Luffy Drowning! Zoro vs Octopus Hatchan!

Still carrying the wounds from his duel with Mihawk and down to a single intact blade, Zoro grapples with the octopus Fish-Man Hatchan and finds the fight a struggle even though his foe is unarmed. The strain pulls Sanji's attention away, and Kuroobi seizes the opening to strike the cook. With neither swordsman able to reach the drowning Luffy in time, the burden of saving him falls to others sneaking around the edges of Arlong Park.

Nojiko and Genzo slip into the base and dive into the pool, but Genzo cannot crack the cement weighing down Luffy's feet, so Nojiko lifts his head clear of the water to breathe while Genzo stays under to revive him. Hatchan retrieves his six swords for his six tentacles, prompting Zoro to borrow Johnny and Yosaku's blades and adopt Three Sword Style. When Hatchan targets his open wounds and jabs his abdomen, Zoro answers with Tatsu Maki, shattering all six swords and launching the Fish-Man into the air to claim victory.

Too injured to dive after Luffy himself, Zoro leaves the rescue to Sanji, who plunges in knowing Kuroobi holds the advantage underwater and is struck from behind. Elsewhere, Chew pursues Usopp around the island while a freshly bandaged Nami resolves to return to the fight. The manga had Zoro break Hatchan's swords with Oni Giri before finishing with Tatsu Maki, whereas the anime uses only the latter. 4Kids merged this episode with part of episode 40 into a single broadcast.