"T-The Tyrant…!?" Perona stammered in a daze.
He had a frame as large as Moria's. A notebook in hand, and with the hat he wore, one's first impression was that of a bear-like man. Though he wasn't particularly trying to be intimidating, Iris's wariness grew at the sight of the man who had suddenly appeared in this place without a ship.
Perona, still collapsed and unable to move, was terrified by the appearance of another of the Seven Warlords, her eyes darting about, searching for a way to escape.
"…'Tyrant' Bartholomew Kuma. I did not expect you to appear here. Do you have business with Moria?"
"Yes. I have a message from the government."
"Hmph…"
The Seven Warlords were all strong-willed pirates who, as a rule, did not listen to anyone… but Kuma was the exception, a pirate who acted with loyalty to the government. It was hard to believe he was the same man who had once been the king of a certain country and had come to be called the "Tyrant" for his acts of utmost cruelty as a pirate.
Without letting down her guard, Iris continued her conversation with Kuma.
"I have heard of you. The fool who lost so much because you did not choose when you had the right to."
"…I see. An evaluation worthy of her."
"You do not object?"
"That evaluation is accurate. There is no need for me to correct it."
Her words had been mocking, provocative… but Kuma did not get angry, nor did he demand a correction. He didn't even talk back. Iris couldn't help but frown at his posture, but she understood that this was likely why he was called a "fool."
He was too accustomed to accepting everything.
That was the way of a slave.
"Is that so? I have received instructions concerning you, you know—"
Without a hint of strain, Iris tossed aside the large knife she was holding and immediately drew her bow. She did not aim for a vital point, but rather for his limbs, as a feint.
"—'Beat him half to death so he can't move for a while,' she said."
"She understands the government's movements. Her judgment is as sharp as ever."
The moment he saw the three arrows fired at high speed, Kuma vanished from the spot.
Iris had heard about Kuma's ability from Kanata. Without panicking, she sensed that he had moved to her left and nocked another arrow.
Kuma was a Paw-Paw human from the Nikyu Nikyu no Mi. The name and sound of it didn't suggest much danger, but the paw pads on his palms and the soles of his feet could repel anything. A kick off the ground allowed him to move at high speed, as if teleporting, and if he held up his hands to block an arrow, it would be deflected without piercing him.
By the time Iris had taken aim, she could see that Kuma had already removed his gloves.
"Tch!"
She clicked her tongue and ducked, dodging the invisible cannonball that came a moment later. It was a technique where the paw pad repelled the air, creating an impact with the force of a cannonball. With her Observation Haki, she could roughly tell where the attack would come, but because it was invisible, she had to move more than necessary to be certain.
"Won't you let me do this quietly?"
"Of course not. I owe her a debt, but I'd rather not be beaten half to death."
The invisible cannonballs—a technique called Pad Ho—assailed Iris like a storm, but she dodged them as if she could see them, occasionally firing an arrow at Kuma. The arrowheads were clad in Haki, powerful enough that even Kuma would not escape unscathed from a direct hit. More importantly, a Haki-clad weapon could ignore the ability of the paw pads. Unable to touch them carelessly, Kuma had no choice but to continue dodging.
The arrows were not powerful enough to pierce through the Pad Ho, so she had to attack by weaving them through the gaps… but Iris was skilled enough to be given direct orders from Kanata. It was no trouble for her.
"You are strong. She must have judged that you could beat me half to death, so I expected you to be skilled, but…"
"Yes. Even among Twilight, I rank quite high."
Even with Kuma's teleportation-like movements, if she could predict his actions with her Observation Haki, she could place an attack where he would appear. If the Pad Ho was his only long-range attack, there was nothing to fear, and she judged him to be an opponent she could defeat, as long as she remained calm.
But unlike Kuma's ability, Iris's arrows were finite. There was a limit to how many she could carry, and she had already used a fair number while moving about the island. She had retrieved some, but not all of them. If she were to fire them like rain, it was only a matter of time before she ran out.
"…Have you run out of arrows? Will you give up?"
"Don't be ridiculous. I'd be scolded if I reported a mission failure over something like this."
Kuma had several wounds on his body, but none could be called deep. She could see machinery through the tears in his clothes, but she decided to confirm that later, and Iris slung her bow back over her shoulder. With her arrows gone, she had no choice but to fight empty-handed.
Iris moved at high speed into Kuma's guard. Kuma reacted, and she deflected his arm, landing a powerful kick to his abdomen. But the sensation of the impact made her grimace.
"So hard…! Is your body modified?"
"It is. I am the government's 'Human Weapon'—my name is 'Pacifista.' It is still incomplete, though."
"I see…"
So his body was already exceptionally durable. If he combined that with a Haki defense, then indeed, even Iris's Haki-infused kick could not easily destroy it.
"It is not just that I have become more durable. This is also possible."
"!?"
After those words, Kuma opened his mouth, and a mechanical beeping sound was heard as it began to glow. Iris's eyes widened in surprise, and she dodged the laser that was fired at the last possible moment. The spot where the laser had struck exploded, and the brick wall melted.
"…You're equipped with some strange weapons."
"It incorporates Kizaru's laser into a weapon. It is the work of Vegapunk."
"Vegapunk… I have never met him in person, but I have heard rumors that he is a good-for-nothing man."
"…He is not a bad man. It is simply unavoidable, given his position."
Ignoring Kuma's rebuttal, Iris moved in close to his feet. Using the three-dimensional, high-speed movements of the Six Powers, she rained kicks all over his body, testing what level of power would get through. Of course, Kuma did not take them undefended, reinforcing his already durable body with Haki to block the attacks.
After their umpteenth clash, Iris created some distance, and Kuma closed in on her. It was the high-speed movement of his Nikyu Nikyu ability.
"Kuh, not good—"
"My apologies, but you will disappear from here."
Repelled by Kuma's paw pad, Iris vanished from the spot.
After letting out a deep breath, Kuma put on his gloves and picked up the notebook he had dropped. He brushed off the dirt and noticed Perona, cowering nearby. With her abilities sealed by the Seastone cuffs, and with any attempt to escape likely to get her caught in the battle between Kuma and Iris, she had curled up as small as she could, praying that she wouldn't be harmed.
"Are you a subordinate of Moria?"
"Y-Yeah… um, sorry, but could you take these cuffs off?"
"Seastone."
Kuma's paw pads could not remove the tightly fastened cuffs. The ship Iris had likely arrived on was too small for Kuma to board, so he had no choice but to have Perona do her best to find the key.
Fortunately, the key was in a neatly organized box, and she was able to remove the cuffs. Perona, who had felt as if she had been on the verge of death, could finally relax.
"You saved me. You came to see Moria-sama, right? As a token of my gratitude, I'll guide you."
"That would be helpful. By the way, is it alright to leave that as it is?"
Kuma pointed to Oars, who had been rampaging through Thriller Bark with acrobatic-like movements. It wasn't as if Perona could do anything about it. She shrugged and replied, "We'll have to ask Moria-sama," and then climbed the wall at the entrance to the port, heading straight for the mansion.
Oars was rampaging in front of the mansion, so if they got any closer, they would be caught in the crossfire… but Kuma walked behind Perona without a care in the world.
Perona glanced back at Kuma several times and asked, "Are your injuries okay?"
"They are not light, but they are not what I would call serious. I can treat them after I have finished my business."
"I-I see… um, well. I think Moria-sama is probably inside the mansion, but if we get any closer, we'll run right into Oars's rampage…"
The ones fighting were the Straw Hat Pirates. She could see that Oars was getting battered, yet they did not flinch at the overwhelming difference in mass. The very fact that they could do so much damage to Oars, who moved so nimbly for his size, already made Perona want to stay away, but since she had offered to repay him, she couldn't very well run.
"So, we just need to get to the mansion in the back without them noticing?"
"Right."
Upon hearing this, Kuma scooped Perona up into his arms and teleported to the front of the mansion. Perona, who had been moved in a flash, was wide-eyed, not understanding what had happened.
Before he even listened to what Perona had to say, Kuma opened the door to the mansion, entered, set her down, and asked for directions. That said, having come this far, there was really only one place he would be.
They headed for Moria's private chambers, and after knocking on the door of the room they soon arrived at, a few times.
"Moria-sama, you have a visitor."
There was no reply to Perona's words. She knocked again, but there was no response. Thinking he might not be there, she pushed the door to check inside.
Moria's private chambers were generally unlocked. Since he didn't do anything himself, the zombie servants usually came and went to clean and prepare meals, so the door was kept unlocked.
What Perona and Kuma saw when they opened the door was.
"Moria-sama?"
It was the figure of Moria, lying on his back, dead, the oxidized blood staining him black.