Standing on top of Zeff with a gun to his head, was none other than Gin.
'Shoot him!', shouts Creed, 'Do it now! All we have to do is kill the geezer, then the restaurant will be ours.'
Lambo gritted his teeth as he glares at Gin.
Son of a Bitch.
"Gin!", shouts Luffy, looking surprised, and a little horrified at the pirate's actions.
"I don't care how much of a badass he used to be.", Gin said dangerously, "Now he's just a cook. I wouldn't have to break a sweat to kill this old fart. I'll spare him, but you'll have to leave. Please. Don't make this harder Sanji. Just Leave. Don't force me to kill both of you."
Either this guy is delusional, or like Pearl, he's also high. Sadly, Lambo thinks it may be more of the former.
Doesn't make him any less pissed.
He gets not playing fair at times, sometimes you have to hit below the belt, literally more than half the time, in order to win a fight. But this is low, even for Lambo.
"Run away...", Sanji says, almost thoughtfully, placing his cigarette back in his mouth (when did he even take it out?), "Not a chance!"
Gin's eyes widened in surprise, but Lambo wasn't. Did he honestly think that just because he has Zeff at his mercy they'd give up that easily? Lambo understands that it definitely complicates things, but it's not enough to raise the white flag
At least, that's what Lambo hopes.
"You look even dumber at gun point old man.", Sanji says to Zeff, "What kind of example are you setting for all the other cooks?"
Zeff scoffs, "I don't need a lecture from a brat like you."
"Would you stop calling me names!", shouts Sanji (but wasn't he calling Zeff names too? Hypocrite.), "Quit treating me like a kid!"
"This is crazy!", shouts one chef.
"Sanji wouldn't abandon Zeff now, would he?"
Lambo's eye twitch. Way to have faith in your Sou Chef fellas.
"Gin!", Sanji calls out demandingly, "Point that gun at me!"
. . . What?
"Are you serious?", hissed Lambo with narrowed eyes, flicking between Gin and Sanji.
"Hey, what if you die!", shouts Luffy worriedly.
"Shut up.", Sanji growled through gritted teeth.
Lambo growled in frustration. This damn cook is so damn stubborn! It wouldn't change the situation any, just a different hostage.
"Sanji, why you?", Gin asks.
"Some one's eager to die.", said a familiar posh voice.
It took every will power Lambo had not to groan. Shouldn't this guy still be knocked out? Or is that pearl headpiece of his good for something?
"Lucky for you I'd be more than happy to oblige."
Lambo turns to see Pearl getting back on his feet, and he growled in frustration. Nami sailed away on the Going Merry, Usopp is chasing after her with a heavily injured, barely alive, Zoro, pirates are trying to overtake the Baratie, Gin has taken Zeff hostage, Sanji is acting like a reckless dumbass, and this guy, Pearl, just won't stay down.
Can anything else go wrong here!?
.
.
.
.
Lambo doesn't want an answer to that.
But the point is, he's really starting to get pissed off with how long it's taking to fix their problems, which seems to be multiplying by the minute!
"Allow me.", Pearls voice brought Lambo out of his thoughts, "It'd be my pleasure to beat you into a bloody lifeless pulp."
Suddenly Pearl leaped forward, he was surprisingly quick for someone his size.
"Supernatural Pearl...", Pearl shouts, arm reared back, "Surprise!"
The shield hit Sanji in the face, Lambo wasn't surprised to see blood. He was surprised that Sanji didn't dodge Pearl's attack. He knew Sanji could have easily dodge that, but for some reason he didn't.
Sanji bounced back, his back hitting painfully against the railing behind him.
"Sanji!" shouts Luffy, "Why didn't you dodge that!"
Lambo's wide horrified eyes stared at Sanji and then they slowly slid over to Zeff.
"Because if I did, that rat over there would pull the trigger on Zeff.", Sanji grunts painfully.
Alright, Lambo would give it to him, he didn't think about that, but still, HE REALLY IS A RECKLESS DUMBASS! There is only a high chance that he would pull the trigger if fought back, not dodge numbskull!
Seriously, Lambo felt like he was on the verge of ripping his hair out. Besides fight back the cronies, he hasn't been able to do much else to help the situation much.
"Why are you doing this?", Gin asks incredulously, "Just leave the restaurant peacefully and no one gets hurt. Please."
Little late for that, don't you think?
"This restaurant is that old man's life!", Sanji retorts raspily, "I've already taken everything else that old man holds dear."
Lambo stared at Sanji wide eyed.
"His power..."
Sanji feels indebted to Zeff.
"His dreams."
Not many would be as dedicated to fulfil such a debt as Sanji is. And honestly... Lambo can respect that.
Despite the many frustrations it is bringing at the moment.
With a grunt, Sanji slowly pushes himself back up to his feet, "So while I'm around... I"M NOT GOING TO LET ANYTHING ELSE GET TAKEN FROM HIIIMM!"
"Behind you!", shouts Patty.
Pearl was suddenly behind Sanji, both shields racing towards the sides of his head.
Lambo grits his teeth, like hell he's letting him die. His arm was outstretched, bull-whip in hand, before he could clearly comprehend his actions.
Everything seemed to go into slow motion as time felt like it had slowed down.
There was a loud crack.
Sanji was sent flying forward by his waist towards Lambo, who swung his whip with both hands, causing the cook to tumble and roll to a stop behind him. Not even stopping his momentum, Lambo went to one knee as he continued to spin. Spinning back around to face Pearl, one hand miming a gun, two fingers pointing at Pearl as a green orb formed in front of his fingers while he smirked.
Time sped back to its rightful place.
"Bang."
A streak of lightning shot straight to Pearl, hitting straight at the center of his main shield strapped to his chest, electrocuting him. Pearl screams as he knelt forward, breathing heavily, smoke rising from his figure.
Everyone stared in shock at the kid who had just used green lighting.
"That kid just shot lighting from his fingers!"
"Is he a Devil Fruit user too?"
"No, he can't be! He just swam earlier when Roronoa Zoro fell into the water after his fight with Hawk-eye Mihawk."
"He's a monster!"
"You idiot.", Sanji groans, "That old coot... he gave up his leg so that I could live."
Lambo's head whipped over to the crumpled cook staring in shock, wide-eyed. Not many, if any! Would give up a limb for someone else.
Sanji, painfully, rose back up to his feet.
"There's no way I can pay back the old geezer unless I risk my life for him!"
Gin stared at Sanji in shock, "Why? Why are you standing? Stay down Sanji. Stay down."
"Afraid I can't do that. Feels a bit too much like giving up.", Sanji said with a smirk.
"No kid! They'll kill you!", shouts Patty.
"You brat.", grunts Zeff.
But Lambo thought differently, he wasn't letting anyone die. Not if he has anything to say about it. He knew Sanji could fight, but Sanji needed rest, he practically got the daylights knocked out of him by Pearl.
Lambo was back to his feet, whip striking like a snake, tripping Sanji so he was sitting down on the deck with a dumbfounded look on his face.
"What-?"
"What does that kid think he's doing!?", shouts Carne with his hands on his head.
Lambo swung the whip, his arm circling up and around his head. Another loud 'crack!' sounded as the whip snatched the gun from Gin's grip and into Lambo's awaiting hands.
"I'm all for not giving up.", Lambo says calmly to Sanji, tossing the gun into the sea behind him, "But a little rest doesn't hurt anyone. Your no good to Zeff, or the restaurant, if you end up dead from your exhaustion and injuries. Bet your head is still spinning from that last blow."
He smiled gently at the shocked cook.
"I've been taking it easy so far during this battle, let me handle things while you rest up.", Lambo's smile widened as he rolled up his whip and placed it back in his bag.
It's no use in this fight anyway.
Sanji just stared at Lambo wide-eyed, Lambo stared back, completely at ease. Then Sanji's eyes filled with terror.
"Look out!", he shouted to the young boy.
Lambo saw something big from the corner of his eye, it widened as he ducked down, dodging a swipe from Pearl, Lambo immediately jumped back, dodging a second as he did so.
Lambo glared at Pearl with narrowed eyes, taking out a pair of cow horns and placing them accordingly on his head.
"Thunder set."
Lightning shot from the sky and hit Lambo. But something told him he needed more juice, so, instinctually, he reached out with his flames, and then a second streak of lighting joined it, and then a third. Power coursed through Lambo's veins. He felt like his body was nothing but pure adrenalin and energy.
"Did he just summon Lightening!?"
"He isn't even phased by being hit by three lighting strikes at once!"
Lambo ignored the pirates and ran forward, green electricity encasing his horns.
"Elettrico Cornata!"
Before Pearl could do anything, Lambo slammed his shoulder, hard. Feeling it pop out of place as a loud crack rang in his ears. Pearl screamed as he was consumed with green electricity once again, hurtling backwards. Lambo, on the other hand, struggled to stay on his feet as he gripped his clearly out of place shoulder tightly.
That one hurt. Probably not one of his brighter ideas.
Pearl panted heavily, before chuckling breathlessly as he got back to his feet, can this guy never just stay down?
"As you can see,", Pearl drawled smugly, ", even with your monster powers..."
Ouch.
"Your Still No Match For-!"
A loud 'POP!' interrupted Pearl's overdramatic 'higher-than-thou' rant. Many pirates and chefs alike stared with gaping mouths at Lambo who was rolling out his, sore, now back in-place shoulder. Having popped it back into place himself.
"Yare yare, I hate how sore my arm always is whenever I put it back in place.", Lambo groaned tiredly, "Quit underestimating me. I'm stronger than I look, and I'm slowly proving that."
Pearl just snarled, before a snarky smile encased his features.
"Alright little one, if you want to fight, who am I to turn you down?", Pearl's grin only widened, aura screaming confidence, "Once I'm done with you, I'll take care of that vile cook next!"
Pearl lunged forward, swinging wildly, and Lambo did his absolute best dodging Pearl's strikes and remaining, annoyingly, just out of reach. His eyes flickered everywhere as he was trying to think of a plan of attack while continuously mocking Pearl as he dodged his strikes.
"Aww, too slow!", teased Lambo, "How have you managed to win sixty-one fights if you can't even hit a kid. What? Did you wait them out before delivering the final strike?"
Pearl growled in anger and his attacks increased in speed.
Lambo smirked while his mind raced.
Angry is good. Anger blinds his opponent to the fact that Lambo has no idea on how to defeat the guy. Frustratingly so, Lambo has to admit that Pearl's high defense does make him a hard opponent to take down.
He can throw a few long-ranged attacks, keep his distance. But Lambo wanted to get in close and personal. He wanted to shatter Pearl's delusion that he was invincible.
Lambo laughed mockingly as Pearl, once again, missed him as he danced away and out of reach.
Then, Lambo remembered how he used his Dying Will Flames to increase his speed when he saved the kids. He also remembered how he did something similar when he fought Cosmo, increasing his airtime and speed before he tackled Cosmo with Elettrico Cornata.
He can try to do something that is a mix of both.
Green Lightning sparked all over Lambo as he leapt several feet back, before speeding forward to Pearl's side, then he was at his other side, then behind him, by the cooks, by the pirates. Lambo was practically flying all over the deck. Pearl's eyes couldn't eve keep up with the speed he was going.
Only able to see him for a split second in a new spot then before, then gone in the next.
The more he bounced around the deck, the more speed he gained, until he looked like nothing but a sparking neon green blur.
By now he was going so fast, Pearl couldn't keep up anymore, standing still in place as he tried to locate his opponent.
Lambo landed, crouched, on the side of Baratie's wall, his pause much longer than any other before. Then he pushed, hard, off the wall, sending himself catapulting to Pearl, who noticed the oncoming bull with a scream.
At the last second, Lambo shifted his body so he slammed into the center of Pearl's main shield feet first, shattering it as he leaped back, landing a couple feet away from the, now, unconscious Pearl. His shield decimated on top of and around him.
Lambo smiled proudly. He may have not been the first to injure or make him bleed, as he proudly stated, but he proved to Pearl that he was not invincible as he thought.
Then he heard rapid footsteps behind him.
Before he could even react, he barely turned before feeling something heavy slam into his stomach, causing all the air to leave him. Lambo hunched over, coughing as he gasped for air, only to be kicked to the ground, and a foot slam on his chest. A silent grunt left him as he continued to try and regain the air he had lost.
"Lambo!", shouts Luffy worriedly.
Slowly, Lambo's breathing returned to normal, allowing his vision to clear and to see Gin on top of him holding two tonfas with large spherical weights at the ends.
Now he knew what hit him. Ow, that was painful.
"I'm fine Luffy.", Lambo grunts only to fall silent as Gin dug his foot into his chest.
"I'm sorry Sanji, but this ship now belongs to the Creed Pirates.", Gin said, his face stoic.
Sanji gritted his teeth while Luffy looked like he was beyond pissed.
With a shout, he thrusted his leg up and stretched high into the air.
"No don't! What about the kid!?", shouts Sanji.
Luffy ignores him, looking like the devil from hell in that moment.
"GUM GUM!", screams Luffy as his foot comes speeding down.
"BATTLE AXE!"
His foot slammed down on the deck with a crushing impact, the fin cracking in two.
Author's Note: Well, that's one way to end a chapter. I'm not going to lie, since the beginning, I wanted Lambo to fight 'The Invincible Pearl'. It wasn't exactly how I first imagined it, but I really like how the fight turned out though. It was short, but Lambo was able to prove his point, both to himself and Pearl. Also, Lambo is starting to get more confident! Wait until the time comes when I tear it down *Muhahaha!* (A little bit of a sneak peek and some mean hints for you guys). Be Your Best You! Bye!