Several streams of black smoke swirled in Blackbeard's hand, forming a rotating fan-shaped vortex.
He thrust his palm toward Sandy, preparing to use the Dark-Dark Fruit's gravity to pull him in for a fatal strike.
Seeing Blackbeard unleash such a devastating attack immediately, Sandy didn't hesitate either.
He drew his sword in one smooth motion.
"One-Sword Style — Space Swap Slash!"
"Clang—!"
"Boom, boom, boom!"
A blinding flash tore through the air. The two passed by each other in total silence.
The next second, the mountainside behind Blackbeard split open—carved clean in half by Sandy's sword energy.
But Blackbeard wasn't in the mood to admire the sight. His pupils dilated as he realized—his right arm was gone.
"AAAAHHHH!! Damn it, it hurts! It hurts so much!!"
Blackbeard screamed, collapsing to the ground and rolling in agony.
Sandy clicked his tongue in frustration. That strike should have taken off Blackbeard's head, not his arm. But at the crucial moment, that half-dead horse doctor had interfered again.
When Sandy had used his Space Fruit, he had swapped Blackbeard's position to line up the perfect kill shot.
But Doc Q somehow triggered another explosion beneath Sandy's feet at the exact same moment, forcing him to reposition—and his sword ended up slicing off only Blackbeard's arm instead.
Sandy narrowed his eyes, glaring at Doc Q.
Damn it. Didn't expect that bag of bones to be such a nuisance.
"Shit!"
"BOOM!"
Sandy leapt backward just as another explosion erupted where he'd been standing.
He frowned. "Isn't this guy supposed to be the ship's doctor? Since when did he turn into a walking time bomb? And how the hell is he doing that?!"
Still, it didn't matter. Blackbeard was the real target here.
But as Sandy prepared to strike again, the battlefield suddenly grew quiet. The black mist around them began to fade—and when it cleared, Blackbeard and his crew were gone.
Sandy's expression hardened. He activated Observation Haki, scanning the area—but there wasn't a trace of them.
A Safe Distance Away
"Wehahahaha!" Burgess laughed after Doc Q patched him up. "What a disaster! We got beaten half to death, Captain! Wehahaha!"
Van Augur, holding his snapped rifle, asked calmly, "The capture failed. What's our next move?"
Doc Q slumped against his horse, sighing between hiccups. "Hic… I didn't expect that guy's physical strength and speed to be so incredible. Hic… Fate really favored him this time…"
Blackbeard, clutching his reattached arm, grimaced but grinned through the pain.
"Zehahaha… Stop complaining. I didn't expect Storm D. Sandy to be that strong either. Let's rest and recover for now. If this target didn't work out—" he grinned wickedly "—then we'll just hunt another one."
Still, the fight replayed in his mind.
That ability… what was it? Why did my position suddenly change? And why didn't my darkness pull him in?
He couldn't figure it out. Eventually, he stopped trying. He flexed his reattached arm and turned to Doc Q.
"Can this arm move like before?"
Doc Q gave him a deadpan look. "Hic… Captain, are you doubting my medical skills?"
Blackbeard burst into laughter again, his voice echoing in the night.
"Zehahaha! Storm D. Sandy… next time, I'll tear you apart."
Meanwhile, on the Going Merry
Nami looked worried. "Luffy, Sandy looked really serious earlier. You think someone dangerous was after him?"
Zoro leaned back casually. "Don't worry. With that guy's strength, if he wants to escape, no one's catching him."
Luffy nodded with a grin. "Yeah. He said he'd handle it, so he's fine."
Usopp blinked. "Wait—what are you guys talking about? What happened to Sandy?"
Luffy replied, "He said he was being targeted."
"Targeted?!" Chopper yelped. "Then let's go save him!"
"Yeah!" Usopp added. "We're his crewmates—how can we just sit here?!"
Zoro held up a hand. "Calm down, Usopp. Sandy said he's got it handled. Judging by what we saw, those guys were strong. Let's wait for him to come back."
Luffy grinned again. "Don't worry. Sandy's really strong."
At that moment, Chopper tilted his head curiously. "By the way, did you find out anything about Skypiea earlier?"
The name alone made Nami's face darken. She spun around, shouting, "Skypiea?! Don't even mention it!"
Chopper froze, trembling. "I-I'm sorry!"
Nami stomped her foot. "As soon as I said the name in the bar, everyone burst out laughing! Like it was some kind of joke! What's so funny, huh?!"
Usopp instantly played dead, smearing ketchup over his chest. "Killer Ketchup Star!"
Chopper transformed defensively. "Fur Enhancement!"
Robin, returning from her scouting trip, smiled calmly. "My, what's all the commotion?"
Sanji's eyes turned into hearts the moment he saw her. "Robin-chwan~! You're back! Would you like to eat first—or bathe first~?"
Nami turned toward Robin, still fuming. "It's all your fault! You're the one who mentioned Skypiea! If it doesn't exist, I'm kicking you into the sea to feed the fish!"
Chopper yelped and jumped in shock—then fell right into the ocean. Zoro sighed and dove in after him.
Usopp leaned over to Robin. "She means she's mad. Just… don't provoke her."
Robin chuckled and handed Luffy a rolled map. "This is Jaya Island. We're currently in Mock Town. To the east lives an eccentric old man who's been shunned by the townsfolk."
"A strange old man?" Luffy asked, intrigued.
Robin nodded. "His name is Montblanc Cricket. He was driven out for talking about dreams. You'll probably get along."
Luffy's grin widened. "Then once Sandy comes back—we're going to see him!"
…
Author's Note:
The fanfic One Piece: My Flirtatious System Adventure is first half completed.
The entire story has been uploaded on Patreon as a dedicated collection:
📚 One Piece (Chapters 1–362)
The second half will be released in 10–15 days, which means the fully completed fanfic will soon be available to read—so join Patreon now!
Carefully organized into multiple posts, with several chapters per post for smooth and easy binge reading.
🔗 patreon.com/Shadow_demon_007
Thank you all for your continuous support and love for this journey 💙
Second half will be soon.