"Better alive than dead. Dead people don't play games."
Aeridar's sunny grin twisted into a vicious sneer. He suddenly launched a punch, warping the air around him. A sharp gust erupted outward, a visible, pale shockwave tearing through the space ahead.
"What the hell? A shockwave?!"
Mori's eyes widened. A casual punch—producing a shockwave? That had to be his Devil Fruit ability.
He'd suspected Aeridar was a Devil Fruit user. That much was correct. But he'd assumed the fruit allowed Aeridar to block Observation Haki. That part was dead wrong.
So Aeridar was a Devil Fruit user. And what's more, he could likely use Observation Haki—and not just use it. His mastery clearly outclassed Mori's by a large margin.
Still, though startled, Mori didn't panic. A veteran like him wouldn't be worthy of the title "Marine prodigy" if he couldn't dodge an attack like that.
Mori vanished in an instant.
Nearby pirates and Marines were dumbfounded.
The Impact Wave missed Mori entirely, slamming instead into the crowd behind him. Over a dozen pirates and Marines were blasted back, bones snapping audibly, blood spewing as they collapsed—many fatally wounded.
"Rokushiki's Soru, huh?"
Aeridar's wicked smile curved further as he glanced around. "Now, where'd you run off to?"
"You're way too cocky. This world's far bigger than your tiny little well," came a voice from nowhere.
"I don't need a Marine lecturing me," Aeridar said calmly. "I know this world... and I've always treated it with respect."
He spun and punched toward a direction—"Ha! Found you!"
Iron Fist—Impact Punch!
"Damn—Tekkai: Steel!"
The blow didn't sound like it struck flesh—it sounded like metal slamming into metal. A shadowy figure was hurled back at supersonic speed, crashing through a wall, then another—and another—until a tunnel of debris carved a gaping hole through the ship's structure.
"Damn, tough body. Way tougher than before," Aeridar said, rubbing his reddened fist. "Looks like an advanced Rokushiki technique."
Cough, cough... From within the wreckage, a plank of shattered wood was tossed aside. Captain Mori emerged from the ruins, bleeding from the mouth.
"Pft." He spat out blood, grimacing.
Now he was certain—Aeridar possessed Observation Haki, and it vastly outmatched his own. He had masked his presence, tracked Mori's high-speed movement, and struck with precision. No one without elite-level Haki could do that.
"Hey, you've gotta be from Marine HQ," Aeridar said, narrowing his eyes. "No one in the East Blue—besides that guy from Loguetown—could take that punch and walk away."
He was confident in his strength. Even CP9's Jabra or Kaku at full Zoan-enhanced strength could only barely block a blow like that with Tekkai.
"Hmph," Mori grunted, refusing to answer. How could he explain this? A Marine captain on the cusp of promotion to Rear Admiral—being outmatched by a rookie pirate? Utter humiliation.
But he said nothing. Instead, he stepped forward, cracking the deck beneath him, then lunged. His copper staff arced straight for Aeridar's skull.
Aeridar dodged, not daring to take it head-on. That staff... gave off a very unpleasant vibe.
"Seastone... huh." Aeridar's brow furrowed. This was a problem. He didn't want to reveal too much of his true strength yet—especially not in this very first battle. Things like Armament Haki... better kept under wraps for now.
Mori's swings were fierce and fast. The copper staff, laced with Seastone, howled through the air, smashing deep craters into the deck with every missed strike—each one aimed to maim.
"This guy... he even knows about Seastone?" Mori thought, eyes narrowing. Aeridar never let the staff touch his skin—only blocking with his clothes and shoes. Mori couldn't believe someone fresh to the seas knew so many advanced tactics.
They traded blows, a blur of movement and impact. Every hit rocked the air, visible shockwaves rippling around them.
To the surrounding Marines and pirates, the two fighters were like shadowy phantoms, flickering and clashing—too fast for the eye to follow. The sheer force of their battle shook their understanding of what humans were capable of.
"Are they even human?"
"How can anyone be this strong?!"
"Monsters... they're monsters..."
In the chaos, Bamos—severely injured but alive—lay frozen in terror, pretending to be dead, too afraid to even breathe. If either fighter turned their attention to him, he knew it'd be over.
On the other side, Likiwa rubbed his eyes in disbelief. For someone who'd always prided himself on his strength... this was devastating. He felt utterly powerless.
Aeridar dodged another swing—but missed Mori's incoming kick. He raised his arms in a cross guard and blocked, but the force still sent him flying.
He flipped mid-air, landing on the ship's prow with a nimble tap.
"Tch... what a pain," Aeridar muttered, eyeing the Seastone staff in Mori's hands. "Really annoying piece of hardware."
"Tch... this guy..." Mori growled, frustrated. Despite his strong offense, Aeridar was still unscathed.
He realized Aeridar's combat instincts were lacking. The pirate clearly lacked experience fighting strong opponents. But his raw power? It made up for everything.
The deck quaked as a blue-haired young man in a sharp blue suit landed at the ship's prow.
"Yo, boss—you're still not done?"
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