“The Attacks of Hypnotist Django”

I only had time to flinch sideways — a claw slashed the air a centimeter from my face, leaving a sparkling trail. Kuro vanished. I immediately understood — Shakushi. An almost impossible movement, sharp, chaotic, and yet — precise.

A click to the right — instinctively, I turned my shoulder, turning my arm into a spring, and blocked the first strike; the claws slid along the metal. And right away — another click, from behind, but I was already leaping forward, somersaulting, my shoulder touching the deck.

"Fast," I muttered. "But still tangible."

Kuro recoiled, arching like a cat.

"What the…" he hissed.

"Not so simple, huh?" I shot back, straightening my stance.

But the surprise on his face didn't last long — in a moment it twisted into a smirk, and he said:

"So you're a fruit user," Kuro smirked. "I've encountered one before."

"Yeah," I said, not taking my eyes off him.

"Being a fruit user doesn't mean you're strong," he smirked, fiddling with his claws. "But your skill… interesting. Can you hold me off?"

Our fight was interrupted by a sharp crack of gunfire, echoing a couple hundred meters away, striking the night like a distant thunder.

"Your ship?" I asked with a grin, pointing my thumb toward the stern where flashes flickered and metal clanged.

"You didn't come alone!" he added, annoyed.

"Of course not," I replied, still watching him closely.

And the thought flashed through my mind — they've already started the assault.

The gunfire explosion intensified, the sounds approaching like a wave about to crash over us.

Side of Sabo

As soon as we stepped onto the deck, we were immediately surrounded by a dense crowd of pirates — no less than thirty. They sprang from cover, from the lower decks, as if waiting for a signal. The screech of metal, shouts, the clang of weapons. I felt the deck tremble slightly beneath my feet — from the force.

From behind the pirates, a pirate stepped leisurely onto the deck, spinning a disc on a chain like a pendulum. He looked lazy, but irritation was audible in his voice:

"Hey! What are you doing on our ship?!"

"Well, you don't need to know," Gin replied, starting to spin his two metal tonfas.

"We'll catch you first, then find out everything," the pirate smirked and waved his hand. "Syam. Buti. Take care of them."

At that moment, both brothers sprang into action. Syam dashed low, almost brushing the deck, his clawed gloves gleaming in the moonlight. Buti, in contrast, charged straight ahead like a living battering ram. Their faces twisted in vile anticipation.

Gin stepped forward sharply, meeting them. He parried Syam's first attack with one tonfa and blocked a powerful swinging blow from Buti with the other. The screech of metal and dull crunch vibrated in my bones.

"Go handle the glasses guy," Gin threw to Sabo, knocking Syam sharply on the shoulder. "I'll distract them!"

Sabo didn't reply — just nodded and stepped forward, his gaze locking on the pirate still spinning the disc, now staring straight at him. The wind tousled his hair, and the shadow of his hat covered his eyes.

The crowd of pirates between them and the strange pirate was already gathering to rush the attack.

"Karina, I'll handle the main guy, and you help get rid of the others," Sabo said, rushing forward, breaking a path with his pipe toward the strange pirate with heart-shaped glasses (Jango).

"Alright," she smirked, pulling back her cloak. Hanging from her belt were balls with needles, smoke bombs, and a staff — she stepped forward, pulled out two whistling grenades, and threw them into the thick of the enemies.

The crowd screeched, the air filled with smoke and hissing — chaos began.

Karina slipped between them like dancing, spinning a rope with a weight. One pirate fell, clutching his throat, another howled as he was hit in the temple.

Shouts, coughing, the clang of weapons and pounding on wood merged into a hum, drowning even the shots from nearby decks. Sabo burst into the ranks like a hammer — the pipe in his hands flashed silver, throwing enemies aside. Every strike was precise, every move confident and direct.

"Hey!" he roared, dealing with another pirate. "Don't hide behind others!"

The odd pirate stood still, lazily swinging the pendulum on his chain. Moonlight gleamed on his glasses.

— Everything is as it should be, — Jango said softly. — You come to me yourself. It saves energy.

And suddenly — movement. The pendulum flashed in the air in an arc, and Sabo felt a strange jolt in his head. His consciousness seemed to twitch aside, fogging for a second.

"Watch the pendulum…" Jango whispered. "One, two, Jan…"

But Sabo slammed his pipe into the deck at his feet. Chips flew up, shaking his body, bringing back focus. Sabo leapt forward, not looking Jango in the face, aiming at his torso.

The strike was blocked by the pendulum —

"Got focused!" Jango said.

But Sabo was already starting a second attack, not giving the opponent time to recover. One-two — strikes to the torso, shoulder, then a sweep. Jango almost lost balance, and Sabo added a short uppercut with the pipe to the ribs. He flew back, hit the mast, and collapsed on the deck, growling.

"You're too slow," Sabo said, walking toward him. "And your pendulum tricks — that's all you've got?"

Jango rose, wheezing. His glasses slid to the side, the chain clanged against the boards.

"Not yet…" he exhaled. "I'm not alone here…"

He sprang to his feet with sudden sharpness, stepped back slightly, and stretched out his hand with the pendulum to the remaining pirates. His eyes widened, voice grew hollow and stretched.

"Watch… the pendulum… You are strong… STRONGER… than ever! One, two, Django!"

The pendulum spun in a spiral, and at that moment several pirates twitched, as if waking from a long sleep. Their eyes filled with a strange gleam, their movements aggressive, fast, coordinated.

"Oh, damn," muttered Sabo, getting into a fighting stance.

"Sabo!" Karina shouted from somewhere to the side. "He's empowering them! They're not just dumb thugs anymore!"

"I see," he gritted his teeth. "Well then… let's start round two."

The first three rushed him simultaneously. Sabo barely parried a saber strike, then dodged an axe, rolling aside. An explosion sounded somewhere behind — Karina threw smoke bombs again. But the hypnotized pirates no longer feared — they moved through the smoke like zombies, their synchronization frightening.

Gin's Side

These two weren't very strong… but they were too sneaky.

Syam and Buti didn't attack straight on — they constantly dodged, circled, pretended to retreat only to pounce from behind a second later. They acted like frightened cats until they closed the distance — then their behavior changed instantly. Smiles turned into snarls, clawed gloves into deadly traps.

"Ha, he's got eyes like a fish!" Syam squealed, trying to distract.

"We'll tear you apart now!" Buti shouted, charging forward like a falling column.

Gin crossed his tonfas sharply, blocking the low strike. The blow twisted his shoulder, but he held firm. At that moment, Syam's claws flashed from the side — Gin ducked, rolling on the planks. The wooden deck trembled from Buti's next leap.

"Just like greyhounds hunting," Gin muttered. "Only I'm not the prey."

He stepped forward, the tonfas spinning, emitting a muted whistle. He already saw how they worked — one rushing straight, the other sneaking from the side, striking, and vanishing. A classic pair's tactic.

"Neko-Yanagi…" they shouted in unison.

"…DAIKOSHIN!!!"

They charged together, claws flashing in the moonlight. Gin exhaled, letting his body flow — the first tonfa blocked Syam's attack, the second struck Buti's stomach. The vibration of the clash ran through his arms, but he didn't stop — a step back, a turn, an elbow strike to the jaw. Buti staggered.

"I see you," he threw and kicked Syam in the chest, sending him rolling across the deck.

But that wasn't all. Buti and Syam suddenly straightened, lifted their heads, and howled — Jango swung the pendulum again, and the big guys' eyes went glassy.

"They're hypnotized," Gin muttered, watching from the corner of his eye, quickly assessing the situation. Though both weren't very strong or dangerous, under Jango's control they became a real threat.

Buti lunged forward with incredible force, swinging his clawed glove. Gin dodged, but the strike broke deck planks nearby, and flying chips covered his face.

Syam meanwhile dashed from the flank, trying to grab Gin in a hold, but Gin skillfully clenched his tonfas,

"This technique's time has come — Demon Man's Tactics," Gin said coldly.

With a sharp whistle, the tonfas started spinning, creating a whirlwind of kinetic energy around them. The metal spheres at the tonfas' ends — like gyroscopes — spun wildly…

The strike landed right on Syam's arm