Chapter 27: Fear of Fighting! Annabeth´s frustration!
The one-winged Valkyrie saw Luffy, and she couldn't say she was impressed.
"So here's the captain of these pirates," Hildegard thought, as she looked at Luffy.
"So Nami and the others are with the other giant?" the pirate realized. "Great! I bet they're safe."
"You're right," Dorry laughed. "No one but me has a chance of killing Brogy."
"You're right." Luffy nodded, laughing with him.
Looking at him, before doing the same to Vivi, Percy, Annabeth and Hestia, Hildegard finally asked the Greeks.
"How is it possible...? Have you died in our world?"
"Almost, but not yet," the son of Poseidon replied.
"Let's emphasize the YET, but Junior actually brought us here," Annabeth said to Hildegard, who was thoughtful.
"It is strange... It shouldn't be... Unless..."
Hestia tried to ask, but the young woman focused on Luffy.
"So why are you letting them come with you, kid?"
"Hmm, what do you mean?"
"If you're a pirate, can you tell me what you do with gods from foreign lands and their children? Keep in mind that they don't belong to this world, nor do they have any interest in knowing."
Hestia was surprised by the coldness the Valkyrie spoke of. It was true that the Norse and the Greeks had a sort of "rivalry," but they remained on good terms.
"You don't know that," Luffy replied seriously. "They're my friends and part of my crew."
"Ha, very good! And you believe that? The gods don't live up to expectations."
"I won't deny it," Hestia confessed, looking sadly at the ground. "We have... a lack of commitment that..."
"Did I ask you something?" Hildegard interrupted abruptly.
"And you?" Annabeth asked. "What are you doing here?"
"Me?" "I died," the Valkyrie commented casually, surprising everyone present, except for Dorry, who crossed her arms and listened to the young woman. "Later, when I woke up in these seas, I didn't give it any more thought and decided to get away from all civilization. You guys? If you're pirates, I suppose you came to this island hoping to find treasure."
"Not really," Luffy replied. "I wanted to have an adventure on this island."
"An adventure? Really?"
Yes, that's the life of a pirate! It's exciting to have adventures."
"You're absolutely right," Dorry affirmed. "You're very brave, for such a small child."
Hildegard crossed her arms and nodded. "Well, you can't deny that you're partly right."
The one-winged Valkyrie then looked at the Greek demigods and saw, surprised, that they rolled their eyes with a sneer of contempt. Tyson encouraged Luffy and approached Dorry to ask her about Elbaf. Intrigued, she decided to question Luffy.
"What is your goal as a pirate?" Hildegard asked. "What do you hope to accomplish by sailing the seas?"
Luffy smiled and nodded.
"I want to find the One Piece so I can become the pirate king."
"The pirate king? You mean the treasure Gold Roger left behind?" the Valkyrie asked excitedly, then blushed and tried to regain her indifferent expression.
"The pirates who came to this island before you told me so," Dorry affirmed. "Is this famous and legendary treasure the one on the other side of the Grand Line? Hahaha! If I make it off this island, I promised myself I'd try my luck! After all, they say only the best pirates can find it."
"Oh, so you're a fan of Gold Roger?" Annabeth asked innocently, to which the Valkyrie responded with stars in her eyes.
"Roger was a legend; he wasn't afraid of anything! He challenged everyone just to be a pirate, but he did it again, crossing the most dangerous sea of all, and returned triumphant!"
Then, looking at Luffy, she asked.
"Luffy, in all honesty, tell me why you have a better chance than others of finding this treasure. Are you the most powerful pirate? Or the most strategic? Or the luckiest?"
"Are you dumb or something? Power, luck, or intelligence have nothing to do with the possibility of finding One Piece," Luffy retorted. "I will find the One Piece because I am determined to find it! Only the man who can overcome all obstacles that separate him from One Piece will become the Pirate King! No matter what happens, I will not give up."
Hearing this, Hildegard fixed her gaze on Luffy. And, to her surprise, she saw only unfailing determination. Luffy believed in his dream. In that moment, she looked at Percy and saw that same look of determination in his intense green eyes. That boy was strictly loyal to the pirate, despite not knowing him for more than a few months.
"Luffy... I wish you good luck."
"Huh?" Luffy wondered as he watched the Valkyrie leave.
"I feel ridiculous," Hildegard confessed, before starting to laugh. "I've always thought pirates were just barbarians who only seek to kill and plunder villages! But you're different! I understand why your friends follow you, despite being bad at combat. You've even gotten the gods to follow you! I admit it, I wish you were home."
With these words, she said goodbye with a sweet smile.
"What a strange woman," Vivi said.
"This girl is extremely perceptive, but also very sad," Dorry told her. "She always has the answer to everything, and I have the impression that she's a very wise woman. She's also a warrior; those eyes are those of someone who has fought all her life."
"Really?" Percy asked intrigued, when Dorry approached the boy and began to explain.
"Do you know why she only has one wing? She sacrificed it for her freedom."
The demigods, and even Luffy and Hestia, began to take an interest in her.
"She's been on this island for five years. She arrived during one of our duels, all bloody and dirty, as if she'd fought in one of our wars."
With Brogy...
"She was on the verge of death?!" Rachel asked, with Nami, Usopp, Tyson, and Thalia looking on in surprise.
"Yeah, she almost died! Ghababababababa!" the giant laughed, turning serious. "Her injuries were of various kinds, and we think they were from fighting pirates, government agents, etc. But the deepest wounds were the ones from the sword: her right wing was severely burned, while her left wing... was torn off."
"TORTED OFF?!" Nami and Usopp shouted.
Thalia gulped nervously as Tyson began to tear up.
Rachel steeled herself and asked, "Who...?"
"She did it to herself."
Hildegard sighed as she returned to Brogy. Suddenly, she heard something and saw something unusual: an ankylosaur with long, light-brown hair. The beast saw the Valkyrie and, furious, charged at her. Hildegard didn't have time to think as she pulled out a sword and went on the defensive.
"¿What in Asgard's name...?"
She didn't notice a white substance rushing at the Valkyrie.
"By the way, Dorry-san, does it really take a year for Log Pose to recharge here?" Vivi asked.
"Yes, why?"
"You just told us the pirates told you about One Piece! Did they take that long to leave here too?"
"No, really! Didn't you notice all those tiny human bones? Many of the humans who came here died before their logs were recharged! They died from the heat, from disease, or from the animals on this island! To tell you the truth, I also had to deal with the pirates who tried to attack me! The others, to avoid the same fate, went to sea and chose to take their chances. But I don't recommend it! They should have died at sea too."
"Are we going to stay here for a year?" Luffy wondered.
"That's impossible," Vivi replied. "Alabasta will never be able to go a full year without experiencing a war! I can't stay here."
"Unfortunately, I can't do anything," Dorry confessed. "The only Eternal Pose on this island is the one aimed at Elbaf, my homeland! Aside from him, I don't know what will allow you to leave this island safely."
After drinking a barrel of alcohol, he wiped his mouth as he declared.
"I must tell you about the time a man tried to leave this island with..."
A huge rumble was heard in his stomach.
"Do you hear that?"
Suddenly, Percy, out of pure instinct, used his power to control the alcohol Dorry swallowed and managed to extract an explosive. However, he couldn't get it out in time, and an explosion occurred, with smoke pouring from his mouth.
"What?" Luffy wondered.
"Dorry?" Hestia was startled to see him spit out blood.
Groaning in pain, Dorry held her hand to her stomach. Her organ had suffered severe damage.
"Did her stomach explode?" Vivi asked in surprise. "But then that means the alcohol she just drank contained explosives! That's crazy! It came from our ship."
"Was Usopp the one who did that?" Annabeth wondered.
"Of course not!" Luffy retorted. "Usopp and the others would never do that."
"Could it have been one of Hephaestus' experiments? No, impossible. Hephaestus is a perfectionist in his creations..."
"If it's... it's your fault."
Suddenly, Dorry stood up and glared at the trio.
"Brogy would never do that! The honor of a giant is unshakeable! We can't live after committing such a cowardly act."
Seeing him take up his sword, Annabeth took a step back, still stuttering.
"Sir?" "
"I'll make you pay," Dorry roared, raising his sword.
Luffy grabbed Vivi and Annabeth instantly and jumped back to avoid the sword blow. Running after him, Carue let out a scream of fear, as Dorry spun around.
"How dare you? I trusted you even though you were mere humans. And even a goddess of the world!"
"Run away!" Hestia yelled, grabbing Annabeth's hand. "Luffy, let's go!"
"Running away would be useless," Luffy retorted. "With his size, it wouldn't take him long to catch up."
Throwing his hat at Hestia, Luffy yelled.
"Hide, I'll take care of him."
However, Percy pulled out Riptide and stood beside his friend.
"And leave you with all the fun? Sorry, but I have more experience fighting big guys like this."
"No way! I'm the captain, and I'm telling you to leave! Take care of Hesty and Annie!" Luffy yelled at him, but Percy ignored him. At that moment, the daughter of Athena stepped between them.
"You both know running away would be useless. With his size, it wouldn't take him long to catch up with us." Annabeth pulled out her Celestial Bronze Knife. "If you think I'm going to leave you two alone, you're wrong. And I certainly won't let Luffy handle this!"
"What did you just say, Owlface?!" Luffy yelled at Annabeth, who became indignant.
"How dare you, Rubber Monkey!"
"Both of you, stay still!" Percy tried to calm them down.
"Stay out of it, Horse Breath!" Luffy said, annoyed when Luffy used his hydrokinesis to spray seawater at him. "You... Aarghh..."
"Shut up, Captain. You're very annoying when you want to be."
"...You're just like him, so you're not the one to talk," his girlfriend retorted. She turned her gaze to Dorry. "Dorry, I challenge you to a duel."
"To a duel?" the giant wondered, while Percy looked worried, but not surprised. "Don't laugh at me, you little worm! Do you really think you have a chance of winning just because I'm hurt? Was that part of your plan?"
"I didn't make this 'plan,' if you can call it that; if it had been me, I would have defeated you. Besides, I'm not a coward," Annabeth retorted proudly, unafraid of the Elbaf warrior. "I have no idea why this barrel exploded! But if you want to fight, I won't run away."
"How insolent!" Dorry shouted, raising her sword.
Seeing this, Annabeth and Percy jumped back to avoid it.
"You had to anger him, right?!"
"He started it!"
Then, Luffy, still a little weak, grabbed the handle of the weapon and pulled it down. Then, running toward the giant's arm, he stretched out his arm again to attack.
"That idiot!" the two demigods thought, annoyed.
"GUM GUM..."
However, using his second arm, Dorry delivered a powerful punch, which threw him backward.
"Don't underestimate the giants of Elbaf."
However, after regaining consciousness in time, Luffy managed to grab onto two tree trunks and then stretched out his arms again. Slowing down, he aimed at Dorry's enormous body before screaming.
"And you, don't underestimate the future pirate king."
Then, shooting like a cannonball, he hurtled toward Dorry and managed to crash into his stomach at full speed. Upon being hit in the stomach, Dorry coughed up more blood and finally collapsed to the ground.
"I'm sorry," Luffy apologized, falling in turn.
Unfortunately, using her last bit of strength, Dorry managed to stomp on him before falling to the ground.
"I underestimated you..."
Seeing him collapse, Vivi and Hestia cautiously approached his body. Seeing him motionless, they ran to his feet and saw a crater in the ground, where Luffy was buried.
"Luffy-san!"
"Oh, by the Muses!" Hestia ran to Luffy's side when he got up without much trouble. "Luffy, please resist!"
"I'm fine," the captain assured, before feeling two punches to the head.
"You're crazy, you could have died!" Annabeth yelled angrily as she grabbed Luffy by the neck. "Even if you're made of rubber, you could have been crushed to death!"
"I could have handled this myself, you rubber idiot!" Percy seconded the Olympic architect's opinion.
"Don't be stupid! It was my fight, Horse Breath and Owl Head!"
"Little..."
Then, reaching out to retrieve his hat, he asked Annabeth.
"How is he?"
Sighing, the daughter of Athena turned to the giant. "Dorry? His injury has worsened. Yet he's still alive."
"I'm angry," Luffy suddenly roared.
"What?"
"The other giant didn't do anything! I'd stick my hand in the fire! And neither would our friends! I mean, there's someone else on this island responsible for that."
"Would that be Hildegard?" Percy asked, suspicious of her.
"Hildegard-san?" Vivi asked in surprise. "But why would she do this?"
"I don't know, but..."
At that moment, the volcano in the center of the island erupted.
"What?" The group was shocked.
"Oh no, now's not the time," Vivi said.
However, thinking about it another way, simply hearing the volcano is enough to wake Dorry up and begin to recover. But he barely made a move before he spat out blood.
"Stop, Dorry-san."
"You'll die," the son of Poseidon asserted.
I... I am the great Dorry! The mightiest warrior of Elbaf! And I..."
Suddenly, he spat out blood again. Seeing this, Luffy took a step toward him, rebuking him.
"Stay right there."
"Mugiwara?"
"I know why you're fighting, and I understand your reasoning! However, this time, you have a good reason to surrender! Someone dared to intervene in your fight and intentionally hurt you! We must find him."
"Shut up," Dorry roared before rising to his feet.
He stood up and took a moment to catch his breath.
"I'm going to win."
"Stop, idiot."
In response, Dorry turned to a massive skull-shaped rock and grabbed it. With all his strength, he gritted his teeth as he began to lift the gigantic mask. Finally, he managed to dislodge the rock before turning to Luffy.
"Hey, what are you doing?"
Suddenly, Vivi's eyes widened and he took a step back before screaming.
"Luffy, he's going to crush you!"
"What?"
Before he could react, Dorry placed the rock on top of him and violently crushed Luffy with it.
"Luffy!" The two demigods, the Goddess of the Hearth, and the princess were frightened.
"My honor is the most precious thing I hold dear," Dorry stated. "I started a fight, and abandoning it before finishing would be a great shame! I would rather die than stop fighting! I am a warrior of Elbaf."
Turning to pick up his sword, he tried to do so. However, he froze the instant hands grasped the tip. Knowing full well he only had a slim chance against the giant, Percy scooped up seawater and formed two water hands. He tried to grab the sword by the tip, declaring,
"No, don't fight. You're in no condition to fight."
"Stay out of this, brat."
"You've got yourself a bone to pick if you think I'm going to let you fight like that, big guy!"
Giving him his murderous glare, the Hero of Olympus threatened.
"I don't want you to die, Dorry. You're a good guy."
Just by looking at him, Dorry knew the boy meant business; those eyes showed a true warrior, worthy of being written in Elbaf's texts. Then, taking a deep breath and puffing out his cheeks, he snorted so hard that the water Percy had formed dissipated, sending the young man flying a little.
Dorry grabbed his sword and started to leave.
"Sorry for suspecting you, young man."
"DORRRRRYYYYY!" Luffy yelled, trying to break free. "Our fight isn't over."
"Hmm?"
"We decided to duel! And neither of us has been knocked out! Come back here, if you're a man! Set me free and let's fight!"
Hearing this, Dorry finally smiled a little before nodding.
I'd fight you... if I ever beat Brogy! Until next time, future pirate king.
"No! Get me out of here!"
Too late. The giant was already gone. Hestia could only gaze at that giant in amazement.
Seeing Brogy enter the fray, Nami cried out.
"It's time we returned to Merry."
"To do what?" Thalia asked, as she began to eat a piece of meat. "I remind you that we have to wait a year to leave here! We have time to waste."
"We can't stay," Neni retorted. Princess Wednesday must go home as soon as possible.
"And then?" Tyson asked, worried. "None of us can do anything!"
"Maybe one of the gods knows about navigation," Nami affirmed. "I'm sure Poseidon-sama will help us! Anyway, we have to get back to the Merry and warn the others."
"Percy, Annabeth, Luffy, and his sister Vivi must know," Thalia commented. "Which means you have to inform Lady Artemis, Groover, Lord Apollo, and those two idiots!"
"In that case, let's go," Nami shouted.
"Wait a minute!" Usopp shouted. "Think, Nami! Only Thalia can handle one of these dinosaurs! If we want to get back to the Merry, let's wait for Brogy to return and ask him to take us back to the ship."
"That's a great idea," said the Cyclops.
"No way," Nami retorted. "We have to leave before Hildegard comes back! That woman is so scary! I feel like something's wrong with her."
"Are you surprised she's strange?" Neni asked. "I'll remind you, this 'woman' thinks she's from another universe! She's not dangerous, she's just crazy." Just look at that wing stuck to his back!"
"It doesn't matter," Nami shouted, heading into the forest. "Luffy shouldn't be far! Meet him and return to the boat."
"We have no choice," Thalia sighed before standing up. "Well, I don't think there's anything else to do here anyway."
Then the small group headed deeper into the forest.
A little later…
"I hate you, redhead," Neni assured.
"Shut up and run!"
In two minutes, the small group found themselves facing a huge dinosaur and began to flee to avoid being devoured.
"What do we do now?" Tyson wanted to know.
"You're demigods. Protect me by sacrificing yourselves."
"In your dreams, you cheap pickpocket!" the quartet roared.
Suddenly ducking, the group felt the Tyrannosaurus rex attempt to swipe at them with its enormous tail. Missing them, it only impacted a massive tree trunk, which broke. It began to fall toward Usopp and the others, pretending to run over them.
"Run," Usopp shouted.
Immediately, he and Tyson ran to the left, while Nami and the other two darted away to the right. Avoiding the trunk, the dinosaur glared at Usopp and Tyson before roaring and chasing them.
"Help!"
The Hunter of Artemis fires several electrified arrows, scaring the dinosaur away. Suddenly, it staggers until Nami and Neni catch it.
"This is still tiring."
With Zoro and Apollo...
"Damn, I feel like we're lost," Zoro stated.
"No? Is that true?" Apollo asked innocently. "Don't tell me, even when I was mortal I didn't have this much trouble GOING IN A STRAIGHT LINE!"
"Shut up! You're the one who brings bad luck, Sunshine!"
"How dare you?!" Apollo said, offended. "Are you forgetting that I can transform into a cloud and, therefore, I can easily drag you onto the ship!"
"Good for you... Wait, you were mortal? I thought you were a god?" the swordsman asked, intrigued.
Apollo sighs. "Let's just say my father had to teach me a lesson, but I appreciate it!"
"I see... Could any of you help me train?"
"Are you crazy?! You could die...!"
"If I want to beat Mihawk, I have to be stronger. And what better partner than a god?"
Apollo sighed; he understood Zoro's dream, even more so after witnessing the Shichibukai's skill. While he was as good as his half-brothers or the young Perseus, one look at the man and he immediately knew his technique and strength could easily match theirs.
Suddenly, turning his gaze to the side, Zoro saw Nami's silhouette.
"Hmm? Hey, Nami!"
"Nami?" Apollo wondered. "What are you doing out there, alone?"
As they moved forward, the duo noticed Nami standing still.
"Got something wrong, Nami?" Zoro asked, placing his hand on her shoulder.
In an instant, a white substance left the navigator's body and surrounded Zoro's chest.
"Is that it?" he wondered, beginning to feel trapped.
Seeing this, Apollo fled quickly to avoid the same fate. However, when she was struck from behind, she let out a scream as she was hit by an explosion. As she fell to the ground, she groaned in pain.
"So! How do we know each other?" a female voice asked.
And before she could turn around, the Sun God felt someone sit on her back, where she was injured. Hearing her moans of pain, Miss Valentine questioned her.
"Oh, am I hurting you?"
Increasing her body weight, she crushed Apollo even further, who, however, smiled and transformed into a cloud, surprising Miss Valentine.
"It hurt a lot, my dear," the Olympian lied, while Miss Valentine only smiled broadly.
"Hahahaha, I admit that's a good power!"
Apollo drew his bow and shot three arrows at the user. However, they were intercepted by three small bombs, and Mr. 5 appeared from the smoke.
"The swordsman was easier to capture than expected, but this man is an interesting challenge," Mr. 5 noted.
"It's normal when you don't fully use your brain."
Falling to the ground, his entire body except for his head covered in wax, Zoro looked at the newcomer and asked.
"Who are you?"
"I'm... Mr. 3," the man assured, while sipping a cup of tea.
Seeing that his plan had worked perfectly, he assured them.
You two, bring me the princess! According to my calculations, she should now be easy prey! We'll kill her with our prisoners! And we'll take care of the giants and the last of the pirates. But be careful with their new allies; they are extremely powerful usurers.
"And how are you going to beat me, buddy?" Apollo grinned.
The one called Mr. 3 just laughed as he attacked him with a white substance, blocking his view of the sun. At that moment, the god began to show weakness.
"What the...?"
"Mwahahahahahahaha! Just as I suspected; your ability is directly related to the sun! If it's taken away from you, you become as strong as a kitten!"
"As soon as I get up, I'm going to..."
However, hearing voices, the trio spotted some figures a little further away.
"Hey, Nami, do you have any idea where we're going?" Thalia asked.
"No! I think we're lost," Nami confessed.
"Damn it!" Neni growled.
Seeing them, Mr. 3 smiled and hurriedly covered Zoro and Apollo's mouths with wax to keep them from screaming. "We'll catch them too."
"AHHHHHHHHHHH!" Usopp and Tyson shouted as they continued running.
Finally, seeing a huge tree, the duo ran behind the trunk and remained silent, praying for the dinosaur to leave. However, to their surprise, they didn't hear a sound.
"Hmm?" they wondered, looking at the forest.
To everyone's surprise, there wasn't even the slightest trace of the dinosaur.
"We... lost it?"
"Haha... HAHAHAHA!" Usopp laughed. "As expected! This giant had no chance of catching us."
"I don't know if we should be proud, but at least we're safe," Tyson rejoiced. "But what do we do for Percy and the others?"
"Knowing Nami, she had to order the others to go to the Merry-Go-Round! Let's go as discreetly as possible."
"Okay!"
"They'll pay for it," a voice suddenly roars.
"I understand, buddy, but seriously, calm down!"
"Hmm?" the duo wondered, turning around. "Luffy?"
"Big Bro?"
They took a few steps forward, finally seeing Luffy and the other two, where Dorry had left them.
"Luffy?"
"Usopp!" Luffy and Percy sees them and smiled. "Tiogun! Come help me."
"How did you manage to get caught up in this?" Tyson asked him. "And that's not my name"
"And I thought you couldn't get into any more trouble without me, huh, Waterball?" Thalia asked, half amused and half annoyed.
"Do you really think this is the best time to make up nicknames for me, Thunder Hips?"
"Luffy! We need to meet Nami on Merry as soon as possible," Usopp told him, ignoring the cousins. "We got separated in the forest and we don't know how they are."
"What?!" Luffy roars, trying to free himself again. "What the hell is going on? Why do these things happen?"
"What things?" Tyson asked him.
"Someone tried to kill Dorry," Annabeth taught him. "He drank explosive alcohol and it went a explosion in his stomach."
"What?" Usopp wondered, turning around.
Seeing the two giants fighting, the man was shocked.
"His stomach exploded... and he still went to fight?"
"Who's the bloke who dared to do that?"
"Can't you guess?" a laughing voice said.
"What?" The group was shocked.
"LUXURIOUS NOSE CANNON!"
BOOM!
"Damn... Everything's gotten worse since the Olympians arrived!"
Hildegard arrived at a small makeshift cemetery; it was where the Valkyrie carried those who died on that island as a form of respect. During the encounter she had with that strange dinosaur, she was attacked by a white substance. Luckily, she had a small bottle of seawater, and she threw it at the white substance immediately afterward; the substance melted. By the time she realized it, the dinosaur had already escaped.
Hildegard was furious; her new life was interrupted by a band of pirates protected by the Olympians. She wanted them off her island, so now she was looking for the only thing that could help her.
"That's another one," Hildegard commented.
Kneeling in front of a human skeleton, the woman examined it closely. Then she smiled slightly, finding something interesting.
"Here's one," he assured, picking up an object.
Hearing another clashing noise, she turned and saw Brogy and Dorry fighting again.
"They're definitely in good shape," she said with a slight smile.
However, after watching the fight for a few seconds, Hildegard was skeptical of Dorry's behavior. Compared to before, his actions were much less forceful, as he preferred to defend rather than attack. On the contrary, seeing that he had the advantage, Brogy redoubled his efforts to defeat his rival.
"I'd have you, Dorry!"
"In dreams," Dorry roared, running toward him.
However, suddenly, slipping, the giant felt himself falling backward.
"Is that it?" Hildegard wondered.
"AHHHHHHHHH!" Brogy shouted, raising his axe before slashing at Dorry's abdomen.
Immediately, a geyser of blood appeared as Dorry crashed to the ground. Watching him fall, Hildegard remained motionless, unsure of what to make of this fight, which strangely seemed to have been sabotaged.
Then, an explosion erupted, leaving Luffy and his friends.
"What's going on? No... They couldn't possibly...!"
Fuming, after being hit by an attack from Mr. 5, Luffy remained inert.
"LUFFY?" Usopp wondered.
"You bastard!" roared the son of Poseidon, drawing Riptide.
"You wanna fight?" asked Mr. 5, rolling up his sleeves. "Great, I'm your man."
Perseus started running toward him and made a move to attack. However, remembering their recent fights, he suddenly stopped.
"Hmm?" Mr. 5 wondered.
"Come on, aren't you that powerful?"
Getting into a fighting stance, he understood.
"I can take you out easily, Dynamite Guy! So do us a favor and surrender while you still have the chance."
"If you don't want to come, I'll come to you," Mr. 5 announced, running toward him.
However, to his surprise, he saw a projectile fired directly at him.
"EXPLOSIVE STAR!"
Hit by a ball, Mr. 5 found himself at the center of an explosion.
"NOW, Tyson!" Usopp shouted. "Percy, get some seawater, you're our only chance against the ability users!"
Percy listened to Usopp, while Tyson ran straight into the smoke, remembering Mister 5's exact position.
"You're mine, Bomb Guy!" the cyclops assured, aiming his sword at where his opponent's throat should have been.
Unfortunately, emerging from the smoke, a hand with snot between its fingers aimed at the cyclops and sent the snot flying.
"What the...?"
"Luxury Nose Cannon."
Seeing Tyson being hit, Usopp took a step back, trembling.
"Impossible! I touched him."
However, the son of Poseidon surprises the user by grabbing him by the neck.
"What?!"
"This is for trying to hurt my friends." Tyson prepares to hit Mr. 5, but...
"ICHIBAN KILO PRESS!"
"USOPP, TYSON!" Vivi shouted. "Get up!"
She barely had time to look up, but Tyson was crushed by Miss Valentine's body. Hitting the ground hard, Tyson's body was half-buried, while Usopp's fell to the ground, unconscious.
"Tyson! Usopp!" Vivi panicked.
Mr. 5 coughed and rubbed his neck; that kid was really strong. And about that eye... Ignoring those details, he ran toward Vivi and managed to grab her by the neck, while giving her advice.
"We're holding the rest of your friends back! So I advise you not to do anything stupid, Miss Wednesday."
"I like it when our missions go well," Miss Valentine stated. "In fact, I bet they beat us by sheer luck."
"It's obvious," Mr. 5 stated.
Suddenly, hearing a small noise, the duo turned and saw Annabeth, with her knife.
"Hmm?"
The young woman stared at the duo, gripping her weapon as tightly as she could and trying to keep her nerves at bay. While she fought even in Tartarus, these users were giving her a very bad feeling.
Still staring at them, Annabeth saw them staring at her, unsure of what to make of the situation. Finally, finding the scene hilarious, Miss Valentine laughed.
"Look at this little girl! She's hilarious, thinking that knife won't do something. Kyahahahahaha!"
"Indeed. She's brave, though."
Finally, the duo made their way over to Annabeth, while the man still held Vivi with one hand. The demigoddess reached into her pocket, and Mr. 5 glared at her, annoyed.
"I don't recommend it, kiddo."
However, Annabeth smiled when she pulled out her magic Yankees cap and tried to put it on, when Miss Valentine surprised her and grabbed it.
"How...?"
"Uh, how cute is this weird hat! Kyahahahaha!"
Finally, her eyes opened when Mister 5 stood before her.
"Kid…"
Placing his hand on Annabeth's head, he said.
"...Having a gun doesn't mean you know how to use it! I don't know why you're with these pirates, but you don't even deserve to be considered an enemy! To us, you're nothing. You're not like Cyclops or your friend. Better leave the fighting to the professionals."
Finally, he passed her and left her behind, much to the chagrin of the daughter of Athena.
"Didn't we kill her?" his companion wondered, following him.
"I don't see the point in wasting time with vermin."
"Don't laugh at me, for a moment!" Annabeth charged toward them until Mr. 5 faced her.
"I warned you. Kick Bomb!"
Mr. 5 kicks Annabeth, receiving an explosion. The Architect of Omblipo takes the full force of the blast, sending her flying.
BAM!
Annabeth falls to the ground, badly injured. Her clothes were in tatters, her hair was singed, and her body was scorched. But the worst wound was her pride. She had fought monsters, Titans, relived her nightmares in Tartarus... And yet, a guy with strange powers had left her on the brink of death... She began to cry in helplessness and frustration.
"Vivi... Usopp... Ty... Percy... I'm sorry!"
"What happened here, and who did this to my girlfriend?!"
Looking up, Annabeth was surprised to see her boyfriend and Hildegard standing behind her.
"So two more Devil Fruit users, huh? What a Hruga Uskit'r?"
To be continued...