"KURO! I'LL HAVE YOUR HEAD AND YOUR BOUNTY, YOU RAT!"
A massive, iron-plated ship barreled toward them, decorated with skulls and jagged spikes. The pirate flag was unfamiliar—dark red with a skeletal bull imprinted on it.
At the bow stood the captain.
A towering man with an enormous grey beard braided with gold rings, muscles bulging like overinflated barrels, and a horned helmet that looked stolen from a barbarian chieftain. His eyes burned with fury and opportunity.
"I AM CAPTAIN BARRAGAN!" he roared. "BRINGER OF STORMS! BREAKER OF BONES! SCOURGE OF—"
"We get it!" Ace shouted back. "Big scary guy!"
Barragan pointed a giant cleaver toward their ship. "Your bounty—sixteen million berries—belongs to me! MEN! BOARD THE SHIP!"
Ace blinked. "Sixteen—? Marco, I didn't know Kuro was worth that much."
Marco sighed. "You didn't read the wanted poster he waved at us?"
Hooks slammed into the railing as Barragan's men threw grappling lines. Dozens of pirates swung aboard with bloodthirsty grins.
Ace drew a dagger from his belt. "Alright! Time for some cardio!"
Marco cracked his knuckles. "Try not to get thrown overboard."
Chaos exploded across the deck.
Marco moved first—fast, efficient, almost bored. The first pirate sprinting toward him didn't even get a swing off before Marco snapped a kick into his chest. The poor man shot backward like a launched cannonball, smashing into three others and sending all four tumbling across the planks in a tangled heap.
Another pirate charged from behind, screaming with his sword raised high. Marco didn't bother turning his head; he simply shifted one step left. The sword whooshed harmlessly past his shoulder. Marco flicked two fingers into the pirate's throat—light tap, perfectly placed.
The man collapsed instantly, limbs folding beneath him like a marionette with cut strings.
Two more pirates stumbled forward carrying a crate of valuables, huffing under the weight.
Marco narrowed his eyes.
"Hey—that's my future treasure."
The pirates didn't even have time to question the sentence. Marco moved in a blur, dropping both men with twin punches so clean and crisp they sounded like drumbeats. The crate flew from their hands, crashed open, and scattered gold across the deck.
Marco crouched. He picked up a single coin between his fingers, holding it to the light.
"…Nice."
He slipped it casually into his pocket.
Then, clearing his throat as if embarrassed, he swept the rest of the gold back into the crate, muttering to himself, "I'm not stealing. I'm preventing theft. Completely different."
Meanwhile—
Ace met the charging storm that was Captain Barragan.
The giant man vaulted onto the ship with such force the deckboards cracked under his boots, splinters popping upward. His cleaver—more like a sharpened slab of iron—carved a murderous arc straight toward Ace's head.
Ace ducked with a yelp, stumbling backward. "WAH—okay, so you're definitely not here for a friendly chat!"
"You're not Kuro!" Barragan bellowed, beard bristling with rage. "WHERE IS HE!?"
"I don't know! Do I look like a guy named Kuro to you!?"
Barragan's eye twitched. "You stole his ship!"
Ace hesitated mid-dodge. "…That—okay, fine, you might have a point."
Barragan lunged, swinging wildly. Ace rolled across the deck, popped up behind the broken mast, and peeked around it.
Barragan lifted the entire mast fragment with one hand and hurled it like a spear.
"OH WHAT THE—!? STOP THROWING HEAVY THINGS AT ME!"
"I'LL STOP WHEN YOU'RE DEAD!"
Ace stumbled across the deck as Barragan barreled after him like a maddened bull. Each step shook the ship. Each swing sliced the air with a whistle sharp enough to cut sound itself.
"I JUST GOT THIS SHIP!" Ace shouted, leaping over a coil of rope. "Can't you maniacs fight somewhere else!?"
Barragan roared and grabbed a barrel—an entire full barrel—and hurled it. Ace dove aside as it shattered into splinters where he'd been standing.
Marco's voice cut through the chaos. "Captain! Stop playing around and finish him!"
"HE'S TRYING TO FINISH ME!"
Ace spotted a hanging rope, grabbed it, and sprinted. Barragan slashed—the blade missed by inches. Ace ran up the railing, kicked off it, and swung high above the deck.
"Eat this!"
He dropped from above, kicking Barragan square in the jaw.
The massive man staggered backward, dazed—
—right into the loose anchor chain.
His heel caught.
His arms pinwheeled.
He let out a strangled noise that sounded suspiciously like "NOT AGAIN—!"
Marco stepped forward with almost leisurely timing, planted a hand on Barragan's chest—
And shoved.
The hulking captain toppled over the railing.
He hit the ocean with a colossal KER-THOOM, sending a spray of seawater taller than the mast.
Silence.
Barragan's men froze mid-attack, staring at the rippling water.
Marco dusted off his hands. "Alright. Who's next?"
Every pirate still standing looked at the water.
At Marco.
Back at the water.
Then, without even discussing it among themselves—
They all dove overboard.
Every. Single. One.
Ace stood panting, hair frazzled, clothes torn, one eyebrow singed for reasons he didn't understand.
"…Marco?"
"Yes, Captain?"
"Why didn't you fight him from the start!?"
Marco shrugged. "You looked like you were having a moment."
Ace threw his hands up. "IT WAS A NEAR-DEATH MOMENT!"
Marco patted him on the shoulder. "Growth."
Ace groaned into his hands.
They docked the ship with a loud, tortured groan of wood—like the vessel itself was begging for retirement.
Ace hopped dramatically onto the pier, arms spread wide. "Okay, Marco! Bars are full of pirate hopefuls who want adventure, glory, and the chance to maybe die horribly! Perfect crewmate material!"
Marco raised a brow as he stepped down after him. "This is your recruitment strategy?"
"Oh yeah," Ace said confidently. "Works every time."
They walked through the bustling port—fishmongers shouting prices, blacksmiths hammering steel, drunk sailors already asleep in the street. Ace rambled loudly, gesturing wildly as he talked about vault keys, hidden maps, legendary treasure, world-shaking riches—
—and someone's ears perked.
A girl drifting through the crowd slowed as Ace's words struck her attention. She looked maybe sixteen or seventeen, her short purple hair and brown eyes sharp as daggers. Clothes both loose and tight, the kind worn by people who never knew when they'd need to run… or steal something.
A handful of pilfered coins dangled from her sash, chiming quietly with each step.
She passed Marco.
Her fingers brushed his pocket.
Marco didn't notice a thing.
She twirled away with a sly grin, flipping a gold coin between her fingers before slipping it into her sash.
"Treasure, huh…?" she murmured.
And then she vanished into the crowd like smoke.
The tavern they entered was a dim, noisy pit of smoke, booze, and poor life choices. Pirates crowded every table—some arm-wrestling, some gambling, some already knocked out cold.
Marco ordered two drinks and handed one to Ace. "Alright," he sighed, "don't do anything stupid."
Ace nodded solemnly.
Climbed onto a table.
And shouted at full volume:
"LISTEN UP EVERYONE!"
Conversations died.
Chairs stopped creaking.
Someone in the corner belched.
"I AM LOOKING FOR A CREW!" Ace announced proudly.
Groans rolled across the room. Someone muttered, "Another rookie idiot…"
Ace held up a finger dramatically. "BUT—"
A hush fell.
"We are on a quest… for a LEGENDARY TREASURE!"
Silence.
Then—
Every pirate in the tavern perked up like someone had shouted "free money."
A weird glasses-wearing man with a long rifle leaned forward from his shadowed corner. His cigar ember glowed as he spoke. "Treasure, huh? And you're bragging about it… out loud… in a bar full of armed criminals?"
Marco quietly buried his face in his hand.
From the opposite side, a bulky pirate captain slammed his mug onto the table and stood. "You got treasure? Then hand it over."
A third pirate crew rose behind them, cracking their knuckles.
"That treasure belongs to us, boy!"
Ace blinked.
"…Ohhhh. I messed up."
The first guy threw a bottle.
The second unsheathed his cutlass.
The third flipped the table entirely.
And then—
ALL HELL BROKE LOOSE.
Pirates dove at each other like wild animals. Chairs flew through the air. A man swung off a ceiling beam to drop-kick someone. Bottles shattered. Someone started biting. Someone else was thrown through the window.
Marco exhaled loudly, rolled up his sleeves, and stood. "Fine. Let's get this over with."
Ace grinned ear-to-ear, knuckles crackling as he threw his arms wide.
"NOW this is how you recruit a crew!"