "All I know is—thank God he's not our enemy."
He stared at the inferno. "This guy... his strength is terrifying."
Within the flames, survival was chaos.
The New Fish-Man Pirates' officers had learned from their captain: they grabbed subordinates, using them as human shields to escape the fire net's killing zone.
Once clear, they turned on their own fleeing troops.
"STOP RUNNING! STAND AND FIGHT!"
Jeo's blade cut down a deserting murloc.
"Brother Jeo! The enemy's too TERRIFYING! We can't—"
Jeo killed him mid-sentence.
The other officers followed suit, butchering any who tried to flee.
"DON'T PANIC! PANIC SPREADS THE FIRE!"
"BUT BROTHER JEO—" A murloc spread his arms, gesturing at the tens of thousands burning behind him. "WE'VE LOST AT LEAST TENS OF THOUSANDS!"
Jeo hesitated—then killed him too.
"WHAT DOES THAT MATTER?!"
His voice carried across the survivors. "WE STILL HAVE NUMBERS! CHANGE REQUIRES BLOODSHED!"
The remaining murlocs froze, fear of their officers overriding fear of the flames.
But the officers themselves trembled. Without their human shields, they'd have died too.
Muushi, the king squid-man, had been partially roasted—his body shriveled and cracked.
"What's wrong with Muushi?" Dosun asked, hefting his hammer.
Daruma explained quietly: "His friend Daedalus was roasted alive when they rose too close to the surface. The sun burned him into dried squid. Muushi's always feared fire—and THIS fire..."
"TERRIBLE! I'LL BE DRIED!" Muushi thrashed.
Jeo forced himself to rally. "Our officers must lead by example!"
"JEO'S RIGHT!"
Hody emerged from the flames, pushing aside burning murlocs. His eyes fixed on the distant figure of Itachi, now landed.
He'd seen the casualties. A third of his army—dead. Another third—wounded, combat-ineffective.
Fifty thousand. Gone in seconds.
Fear threatened to consume him—but he couldn't show it. Not now. Not after ten years of planning.
First target: not Shirahoshi. The man in black.
"LISTEN TO ME!" Hody's roar cut through the chaos. "THIS IS THE CRUCIAL MOMENT! THERE'S NO RETREAT FOR ANYONE!"
The survivors looked to him.
"That fire—he can't use it again!" Hody's smile was manic, desperate. "I OBSERVED HIM! A move of that scale—he HAS no stamina left!"
A lie. But lies were all he had.
"And he WON'T get another chance!"
Hody crouched. Muscles coiled.
BOOM.
The ground beneath him shattered from the force of his launch.
Before the murlocs could process, Hody was already before Itachi—fist raised, wind pressure already striking Itachi's face.
"BECAUSE I'LL KILL HIM FIRST!!!"
His hysterical scream echoed across the plaza as his fist descended.
(End of Chapter)
✨If you're enjoying this story, consider supporting me on Patreon —
Patreon.com/TofuChan
Where you can read Extra Advance Chaters
Bonus Chapter For Every 100 Power Stones
Lets hit the goal of 300 Patreon Members now for 5 Extra Chapters 💕