The journey is complete! As Mihawk in OP has officially reached its ending with 159 chapters on P@tre0n!
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Far from the shore of Ker-Bisth harbor, the Nachtrone looked like a sleeping specter on the gray waters.
On the main deck, Trafalgar Law leaned against the railing, his hat pulled low over closed eyes, feigning either sleep or meditation. A half-eaten apple lay carelessly on the wood beside him. A few meters away, Cavendish, draped in an elegant cape that seemed far too clean for a pirate ship, bit delicately into a red rose. His blue eyes were lost on the horizon, but a faint twitch betrayed his irritation each time one of Law's loud snores reached his ears.
The silence was torn apart by a shrill, furious voice.
"—AND I'M TELLING YOU THAT IDIOT TRIED TO CHEAT ME ON THE PRICE OF THE CANNED GOODS! IT'S AN INSULT TO MY DIGNITY, KORRAN!"
Perona appeared at the top of the gangway, floating slightly, her face flushed with anger. Behind her, Korran trudged along, bent under a pyramid of crates and sacks of supplies that would have crushed three ordinary men. Around him, a dozen of her cute ghosts—the Horos—silently carried smaller bags with surprising efficiency, their little translucent bodies occasionally passing through the railing to drop their loads directly into the open hold.
"You lie as easily as you breathe, Princess!" protested Korran, his voice muffled by the boxes. "It was the merchant who saw you had eyes bigger than your wallet and thought he could scam you! I just bargained so we wouldn't get plucked like turkeys!"
"Plucked?!" Perona spun around, her long pink hair flying about her. "Are you implying I don't know how to handle a budget? That I'm a spendthrift?!"
She jabbed an accusatory finger at Korran, ignoring Law and Cavendish, who were now watching them. Law had opened one eye, vaguely interested in the quarrel. Cavendish had stopped nibbling his rose, a disdainful smile on his lips.
"Well…" Korran began awkwardly, then stopped when he saw the dangerous spark in Perona's eyes. "…No! I'd just like to remind you that technically you were supposed to—"
"SILENCE!" Perona thundered. A Horos passed through her arm, making her jump. "And stop going through me!" she yelled at the ghosts, who quickly began making elaborate detours.
Just then, Kiku emerged from the cabin, a dust rag in hand. Her impassive face, framed by her sleek black bob, turned toward the agitated duo.
"You made good time, Perona, Korran," she said in her soft, calm voice, a faint smile on her lips. "The check-up is almost done."
Korran finally dropped his monumental load with a groan of relief. "Yeah, well, that's mostly thanks to me, huh!" he said, proudly thumping his chest. "Because the Princess here, the second we got to the dock, she wanted to run off with all the supply money! I had to—"
Perona went crimson. "KORRAN!" She lunged at him, desperately trying to clamp her hands over his mouth. "You—you're making things up! It's not true! Absolutely not true!"
Kiku tilted her head slightly, her smile widening almost imperceptibly. "He already told me, Perona. In detail."
Perona let go of Korran, her face stricken. "You… you're all against me!"
Law, who had been following the exchange with amused weariness, reached out a hand without opening his eyes. "Apples?"
Korran grabbed a green apple from an open sack and tossed it with surprising precision. Law caught it without looking and took a loud bite.
"Thanks," he mumbled through a mouthful.
Perona turned her fury toward the surgeon. "And you! You had a nice nap while Korran and I were working ourselves to the bone in that den of ruffians! Doing nothing!"
Law shrugged, taking another bite of his apple. "I follow the captain's orders. Guard the ship."
Cavendish, who had been watching with aristocratic disdain, suddenly straightened. His blue eyes locked onto Law, a chivalrous and belligerent gleam lighting in them.
"My dear Perona," he declared suavely, bowing in an exaggerated flourish, "if this boor in his ridiculous hat shows you disrespect or scorns your efforts, it would be my greatest pleasure to shut his mouth for him." He drew his sword, Florian, in one fluid motion, the blade glinting faintly in the gray light.
Law completely ignored the blade pointed at him and Cavendish's blazing glare. He finished his apple and tossed the core overboard. "Good apple," he grumbled, closing his eyes again.
The insult was too much for Cavendish. A nervous tic twitched in his cheek, and a menacing shadow—a glimpse of Hakuba—seemed to float behind him for a second. "You dare…!"
Before the situation could escalate further, Kiku, still calm, raised a hand. "One moment." Her piercing eyes, usually so gentle, were suddenly fixed on the horizon beyond the stern of the ship. "A boat is approaching."
All eyes turned to the sea. The mist was lifting slightly, revealing a small black canoe cutting through the waves, heading straight for the Nachtrone. It was still some distance away, but its sleek silhouette and the power of its stroke were visible.
Korran grabbed a spyglass hanging by the helm. "Let's see who it is…" He unfolded it and raised it to his eye. A broad smile spread across his face. "It's the Captain! He—" The smile froze. The color drained from his weathered face.
Perona, intrigued by his sudden change, snatched the spyglass from his hands. "What? What is it?" She pressed the eyepiece to her eye. A moment later, a small cry of fright escaped her. "Mihawk is CRAZY! Completely insane! What was I thinking following him?!"
Law opened his eyes, a sharp glint of interest replacing his usual apathy. He straightened slowly. "What is it?"
Cavendish, forgetting his grudge against Law, squinted, trying to make out the occupants of the canoe without binoculars. "Looks like the Captain isn't alone… a tall man. Very tall. With a coat…"
In the canoe, sitting upright, was Dracule Mihawk.
And next to him, occupying just as much space by presence as by stature, sitting nonchalantly with an unlit cigar between his fingers, was a man Law and Cavendish recognized instantly.
"Crocodile…" Law murmured, his voice charged with icy disbelief. His hand instinctively tightened on Kikoku's hilt.
Cavendish stood gaping, the rose he held forgotten, dropping from his fingers onto the deck. "The former Shichibukai… Crocodile? Here? With… the Captain?"
Korran and Perona exchanged a look of mute horror. The Horos, sensing the sudden tension, froze in place, their little round faces comically worried.
Only Kiku, never having seen Crocodile, seemed simply perplexed. She observed her companions' petrified reactions, then the canoe now pulling alongside the Nachtrone's black hull.
The canoe bumped gently against the ship's side. Mihawk stood, leapt lightly to grab a rope ladder, and began to climb. Crocodile followed, far less gracefully but with obvious power, hauling his massive frame aboard with disconcerting ease. He landed on the deck with a heavy thud, his dark fur-lined coat sweeping the wood.
He cast a cold, assessing gaze around the silent deck, his yellow eyes sweeping over each face like icy spotlights. He said nothing, merely pulling another cigar from his pocket and lighting it, the first deliberate, ostentatious gesture in the deathly silence.
The entire crew of the Nachtrone seemed paralyzed.
Perona was half-hiding behind Korran, who had instinctively taken a defensive stance, his massive fists clenched. Law had gone cadaverously pale, his gray eyes boring into Crocodile with deadly intensity. Cavendish had taken a step back, his hand on his guard.
It was Kiku, in her relative innocence and sense of duty, who finally broke the silence. She stepped forward, bowing slightly toward Mihawk, her face as serene as ever despite the oppressive atmosphere.
"Welcome back, Captain."
She cast a brief glance at Crocodile, with no apparent hostility, just curiosity. "I see you've returned with company."
Mihawk, who had been watching his crew's reactions with his usual impassivity, nodded slowly.
He stopped at the center of the deck, turning slightly to face his crew, Crocodile standing slightly behind him, blowing a slow stream of acrid smoke into the sea air.
"Yes, Kiku," Mihawk confirmed, his low, clear voice carrying perfectly through the silence. "I have returned with company."
He let the suspense build to its peak.
Mihawk raised his hand slightly, gesturing to Crocodile with his palm.
"Crew," he announced. "Allow me to introduce your new nakama."