MARINES - A ONE PIECE story (ENGLISH) - Part I

CHAPTER XLIII - Leo and Taurus

It was only a sensation at first, but it gradually grew stronger as vice-admirals Myr and Leroy approached it. Closing their eyes, they could perceive a bluish aura, like a flaming vortex waiting for one thing : to finally explode. Helio.

Pursuing this aura through the abyssal maze, the two soldiers finally arrived in a huge cavern, much more spacious than the previous ones. At its end, a new tunnel went into the rock, behind the collapsed remains of the door that had stood there a few minutes before. At the end of this last tunnel, the culmination : the Fountain of Youth, and the enemy who coveted its virtues. It was necessary to be quick, because Helio was already on his way. But a last wall stood between the soldiers of justice and their goal : Pisces and Caprico stood on each side of the last tunnel, unfailing sentinels, ready to defend their master in the pursuit of his dream.

...

- Kit cat claws ! roared Leo.

The pirate's claws lacerated the rock so deeply that the entire cavern seemed to shake. While Jun narrowly dodged the multiple enemy assaults, sometimes parrying his attacks with her blades, Emmy, hidden behind a stone column, shivered :

- Do you think she'll make it ? We have to do something ! she sobbed, clutching Igana.

- We have to stay hidden, we are not fighters. Lady Pankhu entrusted me with your protection : if something were to happen to you, I wouldn't forgive myself...

- Pantherage ! cried the pirate.

With clenched fists, he crushed the ground.

- Feline Jaws ! he shouted now.

He brought his two hands together, mimicking the lion's powerful jaw, and leapt at Jun, ready to slash her with his claws. With a deft flick of the wrist, she managed to deflect his deadly attack, and the pirate's nails crunched on the cook's sharp blade.

- You only know how to defend yourself, punk ? he grumbled. Give me more than that ! I want to see the fury in your eyes when I rip you open !

- Patience, pussycat, she provoked him. I begin by taming the beast and finish it only when it is inoffensive.

The other sneered.

- You do ? Then I am going to force you to attack !

In a second, he leapt towards Emmy and Igana, who screamed in fear. Jun jumped and ran after him. As he was about to slice them, the young woman, quick and skillful, stepped in. In a deafening and shrill noise, blades and nails clashed, causing a deluge of sparks. The onslaught of attacks was so great that Emmy and Igana fell backwards. But the lion's claws were superior in every way, both faster and more powerful, and Jun soon gave in under the pressure. Her right knee buckled for a second, but it was enough for Leo to disarm her with his right hand. Then, with the left hand, he sank his long claws into her flesh.

The cry of the young woman was such that it completely covered the metallic clatter of her blade falling against the rock. She had had the reflex to protect herself with her arm, which was now lacerated and bleeding profusely. Already, the muscle and bone were visible in her gaping wound. Leo turned his head towards Emmy and Igana, and a toothy grin spread across his face.

- Your turn, pretty girls.

He dropped to all fours, ready to pounce on the young women like a feline. But as he took his momentum, Jun interfered again. A crude tourniquet had been tied to her arm, and she held a thin, single-beveled blade in her steady hand.

- This is Usuba, one of the blades my chef, the great Asidama, gave me before he died.

She assumed a defensive posture again and breathed calmly.