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| - Knave and D’Artagnan stood quietly, staring at the wreckage of the cafe, as the fires slowly died down. They had managed to get two of the people who were burning inside out, but had been unable to save the others, and even one of the people they had saved had perished. The other had managed to find a temporary shelter from the flames via a partly overturned fridge and only had minor burns. Slowly, but surely, the last of the flames died. True silence reigned for almost exactly five minutes. Then, Art sighed, and turned around and began to walk back. “Where are you going?” Knave asked, still facing the wreckage. “To pack up,” Art said, not turning around to face Knave either, “it was fun, but this island is finished. With the Cazzuto Family in charge there’s nothing we can do.” “You don’t care?” “Not a bit. This island was just another mark. Another stepping stone towards my dream.” “You aren’t mad?” “I’m about as mad as much as I care.” “Are you lying?” “....” Knave turned around, facing the Majin, who did not turn around himself. Knave’s eyes immediately flashed to D’Artagnan’s fist, which was clenched so tightly even the veins were visible. A few more seconds of silence then took place. “Knave?” the money lender finally asked. “Yeah?” “You care?” “Yep.” “You angry?” “Furious.” “What do you plan to do?” “Go kick their asses. Wanna come?” “Yeah.” “YOU WHAT?!” the behemoth man known as Don Cazzuto cried, slamming his fist into a nearby table, smashing it to smithereens. The Don was a truly titanic man, who wore a simple dark purple jumpsuit on most of his body, with the collar open, exposing a white shirt underneath. He had long, flowing black hair, and his skin was pasty white. He also wore a large, death’s head-esque mask. “W-we had them, sir,” Ice John stammered, shaking while he bowed to his master. “AND YOU DIDN’T KILL THEM?!” the Don thundered. “W-well, you ordered us to come back, sir, so-” Don Cazzuto lashed out with one hand, striking Ice John on the cheek and sending him crashing into the wall. The right-hand man slid down silently, bearing with the pain. “Useless fool!” the Don yelled, turning his gaze to the legion of gangsters behind Ice John, who were staring up at him with a mix of fear and awe. “How are we supposed to find them no-” The door behind the henchman exploded outward, sending several of them flying into the air. Light blared in, and the Don and his right hand man raised their hands, shielding their eyes from most of the light. Two figures marched in, one with a trailing scarf, the other with knives in both hands, one facing upward, the other facing downward. As they stepped into the more moderate lighting, their full features became known, revealing Dhahaka D. Knave and D’Artagnan the Majin. “Those are the two!” Ice John cried, “those are the two, Don Cazzuto-sama!” Meanwhile, the two intruders quickly engaged in a private conversation. “Ready?” Knave asked, cracking his knuckles. “Ready,” Art replied, his knives gleaming in the light. “Should I start then?” “Be my guest.” “I’ll take the big guy up front.” “I’ll take the bastard who burned the cafe.” “Alright then!” Knave cried, as the white aura quickly burst to life around him, “Naga Naga no...” “GET THEM!” Don Cazzuto cried, pointing at them angrily, “DO NOT LET THEM-” “...HEAT CANON!” Knave finished, releasing an attack of slightly larger magnitude than the one he had performed earlier, causing thousands of the henchmen to either be sent flying or reel back, grasping at burns. “A DEVIL FRUIT USER!!!” Don Cazzuto cried, leaping out of his chair and lunging for Knave. “MAGNUM-” “NAGA NAGA NO...” Knave yelled, the energy wrapping around his arm, as he lunged for the Don. “-PUNCH!” “...HEAT CANON!” The Don’s fist collided with Knave’s before he could release the energy, and a massive explosion enveloped them. Two shadows, still covered in smoke, sailed out of the expolosion and crashed through one of the walls, landing in a large courtyard, with thick walls on all side, the center of the Cazzuto Family’s fortress. Knave and the Don skidded away from each other, kicking up small dust clouds. They quickly raised their heads, Knave grinning broadly. “You’re pretty good!” Knave called. “The same to you!” Don Cazzuto replied, “though, sadly, you have trespassed far too much! I’m afraid you must die!” “What the hell?!” Ice John cried as his master and the marimo brat sailed through the wall, “is that a Devil-” “Two Knife Style: Black Stallion Slash!” A compressed air slash with a horse-esque aura flew towards Ice John. “Tch,” the mafioso growled, as he quickly crushed the water bottle in his left hand, as the water quickly swirled and took form in his hand, quickly forming a small whip. He swung it quickly, sending it screaming through the air as it deflected Art’s strike. “A knife user?” Ice John asked, as the Majin walked past the screaming and running gangsters towards him, “that’ll be fun.” “You’ll pay for what you’ve done,” D’Artagnan said simply, “Two Knife Style: Bleeding Lilac Cutter!” “Water Whip: Hidden Shark Strike!” The two attacks clashed, with the heat of Art’s air strikes reducing Ice John’s water into steam. Both combatants leaped back, then began circling each other. “Interesting,” Ice John said, “looks like I’ll have to step it up a notch in order to beat a pup like you into submission.” “Step it up a notch?” Art asked, raising both an eyebrow and his knives. Ice John pulled yet another water bottle from his clothes, however, this one was much colder, and when Ice John broke it, he quickly splashed his arms and hands with the water. He smirked at his Majin opponent, then concentrated. The water froze, forming a long series of spiked and rough ice covering his arms. This process finished, he smirked across the room at his enemy. “Ready to die?” “Interesting,” Art commented, quickly shifting to his fighting pose, “let’s see how far that gets you.” “MAGNUM PUNCH!” “NAGA NAGA NO HEAT CANON!” Knave and the Don’s fists collided again, with the energy around Knave’s fist detonating once more, causing a similar small explosion. The two fighters skidded away for each other once more, then returned to facing each other. “Nice!” Knave cried, “looks like Heat Canon can work as a melee attack as well! So I’ll call the distance attack...” He paused, thinking for a moment, then grinned toothily. “Bomb!” “What the hell are you talking about?!” Don Cazzuto yelled, before propelling himself via his incredibly strong legs across the courtyard towards the young man, “AND WHATEVER IT IS DOESN’T MATTER! MAGNUM GALAXY!” He released dozens of punches at once. “Naga Naga no....” Knave cried, preparing to attack. However, right as the Don’s punches reached him, Knave ducked, allowing them to fly harmlessly above. “...Fakeout!” “What the-?” the Don began, but it was far too late, as the young pirate made his move. “Naga Naga no Heat Cannon!” Knave cried, surrounding his fist with heat energy and delivering a smashing hit to Don Cazzuto’s stomach. The mafia boss coughed, blood splattering from his mouth down to the floor, as he stumbled away from Knave. “Impressive...” the Don growled, looking back up at Knave, “few men can even make me feel pain, much less cause me to actually show signs of damage.” “Thanks!” Knave cried happily, dusting off his hands, “and thank you for helping me come up with a new, better technique! Naga Naga no...” Energy began collecting in his hands again. The Don wasted no time and promptly lowered his head, squared his shoulders, and then charged at the pirate boy like a bull. Knave, meanwhile, thrust his hand forward releasing the energy, in a move similar to the original Heat Canon. “...Bomb!” The blast struck the Don quite literally head on, and he was sent flying back, smashing into a nearby wall, leaving a dust cloud. Knave, taking the initiative, charged, surrounding both fists with the energy. “Naga Naga no....” he began. Right at that moment, the smoke cleared, revealing that no one was there! Knave started, skidding slightly, right as the Don seemed to appear right in front of him. “Magnum Punch!” the mob boss cried, delivering a punch straight to Knave’s abdomen. “Gruh!” Knave cried, as the force of the punch took toll. Knave was blown off his feet, and sent smashing into a wall across the way, dust quickly filling the crater he created with his impact. Knave quickly pushed himself away, landing back on his feet. “Ciaosusususu!” Knave chuckled, whilst rubbing some blood off his cheek, “this is gonna be more fun than I thought.” Previous Chapter | Next Chapter
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