A/N: Woo! This one was a blast to write! Hope you all are prepared for part one of the cascade… Also, to the reader who I shall keep nameless, if you are in fact still reading, I apologize if you're unhappy with the new format of the story. Just trying some things out, and if this isn't to your liking, I have plenty of other tales to astonish! Now, with that out of the way...


Chapter 19: I Will Surpass You

"Alright, we're here!" Hachi announced as Nami and Zoro stepped out of the pod and onto the dock of Cocoyashi. "Guess this'll be the last time I ever give you a ride, Nami. Kinda makes me sad, nuu~"

Nami gave the mopey Fishman a Cheshire grin. "Just don't tell Arlong, okay?" As Nami looked over at the deflated head of Hachi barely above the water, she decided to try and spread something good to the Arlong Pirates. "You know..." Her thoughtful tone caught the Fishman's attention. "To be honest, I think you're the one pirate in that whole crew I almost kind of liked."

"Hm?" Hachi blinked at Nami's words.

"I don't remember you trying to hurt the people here," Nami said as she kneeled down and smiled at Hachi. "Thank you for that, Hachi!"

Hachi's face bloomed bright pink before a cheesy grin spread over his face. "It's fine, it's fine! Humans aren't always great, but attacking all of 'em's a bit much! You just stay out of trouble now!" And as swiftly as he got to Cocoyashi, he dived underwater, bubbles the only indicator of where he was.

"Well, that's one annoying girl found," Zoro muttered. "Now to find Silk-HEY!" Nami grabbed the swordsman, dragging him to the village, past the Merry.

"Silk can wait – YOU need a doctor!" Nami scolded. "Then, I'll tell Genzo to keep an eye out for her, and we can go and pick up my treasure!"

Zoro snarled. "That doesn't explain why you're dragging me!"

"Like I didn't notice!" Nami snarled back with sharp teeth! "I had to correct your direction just walking a straight line, dumbass! What help are you to the crew if you can't walk straight sober!?"

"STOP SAYING I'M PART OF THE CREW! I AIN'T JOINING!"

"DON'T YELL AT ME, YOU-!"

"RAAAAAAAAAH!"

Nami and Zoro paused in their tirade. "Was that you?" Nami asked.

"No... and that wasn't you, was it?" Zoro thought out loud. With Nami leading, they made their way into Cocoyashi. At this point, everyone would notice Nami, and head inside to never interact with her... today, though, they were preoccupied watching a rampaging blonde... carrying someone or something in her arms…

Zoro pointed, trying not to face vault at the scene. "Well, found her."

Nami groaned. "Can't she go anywhere without causing a scene?" She slapped Zoro's arm. "Don't just stand there! Grab her!"

Zoro growled something about witches and burning, but made his way over. "Silk! Knock it off! You're causing... a..."

Nami watched as Silk zoomed past Zoro, who made no move to stop her. "Hey! Lunkhead! You were supposed to- Silk, whoa, stop!" The blonde slowed but barely in front of Nami. The redhead was more than ready to tear into her for causing a scene... but her words and her expression fell into darkness... as she saw Silk, furious tears on her face, holding the bloody, beaten, and barely breathing body... of her sister...

"Nami! I'm sorry!" Silk cried out, despite not even being two feet in front of her. "I made a bad call!"


A while ago, at Nojiko's home...

As Silk ran out of Nojiko's house, a thought crossed her mind, pausing her charge. "Crap! I still don't know where the others are!" Silk considered going back and asking 'Blue Nami' for help until she saw a familiar face coming up the road: Kisame.

"Oh, there you are!" Silk cracked her knuckles in excitement. "Ready to finish Devil's Strike, Fish-guy?"

Kisame's eyes widened a bit. "Huh. You're... alright after that?"

Silk scratched the back of her head, not noticing Kisame's perplexed expression. "Well, it did shock me a bit. If I knew you could do that I wouldn't have held back!" She then got into a fighting stance. "I wanna go again! But..." Silk looked at the tangerine trees and then Nami's old home. "Can we go to a different spot? Don't want to wreck everything here." The girl finally looked at the Fishman, noting his new accessory: a purple cap, complete with a windmill sticking up in the brim. "Huh, nice hat. Looks kinda familiar..."

Kisame took a deep breath, before plastering on an easy grin. "I see you're still full of energy! That's great! How about... over there?" He pointed over to a cliff far away with a single tree. "We'll keep playing over there, but you go on ahead. I'll catch up."

Silk cheered and punched the air. "Wahoo! See you there, Kisame!" And with that, Silk took off, not looking back once.

Kisame chuckled and shakes his head. "Real spirited one..." Now alone, Kisame pulled out a paper... a map to be specific. "Geez, though. To do my own thing on top of Arlong's? So taxing. Not to mention he's such a taskmaster. What does Big Bro see in him..."

Kisame's search around the grove did not go unnoticed... as Nojiko came out, her panicked expression was quickly replaced with steel will. "Hey! I paid the fine this month! You louts gotta stop coming here for handouts!" Kisame looked over the yelling woman and smiled.

"Oh, sorry. I had no idea anyone lived here!" Kisame stated, apologetically. "I'll be quick, please don't mind me." He turned back to the map leading him to the west of the grove...

Nojiko sucked in a breath and thought quickly. 'Shit! Ok, just keep him busy! Until Nami gets back, just keep him away from the west side of the grove!' "Wait!" she latched onto his arm... which only dragged her along. Adapting quickly, she dug in her heels as she continued, "You... not a lot of Fishmen are pleasant for conversation. And Cocoyashi does not get a lot of visitors, so..."

"Pardon me, miss," Kisame ripped his arm from Nojiko's grip. "I really have to finish this task. We can talk afterward if you're still inclined."

'Double Shit!' is what the bluenette did not say out loud. Instead, she called out, "H-hey, I saw you... talking to that girl. What's that about?"

Kisame looked toward the hill Silk was waiting on with a smirk. "Silk, I think her name is... Truly hardy and bright! I think I'll keep her, show my brother they can't all be broken..."

"Brother, you say!" Desperately, Nojiko latched onto anything to keep the Tiger Shark Fishman busy. "What's he like? I have a little sister, so I can relate."

Kisame paused a few feet from where the dirt looked freshly dug up, to look at Nojiko. "My brother... tell me, little one? Do you... care for your sister?"

Nojiko swallowed and donned the mask of apathy she played – as every member of Cocoyashi played. "You might have met her. She betrayed our village by joining Arlong's crew... for nothing but money." Kisame's brow creased as Nojiko continued to speak. "But... even though we're on separate paths we're family, and even if we don't always get along, family never stops loving each other."

Nojiko looked at Kisame... and took an involuntary step back as a cold-eyed monster looked back. "Family... never stops loving, huh? That's not my experience. And older siblings... are not that kind." He never raised his voice, but Nojiko still felt fear on par with meeting Arlong all those years ago. In a blink, Kisame's affable personality resurfaced, with a warm smile. "It must be nice to be loved in such a manner... hm?" He looked down at his feet before stomping for a bit. "Hm? The ground here is..."

'Triple Shit!' Nojiko barely moved, before Kisame whipped out the wrapped blade on his back and swung at the ground!

FWOOSH!

In a single sweep, dirt, rocks... and tangerine trees went flying in a cloud of destruction.

Nojiko got up slowly, coughing to clear her throat of debris. As the cloud dissipated... she gaped at the carnage before her. Half the grove had been upended, trees over on their side, and even the fence was just gone! "W-whoa! This is a lot of gold!" And all of Nami's horde exposed, as a gaping Kisame noted loudly.

Nojiko didn't even realize she was crying. If she did, she couldn't say if it was the trees, the dust in her eyes, or seeing Nami's goal being swept away. Didn't matter, because Nojiko never noticed; instead, she immediately began screaming at the asshole who destroyed their home. "STOP! THIS GROVE BELONGS TO BELLEMERE! YOU CAN'T JUST DESTROY IT! IT'S... it's... all we have left..."

Kisame had put up the sword and had begun gathering the treasure into sacks he had brought. "I do apologize, but the Arlong Pirates are in a bit of a rush today. This will be the last time we meet, so you will have a lifetime to fix this-!"

"THAT'S NOT A COMFORT!" Nojiko was panting, but she still found the air to scream. "THIS LAND, THOSE TREES, AND THAT GOLD ARE NOT YOURS TO TAKE! ARLONG WOULD NEVER GO BACK ON HIS WORD..."

Kisame looked perplexed at that. "Arlong? What does he have to do with this?"

"What- what does he-!?" Nojiko felt ready to tear this bastard apart, but that would be futile. "Arlong made a deal years ago that Nami could buy back the village for 100,000,000 beris! That gold you're holding is all that she's worked to take for the last decade! Arlong never goes back on his deals, so why..."

Kisame began to chuckle, before laughing outright. "Oh, I see! You believe I'm doing this for Arlong! Actually..." He smiled, predatory air about it, "I'm taking it for me."

Nojiko blinked. "Wha... that's..."

"Kuroobi, my superior, told me to clean the castle from top to bottom. No one said not to enter the map room, so when I did, I found what I thought was a treasure map. What irony that this very horde was on already used land!" the bastard chuckled again. Nojiko moved – not sure if she was about to yell, or tear his teeth out—but...

"Hey... geez, this is dusty," A familiar voice called out. Sure enough, both parties looked over to see Silk coming through the thinning cloud. "Hey, what's..." Silk looked at the pile of unearthed gold, then to Kisame, then to the overturned trees, and lastly to Nojiko's tearful, grimy face. She did this once more, her face slowly going from confused, to solemn, to downright furious! She reached for Dorado, snarling, "You slimy son of a-!"

Kisame just sighed, his wrapped blade already out. "This is gonna need a soak after this. Sea Blade..."

Silk's ax glowed as she sprinted forward. "Mighty-!"

Kisame's sword had already swung when Silk was in striking range. "Current!" Water appeared out from the blade in the form of a geyser that swept Silk up, away... and over the cliff, screaming. As Kisame returned his blade to his back holster, he sighed yet again. "What a shame. I really wanted to keep her. Anyways..." The Fishman paused as he turned to grab the sacks of gold, if not for the fact that Nojiko, defiant and angry, now stood between him and his prize. Kisame and Nojiko stare at each other, each assessing the situation. Finally, Kisame spoke first. "Little one... this is only money. Are you truly willing to stake your life for cold, emotionless wealth? For this empty farm?"

Nojiko, over a head shorter than this monster, glared like a Titan against an ant, feet firmly planted. "THIS!" She gestured to the destroyed area, "IS MY MOTHER'S FARM! THE ONE YOUR BASTARD OF A CAPTAIN MURDERED JUST 'CAUSE SHE COULDN'T PAY HIS EXTORTION! THIS TREASURE! IS THE BLOOD, SWEAT, AND TEARS MY SISTER WORKED TO SAVE THIS GODDAMN VILLAGE WITH SINCE SHE WAS A FUCKING CHILD! MY SISTER... who spent damn near EVERY DAY of EVERY YEAR going out, risking her life to bring back even just a few thousand berries to pay Arlong's debt! I WON'T LET YOU RUIN EVERYTHING SHE WORKED SO HARD FOR!" At this point, Nojiko clenched her fist hard enough for nails to cut into her palm. She was so furious, she failed to notice Kisame's jovial attitude was gone, nostrils flaring as they inhaled a familiar smell. "TEN FUCKING YEARS WE'VE SUFFERED BECAUSE OF GREEDY BASTARDS LIKE YOU! WELL FUCK THAT, FUCK ARLONG, AND FUCK YOU!"

It happened so quickly Nojiko could not register what happened until later. Simply put, the amount of bloodlust, and the scent of the actual blood from her clenched hands, had sent Kisame over the edge. In one single movement, he opened his mouth of 24 razor-sharp teeth and bit down on Nojiko's shoulder. He could have bitten down harder, but he didn't. He instead twisted his neck sharply and threw the stunned woman into the wall of the house. A sharp crack of her head meeting the wall spoke of instant unconsciousness.

Kisame sighed, as he worked the kinks from his neck. "Dear me... I almost lost it there. I need to be more careful..." He hefted the gold over his shoulder and walked past Nojiko's body. "Humans... are so single-minded. Ten years of suffering and they give in? You should come back to me in a hundred..." The Fishman suddenly winced at some pain. Confused, he dropped the gold and looked at his shoulder... to see a small cut-shaped burn. "Hm? When..." He thought back to Silk's attack as the realization hit him. "Oh... interesting..." In his pause, he looked around the farm, then back to his wound before a wide grin came to mind. "Like I thought, she was very useful."


Later, at Arlong Park...

"Oi~ Arlong!" Kisame called as he neared the gate. "I'm back from Cocoyashi! Even brought you a souvenir!" As he entered the courtyard to see no one there, he crossed to the harbor on the far side... where Arlong, his Lieutenants, and Carina were monitoring the others, including Siam, loading up an old, water-eaten ship with supplies.

Carina looked toward him as he showed up. "Oh, you're back. What took-!" The words caught in her throat as she took in Kisame's appearance. He carried a king's ransom of loot on his back, but he looked like he went through a fire! His clothes were singed and he was covered in soot! Strangely enough, he acted like he was perfectly fine, save for favoring one arm over the other. "W-what the hell!?" Carina eloquently stated. "Did you raid a burning building!?"

Noting the return as well, Arlong looked over with a critical eye, before gaping at Kisame. "What the Hell! Who did this to you!? I thought I told you to go kill that old fool who had a weapon!"

The charred Fishman dropped the gold and looked sheepish. "I did, but..." He looked away for a moment. "Well... they had more weapons than I thought! It was like an ambush! I took one step inside Cocoyashi and they attacked!"

That got all the Fishmen's attention. "What!? That's impossible, chu," Chu challenged. "We always check around for weapons! How could they amass enough for an ambush!"

"Well..." Kisame looked to the ground bashfully. "It seems they learned we were leaving and... it seems to be their drive." That really got under the group's skin! Carina began to feel a little nervous, being surrounded by so many angry Fishmen. "They said so many things, like how monstrous we are, and..." Kisame stopped as if he had said too much.

"What else?" the chilling tone of Arlong coerced from his recruit.

"They said..." Kisame gulped. "They said we're as bad as... World Nobles."

Despite the sunny day, the blood froze in the veins of human and Fishman alike. All eyes turned to Arlong... who was so pissed, there's not a description in this world or another that I'd dare use. "Men..." he hoarsely whispered, like his voice was the only thing holding back unbridled fury. "Leave the packing for now... because as of this moment..." And with an almost audible 'click,' Arlong's switch was flipped. "I WANT EVERY GODDAMN HUMAN HEAD ON THIS ISLAND AT MY FUCKING FEET!"

As the whole crew cheered, there were few exceptions. Siam and Jango were rightly crapping themselves, Carina was clenching hard enough to be a statue. And Kisame... he was lost in thought. 'Is this enough? Will this be the path that works? It must be... I can prove myself stronger than Jinbe... and stronger than my brother... I hope you feel it from the depths of your soul...'


Meanwhile...

On the cliff of Bellemere's grave, a hand reached over and grabbed a root. Another joined it, lifting the weight they were stuck with: Silk, tired and sweaty, but alive. "Phew... Seawater attacks... that sucks..." As she lay on the ground, the smell of smoke caught her attention. "Huh? A bonfire? In the middle of the..."

She looked over... and gaped at the roaring fire that was destroying Bellemere's house. While the trees and Nojiko were moved a good deal away, Nojiko's breathing was labored, blood staining her top and the trees they were near. In a moment, Silk would move, swoop in and carry Nojiko to the doctor in Cocoyashi. But at this moment, her heart went out to the memory, the home, of one of her comrades. "WHAT THE HELL HAPPENED!?"

'...I will surpass you, Hody!'


Back to the present...

"The place... was burning... looked like everything was on fire," Silk finished her tale, which only took so long because she had to keep pausing to cough as she relied on what she knew. It was... almost unreal, to Nami, to lose so much gold that quickly. She still believed in Hook, but she felt better with a backup plan. Now... she had nothing.

It was all in, or nothing else. As she sat there, dumbstruck at how bad things had gotten, Nojiko had been carried to Nako, the doctor of the village. Zoro stood nearby, just taking in all the information. "I hate them," Nami said plainly. There was no need to ask on whom that was directed.

Silk coughed to clear the tense atmosphere and her lungs. "W-well! I sure hope Hook and the others arrive soon! If all the Fishmen are as tough as that one guy, we're gonna have trouble getting your gold and Carina back!"

Zoro hnned like an emo anime deuteragonist at Silk's poor reassurance but decided to help her out. "Yeah, as much as I hate to admit it, this damn scratch stings too much to focus on fighting at my best. I guess if this guy's really coming..."

"Of course, Hook's coming!" Nami defended. "He... he has to..."

WOOOOOOOOM!

A thundering noise of exploding earth came from the port of Cocoyashi! It distracted everyone so much, no one noticed the boat-shaped object flying overhead…


Well, good news: Cat Catch Wire tied to the sea monster's horns really sped up the travel time for Hook's group! Bad news: said sea monster was lousy at focusing. When a school of fish came by, he turned hard, swerved, and slammed headfirst into the shore! The iron wires held tight, but the wooden railings of the ship...

Crack!

...yeah, not so much. In a single moment, the fishing boat went from sea to air, and everyone had their own reactions.

"CRAAAAAAAAAP!" went Sanji.

"AHHHHHHHHHHHH!" was how the trio of cowards cried. Hook, however-

"THANKS FOR THE RIDE, SEA PIG THING! WHOOO-HOOOO!"...was just as carefree as ever. He stayed carefree as the ship hit the ground, slid for a mile, and slammed into the tree line. "Alright, who's not dead? Sound off!" he called out as he jumped to his feet.

"Your shitty plans suck..." Sanji groaned.

"Look, bro, a field of flowers~" Johnny moaned peacefully.

"Is that you, Mama?" Yosaku smiled at the vision.

"JOHNNY! YOSAKU! DON'T GO TOWARD THE LIGHT!" Ussop screamed as he shook them awake.

'Good, everyone's fine!' the overly durable man thought.

As the Combo-Human Consumed the wreckage of the boat, Sanji, having lost his cigarette, lit a new one as he walked over. "Alright, we're here. So, what now?"

"Easy!" Hook answered. "I think I saw Silk in that direction!" He gestured toward the trail of smoke climbing into the sky. "If I know her, she might have already gotten Nami, so let's go meet them."

"Ah~ Ms. Silk and Ms. Nami~" Sanji sighed blissfully, his smoke puffs shaping into hearts. "Hold on, my lovelies~ your knight is here to sweep you off your-!"

"Will you two help me already!" Ussop screeched near the bounty hunters' barely awake bodies. Since the duo was out of commission, Hook used some of the Scrap Wood to make some wooden stretchers. Well, stretcher-like palettes, that were a little crooked. And had splinters… But at least the group was mobile now, and this close to getting Nami back! So, with Ussop griping about shoddy workmanship ("You can't make one, either..."), Hook leads his crew (plus two) toward their chosen destination.


"Hey, everyone! I'm back!" Hachi called as he crawled out of the pool. "Sorry, I was doing something..." Hachi paused as he took in the appearance of his crew: a majority were incensed, Chu and Kuroobi were resolute, Kisame looked burned, the humans looked scared, and Arlong was beyond angry… "Good grief, what happened!? Kisame, you've been burned! Arlong looks upset! What'd I miss!?" Hachi gaped in shock and confusion at his ticked comrades, as Arlong growled low in his throat.

"What happened," he muttered, murder laced in every word, "is these humans believe just because we were departing, they can stand against us..." Arlong's eyes flashed, a sudden realization gleaming true. "Hachi... where have you been today?"

Hachi fretted for a moment – he had promised Nami he wouldn't divulge that she was getting ready to leave – so he chose a half-truth. "W-well, ya see, Mohmoo didn't come for lunch! So, I was..."

"Holy crap! A cannonball!" One mook called, and sure enough, a cannonball was arching right through the air-!

BOOM!

...And blew Arlong's chair apart...

Chu squinted into the distance. "Tsk, the Marines. And not ones we know, Arlong." Sure enough, a Marine battleship sailed over the horizon, its bright white sails flapping in the breeze. "Arlong, I can go-!"

"I've got this," was all the Saw Shark Fishman said as he gracefully slid into the water and took off like a missile! The action was enough to give even Kuroobi pause; Arlong didn't like to waste his time on weaklings. If he was mad enough to not care, one thing was certain: those Marines were about to be very dead...


During the commotion, Kisame led Carina, Jango, and Siam aside, to the old vessel the Arlong Pirates were about to use. "Phew! That's better," the Tiger Shark Fishman sighed as he sat down, tending to his own wounds. "Feels like I've been walking all day." He laughed like there was no tension in his audience at all.

"What do you want?" Carina said hesitantly, Iago staying silent for the first time since meeting Carina, and Abu currently cowering in her shirt. "If you have something you'd like to tell us, could you please be quick? I'd like to not get caught in that rampage." She gestured in the direction of the majority of the Fishmen.

"Yeah!" Jango threw in. "That's a right riot out there, caused a few of those myself before, he ha!" Siam just glared at him. "...And I don't wanna get caught in the middle of one of those, right now..." he said more timidly.

Kisame just laughed at the antics. When he calmed down, he stated, "Exactly why I pulled you out of there." That caught their attention. "Might I ask a question, Miss Carina? Why... are you really allying with the Arlong Pirates? For respect? For money? Or... is it protection?"

Crapheknowscrapheknowsrunrunrun-! Carina took a deep breath to steady herself, before meeting Kisame's general area around the eyes; she was a little too freaked out by Fishmen to look one in the eye. "You're incredibly perceptive for someone who's so air-headed."

The being just laughed it off. "Ha! Am I?"

Carina swallowed as she thought quickly. If he really saw through her, lying at this point might be moot. "...I wouldn't make such an investment by telling you about it if I intended to lie. Clearly, that'd just get me killed. I... wanted out from under Mad Treasure's thumb, and yeah, he's as mad as his name would imply. If you're trying to get at the Pure Gold being fake, I can assure you, it's not. Once you have all the money your crew could ever want by selling it, I can take my share, and leave. I'll just go somewhere quiet and live my life in casual luxury. That's the only dream I have – somewhere to call home..."

Carina idly scratched under Iago's chin, scanning Kisame's face for his reaction. She expected another laughing fit; instead, she got a wide smile. "A quiet haven for yourself, free from danger and harm... looks like we have similar goals, Miss Carina. Might I offer you a deal?"


A/N: Poor Johnny and Yosaku… in a week, they've been shot at twice, been dragged into battle against two different pirate crews, and now this! I'm not being fair at all! Also, yeah, Kisame's crazy. Truthfully, it was my plan from the start, but my beta readers, at least one of them, thought I was lining up to make them a part of the crew because he's so likable. Which I was aiming for, because that's the beauty of sociopaths. They are very likable until they're not…