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Noir was startled and tried to change direction, but the fog, like a conscious beast, quickly engulfed his ship.
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The surroundings turned into a white expanse. Noir hit his head in frustration; he had been too careless.
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He thought that with Nami''s god-level navigational skills, everything would be fine. But the sudden fog gave him a harsh reality check.
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"This fog doesn''t seem to be naturally formed," he thought. Having learned the basics of navigation from Nami, Noir knew a little about the sea.
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In this thick fog, the currents seemed to follow a strange pattern. His compass was useless, its needle spinning wildly.
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What worried Noir even more was that this fog, like a sticky substance, not only obscured his vision, but also dulled his heightened sense of the weather.
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With his navigational skills sealed, Noir was helpless and could only rely on his haki to sense the environment.
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There was indeed some activity, but it wasn''t on the surface - it was underwater.
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Boom!
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A surge of power came from the sea, sending huge waves into the sky and lifting Noir''s ship into the air.
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Two ferocious sea beasts rode the waves, opening their bloody mouths to bite the ship from both sides.
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Grabbing the railing, Noir fearlessly lunged at one of the beasts.
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Drawing his Pure Heart Sword, he leaped over the sea beast, raised his blade, and slashed down with fierce sword energy.
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A huge gush of blood erupted from the beast''s head, and it roared in pain. Using its head as a springboard, Noir propelled himself toward the other beast.
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"Let''s test Hiten Mitsurugi-Ryu''s moves on you!"
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With his black eyes gleaming, Noir swung his waist and feet in the air, grabbed his Pure Heart Sword backwards, and slashed at the beast''s head.
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"Ryūtsuisen!"
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A terrifying sword light flashed, and the violent slash nearly pierced the sea beast''s entire body.
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Both beasts were badly injured and fell back into the sea. Noir gracefully landed on the deck, sheathing his sword.
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As the blood spread over the water, Noir could feel more sea beasts being drawn to him through his haki.
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"Damn," Noir muttered, staring at the sea below. It would be nice to have a crew to fight these beasts with him.
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Instead, he was on his own, busy to the point of exhaustion.
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A group of sea creatures, attracted by the blood, swam towards the ship. Just as Noir prepared to face them again, a clear whistle suddenly echoed through the dense fog.
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As if responding to a command, the sea creatures immediately left Noir''s ship and swam toward the source of the whistle.
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Noir was stunned. Were the sea creatures so organized?
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He decided to follow the beasts to find the source of the whistle. Whoever controlled the sea beasts could help him escape the fog.
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But Noir overestimated the speed of his ship. The sea beasts swam frantically, and he soon lost them.
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It wasn''t a big deal, though. He was close enough to sense several figures in the distance with his haki.
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There were many of them, and one of them had a particularly strong aura, though not as strong as Noir''s, indicating a formidable fighter from East Blue.
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Interestingly, their ship seemed to have been destroyed and all of them were in the water.
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Suddenly, someone riding on something quickly approached Noir.
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A man dressed like a native, riding a dolphin-like sea beast, raced towards him like a speedboat.
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"Die, outsider!" The native, his face painted with red stripes, spoke in a savage tone.
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He held a spear in his hand, and with the help of the sea beast, he swiftly climbed onto Noir''s ship, aiming for Noir''s head.
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The barbarian''s sudden attack infuriated Noir.
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Did he think he could kill him so easily?
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Noir scornfully caught the spear with his bare hands and crushed the shaft with a quick squeeze.
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After destroying the weapon, he kicked the native in the face, causing his nose to bleed instantly.
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"Damn!" The man knocked down by Noir lunged at him again, trying to strangle him with his hands.
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Angered by this tactic, Noir activated his Devil Fruit ability.
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His form grew larger, his grotesque bear face exuding a strong sense of intimidation. He grabbed the man with his massive bear paw.
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Seeing Noir turn into a bear, the man''s face showed fear as he shouted, "A bear?! You''re a devil!"
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Noir grinned and said, "A devil? You try to kill me without a word and call me a devil?"
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With a powerful squeeze, a crunching sound was heard and the native howled in pain.
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Nearly crushing the man, Noir threw him back into the sea, where his fanged, red-spotted, dolphin-like sea beast quickly rescued him.
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As he fled, the man shouted, "Wait, outsider! Red Leaf Island will be your grave!"
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Noir watched him disappear and sneered, "Don''t worry, I''ll find you soon!"
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As he approached the group of humans, Noir could hear the sounds of battle. Were they fighting the natives as well?
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As his ship drew closer, Noir finally saw the people in the water through the thick fog.
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A group of humans riding red-spotted sea beasts held spears in their hands, eyeing their enemies like prey.
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Four people were swimming in the water, near the wreckage of a ship that had probably been destroyed by the sea beasts.
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Despite the ship''s condition, Noir recognized it as a pirate vessel by the skull flag floating in the sea.
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Among the natives was the man Noir had chased away. He whispered something to a leader-like figure who then became angry.
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Ignoring the natives, who looked like clowns, Noir curiously examined the four pirates in the water.
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A small crew of pirates, not new, but like Red-Haired''s, each a tough character.
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Among the four, the face of a young man caught Noir''s attention.
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Noir stared at him and murmured, "That face... those freckles, they look so familiar..."