Around midday, the sun beat down mercilessly. Bege's crew members sought refuge in shady spots, resting and waiting for the intense heat to subside before resuming their work setting up camp.
Bege himself was reclining comfortably on his lounge chair, enjoying a much-needed nap.
However, it seemed fate was determined not to let him rest peacefully. Several piercing screams suddenly shattered the midday quiet, jolting everyone awake.
Bege frowned and sat up, his gaze drawn towards the edge of the forest. A tall figure was emerging from the trees. Behind it, four of his crewmates lay on the ground, screaming in agony.
As the figure stepped fully into view, Bege drew a sharp, involuntary breath.
This... this simply wasn't human. How to even describe it? Standing easily six meters tall, it had the head of a man but the body of a beast – eyes sharp and piercing like a hawk's, powerful arms ending in thick bear claws, and legs that terminated incongruously in slender deer hooves.
Such a creature seemed almost impossible. Unless it was a Devil Fruit user? But no single fruit Bege knew of could grant such a bizarre combination of traits. A different possibility sparked in his mind – perhaps this was a Modified Human, altered through some external means, similar to the modification potential of the Op-Op Fruit. Could there be an Op-Op Fruit user on this island?
"Fia!" The strange creature spotted the sleeping Fia on her lounge chair nearby. Its expression instantly twisted into fury, its eyes becoming sharp and fierce as a savage, violent aura erupted around it.
It vanished, leaving only an afterimage, heading straight for Fia.
Moria reacted instantly, appearing before the creature and throwing a powerful punch to intercept it.
The creature casually blocked Moria's fist with a sideways kick from its deer-like hoof. The force of the impact was astonishing, actually pushing the massive Moria back two steps.
"Such strength!" Moria's expression turned grim.
The tall creature looked down imperiously at Moria, its voice strange, almost drawling. "Intruders… will be killed without mercy."
"Hm?" Moria's eyes widened slightly as he noticed the creature's kicking hoof momentarily flash black – Armament Haki. Before he could fully process it, the creature put explosive force into its leg, kicking straight towards Moria's chest.
Moria quickly coated his own fist in Armament Haki, managing to block the hoof-kick.
The creature showed a flicker of surprise this time, then executed a swift backflip, landing lightly before crouching low and launching itself forward like a compressed spring.
"Hoofprint…!" A stern, cold shout echoed from behind Moria. The creature had somehow bypassed him instantly. CRASH! Its hoof slammed solidly into Moria's back. The immense force sent Moria flying forward, tumbling through the air before crashing down. He slid uncontrollably across the ground, carving two deep gouges in the earth before finally skidding to a halt.
"Damn you! You're dead!" Moria roared furiously, shadows swirling menacingly around his feet as he pushed himself up.
The creature licked its lips, a predatory glint in its hawk-like eyes. That last kick had been delivered with its full power, enough force to kill a Sea King outright. Yet Moria had survived. This unexpectedly resilient opponent ignited the creature's fighting spirit.
Both figures vanished simultaneously.
BOOM! A massive impact shook the ground as Moria was slammed viciously downwards. The tall figure flashed past like a streak of black light, striking the earth where Moria had fallen. The ground erupted, forming a large crater from which the creature emerged, its gaze already locked onto Moria, who had managed to evade the direct hit.
Suddenly, a slash of blinding speed, almost too fast for the eye to follow, shot out and struck the creature squarely in the chest.
Thud! The strange figure was thrown back over ten meters, landing heavily on its knees. A deep sword wound marred its chest, blood flowing freely down its bizarre torso.
It looked down at the injury, its expression betraying no hint of pain. It touched the wound, brought its bloodied fingers (or claws) to its mouth, and licked the blood away with an excited fervor, its eyes burning with an even more intense battle lust.
"Big Brother said I get to fight him," Edward Weevil announced, lumbering forward casually, hefting his enormous Bisento onto his shoulder.
Moria struggled to his feet nearby, grimacing as his partially healed wounds tore open again, blood flowing freely once more.
The creature's thick bear arms suddenly swelled, doubling in size. It bent its powerful deer legs, terrifying strength visibly gathering. Without any warning, it vanished again. Almost simultaneously, Weevil, relying purely on his incredible combat instincts, charged forward to meet the attack.
The two monstrous figures collided. In terms of raw power, they seemed evenly matched. They exchanged blows in a furious flurry – the flash of Weevil's massive blade against the creature's Haki-infused fists and hooves. Every strike generated powerful gusts of wind; every impact created violent shockwaves that resonated through the air.
The strange creature's martial arts skill was incredibly potent. Each attack carried the crushing weight and oppressive momentum of a falling mountain, putting immense pressure on Weevil. Its fists and kicks shattered the air, creating sonic booms like ten thousand firecrackers exploding simultaneously – the sheer sound was deafening.
Weevil, lacking any formal training in swordsmanship or martial arts, fought purely on monstrous instinct and overwhelming physical power.
The combination of high-level technique and monstrous physiques plunged the two combatants into a white-hot battle. Moria and the other onlookers watched grimly, the heavy sense of dread that had lingered since Jijinia Island settling over them once more.
Figures blurred across the landscape – battling on the ground, clashing in the air, crashing through the forest – their speed was simply too great for most to follow. Onlookers could only track the fight by the thunderous explosions echoing from their collisions, the swirling clouds of dust and debris, and the swathes of trees being felled like matchsticks.
The cacophony of battle finally woke the sleeping Fia. She rubbed her drowsy eyes, spotted the strange creature fighting Weevil, and murmured sleepily, "Huh? Ingram? Why is Ingram fighting someone?"
Gabo and Limu woke up too, instantly stunned by the ferocity of the battle unfolding before them. They stared wide-eyed, completely frozen in place.
"Someone can actually fight Ingram evenly?!" Gabo whispered incredulously. "Limu, pinch me! Tell me if it hurts! Am I dreaming?"
Limu promptly pinched Gabo hard on the face. Gabo yelped and cursed loudly.
"It hurts? Then it must be real!" Limu muttered, glancing nervously towards Bege, who was observing the fight nearby. "These guys… they're really strong. Good thing we didn't try to resist them properly." Gabo nodded vigorously in agreement.
"Ingram! Hey! I'm over here!" Fia called out cheerfully, standing up on the lounge chair and waving.
Ingram instantly saw Fia. With a flicker of movement, he dodged Weevil's descending Bisento and appeared before the little girl in a few swift leaps. Bege's nearby crewmates instinctively moved aside, giving him space.
"Fia, are you alright?" Ingram asked, crouching down before her, his bizarre features softening with genuine concern.
Fia shook her head happily. She held up her half-empty cola bottle. "Ingram! Look! Black fizzy water! They gave me a whole crate! Ingram, you can have this bottle!"
Ingram smiled, a surprisingly gentle expression on his strange face. He playfully tapped Fia's nose, then carefully lifted her onto his broad shoulders. He glanced down briefly at Gabo and Limu, who immediately hugged each other in terror.
Fia promptly slapped Ingram lightly on the head. "Don't scare Limu and Gabo!" she scolded.
Ingram chuckled heartily, then turned his gaze towards Bege, his expression becoming impassive once more. "Seeing as you have made Fia happy," he stated in his strange, drawling voice, "I shall permit you to remain on the shore of this island for a few days."
With an air of haughty dismissal, Ingram turned and walked away. Gabo and Limu quickly scrambled to grab the crate of cola before carefully following him, the trio disappearing back into the depths of the forest.
"Bege… that guy… he's strong," Moria commented gravely, watching them leave.
Bege nodded slowly, his expression thoughtful. Just then, Weevil lumbered over, covered in numerous cuts and bruises from the intense fight, before promptly collapsing unconscious onto the ground.
Even with his monstrous resilience, Weevil hadn't been able to defeat Ingram. He had pushed himself to the absolute limit, fighting on sheer stamina and willpower alone. Now that the battle was over, his body could no longer sustain the effort.
Crew medics immediately rushed over to tend to Weevil's injuries.
"Heh heh heh, don't worry about him," Bege suddenly laughed, noticing the grim, perhaps intimidated, expressions on his crew's faces. "The New World is full of guys like that, you know. Are you scared? If you're scared, you can transfer to logistics. Don't bother being part of my combat crew."
He knew the recent string of brutal battles – the near-fatal encounter on the deserted island, the overwhelming ambush on Jijinia Island – had taken their toll, instilling a sense of fear and doubt within his men regarding the dangers of the path ahead.
Instantly, the expressions of the gathered crew members changed. Doubt vanished, replaced by fierce determination burning in their eyes.
"Godfather! What are you talking about?!" one of the long-time members shouted out defiantly. "We escaped the Marines' encirclement alive, facing down Vice Admirals and their strongest recruits! Who could we possibly be afraid of after that?!"
"Hee hee hee hee! That's more like it!" Bege grinned broadly, his confidence infectious. "Listen up, men! We've only just started out! We can't compare ourselves yet to those old-timers who've been sailing these seas for decades! But we have something they don't – time! Just because we can't beat them now doesn't mean we won't crush them in ten years, or twenty! My goal," Bege declared, staring out at the vast ocean with fiery ambition, "is to become the supreme ruler of these seas! You all better pull your weight and live up to my expectations!" He burst into wild laughter again.
"Don't worry, Godfather!" "We'll follow you anywhere!" "We'll die before we bring shame to your name!"
Burning fighting spirit filled the crew's eyes. Many of them were among the earliest members who had joined Bege, fiercely loyal and devoted to him, much like the core members of Doflamingo's 'family' were to their own captain.