A/N: Warning – the following chapter has some graphic suggestions of body mutilation. Which is never ok, just saying and all.
Chapter 24: Karma
The crowd of civilians gaped in honest naked shock. 'Is this real? Is... is Arlong finally gone!?' Even Nami was holding her breath, not truly believing her eyes.
Sanji cheered from where he was, his limbs seeming turned boneless as he wiggled around. "Oh, Silk~ Such a strong noble beauty~!"
Next to him, Zoro kept watching the water, an unreadable expression on his face. Silk, for her part, raised two fingers to the crowd in a 'V' sign. "My victory! Hehe~" This pose forced the blonde to turn away from the water, and with most eyes on her, only Zoro had a chance to see the freakin' shark fin racing for the shoreline!
"Shit!" Zoro cursed. "Blondie, move your ass!"
Silk frowned at that. "Hey, grass-ass! You know I have a name, it's-!"
"SHARK ON DARTS!" Arlong came out of the water like a cannonball, grazing Silk's side! All she could do was grab her new wounds in surprise, blood slipping through her fingers. As the shark bastard slowed himself with hands and feet, he was already turning around, eyes in slits as his nose flared at the smell of the blood. "Knock me into the water? What did you think would happen, you bitch!?" There was no time for the girl to answer, as Arlong sped forward for another attack!
Silk barely rolled under the assault, the Fishman splashing in to the ocean behind her. 'This guy's ridiculous! How many times do I need to hit him!?' She winced as her side throbbed before a glint caught her eye. 'Right! All that gold Hook brought back! Gotta get there…" Silk tried to move quickly, but she felt drained; she could only half manage a quick stride. "Huff... huff... What the... Hell... I haven't been fighting him for that long, have I..."
"Silk!" Sanji gasped as he made to move toward her, Nami following... only for Zoro to grab them both.
"The two of you... stay out of this!" Zoro pushed them back, even as he kept an eye on the bubbling in the bay.
"Wha-! Move it, you asshole!" Nami cursed at the swordsman. "We all saw what she did with Dorado! I've seen her when she just got her power – I know when she overdoes it, she'll just pass out! I'm going to help her!"
"Move it mosshead!" Sanji added in. "She clearly can't-!"
"Be quiet!" Zoro cut them both off with an irritated growl. "Look at her!" Begrudgingly (read: after a few more tries of getting past him), Nami and Sanji looked the girl over. Over the course of this fight, Silk had suffered nicks from his Tooth Attack, a bite through her hand that left a gnarly wound—skin falling off and bleeding, but still usable—and now the new shallow slices of skin taken out of her side. All in all, any other human would have passed out from the pain or blood loss; instead, Silk was able to walk despite them. "Don't believe for a moment she's losing," Zoro stated, even as his legs gave out, still exhausted from his fight. In his sitting position, he added, "If she hasn't stopped moving, and she hasn't asked for help, don't get in the way! You'll just be two more people she has to protect."
Nami was silent in thought; Sanji, though, was not having it. "Cut this 'honorable duel' bullshit! She's fighting a pirate – you can't keep believing..." Whatever else he would have said was cut off, when Arlong came shooting from the water again, aimed right at Silk!
"Forget Kisame! I'm killing you for me!" Arlong was inches from Silk, while Silk might as well have been miles from the gold.
'Crap! No choice!' Silk whipped around to deliver a Mighty Crush to her opponent, meeting his speed with her force! The resulting collision blew Silk off her feet and shot Arlong into the dirt! Silk hit the ground in a roll that exacerbated her wounds; she curled into herself for a bit, then looked around from her prone form... to see she had been knocked away from the gold pile, so she had crashed closer to the pile of unconscious Marines.
"T-the gold-!" Silk's words left with her air as Arlong came up and kicked her in the gut! She went flying through the air, crashing through a wooden bench until she stopped. As she coughed up her lunch, Arlong walked over and stepped on her bad hand, the wound throbbed in protest as Silk bit her jaw to not scream. "Y-you freakin' bitch!" the silently suffering girl hissed.
"Call me anything you like, scum," Arlong spat blood on the side of Silk's face, wiping off the excess pouring from his new head wound. "Just remember this, as you die. You and your kind... were always meant to be under our heels!" His speech done, he raised his foot off of her arm and positioned it above her head...
"Surprise Lead Star!" Only for several small objects to hit him in his solar plexus, halting him out of sheer shock. He looked over toward the pile of gold, to see Ussop standing there, looking like he both won and lost a fight with a tornado. Despite appearing absolutely terrified, he still said, with minimal chattering teeth, "H-hey! Fishface!" As Ussop spoke, Silk tried to move to hit Arlong but could only wince. Her side was killing her, and Dorado was knocked from her hands the minute Mighty Crush ended. As she blinked through the pain, Ussop continued, his knees beating out a steady beat as they knocked together, "U-under your h-heels, you say! HA! Don't go underestimating us humans!"
Arlong stepped away from Silk, turning his back on her and getting closer to Ussop. "Don't underestimate you peons? Don't make me laugh! Where's Chu, I wonder? Probably not too far from..."
"Keeping waiting forever!" Ussop yelled. "I beat him effortlessly!"
Arlong's eyes bulged as he clenched his fists hard enough for veins to start popping in his arm and his neck! "What..."
"H-h-ha ha!" Ussop laughed like a constipated goat giving birth. "The Mighty Ussop would n-never s-surround himself w-with weaklings! Mark my w-words! Silk won't even need to use Dorado to beat you!"
Silk winced as she tried to move to strike at Arlong. "W-won't need...? He knows that I need to use gold for my..." A different glint from before caught her eye... a glint a lot closer than the pile of gold. Hopeful, Silk tilted her head to see... four gold rings on the ground next to her. 'When had...' She thought back to Ussop's attack... and how little effect it had, no matter how tough Arlong was. 'Ohhhhh. Surprise Lead Star...'
Arlong gnashed his teeth, clearly caught between Ussop's declaration and his news of Chu's defeat. "What... is this nightmare!? First, that bastard joining, then that bitch backstabs us, now this! What the hell is going on!"
As Arlong was trying to steady himself long enough to kill someone today, Silk gritted her teeth and grabbed the rings, shooting up to her feet! Blood squirted out of her wounds, but she persevered, just as Arlong turned around. The bastard instinctively swung at the side of his opponent's head, only for her to slip one ring on her damaged hand and lash out, deflecting the attack!
"What!?" Arlong's eyes widened as he looked to make sure Dorado was laying away.
A big mistake, as it took all his attention away from Silk's oncoming fist! "MIGHTY... CROSS!" As Arlong turned, four knuckles and three gold rings smashed into his face. The knuckles broke against his scales, but a saw nose broke against unyielding gold!
Arlong went skidding back, still standing. Silk stood her ground, nursing another busted-up hand. Arlong looked at Silk... and was startled by her eyes. Those eyes were like-!
Did you forget the words of our brother, Arlong? Don't live for hatred and revenge!
"...is what's going on..." Arlong blinked as he came to the present. Silk had just finished saying something.
"W... wha..." Arlong muttered as his vision blurred.
"I answered your question," Silk spoke firmly, even through her labored breathing. "Karma is what's going on!"
Arlong, mouth bloodied and nose crooked, blinked blankly at that before falling forward. This time he didn't even stir. Silk still waited for a minute, even as the crowd began to cheer before she fell backward into the dirt.
"...il...Sil...Silk!" Ussop snapped his fingers in her face, Nami and the others already coming over to check on her. "Are you alright!? How many fingers am I holding up!? Don't go toward the light!"
Silk responded by slapping the sniper lightly on the cheek. "Hey, stupid. I'm not dead."
As Ussop sputtered about the casual insult, Sanji fretted over her injuries and Silk tried to get one of them to focus enough to get her to Dorado and the pile of gold (she wanted to be battle-ready in case Hook needed help), Nami looked at Arlong's form.
For years, her home had been ravaged by this monster. He had towered over her family, squeezing all the happiness and safety from her village. Now, as she looked at Saw Nose Arlong, the Monster of East Blue, out cold in his own blood, she couldn't begin to imagine why. With that thought, a great weight was lifted from her shoulders and brought a light smile to her face. She turned to her crewmates and gave Arlong no more of her mind.
Silk vs. Arlong
Loser: Arlong
Reasons: Battle fatigue, blood loss
Winner: Silk
While Silk and the others had gathered, Zoro stayed laying down as he looked over to where Hook had been launched. "That's weird... for a minute I thought I heard cannon fire…"
Kisame walked through the decimated forest, chewing on iron. Despite his charred and muddied appearance, his bloodthirsty smile never wavered. "Come now, Hook. This is getting old! Admittedly, the cannonballs were a surprise, but hardly dangerous." He spat out the remains of the third cannonball. "We're wasting time with all this fighting," he went on, as he dripped some seawater from Samehada onto his hand. "I would have preferred to ask you to join me... but I suspect it might be easier to kill you and accept your crew as compensation..." He scanned the trees looking for his quarry. Where his eyes failed, his nose did not; with a single sniff, he turned to the scent of fresh blood. "Found you..." In that instance, Hook leaped from the brush as Kisame launched his attack! "Water Shot!" The liquid bullet grazed Hook's shoulder, but the pain was ignored as got in position for the next attack.
'Time to try it out!' Hook thought to himself, as he Summoned the Carnival Cannon. "Cannon Party…"
"Hey, Ussop!" Hook called out to the found sniper, tinkering on something in the kitchen.
The shout must have startled him, because he jumped in surprise, holding up his hands in surrender. "Help! Don't fire! O-oh, it's just you, Hook. Thank God!… Uh anyway, what did you need?"
"I need you to look at this." Hook then proceeded to take out some papers he found in Buggy's treasure horde. Since they weren't money or a map, Nami was happy to toss them. However, with just a glance, Hook could tell these pages were important, even though he was unsure why. Since they were still three days away from the Baratie, Hook decided that if anyone could read and understand these scribbles, it'd be Ussop!
"Hm? What are these?" Ussop inspected what was given to him before his face lit up! "Whoa! This is amazing! I never thought it was possible to make such an explosive so small! Wherever you got this, the guy's a freaking genius!"
"Actually, he was a freakin' dumbass!" Hook laughed out loud as if that was an explanation.
"I-I see…" The sniper scratched his chin in thought. "I have most of the ingredients with me, but…is there any chance you can loan me some supplies?" The words barely left Ussop's lips before Hook opened the pocket his Devil Fruit gave him access to and practically drop the supplies on the tinkerer's head!
Some time later found Ussop shaking the young captain awake. "Hook! I finished it! You gotta come see!" The pair ventured into the kitchen to see…ten red cannonballs.
After a bit of inspection, Hook hummed thoughtfully. "Ussop, why are they red?"
"The process to give them the kick turns them red, it turns out! Unfortunately, the blueprints you gave me are for a much smaller delivery device, but this is the next best thing!" Ussop cupped his chin, clearly proud of his success. "And as for what to call them?... I was thinking – Ussop BOOM! Catchy, right?"
Hook chuckled lightly as he picked one up to test its heft. "Nice, but not really me. How about…"
"That again!?" The Fish-Bastard laughed, jaws opening to rows of teeth! "I'll just bite through it-!"
BA-BA-BOOOOM!
He was cut off when the cannonball hit him. Actually, when the Buster Ball hit him. And a second one for good measure! "Buster Bomb Blitz!"
Kisame fell over, his teeth in pieces scattered around his head. "Huff... huff... is that it?"
…
Kisame's finger twitched.
"Aw, shit!" Hook groused as he Quicksilvered to get away from the immediate area, just as the mad-fish flipped onto his feet, jabbing his sword forward to create a jet of water aimed right at Hook! Anticipating a counterattack, Hook brought up Wootz Boxing for defense! Despite the added weight, the blast knocked Hook off his feet, but a quick flip kept him in the fight. Shaking off the water, he looked over to Kisame – and hoo boy, had his face seen better days! His shirt was in tatters, revealing a bruised midsection, and his head was bleeding in three different spots: his eye, his mouth, and a cut on his cheek.
The Tiger Shark Fishman glared at his opponent through his good eye. "That... was no cannonball!"
"Oh, you're right! I'm sowwy~" Hook snickered at the battered fish(man), "But, ya know, I never told you I was firing normal cannonballs..."
This blatant act of teasing brought out a snarl from Kisame. "Why you -!"
"Pirate~" Hook stuck his tongue out at the asshole, who roared as his teeth grew back in. "Geez, you look awful~ Let's pep you up!" Whipping out the Cannon again, Hook squeezed an involuntary flinch from Kisame, causing him to preemptively block with Samehada. The moment he had blinked, Hook called back the Cannon, and charged right at him! "Quicksilver!"
As Hook landed in front of the Fishman, Kisame regained his sense and readied an attack. "I'm starting to lose my patience with you. My biggest gripe though-!" He lashed out with a palm thrust just as Hook disappeared from his limited vision, but he turned the strike into a backhand as he swung behind him, just where Hook had stopped! "Is how you can be so predictable!"
Hook smirked as Kisame swung through the air, stumbling from the sudden disappearing act. "Oh, I don't know..." He turned to face Hook – only to get a Silver Heel to the damaged side of his face! "I think I've got a few surprises!"
Kisame growled as his enemy jumped away. "Weakness! Too much... Weakness!" He gripped his wounded eye tightly, nails digging into his scaly skin. "I won't be like that! Not anymore! I... I will-" His webbed fingers dug deeper, despite his hiss of pain, until-
RRRRRRRIP! Jesus Christ, he tore his fucking eye out!
Bleeding freely from his new wounds, Kisame grinned dementedly at a slightly green Hook. "You... you, James Hook, are simply beautiful!" The Fishman laughed in an unhinged manner. "You are living proof that Arlong – that my brother! - were soooo wrong about humans!"
Swallowing his lunch, Hook gaped at his opponent in disgust and shock. "What is wrong with you!? Do you... you realize that should hurt more than me hitting it!?"
Kisame sighed, as blood dripped down his face to fall to the ground. "Indeed. But, I figured with this next attack, we should be on an even playing field now..."
Hook's eyes widened. He began to move – but be it from the delay or his exhaustion, it doesn't matter toward or away because the next seconds seemed to happen all at once. "Behold the second of my trump cards! Water Sword Samehada Release: Great Tides!"
In Cocoyashi, the Fishmen were being tied up, Ussop, Silk, and Zoro were being treated, and Nojiko was brought up to speed as to why Marines and gold were laying around haphazardly around the village. That was when the noise came, like the sound of the ocean pulling back before a wave. The most skilled in spotting weather patterns in the crowd, Nami knew where to look first... and gaped as a literal tornado of water that shot up to the clouds tore up the land near her childhood home!
Every eye turned to look up in shocked silence as trees, rocks, and dirt flew through the air! That is, all attention was on all of that until Ussop was able to spot something clearly not a tree or a rock be blown over the horizon towards Arlong Park. The name was hardly out of his mouth before Nami was running down the lane. "Please don't be dead, please don't be dead," she repeated to herself over and over as she ran tirelessly to her destination.
A/N: What's you think of this one? Have a favorite part? The flashback, the final exchange between Silk and Arlong, or just watching Kisame's sanity slippage? Truthfully, I was trying to wrap this up in three more chapters, but it looks like it might be 4 to 5. Ah well, such as life! Next time, we see things get worse! ...Is it wrong I said that with a smile?
