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"Let me show you the power of a giant!"
Dorry roared, swinging his massive sword toward Shin and the others. He was pissed after getting caught off guard earlier and was ready to unleash hell.
Shin watched him charge, not particularly bothered. He hadn't come here looking for a fight—he was just curious. But if a fight was what Dorry wanted, Shin wasn't about to back down.
Besides, he didn't even have to lift a finger. This was a perfect chance to test his crew's skills.
"<Tempest Kick!>"
Kalifa executed the Marine Six Powers technique, launching a blade of compressed air from her kick.
It slammed into Dorry's giant sword with incredible force.
BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM—!
The sound ripped across the island, startling countless prehistoric beasts into a frenzy of roars. Dorry was thrown back, staggering from the impact.
It was almost unbelievable—Kalifa, a normal-sized woman, had sent a giant flying. The Kalifa from the original story could never have pulled this off.
"Damn, I wish I had that kind of power," Nami muttered under her breath.
"You know, Nami, you really should work on getting stronger," Robin advised.
"She's right, Nami," Shirahoshi added, her voice trembling slightly. "The pirates in the New World are very ruthless."
"Is it really that bad?" Nami's face paled. Looks like she couldn't afford to be the dead weight anymore.
"Hah—!"
With a sharp cry, Kalifa used her Float-Float Fruit ability, levitating a massive boulder and sending it crashing down on Dorry.
That was the terrifying power of the Float-Float Fruit—it could turn entire islands into weapons. Among all the Devil Fruits, it was definitely one of the top-tier abilities. Give it to a Marine Vice Admiral, and you could probably train them into an Admiral.
"Baby-5, I've got a mission for you, if you're up for it," Shin said, turning to her.
"Ready for your orders, Captain!" she snapped to attention.
"It's nothing too crazy. I just need you to go hunt some of the local wildlife. We'll have them for dinner."
Shin assigned her this glorious and vital task.
"I'm starting to think I know why you really wanted to come to Little Garden, Shin. You were after the animals all along," Olvia said, a note of pity in her voice for the island's beasts.
Shin just rubbed his nose. Seeing Dorry and Brogy was a minor detour, his real target had always been the island's unique fauna.
This place was crawling with extinct creatures, maybe even dinosaurs. Shin was dying to find out what they tasted like.
Baby-5 headed off to hunt, but considering some of these ancient beasts could be seriously dangerous, Shin sent Monet with her for backup.
Hopefully, they'd bag a dinosaur.
The rumors said they existed here, but who knew if it was true.
————
Meanwhile, the fight between Kalifa and Dorry the Blue Ogre was wrapping up. Dorry was no match for her.
With the Float-Float Fruit, her own advanced combat skills, and the power of Armament Haki, beating him was easy. She could even take him head-on, but she was smarter than that.
Dorry's greatest strength was his raw power, there was no reason for Kalifa to get into a brute-force slugfest with him.
Brogy watched from the sidelines but didn't intervene. It was a matter of Dorry's pride. If he jumped in, it would only make things worse between them—their rivalry might even turn into a fight to the death.
"I lose," Dorry finally admitted. He knew he was outmatched, so he conceded defeat gracefully.
Kalifa held back, not dealing a final blow.
"You must be some seriously promising pirates," Dorry said, laughing heartily.
Shin's expression turned a little strange. These two really had been cut off from the world for a long time. They didn't even recognize him, which meant they had no idea who the Four Emperors were.
Dorry and Brogy had been fighting here for a century—Whitebeard wasn't even born when they started. They'd lived an insanely long time, but their strength hadn't really grown.
If they combined their strength for a single, all-out attack, they might be able to match an Admiral. But individually, Dorry was at the level of a Marine Vice Admiral at best.
Maybe their potential was just low. Or maybe it was harder for giants to get stronger.
"Have you two ever thought about leaving this island?" Shin asked them.
"Are you trying to recruit us?" Dorry asked.
Shin blinked, surprised by the misunderstanding.
"I don't need a giant on my ship. And I don't take men, either," Shin stated flatly.
"Right... With a crew as strong as yours, you probably wouldn't be interested in our strength," Dorry said, sitting down with his knees crossed.
Seeing Dorry sit, Brogy followed suit. It had been a long time since they'd seen other people, and they were eager to talk.
Shin didn't mind chatting. They probably knew a lot of secrets he didn't—like what the seas were like a hundred years ago.
Back then, even Rocks probably hadn't become the ruler of the seas yet.
————
"Huh, Baby-5 and Monet are back already. That was fast." Shin glanced over as they returned.
They had brought back a few animals—some were ordinary, but others Shin had never seen before.
And holy shit, they actually caught a dinosaur!
Looks like this island was even more ancient than he thought.
They had a barbecue on Little Garden and even invited Dorry and Brogy to join. Those two giants could really eat.
"We're off. Who knows if we'll see you two again out on the seas."
Shin and his crew stayed on Little Garden for one night before departing the next day.
"Here, a gift from us." Dorry and Brogy presented their parting gifts—a few massive beasts from the island, each one easily the size of a Sea King.
Shin gladly accepted them. The meat was delicious. This trip to Little Garden had definitely been worth it.
"Next stop, the Alabasta Kingdom," Shin announced, glancing at Vivi.
Hearing his words, Vivi's face lit up with excitement.
"We're really going to Alabasta?"
The intel she'd received painted a grim picture of the situation back home. She wanted to get back as soon as possible to protect her people and her father, Cobra.
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