Chapter Forty-Six: Aaron’s Fury

The fishman standing at the entrance of the Paradise was none other than Arlong, the master of this place.

He stared at the bodies strewn across the ground—all his kin, brutally slain. At his feet, the lifeless head of Chu rolled slowly, eyes still wide with unwillingness. In the pool, Chu’s body stained the water red, and beside it lay Kuroobi, his gaze vacant.

In that moment, Arlong’s heart bled. From the Grand Line to this place, he had brought only so many fishmen. Now, except for those he had just sent out for a deal with Colonel Rat, all were dead here.

Arlong’s eyes gradually turned crimson, bloodthirsty, and a ferocious aura erupted from him.

“That’s… Big Brother Chu—”

The fishmen behind Arlong saw the head at their feet and their faces instantly changed. Dumbfounded, they looked into the Paradise and felt as if the sky had collapsed; their minds buzzed.

The ground was littered with the corpses of their brethren. Among them stood a ragged human, looking at them with mocking disdain.

“I want you dead—” Arlong roared, charging straight at Luolan.

The Paradise destroyed, his kin slaughtered. As their leader, Arlong could not remain unmoved.

In the throes of extreme rage, Arlong’s speed suddenly broke through his limits.

“I’ve been waiting for you for a long time.”

If Luolan had merely slaughtered these ordinary fishmen and their useless officers, it would still be a failure for him. Only by killing Arlong could he truly bring this to an end.

Luolan strode forward as well, gripping his short saber tightly.

Ever since leaving the Floating Island, he hadn’t encountered a worthy fight. Thus, he had no intention of ending this battle with a single flying slash. Though Arlong was far from his equal, he still craved a good fight.

“Water Strike—”

Arlong snarled, condensing a small droplet in his palm and then hurling it at Luolan.

The droplet wasn’t large, but as it left Arlong’s hand, its speed abruptly increased, whistling forth like a bullet.

“Such power is still far from enough!”

Luolan swung his saber, shattering the droplet with ease, and pressed forward.

For Arlong, the Water Strike was merely an appetizer, not the main course.

As he advanced, Arlong gathered his strength and threw a punch at Luolan.

This blow was leagues beyond Kuroobi’s Thousand-Watt Punch, its power truly terrifying.

“As expected of the boss of Arlong’s Paradise—his strength far surpasses those underlings.”

Before the fist landed, its wind arrived first, a rush of air barreling toward Luolan.

Feeling the force of the punch, Luolan was quite satisfied—this was the battle he’d desired. Though it couldn’t match the fearsome beasts of the Floating Island, in the East Blue, it was certainly among the best.

Faced with this punch, Luolan remained calm, neither dodging nor retreating. He met the attack head-on with the back of his blade, careful not to end the fight too quickly.

“How can this strength be possible?”

Watching his full-force attack fail to budge the blade even slightly, Arlong’s eyes filled with disbelief.

In the East Blue, he had never encountered such an enemy.

Even Colonel Rat—his reason for compliance was not fear of strength, but fear of position. If he killed villagers, Colonel Rat would cover for him, and no one would trace it back. But a Navy Colonel was different; if he killed one, it would attract immediate attention from the Navy.

“Impossible? Let me tell you, this world is vast, and so is the East Blue. Even though it’s called the weakest sea, it has produced legends like Roger and Garp.”

“And you, just a fishman who couldn’t survive the Grand Line, how many strong ones have you met to claim such impossibility?”

Luolan sneered, maintaining his pressure, and with the back of his blade, sent Arlong tumbling across the ground.

“Come, Arlong. Before you die, entertain me well. Perhaps then I’ll grant you a swift death, not a miserable end like the others.”

Luolan continued his assault, still using the back of his blade.

Facing an opponent whose speed, power, and physique paled compared to his own, Luolan avoided using the blade’s edge, lest the fight end too soon.

“Damn you—”

Arlong crawled up, his face shifting through colors as he looked at the corpses scattered throughout the Paradise. His eyes blazed red, veins bulging across his face.

Consumed by fury, he fully unleashed his power.

He drew a serrated broadsword from who knew where and swung it fiercely at Luolan.

With his rage escalating, Arlong’s strength soared, breaking his own limits. Even Luolan nearly lost track of his movements.

“That’s more like it.”

With Arlong now wielding a weapon, Luolan could finally let loose.

Even though Arlong’s speed had surpassed his previous limits, he was still within Luolan’s grasp.

With narrowed eyes, Luolan quickly discerned Arlong’s attack path.

He countered with a reverse slash, blocking Arlong’s strike directly, much to Arlong’s shock.

Arlong didn’t remain stunned for long; he retreated a few steps and continued searching for openings to attack.

“I say, you’ve been attacking long enough. Isn’t it my turn now?”

Luolan pressed forward, quickly matching Arlong’s steps, the saber flashing coldly as he struck.

“Compared to my Slicing Edge, human-made weapons are worthless.”

Even now, Arlong clung to the dream that fishmen were superior to humans. Without dodging, he met Luolan’s slash head-on.

He believed in his Slicing Edge’s power, just as he believed fishmen were inherently superior.

But in the next instant, Arlong’s expression changed.

With a sharp crack, a fracture appeared on his Slicing Edge.

Luolan struck again, and the blade was severed in two.

Arlong stared in disbelief at his broken weapon, making no move to dodge, frozen as he looked at the shattered blade in his hands.

For over ten years, this Slicing Edge had followed him through countless battles, breaking more human weapons than he could count.

But why today? Why had it been broken by such an ordinary blade?

He had heard tales of Supreme Grade Blades, but always thought them fanciful names humans invented to glorify their own abilities.

Those so-called Supreme Grade Blades, in essence, were no different from regular swords.

“Boss Arlong, look out—”

Kuroobi’s sudden cry snapped Arlong from his shock.

But as he awakened, regret hit him.

Luolan’s saber struck, and Kuroobi stepped in to block the fatal blow.

A hideous wound appeared across Kuroobi’s chest—from heart to lower right abdomen, all shattered by Luolan.

“Run…”

Only then did Kuroobi understand.

The hope that Boss Arlong would return and avenge Hatchan was laughable.

From the start, Luolan had been attacking with the back of his blade—what arrogance!

But after several exchanges, Kuroobi realized it wasn’t arrogance, but confidence.

Throughout Arlong’s Paradise, that human was certain that no one could match him.

Now, Kuroobi no longer wished for Arlong’s vengeance, only wondering how his boss might escape.

“Kuroobi—”

Watching his brother die before his eyes, Arlong roared in fury.

His rage gradually eclipsed reason.

Now, only one thought remained: revenge.

“Boss Arlong, run! Only if you live can you avenge us—”

“Run, Boss Arlong—”

Several fishmen at the entrance of the Paradise somehow slipped between Luolan and Arlong, faces resolute as they stared at Luolan.

They saw clearly the gap between their boss and the human; this was not an enemy Arlong could defeat.

Big Brother Chu was dead, Kuroobi was dead, and all the fishmen in the Paradise were dead.

Hope was lost.

All they wanted now was for Boss Arlong to escape, gather strength anew, and avenge them someday.