About twenty minutes later, the heavy, webbed footsteps broke the silence of the night. This time, it wasn't just three isolated fishmen, but a full squad. Twelve armed fishmen advanced in tight formation, led by Kuroobi, Chew, and Hatchan. Their imposing silhouettes moved slowly toward Nami's small house like a dark, threatening wave.
Kuroobi walked at the front, back straight, face stern. The fresh scratches across his gills made him look even harsher.
"Don't forget Arlong-san's orders," he said in a low, cold voice. "Crush the vermin. Bring Nami back alive. As for the others… it doesn't matter what's left of them."
Chew clenched his fists so tightly his joints cracked.
"A simple cat and mouse… They'll deeply regret ever setting foot on this island."
Hatchan, his six arms twitching nervously, muttered,
"They'd better not pull those stupid tricks again… I'm sick of being humiliated by land creatures."
They stopped in front of the house. The door was slightly ajar. A faint, flickering light seeped through the gap. Kuroobi raised a webbed hand, then kicked the door violently. It burst open and slammed against the wall with a dull thud.
Inside, everything seemed calm. Too calm.
Kuroobi stepped in first, his eyes scanning every corner of the room with contempt.
"Show yourselves, land vermin," he growled. "This time, you won't escape us."
He took three steps—
—and suddenly, a thin rope stretched across the floor tightened around his ankles. His eyes widened for a split second. His massive body pitched forward in a slow, inevitable motion. He slammed face-first into the floor, his chin cracking loudly against the wood. Two fishmen behind him tripped over his body and collapsed into a tangled heap of limbs and fins.
At the same moment, a series of giant, iridescent bubbles appeared out of nowhere and burst beneath the others' feet. The ground instantly turned into a slick, soapy surface. One guard tried to keep his balance, windmilling his arms, then slipped backward with a loud, wet "splat!" Another slid several meters in a full split before crashing into the wall with a comical thud.
Bugs Bunny, hidden behind an old chair, casually pulled an invisible string. A rusty bucket hanging from the ceiling tipped slowly… then dumped its contents: an avalanche of rotten, foul-smelling oranges that splattered right onto Chew's head. The fishman froze for a second, juice dripping down his face, before spitting out a seed in rage.
Popeye calmly stepped out from behind a barrel, bit down on his pipe, and swallowed an entire can of spinach in one gulp. His arms swelled like balloons. He took a deep breath… then threw a massive punch into the wall. A shelf loaded with baskets of oranges shook, wobbled, and then collapsed with a deafening crash. Hundreds of oranges rolled everywhere like giant marbles, sending fishmen slipping and tumbling one after another in a ridiculous chain reaction.
Road Runner suddenly appeared like a red-and-yellow blur. He zigzagged at high speed between the guards' legs, leaving behind a trail of small, shiny pellets. Every time a fishman stepped on one, they spun out of control, arms flailing wildly.
Droopy, perched calmly on a beam above the chaos, let out a long sigh. He gave a light tap to a barrel balanced nearby. The barrel tipped… very slowly… then picked up speed and rolled straight toward Hatchan. The six-armed fishman tried to stop it with all his limbs at once, but it slammed into him full force, sending him flying into a wall with a heavy crash.
Elian, standing near the window, simply snapped his fingers. Two thin ropes appeared and wrapped around the ankles of two more fishmen, knocking them backward like bowling pins.
That's when the chaos reached its peak.
A particularly massive fishman raised a huge improvised hammer—a hollow barrel—and brought it down with all his strength on Tom. The cat was flattened like a black pancake with a loud "PLOP!" He stayed squashed for a second… then puffed back up like a balloon, shook his head, and leapt onto the fishman's back, yowling with rage.
Jerry, meanwhile, was grabbed by Chew, who clenched him in his massive fist. The mouse was compressed into a tiny gray ball. Chew sneered… but Jerry suddenly sprang back like a coiled spring, bounced off the fishman's nose, and stuck out his tongue.
Elian, trying to help by setting another rope, was caught off guard by a panicked guard swinging an axe. The blade sliced him cleanly in half at the waist. Both halves fell to the ground with a dull thud. Nami stifled a scream. But barely a second later, the two pieces slid back together as if nothing had happened. He stood up, brushed off his clothes, and snapped his fingers to create another rope—as if he had just had a strand of hair cut.
Tom and Jerry took advantage of the confusion and doubled their efforts. Tom leapt with a fierce yowl onto the back of a fishman struggling to stand, digging in his claws and scratching wildly like a whirlwind of black fur. Jerry darted between massive legs at incredible speed, pulling tails, pinching webbed toes, and executing precise trip attacks that sent the giants crashing into one another.
Kuroobi finally stood back up, covered in orange juice, bruises, and dust. His gaze remained icy despite the humiliation.
"Pathetic," he spat. "These beasts and that purple-haired brat really think they can resist us? We are the fishmen. We are superior."
And yet, despite his words, he and his men were slowly backing toward the door, harassed from all sides by the relentless traps and attacks.
Outside, hoarse cries echoed in the distance. Arlong had already sent a second wave.
Tom and Jerry, breathing hard but eyes gleaming, exchanged a quick glance. Jerry gave a small, knowing nod. Tom responded with a wide, devilish grin.
The battle was only just beginning.
Nami, leaning against the back wall, stared wide-eyed, her mouth slightly open.
"You're all completely insane…" she whispered. "…But it works."
Elian smiled softly in the dim light.
Bugs Bunny crunched loudly on his carrot.
"Classic."
The fishmen kept backing toward the door, their heavy, webbed steps slipping across the floor slick with orange juice and burst bubbles. The small house had turned into a slow-motion battlefield, where every movement seemed to stretch into an endless chain of comical falls.
Kuroobi wiped the juice still dripping down his face with the back of his hand. His gaze remained cold, but a vein throbbed at his temple.
"That's enough," he growled in a low, threatening voice. "There are twelve of us. You're nothing but vermin. We're going to crush you once and for—"
He didn't get to finish.
Road Runner, who had vanished moments earlier, suddenly reappeared like a red-and-yellow flash. He zigzagged one last time between the fishmen's legs, leaving behind a long trail of shiny pellets that now formed a perfectly curved path. The already off-balance fishmen helplessly followed the slippery track, sliding one after another like clumsy bowling pins.
Popeye, his muscles still swollen from the spinach, took a deep breath. He walked calmly to the back wall, raised a massive fist, and brought it down slowly—very slowly—onto a supporting beam. The wood cracked. The upper shelf, the one no one had touched yet, trembled… then tipped over. A cascade of heavy, dusty fishing nets fell from the ceiling like a thick curtain, wrapping the fishmen in a sticky, tangled cocoon.
Bugs Bunny, still hidden behind his chair, pulled one last string with a calm smile. A huge barrel filled with soapy seawater, hanging there from the beginning, tipped all at once. The liquid poured down in a slow cascade, turning the floor into a giant foamy puddle. The fishmen, already trapped in the nets, slipped together in one massive collective "SPLASH!", forming a writhing, soaked pile.
SpongeBob, who had been patiently waiting in a corner, suddenly jumped into the center of the room. He took a deep breath, puffed up like a giant sponge, and expelled a huge transparent bubble that enveloped the entire pile of fishmen. The bubble sealed around them with a soft "pop!" Inside, the twelve fishmen now floated like fish in a jar that was far too small, their arms and fins flailing in slow, comical motion.
Elian, standing near the window, slowly raised both hands in front of him, palms open, as if guiding something invisible. The bubble began to spin slowly, faster and faster, turning the fishmen into a living centrifuge. The faces of Kuroobi, Chew, and Hatchan spun around, eyes wide, their expressions shifting from cold anger to pure astonishment.
Tom and Jerry finished it off.
The cat leapt onto the spinning bubble, dug his claws into it, and rolled it like a giant ball toward the door. Jerry, perched on his shoulder, held a small string tied to a nail driven into the wall. At the last moment, he yanked it sharply. The bubble burst with a booming "BOOM!" of iridescent foam. The twelve fishmen were launched outside in one compact heap, rolling several meters before crashing into a palm tree with a final, heavy thud.
They lay there, sprawled out like starfish on the ground, eyes spiraling, completely knocked out. Little stars still spun above their heads.
Nami, who had watched everything from the back wall, stood with her mouth wide open. Her hands trembled slightly. She looked at the unconscious pile of fishmen, then at the group, then back again. For the first time in a long while, a real laugh escaped her—a small, incredulous, almost shy laugh.
"I… I can't believe it," she murmured, shaking her head. Her voice was softer now, almost filled with wonder. "I spent six years being afraid of them. Six years drawing maps so they wouldn't kill me. And you… you just took down twelve of them with oranges, bubbles, and a barrel." She covered her mouth, as if trying to hold back her laughter, but her eyes were shining. "You're completely insane… but for the first time, I'm thinking that… maybe… we really can beat them."
Elian turned to her with a calm smile.
Bugs Bunny crunched into his carrot, looking satisfied.
"Classic."
At that very moment, a heavy set of footsteps echoed in the distance along the path leading to the house.
Arlong finally appeared—massive, his saw-like nose gleaming under the moonlight. He walked alone, slowly, his hands tucked into his pockets. His gaze swept across the scene: the twelve fishmen sprawled like dead fish on the shore, the last bubbles popping in the air, and the group standing calmly in the doorway.
Arlong stopped a few meters away. His expression remained cold, arrogant—almost amused. He tilted his head slightly, as if observing a particularly ridiculous performance.
"Shahahaha…" His low, rough laughter rolled through the night. "So it's true. My men are being humiliated by a cat, a mouse, and… a purple-haired brat." He looked straight into Nami's eyes, his predatory grin slowly widening. "You're hiding vermin now, Nami? You, who used to be so obedient. Your debt just doubled. And this time, I won't settle for money."
He took a step forward, towering over everyone with his imposing size.
"But it doesn't matter. Fishmen are the superior race. You're all going to learn what it means… to defy us."
Nami instinctively stepped back, fear returning to her eyes—but she didn't look away. Her hand gripped the edge of the door, as if holding onto what she had just witnessed.