16 Chapter 15
Markus moved quickly toward Arlong Park. He had a bad feeling. When he arrived he kicked the doors with as much force as he could muster. The blow knocked the doors clean off their hinges and sent them flying into the opposite wall, over the pool in the middle of the compound. As soon as Markus saw what it looked like inside, he remembered what happened in the story and realized just where he fucked up.
Bodies of fishmen littered the ground covered in sword slashes, Zoro's work. In the show, Nami had released Zoro and let him go. Instead of leaving, Zoro defeated all the fishmen in Arlong Park. After that, he got a ride from Hachi to Cocoyashi Village, he was probably there now. Zoro's disappearance led to one of the fishmen becoming suspicious of Nami. To clear the suspicion she had faked killing Usopp. He had confused the memory of Usopp fighting the big-lipped fishman with the scene of Nami pretending to kill him! Without Usopp to pretend to kill, Nami had no way to prove her loyalty to Arlong. As Markus took in the whole scene, he saw a manta ray-like fishman holding Nami by the throat and pinning her to a pillar while she struggled to breathe.
Markus grit his teeth at the sight. If he'd been just a little later Nami could have been dead! Without her, the whole story could have been completely screwed! There might have been a chance that they would never go to Skypeia! Just the thought of that infuriated him. What pissed him off, even more, is that it would have been entirely his fault. His arrogance in thinking he could control everything just because he thought he knew what was going to happen. He couldn't risk something like this happening again!
All these thoughts flashed through his mind in a single moment, just long enough for the fishmen to look over at their destroyed gate and him. Before any of them could say anything, Markus vanished from sight. He pushed his footwork and Observation Haki to their limits as he dashed across Arlong Park at top speed. When he appeared again there was a resounding crack as the butt of his flintlock collided with the head of the fishman holding Nami. The force of the blow sent the fishman to the ground and forced him to release Nami. She fell to her hands and knees while coughing violently. As she looked up she saw the infuriated face of Markus standing above her, almost protectively.
Everyone was shocked. Except for Arlong, he was just plain pissed off. First that long-nosed piece of garbage shot him and now another piece of garbage had attacked one of his men. He ground his teeth together as veins throbbed on his forehead and his eyes grew bloodshot. Markus stood there, looking heroic and pissed off. Nami looked up at him, "What are you doing here Markus?!"
He glanced back at her and a bit of his self-loathing and anger abated, "Rescuing the damsel in distress, saving her hometown, and beating the crap out of a few monsters. You know, the usual."
He wasn't being ironic or sarcastic really, saving Kaya and her village wasn't all that long ago! The sound of Arlong gritting his teeth could be heard clearly before he spoke, "Filthy inferior human, how dare you refer to us superior fishmen as monsters?!"
Markus looked at Arlong like he was an idiot, "Calling you a monster has nothing to do with your race and everything to do with your actions. Only a monster would behave the way you have! But don't worry. Unlike you, I don't torture my victims. Your end will be as swift as I can make it."
As if the heavens were agreeing with Markus, the very ground began to shake violently and was soon followed by a loud commotion. Everyone looked confused except for the three members of the Strawhat Crew. Only their captain, Luffy, could make such a big commotion. Markus felt like he didn't have much time so he stopped talking and vanished. Moments later cries started to echo out every time Markus appeared for just a blink. Each cry was filled with pain as Markus quickly beat the weaker minion level fishmen unconscious. He might have even killed a few with the hard blows that cracked their skulls. Though given their vitality, it was unlikely.
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You have defeated an Arlong Pirate cadre. Experience deferred.
You have defeated an Arlong Pirate...
You have defeated...
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Markus received a bunch of notices while Arlong looked around furiously trying to get a glimpse of him. But Markus only appeared for short instances before moving on and knocking down another of his men. Before half a minute passed only Arlong and his lieutenant were left standing. Markus appeared once again in front of Nami before disappearing only to reappear near the gate of the compound next to Usopp. Nami was held firmly in his embrace in a princess carry. She looked around confused before looking up into Markus's gray eyes. He grinned down at her, "Got you, princess, you're safe now."
Nami blushed for a brief moment before turning serious, "What the hell are you doing?! You can't beat them! You're just wasting your life and ruining my plan!"
Markus looked over at the two standing members of Arlong's crew and then back at Nami with a raised eyebrow, "I can't beat them? Some cowardly punks who can only pick on normal people while spouting racist bullshit?"
Arlong couldn't take it anymore, "What did you call us you insignificant ant?"
Markus gently set Nami down and gave her a soft push toward Usopp. He turned to face Arlong after and smirked, "Please, as if you don't know what I'm talking about little fishy. If you're not a coward and are really as strong as you claim to be, then what are you doing here? I'll tell you what you're doing here. You're hiding like a coward. Why else would a mighty fishman be sitting on a small island filled with normal people in the weakest sea in the world? You're cowering here, hiding away from the strong and preying on the weak while pretending like it makes you better than humans. It's just... sad and pathetic."
Every word that Markus spoke caused Arlong's anger to grow. Literal sparks flew off of his teeth from how hard he was grinding them. Nami shivered when she saw Arlong, she had never seen him so angry and it was a terrifying sight to her. As Arlong was trembling in his rage, Hachi, the octopus fishman, popped out of the water and looked around shocked. In his somewhat silly and dumb sounding voice, he asked, "What happened here?!"
Markus smiled when he saw Hachi. He actually liked Hachi's character. He was a good man, it made him wonder why he spent time around someone like Arlong. No one answered his question though, both of them were staring at Markus with absolute hate in their eyes. Hachi looked around confused until he spotted Markus, Nami, and Usopp standing near the gates of Arlong Park, "Did they do this?!"
Nami shuddered as two lieutenants and Arlong stared at them, "You two need to run away! Just take the Going Merry and leave before they kill you!"
Usopp was shaking in his boots while Markus just holstered his flintlock on his hip, "Not happening Nami. We'd never leave a friend behind, right Usopp?"
Even though he was clearly terrified beyond all measure, Usopp still managed to nod and stutter, "R-right!"
Markus smirked as he looked at Arlong shivering in anger, "And now there's just three of you left. All the others taken out by just two little humans. So much for Fishman superiority." He turned his head to look at Nami over his shoulder while smiling, "You shouldn't underestimate our resolve to have you join our crew. Luffy is dead set on having you as our navigator. We won't settle for anyone less than the best!"
Nami's eyes widened as she heard Markus. Memories of her time with the crew flew through her mind. The feeling of happiness when she was with them messing around. The feeling of fear during their fights. Yet they always managed to win no matter the odds. Tears streamed down her cheeks while hope blossomed in her heart, "Please... please defeat Arlong and free us all from this nightmare!!"
Markus turned serious and nodded, "We will. Isn't that right captain?"
Nami's eyes widened as she turned around to see Luffy, Zoro, and Sanji standing behind herself and Usopp. Luffy, looking unusually serious, nodded, "Yeah."
Markus pulled the two katanas out of his belt and tossed them to Zoro, "They're not great but they should work until you find proper replacements later."
Zoro caught the katanas and looked them over before sliding them into his haramaki to join the third. He gave Markus a nod of appreciation. The two katanas were about the same quality as the ones Mihawk broke, they wouldn't do him much good in the Grand Line so replacements were a must. Arlong glared at the ever-growing group in hatred. If looks could kill every last person standing there would have been dead hundreds of times over.
Markus turned back to look at Arlong and his men while the others of his group stepped up next to him. He glanced at Luffy, "With your permission captain, I'd like to handle Arlong myself."
Luffy immediately tried to deny him, "No fair! I want to fight someone strong!"
Markus grinned evilly, "So do I. And you just got to fight Don Krieg and his pirates. You can't hog all the good fights to yourself!"
"Ah..." Luffy scratched the back of his head as he looked at the remaining fishmen. There was a problem. There were only three fishmen and four fighting crew members! He looked around before knocking his fist on his palm, "Ah! Then I'll just take the blue one!" He pointed right at Arlong.
Markus smacked the back of Luffy's head, "That's Arlong!"
Luffy immediately pointed to the mantra ray-like fishman, Kuroobi, "Then that one!"
As they were picking their partners, Hachi ran inside of Arlong Park and came back out with his six swords and immediately caught Zoro's attention. So, Zoro being Zoro pointed at Hachi, "That one's mine."
Sanji looked around and lit up a cigarette, "So I have nothing to do? How is that fair?"
Markus grinned. He had the perfect answer, "You guard Nami of course!"
Immediately there were hearts in Sanji's eyes as smoke poured out of his nostrils, "I will protect Nami-swaaan with my life!!!"
Markus secretly smirked. Sanji could be pretty easy to control. A hell of a lot easier than Luffy or Zoro that was for sure. With everyone's dance partner selected, Markus turned to Arlong, "Ahhh sorry to keep you waiting. We'll get this beating over with soon enough I promise."
The three from the Strawhat crew started walking toward their opponents. Luffy swung his arm around and rolled his shoulder as he approached Kuroobi, Zoro drew his three swords as he approached Hachi, and Markus cracked his knuckles as he approached Arlong. Markus was still mad at himself for screwing up so badly and he planned to take his frustration out on Arlong.
Markus pulled his flintlock out of its holster once more. Seeing Markus preparing to use a gun just made Arlong smile at him mockingly. Normal guns were useless against him! Markus knew that and had no intention of shooting Arlong. He flipped the pistol around and grabbed it by the barrel to use it as a club once again. He was pretty certain that his Basic Gun Mastery and Brawler skills combined together for more damage when he used the flintlock as a club. It was hard to tell for certain and either way, using the flintlock would give him one of the two bonuses at the very least. He stared at Arlong and confirmed his status.
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Arlong
Class: Pirate Captain
Level: 27
Hit Points: 1,470/1,470
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Arlong had more than double his hit points. Markus was also certain that Arlong was physically stronger and more durable. Markus knew he had his own advantages though, his speed and his Haki, he just hoped they would be enough to deal with Arlong. If not, he knew Luffy could handle him. As Markus and the others approached, Kuroobi and Hachi moved away from Arlong to get some space for their respective fights. Kuroobi made his way towards the pool in the center of Arlong Park while Hachi just moved to a nice open area where he could swing his swords freely. Markus and Arlong stood facing each other in the main entryway.
Markus stood in front of a very pissed off Arlong as Zoro and Luffy began their fights. Hachi had summoned Momoo, but the moment Momoo saw the crew it ran away. Arlong was too busy staring at Markus to force Momoo to stay and fight. Hachi resorted to his swords instead. Even though Hachi used six swords, Zoro was handling him easily. In the anime, Zoro only had a single sword for most of the fight and his wounds from fighting Mihawk hadn't healed nearly as much. With three swords and better-healed wounds, the fight with Hachi wasn't nearly so difficult. It was as Markus suspected, no swordsman in the East Blue was a match for Zoro at his peak. He suspected the creator of One Piece kept beating the crap out of Zoro to nerf him.
As for the fight between Luffy and Kuroobi, Luffy had an absolute advantage against Kuroobi's Fishman Karate. At least Hachi was somewhat tricky and awkward to deal with. Kuroobi just punched and kicked Luffy dealing a grand total of zero-damage and just annoying the rubber man. Within a short frame of time, Hachi and Kuroobi were both down for the count. Luffy looked disappointed while Zoro was sitting on the ground panting and sweating profusely. Markus might have helped heal his wounds some but Zoro had been far from peak condition.
Arlong looked around at the bodies of his men. Every last one of them was either unconscious or dead. Arlong's bloodshot eyes turned to Markus, "Damn you. DAMN ALL OF YOU!"
Arlong dashed toward Markus while cocking his fist back. Seeing the speed that Arlong was moving at, Markus was not impressed. He activated his Observation Haki without a second thought. As Arlong punched at him with his right arm, Markus spun to his left to get around him. The butt of Markus's flintlock swung out and slammed into Arlong's spine with a loud crack. Markus immediately retreated backward just a split second before Arlong spun around and tried to hit him.
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Arlong
Class: Pirate Captain
Level: 27
Hit Points: 1,392/1,470
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Markus smirked at Arlong, "Where's that superiority of yours?"
Arlong growled, "What? You think because you tickled me that you're winning? Don't make me laugh!"
Markus knew Arlong was right, a single blow wouldn't be enough to stop him, but a few dozen more should be plenty if he could keep the damage up! Arlong charged at Markus nose first, intent on stabbing him with it. Markus stepped to the side and lashed out with his flintlock but Arlong lifted his arm and blocked the blow. Before Markus could react, despite seeing it coming, Arlong planted his fist in his stomach and send him stumbling back.
Arlong smirked at Markus, "Now you see the difference between us?! We Fishmen are a superior species!"
Markus straightened up and dusted off his stomach. Arlong's blow had dealt nearly one hundred damage to him but thanks to his passives, no bones were broken, the pain was fleeting, and the damage was reduced. Markus looked back at Arlong and grinned, "My captain hits harder."
Arlong didn't waste any more breath and charged at Markus with his mouth wide open. When he got close he attempted to bite Markus by slamming his jaws shut with enough force to make them ring. Markus dodged back and grinned, "Grit your teeth Arlong!"
After speaking, Markus vanished from sight. Arlong looked around but couldn't see anything until Markus appeared right in front of him and slammed the butt of his flintlock into his teeth with enough force to shatter them and send Arlong to the ground. He was fully aware that Arlong could regrow his teeth instantly, but it just felt so good to smash them in! As Arlong lay sprawled out on the ground, Markus appeared above him with both hands gripping his flintlock and raised in the air above his head. With a heave, he brought it down and slammed it firmly into Arlong's forehead. The force of the blow was enough to crack the ground beneath Arlong.
Feeling a counter-attack coming, Markus vanished just as Arlong shot up and attempted to stab him with his nose. Markus appeared a short distance away and grinned. From what he could tell, Arlong's base speed was lower than his own base speed. Once he used the footwork skill and increased his speed by a further 150%, Arlong didn't stand a chance of catching him! Arlong slowly sat up and glared at Markus, while reaching into his mouth and pulling out his broken teeth, "You think you've gained some sort of victory by breaking my teeth? Then let me..."
Markus cut him off, "Yeah yeah, shut up and regrow your teeth. Or do you think I don't know the anatomy of sharks?"
Veins throbbed in Arlong's head when Markus cut him off. He had been expecting to shock Markus, but seeing his nonchalance really pissed him off! Arlong climbed to his feet and started pulling out sets of his teeth to hold in his hands as weapons. Markus just chuckled, "Going to play a little tune on your castanets for us to dance to?"
Off to the side, Luffy shouted out in an excited voice, "Ohhhhhhhh! Awesome! He's a musician too?!"
That comment angered Arlong but made Markus laugh. Leave it to Luffy to think of or say something stupid. Markus holstered his flintlock and cracked his knuckles, "That's enough for a warm-up. Time to get a little serious."
He liked using the flintlock as a club, it even dealt more damage, but he still felt better using his fists to fight. He was similar to Luffy in that fashion, he just didn't have a Devil Fruit to enhance his moves with. Not yet at least. Markus started to bounce on his feet in imitation of a boxer. Arlong, sick of the 'farce', charged at Markus and started using the teeth in his hands in an attempt to 'bite' Markus with them. Markus danced around the straightforward attacks and countered them with body blows. His damage per hit was lowered without the makeshift club, but with his speed and being in close quarters with Arlong, he made up for it in the number of blows he landed. As Arlong came at Markus with his mouth wide open to bite him, Markus ducked below it and came back up with a powerful uppercut. Arlong was knocked off of his feet and crashed back down onto the ground with blood flowing from the corner of his mouth.
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Arlong
Class: Pirate Captain
Level: 27
Hit Points: 796/1,470
Enraged (Melee Damage +25%)
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Arlong sat up and glared at Markus. His eyes had changed color as his rage awoke his instincts and fueled his desire to kill the impertinent human before him. Arlong leaped to his feet and blasted in Markus's direction nose-first. Markus barely had time to get out of the way and avoid a deadly blow in exchange for his right arm being badly slashed. His hit points dropped by well over one hundred from that single blow. It was plain as day that in a straight slugfest, Arlong would eat him alive!
After partially missing Markus, Arlong crashed into the building of Arlong Park sending up a cloud of dust and debris. Markus retreated from the broken wall and waited for Arlong to walk out. Arlong didn't keep him waiting long, but when he did appear he had a massive saw-toothed sword held in his hand. Clearly he planned to chop Markus into fish food!
