Cover Story: Straw Hat Crew, Arc 4 – "Yohohoho…"
On a rotting pirate ship, several treasure-seeking pirates who had sneaked onto the deck lay unconscious in fright. A lonely skeletal spirit squatted nearby, bored out of his mind, rummaging through their belongings. By chance, he pulled out the latest newspaper.
The man on the front-page photo—so strikingly handsome that a single glance was enough to make one's eyes lock onto him.
"Ohhh, what a beautiful person," the skeleton gentleman sighs. Suddenly, he felt that perhaps gender didn't matter at all. If he could only glimpse this man's underwear, he could die with no regrets…
...
Any pirate who could reach the Sabaody Archipelago was already qualified to enter the New World—their overall strength was naturally not weak.
Hundreds of pirates and gang members charged in together, the vanguard led by several notorious captains with considerable bounties.
"Endless Blade" Galteso, a fifteen-sword style swordsman with a bounty of 78 million Berries.
"Devil Captain" Fujimoto, a user of the Saw-Saw Fruit with a bounty of 82 million Berries.
And "Fire Crow," a Supernova with a bounty of 102 million Berries, who was hailed as the most dazzling Supernova of the year.
But unfortunately for them—
The person they had chosen to surround was Natsuya Nao.
In front of Nao, whether it was an ordinary low-level pirate or a notorious captain, there was only one outcome.
Death.
The fifteen-sword-style swordsman's storm of attacks only left shallow white marks on Nao's body. He was then turned and had his neck twisted. He didn't even have the right to make Nao draw his sword.
Fujimoto grinned hideously and formed a terrifying, giant saw, but it was crushed into powder by two fingers, which also pierced his chest.
The Supernova with a bounty of over 100 million didn't last long, but he at least made Nao a little more serious. He drew his sword and cut his head clean off. His confused body fell backward rigidly...
It was either an instant kill, or another instant kill.
The Marines holding the perimeter never even had the chance to intervene. They stood in stunned silence, watching as the pirates surged like tidal waves—and then collapsed like wheat fields, mowed down in swathes.
In just one minute.
Not a single pirate in the auction house remained standing. They were either corpses littering the floor or trembling figures on their knees, throwing down weapons and begging for mercy.
Onigumo, a Commodore, also stood there in a daze, his right hand still in the posture of drawing his sword.
For some reason, he felt that the scene in front of him seemed a little familiar…
"Too strong…"
A clicking sound came from the side. Onigumo turned his head and saw the straw hat kid standing next to him, looking up at Nao's back with a look of admiration.
"What terrifying strength. As expected, the old man was right—my gap with this guy is still huge…"
You think you deserve to compare yourself to Vice Admiral Nao? Onigumo rolled his eyes. But then Nao's earlier words resurfaced in his mind—
Wait, wasn't this kid also a pirate?
His brows furrowed. He stared hard at the boy. The more he looked, the more familiar he seemed.
"…Huh?"
After a few seconds, he finally realized something. His expression changed drastically. He suddenly drew his sword and roared.
"Shanks, the captain of the Red Hair Pirates with a bounty of 200 million Berries?!"
"Eh?"
The straw hat boy was stunned. He turned his head and looked at Onigumo, who was now holding a sword toward him. He looked pained and said with a bitter face. "Damn, I've been recognized…"
"Nonsense! As a Marine, how could I not recognize a pirate with a bounty of 200 million Berries!"
Onigumo was shocked. He spit out his cigar and gritted his teeth.
"Hey! You've got some nerve! We've been fighting all this time, and you still have the audacity to stand next to us as if nothing happened?!"
Clack-clack-clack.
The Marine soldiers on the outer perimeter also turned their guns and aimed them at Shanks in the middle of the corridor.
"I thought I hadn't been discovered..."
The red-haired boy adjusted his straw hat and laughed out loud. "Whoa, whoa, whoa, there's no need to be so aggressive. You're making a big scene as soon as you see me, but I don't have any ill intentions…"
"Who cares if you have any ill intentions!"
Onigumo roared with a ferocious face, and then he gripped his sword with both hands and slashed at the red-haired boy. "Capturing pirates is a Marine's duty! Get ready to be captured!"
"Captured? No way…"
The red-haired boy grinned and used his sword to block Onigumo's blade. He looked into Onigumo's angry eyes through the gap between their blades.
"I still want to take my friends into the New World for another look!"
CLANG!
As he said this, the straw hat boy suddenly exerted his strength. Onigumo felt a torrent of immense force surging toward him. His sword was blasted aside, and his body staggered back several steps before he could steady himself, the flesh of his palms stinging painfully.
What incredible power!
Is this what a pirate with a 200 million bounty is like?!
Onigumo was in shock. He looked up, but the red-haired boy was nowhere to be seen. At the same time, the sound of air being cut through came from behind him.
When did he—? Onigumo's pupils contracted. He subconsciously tried to punch behind him, but at that moment, a louder sound of air being cut through suddenly passed through his ear.
The next moment—
From the corner of his eye, he caught sight of Red-Hair's body flying through the air, screaming in pain before slamming into the wall behind the high platform.
When he crashed down, it was right into the messy bird's-nest-like hair of a giant slave who had just been released from his cage.
"???"
The giant boy felt a little itch on his head. He instinctively reached up to scratch, but the straw hat boy was already hopping on his head, clutching his knee and grimacing in pain.
"Oww, oww, oww, ow! Damn it, that hurt! My knee's about to shatter! Hey, can't you kick me somewhere else?! You almost killed me!"
"Ah, my apologies."
Nao slowly retracted his right leg with a smile. His expression was very similar to Kizaru's seventeen years later, who would kick Supernovas one after another.
"I tried my best to hold back. However, as Commodore Onigumo said, as a Marine, I can't just let you leave so easily..."
"Then let's fight seriously! Who's afraid of who?!"
Shanks snorted. He jumped from the giant's head to the ground, gripped his sword, and his eyes were full of a fiery fighting spirit.
"Even if my strength isn't on par with yours yet—if you insist on fighting, then I'll see it through to the end!"
"…Suddenly so serious, are we?"
Nao chuckled softly. He looked leisurely at the auction seats in the northeast corner. "However, I'm not interested in playing house with little kids. The monster who is worthy of my full power is still pretending to be a drunken old man and watching the show..."
Huh?
This guy, he actually noticed old man Rayleigh?
Shanks's expression changed. He subconsciously followed his gaze and looked toward the northeast corner.
There—
In the dim light, a gray-haired old man was struggling to shake his bottle, trying to pour out the last bit of sake clinging to the wall.
Seeing everyone looking at him, he scratched his head. "Ah, so I've been recognized from the very start, huh…"
"Well, I guess I can't help it."
He shook his head in frustration and casually threw away the sake bottle. The old man slowly got up, put his hands in his pockets, and walked from the shadows to the corridor under the spotlight. He muttered.
"But I've had a bit too much to drink today, so I don't really feel like fighting... Just as Shanks here said, we only came here to watch the show. We have no ill intentions."
Under the weight of countless gazes, the old man adjusted his glasses and smiled faintly at Nao.
"So, Vice Admiral Nao, would you be so kind as to give me some favor and let this end here? How about you let Shanks and his friends go?"
He stood casually under the light, his demeanor calm and relaxed, as if he didn't care about the Marine soldiers who were glaring at him and the dark gun barrels pointed at him.
Who are you, you piece of junk? Give you some favor?
The Warlord Black Shark Tooke next to him sneered. He crossed his arms and took a step forward, about to say something to mock him, when he suddenly heard Nao's calm voice.
"Alright."
What? Tooke's eyes widened. He turned his head in disbelief.
Oh, oh, oh, oh, just as expected of the old man Rayleigh. He's so cool! Shanks on the high platform already had stars in his eyes. This aura, this presence. I wish I could be this influential in the future!
But before he could calm down from his excitement, he heard Nao's tone change, and he said with a smile.
"However, I have one condition."
The words stopped there, but the meaning was already quite obvious.
A condition, huh...
Rayleigh rubbed his forehead and sighed. "I think I understand. There are too many people here, and it's hard to fight without harming the innocent. How about we go to the open area by the stream outside?"
What does he understand?
Shanks grew even more confused. But the very next moment, he saw Nao exchange a single look with Rayleigh. With unspoken understanding, both of them leapt skyward with Moonwalk, smashing through the auction house's ceiling and vanishing from sight.
"Follow them outside!"
Onigumo's face darkened. He ordered some of his men to treat the slaves and clean up the battlefield. He then took a group of Marines and rushed towards the main entrance.
Shanks and his two friends finally came to their senses and scrambled to catch up. They ran side by side with the Marines. Onigumo shot them a fierce side-eye but didn't attack again.
When the group arrived outside the auction house, they were stunned by the scene.
The once-lush green grass outside the auction house had been flattened, and large craters dotted the area.
The ground was constantly shaking, and the peaceful, winding stream was also violently churning.
And in this open space, a fierce gust of sword energy continued to whistle. The two figures were moving so fast that they couldn't even see them clearly.
They were constantly clashing and separating, leaving behind a series of after-images. Their eyes were dazzled, and they couldn't tell which was the real body.
For a time, neither could claim victory.
"So… strong…"
The group collectively took a deep breath.
The clash was so loud and ferocious that nearby pirates, curious about the commotion, began gathering at the outskirts.
But the moment they recognized Nao in the sky, their blood ran cold. Faces pale, souls nearly fleeing their bodies, they turned and bolted without a single glance back.
The unlucky few who crept too close, hoping for a better look, were quickly spotted by Marines on guard around the auction house—and arrested on the spot.
…
The battle raged for a full half hour.
By then, all the ordinary guests underground had been evacuated, and every last pirate and gang member had been captured.
And some of the slaves who had been rescued were helped by the Marines to the ground. When they saw the earth-shattering battle outside, they, just like Onigumo and the others at the entrance, were turned into statues and stared in a daze.
"No more, no more!"
At that moment, a loud laugh suddenly came from the sky, and the whistling sword energy gradually dissipated.
"I still underestimated you, kid… If we keep fighting like this, we won't be able to tell who's the winner before it gets dark. It'll be troublesome if we have to wait for Garp to be sent here from Marineford…"
The laughter came from afar, growing louder by the second. The people at the auction house entrance felt a flash before their eyes—and the gray-haired old man suddenly appeared right in front of them.
He grabbed the three dazed men, Shanks and his friends, and like a nimble leopard, he took off with them. With a few light taps of his feet, he disappeared into the distant streets.
And the next moment, Nao's figure also gracefully landed from the air.
His expression was calm and composed. He returned his sword to its sheath.
"You, you just let them run away?"
Onigumo stared after Rayleigh's retreating figure, conflicted. Hesitantly, he asked,
"Vice Admiral, aren't you going to stop that old man?"
"What do you think?"
Nao watched the figures disappear into the distance. He looked away and said with a smile, "Stop him? If I could really stop him, would I still be a Vice Admiral? At that point, Fleet Admiral Kong could happily step down and hand me the job."
Huh??
What does that mean?
Everyone was stunned. Onigumo suddenly remembered something and asked with a look of surprise and uncertainty. "So, Vice Admiral, who exactly was that guy?"
Nao was the man who had defeated several of the Beasts Pirates' Calamities in succession, and had even clashed head-on with an Emperor of the Sea.
Yet this old man had fought him so fiercely, without either side gaining the upper hand. Clearly, his identity was anything but ordinary.
"Just a retired old man."
Nao said leisurely. "But you might have heard his name. Silvers Rayleigh."
After saying that, he didn't pay attention to the stunned crowd and walked straight into the auction house.
He had been delayed for so long. Now that the matter was settled, it was time to talk to Emily about Shiryu.
At the same time, he sighed a little in his heart.
Just as expected of "Dark King" Rayleigh.
In their exchange just now, both had held back, neither one revealing their true trump cards. It had been no more than a sparring match.
But even so, it was obvious—Rayleigh had been fighting with ease, deliberately going easy. Even against such restraint, Nao could only manage to hold his own, barely maintaining the balance.
After all, Rayleigh had only been retired for a few years. At fifty-nine, he had not yet grown old and frail, not yet the man who would later meet Luffy. His strength was still at its peak.
If compared with the Emperors of the current age, perhaps only Whitebeard could confidently suppress him. As for whether Kaido or Big Mom could match him—it remained uncertain.
In the end, it hadn't been satisfying.
He shook his head. Maybe he would have to wait until he took another step forward in the future to be qualified to have a true battle with Rayleigh, to force out all of his trump cards and have a satisfying fight.
He was still turning that thought over in his mind—
When suddenly, from outside the doors behind him, a thunderous outcry erupted:
"Ehhhhh?? Rayleigh???"
"That legendary man… the Dark King Rayleigh, the right hand of the Pirate King???"