East Blue, the quiet village of Sherlock, finds itself in the clutches of a pirate menace. On the high seas, pirates embody freedom, but where does their vast wealth come from? The answer is simple: it's taken from ordinary people, deprived of protection and hope.
Few of these sea robbers dream of treasure, as the world cannot endlessly supply them with valuables. Therefore, instead of spending their accumulated wealth, pirates choose a simpler and more profitable path: plunder.
The so-called freedom and dreams of pirates are nothing more than a glittering façade. They abandon their homes, heading for the vast seas, relying on plundered wealth to indulge in luxury, squander money, overeat, and commit lawlessness. This is the harsh reality of most pirates.
"Come, come, support our pirate artillerymen," came the hoarse laugh of a tall, thin man, like a bamboo pole, his eyes mercilessly sweeping over the faces of the terrified villagers. "Once our captain becomes the pirate king, we will generously reward your village!"
The surrounding pirates, with wicked looks and unprincipled eyes, scanned the crowd, searching for women seeking solace from their loneliness in the depths of the sea. The young women trembled in fear, hoping to remain unnoticed.
The village headman, Sherlock, an old man trembling with fear, spoke:
"My lord, our village... is completely destitute of money. We beg you, show us mercy."
The village of Sherlock couldn't be called wealthy. If not for its remote location, it would have long since ceased to exist. Pirates would occasionally raid the village, forcing the residents to scrape together a living.
They lived frugally, but recently a pirate group stole most of their meager savings, and another arrived soon after. How would they survive these dark times?
"What? No money?! Old man, you're probably asking for death!" roared one of the bear-like men, grabbing the village elder. It seemed like he would crush the old man at any moment.
The sharp glint of a knife illuminated the village elder's face, and the adults in the village trembled. It wasn't that they didn't want to fight back, but they were powerless against the pirates who terrorized the common people during the Age of Great Exploration.
"Who's Clive Geza?" a voice suddenly called from behind, causing all the pirates to turn their heads. It was Rodney, slowly approaching, dragging two large men behind him.
The pirates recognized the people Rodney was dragging: they were the ones who remained on board their ship.
"Who are you, boy?" The bear-like man tossed the village elder aside and moved toward Rodney, trying to grab him with his massive hand.
Looking at the towering man, Rodney shook his head helplessly. People in the Pirate World were plump and incredibly strong. With one blow, the bear-like man was sent flying, crashing into a large tree and knocked unconscious.
The pirates present were stunned. They were among the top ten fighters in their group, yet this man easily defeated them.
"Why are you still standing there? Attack! He's alone, and there are so many of us. Stand together!" called the man with the bamboo pole, apparently a higher-ranking pirate. Inspired by his words, the group rushed at Rodney.
— Shadow of the Dancing Leaf!
— A whirlwind of leaves!
— Great whirlwind of leaves!
— Fire Release: Phoenix Sage Fire Technique!
Fireballs exploded one after another among the crowd of pirates, scattering them in all directions. Rodney advanced with his knife, his movements swift, surpassing those of any of the pirates. However, he wasn't as striking as Coru.
Pulling a short chakra blade from his leg, Rodney effortlessly sliced through the skin, muscle, and trachea of the man with the bamboo pole. The man with the bamboo pole was suffocating, his mouth wheezing like a broken bellows, blood filling his windpipe, and his life rapidly fading before his eyes.
Boom!
The cannon exploded with a roar where Rodney had stood a few minutes earlier, hitting the man with the bamboo pole.
The cannon's impact sent him flying, and he disappeared from view. The gunman was a man 2.5 meters tall, smoking a cigar and holding a rather thick cannon.
Tossing a cannon to one of his crew and taking another from him, the man known as Gunner Clive Geza, a pirate with a bounty of eleven million beli, exuded arrogance as he prepared to sail for the Grand Line.
"Hahaha, you're screwed, kid! How dare you cause trouble! Hahaha, that idiot Charles was knocked down by someone like you?!" Clive laughed contemptuously, the smoke enveloping him, emphasizing his malice.
A chill ran down his spine as he thought he heard the sound of flesh and blood being torn apart.
"Ninjas are capable of teleportation, Mister Clive," Rodney said with a smile, appearing behind him. A White Light chakra saber had already pierced Clive's back, burying the 40-centimeter blade in his body, leaving no chance for healing.
— How… how did this happen?!
- Can you still talk? Oh, I forgot to draw my saber.
Rodney smiled and drew his saber, and blood gushed forth. It was red, simply red, without any other tint.
- Captain!
- Captain! How can this be?!
- Captain, what are you doing, captain?!
The pirates looked on in disbelief as their captain came under attack. This "great pirate," with a bounty of eleven million beli, had been defeated by an unknown pawn.
Impossible!
It was completely impossible!
"Are you still dreaming? You're next!" Rodney kicked the dying Clive and then rushed at the pirates.
Anyone who resisted was killed, and those who tried to escape were knocked down. Rodney demanded that all the remaining money on the ship be handed over as compensation for the mental anguish he had caused the villagers.
The grateful residents of Sherlock village thanked Rodney wholeheartedly for his intervention.
Although they wanted Rodney to stay for dinner, he declined. Before sailing, he took with him a few pieces of dried meat to snack on during the journey. He instructed the remaining pirates to bury the bodies of their fallen comrades.
Among them, only Clive Geza and the man with the bamboo pole had rewards. The man with the bamboo pole, as second-in-command, carried a reward of three million beli. Rodney chopped off his head and took both of them with him.
The pirate ship sailed away with the remaining crew, including Rodney, whom they would take to the nearest naval station and imprison.
— Don't even think about escaping.
"If you try to escape, be prepared to be fed to the sea kings," Rodney grinned devilishly, looking at his captives. The ship was already ploughing the seas, and hope of escape faded with every wave crashing against the side.
The pirates' faces were frozen in despair. Jumping into the depths to become food for the sea monsters seemed a poor option. Surrender meant at least a chance of survival.
"If any of you had bounties on your heads, I'd have dealt with you all to prevent any future trouble," Rodney snorted. "You always have to pay when you go out." This group was too weak to kill.
Having completed his mission, Rodney felt a loud ringing sound in his mind:
{Ding!}
[The owner has completed twenty missions and can now open the mission hall.]
Mission Hall?
Curious, he stepped through the opening portal and found himself in a spacious hall, the walls covered with scrolls containing quests. Instead of receiving them one by one, as before, he could now choose his own. And not all of them were bloody.
There were missions to escort merchant ships, spy missions where you had to gather information about the lives of kings, even missions where you had to help taverns sell alcohol.
However, these were all D-level quests, worth between ten and one hundred points, and they offered no significant rewards. C-level quests have not yet appeared.
The system explained: [From this point on, the owner can freely accept tasks. However, tasks selected by the system cannot be evaded.]
In other words, tasks assigned by the system had to be completed and could not be refused. This increased freedom, but also added obligations.