"For a mere East Blue pirate, you live quite comfortably — you certainly know how to enjoy yourself!"
Planck gripped the hilt of his sword and turned toward the castle.
"Men, go and seize all their ill‑gotten wealth. We'll keep half, and give the rest back to the villagers."
As the hundreds of pirates marched away, the villagers let out a collective sigh of relief — until someone suddenly cried out: "Wait! What about Nami? She's still inside the castle, isn't she?"
"Right! If she gets caught up in the fighting…"
"That little troublemaker joined their crew of her own free will. Why should we care?"
Some in the village were worried, others indifferent, and a few even spoke with spite.
Genzo frowned deeply. "No matter what, I'd better go and tell Nojiko — she's the only family Nami has left."
---
Meanwhile, Grimm, who had been strolling leisurely back toward the shore, stopped short when he spotted the large castle. Curious, he began walking slowly toward it.
"Arlong's old castle? No… this must belong to the Sabertooth Shark Pirates now."
It looked completely out of place — towering and imposing, right in the middle of such a simple, humble village.
Before he could get much closer, Planck and his men came hurrying up from behind.
"Captain, we've done our checking. The castle belongs to Sloan, captain of the Sabertooth Shark Pirates. His bounty is 17 million Berries — the highest in the entire East Blue!"
Planck reported, holding up a wanted poster.
"Only 17 million Berries?"
Even Mannolos, who was not the sharpest, rolled his eyes at the number. Just how weak is this sea anyway?
---
Inside Sloan's castle, ten‑year‑old Nami bit back tears as she drew lines and measured distances on paper. One day I will finish my own map of the entire world — that is my dream!
Suddenly —
BOOM!
A deafening crash shook the building, making Nami jump and drop her drawing tools.
"What was that?!"
She ran to the window, stood on tiptoe, and looked down. A huge hole had been smashed through the outer wall, and dozens of figures were pouring inside.
At their head stood a man wearing a fox‑themed coat with a cross hanging around his neck.
But what caught her eye even more was the enormous skeletal creature standing behind him — taller than the castle itself.
Nami covered her mouth in shock.
The entire building was barely a third of its height; next to it, the castle looked like nothing more than a toy.
"Who dares bring such inferior creatures here?!"
A roar echoed through the halls, sending a chill straight down Nami's spine.
It was Sloan — a yellow‑skinned Sabertooth Shark Fish‑Man. Just hearing his voice was enough to make Nami's skin prickle with fear.
His crew gathered around him, facing off against the newcomers.
Every eye in Grimm's crew turned toward Sloan. So this is the most wanted pirate in the East Blue?
Grimm frowned. Wait a minute… isn't this just Arlong with yellow skin? Did he go and buy a fancy new color scheme or something?
"That man… and that symbol…"
Octopus Fish‑Man Hatchan, standing at Sloan's right, stared at the tattoos and markings on the newcomers in disbelief.
"That's… that's Grimm, one of the Four Emperors! The Holy Light Pirates!"
"An Emperor?!"
Kaneshiro, the shipwright, shrieked in terror.
They might have ruled this tiny corner of the sea, but they knew full well that even ordinary pirates from the Grand Line were far beyond their reach — let alone an Emperor.
"W‑what is an Emperor doing here?" stammered the crew member Koji.
"You…"
Sloan narrowed his eyes at Grimm.
"Oh? You know me?" Grimm asked, curious — he was certain they had never met.
"Know you? I have every reason to hate you! You are the one who killed my brother Arlong! Today…"
Before Sloan could finish, Planck roared: "Quit your blabbering and just hand everything over!"
At his command, hundreds of Holy Light Pirates surged through the broken wall and poured into the castle.
"Damn it — if it comes to it, we'll have to fight!"
"Are you an idiot? Do you really think we can stand against an Emperor?!"
"It would be suicide!"
"Maybe if we kneel and hand over all our money, they'll spare us?"
Before the battle even began, Sloan's crew was already falling apart in panic.
They were as arrogant and racist as Arlong's men had been, but they also knew — an Emperor was someone they could never afford to offend.
"Die, humans!"
Sloan slammed his foot against the ground and launched himself forward like a cannonball, his sharp, blade‑like snout aimed straight at Grimm.
CLANG!
Grimm did not even lift a finger. Above him, Mannolos simply lowered one massive skeletal hand, forming a shield that stopped Sloan's charge dead in its tracks.
Before Sloan could even react, Mannolos flipped his hand and caught him in his grip — holding him as easily as a child would hold a bug.
"Let go of me, you monster!" Sloan thrashed and struggled, but in Mannolos's grasp, he was no bigger or stronger than a caterpillar.
Without another word, Mannolos opened his jaws and tossed Sloan inside.
From the window, Nami watched in horror, covering her mouth, as the giant skeleton began to chew.
Ugh…
Even though she had cursed Sloan a hundred times in her heart and wished him dead, seeing it happen so brutally made Nami gag and turn away, retching.
"Sloan!"
"Captain Sloan!"
The remaining Fish‑Men cried out in grief. Whether it was Arlong or Sloan, they had always stood by their own kind.
"Relax — you'll be joining him soon enough."
The Holy Light Pirates rushed forward, blades swinging.
With such a massive gap in strength, and Sloan's crew already terrified and demoralized, the fight was over in less than three minutes.
Every last one of them was cut down.
Calling themselves a superior race? What arrogance… and they've robbed and killed so many villagers. They deserved this.
Once the fighting was done, Planck scratched his head and frowned.
"Wait a minute… we just killed them all. Now how are we supposed to find out where they hid the money?"
He shrugged, deciding it was too late to worry.
"Never mind — it's somewhere around here. Search every room and bring every last coin and treasure out!"
Grimm sat down in the large chair that had belonged to Sloan, while his men ransacked the castle — taking anything of value and smashing whatever they found useless.
Oh no…
Nami, still pale and shaky from what she had seen, looked down and saw the pirates already climbing the stairs toward the upper floors. If they kept coming, she would be caught for sure.
__________________
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