Chapter 15: Rocks' Attention, Kaido and Jinbe's Admiration
"Boss Tiger, Boss Tiger, is this the 'Hero' Rono you were talking about?"
At the same time, 10,000 meters deep under the sea, at Fish-Man Island.
Several young Fish-Men ran over quickly, holding a newspaper in their hands, and passed it to the boss of the Fish-Man District, Fisher Tiger.
One of the Fish-Men was about seven or eight years old, with blue skin. He was a whale shark Fish-Man.
Another was even younger, appearing to be only two or three years old. He was an octopus Fish-Man with six tentacles.
The last one was a sawshark Fish-Man, about five or six years old, with a mouth full of sharp teeth.
Without a doubt, these few were the future members of the Sun Pirates: the "Knight of the Sea" Jinbei, Hatchan, and "Saw-Tooth" Arlong!
"Mm, that's right. He is the one who saved us from the hands of the Celestial Dragons."
After reading the bounty poster in the newspaper, Fisher Tiger smiled and gently patted the heads of the young Fish-Men before him.
"Wow~~ So amazing! Boss Tiger, I want to be a person like 'Hero' Rono in the future!"
"That's right, I want to be as amazing as him, too! And then save our people!"
The young Jinbei, Hachi, and Arlong had faces full of admiration, having already turned Rono into the idol they would forever follow in their hearts.
"That's ambitious. In that case, you must train hard!"
"Eh~ Is it starting again? Boss Tiger's hellish training!"
Hearing this, the young Fish-Men's faces filled with terror.
Similar scenes were unfolding on many different islands at this time.
Fish-Man Island, Zou, the Teena Keena Kingdom where the Longarm Tribe lives, and so on.
All the slaves freed by Rono, regardless of race, were now in their homelands recounting the great deeds of this "Hero" Rono!
These deeds, in turn, attracted the adoration of countless young minds.
Many people regarded "Hero" Rono as their idol and swore to work hard to become a hero like Rono in the future!
The trajectory of these events was likely something even Rono himself had not anticipated.
Rono's deeds were also spreading in the Vodka Kingdom on the Grand Line.
"Rono... Is he the one who saved many of my Oni Tribe brothers?"
A young Kaido picked up a newspaper, his attention immediately captured by its contents.
"Robbing the Heavenly Tribute...! The reason my country is constantly at war... it's also because of the Heavenly Tribute, isn't it?" Kaido muttered to himself, recalling what the adults had told him before.
Because they had to defeat enemies and seize money to pay the Heavenly Tribute, his homeland was in a constant state of war.
"How incredible. If I could be like Rono and rob the Heavenly Tribute from other places, maybe my homeland wouldn't be at war."
Kaido murmured, feeling a bit envious of Rono.
Just then, a large net suddenly fell from the shadows, enveloping Kaido.
"Hey, Kaido! You've been sold to the Marines! Our country can't keep you anymore!"
A dozen members of the king's guard appeared immediately, working together to capture Kaido.
"Damn it! Don't use me as a political tool! I don't want to become a running dog for the World Government!"
Kaido roared, trying to break free, only to find the ropes were specially made. He couldn't use his strength at all.
"It can't be helped! As long as you join the Marines, we can participate in the World Conference!"
The dozen guards completely ignored Kaido's opinion and threw him directly onto the warship.
...
New World, Pirate Island, Hachinosu.
This was the main base of the infamous Rocks Pirates.
"Unbelievable, unbelievable! Something big has happened!"
"What big event?"
"Haven't you seen the news? A rookie named Rono seized the Heavenly Tribute! His first bounty is 500 million Berries!"
"What? 500 million Berries? You've got to be kidding. Captain Golden Lion and Captain Big Mom's bounties are just over 600 million. How is this rookie worth 500 million?!"
"I'm not kidding at all! Look at today's paper if you don't believe me."
A dozen members of the Rocks Pirates gathered around, continuously shocked by the deeds reported in the newspaper.
"What's all the noise about?"
Just then, a tall, muscular man appeared. He had a magnificent mane of blond hair, but the most crucial feature was the crescent-shaped, upward-curving mustache on his face.
That's right. This was the future, famous "World's Strongest Pirate" who would rule over an era: Whitebeard!
Although his mustache was currently blond, he preferred people to call him "Whitebeard"!
"Captain Whitebeard!"
Seeing the man, the pirates greeted him respectfully.
The Rocks Pirates' 1st Division Captain, Edward Newgate!
He was also the strongest and most trustworthy man in the crew, aside from Rocks himself.
"Mm. What happened? Is there a new rookie?" Whitebeard looked at the pirates and asked with interest.
His Observation Haki had already picked up some fragments of their conversation, something about a new pirate.
"Captain Whitebeard, look at the paper."
A pirate lackey handed the newspaper to Whitebeard. Whitebeard didn't stand on ceremony and began to read it.
The more he read, the more his expression changed.
After finishing the newspaper's contents, Whitebeard let out a long breath.
"Another incredible guy has appeared on the seas. Has Rocks been notified about this?"
Whitebeard asked the lackeys.
This rookie named Rono had awakened the three types of Advanced Haki. His strength could already be called formidable, but his potential was even more terrifying. And he liked to strike at the Celestial Dragons.
Rocks would definitely be interested in this rookie.
"Not yet... We haven't seen Admiral Rocks." The lackey replied truthfully.
Just then, a pirate lackey suddenly ran up to Whitebeard, panting heavily. He clearly had something very urgent to report:
"C-Captain Whitebeard! Admiral Rocks is looking for you! He says to go see him immediately! He said it's something very important!"
"I know. Take me to him." Whitebeard had already anticipated that Rocks would be looking for him after seeing the news about Rono.
Sure enough, the moment Whitebeard saw Rocks, Rocks got straight to the point: "Whitebeard. A new rookie has appeared on the seas recently. Do you know about him?"
"I just found out." Whitebeard waved the newspaper in his hand.
"Good. What do you think of this rookie?" Rocks asked.
Whitebeard pondered for a moment, then said: "To awaken all three types of Haki at 17, and for all three to have reached an advanced level... his talent is the kind you see once in decades. Give him a little time, and he will definitely grow into a monster!"
Then Whitebeard paused. There was one more sentence he thought about but didn't say.
That was: given time, Rono could even grow into a monster that surpasses Rocks!
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