"This world… really is a hard place to live."
The sea above was calm.
On the Golden Pirates' ship, Captain Fred tossed down the newspaper and sighed.
As a major pirate in the New World, Fred rarely showed such emotion. He wasn't as brutal as those who split from the Rocks Pirates, nor as free as Roger's crew, but the Golden Pirates were definitely a second-tier power on the seas.
"Captain! Why the long face?"
Hearing Fred's voice, Barros, who was sunbathing on the deck, said casually, "The gold we snatched from that country earlier is enough for us to blow through for the next few years!"
Fred stood up from the deck and slowly walked to the railing. Looking at the endless ocean, he said with a hint of worry, "The World Government has formed a new force called the Black Order. I don't know what that means."
"Setting it up right in the New World… is it to deal with us?"
That was the question on every pirate's mind in the New World.
Before, Marine HQ was in the first half of the Grand Line to better protect the Holy Land, Mary Geoise. But now, the Black Order's base was set up in the New World. The meaning was obvious: the World Government wanted to spread its influence even further into the New World.
For pirates like them, if nothing unexpected happened, they'd probably be the first targets.
"Not necessarily. The Marines are already here to deal with us. The World Government wouldn't spend so much to create another group doing the same thing. It must be aimed at someone else," Barros said carelessly.
"And besides, out here on the sea, we pirates aren't that easy to deal with. The Marines couldn't catch us before, so why be afraid of some Black Order now? Boss, have you gone soft?"
Fred frowned. "The world really is changing. The Marines already sent Admiral Zephyr and Vice Admiral Garp to fight the Flying Pirates. Rocks hasn't been dead for long, and now it's Shiki's turn. Marine HQ has never gone this crazy before."
"The New World is a paradise for us pirates. No matter how strong the Marines are, they can't do much here. I don't believe they can catch that monster Shiki," Barros said as he lay on the deck with his eyes closed, enjoying the sun—until he suddenly felt the ship shake.
?!
His instincts as a fighter made him snap his eyes open and scan the sea around them. Nothing. But he didn't relax. Instead, he turned to Captain Fred.
Fred's face was tense too. Clearly, both of them had sensed the same thing—an odd, creeping killing intent rising around them. But there was no one in sight!
"Get ready for battle!"
Fred suddenly shouted. A large number of Golden Pirates rushed out from the ship, armed with guns and swords. But after they came out, nothing had changed. The sea was still vast and empty. No Marines chasing them. No other pirates in sight.
"Boss, what's this about?" a fat guy chewing on meat complained.
The others also sighed in relief, but Fred and Barros only grew more serious. That sense of danger filled every corner of the air. Invisible danger was far scarier than what you could see.
Where was the enemy? Could it be invisible?
The next second, the enemy's true form appeared before their eyes. Whether it was Fred and Barros, who had been ready to fight, or the crew who had just relaxed, everyone froze. They couldn't even breathe.
It was like the end of the world. A deafening sound came from the sea ahead. A bolt of lightning tore across the sky as if cheering for this moment. The sky turned dark, and the monster breaking through the ocean looked pitch black.
It was a massive tentacle reaching up into the clouds. Lightning from the sky struck it, sending huge sparks across it, as if the thunder above had descended to the sea. The Golden Pirates could only stare blankly, too shocked to even move.
They had been pirates for years and were far from weak.
They had faced all kinds of enemies before, but never had they felt such shock and fear. Even when chased by Marine Admirals, they could still laugh and run. But this… this was something else entirely.
In this dark world, the only thing their eyes could see was that massive tentacle.
Each sucker on the tentacle was as big as a mountain. The sea split under its sheer force, throwing up monstrous waves as thunder roared in the sky and crashed down.
This kind of power shouldn't even exist in this world. Humans…
How could they fight something like this?!
"Run… run now…"
Fred had always been strong, but now he couldn't even think about fighting this sea monster. The whole sea roared like a giant whirlpool had formed beneath them, and their ship was at its center.
And the others? They were already scared out of their minds!
Then the tentacle came crashing down, faster than the waves. With a deafening boom, it slammed onto the Golden Pirates' ship. Huge bolts of lightning spread from the ship into the sea, blasting outward. The ship shattered in an instant, and the people on board were crushed like bugs!
As the captain sank into the sea, Fred finally saw the monster's full body. His heart sank into even deeper darkness and despair.
One of its eyes glowed like a blue sun. Its body was easily over ten thousand meters long. The tentacle above the sea earlier? That was just one of them. Just one. A monster like this could give someone nightmares just from a glance—let alone being this close.
And then…
His consciousness started to fade. The huge tentacle had crushed the entire ship. Most of his bones were probably broken, and now he was sinking into the sea. He was going to die soon, wasn't he?
But then, someone grabbed him and pulled him up from the water—a giant of a man with bulging muscles. He looked at the huge monster wreaking havoc on the sea and smiled in satisfaction.
"Someone has to spread the word about your existence, right? That way, you'll become everyone's target…"
That was why Toguro had saved Fred. He didn't care if the others died, but someone had to live to tell the tale.
"Keep destroying…"
He looked at the massive sea monster he had created and gave it a name:
"Kraken!"
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