"Moria…" Kuma stared at him. "You woke up surprisingly quickly."
Not long ago, the man had been knocked unconscious by the Straw Hat boy. Yet now he was standing here again, full of life.
How did he manage that?
"Yeah, I should thank you all for that." Moria grinned. "If it weren't for that lightning attack earlier, I wouldn't have woken up so quickly."
"Lightning?"
Jin was slightly surprised. He hadn't aimed any Lightning Release anywhere else.
Suddenly, a thought crossed his mind.
'Could it have been… the Lightning Water Dragon Bullet Technique?!'
Kuma frowned as well. He hadn't expected the ninjutsu he repelled to hit Moria.
At the time, he had simply intended to send the attack somewhere else on the island so it wouldn't fly out to sea and injure others.
But instead…
It struck Moria?
The thought made Kuma's mood somewhat complicated.
A casual action had awakened someone who should have remained unconscious.
It was… unexpectedly absurd.
"You came back to take revenge on us?!" Aike shouted.
"Don't think we'll just stand here and—"
"That's enough. I'm not interested in you," Moria interrupted flatly. "I came here for something else."
As he spoke, he glanced briefly at Jin, who had rushed over to rescue Usopp.
Moria simply watched as Jin carried Usopp back.
Chopper quickly ran over and examined him.
"Don't worry. He's just unconscious."
Everyone sighed with relief.
Jin, however, kept his gaze locked on Moria.
He wanted to know what Moria's purpose was.
If Moria intended to attack them, he wouldn't have allowed Jin to rescue Usopp earlier.
But if not revenge…
Then why come back?
Did he have some kind of grudge against Bartholomew Kuma?
Thinking that, Jin shifted his gaze toward Kuma.
Meanwhile, Moria turned toward him.
"Kuma… you saw a little girl earlier, didn't you?"
"A little girl…"
Kuma immediately thought of Perona.
"Looks like you know what I'm talking about." Moria nodded, his face darkening.
"Where did you send her?!"
Moria knew Kuma's ability well.
With a single slap, Kuma could send someone flying anywhere.
If Kuma intended to kill Perona, he could easily send her flying straight into the ocean.
And if that happened…
She would certainly die.
In the past, Moria might not have worried about such a thing.
But this time was different.
Kuma had come to invite Jin to become a Shichibukai.
That meant Moria's own title had been revoked.
Without the protection of that title, Kuma killing his crew was entirely possible.
After all—
His nickname was Tyrant Kuma.
Yet when faced with Moria's questioning, Kuma simply replied calmly,
"Who knows."
Crack.
Veins bulged on Moria's forehead.
His anger surged instantly.
"That calm tone…" Moria sneered. "Kuma, you've pissed me off."
"So what?"
"So what?"
"I'll make you tell me yourself."
With that, Moria strode forward toward where Luffy lay.
Everyone immediately tensed.
Zoro rushed forward, grabbed Luffy, and carried him back to the group.
Moria ignored it.
He simply retrieved his weapon.
Bending down, he picked up the massive blade and began walking slowly toward Kuma.
After only a few steps, however—
Moria suddenly stopped.
Everyone froze.
"Ninja boy," Moria said without turning around.
"Take your people and leave."
"Don't interfere with what I'm about to do."
What he planned next…
Was to beat Kuma senseless until he revealed where Perona had been sent.
Their battle could easily sink the island.
If the Straw Hats stayed here—
They would almost certainly die in the crossfire.
Moria owed Jin a favor.
And truthfully…
He admired these people.
He didn't want them to die here.
"Leave with everyone…"
Jin looked stunned.
He never expected Moria to say something like that.
It didn't make sense.
The words sounded harsh, but the meaning was clear.
Leave now before you die.
But the question remained—
Why would Moria help them?
If he were a good person, they wouldn't have fought such a brutal battle earlier.
The others also exchanged confused looks.
No one understood Moria's intentions.
"Whatever the reason, let's leave!" Nami said quickly.
They had finally been given a chance to survive.
Naturally, they had to take it.
Everyone understood that.
Without hesitation, they began retreating.
"Hurry! Carry the unconscious ones!"
"Let's get back to the ship!"
"Yeah!"
Aike and the others ran toward the coast.
Jin remained where he stood.
He stared at Moria's back, his mind filled with questions.
Why was Moria doing this?
And somehow…
Moria felt like a completely different person now.
His spirit was different.
Perhaps sensing Jin's confusion, Moria spoke again.
"Ninja boy."
"You were the one who showed me those visions, weren't you?"
"Thanks."
"Consider it a favor I owe you."
Jin froze.
He was referring to…
The genjutsu?
Right before Moria lost consciousness, Jin had indeed cast a genjutsu on him.
A technique called the Demonic Illusion: Hell Viewing Technique.
It forced the target to see their deepest fears.
But it wasn't particularly lethal.
Yet Moria…
Suddenly, realization struck Jin.
'When we spoke earlier, he mentioned fighting Kaido and losing…'
'His companions probably died in that battle.'
That was why Moria obsessed over zombies.
Because zombies…
Didn't die.
So if he was thanking him…
Did that mean the genjutsu had shown him his comrades again?
Instead of fear—
He saw the people he longed for most?
Jin didn't know what to say.
After a moment, he asked quietly,
"So that's why you—"
"Don't get ahead of yourself, ninja brat," Moria snorted, cutting him off.
"I'm doing this because I've got unfinished business with that guy."
"Not because of you."
Jin: …
For some reason, he felt a hint of… tsundere energy from Moria.
Was that just his imagination?
"I never said they were allowed to leave," Kuma said calmly.
The moment he finished speaking—
He vanished.
When he reappeared, he was already standing in front of Jin.
At that instant—
Moria moved.
"Clang!!"
His enormous blade, coated in Armament Haki, slammed into Kuma's arm.
The strike forcibly stopped Kuma.
Before Kuma could react, Moria stepped forward and locked his arm around Kuma's, preventing him from using the Paw-Paw Fruit.
"Moria…" Kuma said quietly. "You know what this means."
"The World Government will—"
"I'm not a Shichibukai anymore!" Moria snapped.
"And those bastards have no right to control me!"
Then he glanced back at Jin.
"Kid."
"Leave now."
"If you die here, don't blame me."
This time, Jin didn't argue.
He stared at Moria for a moment…
Then turned and left.
Now he finally understood the situation.
There was no reason to remain.
Still…
'Did Moria get stronger?' Jin wondered silently.
That strange energy had appeared around him too.
What exactly was it?
Lost in thought, Jin left the battlefield.
Watching him go, Moria turned back to Kuma.
"Now…"
"It's our turn to settle things."
"Kuma."
Today, he would beat this bastard down and force him to reveal Perona's location.
At the very least—
He needed to know if she was alive.
"Haki…" Kuma murmured.
"I didn't expect you to recover your spirit."
"What happened to you?"
As a top-tier fighter, Kuma understood Haki very well.
If Moria hadn't regained his will, he would never have regained Armament Haki.
"…Yeah."
"A lot of people said a lot of things to me," Moria replied.
"To avoid disappointing them…"
"I had no choice but to pull myself together."
He paused before grinning.
"It's been decades since I had a real fight."
"Let's make this one enjoyable."
"You really intend to fight me?" Kuma asked.
"You know what it means if we do."
"You don't care about Thriller Bark anymore?"
"If it sinks, it sinks!" Moria replied coldly.
"Maybe that's a rebirth."
Kuma said nothing more.
Instead—
He kicked toward Moria.
Clang!
Boom!!
…
Meanwhile—
"Hurry! Let's set sail and get out of here!" Nami shouted.
Two Shichibukai fighting meant the entire island could be destroyed.
Leaving quickly was the smartest option.
"But Jin hasn't returned yet…"
"Don't worry about Jin," Nami replied.
"Didn't you remember Merry's ability?"
Chopper blinked.
Then he understood.
Right.
Merry could summon Jin back to the ship if necessary.
At that moment—
Jin dropped down from above and landed perfectly on the Sunny.
He glanced around.
"Where's Lola and the others?"
Robin answered calmly.
"They have their own ship."
Right then, another pirate ship sailed over.
"Hey! Jin! Nami!"
"Lola!"
Before they could talk further—
Boom!!
Boom!!
Boom!!
Terrifying explosions echoed from the island.
"Those are Shichibukai for you…" Aike gulped.
Two fighters of that level could easily sink the island.
"Quick, Merry, let's go!"
"Okay!"
Under Merry's control, the Thousand Sunny began moving rapidly toward the exit of Thriller Bark.
"Open the gate—"
Before Nami could finish—
They realized the gate was already open.
Confused but grateful, they sailed out immediately.
Soon, both pirate ships escaped the terrifying sea.
Seeing the rising sun on the horizon, everyone finally relaxed.
"We survived!"
"Hahahaha!"
After so many hardships—
They were still alive.
But they knew this place wasn't safe.
Once the two Shichibukai finished their fight, who knew what would happen next?
"Everyone, let's leave quickly," Lola said.
"No one knows what will happen after their battle ends."
"Where are you going?" Nami asked.
"If we're headed the same way, maybe we could travel together…"
"We're not going to the New World yet."
"I see…"
Nami understood immediately.
Their paths were different.
Luffy was still unconscious.
So they had to stick to their planned route—
Fish-Man Island.
She sighed softly, touching the object in her pocket.
The Vivre Card Lola had given her.
According to Lola, it might be useful someday.
Even though Nami didn't fully understand it yet—
It was still a gift from a friend.
"If we get the chance…" Jin called out,
"Let's meet again in the New World!"
"Yeah!!"
"Goodbye, Brother Jin!"
Watching their ship sail away, Jin felt a strange mix of emotions.
He hadn't expected their farewell to come so soon.
But he wasn't the sentimental type.
Friends weren't meant to stay together forever.
And sometimes—
Separation only made the next meeting better.
He believed that one day, they would meet again on the sea.
"Alright everyone."
"It's time for us to go."
"Yeah! Let's head to Fish-Man Island!" Sanji shouted excitedly.
"Destination—Fish-Man Island!"
"Let's go!!"
◇ I'll be dropping one bonus chapters for every 10 reviews. comment
◇ One bonus chapter will be released for every 100 Power Stones.
◇ You can read the ahead chapter on P@treon if you're interested:
patreon.com/ZoroTL442