Chapter 120: The Black Cat Pirates
West Blue - The Route to the Grand Line
The blue sea shimmered under the golden sun as a nondescript merchant ship sailed away from the last island of the West Blue.
A black-haired woman stood at the railing, the sea breeze playing with her long hair. She wore a wide-brimmed hat and held a thick, ancient book in her hands, her fingers tracing the yellowed pages.
"Finally... I'm entering the Grand Line."
Nico Robin whispered to herself, a complex light in her deep eyes.
Twenty-three years of running, of living in the shadows, of surviving alone.
But this time—
She looked up at the distant silhouette of Reverse Mountain, a small smile touching her lips.
"The truth of history... I will find it."
The ship slowly entered the turbulent currents, heading toward the legendary sea where all secrets were buried.
Meanwhile, in the East Blue...
A small Marine warship was on a collision course with the Black Cat Pirates.
The sea was calm, the sky a perfect blue. The sleek warship cut through the waves like an arrow, its flag snapping in the wind.
At the bow, Ace squinted at a fleeing pirate ship with cat ears on the prow. He frowned. "Another one? Why are all the pirates in the East Blue suddenly rushing out to die?"
Beside him, Luffy wrinkled his nose. "Do you think they're after Grandpa's pickled radishes?"
They exchanged a look, their expressions darkening.
"Did something happen to Grandpa and Grandma?"
Roy walked out of the bridge, the sun glinting off his shoulder boards. He joined them at the railing, his voice calm but absolute.
"Don't worry."
"The East Blue is peaceful."
"They're just unlucky."
He pointed at the Black Cat ship, which was entering cannon range. "Just a few stragglers who slipped through the net... and ran right into us."
Roy's gaze sharpened as he looked at the ship. A memory flashed through his mind.
"The Black Cat Pirates. Captain Kuro."
"The guy who, in the original story, faked his death and spent three years as a butler just to inherit a sick girl's fortune? Heh, a real piece of work..."
"His plans are meticulous, and his acting is top-tier for the East Blue, but... that's all he is. An East Blue villain."
His thoughts shifted, his eyes growing cold.
"Marine Captain Morgan."
"Originally a hot-blooded recruit with a strong sense of justice. In a skirmish with the Black Cat Pirates, his entire unit was slaughtered, and his jaw was shattered."
"Then Jango hypnotized him into believing he had captured Kuro himself."
"From then on, the 'hero' Morgan rose to the rank of Captain at the 153rd Branch. But the side effects of the hypnosis twisted his personality, making him tyrannical, violent, and greedy."
"He became a stain on the Marines... corrupting not just his uniform, but the justice he once believed in."
"Cancer like that... needs to be cut out early."
Roy snapped back to reality. "Ace. Luffy."
"Leave no one alive."
Ace grinned, his right arm bursting into flames. "I love orders like that."
Luffy bounced excitedly. "Awesome! I love beating up guys who think they're smart!"
Black Cat Pirate Ship - Main Deck
The sea churned.
Captain Kuro pushed up his round glasses, which were sliding down his nose. Sweat dripped from his forehead, and his knuckles were white as he gripped his coat.
The approaching Marine warship was sleek and black, cutting through the water like a blade. It didn't look like any standard East Blue patrol ship.
More terrifying was the aura radiating from the three figures at the bow. Even from this distance, it felt like a mountain pressing down on him.
"...Something's wrong."
Kuro swallowed hard. "Those aren't East Blue Marines... That pressure doesn't belong in this sea."
"Captain! What do we do?!" his first mate, Jango, cried, his hypnosis ring jingling in his shaking hands. His face was ashen.
Kuro gritted his teeth, throwing off his coat. "Full retreat—Turn the ship around!! NOW—!"
Before he could finish, the sky changed.
"BOOM!!!"
"Fire Pillar!"
The clouds seemed to tear open as a blinding column of fire crashed down from the heavens, slamming into the bow of the Black Cat ship!
"Gyaaaaaah—!!!"
Several pirates were incinerated instantly, screaming as they fell into the sea!
Fire illuminated the deck. A figure in red descended from the sky, a cape of flames billowing behind him. Ace landed, his eyes burning with fury.
"This sea doesn't need trash like you."
He punched, and the fire twisted into a massive dragon, roaring across the deck!
"KA-BOOM—!"
The ship shook violently. The main mast snapped, and fire spread instantly!
Kuro spun around, only to see a pink dragon shadow diving from the sky!
"That's...?!"
A storm roared as a human-dragon hybrid crashed onto the deck—
"BAM!!!"
Luffy landed, cracking the ship's keel and sending up a cloud of splinters and dust!
Butchie and Sham, the Nyaban Brothers, drew their claws and charged, but before they even saw their target, a dragon tail swept them away!
"WHACK! WHACK!!"
The two were launched like ragdolls, smashing through several cabin walls. They were dead on impact!
Jango raised his ring, trembling. "N-No! I... I surr—"
Fwoosh.
A blur of fire, and Ace was in front of him, a fist pressed to his forehead. "You're too loud."
"BOOM!!!"
Fire exploded. Jango flew backward like a meteor, crashing through the railing and hitting the water in a ball of flame!
In seconds, the ship was an inferno. The mast was gone, the hull was breaking, and nearly thirty pirates were either burning or broken.
Blood and fire painted a picture of death on the deck.
"You... you have to be kidding me..."
"What kind of monster Marines are these...?!"
Kuro sat on the bloodstained deck, disheveled, his cat-claws lying beside him. He tried to push his glasses up with the palm of his hand, but he froze.
The man known for his "Thousand Plans," for his calm and cunning, was now pale with terror. His schemes were useless against this overwhelming power.
"This isn't right..." he muttered. "I'm not supposed to die here... I am—"
He didn't finish. A tall figure walked out of the flames.
Ace strode through the fire, his gaze like molten rock.
A whip of fire extended from his arm, grabbing a half-dead pirate and flinging him into the sea, sizzling as he hit the water.
Behind him, a massive pink shadow rose into the air. Luffy, in full Dragon form, roared, his throat glowing with terrifying energy!
"Blast Breath!"
A beam of searing dragon fire erupted!
Kuro's eyes went wide, his face twisting into a scream. "NO!! I can't—"
"BOOOOOOM—!!!"
The white-hot beam swept the ship. Kuro and the entire deck were instantly vaporized!
Debris flew, and Kuro was incinerated before he could even scream. The explosion drowned out everything.
The fire pierced the clouds, turning the sea red.
The wind carried the smell of burnt wood and blood. The charred planks sank one by one. The Black Cat Pirates—ship and crew—were erased.
Ace's flames faded as he floated down. Luffy landed back on the warship, returning to human form, his eyes still red with battle lust.
They looked back. Roy stood quietly on the warship, watching the burning wreck. "The East Blue doesn't need scum like that."
He turned and walked away.
Ace and Luffy followed silently.
The waves lapped at the charred debris, a funeral dirge for the wicked.
From this day on—
The Black Cat Pirates were erased from the history of the East Blue.
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