One piece: I,Akaino will not die easily

Sam Roberts clenched his teeth and stared at the towering figure approaching to claim his life. Letting go of the ship's wheel with a faint touch, he straightened the captain's hat that was tilted on his head and slowly drew the curved blade from his waist. The blade's edge pointed directly at the advancing marine.

From the moment he first followed the old captain in slave trading to the day he truly took command of a pirate ship at the age of sixteen, how many times had he not fought for his life to survive? He had always been bold and meticulous, daring to venture and fight.

Negotiating with underground arms dealers to secure weapons and ammunition, choosing the safest fencing channels, and keeping a group of unruly veteran pirates in line—all these made the eighteen-year-old an experienced pirate captain. Ruthless raids on merchant ships, indiscriminate looting of innocent townsfolk, and opportunistic clashes with weaker peers gradually earned Sam considerable notoriety in the North Blue.

After entering the Grand Line, he relied on his ship's speed to evade marine pursuits several times. However, the current predicament—being hunted by a vice admiral of the Navy Headquarters—was entirely beyond his expectations.

No chance of winning! Despair flickered across Sam's face. He knew very well that if the adversary were a Zoan or Paramecia Devil Fruit user, he might still have had a fighting chance relying on his crew and his swordsmanship. But the being before him was a walking natural disaster.

Sam roared to rally his men, attempting to salvage their crumbling morale: "There's nothing to fear! A Devil Fruit user is just a landlubber!! Push him overboard!!!" With that, unwilling to see his pirate career end here, the pirate captain ordered the nearby gunners to aim a cannon at the conspicuous target—standing nearly three meters tall—close by.

—BOOM! The cannonball struck its target precisely, blasting away half of the figure's body. "Hit him!!" The gunner, drenched in cold sweat, murmured in disbelief.

Meanwhile, the assistant responsible for loading the cannon shouted jubilantly while waving his arm, but it sounded more like self-reassurance to everyone else: "No one can survive that kind of damage!! Even a Sea King wouldn't…." His voice abruptly cut off mid-sentence as if it were choked in his throat.

To the pirates' astonishment, the marine—whose body had been half obliterated by the cannonball—acted as though he felt nothing and continued advancing toward their captain.

This time, the pirates saw clearly: through the shattered body, they could observe its inner structure. There were no internal organs, only fiery molten magma coursing through. The molten substance swiftly filled and restored the gaping hole, just like ripples settling back into still water after a stone is thrown.

"A… a monster!!!" Finally, one of the pirates dropped his weapon with trembling hands and muttered.

"We can't win against that… that monster of a marine!" cried a lanky pirate with a red bandana tied around his head, who then turned to flee. Flames surrounded the ship, but ignoring them, he leaped into the sea.

His blank mind didn't consider how to survive in the unpredictable waters of the Grand Line without a ship. His only thought was, "Escape! Escape as far as possible, as long as I can get away from that monster…" More pirates made the same decision, abandoning the ship and diving into the sea, even as their captain still stood onboard.

The pirate captain noticed his crew's actions but could not concern himself with them. Sakazuki had already reached him. The towering figure cast a shadow that entirely engulfed him. The marine finally spoke his first words since boarding: "Black Sam—Sam Roberts. Bounty: 540 million berries."

Captain Sam gripped the gem-encrusted curved blade tightly in both hands and let out a beast-like roar. With no room to retreat, the pirate lunged forward with sudden force, slashing upward at the enemy's head. Sakazuki didn't dodge or evade.

His hand shot out like lightning, catching the blade between his index and middle fingers.

His free hand began to emit choking black smoke from the shoulder, accompanied by a low bubbling sound like boiling water. With a faint sizzle, his entire arm turned a murky orange hue. Sakazuki unleashed a close-range punch, striking Sam square in the chest.

The blow pierced through the pirate captain's torso, emerging from his broad back. The surrounding flesh was scalded and curled from the intense heat, releasing a faint, burnt stench.

Lowering his head to Sam's ear, the marine ensured his words were heard clearly. The Devil Fruit user spoke slowly: "Die, insect!"

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expect another chapter later