Roger cast an appreciative glance at Chronos, who was downing his drink with gusto.
Honestly, besides having a tough body, Chronos didn't have much going for him—he slacked off in sword training, failed at fishing, and basically botched every skill lesson...
But when it came to personality, out of the three apprentices on the Roger Pirates, Roger liked Chronos the most. That bold, shameless spirit was exactly how Roger had been in his youth. Thick-skinned and daring—just the kind of man destined to achieve greatness.
As for the other two apprentices—Shanks, though immensely talented, especially in swordsmanship, which had surprised even Roger and Rayleigh, was still too sunny and naive, lacking that unstoppable ambition.
And Buggy... Well, Roger didn't even want to talk about him.
In Roger's eyes, Shanks had the highest baseline, but Chronos had the highest potential ceiling. If Chronos encountered the right opportunities, his future achievements would be unimaginable.
After all, if Roger was good at one thing in life, it was spotting talent. Rayleigh and Jabba, his trusted right- and left-hand men, had been handpicked by him at a glance.
The next morning:
"Damn it, Shanks! Can't you just let me sleep for once…?"
Chronos had been dreaming about one day sitting as an equal among the Four Emperors, shoulder to shoulder with Whitebeard, when that red-haired devil, Shanks, dragged him out of his hammock. No mercy at all.
"I'd love to rest too, but after last night's party, there's a ton of cleaning to do. We're apprentices; this is our job," Shanks said, dragging Chronos toward the deck.
"Hell, I scrubbed these floors alone for two and a half years before you two showed up. Why am I still stuck cleaning with you guys? "Chronos complained.
"Come on, we're brothers. You wouldn't leave me and Shanks to die of exhaustion, would you? "
Buggy, who was busy gathering up empty bottles on the deck, chimed in with shameless moral guilt-tripping.
Chronos rolled his eyes and shot back, "Brothers, huh? Then hand over half your treasure maps."
Buggy instantly fell silent. Chronos sneered. Trying to guilt-trip him? Please—he practically majored in psychological warfare.
Just then, a lookout shouted from above, panic in his voice—not sounding much more experienced than the three of them:
"Captain! A fleet of pirate ships is surrounding us! "
Roger cupped his hands to his mouth and yelled back:"Can you tell whose flag they're flying? "
"Too far! I can't make out the symbols! "
"Tch, what's there to guess? " Chronos shrugged confidently. "There are only two people who'd dare mess with the Roger Pirates out here—Garp and Shiki. Since it's a pirate fleet, it's obviously that maniac Shiki."
And sure enough, as the ships drew closer, Chronos' guess proved spot-on.
"Chronos—w-what do we do? It's Shiki! The Golden Lion himself! "
Buggy clung to Chronos' arm like a frightened child.
"Buggy, stop panicking over nothing! "Chronos snapped. "Even if the Flying Pirates are tough, Shiki's just one pirate. Our Roger Pirates have the Captain, Vice-Captain Rayleigh, and Uncle Jabba—three monsters against one. We've got the advantage! "
"Ha! Chronos is right. What's there to be afraid of? You think we're weaker than him? "
Rayleigh, glasses glinting, unsheathed his sword and came to stand beside them, laughing boldly as he stared at the dozen pirate ships closing in.
No wonder the captain thought this kid would outshine Shanks one day. Just this fearlessness alone put him ahead of most pirates.
"Man, Buggy, you're such a coward. Look at Chronos, look at Shanks, and then look at yourself..."
"Seriously, if you go around acting like this, don't tell people you're with the Roger Pirates. I don't know you."
"Come on, get up—we're fighting! "
Chronos and Shanks hauled Buggy to his feet.As they looked out at the approaching ships, filling the sky and sea, Chronos felt his heart pounding. Sure, he acted tough, but deep down, he was terrified.
This wasn't some toy model fleet. These were real pirate ships!
Damn, Shiki—where did he get the money to build all these ships?
But even if you lose the fight, you can't lose your nerve. Skills might fall short, but your spirit never should.
A booming laugh echoed from the largest ship, its bow carved into the shape of a lion's head:
"Roger! Become my right-hand man! With you and me together, ruling the world would be child's play! "
Chronos stared at the Flying Pirates, the strongest pirate fleet in the New World, and quietly clenched his fists.
"If he can do it, so can I."
He swore to himself: one day, he too would build a pirate empire just as grand as Shiki's.