BACK TO THE PRESENT…
Noah stopped talking.
The room suddenly became quiet.
Everyone was still focused on his story, waiting to hear what happened next.
Emma tilted her head.
"Why did you stop?"
Noah didn't answer. His eyes slowly moved toward the window, his expression got serious.
Nyx notices and a small smile appeared on her face.
"It seems we have company."
Everyone looked at her.
Emma frowned.
"Company?"
Noah stood up from his seat.
"Yeah."
He walked closer to the window and focused his Haki.
"Judging from what I'm feeling… there are a lot of people outside."
He paused.
"And all of them have high-level Haki."
Amy's coughed.
"Of course they do."
She crossed her arms.
"Can we go one day without meeting people who want to destroy us?" Amy asked.
Alice looked at Noah.
"How many are there?"
Noah closed his eyes for a moment.
"...301."
Emma blinked.
"Three hundred and one people?"
Nyx leaned back with a smile.
"Interesting."
Amy looked at her.
"Why are you smiling?"
"Because something exciting is about to happen." Nyx replied.
Amy pointed at her.
"Whenever you say something is exciting, something usually gets destroyed."
Nyx thought about it.
"...That has happened before."
"Exactly." Amy muttered.
Noah walked toward the door.
"I'm going to handle this."
Emma immediately stood up.
"No."
Noah stopped.
He looked back at her.
"No?"
"No. Every time you say you're going to handle something, it turns into a battle."
Noah scratched his head.
"That's not always true."
Everyone stared at him.
"...Okay, most of the time."
Amy raised her hand.
"Captain, remember when you fought that giant sea creature because you said it looked at you aggressively?"
"It did look aggressive." Noah replied.
Alice tilted her head.
"It was just swimming."
"It was suspicious swimming." Noah replied.
Emma sighed.
"Just be careful."
Noah smiled slightly.
"I will."
Before anyone could say anything else.
Blip ⚡️
Noah disappeared.
OUTSIDE THE SCARLETT…
Noah appeared on the shoreline of Kurogane
The ocean breeze moved through his hair as he looked ahead.
Hundreds of men stood across from him, their presence filling the area with pressure.
Noah narrowed his eyes.
"Yeah... definitely not normal."
A second later, a dark portal opened beside him.
Nyx stepped out and stretched.
"I was wondering when things would get interesting."
Noah looked at her.
"You're enjoying this, aren't you?"
"Maybe." Nyx replied.
"You are."
Nyx smiled.
"Probably."
Noah sighed.
"Please don't start anything."
"I haven't done anything yet." Nyx said.
"You were already planning on doing something?" Noah asked.
Nyx looked away.
"...Maybe."
Before Noah could respond, one of the men stepped forward.
He wore a formal uniform with a symbol that separated him from the others.
"My name is Ligeon."
The man stopped a few meters away.
"I am the security minister of this island."
Noah crossed his arms.
"Alright. What do you want?"
Ligeon looked toward the Scarlett.
"You entered Kurogane Island's waters without permission."
"We only came here for supplies," Noah replied.
"I see."
Ligeon remained calm.
"Then you should know that anyone who wishes to dock here must pay the required fee."
Noah raised an eyebrow.
"Fee?"
"One million berries." Ligeon replied calmly.
There was a short silence.
Nyx looked at Noah.
Noah looked back at her.
Then he laughed.
Ligeon's expression hardened slightly.
"Is something amusing?"
"Sorry," Noah said, wiping his eye. "I just thought you were joking."
The guards behind Ligeon tightened their grips on their weapons.
Noah's smile disappeared.
"You seriously expect me to pay one million berries just to dock my ship?"
"It's the law of this island," Ligeon replied.
Noah stepped forward.
"Your law."
The atmosphere instantly changed.
A powerful pressure began spreading from Noah.
His eyes started glowing faintly.
"I'm going to say this once."
The guards felt the pressure and became tense.
"I'm not paying anything."
The ground beneath Noah's feet cracked slightly.
"And if you keep bothering us..."
His voice became colder.
"I'll put every single one of you to sleep permanently."
The soldiers immediately prepared themselves.
But before anyone could move.
"Enough."
Ligeon raised his hand.
The soldiers stopped.
"We did not come here to fight."
He looked at Noah carefully.
"And from what I can see, neither did you."
Noah's eyes narrowed.
"You're smarter than I expected."
Nyx looked at him.
"Was that supposed to be a compliment?"
"Yes."
"It didn't sound like one."
"It wasn't completely one."
Nyx nodded.
"I understand."
Ligeon turned around.
"We will report this matter to the governor."
Noah shrugged.
"Go ahead."
The soldiers began leaving.
Before disappearing into the distance, Ligeon stopped and looked back.
"One question."
Noah glanced at him.
"What?"
"Who exactly are you?"
For a moment, the area became quiet.
Noah smiled slightly.
"Someone who just wants to get some supplies and eat."
Nyx looked at him.
"That's your answer?"
"Yes."
"It's terrible."
"It's honest."
Nyx thought about it.
"...Fair."
The soldiers finally left.
Noah released a long breath.
"That was stressful."
Nyx stared at him.
"You threatened 301 people."
"Exactly."
"And that was stressful?"
"Yes."
"Why?"
Noah looked at her seriously.
"Because I thought they might damage the ship."
Nyx stared.
Then she laughed.
"You are unbelievable."
The door of the Scarlett opened.
Emma, Amy, and Alice stepped outside.
Emma looked between Noah and Nyx.
"Did you handle it?"
Noah nodded.
"Yeah. They left."
Amy looked toward the direction the soldiers went.
"Wait... no fighting?"
"No."
Nyx slowly raised her hand.
"I wanted to."
Everyone looked at her.
Emma sighed.
"Of course you did."
Noah walked back toward the ship.
"But this isn't over."
Emma's expression became serious.
"Because of the governor?"
Noah nodded.
"Yeah."
He looked back at Kurogane Island.
"Something is wrong here."
The others followed his gaze.
"We came here for supplies..."
Noah clenched his fist.
"But now we know people are being controlled, forced to work, and something involving ancient weapons is happening."
Nyx smiled.
"Now this feels like an adventure."
Emma immediately looked at her.
"No destruction."
Nyx looked away.
"...Minimal destruction."
Amy sighed.
"We're definitely going to cause trouble."
Alice smiled.
"With this crew? Probably."
Noah laughed.
"Come on. Let's get prepared."
Amy suddenly raised her hand.
"Before the investigation..."
Everyone looked at her.
"Food."
Noah immediately nodded.
"Good idea."
Emma covered her face.
"I can't believe that was the thing you focused on."
Nyx laughed.
"Never change, Captain."
And deep inside Kurogane Island...
A man placed a report on a desk.
A picture of Noah D. Walker sat on top.
"The Rogue Pirates..."
A smile appeared on his face.
"So He finally arrived."