"Huh!? What's going on here!?"
On the deck of the Going Merry, every member of the Straw Hat crew abruptly focused their gaze on Red, staring at him in confusion.
After all, according to the intelligence Red had provided, Moria and the Moonlight Pirates were supposed to be an evil pirate crew lurking within thick fog—bullies who preyed on passing ships and stole people's shadows.
But judging from the current situation…
Psshh!
A spray of vivid crimson blood suddenly erupted across the deck of the Going Merry.
Don't get the wrong idea!
No one had attacked the Straw Hats.
Rather, it was Sanji—fresh from his morning training and overflowing with youthful vigor—who had just caught a glimpse of the Giant Ghost Princess Perona as she casually swayed, revealing the forbidden holy light beneath her ultra-short skirt!!!
"Sanji! Sanji!!! What's wrong with you!?"
Seeing Sanji collapse to the ground, Chopper immediately cried out in panic.
But the response he received was Sanji wearing an expression of pure bliss, slowly raising a finger to point at the towering Perona ahead, his face twisted into a lecherous grin.
"I'm absolutely certain…"
"Straight ahead lies heaven itself!!!"
"Y-You pervert!!!"
At that moment, Perona in the distance finally seemed to notice the commotion aboard the Going Merry. She instantly clutched her skirt with both hands, her face flushing red as she let out a shy curse.
Seeing this, Zoro frowned deeply."This idiot is embarrassing us again!!!"
Everyone nodded in unanimous agreement.
Nami even pulled Chopper—who was still worried about Sanji—back by force.
"Don't bother with that idiot. Let him fend for himself."
Thanks to this small interruption, the Straw Hats temporarily forgot about the discrepancy in Red's intelligence and once again turned their attention forward.
Meanwhile, Perona on the massive ship seemed to realize her own lapse in composure, as if someone had reminded her. She quickly coughed lightly twice, then resumed her role like a professional hostess, putting on a welcoming smile.
"Please don't concern yourselves with such trivial details…"
"Honored guests, the gates of our park are now open to you."
"Next, allow our park director—Gecko Moria—to personally guide you through the entirety of Zombie Land!"
"Once again, welcome…"
"To our park!"
"Shihihihihi…"
As Perona's mischievous laughter echoed through the mist, her figure gradually shrank and finally vanished from the Straw Hats' sight.
The next moment—
The island-converted ship known as the Thriller Bark suddenly began to move, aligning its gaping iron maw straight toward the Going Merry.
Clang clang clang…
The sound of chains colliding rang out sharply.
Under the operation of hidden mechanisms, the massive iron gate slowly opened, revealing a perfectly clear passage leading deep into the island.
"Foshishishishi~!!!"
"Straw Hat Kid Luffy, welcome to my Zombie Land!!!"
Before the Going Merry could even reach the shore, a piercing laugh rang out from the docks of the Thriller Bark.
Standing there was none other than one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea—Gecko Moria himself—grinning wildly in the direction of the Going Merry.
Beside him stood Perona, who had just welcomed the Straw Hats in spirit form, along with Moria's other two subordinates—
Hogback and Absalom!
The two of them, like Perona, had also changed their appearance.
Hogback had abandoned his "seductive" black fishnet outfit and returned to his old profession, once again donning a doctor's coat.
However, compared to a real physician's pristine white coat, Hogback's garment looked far more worn—faint traces of dust and dried blood still clung to it.
He looked every bit like a mad scientist.
As for Absalom beside him, his transformation was even more dramatic.
Already beastlike in appearance, he had now completely given up on subtlety, reshaping himself into the image of a wild animal.
Like a jungle monster, he bared his fangs and claws menacingly.
Yet upon closer inspection, one could still detect a trace of fear and cowardice hidden deep within his eyes.
"They're here… they're here!"
"A pirate crew with a combined bounty of 7.5 billion Beli!!!"
Perhaps due to their status as a Warlord crew, the Moonlight Pirates had closer interactions with the Marines.
Compared to other pirate groups, Moria and his subordinates trusted Marine intelligence far more.
An individual bounty might not accurately reflect a pirate's true strength.
But when evaluating an entire pirate crew, bounty totals were often frighteningly precise.
A crew worth 7.5 billion Beli…
Gulp!
Watching the ram-headed figurehead draw closer, even Moria felt his nerves tighten.
Still, one didn't strike a smiling face!
Unless the Straw Hat Pirates were intent on hostility, Moria didn't believe they would pick a fight after he had gone this far to welcome them.
"Welcome, welcome~"
As the Going Merry docked, Moria's group rushed forward enthusiastically, greeting the Straw Hats as if they were honored guests.
At this moment, no matter how much they trusted Red, the Straw Hats couldn't help but feel unsettled by Moria's attitude as they cautiously disembarked.
"Hey, Onion Head! What kind of place is this!?"
Carefree as ever—and the only one who hadn't bothered remembering Moria's background—Luffy immediately began looking around curiously after stepping off the ship.
Onion Head!?
Hearing this teasing nickname, Moria's brow twitched violently.
The three oddballs beside him felt their hearts leap into their throats.
Fortunately, having already gone this far, Moria decided—under the weight of sunk costs—not to worry about lowering his pride just a little more.
Though he didn't wear a sycophantic smile like Absalom and Hogback, he still did his best to appear friendly.
"Foshishishishi…"
"Straw Hat Kid Luffy! This place is Zombie Land—filled with terror and corpses!"
"You can think of it as a haunted-house amusement park!"
"Here, you'll experience thrills like never before!"
"Only the truly brave can leave this island laughing!"
"So, how about testing your courage!?"
"That sounds pretty fun!"
Under Moria's persuasion, Luffy's eyes instantly sparkled with dazzling light.
He spun around and looked at the rest of the crew.
"Hey, hey! Let's all go in and check it out, yeah!?"
"A haunted amusement park hidden in the mist—this is a once-in-a-lifetime experience!"
"Let's have a test of courage!!!"
"..."
"No matter how you look at it, this doesn't resemble an amusement park at all, does it!?"
Nami pressed a hand to her forehead, deeply worried about her captain's near-nonexistent intelligence.
But before she could finish protesting, Chopper—who had been supporting Sanji—suddenly lit up with excitement.
"It's really an amusement park!?"
"I've never been to one before in my whole life~!"
One of the few aboard who could actually keep up with Luffy's thought process, Chopper immediately broke into an innocent grin upon hearing the invitation.
Seeing this, Nami's objections instantly died in her throat.
As one of the crew's beloved mascots—on par with the Going Merry itself—no one wanted to crush Chopper's expectations.
Not even Red.
"Hey, Moria."
Red, who had remained silent all this time, suddenly spoke, drawing everyone's attention.
His dark eyes locked onto Moria, brimming with unmistakable menace—yet a calm smile rested on his lips.
"You're absolutely sure it's an amusement park inside… right?"
"If you ruin our captain's and ship doctor's fun, you do know what awaits you, don't you?"
For some reason, under Red's gaze, Moria's crew grew visibly tense, as though an invisible hand had clenched around their hearts.
Gulp!
Under the effect of Pressure, even someone as experienced as Moria inexplicably felt his nerves unravel.
This was precisely the difference between Pressure and Conqueror's Haki.
Conqueror's Haki wasn't merely a mental shock—it was a unique power born from the fusion of physical presence and will.
As such, its effectiveness could vary depending on the target's strength, resolve, spirit, and mindset.
But Pressure was different.
This power, originating from the Pokémon world, not only granted Red the innate qualities of a true king—
It could also ignore all those complicated variables of Conqueror's Haki, affecting others purely based on the gap in strength between them.
And as Moria was now…
His strength had plummeted compared to twenty years ago.
Setting aside the strange abilities of the Shadow-Shadow Fruit, whether he could even match a pirate with a 300 million Beli bounty was questionable.
"O-Of course!"
Under the crushing effect of Pressure, fear and rage flashed through Moria's eyes.
Yet the next second, he answered obediently:
"This is a genuine horror-themed amusement park! How could we possibly ruin the fun?"
"Please enjoy yourselves to your heart's content!"
"Haha! See? I told you! This Onion Head looks kinda dumb—no way he'd lie to us!"
"Chopper, Usopp! Let's go play!!!"
"Yay~"
Chopper immediately started jumping with excitement, thrilled at the thought of his first-ever amusement park.
He completely forgot that the word zombie came before amusement park.
Kids really did lose all sense once they got excited.
After all, Chopper was only eight years old.
Most of his life had been spent inside a castle—his maturity was bound to be limited.
Soon, he and Luffy dashed eagerly toward the dark forest in the distance.
"H-Hey, is this really okay!?"
Usopp, who had at least some sense and plenty of cowardice, hurriedly reached out to warn them.
But before he could finish speaking, Luffy and Chopper had already vanished into the forest's darkness.
"Red, I—"
With a helpless sigh, Usopp turned to the vice-captain.
What he received was an encouraging smile from Red.
"Then I'll leave those two to you, Usopp!"
"I…"
Usopp sighed deeply but could only follow Red's instructions, stepping into the eerie forest.
No choice—this was all part of Red's mission.
"Straw Hat Kid Monkey D. Luffy, bounty 1.5 billion Beli… 'Swarm' Usopp, bounty 1.08 billion Beli… and a talking pet that doesn't even appear on the bounty list…"
As Luffy's group disappeared, Moria and his men silently recited their bounties.
Which meant…
Those still at the harbor totaled nearly 5 billion Beli in bounties!
This—this—was what a truly powerful pirate crew looked like.
A glint flashed in Moria's eyes as memories from the past resurfaced unbidden.
But then, a voice interrupted his thoughts.
"To think a dignified Warlord of the Sea would have such a silver tongue!"
"Horror-themed amusement park… heh…"
"You really have the nerve to say something so ridiculous."
Moria turned his head and met a pair of eyes that seemed to see through everything.
BOOM!!!
In the next instant, a terrifying surge of power erupted from their owner, crashing toward them like a tidal wave—
Then abruptly halting, slipping past them in an instant.
After briefly revealing his strength to intimidate Moria, Red chuckled lightly, his aura quickly softening.
"I don't know why you're acting so out of character…"
"But judging by your behavior, you don't want to be our enemy, do you?"
"..."
Moria remained silent, his gaze flickering violently.
Conqueror's Haki!!!
There was no mistake!!!
Even though he had left the New World decades ago, that unique talent possessed only by true monsters—
He would never forget it.
Because back then, Kaido had used that very power to utterly crush his comrades!
And now, he was seeing it again—manifested in a young man!
Worse still…
That young man was only the second-in-command of the crew!
For the first time in a long while, Moria was genuinely shaken.
Under Red's pressure, he finally spoke:
"…I bear you no ill will."
Pitch-black shadows writhed beneath his feet, betraying the turmoil in his heart.
"I can tell," Red said with a chuckle.
"Coincidentally, we also have no interest in a Warlord who doesn't dare leave these waters."
He mercilessly tore open Moria's old wound—
Then, before Moria could explode in rage, Red suddenly lifted his head, eyes blazing as he declared:
"Moria…"
"How about we make a deal!!!"
(End of Chapter)