Chapter 188
Title: Next Phase (1)
….
Slamming the buff man to the floor, Tsumi sighed. So easy. Why is this so easy? She wanted to prove her worth, to prove that she is worthy of her current title. The prove she was worthy of being called the sin of Greed.
Tsumi liked her position as a Priest before Amon destroyed Birka. She just sat in her butt, 'blessing' people with her palm raised, and worshipping the seemingly non-existent God. She quite enjoyed it. Being lazy but getting what she wanted… but there was only a tiny- no, a major problem. She just wanted more.
More power. More respect. More laziness. More food. More attention. She wanted more of every good thing.
So she eyed the position of Arch Priestess, maybe that would cure her hunger? Maybe then she would finally find peace? She wanted to try it, but before she could, God himself descended on the mortal realm. She barely believed God existed, so when she saw the little boy with the power of Thunder, her whole existence was shaken. She was scared, scared that she would be punished for her sin, her greed. But luckily, the man seemingly didn't notice a thing.
Then she started to work under him. She had no problem, she even felt better than before, as she had people working directly under her. She had absolute control over them, just after God himself. She was satisfied- unfortunately, it only lasted a few days.
Her greed returned.
She wanted to climb the ladder, but she wasn't getting an opportunity. It was then, as Amon introduced the Sins. Tsumi knew this must be her fate, this must be her time to shine. So she tried, tried, and tried. Against Duy, Braham, Cricket, she fought and finally reached the position that was made for her.
The Sin of Greed.
She didn't mind the name though, it described her perfectly. She got a new mansion, a bunch of maids, a few of the best Cloud Cars, and a position just after God himself. She was happy with her new position. So she wanted to prove herself, to not lose this position.
Sighing at the thoughts, Tsumi raised her hand above her head, glancing at the brigade of charging men. She needed to prove herself, but her competition was hard. She didn't have Conqueror's Haki like Hancock, no powerful fruit like Urouge and Raki. She wasn't weak per se, but she was probably the least gifted among the current sisn.
Yet she earned the position. She didn't have talent on Haki or a strong fruit, yes, but she did have techniques. Master of Rokushiki, Raki's Sword teacher, and finally - Wind Style martial art.
An orb of air started to condense on her grasp, slowly growing in size as it became as big as a basketball. After that, blades, shuriken like blades appeared on each side of the orb, forming a — "
Tsumi streamed her strength on her hand and whipped it down, throwing the ball of destruction towards the incoming horde. Cutting the brigade of 21 men at once, splattering blood all over the place.
Wind Style is a martial art made from the bits of Fishman Karate. It was hard to make, but with a Supercomputer on his hands, Amon didn't have to do the hard work. It wasn't perfect yet, but it did its job. A special martial art for his people was what made him unique from the other Emperors, and currently, Tsumi was the best at it - even better than Amon himself.
Tsumi took a breath in. "All hail Kami!" She threw her fist in the air and dashed forward, grabbing her sword and coating it with a sharp wind.
She was greedy, yes, but she had a limit. Her God was the limit.
As greedy as she was, the thought of climbing higher than this, changing God's position never crossed her mind. She, after all, grew up with people teaching her to lay her life for God, to fear him and love him – other than that, how can she, a mere mortal, hope to change his position?
«–★–»
Affection, fear, respect, and obedience. Amon was feeling all this coming from Tsumi. Ah, how much he loved his cult, they were perfect for everything.
Dragging the dead body of Shiki by his collar with one hand, and grabbing his steer-wheel head with another, Amon teleported inside the building, above everyone as he observed the fight for a second, before yelling, "Everyone, time's up."
Everyone paused. Amon's people paused hearing his order, and Shiki's people paused seeing the… beheaded man in Amon's hands. They gulped lightly as their eyes enlarged.
"S- Sir…!!" Indigo, who was beaten by Urouge and made floor ridden, yelled. "You bastard, you killed him! You scoundrel!"
He tried to get up, tried to launch himself at Amon, but Tsumi came and stepped on his head, making him fall face first.
"Kami-sama, do I kill him?" Tsumi asked softly, smiling ever so slightly, making Amon smile too.
"No need. Tie him up. He is a great scientist, he has his uses." Tsumi immediately nodded at his suggestion and karate chopped Indigo in his neck, making him go unconscious.
Seeing this, every enemy man stiffened in their position. Amon glanced at them. They can be useful, but he needed to do a cleanup. Some of them were very loyal to Shiki.
Sensing their current emotional state with his Observation Haki, Amon confirmed that around 80% of the people here are forced by Shiki to work for him. The remaining people work for him out of sheer loyalty.
'Well… killing them won't be tough.' Amon dropped Shiki's body on the floor, angering some soldiers, but before they could react, Amon moved. He grabbed his sword and moved at Lightning speed, slashing them on their neck and beheading 20% of people that were alive after the fight with Sins.
Pccht~
With a high pitched sound, bodies and bodies started to drop to the ground, their heads separated and blood filling the room, splattering everyone's dresses. The remaining people gasped in fright.
Sheathing his sword, Amon looked at their faces. "First of all, this wasn't a random kill. I can feel who was loyal and who was not and killed the loyal ones. You guys were forced by him? " Amon pointed at Shiki's corpse. Everyone nodded. "I know, no need to worry. That's why I let you live."
He rose in the air, floating a few meters above everyone. "You have two choices, one – join me. Two – leave, I won't kill you if you choose to leave, I don't kill people as long as they're not my enemy." Amon lied.
Everyone stiffened, considering if he would really let them go. Amon wasn't completely lying, he didn't need people who would work half-heartedly, people who might betray him, so he wasn't quite with the idea of having everyone here work for him. Though he was confident, many would choose the first option. First of all, he killed their worst enemy, and second, they didn't have a place to go back.
Amon smiled amicably. "Just a heads up, my people get the best treatment." Because the happier an employee is, the harder they would work. "You'd be treated like nobles, of course – considering you act like one."
«–★–»
Meanwhile, Honey Queen was busy whistling in awe, observing the fight that was taking place in front of her.
Cling!
Three blades confronted a small knife, Hawkeye Mihawk skillfully blocked all of Zoro's attacks.
'Damn.' Honey Queen was awed. She stood a few meters away, in Barite's ship. 'So this is the world's best swordsman… can Amon beat this guy? He… who am I kidding, that monster would probably one-shot him.' Honey Queen sighed.
The Straw Hats had come here to recruit a cook, and after a series of coincidences, they confronted the world's best swordsman, Hawkeye Mihawk. Honey Queen was scared shit, grabbing her dial to call Amon for any emergency, but luckily, it seemed things were under control… well, except for the part where Zoro is fighting a life-and-death battle.
Honey Queen felt her body cool down. She felt a sense of security realising Amon can come any time and one-shot Mihawk, saving her life if Mihawk suddenly went berserk. He would protect her if she gets in the danger zone of people like Mihawk. Probably.
Falling on her butt as Hawkeye slashed Zoro's chest, Honey Queen dazed off. 'But I have to say… this Zoro guy is cool.'
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P.S 1000 powerstones for a bonus chap