Location: Skies above the South Blue
Roar—!
The Blue-Eyes White Dragon soared freely through the clouds, its massive clay wings cutting through the wind.
Two mournful howls echoed from its claws.
Kid and Killer were dangling precariously from the dragon's grip, thousands of feet in the air. The cold, fierce winds whipped at their faces, making it almost impossible to open their eyes.
"This is a trial," Storm's calm voice cut through the wind, reaching their ears clearly despite the altitude. "Start climbing from the claws. When you two successfully reach the dragon's back, you earn the right to ask me a question."
Storm ignored their screams and focused on the nautical chart and compass in front of him. Kid and Killer had "volunteered" these items earlier. The destination was marked clearly: The Sorbet Kingdom.
Below the dragon's belly, Kid and Killer exchanged a desperate glance. They gritted their teeth and began to climb.
High-altitude rock climbing on a moving dragon was an extreme test of physical strength and willpower. The wind threatened to tear them off at every second. It took nearly half an hour of grueling effort before they finally hauled themselves onto the dragon's back, collapsing in exhaustion.
Before they could catch their breath, Storm spoke.
"Ask whatever you want."
Killer remained silent, nodding at Kid to take the lead. Kid gasped for air and asked the question burning in his mind.
"This dragon! What the hell is it?! And that fox from before!"
"The Blue-Eyes White Dragon. It's a partner of mine created from my ability," Storm replied simply.
The next moment, the dragon suddenly rolled, performing a flashy 360-degree spin.
"Ahhh—!"
Kid and Killer screamed as they were flung off the back.
Just as they began to plummet toward the ocean, the dragon's tail flicked gently, hooking around them and saving them from a watery grave.
Shaken to their cores, Kid and Killer clung to the tail, hearts pounding.
"Kid," Killer whispered, his voice trembling slightly. "Does this count as setting sail?"
Kid grinned, a dry, terrified laugh escaping his throat. "Ahaha… I guess so!"
"This time," Storm's voice floated down, "the route is from the tail to the back."
Kid and Killer took a deep breath in sync. They had learned from the first round.
The second climb was faster.
This time, Kid didn't waste his question on the monsters. He asked about the weapon Storm had used earlier.
"Yesterday, you poked me with a stick… what was that?"
"Seastone," Storm answered crisply. "You're a Devil Fruit user. The ocean is your natural enemy. Seastone contains the essence of the sea itself. Any Devil Fruit user who touches it becomes as weak as a drowning man."
Kid's eyes lit up. Although the climb had been torture, his excitement was growing. Storm's words were opening a door to a new world—a world he never would have understood staying on Belfast Island.
In his simple gangster brain, acknowledging a powerful figure as a boss wasn't shameful. Riding dragons and learning the secrets of the world was a million times better than rotting in a backwater town!
Storm ignored Kid's internal monologue and sent them back for a third round of climbing.
'Kid has potential,' Storm mused. 'Among the Worst Generation, excluding the outliers like Luffy and Blackbeard, Eustass Kid and Trafalgar Law are the top tier. They just lack discipline.'
Kid and Killer scrambled back up. The questions came faster now.
"Is there a lot of Seastone in the world?"
"Do you think there's a lot of solid ocean? No. Go climb!"
"...This dragon is cool! Can I create a mechanical Tyrannosaurus Rex?"
"That depends on your Jiki Jiki no Mi (Magnet-Magnet Fruit). But seeing as you currently use it like a giant scrap magnet, I doubt it. Go climb!"
"...Huff, huff... How do I develop my fruit?"
"How do I know how to use your own hands? Want me to cut them off so you learn to appreciate them? Get up!"
"...You carry a sword, but I've never seen you use it."
"Because my swordsmanship is terrible. Get up!"
After another grueling round, an exhausted Kid lay flat on the dragon's back, staring at the endless blue sky.
"The sea… The Pirate King," Kid panted. "What do I need to do to become the Pirate King?"
"The Pirate King?"
Storm, who had been sitting cross-legged on the dragon's head, finally turned around.
"Eustass Kid. Is that your real name?"
"Yes."
"Is that your full name?"
"Yes."
"Very good." Storm's expression turned cold. "Then you have no hope. Absolutely none."
"Why!?" Kid bolted upright, rage fueling his tired muscles. "Gold Roger became the Pirate King! Why can't I!?"
"Why can't you?" Storm raised an eyebrow. "The Great Pirate Era has been going on for twenty years. Someone has to win, so why not you? Is that what you tell yourself?"
Kid faltered. Storm's tone was dripping with sarcasm.
"Pirate King? Gold Roger?" Storm sneered and turned back around. "You even got his name wrong."
"It's not Gold Roger. It's Gol D. Roger."
"Eustass Kid, are you a member of the Clan of D? You went to sea to conquer it, yet you don't even carry the initial, and you think you can sit on that throne?"
Kid and Killer were bewildered. Two punks from the South Blue had no way of knowing the secret history of the world or the significance of the middle initial "D."
"D… what's that?"
Storm didn't answer. He let the silence hang heavy in the air.
Unbeknownst to them, the Blue-Eyes White Dragon had arrived in the waters near the Sorbet Kingdom.
"Those are warships," Kid said, looking down. "They're huge!"
"I never saw ships like that on Belfast."
"Because Belfast isn't a World Government member state," Killer replied coldly. "The 'Righteous' Marines don't care about us. If they come to our island, it's only to hunt criminals."
Or worse.
The people of the South Blue remembered the Baterilla Incident. To find the "Son of the Pirate King," the Marines had turned the South Blue upside down. They investigated every child born within ten months of Roger's death. Pregnant women and infants were screened, and any suspicion led to execution.
Below, on the Sea
The lookouts on the three large warships spotted the white shape in the sky.
"A dragon! It's a dragon!"
On the deck of the central flagship, a richly dressed, obese old man shouted at the Marine officer beside him.
"Shoot that dragon down! I want to present it to the Celestial Dragons!"
The Marine officer remained unmoved. "King Bekori, the dragon is flying too high. It is beyond our cannon range."
"Can't you even handle a small matter like this?" King Bekori spat, his face flushing red. "The Navy's food, weapons, and expenses are paid for with my Heavenly Tribute! You bunch of useless trash!"
Just then, Bekori spotted a lone, drifting sampan on the sea ahead of the fleet.
He screamed again, pointing a shaking finger.
"That's him!"
"Marines! Kill him!! He's the one who stole my Sorbet Kingdom!"
"The brutal, evil 'Tyrant'—Bartholomew Kuma!"
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