The air shifted with pressure.
Two presences stood against each other in the wreckage of fallen bodies. One calm, contained, sharpened like a blade…
The other vast.
Heavy.
Like the ocean itself had taken form and decided to stand.
Giovanni adjusted his grip on his sword slightly, eyes locked forward.
Across from him, Fisher Tiger stood firm. Barefoot against the stone, muscles coiled, stance rooted like something that had long since stopped being moved by anything less than conviction.
Behind him—
Arlong and Hody lay.
Breathing and alive.
Giovanni clicked his tongue.
"…Move."
His voice was calm.
Fisher Tiger didn't move.
Instead, he studied him.
Carefully.
"…You came here as a guest," Tiger said. "And now you stand over my people with blood in your eyes."
Giovanni's gaze didn't waver.
"They're not your people."
A pause.
The tension sharpened.
"They're a problem to everyone on this Island. People like them don't deserve to live."
That was enough.
The ground beneath Fisher Tiger's feet cracked.
He moved.
Not fast, but overwhelming.
A single step forward
And his palm drove out.
"Fish-Man Karate: Five Thousand Brick Fist!"
The air exploded.
Giovanni's eyes sharpened
His blade came up
CLASH.
The strike hit.
The force wasn't just strength. It was pressure, condensed, focused, crashing into his guard like a tidal wave.
The ground beneath Giovanni split.
His feet slid back
Stone cracking under the force
But he held.
Barely.
"…Yeah," Giovanni muttered, pushing against the pressure. "You're definitely not normal."
He twisted his body
Redirected the force
And slipped away.
Fisher Tiger didn't chase immediately.
He turned.
Tracked.
Measured.
Giovanni reappeared a few meters away, blade lowered slightly, shoulders relaxed.
"…Listen," Giovanni said, almost annoyed. "I'm not here to fight you."
Fisher Tiger stepped forward again.
"Then leave."
Giovanni shook his head.
"Can't."
His eyes flicked past him—
To Arlong.
To Hody.
"They don't get to walk away alive."
Fisher Tiger's presence deepened.
"You don't decide that."
Giovanni sighed.
"…I really didn't want to do this."
And then
He moved.
This time first.
A flash.
A step that vanished from sight.
His blade cut forward—
Clean and precise.
"—!"
Fisher Tiger reacted instantly.
His arm came up.
CLANG.
Steel met hardened flesh.
The sound rang out like iron striking iron.
Giovanni's eyes narrowed slightly.
'Armament…'
Fisher Tiger twisted his body
And countered immediately.
"Fish-Man Karate: Shark Tile True Punch!"
The strike tore through the air—
A compressed shockwave of water pressure—
Even on land.
Giovanni didn't block.
He vanished.
The attack blasted past him—
Shattering stone structures behind—
Sending debris flying.
Giovanni reappeared to the side, crouched low.
"…That one's annoying."
He straightened slowly.
Fisher Tiger turned again.
Unshaken.
Unrushed.
A warrior used to fighting enemies who didn't break easily.
Giovanni pointed his sword slightly toward him.
"Last warning."
His voice dropped.
"Move."
Fisher Tiger's eyes hardened.
"…No."
A beat.
Then—
They clashed again.
Giovanni surged forward, blade flashing in tight arcs. Precise, controlled, surgical.
Fisher Tiger met him head-on.
Palm.
Elbow.
Shoulder.
Every strike carried weight. Not just muscle, but technique that turned motion into impact.
Hardened steel rang against hardened limbs.
Shockwaves cracked the ground.
Giovanni pivoted—
Slid under a strike—
Swung upward—
Fisher Tiger blocked again—
Then grabbed—
Giovanni's eyes widened slightly—
'Got me—'
Too late.
Tiger's grip tightened—
And he slammed his palm forward.
"Fish-Man Karate: Ocean Current Shoulder Throw!"
BOOM.
Giovanni's body was sent flying—
Crashing through broken structures—
Stone splintering—
Dust erupting into the air.
For a moment—
Silence.
Then—
A blur shot back out of the debris.
Giovanni landed lightly, skidding to a stop, rolling his shoulder once.
"…Okay," he muttered. "That one actually hurt."
He looked up again.
Still smiling.
"You're strong," he admitted.
Fisher Tiger didn't respond.
He simply stepped forward again.
Giovanni's expression shifted slightly.
Less playful.
"But you're in the way."
The air tightened again.
This time—
Sharper.
Giovanni's presence rose.
Enough to make the space between them feel heavy.
Enough to make the ground beneath their feet crack just a little more.
Fisher Tiger felt it.
And smiled with recognition.
"…So that's it."
Giovanni tilted his head.
"What?"
Tiger settled into his stance again.
"You're not just another human."
Giovanni shrugged.
"I never said I was."
Then—
They moved again.
Faster.
Harder.
More serious.
Tiger's palm strikes began carrying more force—each one cracking the air like distant thunder.
Giovanni's blade followed sharper lines. Less playful, more deliberate, every swing placed exactly where it needed to be.
Steel vs water.
Precision vs power.
A dance of impact and evasion.
Giovanni ducked under a strike—
Twisted—
Cut across—
Tiger blocked—
Countered—
Giovanni slid back—
Feet carving lines into the ground—
Then vanished again.
Appearing behind—
Swing—
Blocked again.
Fisher Tiger didn't falter.
Didn't hesitate.
Didn't doubt.
Giovanni clicked his tongue mid-exchange.
"…You're stubborn."
Tiger drove forward again.
"And you're dangerous."
Their strikes collided again—
And again—
And again—
Each clash louder than the last.
Each exchange tightening the space between them.
Each second pulling them deeper into the fight.
But still—
And somewhere in the distance—
Running footsteps grew closer.
Fast.
Desperate.
Closing in on a battlefield that was about to explode even further.
But neither of them noticed.
Because in that moment—
There was only the fight.
The clash resumed like thunder splitting the sea.
Fisher Tiger surged forward first this time. No hesitation, no restraint. The ground beneath his feet cracked as he launched himself, his massive frame cutting through the air with terrifying speed.
"Fish-Man Karate: Ocean Current Shoulder Throw!"
His palm struck forward, water from the surrounding moisture bending to his will, compressing into a violent current.
Giovanni's eyes sharpened.
"There it is again… controlling water itself…"
He pivoted just enough.
The current grazed past him, shredding the stone wall behind like paper.
Giovanni slid back, his boots scraping against the wet stone, cloak fluttering.
"…You're not holding back anymore," Giovanni muttered.
Tiger didn't answer.
He was already in front of him again.
A fist came crashing down.
Giovanni raised his blade.
CLANG—!
Hardened steel met hardened palm. Armament Haki crackling.
The impact sent a shockwave through the corridor, nearby debris lifting into the air before crashing down.
For a moment, the two locked eyes.
Tiger's gaze burned.
Giovanni's narrowed.
Then, Giovanni vanished.
Tiger's eyes widened slightly.
Fast—!
A slash came from the side—
Tiger twisted, barely blocking with his forearm, but the force still sent him skidding back across the ground.
Giovanni reappeared, blade low, posture completely different now.
His presence shifted.
He exhaled slowly.
"…Alright. I tried doing this your way."
His grip tightened on his sword.
"I told you already… you're not my enemy."
A faint crackle—
Dark lightning flickered around his blade for just a second.
Tiger's eyes sharpened.
That… pressure…
"…But you're in my way."
Giovanni stepped forward.
And disappeared again.
This time—
He was faster.
Tiger swung—
But Giovanni was already behind him.
A shallow cut appeared across Tiger's back.
Tiger turned—
Giovanni was already gone again.
Another slash.
Another.
Another.
Each one precise.
Each one calculated enough to push Tiger back.
Step by step.
Breath by breath.
Tiger planted his feet.
"—ENOUGH!"
He slammed both palms forward.
"Fish-Man Karate: Tide Breaker!"
A massive wave of compressed water exploded outward.
Giovanni didn't dodge.
He stepped into it.
His blade moved—
A single clean arc.
"—Hah."
The wave split in two.
Water crashing harmlessly past him.
Tiger's eyes widened.
Giovanni stood there, untouched, blade humming faintly.
"…You're starting to get it, right?" Giovanni said, voice calm now. "The gap."
Tiger clenched his jaw.
Of course he felt it.
Every exchange.
Every movement.
This human—
Was still holding back.
Behind them—
Arlong and Hody watched, shaken.
"What… what is this…?" Arlong muttered.
Hody's teeth clenched.
'That human… He's playing with Tiger…'
Back in the battlefield—
Giovanni tilted his head slightly.
"…Last time I'll say it."
His eyes locked onto Tiger's.
"Move."
Tiger didn't.
Instead—
He stepped forward again.
"…I can't."
Silence.
Then Giovanni sighed.
"…Yeah."
"I figured."
His stance lowered.
The air around him changed.
Heavy and sharp.
Like the moment before a storm breaks.
Tiger felt it instantly.
'This… pressure—'
Giovanni raised his blade slowly.
Dark lightning began to flicker again—
More clearly this time.
More violently.
The ground beneath his feet cracked.
"…Then I'll just have to push you aside."
Tiger's instincts screamed.
Every fiber of his being told him—
That attack is dangerous.
He tightened his stance.
Water began to gather around him again.
"Come then… human!"
Giovanni stepped forward.
One step.
Two—
And then—
He vanished completely.
Tiger's eyes darted.
Left.
Right.
Behind—
Where—
"—Here."
Too late.
Giovanni was already above him.
Blade raised.
Black lightning dancing wildly across it.
"Davy Sword Style…"
Tiger braced—
Arms crossing.
Haki hardening.
Water surging upward to reinforce—
"—Sea Tyrant's Fall."
The blade came down.
BOOOOOOM!!!
The impact shattered the ground.
A crater formed instantly beneath Tiger's feet, stone cracking and collapsing outward.
A shockwave blasted through the corridor, walls fracturing, debris flying in every direction.
Arlong and Hody were thrown back, slamming into the walls.
Dust filled the air.
Silence followed.
For a moment—
Nothing moved.
Then—
Giovanni stood at the center of the crater.
Blade lowered.
Breathing steady.
"…Still alive," he muttered.
From the smoke—
Tiger emerged.
Bruised.
Bleeding.
But standing.
One knee touched the ground.
His arms trembled from the impact.
But his eyes—
Still burned.
Giovanni stared at him.
"…You're really stubborn, you know that?"
Tiger let out a rough breath.
"…I could say the same about you."
Giovanni chuckled lightly.
"…Fair."
He raised his sword again.
This time—
There was no hesitation.
No restraint.
The air tightened.
The black lightning surged more violently.
Even Arlong and Hody felt it—
Their bodies trembling instinctively.
'What… what is that…!?'
Giovanni's eyes hardened.
'I can't leave them alive.'
'Not after everything they'll do.'
'This ends here.'
He stepped forward—
Slowly.
Deliberately.
Tiger tried to stand fully—
But his body resisted.
Still—
He forced himself up.
"…Come," Tiger said, voice low but unwavering.
Giovanni nodded once.
Then—
He raised his blade high.
The air screamed.
"Davy Sword Style…"
The lightning condensed—
More dangerous than before.
"—Conquest."
"STOP!!!"
Everything froze.
The pressure shattered instantly.
Giovanni's blade halted mid-swing.
His eyes widened slightly.
Between him and Tiger—
A small figure stood.
Yellow hair flowing.
Arms spread wide.
"…Queen Otihime…" Giovanni muttered.
She stood there—
Breathing heavily.
Eyes filled with urgency.
"…That's enough," she said.
Her voice trembled—
But didn't break.
Tiger's eyes widened.
"Your Majesty—!"
---
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