"Boom..."
Without warning.
Just as Ren, who maintained his [Beast Form] and had transformed into a dragon, was flying wildly over the sea…
In the distance, there were bursts of noisy gunfire.
He couldn't help but stop and look over subconsciously.
"Um?" He saw a huge pirate ship on the sea in the distance.
It was chasing a small sailboat with great momentum.
It was launching a fierce bombardment.
It seemed that it would not give up until it sank the target.
And on the small sloop, which was less than a few meters long and could only accommodate two or three people, there was a faint and beautiful figure.
She was trying her best to steer the ship, relying on her superb navigation skills to constantly avoid the incoming cannonballs.
From time to time, the shots hit and exploded into sprays of water.
But they were always avoided by a hair's breadth.
Moreover, the small sailboat kept speeding up along with the undulating sea currents.
Trying to increase the distance from the pursuing pirate ship.
"Interesting, except for that girl Nami..."
Witnessing this scene.
Ren, still in dragon form, stood high in the sky.
He raised his eyebrows, surprised:"There are still people with such superb navigation skills in this sea!" He once almost died at sea.
It had always made him worried.
Therefore, in order to prevent such accidents from happening again…
He studied navigation carefully with Nami, the navigator of the Straw Hats.
He even went to Alabasta to pay people to learn how to make record pointers.
But it has to be said—
Navigation requires real talent and intuition.
In just a few months.
After continuous learning and practice…
And with Nami, a gifted navigator tempted by the treasures Ren offered, giving him guidance without complaint…
Although he reluctantly became a navigator—
He was still far behind Nami.
If you sail in this extremely dangerous sea with its unpredictable climate…
Just relying on half-baked navigation skills is not enough.
"Roar——"
Without hesitation.
A roar like thunder.
Ren directly stepped on Xiangyun and dashed out.
Like red lightning streaking over the sea.
"What!?" Carina, who was operating the small sailboat while avoiding the pirates' pursuit, was stunned.
With her big round eyes, she looked up in disbelief at the huge thing that suddenly descended from the sky.
Black scales shimmered with a metallic luster…
Its entire body was wreathed in blazing flames. Powerful limbs held the creature aloft as it soared through the air, a long, scale-covered tail whipping behind it with overwhelming force.
A pair of fierce, predatory dragon eyes stared down at her from above
Heat waves hit her face, distorting the air.
It was unbearably hot and terrifying.
"Ah? Dragon… a dragon!?"
On the deck…
The young and beautiful eighteen-year-old girl was startled. Her big eyes stared at the powerful mythical creature that shouldn't exist in the world.
Her whole body stiffened. Her face full of astonishment, she cried out:"How is that legendary creature possible?"
Carina had never thought—She had only pretended to join the Tiger Shark Pirates. She used her beauty to get the pirates drunk, stole their treasure, and had been planning to slip away quietly.
But she never expected the pirates to be prepared, putting her in danger.
And now she encountered such a creature.
"That is?"
"Hey, are you kidding me?"
"That legendary creature actually exists…"
"Gulu! It can actually run through the air and stay hovering…"
"Is it here to help that damn thief!?"
"Damn woman, how dare you lie to us and steal the treasure from the ship…"
"I won't spare her!"
It wasn't just Carina On the pirate ship chasing her…
The pirates of the Tiger Shark Pirates opened their mouths wide, voiceless in disbelief.
Each one filled with murderous intent, gnashing their teeth at Carina who had stolen their treasure.
"Hey hahaha, this is a legendary rare beast…"
The pirate captain "Tiger Shark" Badr Geo—bounty 73 million beli—stared closely at the majestic dragon above the distant sea. His eyes burned hot:"If we can catch it, we'll sell it for a fortune!"
"Stop firing, all of you!" he ordered loudly."Wait until we get closer, aim at that big guy, and blow it down!"
"If we can catch it, we'll make a huge profit! Hey hahaha…"
However—before his men could respond…
His laughter stopped abruptly.
His eyes filled with terror, cold sweat dripping.
"Ah… ah…"
"What is that?"
"Help!!!"
"Run!!"
All of a sudden A few sea miles away.
The huge Black dragon Flying…
Suddenly opened its mouth.
"Boro Breath!" The fire was dazzling a ball of terrifying flames ripped through the air.
Carrying extreme heat, the atmosphere distorted it blasted over and hit the pirate ship perfectly.
"Boom… boom…" Fire shot into the sky.
Many pirates were burned to ashes by the extreme temperature before they could even scream.
The large three-masted pirate ship instantly exploded, shattered into countless pieces.
The wreckage burned fiercely.
Thick smoke rising.
"Perish." Ren, still in dragon form, didn't even look at the pirates he killed.
He didn't bother chasing the few survivors.
He had borrowed Kaido the Beast's signature move, Boro Breath—and the effect was excellent.
Although Ren's Observation Haki wasn't as monstrous as Enel's "Mantra," which could cover entire sky islands…
His own was still extremely special: its range could cover an entire island with ease.
Not only could he sense each person's aura with precision, but he could also hear sounds as faint as mosquitoes if he willed.
The pirates' plans could never escape his ears.
These uninformed fools probably had no idea that Mythical Zoan fruits were even rarer than Logias.
But now that they dared to target him…
Naturally, Ren wouldn't show mercy.
"Guru..." Waves rolling on the sea the small sloop rose and fell with the waves watching those pirates and their boats being swallowed up by the terrifying flames in an instant…
Carina couldn't help but open her mouth and couldn't close it for a long time.
Her face was full of shock, sweating slightly, speechless.
"Brush!" But the next moment…
Under her incredulous gaze,
Ren's huge beast body began to shrink.
It turned directly into a human form and landed steadily on the deck.
"Eh?" Looking at the young and handsome tall man in front of her…
Carina couldn't help but widen her eyes and exclaimed in shock:
"You… you are a human being?" Her eyes were filled with curiosity.
At the same time, with indescribable vigilance, she subconsciously stepped back, keeping her distance.
"If i am not a human being, what else could I be, maybe a Ghost?" Ren crossed his arms and said with a chuckle. He looked at the female thief in front of him, wearing a black felt hat, purple hair, dressed heroically and with a proud figure.
He had already recognized her identity.
Phantom Thief Carina!
A woman with a flexible mind and superb stealing skills. In terms of beauty and intelligence, she was no less than the Cat Buglar Nami.
Like Nami, she was also born in the East Blue. A very clever female thief who had been wandering the sea since childhood, specializing in stealing from pirates, nobles, and wealthy merchants.
It was said she had also had some past interactions with Nami.
In the future, she would become even bolder—she would target the Golden Emperor Gild Tesoro's treasure.
With her own wits and strategy, under the eyes of the naval fleet and the Straw Hat Pirates, she robbed the Gran Tesoro, making everyone believe that the ship was going to self-destruct when her goal was always to keep all the riches of Tesoro for herself.
No wonder she had such excellent navigation skills.
"Are you… an Devil Fruit user?"
Carina wasn't stupid. She quickly understood.
The man before her had to be a special Devil Fruit user.
Moreover, she couldn't shake the feeling that he looked familiar, as if she had seen him somewhere before.
"Devil Fruits are divided into Logia, Paramecia, and Zoan types. Although Logias are recognized as the strongest…"
Ren shrugged casually.
"But strictly speaking, the Zoan type is no weaker than the Logia type. It also has rare Ancient Zoan… and the Mythical Zoan are the most rare to the point they are considered even rarer than Logias."
"Ancient Zoan? Mythical Zoan?"
Hearing this…Carina blinked, full of surprise. She truly didn't know there were such distinctions within Zoan Fruits.
"As the name suggests, Ancient Zoans let you transform in animals that existed in ancient times…"
Ren smiled, not hesitating to explain:
"As for Mythical Zoans, they're more complicated. They usually only exist in myths or legends—creatures or beings made up by people."
Since recognizing her, he had already made up his mind.
He wanted to recruit this intelligent and sly vixen under his command.
After all, he was in need of an excellent navigator.
It was impossible to remain alone forever.
To dominate this sea required not only personal strength but also a powerful enough force. Before truly executing his plans…
He needed to form his own crew first.
"So that's it…" Carina finally understood.
"Then you're a Mythical Zoan User, right?"
Feeling he had no ill intentions, her guard lowered slightly, and she began to examine the handsome and powerful man before her more seriously.
"Let me introduce myself. My name is Sparks Ren. I come from the East Blue but was born in the South Blue… I am a Zoan user—the user of the Mythical Zoan Ryu Ryu no mi model: Galmorath."
Ren introduced himself politely, smiling.
"Sparks Ren? You're also from the East Blue?"
Carina was surprised Hearing he was from the East Blue immediately made her feel more at ease.
"To be precise, I grew up in the East Blue for certain reasons, but I was born in the South Blue."
Ren added simply.
"Wait… Sparks Ren… I remember…" Looking at Ren, she felt an inexplicable sense of familiarity.
Carina tilted her head, as if something suddenly struck her she hurriedly took out a stack of wanted posters from her pocket and began flipping through them.
Finally, she pulled one out the photo on it was exactly the same as the Ren in front of her.
"Are you the vice-captain of the Straw Hat Pirates—Sparks Ren, the 'Butcher Ren,' with a bounty of 200 million bellys?"
Her eyes widened. She stared at Ren in shock and compared him repeatedly to the newly issued bounty poster. She had never expected to meet the vice-captain of the Straw Hats here.
"The vice-captain of the Straw Hats?"
Looking at the bounty poster—his bounty now 200 million—Ren couldn't help but chuckle:
"That's a thing of the past."
"Just a few days ago, I quit the Straw Hat Pirates."
The reason Ren had risen to the position of vice-captain was mainly because, when he first boarded the ship…
He made a bet with the strongest members of the crew—Zoro and Sanji.
Witnessed by the captain Luffy, they let their fists speak. The winner would become the vice-captain.
Needless to say, the result was natural.
Even without using his Lunarian natural abilities, bullying rookies who hadn't yet fully grown…
His Observation Haki was already awakened, and his swordsmanship more stable than Zoro's. Ren still won easily, becoming the vice-captain.
In Alabasta, he killed Mr 0 the leader of Baroques works but his true indentity was the Shichibukai "Sir Crocodile".
Originally, his bounty, as vice-captain, was the same as Luffy's—100 million bellys.
The increase to 200 million likely came from the incident where the Straw Hats, after leaving Skypiea aboard the Going Merry, accidentally landed on the G-8 Marine branch.
He caused a massive disturbance there, killing many marines, which put the Navy Headquarters in a difficult position. The losses were considerable.
This was also one of the reasons the conflict between him and the rest of the Straw Hats grew. At the G-8 branch…
He really had gone on a killing spree.
He had personal grudges to vent.
After all, he naturally held no goodwill toward the lackeys of the World Government.
Ren, being a surviving remnant of the Lunarian tribe…
The World Government had issued a standing bounty—anyone who reported a Lunarian's location would receive hundreds of millions of bellys.
Once his identity was exposed, it would cause chaos. Countless troubles would follow. There would be no peace.
He might even face an entire world of enemies.
Even ordinary civilians, bounty hunters, pirates—they could become the eyes of the Government. He could be monitored anywhere he went.
And for money, countless people would try to capture or kill him.
Otherwise—how could the Lunarians, who could survive extreme environments and possessed incredible resilience, be nearly extinct?
And the culprit behind it all…Was the World Government.
In ancient times, the Lunarian tribe was known as the "Clan of Gods," living atop the Red Line.
Mariejois—the highest center of power—was once their homeland.
Not only was their home stolen…The entire tribe was hunted Now, only a few remained.
Although Ren, as a Lunarian–Gyojin hybrid, lacked the brown skin and had his wings plucked out at birth…
As long as he didn't use his Lunarian flame ability in front of others, no one could identify him.
So he had few concerns but he still carried Lunarian blood and even if he put aside righteousness…
He wanted revenge for his ancestors and for future descendants who might inherit Lunarian blood—so they would not be hunted like animals.
Someday, Ren would settle this debt with the World Government and the Celestial Dragons who ruled it.
From the very beginning, he was their enemy they were destined to be eternal foes.
"Eh You Quit!?"