One Piece: The Legend of Beasts

Wano Country, Kaido had heard this word many times from Rocks.

It was a country located in a certain sea area in the New World. It was said to have a long history of more than 800 years, but it adopted a closed-door policy and did not accept any outsiders. It also did not join the World Government. What was most incredible to him was that even the navy did not dare to approach this country easily.

The reason for this is that the swordsmen there are so skilled in martial arts that they are collectively called "samurai" in their country. Kaido once wanted to spar with them, but was rejected by Rocks every time on the grounds that the place was not within their target range. He had no choice but to give up the idea temporarily.

The girl he met for the first time claimed to be a samurai from Wano Country, which made Kaido find it difficult to accept at first. However, the kimono she wore and her more traditional tone made him believe it.

——If Rocks is right, going out to sea is absolutely not allowed in that country, then how did this girl get overseas? Could it be that she used the name of a samurai to cheat people? Looking at her stupid expression, it doesn't seem like that. The surname "Kurotan" is not common at sea...

In an instant, a lightning-like thought flashed through his mind.

——Wait, "Kurotan"? Didn't the old woman who came to see Rocks also call herself "Kurotan Higurashi"?! Could there be some connection between these two people?

Thinking of this, Kaido stared at the girl and was about to say something, but then he changed his mind and thought that directly bringing up the old woman's matter might arouse the other party's vigilance, so he changed the subject and asked, "Are any of your companions among those captured?" The implication was naturally to test whether she had concealed any important information.

The girl named Seorizu was slightly stunned, and answered without thinking: "No, I have always been alone. Although this is the first time I meet everyone, they are all very nice to me!"

"is it?"

Kaido felt relieved after hearing her answer and asked, "Looking at the way you dealt with those agents just now, it shouldn't be difficult for you to protect yourself. Why were you caught so easily?"

"If it was because those civilians were taken hostage that made you surrender, you would have been under closer guard."

Uno, who had been silent the whole time, said calmly, "But I just asked Shiki's men, and they only thought you were a tourist passing by, and they knew nothing about your being a samurai. To be on the safe side, all the captives were handcuffed with seastone handcuffs, not just you."

His eyes lingered on the girl's pretty face, and he asked word by word, "So you were caught because you kept something on purpose, Miss Seorizu?"

After hearing what he said, Stusi and Guloliosa looked at the girl warily, waiting for her to give a reasonable explanation.

Seorizu glanced at the four of them, then suddenly curled up into a ball and squatted on the ground, saying dejectedly, "That's because I have no money at all!"

When this sentence was spoken, everyone was surprised.

Before they could ask, Setsu went on to complain, "I spent all my money on the journey and couldn't even buy a string of meatballs. Five days later, I arrived at that island called Kashera, and I was so hungry that I almost drowned in the Sanzu River! I was finally taken in by the townspeople, but before I could even eat a bite of food, a group of pirates suddenly broke in and took us away without saying a word. In the end, I didn't even have a glass of water!" Her voice was choked with sobs when she spoke this.

The four people present were all stunned and speechless for a long time. Stussy even couldn't help but secretly sympathize with her experience.

Soon, Setsu's cheerful voice broke the silence again: "Luckily everyone has been very caring towards me these days, so I managed to hold on until the morning!"

The girl burst into laughter, revealing a smile as bright as a flower, with a few crystal tears hanging on her long eyelashes.

"Early morning? So did you eat anything after that?" Uno asked slowly, vaguely guessing something.

As expected, I heard Seorizu speak frankly: "I found a strange-shaped fruit while they were not paying attention. Although it tastes terrible, it finally filled my stomach! And I don't know why, but I can use cold air at will! Look!"

She gently raised her slender right arm, and a wisp of white mist slowly rose from the palm of her hand and spread forward with the wind. Although the mist was not very thick, it made the four of them shiver.

"Alright, alright! I already know what's going on! If we continue like this, we'll be seriously ill when we get back!"

"Ahahaha! I'm sorry!"

Looking at the burly man who was trembling with his arms folded, the girl touched the back of her head and smiled apologetically, and the wisp of mist slowly returned to her hands.

Kaido exhaled and wiped the cold sweat from his forehead.

At this point, he was almost certain that she had accidentally eaten the fruit that Shiki had used for the transaction, and gained the ability to freeze, which to some extent bought some time for their actions.

——But this girl is really outspoken when she speaks. I wonder what Shiqi’s men will do if they see this.

Fortunately, the crew members of the former Hiku Pirates are currently busy moving cargo and no one noticed them.

"So, Ms. Seorizu, what are your plans next?" Uno looked at her intently and asked curiously.

"I have already made the decision."

Setoorizu put his hands on his waist and said confidently, "I will send everyone back to their hometowns first, and then I will continue to travel around the world. When the day comes that I become invincible, I will return to Wano Country to wash away Kurotan's stigma and compete for the position of general!"

Because she spoke very loudly, the pirates nearby could hear her clearly. Dust, who was cleaning up the battlefield, suddenly stopped what he was doing and stared at the direction of the voice. He could vaguely see a slender figure with a smile of surprise and joy on his dirty face.

——Hey my! It’s really easy to get! That girl was really abducted here. If nothing goes wrong, once I get those things, I can carry out the next plan!

In order to prevent his facial expression from revealing any flaws, Dust quickly returned to his usual lazy look and casually used a broom to clean the blood stains on the ground that had not yet dried.

"You're really brave enough to say that."

Guroliosa shrugged and sneered, "Let's not talk about being a general. Just the failure of this transaction alone will definitely not let it go. Caripora Island is an illegal area. Even if those people successfully return to the island, they will be arrested by the navy on charges of 'colluding with pirates' soon. How will you guarantee their safety then?"

"Well..."

The girl was stunned for a moment, her eyes wandering to the side, a blush on her face, she hooked her drooping hair with her fingers, and whispered: "I haven't thought about this question yet."

"I really got you."

Guroliosa held his forehead helplessly and patiently explained to her, "Instead of accusing them of unfounded crimes, it is better to make the fake ones real and let those civilians submit to the Rocks Pirates. Those who are willing to be pirates can come to Beehive Island, and those who are not willing can go back. The prerequisite is that we have to station our people there and fly the flag of the Rocks Pirates!"

"This way we don't have to worry about other forces disturbing that place."

Stussy chuckled and said maliciously, "It's rare that someone agrees with me this time."

"Stop being so sentimental, vampire!"

"Please keep your image in front of the little sister, Miss Snake~"

There seemed to be an electric current between their eyes, and neither of them gave in. Uno, who was watching this scene, spread his hands and sighed, "It turned out like this again."

After listening to the suggestions made by the two girls, Setoori pursed his lips and fell into thought. After a moment, he turned around and said to everyone: "Although I think what they said makes sense, in life, you have to make your own decisions to feel happy!"

The people who had just regained their freedom looked at each other with hesitation on their faces, as if they didn't know what to do. There was complete silence for a moment.

After a while, a childish voice broke the silence.

"I...I want to go with them!"

A little girl timidly raised her right hand and summoned up her courage to shout, "If I can help more people who are suffering because of the Tianshangjin system, I can accept any fate!"

"Chloe..."

Setoori recognized her as the girl who had helped him unlock the handcuffs before, and was quite surprised. He scratched his hair and asked in confusion, "Is this your choice? Being a pirate is not easy."

"Count me in."

A middle-aged man with a stubble stood next to the girl, put his hands in his pockets and said with a smile, "The courageous Marquez, I want people to call me that in the future."

When the others saw them take the lead, their remaining doubts were immediately dispelled and they all started shouting loudly.

"Instead of letting others slaughter you, it is better to fight to the last moment!"

"Although we are all pirates, they have never treated us badly so far. Even the handcuffs were unlocked by the guy in the helmet!"

"I've always had good luck in gambling, I believe I won't go wrong this time!"

"We trust your judgement, warrior girl!"

"Everyone......"

Seorizu looked at the people who spoke in unison, a pleased smile appeared on his face, "This means I have to add another leg to my journey!"

She turned around and opened her arms to the four people, shouting excitedly: "If possible, please allow me to board your ship. I also want to experience the life of a pirate!"

"Hmph, your lying skills need to be improved. You are worried about them, right?"

Guroliosa spoke directly to her thoughts and said in a cold voice, "It's not up to us to decide if you want to join. We need Admiral Rocks's consent!"

Stussy frowned and said, "As for this group of new friends, we only came to receive them after they were approved in advance."

Uno smiled and said, "But judging from the admiral's usual style, I think he will accept anyone who comes."

Kaido walked up to the girl without saying a word and grabbed her wrist.

Setoorizu was straightforward and a little uncomfortable with the sudden physical contact with the man. Her face flushed and she asked in surprise, "Huh? What do you want to do, Kado?"

"Of course I'm going to take you to meet the others so that they can get to know their future new boss in advance."

Without even turning his head, Kaido pulled the girl's soft body and walked towards the crowded area nearby, saying, "Also, you seem to have mispronounced my name again."

At this moment, Setoorizu suddenly behaved like a little girl, and said shyly, "I...I'm not ready yet! I will be nervous and make a fool of myself in front of so many people at once!"

"That's not for you to say."

Kaido showed a sly smile at the corner of his mouth, still holding her hand tightly, and continued to move forward step by step.

Uno couldn't help but push his helmet up and said with a sigh, "Cadres? You really see the distant future."

"That boy is really cunning. He started the attack so quickly."

Stussy looked at the two people going away, pursed her cherry lips and smiled slightly, "Exactly the same as you."

"Humph, you just spent more time with him on Beehive Island."

Guloliosa turned sideways, pointed at his own face and said proudly, "You know, Newgate and I met once before I joined Rocks, which means I was his first love!"

"Come on, you were just a girl then."

Stussy waved her hand, looked at the tall figure standing on the shore in the distance, and said meaningfully, "However, when a girl develops feelings of admiration for someone from a young age, she will develop a very strong possessive desire, right?"

"I...I'm not being possessive!"

Guloliosa blushed slightly and said slowly, "In my hometown, once you fall in love with the opposite sex at first sight, you will be infected with a kind of lovesickness. The previous emperor and the emperor before that died of this disease! That day I led the troops out on an expedition and happened to meet that man. It was a fight that made us acquainted. When I returned to the country, I found that I was also infected with that disease! The only way to cure it is to find the person himself and fall in love with him!"

"No wonder you went all the way to Honeycomb Island, even at the cost of betraying Amazon Lily."

Stussy looked at her with a little surprise, then smiled brightly, "Are you hiding your thoughts because you don't want others to notice that you are seriously ill? Why not ask me, a scientist, for help?"

"No."

Guroliosa sighed slightly, her eyes becoming sadder than ever before, "As long as I can meet him, this love will never end for me."

"That's true. Suppressing your emotions isn't a good idea. You need to relax yourself a little."

Stussy played with the lipstick in her hand, threw it into the air, spun it a few times, and returned it to her palm. She chuckled and said, "But this doesn't mean I will give up the opportunity, snake charmer."

Guroliosa crossed her arms over her chest and raised the corners of her mouth: "It's the same with you, doll."

The two smiled at each other. At this moment, some subtle changes had taken place in the relationship between them. Even Uno, who witnessed the whole process, could not explain what the changes were.

At this moment, a hearty laugh resounded throughout the entire Shiraguru Island, making everyone's ears buzz. Kaido couldn't help but brake when he heard this familiar laughter, causing Setsu, who was following behind him, to rush forward due to inertia and hit him heavily on the back. With a scream, Kaido suddenly lost his balance and fell to the ground with Setsu, and was too dizzy to get up for a short time.

"Hahahaha! To welcome the Flying Pirates, guys, it's time to have a party for all of us!"