Chapter 98: You Cannot Fight
On the Grand Line, every Logia Devil Fruit user is no small figure.
Tina was well aware of this, but she couldn't recognize the pirate crew before her. There could only be one explanation: they were newcomers who had just set sail.
They couldn't be allowed to grow. This pirate crew had to be nipped in the bud! Otherwise, they would become a problem for the Marines in the future!
Although the Spade Pirates had ended up here by sheer chance, Tina's sense of duty as a Marine told her that even if the Krieg Pirates hadn't taken the bait, she had still hooked a big fish.
"Rankyaku: Spear!" While still in midair, Tina suddenly kicked a Rankyaku toward Ace's position. But this time, it was different—the air blade she kicked formed into a javelin-like projectile, shooting straight at Ace.
Ace was still stunned by the power of his earlier Fire Fist. In truth, even he hadn't expected the Flame-Flame Fruit's strength to be so immense, so he didn't notice Tina's attack from above.
Ian, however, had been keeping an eye on their surroundings. He knew this was a Marine Headquarters warship, meaning a high-ranking Marine officer must be leading the charge. So the moment Tina launched her attack, Ian spotted it immediately.
He swiftly drew the Enma sword and slashed a sword aura upward. The sword aura collided with Tina's Rankyaku projectile, erupting into a burst of turbulence before both canceled each other out and dissipated.
Tina was startled again. She hadn't expected this pirate ship to have not only a Logia user but also a Grand Swordsman!
This pirate crew was stronger than she had imagined!
Even so, as a Marine Headquarters Captain, Tina had her own pride.
Seeing that her Rankyaku attack had no effect, she abandoned it. She stopped using Moon Step and dropped straight down from the sky, landing on the deck of the Spade.
When Tina had been in midair, no one had gotten a clear look at her. But once she landed on the deck, everyone, including Ian, was stunned.
It was a woman! And a very beautiful one at that!
Ace and the others didn't recognize Tina; they were just a bit surprised. Only Ian nearly gasped aloud. Wasn't this Black Cage Tina!? That meant the Marines here weren't from some G-3 branch but were definitely Marine Headquarters forces!?
Damn, this was trouble! Ace had attacked a Marine Headquarters ship—he was definitely going to be wanted. And since Ian was on his ship, he was in just as much trouble.
Ian's head ached. He realized he might be witnessing the rise of Ace's pirate legend, starting with an attack on a Marine Headquarters warship...
After landing on the Spade's deck, Tina maintained her graceful posture. A cigarette dangling from her lips, she pulled on her gloves and said, "Pirates, state your names!"
Her voice was pleasant, with a calm, steady tone. But Ace wasn't impressed. Tipping his cowboy hat, he replied, "I'm Ace, captain of the Spade Pirates. Why did you attack our ship?"
Tina smiled slightly. "What kind of question is that? You're pirates, we're Marines. Why wouldn't we attack you? Besides, didn't you just destroy our warship?"
"But we only came here to rescue people!" Ace protested.
"..." Tina was momentarily speechless. In truth, the Marines had been somewhat underhanded. They had sent out a distress signal, and the Spade Pirates, despite being pirates, had been willing to come to the rescue. Logically, that was a good deed. But the Marines had turned around and tried to capture them, making themselves look like the villains.
"Tina is disappointed," she said. "But this is a matter of stance. I appreciate that you were willing to rescue Marines, but I have my duty."
Pirates and Marines were inherently opposed. It was destined that they could only be enemies. Between enemies, there was no room for mercy or right and wrong. The Marines spared no effort in capturing pirates, and pirates fought back by any means necessary. That was the theme of this world.
Hearing Tina's words, Ace had nothing more to say.
"Surrender now!" Tina walked step by step toward Ace. "You can't escape!"
"That won't do!" Ace took a stance, on guard against Tina.
Seeing this, Tina had no choice but to act. She suddenly burst forward, charging at Ace, and kicked toward his shoulder.
Seeing Tina using hand-to-hand combat, Ace grew excited and raised his leg to clash with hers.
Watching this, Ian couldn't help but warn Ace, "Don't touch her!"
But Ian's warning came too late. Both Ace and Tina were skilled in physical combat, and their kicks were fast. The moment Ian's words left his mouth, Ace's leg had already collided with Tina's.
The expected recoil force didn't come. Ace saw that where his leg had struck Tina's, it had passed right through.
They had clearly kicked each other, but in an instant, they passed through. Before Ace could even be surprised, he noticed that a black shackle had appeared around his leg.
The shackle was incredibly heavy, as if made of steel.
"What's this!?" Ace was bewildered.
But Tina didn't give him a chance. She lunged forward, her right arm swinging toward Ace's chest.
Caught off guard, Ace was struck by Tina's arm, which passed through him again. Another black shackle appeared, binding his arms tightly together.
Ace fell to the deck. Struggling to his feet, he flexed his muscles, trying to break free from the shackles.
"It's useless. I'm a Cage-Cage Fruit user," Tina said, one hand on her hip, standing gracefully in place. "Anything that passes through my body will be locked! No amount of strength can break my shackles!"
But Ace didn't listen. Flames erupted all over his body as he turned himself into elemental fire.
He thought this would let him escape the shackles. In his mind, shackles could bind a body, but they couldn't bind fire, right?
However, to Ace's surprise, when his body turned to flames, the parts around his chest and leg remained solid, unable to turn into fire.
Suddenly, Ace remembered what Ian had told him about the nature of Haki, and he realized that when Tina had locked him, she must have infused the shackles with Haki!
And indeed, that was the case. Normally, Tina's Cage-Cage Fruit couldn't lock a Logia user, but Tina had already awakened her Haki.
Once Haki was awakened, it could be used, though most people didn't understand what it was and couldn't train it consciously. But Tina was a Marine Headquarters Captain. At Marine Headquarters, there were plenty of Haki users who could guide her. Tina had been training her Haki all along. Attaching and wrapping Haki was the simplest technique, and Tina could certainly do it.
When she passed through Ace's body and left the shackles, she had also left some Haki on them. That was why Ace couldn't break free.
Otherwise, why would Tina dare to attack and capture a Logia user like Ace?
Ace had been careless. If he hadn't made contact with Tina's body, she might not have been able to lock him.
Watching Ace struggle desperately, Tina wasn't worried. Although the New World was full of Haki users, this was only the first half of the Grand Line. She didn't think Ace could use Haki to break her shackles.
The Spade Pirates' members, seeing their captain locked up, grabbed weapons and charged at Tina, trying to attack her and free their captain.
But they were just cannon fodder. Tina easily dodged their attacks. With a sudden motion, she conjured a cage from her hands, locking up all the Spade Pirates' members at once.
Then, Tina turned her gaze to Ian. "That leaves you. Who are you?"
"Me?" Ian blinked. "Ah, I'm just a background extra, passerby A."
"..." Tina stared at Ian.
"Really!" Ian spread his hands, looking at the beautiful Tina with the most sincere expression...
Just then, a series of thuds rang out. The Spade shook again. Ian looked back and saw the other flanking warship approaching. It too fired black harpoons from its cannons, piercing the other side of the Spade's hull.
Ian sighed. He knew Tina's appearance had delayed the Spade's escape. Now that the other warship had caught up, caught in a pincer attack, the Spade was finished.
Several grappling hooks were thrown at the Spade's mast. Marine soldiers from both warships, rifles slung over their backs, swung across ropes and landed on the Spade's deck. Soon, the deck was filled with Marines.
"You are under arrest!" Tina said to Ian. "Under these circumstances, do you think you can still escape?"
At this point, Ian had no choice but to act. Just as he was thinking this, he saw Ace stand up again from the ground.
Facing Tina, Ace subtly shielded the Spade Pirates' members and Ian behind him. Without looking back, he said, "You all go! Jump into the sea and escape! Especially you, Ian! You're different from me—you can't fight the Marines! So, go!"
Ian was stunned.