This encounter is surely destiny.
Ten years before the Great Pirate Era began, the man who would later be called the "Pirate King" and the girl who would be called the "Thunder Emperor" met for the first time.
☆
Taking a deep breath of the chilly morning air, she felt the fog thickening over the sea.
"It's cold today," she said to the crew member on watch, splashing cold water on her face. She swept her messy blonde hair back into a ponytail and returned to the deck.
"The fog's thick. You holding up okay?"
"Yeah, there shouldn't be any reefs around here, so we should be fine."
"I see. Well, then... Hmm?"
"What's wrong, First Mate?"
The man called First Mate moved to the ship's edge and peered down below. He realized the source of the faint sound, a small piece of ice had bumped against the hull—and sighed in relief upon seeing no damage to the ship.
If they'd collided with the ice and torn a hole, water could flood in and sink them. He called up to the lookout to stay sharp, then dove into the water with his sword in hand. He couldn't leave it as it was; he needed to destroy it.
"...What is this?"
On the ice floe he'd jumped onto lay a girl, her body covered in blood and motionless.
He touched her neck to check for a pulse and confirmed she was still alive, though barely. Her injuries were severe.
The cold was brutal too. She was on the verge of hypothermia. He had to get her help immediately or it would be too late.
"Hey, open the door! There's an injured person!"
"Injured person? Out here in the middle of the ocean?!"
The man carried the blood-soaked girl back to the ship and rushed her into the cabin, quickly tending to her wounds.
Blood was flowing from her head, making her face unrecognizable, but when he wiped it away with a handkerchief, he could see she was quite beautiful.
She had long, lustrous black hair like obsidian, well-proportioned features, and skin as white as porcelain. Her simple dress was torn and covered in wounds, and her left arm was broken.
The dress was so shredded it was practically rags—clearly unwearable anymore.
"Hey, what's all the commotion so early in the morning? I heard you picked up some weirdo!"
"Shut up."
"She looks like a shipwreck survivor. With all those injuries, maybe she was attacked by pirates."
"That's not for us to say," they laughed.
Basic first aid was completed. The only major injury visible at first glance was the broken left arm, but several ribs seemed fractured as well. They tended to those too, but the girl wouldn't wake up.
"Let's let her rest for a while," he said, dispersing the crew members who had gathered around, and decided to have breakfast.
She'll wake up eventually, he thought.
After leaving the room and confirming everyone had gone to breakfast, he returned alone.
Standing beside the bed, the man spoke.
"You're awake, aren't you? I didn't want to make a scene, so I sent the others away."
"...You noticed?"
"With that level of awareness, it's impossible not to. Pirates are known to be brutal even to wounded women, so I don't blame you for being cautious."
"In this condition, dealing with all of you at once would be troublesome. I planned to kill you one by one."
"That's terrifying."
With a small smile, the man sat down in the chair and continued.
Kanata tried to sit up in bed, but the pain from her broken ribs made her grimace, and she gave up.
She noticed her clothes had been removed and she was wrapped in bandages, but didn't seem particularly bothered. Still, she pulled the sheet up to her chest.
"My name is Silver Rayleigh. What's yours?"
"...Kanata."
"Well then, Kanata. Why were you drifting in the winter sea?"
"I wasn't drifting. I was escaping from an island, but my injuries were too severe, and I collapsed along the way."
"I see... Do you intend to tell me how you got injured?"
She shook her head.
She had no intention of revealing everything.
"I see," Rayleigh nodded and didn't press further.
"You must be hungry. You look pretty weak, so I'll bring you something easy to digest."
"...Thank you."
"Don't mention it. You'll grow up to be a real beauty. I've always had a weakness for beautiful women."
Rayleigh laughed as he left the room.
Closing her eyes, Kanata sat alone in the room, lost in thought.
(I managed to survive for now... Sengoku, you said you'd capture me, but you were trying to kill me.)
A dull pain ran through her entire body. She was exhausted, and without proper rest, she wouldn't be able to move normally.
She'd avoided a fatal wound, but the amount of blood she'd lost was enough to be life-threatening if left untreated. The tattered clothes in the nearby basket made that clear.
She'd regained consciousness when Rayleigh picked her up, but her body was so weak she couldn't move, so she let him do as he pleased. While being desired was common, she didn't sense much of that emotion from Rayleigh, which was reassuring.
Additionally, she thought it would be easier to handle things later if she stayed on the ship.
(But if it's Silver Rayleigh... then this ship...)
Before she could finish her thoughts, the door burst open.
"Hey! You're awake!"
A man with a straw hat and a rugged face plopped down heavily in the chair.
Rayleigh entered with food and placed a table next to Kanata's bed.
"I am Gol D. Roger! I'm a pirate!"
"I've heard the rumors. The Roger Pirates."
"Is that so? We've become famous. Hey, Rayleigh!"
Roger laughed heartily, while Rayleigh just shrugged.
Kanata slowly sat up and began eating the food Rayleigh had brought. She couldn't sense any malice, so she decided the food wasn't poisoned.
Perhaps feeling sorry for her still in her undergarments, Rayleigh brought a large shirt and draped it over Kanata's shoulders.
She casually buttoned the front and ate slowly, while Roger fired questions her way.
"Where did you come from?"
"My base is on Marx Island. I was in Flower Country until recently."
"That's quite a distance from Flower Country to here. How did you get here?"
"By walking across the sea."
Thinking it was a joke, Roger and Rayleigh laughed at Kanata's words, saying, "That's ridiculous."
However, Rayleigh seemed to have some idea about Marx Island being her base.
"If you're using that place as your base, are you connected to the recently renowned Georges Trading Company? I've heard their trade with Flower Country has increased, with frequent back-and-forth travel."
"...You're sharp. I work there."
"So, did your ship get attacked by pirates or something?"
"No... it's not like that."
A night had passed, and she had no idea how much information was circulating.
Last night's events were unlikely to make it into this morning's newspaper, but there was a good chance a substantial bounty had been placed on her head.
If pirates found a high-value bounty target in a weakened state, they might kill her to make a name for themselves. She didn't think that was the case here, but Kanata couldn't let her guard down.
Roger seemed to sense her caution and spoke with a slightly more serious expression.
"If you don't want to talk about it, you don't have to. I can even take you to Marx Island if you want."
"...That's very kind of you."
"I don't have much to do these days anyway."
"Pirates being in a slump is good for the rest of us."
"That's true!"
Roger laughed, slapping his knee. Watching this man, whose every emotion was so exaggerated, Kanata couldn't help but smile.
Seeing this, Roger and Rayleigh exchanged glances and laughed again.
Feeling that Kanata's tension had eased, Roger teased her further.
"You're cute when you smile! Stop frowning and smile more, young lady."
"...I'm fifteen. I'm not young enough to be called 'young lady.'"
"From our perspective, you're still a kid."
"That's right. I don't know what happened, but we won't harm you. There's no need to be so tense."
"Even so, you're pirates."
"Haha, that's true!"
After the lively meal, they noticed someone peeking into the room from outside.
Rayleigh left to shoo them away, leaving only Kanata and Roger inside.
"...It's better not to go to Marx Island."
"Why not?"
"There are Navy ships surrounding it right now. You pirates don't want to tangle with them."
Roger's smiling face turned serious.
He rubbed his chin, stared at Kanata, and murmured, "You're not lying, are you?"
"But why are Navy warships there?"
"To capture me. I'm grateful for your help, but getting too involved will only bring the Navy down on you."
"I don't care. I've been chased by that bastard Garp long enough."
Garp, the naval hero rumored to have defeated Rocks. Even after being chased by him, Roger still hadn't been captured, so his strength was the real deal.
In fact, even with her keen senses, Kanata knew she wouldn't stand a chance against him in her badly injured state.
With a smirk, Roger said,
"Why don't you join my crew?"
Kanata's eyes widened.
"...No."
"Why? You're being chased, aren't you?"
"I am being chased, but I still have allies. I can't abandon them."
"I see. Well, there's nothing I can do about that."
Roger backed down surprisingly easily.
He must have understood something about the phrase "allies."
"Where are you heading? Have you decided on a meeting point?"
"Head for Ohara. We should be able to meet up once we get close."
They'd agreed to meet near Ohara, but until they arrived, there was no guarantee they'd actually rendezvous.
It was a vague meeting point, but if they met up on some random island, they might be suspected of being connected and the World Government might show up. That's why she hadn't wanted to go anywhere near Ohara in the first place—but there was someone she had to say goodbye to.
"Alright, Ohara it is. Leave it to me! Let's set sail, you bastards!"
Roger grinned, threw open the door, and decided to head straight for Ohara using his captain's authority.
Perhaps because they had no particular destination in mind, the crew, including Rayleigh, began changing the ship's course without complaint.
She was filled with gratitude for the good fortune of being helped by such kind sailors.
☆
Ohara wasn't far away.
It took about two days by ship, and during that time, all of Roger's crew members visited Kanata's sickroom.
Perhaps it was because there were only men and no women aboard, or because the next day's newspaper featured a large wanted poster for the girl Rayleigh had picked up.
"Hahahaha!! Who would have thought a kid like you would have a bounty over three hundred million?"
"Exactly. The world's gone crazy."
Killing a Celestial Dragon and holding off Sengoku's escort fleet had earned her a bounty of 380 million berries.
Somehow, the rampage in Flower Country that destroyed an entire port was also pinned on Kanata. It was actually the work of someone with the Ishi Ishi Fruit's power, but the information must have gotten twisted somewhere along the way.
Kanata didn't bother thinking about it, assuming it was just the World Government's usual information manipulation.
"They demanded I hand over my comrades as slaves. I was so enraged I killed the entire escort. When I fought Sengoku, I thought I was going to die for sure."
In fact, the injuries she'd sustained were severe enough that she might have died if not for being saved by Rayleigh.
As her savior, she did intend to repay the debt someday.
"You're amazing for surviving a fight with Sengoku. Why don't you join our crew?"
"How many times do I have to say no? I have comrades waiting for me. I can't abandon them."
She created a small piece of ice on her fingertip and flicked it with her finger.
It hit Roger's forehead with a soft thud, rolled across the floor, and came to rest at Rayleigh's feet.
"A Devil Fruit? That's rare."
"It's not something you find around here often. But I hear it's not that uncommon either."
"Is that so? I haven't seen many of them. Maybe we're just unlucky."
Roger and his crew primarily operated in the latter half of the Grand Line, known as the New World.
It was a sea where many powerful individuals, such as 'Whitebeard' and "Golden Lion," resided, but it seemed Roger hadn't encountered many Devil Fruit users.
"It's all about luck. I plan to rejoin my crew after this. We'll probably meet again someday."
"Then we'll be enemies."
"You saved my life. I don't intend to fight you."
"I'll repay the favor. I'll give you my Den Den Mushi number in case you ever need help."
There was no guarantee he'd contact her, but at least their connection wouldn't be completely severed.
Even a thin thread of connection might lead to a reunion someday.
"We're almost at Ohara. Do you know where your ship is?"
"Just wander around and you'll pick up the signal from the small Den Den Mushi. You'll find them quickly."
But before that, there was something she needed to do.
Kanata put on the clothes she'd been given, stood at the ship's edge, and bowed to Roger once more.
"Thank you. Thanks to you, I didn't die."
"Don't worry about it! I'll be looking forward to seeing you again someday."
"Yeah, when we meet again, we'll welcome you back."
Despite their brief time together, some of Roger's crew members seemed reluctant to part ways.
Kanata smiled slightly, feeling that if she stayed too long, she wouldn't be able to leave, and jumped off the ship toward the island.
"What?! You're a Devil Fruit user, aren't you?! You can't swim, can you—"
"Wait, what's that... She's walking on the sea?!"
"I'm a Hie Hie no Mi ice-freezing human. Walking on the sea is no problem for me."
"Oh, right... You scared the hell out of me..."
Everyone gathered at the ship's edge and watched in astonishment as Kanata walked normally on the water.
They sighed in relief, muttering things like, "That was a heart-stopper."
Seeing this, Kanata laughed again and continued walking toward Ohara. Since the island was visible, it shouldn't take long.
She turned once more toward Roger and spoke her farewell words.
"Farewell. We'll meet again."
"Alright! Make sure you're an even stronger woman by then!"
Though she thought it was none of his business, Kanata waved goodbye as Roger and the others watched, then continued toward Ohara.
Probably never to see them again—Dr. Clover and the others she knew... and to say farewell to Olvia.
***
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