"Hiss…"
The next morning, Weiss woke up groggily, holding his head as he sat up. He quickly scanned the surroundings and breathed a sigh of relief when he saw that he was alone.
He stepped out onto the deck and saw that the other three were still sleeping—probably due to drinking too much the night before. When they set out from Twin Swallow Island, the locals had loaded a massive amount of alcohol onto the ship, nearly covering the entire bottom of the hold.
After last night's battle and celebration, about a tenth of that stock was already gone.
And don't underestimate that tenth—they only had four people drinking!
Fortunately, Weiss had long since trained his alcohol tolerance. Otherwise, last night might have ended in utter embarrassment.
"Morning Weiss! Didn't expect you to be up before me," Ace greeted cheerfully. After the previous night's bonfire and drinks, the group felt less like strangers than they had during the day.
Perhaps during the day, it was only nostalgia for the original story or the allure of treasure that made them tolerate each other aboard the same ship. But now, after sharing hardship, they could at least be called comrades in misfortune.
Still, they weren't about to forgive debt—every coin owed must be paid!
"There's food in the kitchen. Grab it yourself—and bring some for me while you're at it." Weiss lay back down in the same spot and posture as before.
...
...
"No need," Ace said. "Kadun already went to get it."
"You know, it still doesn't make sense. You're just one year older than me, but you're so damn strong—and so lazy too!" Ace was very puzzled by this. You know, he was raised in the mountains like a wild animal by Garp, and even he didn't end up that strong.
Weiss responded casually, "Hard work, luck, and twelve years of monotonous training, day in and day out. That's how."
He didn't mention how close he'd come to death—or how those years had defined his existence.
"Twelve years, huh? Then we've trained about the same amount of time. So why's the gap between us so big?" Ace frowned, still confused.
"Oh right, I forgot to mention talent. Without talent, your efforts only get you so far." If Weiss hadn't had the right potential, he doubted that arrogant master would've ever bothered to teach him.
Still, Ace wasn't lacking in talent either. Garp had laid down a solid foundation for both brothers. Without that, they wouldn't have climbed to the second tier of world-class fighters so quickly after setting out to sea.
"Are we heading back into the island today?" Ace asked.
"Of course," Weiss replied. "We were too busy rescuing you guys yesterday to see anything. I still haven't had a proper look at the island's sights."
Just then, Kadun returned with the food, and they quickly ate their fill. They stuck to yesterday's plan—Kadun would stay behind and guard the ship. After what happened last night, he was even more determined to stay put.
The other three followed the same small trail into the forest and arrived at the place where Deuce had been strung up. They encountered little danger along the way. The tiger Weiss had killed was now just bones after a night of decay.
Many creatures had enjoyed nature's generous offering.
"Let's split up here," Weiss suggested. "The island's pretty big. We can each explore a different area—see if there's anything interesting, like some treasure or strange scenery."
"Sure," Deuce clapped his hands. "I'll head east. When that eagle grabbed me yesterday, I think I saw a fruit grove in that direction. I'll pick some to bring back."
"I'll just look around casually," Ace added. He didn't try to stop Deuce but reminded him to stay safe.
After agreeing to return before dark, the trio split up and headed their separate ways.
Weiss figured that the tiger and eagle from yesterday were likely the island's most dangerous beasts, so he wasn't too worried about Deuce running into trouble.
After all, in the original story, Deuce had adventured with Ace all the way to the New World. He wasn't weak by any means.
At least not as useless as Kadun.
The weather had changed. The previously sunny sky had grown dark and cloudy—it looked like rain was coming. That was typical for oceanic islands—the weather was always unpredictable.
As Weiss strolled through the forest path, he spotted a few apple trees. The low branches held a handful of ripe fruit. He wasn't picky, so he plucked one and bit into it.
A little sour, a little sweet—good enough to replenish some vitamins.
After circling the trees and finding nothing of interest, he left. Chuckling to himself, he muttered, "As if a Devil Fruit would be that easy to find."
Weiss wandered aimlessly, not realizing when a deer had started following him. The deer stared at him curiously, as though it had never seen a creature like Weiss before.
It didn't sense danger, so it just kept tagging along.
Weiss had noticed it a while ago but didn't mind. What a bold little thing—stupid deer!
If he hadn't just eaten, or if it had shown the slightest hint of aggression, it'd be dead already. But for now, it was just part of the amusement on this otherwise boring walk.
Meanwhile, Deuce had already reached the grove he'd seen yesterday. It turned out to be a peach orchard. A group of monkeys—at least a dozen—screamed and shook the trees, guarding them fiercely.
Deuce crouched nearby with a large lump swelling on his forehead.
He'd been hit by one of the monkeys.
Thinking the place was safe, he'd rushed in to grab a peach—only to get beat up. It wasn't that he couldn't dodge; it was just that there were too many of them.
Now he was trying to figure out how to deal with the horde.
Elsewhere, Ace stood beside a lake filled with crocodiles. It reminded him of when the three brothers used to catch crocs as kids. Back then, Luffy had gotten swallowed whole.
If they hadn't pulled him out in time, Luffy might've ended up as fertilizer for the trees.
At that same moment, on the far side of the island, a pirate ship approached. Its mast was broken—blackened at the edges by fire—and the hull was covered in scars and gashes.
The pirates aboard were lying around listlessly, some collapsed, others slumped against the railings.
In the center sat a massive man over three meters tall. His upper body was bare, revealing layers of wounds and scars. He wore a pirate hat and stared ahead, eyes glinting with cruelty and violence.
He was the captain—Torre.
An infamous pirate with an eight-million bounty in the East Blue.
"Damn Navy… if it weren't for that damn storm, I'd have killed every last one of you," Torre growled. Looking at the state of his crew, he knew they needed supplies. They'd run out of provisions and had barely survived the naval assault and storm. At this rate, they'd all starve to death.
"Captain! There's an island ahead!" the lookout shouted excitedly.
An island meant food.
The once lifeless deck came to life as pirates rushed to the railings, shouting in excitement as they gazed at the distant shore.
"Ha! Heaven must be watching over Captain Torre! We found land at our darkest hour!"
"Captain, you're truly destined to be the Pirate King!"
"Hahaha, Dinger, you said it! Once we get ashore, you'll be the second to enjoy the spoils!" Torre laughed and looked at the pirate who spoke, standing tall at the rail. His massive frame exuded raw dominance, making the others instinctively back away.
"Kiss-ass," someone muttered.
The surrounding pirates looked at Dinger with envy and jealousy. He'd only been on the ship for a month and was already promoted to combat squad leader.
If only they could talk like him.
By now, rain had started to fall, pattering lightly from the sky.
---
Currently at chapter 65 on Ko-Fi
https:// ko-fi.com/sami27