Disclaimer: One Piece is the property of Eiichiro Oda. Many of the characters in this story are property of me. Do not use this story or its characters without my permission. Thank you.


"Oh thank god" Araly said with a huge sigh. "But, now that Zan's used up his trump card, he can't surprise the enemy with his power! How can he fight now?"

"I guess I'm screwed" Zan said. "I may as well wear him down while I can to make it easier on Bard and Rez." Zan crossed the tips of his blades and swiped them apart. He knocked out sparks with his motion and began sprinting forward with his head down. Drakengard would have none of it. He took his spear in both hands and began wildly thrusting all around. The air itself began to become unstable, and Zan could only escape an otherwise deadly attack by sliding too far into Drakengard's range for his spear to work.

His polearm can keep me far away Zan told himself. However, if I get close, the spikes on his armor can easily get me. I need to find a blind spot in his range and attack from there. It won't be easy, but I think I can do it.

"Stopping in the middle of a fight?" Drakengard lowed. He suddenly appeared just in front of Zan, coming dangerously close with his spiked knee guard. Zan jumped back, narrowly avoiding a knee-kick. Zan back flipped onto his feet, but realized that he was in perfect position for Drakengard's polearm.

"Crap!" Zan shouted. He tried to make a jump, but the serrated, bloody edge of the weapon was just about to lop off his foot from the tendon down. Zan used his powers as much as he could, but somehow he still felt some pain against the inside of his leg. As he landed, he found it hard to balance all of a sudden. He looked down and saw that his foot was actually bent.

"Demons hate salt" Drakengard said. Zan's face became cautiously fearful just then. "Kururu. I have faced your kind before. That man over there, he knows me well enough! All my equipment, from this armor of a mighty sea-best to my mighty halberd are coated and cured in fresh sea salt!"

"Dammit" Zan said. He kicked his foot into the ground and snapped it painfully back into place. He only winced at the pain and looked up. Drakengard was holding his halberd up high over his head, getting ready for another nasty swing. Zan desperately rushed in and prepared to dodge the coming slash. Drakengard stepped forward and started bringing his weapon down in a horizontal swipe. Zan saw it and ducked down on all fours, digging his blade points into the ground. The force blew up a strong gust that stunned Zan for a moment, which was enough time for Drakengard to stomp down on Zan's back. He couldn't phase through it, so he just let the hit come and hoped he could get up afterwards.

He tried, but the growling laughter of 'KURURURURURU!!!!" was too intimidating. Many more, super fast stomps came straight onto Zan's spine.

"Roll outta there Zan!" Rez called.

"Dammit" Bard said, staring in shock over not being able to help. "He can't move!" Drakengard continued madly stomping with his one strong, tree-sized leg until Zan's entire body decided to stomp moving entirely. Then he spun his halberd overhead and threw it into the ground, just barely missing Zan's body by a few inches.

"You are weak" Drakengard said. He picked Zan up by the back of his neck and held him at eye-to-eye level. Zan's feet dangled helplessly just barely an inch off the round. "Just look at you. So scrawny and limp. What kind of warrior has a body like yours!?" Drakengard reeled back his fist and punched Zan in the gut. Zan coughed and woke up. He tried his hardest to activate his powers but it felt like he was drowning in the salty grip of his foe. Drakengard started delivering haymaker punches all over Zan's body, from his face to his legs even. Lacerations started appearing under Zan's clothes and on his exposed chest from the force of those punches and his left eye was swelled up.

"CUT IT OUT!" Bard bellowed. Drakengard, grinning madly, looked over and dropped Zan. As he fell, Drakengard added the ultimate insult to injury and kicked him all the way over to the other pirates. Ramone just watch the body limply arc through the air almost straight into Bard's arms. "I guess you're done for now, Zan."

"Sorry...captain..." Zan weakly said. He was bleeding from the mouth, from the head, and his ribs looked pretty messed up as well. Bard very slowly and carefully laid him down. "He...he knows how to fight. H can control the range...at will. Be careful. Staying away...might not work. He could throw that thing if he wanted."

"Quit talking" Bard ordered.

"His armor won't break easily, either" Zan desperately reported. He wheezed and coughed painfully, so much so that even Rez became worried and walked to his side. "Rez, maybe you can..." Bard suddenly reeled his arm up and smashed his powerful elbow into Zan's diaphragm. The air rushed from his lungs and knocked him completely out. Rez was mortified and looked at Bard, his captain, with a mouth gaping to the ground.

"Talking will only make it worse" Bard said in all seriousness.

"And elbowing him is BETTER!?" Rez shouted. Bard got up and stretched his shoulders.

"Rez" Bard began, "I'm far too pissed off right now to fight clearly. I need you to get in there, okay? Do whatever you have to, even kill him if you want. Zan's wounds need treatment immediately." Rez was reluctant to confirm to the order, but seeing the crumpled pile that was his 'friend' gave him a sense of drive. He tightened his headband, drew out his twin guns and spun them around on his fingers.


"Oh no" Araly gasped. "Zan...poor Zan. Please let him survive..." After a few seconds of praying she suddenly realized something. "Wait a second, why am I here? I have tons of medical potions and bandages with me now! I need to get down there!"

"Wonderful show!" King Rupert said with a cheery grin. "Just wonderful! For a second I had really lost faith, you know! Mighty fine! What do you say, daughter?" Rupert looked over at his daughter. She was in a fetal position, biting her knees and gripping her legs tight to her chest out of...some emotion. Possibly distress?

Oh, Mr. Demon she internally sobbed, please live! I...I need to speak to you! I want to know you! You look so much more welcoming than that other one! Please...if there is a just god, let that demon-man live!!!

"I guess it's my turn now" Rez said. He stopped his guns and held them both out for every uneducated mind to behold. "They're cool, right? These guns are the absolute pride of my homeland in the South Blue. Not single-shot guns and not automatic guns either. These are marvels of the most super-technological gunsmiths in the world. These are my 'Semi-Automatic Hell Cats!' Nice ta meet'cha!!!"

"What manner of madness be they?" Drakengard lowed with a grin. Rez smirked hotly and twirled them once more before shooting. The loud bang was mistaken for surprising thunder by most of the guards, although the skies were nearly clear again. Two holes that bore down just above the skin suddenly appeared on both of Drakengard's shoulder pads. Rez spun his gunblades around fashionably and sheathed them at once.

"That's some tough armor" Rez said patronizingly. "Normally a gun wouldn't scratch a real Sea King's armor. Preserving the skin is a full-time job, too. I'm guessing you just let that stuff dry in the sun or something, right? Killed off all the actual armor tissues and left you with shiny leather. I'm not a demon like Zan, so your armor will just be an annoyance rather than a total obstacle to me! You're outmatched starting right now!" Rez, in a blinding and practically unseen movement, unsheathed and shot with his right gun three times. One each to the shin, the upper leg, and the guarded knuckles of Drakegard's body. The two in his leg actually stung his skin and the one at his knuckle was stopped by the now broken spike from the armor.

"Heh!" Rez laughed. Now that the fight was going his way, he was thoroughly enjoying himself. He started spinning his gunblades around on his fingers and prepared to charge. "Get ready! I'm a master duelist! My ideal range is anywhere and everywhere!" Rez blasted forward and Drakengard raised his polearm. He would swipe as Rez approached. "That's freakin' useless, jerk!" Rez called. He jumped up and drew his arms back. He stopped his blades and held them like blades to chop down at Drakengard's chest. The halberd came first and forced Rez to block with both weapons. He caught the menacing saw between the serrated blade grooves and held fast. Then, the strong force brought him back to the ground.

"I'll crush you with my weapon!" Drakengard yelled. Rez smiled under the crushing weight of the halberd. He shot the halberd into shrapnel that flew through the air like dust. Drakengard kept grinning madly, but raised an eyebrow in confusion. "...huh..."

"Now suffer!" Rez yelled. He pushed away the broken halberd and swung his blades down. Drakengard retreated, forgetting the range advantage Rez had, and got shot twice in the chest.

This cannot go on anymore! Drakengard decided. Rez came forward and started stabbing into the bullet holes he had just made. Eventually he pierced all the way through the armor and made needle-sized wounds in Drakengard's chest.

"Get ready for hell!" Rez said. In a flash he sheathed his blades and his hands were gripped hard on the handle of the sword on his back. "This is the 'Hell Tiger!!!'" Rez took a step, lurched forward, and made a powerful swing with his huge sword that carved apart the torso of Drakengard's armor. Just before the sword hit the ground, Rez steadied the blade and brought it back up, aiming down the edge with the cannon aimed at Drakengard's exposed body.

"Oh no!" Rupert shouted.

"Wrath of Heaven!" Rez shot, point-blank, directly into Drakengard's chest. He was blown back by the explosion and left a trail of white smoke as he flew into the tree line far away. The guards all shared a synchronized scream of terror. Even the king's face was twisted with fear.

"HELL YEAH!" Bard shouted. "That's how the Buster Pirates deal with problems! We blow them up!"

"Shut up!" Rez shouted back. "I don't want you speaking on the crew's behalf so freely! He's not even dead yet!" Ramone had finally given into temptation and had his army of burrowing ants dig him a hill to sit on that Colleen sat behind.

"Hey" Ramone said, "don't you wanna watch anymore? Too much gore for ya?"

"It won't matter" Colleen said. "Once you start to fight, it won't matter what they do. You'll win."

"You're damn right!" Ramone grumbled.

"Don't be so hasty" Bard said, almost instantly appearing behind him. Ramone looked over his shoulder with a more angry than curious face. "Who says I'm not fighting him next?"

"Who says I won't win!?" Rez bellowed. He loaded a non-lethal, small metal bullet into his gun and shot Bard right on the butt. Bard was taken by surprise and fell over. "Just calm the hell down, man!" Rez felt a chilling shock all over his back. He turned and saw Drakengard stalking towards him with his head down and mouth grinning madly. "Crap, you're kidding me!"

"Kururururu..." Drakengard growled. His chest was smoking but unmoved. His armor was torn apart at the torso but it stayed strong on the rest of his body. His greasy hair was draped over his face so that only the gleaming white of his teeth and eyes could be seen. Rez hopped back quickly and equipped his twin gunblades. "My, my, my...You people are iiiiiinterestiiiiing!" Rez prepared for the worst, and the worst stared him down eagerly.