Sea Circle Year 1529, North Blue — Gegelan Island, Longtao Town.
The town’s largest tavern was buzzing with noise.
Fishermen, workers, sheriffs, and ruffians all gathered together.
Status meant nothing here.
They did not care who was around them; only drinking and boasting mattered.
Even the pirates who had claimed the window seat were ignored by the sheriff.
Ding-a-ling~
A customer arrived.
The bartender, wiping a glass, had his attention drawn over.
A figure stood at the doorway.
He was a young man with a long sword slung diagonally at his waist.
Roughly estimating his height, he looked about two meters and ten centimeters.
Under the sunlight, he had a sharply chiselled handsome face, deep black eyes, and short, messy black hair.
Clean and sharp.
It was the kind of face that would make anyone — man, woman, old, young, or even the Newkama from the Kamabakka Kingdom — sigh in admiration at the model perfect looks.
Such a model face was rare even in the North Blue, a region known for producing handsome men.
If there was anyone whose model looks could surpass his, it would probably only be the legendary supreme being known as the Reader.
“Welcome, what can I…”
The young man scanned the room, ignoring the bartender’s greeting, and walked straight toward the loudest group of pirates.
“Captain, that last job was beautifully done!”
“You bet!
The moment those merchant ships saw our flag, they panicked!”
The pirates boasted and flattered, while the captain happily banged his mug on the table.
“Hahaha!
Drink up, drink up!”
Smack!
Just as the captain raised his mug to his lips, a hand landed on his smooth, gleaming bald head.
The captain’s eyes went blank, momentarily stunned.
But the pirates across from him erupted.
“Kid, looking for a death wish?!”
“Boys, grab your weapons!”
“Get your hand off the captain’s dazzling forehead right now, or do not blame us for being…”
The voices cut off abruptly.
The pirates blinked, rubbed their eyes vigorously, and finally got a clear look at the hand resting on the captain’s head.
Someone involuntarily swallowed.
What kind of hand was that…
The arm was entirely purplish black, its surface seeming to bear strange markings, with faint black mist visibly rising from the skin.
This had to be a demon’s hand!
“Hic~”
The captain’s drunkenness had not worn off.
His mug raising arm moved mechanically, and under everyone’s gaze, he began to drink.
The moment the liquor touched his lips, it was rudely interrupted.
The demonic hand gripped his head and twisted it around, making the captain see the person behind him.
“Still drinking?
I am here to collect you!”
An ominous purplish black aura erupted, pressing heavily on everyone’s chest.
The young man’s right hand gripped the hilt and scabbard mouth, his thumb brushing against the tsuba.
With a light click, the long sword was drawn an inch from its sheath.
Just as the killing intent reached its peak, the young man paused, turning his head.
Seeing the bartender’s trembling eyes full of pleading, he instantly understood and sheathed his sword.
The oppressive aura dissipated, as if the terrifying scene from moments ago had never happened.
Thud!
The demonic hand retracted, then aimed below the bald captain’s head and delivered a heavy smack across the back of his neck, sending the table crashing over.
“I will wait for you outside.”
The young man turned, crooked his finger, and walked out.
“He hit me?” The bald captain sobered up.
That slap was certainly effective.
“Captain, that kid did not just hit you.
He insulted you too.”
“Bullshit!
Do you even know what ‘insult’ means?
That is called humiliation!”
The underlings had no sense of propriety either, bickering over word choice.
“Waaaaaaah!
That pisses me off!
Cut him down!”
The bald captain roared and charged out into the street with his men, spotting the young man waiting there.
“Little brat, you dare mess with our captain?
Have you not heard of Bald Johnny’s fearsome reputation?”
“That is right!
Our boss is a man with an 8.2 million Beri bounty!
Who do you think you are?”
Bald Johnny, pumped up by his men’s boasting, swung a giant axe nearly as big as himself with one hand, kicking up gusts of wind.
“Brat, state your name!
I will split you in half today!”
“Haah~ Done talking?
My turn now.”
The young man stood lazily with his feet apart, his right hand drawing his long sword and pointing it diagonally at the ground.
“My name is Darkseid Kane.
I am a Paramecia type Ghost Ghost Fruit user.
Age 19.”
“I will not tell you where I live.
Unmarried.”
“Saving up money as a bounty hunter.
Including you, a few more jobs and I will complete my small goal.”
“I do not smoke.
I drink occasionally.”
“I train every day: swordsmanship practice and developing my Devil Fruit ability.”
“I am someone who pursues inner clarity.
I do not get hung up on winning or losing.
I do not dwell on worries.
I do not hold grudges.
I maintain inner peace.”
“I go to bed at 11 PM, making sure to get a full eight hours of sleep.
Before sleeping, I drink a warm glass of milk, close my eyes, and review the day’s troublesome events and the people who provoked me.
I silently repeat their actions a hundred times to cement them in memory, then fall asleep.
I basically sleep through until morning.”
“Like a baby, I leave behind no fatigue or stress, and welcome the next morning that way.”
“The next day, after washing up and breakfast, I read for half an hour, then spend another half hour writing down yesterday’s grievances in my notebook.”
“The old man and the little bro both say I am perfectly normal.”
“That is my attitude toward life, and I clearly understand that this is my happiness.”
The wind swept across the street.
Dead silence.
“Wh…
what are you talking about?”
“Not holding grudges?
Give me a break.
No one in the grudge holding competition can beat you!”
“Dude, with that attitude, should I believe what you just said, or should I not?”
“What is a Devil Fruit?”
“Dumbass!
You do not even know that?
Captain, he is a Devil Fruit user!”
Bald Johnny’s gaping mouth panted heavily.
He snapped out of it, gripping his giant axe and swinging it in front of him to steel his nerves.
Kane smiled.
Introduction over.
Now it was time to act.
He charged forward, black aura erupting from his body, his left hand glowing with a purple shimmer.
Bald Johnny roared in response, bringing his giant axe down in an overhead chop.
The pressure was immense.
Second Ghost God: Phantom Shadow Kaija!
Kane shouted inwardly.
His demonic hand radiated an ominous light, and a ghostly figure, half real and half illusory, appeared on his back.
His speed suddenly surged, and he became a blur, reappearing behind Bald Johnny.
Bald Johnny froze.
His pupils bulged.
His expression went blank.
But Kane did not stop.
The ominous aura condensed into solid form along his blade.
“Oni Giri!”
Dark purple energy erupted, extending into a two meter long sword aura.
As Kane swung and charged, he carved a spiralling thrust of slashes through the pirates, cutting down over a dozen in an instant.
Cries of agony, screams, and startled shouts rang out one after another.
The remaining pirate underlings trembled, their swords and blades shaking in their hands as they retreated.
Several fell to the ground, their legs giving out.
Kane rose and stood in place, tilting his head as he surveyed the surrounding underlings.
Not a single one dared to step forward.
Just then, a crisp crack rang out.
Bald Johnny’s giant axe shattered, and then a round, gleaming object reflecting sunlight dropped to the ground.
It was the bald head!
Kane ignored the blades pointed at him.
He bent down and scooped it up: “8.2 million Beri” now in his demonic hand.
Then he sheathed his sword and walked toward the harbor.
“We are saved!”
The remaining underlings breathed a long sigh of relief, their eyes filled with fear as they stared at Kane’s retreating back.
They exchanged glances, then silently turned and ran.
“I did not say you could leave.
And you cannot.”
The underlings froze.
They turned, wanting to beg for mercy, but they never got the chance.
Kane kept walking forward without looking back, but from the shadows beneath him, ghostly aura surged, and over a dozen demons burst forth.
A minute passed.
The people who had been hiding in the buildings on both sides of the street emerged.
They looked at each other.
Kane was nowhere to be seen; only bodies littered the ground.
At the harbor, Kane took a small cloth pouch, packed his spoils inside, and placed the Beri into the fisherman’s trembling hands.
He turned to look back at the town.
“Bald Johnny, every time he hit a new town, his favourite routine was to stock up and have fun, then turn around and rob the place.
If I let those bastards go, who knows what they would do.”
“No monetary payment required.
Just clean up afterward.
You got off easy.”
Kane muttered to himself, then raised an eyebrow as he heard someone calling him.
It was the merchant ship captain he had arranged to meet earlier.
They were about to set sail.
He quickly raised his hand in response and ran toward the ship.
While running, Kane split his attention, muttering under his breath: “Next island, 5.75 million, 6.13 million, 690 thousand.
Once this trip is done, my small goal will be complete.
With startup funds, it is time to set sail…”
Two hundred million.
Two hundred million.
Spend it for a lifetime and…
not enough.
But that is fine.
This is a decent start.
Either way, Kane has his two hundred million small goal in hand.
Spend 100 million on a ship, and he will still have 100 million left for daily expenses.
Way better off than that Straw Hat kid.
When Luffy set sail, he did not have a single berry to his name, and his tiny boat was practically a joke.
It could not even handle the demands of open sea voyaging.
And that little boat was probably donated by the villagers out of goodwill too.
Unlike Kane, his two hundred million small goal was saved up through his own efforts, berry by berry, in less than a year.
Nami had spent years killing herself just to scrape together 100 million Beri for ransom.
At that thought, Kane could not help but hum a little tune.
But then, suddenly, trouble came.
As he neared the merchant ship, a group of people cut in from the side, nearly colliding with him head on.
“Sorry, I was running a bit too fast.”
Kane did not stop walking.
He turned and apologized politely.
He was easygoing when there was no conflict.
Worth noting, though: the group had come from his blind spot, but he had somehow anticipated it, nimbly sidestepping to avoid them.
He successfully boarded the merchant ship.
Before he could even greet the captain, he heard shouts of abuse from behind.
Kane’s face immediately darkened.
They were cursing at him.
He turned and drew his sword, but the ship had already set sail.
It turned out the merchant ship had long since passed its departure time and had been waiting for him.
Ghostly aura surged, startling the merchant ship captain so badly he fell to the deck, drawing Kane’s attention.
Seeing the man trembling in fear, Kane began to think.
Should he jump overboard now to cut down those guys, or should he first fulfil his escort contract and complete his small goal as planned?
Kane watched the bastards’ figures grow distant, pulled out a stack of bounty posters, and began comparing.
He quickly reached a conclusion.
Those bastards were not on any of them.
“Forget it.
If I miss this voyage, I will not make it home on time, and the old man will start worrying.”
Kane’s expression returned to a sunny smile.
With his right hand, which looked no different from an ordinary person’s, he reached down, helped the captain up, and apologized, assuring him that no pirates would steal his cargo on this voyage.
The captain, feeling the sincerity in his tone, relaxed.
They chatted for a while, and the captain praised his imposing presence.
Generously waving his hand, he had the chef prepare a lavish spread of fine wine and delicacies.
After eating and drinking his fill, Kane sat in the luxury cabin prepared just for him, furiously writing away.
“You cannot escape.
Once I am back, a quick preparation and I will set sail.”
“And the first thing I do when I set sail?
I will use you bastards as my sacrificial banner!”
Write it in the notebook the next morning?
Just kidding.
Do not take that seriously.
I will write it down right now.
***
Hello everyone, CNBLUE here!
This is my new One Piece fanfic that I’ve just uploaded.