The South Blue…
Storm gazed up at the endless blue sky, a strange sense of disconnection settling in his chest.
Just hours ago, his mind had been filled with ambitious plans—recruiting a crew, storming into the New World, and challenging the Four Emperors.
Now, all of those goals seemed laughably distant. Instead of moving forward, he had somehow been flung all the way back to the South Blue.
'What the hell am I doing here?!'
The wind tousled his dark hair as he exhaled sharply. The situation felt absurd—like expecting to witness a legendary clash between the Four Emperors, only to turn around and see two scrappy pirates brawling over pocket change in the middle of Loguetown.
Ridiculous.
But there was no time to dwell on frustration. Now that he was here, he needed a plan.
Shaking off his thoughts, Storm reached into his pocket and pulled out 10,000 Berries—the remnants of his Marine salary that had gone unspent. He held it up in front of the onlookers gathered at the dock.
"I need a local guide," he announced. "Someone who knows the area and can answer a few questions. Anyone interested?"
Storm's first priority was finding a way back to the Grand Line. Staying in the South Blue wasn't an option.
At first, several of the dock workers and townspeople seemed intrigued by the offer. But their interest quickly vanished when they caught sight of the massive blue-eyed dragon circling above him.
The crowd stiffened.
No one moved.
Storm frowned as he noticed their wary expressions.
Ah… right. Normal people don't usually see a giant dragon just hovering around.
Realizing the issue, Storm raised a hand toward the sky.
The Blue-Eyes White Dragon flapped its wings and swooped toward him, its piercing gaze locked onto its master.
But before it could land—
"AAAHHHH!!!"
Panic erupted across the docks.
"It's coming this way!"
"Run! That thing is gonna eat us!"
"The white dragon is attacking!"
Within seconds, the entire dock descended into chaos. People screamed, overturned crates, and sprinted in all directions like their lives depended on it.
By the time the dust settled, the once-bustling pier was completely deserted.
Storm stood in the middle of it all, watching the last of the terrified civilians disappear into town.
"...Well, that went well," he muttered.
The Blue-Eyes White Dragon, now significantly smaller, coiled itself lazily around Storm's shoulders like a house cat. Its sapphire eyes gleamed with intelligence, but it didn't seem bothered by the commotion it had caused.
Storm sighed. "You're really not helping my reputation, you know."
The dragon simply flicked its tail.
A moment later, its form began to shift.
Its wings retracted. Its long, serpentine neck was shortened. The pale dragon scales softened into silky white fur. Its muscular frame grew more slender, more agile—until, finally, what stood before Storm was no longer a dragon.
Instead, a snow-white nine-tailed fox gracefully leaped down from his shoulder.
Each of its nine tails swayed behind it, catching the light like flowing silk. The fox raised its head, exuding an air of noble arrogance, and strutted forward as if it owned the entire island.
Storm folded his arms. "Better?"
The Nine-Tailed Demon Fox flicked one of its fluffy tails dismissively.
"Yeah, yeah," Storm muttered, running a hand through his hair. "At least you look less terrifying now. Maybe people won't scream and run away this time."
As Storm made his way toward the town, a rowdy group appeared in the distance, heading toward the docks.
At first glance, they looked like residents—but something about them seemed… off.
Unlike the terrified civilians from before, these newcomers showed no fear. In fact, they openly gawked at Storm, making no effort to hide their scrutiny.
"A face I've never seen before," one of them muttered.
"His clothes are weird," another commented. "And that emblem… looks like the World Government's insignia."
"World Government?" someone scoffed. "Tch! Those high-ranking bastards don't care about this place."
But one voice suddenly cut through the chatter—
"Wait! Look at that fox!"
"A nine-tailed fox?! You've gotta be kidding me!"
"Is it some kind of monster?"
Storm sighed. Here we go again.
Just as the group started speculating further, the red-haired man leading them raised a hand.
"Enough!" he barked.
The red-haired leader clearly had authority—his words immediately silenced the group. With a sharp gaze, he turned his attention to Storm.
"Hey, you!"
Storm met his eyes, unfazed. "Yeah?"
"You just came from the docks, right?" The red-haired man took a step forward. "Did you see a dragon there?"
Storm glanced down at the Nine-Tailed Fox, which now looked no larger than a house pet.
"You mean… this?"
The red-haired man's brow furrowed. "That's just a white fox—"
Before he could finish his sentence—
The Nine-Tailed Fox's body expanded like a balloon.
In the blink of an eye—
The once-petite fox grew into a colossal beast, towering nearly 100 meters tall.
Its nine massive tails whipped through the air, casting an ominous shadow over the town.
The group froze in place.
The red-haired man's lips parted, but no words came out.
His followers, on the other hand, had no such hesitation.
"IT'S A MONSTER!!!"
"Panic" wasn't even the right word to describe what followed.
The group immediately scattered, screaming at the top of their lungs.
Storm barely even reacted. He simply glanced up at the now-massive fox and muttered, "…You just love making things difficult, don't you?"
Only two people remained standing.
One was the red-haired man—his face still locked in shock.
The other was a towering, broad-shouldered man with long, wavy blond hair.
The blond guy grabbed the red-haired man by the shoulder and shouted,
"KID!"
His voice was raw with urgency.
"RUN!!!"
But before they could escape—
The Nine-Tailed Fox's claws lashed out, snatching them both off the ground in an instant.
The red-haired man gasped, struggling to break free.
The blond man thrashed violently, trying to pry open the fox's grip.
But it was useless.
The red-haired 'hedgehog' let out a deafening roar.
"What a joke! How can I die here?!"
Arcs of magnetic electricity exploded from the red-haired man as he unleashed all his strength.
"I am the man who will become the Pirate King!!"
"I think I heard something very interesting."
Storm glanced at the Nine-Tailed Fox, and the fox immediately brought the two of them over.
"What kind of king did you just say you wanted to be?"
Kid was too busy resisting the Nine-Tailed Fox's restraints to respond to Storm's words.
Storm simply pulled a weapon from his coat.
The moment the Seastone Baton touched Kid's head, the magnetic arcs erupting from his body vanished instantly.
Despair filled Kid's face. His all-out struggle had been nothing more than a desperate death throe.
The moment the Seastone Baton made contact, he lost all strength—even speaking felt like a burden.
Forcing himself to suppress the weakness overtaking him, he asked, "Who… who are you?"
"It's polite to introduce yourself first before asking someone's name, isn't it?"
Storm eyed the odd pair—the red-haired man and the blond-haired man—and quickly formed a guess about their identities.
Retracting the Seastone Baton, he gestured for the Nine-Tailed Fox to release its restraints on them.
"What's your name? Redhead?"
"Kid!"
The red-haired man—Eustass Kid—stared at the weapon in Storm's hand with visible wariness.
"Eustass Kid!"
Storm then turned his gaze to the blond-haired man standing beside him.
Before he could ask, the man spoke on his own.
"Killer."
"Very good. Eustass Kiddand Killer."
Storm made the Nine-Tailed Fox shrink back to its normal size and waved at the two.
"I just arrived on Belfast Island and need a local guide."
"That guide… is now you two."
…That's it?
Kidd and Killer, who had expected a far worse fate, exchanged silent glances.
"Oh, yes, one more thing."
Storm pulled out a ten-thousand-Berry bill he hadn't spent earlier.
Just as he was about to hand it to Kidd, he hesitated for a moment before pulling out another.
"This is your reward for being my guides. Ten Thousand Berry each."
"What are you standing there for? Take the money!"
…Hah?!
Kidd and Killer stiffly accepted the bills.
For some reason, even though they were clearly earning money, they both felt like their dignity had been trampled upon.
This humiliation… it stung even more than being restrained by the Nine-Tailed Fox earlier!
Storm, however, didn't care what Kidd and Killer thought.
He had finally arrived on an inhabited island, and the first thing on his list was to clean up, wash up, and find a proper meal.
Preferably some vegetables and fruits…
For the past few days, he had been eating nothing but Sea King meat and he was getting a little sick of it.
"Lead the way, my two guides!"
Storm gestured with his hand.
"By the way, fill me in on any interesting news along the way."
"…You two planning to set sail together? What about the crew from earlier? Those who ran off and left you behind? Best of luck to you."
"…I'm not interested in minor events on Belfast Island. I want to hear about the major happenings reported in the news."
"…A 'revolution' happened in the Sorbet Kingdom... One person named Kuma stood out..."
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