Gion, still trembling with indignation, suddenly sat up on the broken bed, completely ignoring the mess around her.
Her face was flushed with a burning rage, her lips curled into a furious snarl. Without hesitation, she raised one arm to cover her bare breasts, and with the other, she delivered a powerful slap directly to Tiberion's forehead.
Smack
The hit landed squarely, and an immediate, shocking physical reaction rippled through Tiberion's body.
His muscles tensed instantly, as if every fiber had responded to an invisible threat, contracting in a sudden whip-like motion that shot down his back and arms.
Without uttering a word, his body exploded with a sonic boom, and in less than a second he had leapt out of the bed, landing beside it, balanced solely on the toes of one foot, arms extended outward in a pose of absolute equilibrium.
"…"
Gion froze for a fraction of a second.
The body in front of her was a sculpted monstrosity: every muscle perfectly defined, aligned in visible blocks protruding from his abdomen, chest, arms, back, and legs.
They weren't just developed muscle fibers — they were units of raw power, like hundreds, maybe thousands of internal gears waiting to explode with force at any moment.
That vision struck her without warning, leaving her speechless, caught between involuntary admiration and self-disgust.
'Stupid! How could you think something like that now, of all times?!'
She cursed herself internally, gritting her teeth in frustration as she fought off that conflicting urge born somewhere between fear, fury, and a shameful part of herself that refused to shut up.
She pressed her lips together in contempt for her own body, and without wasting another second, reached to the side, grabbed the white sheet hanging partially off the mattress, and wrapped it around herself until she was completely covered — all except one arm and a leg.
Then, without a word, she raised her leg like a spear and launched a vicious kick at the center of Tiberion's body — his crotch.
'I'll destroy that damn thing first. Then we talk,' she thought, her eyes blazing with hatred.
"…"
Tiberion looked at her with cold eyes, but didn't get angry.
His pupils dilated for a moment, and a wave of dark energy surged through his entire body, stirring the air around him like a storm of latent pressure on the verge of release.
He quickly flexed the muscles of his right arm and, with a single palm strike — as fast as a whip — launched a blow that tore through the air with sheer speed.
Boom
The blast of energy was so powerful that the already damaged bed split cleanly in two.
Upon seeing the destruction, Gion flinched instinctively. Her body reacted before her mind could think — pure combat reflex — and she rolled to the side, sliding herself under the shattered bed frame.
But it was useless.
Before she could even plan her next move, Tiberion was already on her. He appeared.
And his fist came down like a hammer, aimed directly at where she was hiding.
However, Gion forced her body into action. She activated her Observation Haki in an instant, focusing solely on the murderous intent radiating from the monster before her.
Just in time, she managed to dodge the blow.
Boom
Cracks spread in all directions, as if an earthquake had erupted right at that exact spot.
"Bastard…!"
Gion panted, teeth clenched — not from physical exertion, but from the storm of emotions burning her from the inside out.
She couldn't — wouldn't — accept that this bastard of a man was pushing her this far. He had brutally violated her, and now, without a trace of remorse, he was attacking her.
Was this what he thought it meant to be a man? To be strong?
Couldn't he see the traces left on her body — the marks, the blood still staining the sheet, the expression on her face?
Did he not understand — or did he just not care — that she was broken, humiliated, that she hated him with every fiber of her being, even if her body responded in ways she couldn't control?
But it didn't matter.
She wasn't going to die here.
"Die, you filthy beast! How dare you treat me like this!?"
"Do you even know who I am!?"
Her voice echoed through the messy room.
Her eyes were now two volcanoes of murderous rage, glowing with a dark fire that seemed to burn away even her reasoning.
In a single heartbeat, her Armament Haki exploded across her skin, darkening and hardening her muscles to the limit. At the same time, her Observation Haki activated, picking up every breath, every tension in the monster's body.
And she charged straight at him.
If she was going to fall… she'd fall fighting.
Boom
Boom
Boom
The first blows were brutal.
Each clash between her fists and Tiberion's sent shockwaves through the room, ripping chunks from the floor and making the ceiling beams groan.
Furniture flew, the walls cracked.
But something was off.
Gion felt it.
Even with her Haki hardening her arms, every time she blocked one of Tiberion's punches, a shiver ran through her. A deep pain that seeped into her bones, a pressure that made her muscles go numb instantly.
And worse… when she managed to land her own attacks — when her knuckles struck his torso — it felt like hitting a flexible structure.
As if her power dissolved on contact, absorbed, nullified, canceled out by some unseen mechanism.
"What… is this?"
Gion stepped half a pace back, panting, not taking her eyes off Tiberion. Her gaze drilled into him, looking for an answer — but what she saw only confused her more.
Tiberion was smiling.
A very arrogant smile.
And then he moved.
Like a shadow given form, he extended his left arm with impossible speed. In an instant, his fingers closed like iron clamps around Gion's neck, squeezing tightly and locking her completely in place.
He caught her just as she retreated after her last strike — in that split second when her guard was slightly open.
He had been waiting for her. He had read all her patterns.
He had already activated the Demon Brain.
In the midst of the "battle," his mind had simulated hundreds, thousands of variables. All of them.
He found the perfect instant and used it.
Boom
He lifted her off the ground like a doll, and without giving her a second to react, slammed her into the shattered floor, making the entire room tremble.
Gion felt the air forced out of her lungs. Pain shot up her spine like an electric current. She didn't understand how he had done it — she hadn't felt it until it was too late.
!
And Tiberion didn't stop.
Steam began to rise from his pores, as if he were boiling from within.
Then, he closed his right fist.
He clenched it so tightly that all the muscle groups in his arm activated as one. The fibers contracted to the limit, hardening, aligning, preparing to release the full power of his body into a single point.
She didn't respond. She only looked up from the floor, eyes wide and lips parted, her body unable to move after the impact.
Then Tiberion brought his arm down.
Aimed straight at her skull.
The fist dropped like a meteor.
But it didn't touch her.
Boooooom
The strike hit the floor, just inches from her head. The entire ground caved in.
Even though he hadn't used Haki, the thermal energy released was so immense that, had it struck her directly, Gion's head would have been reduced to a cloud of blood.
A single discharge of force equivalent to thirty thousand tons.
With that power, even a diamond reinforced with ten layers of Haki would've been shattered to pieces.
Gion was still lying on the shattered remains of the floor, her body drenched in sweat, breathing ragged and her legs weak.
The white sheet she had wrapped herself in earlier now barely covered her; it had become a second, damp layer, marked by her body heat and the scent of her own skin.
Tiberion slowly released her neck. His hand left a faint mark on Gion's skin, shaped by the pressure but without bruising.
Without haste, he bent down to pick up his black pants and calmly put them on. Then, with the same tranquility, he slung his black shirt over his shoulder, leaving his torso still bare.
Before leaving, he turned his head slightly, not fully facing her, and spoke.
"Of course I know who you are… Vice Admiral of the Marines, alias Momousagi, real name: Gion."
Then, his tone lowered just a bit, "But even knowing that… I, Tiberion Hanma, sincerely thank you for the warmth you gave me last night."
Gion looked at him, eyes wide in surprise. Her chest rose and fell faster, and her lips trembled. But when her mind processed that last sentence, it felt like a spear had been driven into her gut.
"The warmth I gave him…?"
The disbelief shattered her from the inside. All her suppressed rage boiled into black smoke inside her guts.
So now her first time… her humiliation, her pain… was a favor she had offered?
Her teeth clenched in fury. If she hadn't been so exhausted, maybe she would've screamed. But instead, she only managed to murmur something barely audible as her fists tightened:
"Son of a bitch…"
That's when a figure entered through the destroyed doorway.
Shyarly.
Her eyes reflected a mixture of tension and respect.
For days, she had learned not to interfere when Tiberion lost his temper, and that's why, even though she had heard the blasts, the blows, and the shouting, she hadn't dared cross the doorway… until she sensed it was safe.
Seeing that Tiberion was already leaving, she let out a discreet exhale. She walked over to Gion, knelt beside her carefully, and offered her hand to help her up. She said nothing about what had happened, asked no questions.
She simply extended one arm and held a folded piece of clothing in the other.
"Here. Put it on."
Gion looked at her in silence. Her legs were still somewhat unstable, but she accepted the help without saying a word.
"Don't worry. What happened last night… I didn't see it, I didn't hear it, and I'm not telling anyone."
Gion dressed slowly. It was a light blue qipao, long and form-fitting, with golden trim and a high slit on the left leg that allowed movement without losing elegance.
It was a beautiful dress, designed to highlight her figure, even in this fragile state.
As she fastened the last button at her neck, her face regained a bit of composure. She raised her eyes toward Shyarly, and in a steady voice — though full of conflicting emotions — asked:
"W-What kind of relationship do you have with that monster?"
Shyarly had been expecting the question.
She crossed her arms beneath her chest and replied softly, as if the words had been carefully thought out:
"The same relationship you have with Tiberion-sama… that's what I have."
Gion looked at her, confused. Her mouth opened… but no words came out. Her mind struggled to grasp the exact meaning of what she had just heard.
But it didn't make sense. It was ambiguous, strange, and at the same time, disturbingly honest.
"Me…? What kind of relationship could I possibly have with that animal?"
Shyarly remained silent.
The way she lowered her eyes for a moment was enough for Gion to understand.
Her eyes opened wider.
"Don't tell me that you also…"
The sentence trailed off.
Had she also been a victim of that animal?
She turned away slowly, not looking directly at Gion.
Her voice wasn't cold, but it carried the weight of a sadness she had been holding for a long time. With a melancholy hard to define, she spoke slowly.
"The truth is… when I really think about it… I'm not sure anymore if what happened between him and me was a rape."
Gion looked at her in astonishment, frowning, as if she had just heard something wrong.
But Shyarly went on, her tone unchanged, as if speaking to herself:
"And you're probably wondering why. Why… why I would say something like that after what he did… but it's because… I couldn't help falling in love with him."
"The only thing I truly regret… is not being strong enough. If I had your strength, if I could endure it the way you did… maybe then Tiberion-sama wouldn't need any other woman. Maybe what I am would be enough for him."
"…"
Gion took a deep breath. She couldn't believe what she was hearing.
"…You're in deep. That monster messed with your head using his damn pheromones and testosterone. He slipped the poison into your skin, and you drank it down with your eyes closed."
She took a few steps, her brow furrowed, lips pressed tightly together.
"Men… they're always the same. I've known hundreds like him. Beasts disguised as men. Lewd. Shameless. Thirsty. You can see it in their eyes. They're never satisfied. It's never enough. They want you, take you, drain you… and then move on to the next one."
"But don't worry," she added, turning with resolve, "I'm going to kill him. And when I do, I swear you'll finally open your eyes. You'll see him for what he really is."
Gion said it with a conviction that seemed unshakable. But Shyarly shook her head, with an expression so calm it hurt even more.
"You won't kill him, Gion. You won't even touch him."
"You were unconscious all this time, and still you came at him with everything you had. Do you know what would've happened if he hadn't held back?"
She paused.
"He would've killed you with a single blow."
Gion clenched her fists in silent rage, but Shyarly went on, and her next words were heavier than anything before.
"And if there's a second time… and you know it, Gion… you feel it in your body, in your chest, in your throat… If it happens again, you'll fall. You'll feel it… just like I did. And it doesn't matter how much you deny it, how much you hate yourself for it… you'll fall in love with him too."
"…"
A dreadful silence fell between the two.
Gion said nothing. She only looked at her with an expression filled with disgust, pain, betrayal, fear… and even compassion.
"You're sick, mermaid."
She walked toward the door, her steps heavy, not looking back. But just before crossing it, she stopped, and her words came out like a freezing sentence:
"And you better erase from your mind everything that happened here tonight… because if I find out that anyone else knows, that you told someone, that you whispered even a single word…"
She turned slightly, and her eyes showed a thirst for blood.
"You'll be the first one I come to kill."
And with that, she left.
Outside, beneath the shining bubbles of Fishman Island, the world felt darker and colder.
She kept walking aimlessly through the streets. The people around her were in their own world, unaware of what had just happened.
And then… the tears started to fall uncontrollably.
At first, her lips only trembled.
Then, her throat closed as if something had broken inside.
And finally… she dropped to her knees, not caring who saw her.
She cried. She cried like she never had in her life.
Gion, Vice Admiral Momousagi, the relentless woman, the goddess of the Marines, feared by pirates all across the world… was broken.
Not just by what had been done to her — but by what she felt.
Because deep down, she knew that something Shyarly had said… was true.
"I always played with men… I was always the one in control," she whispered, tears dripping to the ground. "I never let anyone touch me… I was always untouchable…"
And now, without knowing how or when… she had lost everything.
"Damn you, Tiberion Hanma… I don't care where you hide."
"I swear I'll find you. I'll make you pay. And when you're standing in front of me…"
"I'll be the one who decides what you deserve."
________
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