The underlings of the Alvida Pirates were utterly panicked now.
They looked at their captain fallen into the sea, then at Luffy, whose fist was still trailing white smoke, their hands gripping their blades trembling uncontrollably.
“What are you standing around for?
Come on, all at once,” Luffy said with a grin, his legs suddenly compressing before he launched himself like a cannonball, crashing straight into the crowd on the enemy pirate ship.
“Gomu Gomu no—Pistol!”
Bang!
The lead pirate took a solid punch square in the chest, his whole body flying backward and plowing into three of his comrades in succession.
A wide empty space instantly cleared on the deck as the remaining pirates shrank back in terror.
Lucian watched the almost playful brawl on Luffy’s side and figured he could not afford to fall behind.
Gray mist quietly seeped from his fingertips as he walked unhurriedly toward the clustered pirates, the mist spreading like a living thing.
Every pirate who stepped within his two-meter radius abruptly froze mid-motion, their eyes swiftly clouding over as guttural, beast-like growls tore from their throats.
In the next second, they whipped around and lunged madly at their former comrades!
“Ahh—!”
“Help!
What’s wrong with you?!” The pirates screamed in frenzy.
The sailors crouched on the deck in terror, but the zombified pirates paid them no heed whatsoever, only tearing and biting at their former crewmates.
Amid the spraying blood and flying flesh, the pirates on the deck fell one after another, only to stagger back to their feet and join the ranks of the zombie pirates.
“Monsters…
they’re real monsters!”
At last, one pirate broke entirely.
He threw down his blade and bolted for the planks connecting the two ships, desperate to flee back to his own vessel.
But before they could even untie the ropes, the zombie pirates had already leaped onto the boarding planks with guttural howls, their rotting fingers digging savagely into his shoulders.
These zombies possessed strength far greater than they had in life—ordinary pirates were no match for them at all.
“Retreat!
Fall back—aaagh!” The scream was cut short.
Over on the pirate ship, the pirates Luffy had battered to the ground scrambled to their feet in a frantic, stumbling heap, throwing aside their blades to untie the planks connecting the two vessels, desperate to break away from the merchant ship.
But before they could undo the knots, the zombie pirates came swarming onto the enemy deck, biting wildly at their former comrades.
The monsters’ strength was at least twice what it had been when they were alive—the pirates left to guard the ship stood no chance.
In the blink of an eye, the entirety of the Alvida Pirates, save for their captain who had been sent flying, had all become zombies.
Luffy had long since stopped fighting and leaped back to Lucian’s side.
Lucian looked at him anxiously, dreading the sight of the same terrified expressions he had once seen on the villagers’ faces.
“Whoa!
Lucian, your ability is super cool!”
Luffy had already stopped and jumped right beside Lucian, his eyes sparkling brightly.
He reached out and poked the nearest zombie; it did not react at all, only its turbid eyes mechanically tracking his movement.
Lucian quietly let out a breath of relief.
He had expected to see eyes filled with fear, but Luffy’s reaction eased his uneasy heart.
“Young man, these…
uh, monsters, what do we do with them now?”
Captain Dikara approached carefully, cold sweat beading on his forehead.
The sailors around them kept even further away, only daring to steal glances through the cracks of the cabin hatches.
Lucian looked at the zombies on the pirate ship and gave a low command.
“Come back.” The zombies immediately began shuffling in his direction.
“Wait!” Dikara hastily waved his hands, forcing a dry laugh.
“Better…
better to just leave them over there.”
Lucian nodded, and the zombies stopped at once, frozen as still as statues.
Luffy bounded merrily onto the pirate ship, circling around the zombies, even reaching out and tugging at one of their ears.
“They really only listen to you?
Lucian, can you make them dance?”
“Yes!” Lucian was just about to give the command.
Just then, a muffled thud rang out.
Lucian’s head snapped around a full 180 degrees toward the source of the sound.
The pink-haired Koby was peeking out from behind a wooden barrel—and when he unexpectedly met those ice-cold eyes, he let out a terrified shriek, scrambling away in a tumbling, stumbling retreat.
“What’s wrong with him?” Luffy scratched his head, thoroughly puzzled.
Lucian was equally bewildered.
Dikara opened his mouth as if to say something, but in the end, he did not dare speak.
Koby fled in blind panic toward the cabin, only to crash headlong into a slight, headscarf-wearing pirate with a loud thump, the two of them tumbling to the ground together.
“S-Sorry!” Koby scrambled up in a fluster, then looked up and froze solid.
He stared wide-eyed at the unfamiliar girl before him.
She wore a brown bandana, short orange hair poking out from the gaps, and a pair of sly, cunning eyes darting around rapidly.
On her back was a small bundle that looked bulging and swollen, clearly stuffed with quite a lot of things.
“Wh-Who are you?!” Koby stammered.
The girl raised a finger to her lips, flashing a mischievous grin.
“Shh—quiet down.”
Before Koby could even react, she suddenly drew a short staff and swung it straight at his head.
“Uwaah!!” Koby dropped into a crouch, clutching his head in fright.
But the blow never landed.
“Hey!
What do you think you’re doing?!”
Luffy’s voice came from behind, and in the next second, his arm shot out with a whoosh, grabbing the girl’s wrist.
“Ah!” The girl cried out in surprise, the short staff slipping from her grip and clattering to the ground.
Luffy tilted his head and studied her with curiosity.
“Who are you?
Are you with this pirate ship too?”
The girl shook her sore wrist free and curled her lip.
“As if!
Who’d ever team up with an ugly, fat pirate like that!” She bent down to pick up her staff and dusted off her bundle with a look of disgust.
“Borrowing?” Luffy blinked.
“Are you a thief?”
“I’m not a thief—I just borrowed a little something from these pirates!” She shot him a glare and then lifted her chin with a smug air.
“My name’s Nami.
I’m the best navigator in these waters.”
Koby rose shakily from the ground and muttered under his breath, “Isn’t that still a thief…”
Nami narrowed her eyes and fixed them on Koby, who instantly shrank behind Luffy.
“Hahaha!
Interesting!” Luffy burst out laughing, completely unconcerned with Nami’s profession.
“So what are you doing on this ship?”
Nami shrugged.
“I was planning to sneak a few valuables while they were busy raiding the merchant ship, but then…” Her gaze suddenly swept to the motionless cluster of zombified pirates in the distance.
“What happened to them?”
Lucian silently leaped onto the pirate ship, the zombies parting to make way for him.
Nami’s sharp eyes caught this scene, and her eyes widened slightly.
“Hey, gloomy guy over there—was that you?”
Lucian did not answer, merely gave a light nod.
Nami let out a whistle.
“Impressive.
Though kinda creepy.”
Just then, Captain Dikara came over with his sailors, looking at Nami with a complex expression.
“Young lady, did you just say…
you’re a navigator?”
Nami planted her hands on her hips and gave a proud smile.
“That’s right!
There isn’t a single route in these waters I’m not familiar with!”
Luffy’s eyes lit up instantly.
“Awesome!
Nami, you wanna join us?”
“Huh?” Nami paused in confusion.
“Join you?
Who are you people?”
Luffy grinned wide and jerked a thumb at himself.
“I’m Monkey D.
Luffy, the man who’s gonna be King of the Pirates!”
Nami fell silent.
She stared for two seconds, then rolled her eyes.
“No thanks.
I don’t wanna be a pirate.”
With that, she turned to leave.