One month has passed since the rescue operation at the Fishman Settlement.
Hack and the others are still staying at our base. They seem intent on continuing their activities as settlers, but some are still shaken by their capture and want to remain with us for a while longer. In exchange, they've been helping us with manual labor and training our fighters in fishman karate and fishman jujutsu.
Toya and the shiphandling crew aren't just naturally gifted, they've been training like demons, and they're already at a level where they could earn proper ranks. They can now handle at least eight hundred strikes before reaching the famous "○○-plate tile punch" technique.
The other crew members are growing rapidly through simultaneous Haki training as well.
...Yeah, they've really gotten stronger.
Over the past month, we've conducted three raids, and we managed to suppress both the mafia and the navy forces that attacked us without needing me or Perona's ghosts to intervene.
Robin is also successfully replicating fishman karate techniques while incorporating her Devil Fruit abilities. As for the joint locks... I wonder where they learned those, but they're still part of her arsenal and can be deployed at any time.
"...Daz Bonez, you're starting to get the hang of Armament Haki."
"I've been sensing something, but I couldn't be certain. If you say so, then it must be true, Mihawk."
"Hmm, the two women you're sparring with also have impressive Haki."
Meanwhile, Daz, who's putting the most effort into training, is advancing at an alarming rate. While being thoroughly beaten by the two girls, he endures without flinching, maintaining his defensive stance.
"Hmph, my sisters are warriors of Amazon Lily. Of course they've honed their Haki as well."
"I've heard there's an island of warriors... How fascinating."
"The sacred island of Amazon Lily. Men are forbidden from entering."
"So if you enter, the warriors of Amazon Lily will attack you."
"Hey, cut it out! You think that's amusing, don't you?!"
"...Hmph."
"What are you doing?! You insolent brat, get back over there!"
...So how did we end up in this situation?
This girl is Hancock, right? She's a bit younger than me, but she's already that stunning beauty from the original story. Her sisters are definitely those two as well.
And she's looking up at them while simultaneously looking down on them, quite the contradiction.
Are you okay? You won't fall backward, will you?
I heard they were imprisoned together, but I never imagined it was that Hancock. I'm not entirely sure, but I think the timing is a bit off from the original.
"Mihawk, and Hancock, Sonia, and Marie as well, thank you. I'm truly grateful."
Still, it's genuinely a blessing that future Seven Warlords members and their companions will be training alongside Daz and the others from now on.
"...Why are you bowing your head?"
"Because I'm grateful..."
What else would it be?
"Strong people don't bow their heads so easily. It makes them appear weak."
Even if you say that...
"If bowing my head makes me appear weak, then so be it. If showing gratitude to my benefactors is a sign of weakness, then I'm perfectly fine with being weak."
"You're the one who saved us, aren't you? ...Mihawk, are all pirates like this?"
I was genuinely surprised when we first met, but Hancock seems to have been freed from slavery and escaped the Celestial Dragons, and now she's deeply curious about the outside world. She's also built decent relationships with our crew members and is actively helping with Daz and Amis's training.
"No, this man is simply exceptional. There are no other pirates who would trust people claiming to be government officials in training."
"That's probably true. The pirates we've encountered and sunk were all crude and vulgar."
...It's somewhat concerning how much this deviates from the original timeline, but at least those two won't have to endure harsh treatment as mere sparring partners for this kid and Daz.
"Does this arrangement not suit you?"
"No, there is a certain unfamiliarity, but it's not unpleasant. Though your Haki is still immature, you've shown me a strength different from that of Amazon Lily."
"I have no objections to serving under you. I'll look after my sisters as well."
...But having them join our ranks, is that really acceptable for the future of the Kuja Pirates?
Well, it's supposed to be temporary, just until we escort them back to Amazon Lily from the Grand Line.
***
"Hack-san, I brought the cart you requested."
"And lunch for everyone working on the construction."
"Oh, thank you, Toya-sama, Robin-san."
The cave, which had originally been expanded to conceal the pirate ship, had been further enlarged and partially renovated into living space for the fishmen and mermaids. Kuro had kicked through the hard rock ceiling to allow more sunlight to penetrate deeper inside.
Additionally, since the area near the lake at the island's center was particularly well-hidden, they had constructed homes for the fishmen there as well.
Currently, Hack and the other fishmen were tasked with renovating the cave, which was currently just a ship hiding spot, into a functional hidden port. The merfolk, who could move freely underwater, had excavated shallow areas to create deeper sections so that even larger vessels could dock without issue.
The merfolk and mermen who had befriended Robin waved back as she arrived to deliver the lunch she had prepared.
"Is Kuro-sama alright? I heard he was fighting marines again yesterday."
"Ah, yes. He's already up and about, he was observing the officers' training earlier."
"The Captain can sleep soundly and move around normally even after fighting someone like that recently."
"Really..."
Even Daz, who had been commanding at the time, had forgotten his own order to "run straight to the ship no matter what", such was the superhuman battle between two non-Devil Fruit users. That battle was etched into the memories of everyone present.
"No wonder he has a bounty over one hundred million at his age. He's quite the pirate."
"Thanks to that, we're being targeted by all sorts of people..."
In recent raids, targeting mafia and pirate ships, the mafia had prepared more forces than anticipated to defend against our attacks, or we found ourselves surrounded by navy forces who had laid traps.
However, these were all scattered by the strengthened Black Cat Pirates, along with Hawkeye, who had joined to observe their training progress, and the three from Amazon Lily, who had joined to learn more about the Black Cat Pirates.
The overwhelming display of power was so great that even Captain Kuro let slip the rare words, "This is excessive to watch..."
"I do have mixed feelings about the Captain getting hurt, but there's no doubt that thanks to Mihawk, our combat capabilities have been greatly enhanced. The same goes for Hancock and the others."
Though he had never trained in swordsmanship, Toya, who had been rigorously trained in Haki usage by Mihawk and the three Amazon Lily sisters, wore a complex expression.
"...Why is that person wearing our crew uniform when he's not even part of our crew..."
Beside him, Robin puffed out her cheeks in a pout.
"Ah, I was surprised too. That swordsman doing farm work..."
"He was wearing our emblem on his work clothes, and I didn't recognize him from behind, so I got really flustered..."
As part of their settlement efforts, land cultivation was an important task for Black Cat Pirates members. Though they were pirates, the Black Cat Pirates, who refused to plunder civilians, naturally sought to establish a self-sufficient lifestyle.
To make them easy to wash without worrying about dirt, a former civilian tailor had created work uniforms for the Black Cat Pirates in addition to their regular uniforms.
Wearing these with straw hats, the sight of pirates working alongside other crew members, sowing seeds in what they called "Marine Hunts," quietly shocked the former marines among them.
"Lately, there have been times during training when I see him in that uniform, and it feels really strange."
"The newspaper mentioned that the Marine Hunters have joined the Black Cat Pirates... They seem to be settling in well."
"Captain, even though you fought him, why are you so friendly with that person..."
In reality, from Kuro's perspective, Mihawk was a crew member, essentially part of his personal guard, who trained the officers and helped with settlement work. As a result, they had grown close enough to share meals and drinks together.
"But Robin also made a straw hat for Mihawk, didn't she?"
"...It's been hot lately."
***
"Alright, everyone's here."
After finishing today's training with Daz and the soldiers, today had been basic training for the crews of the second and third ships, which Mihawk and Hancock had declared still too early for advanced techniques, they helped with settlement work, shared a simple meal together, and then gathered the officers for their regular meeting.
Daz, Perona, Robin, Amis, Hack, Mihawk, and Hancock. Plus a few non-combatants in charge of the colonization efforts.
...Yeah! Something feels off, but everyone's here!
"Now that the matter with Hack and the fishman settlement team has been resolved, things have finally stabilized. I think it's time we clarify our plans moving forward."
"Does that mean we're discussing the next raid?"
At Mihawk's words, Robin shot him a disapproving glare.
Yeah... Mihawk, you're really enthusiastic about our activities, aren't you? Are you sure you're okay? You're supposed to become one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea, right? You'll make it there, right?
"Well, it is about raiding, but... Amis."
"Yes."
Amis pointed to a map of the West Blue on the meeting room wall, a room the carpenters had built to be sturdy and secure, where Daz, Robin, and the intelligence and procurement teams had compiled all the information they had gathered.
"As I mentioned before, West Blue is a sea where the underworld holds significant power. During the recent rescue operation at the Fishman Settlement, we severely weakened one of the Five Families that form the core of that underworld. However, with that family now on the verge of collapse, the remaining families are engaged in a territorial war."
"...The crew of ability users that the Captain fought before... Buggy, was it? He's also making a name for himself within that conflict."
The map was marked with X's indicating battle locations, and arrows of different colors showing the flow of money and personnel.
"Mihawk and Hancock have probably heard this from our crew, but I've declared war on the Five Elders, the World Government."
Mihawk... stop smirking like that. Hancock's panicking.
"Right now, they're still dealing with the chaos from the Marine slave incident and the events that occurred during it, so their response has been delayed. But conversely, if we don't expand our forces now, it's clear we'll eventually be worn down by their overwhelming numbers."
"...Are you suggesting we postpone our journey to the Grand Line to increase our numbers?"
Daz, who knows the basic outline of my original plan, asks.
"Well, numbers are important, but what we need now is reputation, including achievements, and above all, authority."
If the goal were simply to gather enough forces to confront the World Government, it would make more sense for everyone under our command to join Big Mom or Kaido.
Mihawk and Hancock would probably leave, but I believe we already have sufficient strength to reach the New World.
However, depending on the true nature of One Piece, it could lead to irreversible consequences and create a dangerous world dominated by violence.
If Shanks had joined the Four Emperors, that option might have been available, but not now.
"Building strength, in other words, becoming stronger, is the minimum requirement, as I've said before. Having Mihawk, the world's greatest swordsman, the Boa sisters who wield Amazon Lily's Haki, and Hack, the fishman karate master, as our mentors, and being able to undergo such intensive training from the very beginning, is nothing short of miraculous fortune for the Black Cat Pirates."
Hancock, I understand you're proud, but that doesn't mean I'm looking down on you, quite the opposite.
You too, Mihawk.
That level of training and trials could easily kill someone, right? The fact that not a single member of the officer corps has dropped out is a miracle, isn't it?
Also, could we maybe limit the duels with me to once every four days? No? Fine.
"But a pirate crew that's merely strong isn't sufficient. To make the World Government hesitate, strength alone isn't enough. We need to instill fear of taking action, fear of reckless provocation, and the understanding that destroying our organization would be detrimental to them... We need to possess a certain usefulness as a bargaining chip."
He turned to the map and drew large circles around several islands of various sizes with a marker.
"Captain, are those... non-member nations?"
Robin, who had been reading various books and studying maps as part of her scholarly training, noticed immediately.
"That's right, Robin. These are nations in West Blue that couldn't afford to pay the World Government, or more accurately, the Celestial Dragons, the tribute to join, or were expelled from membership. They're currently in civil war or under pirate rule, so their internal situations are dire."
"...They're also suppliers and markets for the fishman and marine slave trades."
Mihawk, who had once been nominally employed by the mafia, speaks up with the answer I was about to give.
"As Mihawk said, the mafia sells weapons, ships, food, and supplies to the armed factions here, then resells them at inflated prices on the black market to the general population. Illegal drugs and similar contraband are also involved."
Mihawk, Hancock, and Perona don't seem particularly bothered, but the others grimace in disgust.
"And it's also a source for the slave market. People targeted here are kidnapped and sent to human shops, what the Navy euphemistically calls 'employment agencies.'"
"The World Government doesn't treat non-member nations as human. We of Amazon Lily have heard that's why non-member nations are often targets for plunder."
Yeah, that's it. That's the aspect I think is somewhat flawed in the World Government's strategy, something that could leave lingering problems for the future.
"Exactly. For some reason, the World Government seems to turn a blind eye to it... Even though they're in ruins, there's still untapped territory lying around."
"So our first objective is to conquer these areas?"
"...Captain, there's no real benefit for us in conquering them."
"That's right, there isn't. It would just be troublesome. After all, they don't even have enough to eat."
Daz is correct. There's no tangible benefit to be gained. Conquering them would be difficult, and we'd only draw more attention from the mafia who already control those markets.
"That's precisely why it's worth doing, because no one else sees value in it."
"But we do."
It'll be sufficient to demonstrate our intentions to the World Government. We'll handle some of their problems, so they can deal with the rest.
"We're going to unite the non-member nations of West Blue under our banner."
...There's a chance we'll be attacked because our location will be exposed, but if that happens, we'll fight the Navy in earnest.
"Depending on the situation, West Blue's naval forces might attack us..."
Upon hearing this, Daz and Amis nodded slightly, Perona chuckled softly, Robin darkened her expression but kept her eyes on us, and Mihawk and Hancock smirked.
...Yeah, well. Honestly, even with our current forces, we can put up a decent fight.
"Everyone, let's hold our heads high."
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