The collision of the two ships sent a shudder through the ocean. Wood splintered, and metal groaned.
But for the Marines on the warship, this wasn't a frightening moment.
It was the sound of opportunity.
"Brothers! Look at them! These aren't just pirates—they are walking promotions!"
He pointed his blade at the terrified crew of the Salamander Pirates.
"These are all military merits! Whoever seizes them gets the credit! Do you want to stay privates forever? Or do you want to rise?!"
"NO, SIR!" the soldiers roared back.
"Then kill them all!" the Commander shouted. "The military merits are mine! I've already claimed that bald one!"
"Then I'll take the one with the long blade!" a sergeant yelled back.
The morale of the Marines exploded. Energized by their commander's greed for glory, they grew wildly enthusiastic.
Usually, soldiers feared boarding battles, but Raleigh's reforms and the promise of rewards had changed them into hungry wolves.
"Charge!"
Countless Marine soldiers leaped across the gap between the ships.
They brandished their cutlasses and rifles, engaging in fierce combat with the pirates they had already targeted.
The lanky Marine Captain, however, had a different objective.
He ignored the small fry.
From the very start, he had set his sights on the biggest prize: the enemy captain.
"Giant Lizard Humphrey Don!" the Captain shouted. "I've been chasing you a long time. Today will be your end!"
With a powerful push of his long legs, the Captain launched himself into the air.
He soared over the heads of the fighting men, landing gracefully in the center of the pirate ship's deck.
Upon landing, he did something strange.
He did not immediately attack. He didn't even raise his fists.
Instead, he began shifting his body back and forth.
Step, sway. Step, sway.
His feet moved in a rhythmic beat, constantly alternating positions.
His hips rocked, and his long arms swung loosely by his sides.
To the confused pirates surrounding him, it looked like he was performing a peculiar, primitive dance in the middle of a battlefield.
"What is this fool doing?" a pirate muttered.
"Die, damn you!"
An irritated pirate lackey, angered by the Captain's lack of attention, saw an opening.
He lunged from behind, swinging a heavy rusty blade at the Captain's head.
But the Captain was immersed in his rhythm.
Just as the blade was about to make contact, the Captain's body dipped low.
He crouched abruptly, and the pirate's blade sliced harmlessly through the empty air where his head had been a second ago.
"Too slow," the Captain hummed.
Before the lackey could react or pull his sword back, the Captain's long leg swept out from his crouched position.
CRACK!
"Aaaaaah!"
The pirate screamed as his ankle was instantly shattered by the sweeping kick.
Pain forced his mouth wide open.
But the dance wasn't over.
Using his hands to support himself on the wooden deck, the Marine Captain inverted his body, balancing on his palms.
With the momentum of a spinning top, he whipped his right leg viciously through the air.
THWACK.
His heel connected perfectly with the screaming pirate's neck.
Another faint crack echoed—the pirate's cervical spine had been shattered. He collapsed instantly, silenced.
From the deck of his paddle-ship nearby, Raleigh watched the scene unfold within his perception domain.
His eyebrows went up.
"Interesting," Raleigh muttered.
He had been angry at the Commander for being reckless earlier, but now his expression revealed intrigue.
"This Marine Captain... his martial arts are exceptionally formidable."
Raleigh analyzed the movements.
These techniques bore no resemblance to standard Marine combat styles, which usually focused on rigid discipline and brute force.
This style was fluid, rhythmic, and deceptive. It was rarely seen in the North Blue.
"It looks like a dance," Raleigh thought, searching his memory. "The constant movement, the handstands, the kicks... It reminds me of Capoeira."
Back on the pirate ship, having drawn first blood, the Marine Captain seemed thoroughly warmed up.
The rhythm took over.
He moved through the crowd of pirates like a whirlwind. With every fluid movement, he fractured joints.
Ankles, necks, shoulder blades, spines—nothing was safe.
His offensive methods appeared limitless. Every part of his lanky body—elbows, knees, head, heels—became a lethal weapon.
Moreover, his attacks were notoriously difficult to predict. A punch would turn into a handstand; a dodge would turn into a spinning kick.
By the time a pirate detected the lethal intent concealed within his dance, the price had already been paid in broken bones.
Soon, the deck was littered with groaning pirates. The Captain, seemingly bored with these ordinary opponents, turned his gaze toward the massive figure at the helm.
"You!" the Captain pointed.
Humphrey Don, the captain of the Salamander Pirates, was shaking with rage.
"Damn you!" Humphrey roared, his voice deep and gravelly. "How dare you kill so many of my men! Do you know how much it cost to recruit them?!"
Humphrey was a large man, built like a brick wall. He had painstakingly gathered this crew for his journey from the North Blue to the New World.
He had big dreams. And now, this dancing Marine officer was destroying everything.
"I will crush you into paste!" Humphrey shouted.
The irritated pirate captain decided to eliminate this pest personally. He charged forward, raising a massive fist.
However, he quickly found he'd kicked an iron plate.
The Marine Captain didn't retreat. He executed a perfect backflip, dodging the charge and landing directly before Humphrey Don.
Planting his hands on the ground, the Captain whipped both legs upward.
"Iron Whip!"
His legs were coated in invisible armor—Armament Haki. They struck like steel cables toward Humphrey Don's chest.
CLANG!
The attack was deflected entirely. Humphrey Don had crossed his powerfully built arms to block the kick.
But his arms were no longer human skin. They were covered in thick, overlapping green scales.
"A Devil Fruit user," the Captain grinned, flipping back to his feet.
Humphrey Don had activated his ability.
He was a user of the Lizard-Lizard Fruit. His arms were now thick and monstrous, possessing extraordinary defensive capability.
Observing his opponent's half-lizard transformation, the Marine Captain didn't look scared. Instead, he revealed a twisted, eager grin.
"Yes! Yes!" the Captain cheered, bouncing on his toes. "This is the form I wanted! Show me more!"
His relentless pursuit of Humphrey Don stemmed precisely from this Devil Fruit ability.
Transformed into a lizard-man, Humphrey Don resembled a heavily armored tank.
He had immense durability and strength, though his agility suffered considerably compared to his human state.
In the Marine Captain's eyes, this semi-transformed lizard was not a monster.
He was the perfect punching bag.
"Here I come, Lizard!"
The Marine Captain let out a bizarre, high-pitched war cry.
Whoop!
He accelerated suddenly, executing a series of feints.
He cartwheeled to the left, then flipped to the right.
His movements included subtle lateral sways, rapid weight shifts between feet, and synchronized arm motions that confused the eye.
Humphrey Don's vertical, reptilian pupils darted frantically.
Left. Right. Up. Down. He tried to track the Captain's ever-changing motions, but he was getting dizzy.
"There!"
Humphrey Don guessed the pattern.
He abruptly swung his massive, scaled right hand toward the left, aiming to intercept the Captain.
His sharp claws glinted in the sunlight. Humphrey Don already envisioned the naval officer's blood spraying across the deck.
But he guessed wrong.
THUD!
Instead of hitting flesh, Humphrey felt a boot slam into the side of his face.
The Captain had feinted left but kicked right.
Humphrey Don's head absorbed the vicious blow, the impact sending his towering figure stumbling backward.
Before Humphrey could recover, the Marine Captain vanished.
He reappeared behind the lizard-man. Planting his hands on the deck, he kicked both legs fiercely upward, aiming for the spine.
CRACK!
"Gah!"
Humphrey Don's waist suffered a brutal blow.
Several of the green scales covering his lower back shattered under the Haki-infused kick.
Whoosh!
The Captain disappeared again, bouncing away.
Humphrey Don roared in pain and frustration.
His eyes snapped open, glowing with feral rage. He anticipated the next attack.
He crossed his powerful arms in front of his chest just as the Captain came flying in again.
CLANG!
The sound of metal clashing rang out across the sea.
The Marine Captain's leg collided with Humphrey Don's crossed arms.
The Armament Haki covering the Captain's foot grated against the hard scales, sending sparks flying in all directions like fireworks.
This time, however, Humphrey didn't get knocked back.
"Kehahaha!" Humphrey laughed darkly. "I've got you now, little dancer."
His right hand moved with surprising speed. He snatched the Captain's ankle mid-air.
"Gotcha!"
The Captain hung upside down, caught in the iron grip of the lizard-man.
"Die, Marine scum!"
Suddenly unleashing his full strength, the muscles on Humphrey Don's right arm bulged to twice their size.
He raised his arm high, attempting to slam the Marine Captain violently onto the hard deck to break every bone in his body.
But the Marine Captain didn't panic. He didn't even stop smiling.
"You think you caught me?" the Captain whispered.
Though his ankle was restrained, his body was still fluid. He used the momentum of Humphrey's swing to swing himself upward.
Like a snake, he twisted his long body.
He wrapped his free leg around Humphrey's neck and hooked his arms around the lizard-man's elbow.
"Triangle Lock!"
"What?! Let go of me! Arghhh!"
Humphrey Don's plan failed instantly!
The Marine Captain clung to his joints like an octopus.
No matter how hard the giant lizard thrashed, he couldn't throw the man off.
The dance had turned into a deadly embrace.