The world of pirates—the Holy Land, Mary Geoise.
In a dungeon where no sunlight ever reached, Chu Yang listened to the wails echoing from outside the cells, his mood growing heavier by the second.
It hadn't even been a month since he'd transmigrated into this world. Turned into a teenager, Chu Yang had been abducted by human traffickers at the Sabaody Archipelago and then selected by the Celestial Dragons to become a slave.
Damn it—what rotten luck.
Other people transmigrated with systems, living the high life, eating well and drinking fine wine. He, on the other hand, was about to have the "Hoof of the Soaring Dragon" branded onto his body.
Well, at least he'd be leaving behind a local "specialty."
The stench of scorched flesh in the air made Chu Yang's heart pound. Even though, before transmigrating, he'd already spent years struggling through society, he still couldn't remain calm in the face of this.
In the cell next to him were three girls about the same age. Compared to Chu Yang, they were far calmer, as if this were something they'd long since grown used to.
The three sisters had completely different hair colors.
The largest-built one had green hair. The tall, slender one had brown hair.
The smallest in stature—but with the strongest presence, clearly the boss among them—had black hair.
"Kid, you're new here, aren't you?" The black-haired girl spoke sternly. "Remember this: if they take you out later, no matter what happens, you have to endure it. Don't scream. If you anger those people, your end will be miserable."
Chu Yang nodded in acknowledgment, accepting her goodwill.
Only then did the girl's icy expression ease slightly.
As the screams outside gradually weakened, the dungeon's oppressive atmosphere lightened somewhat. The girls began chatting casually with Chu Yang.
"Kid, what's your name?"
"My name is Chu Yang. And could you not call me 'kid'? You don't look much older than me."
"Chu Yang? What a strange name—hard to pronounce. I'm Boa Hancock. You can call me Sister Hancock, kid!"
She deliberately emphasized the word "kid," clearly trying to provoke him. But Chu Yang had no energy to argue.
Hancock?! The Pirate Empress?!
Looking at the still-young future Pirate Empress, who was currently a slave in Mary Geoise, Chu Yang immediately understood the timeline. This had to be at least thirteen years before the main storyline began. As for the exact year, that would depend on when the "hero" Fisher Tiger set fire to the Holy Land.
With Mary Geoise's defenses, escaping from here would be harder than ascending to the heavens.
Chu Yang's face darkened at the thought.
Being utterly at someone else's mercy—entrusting his life entirely to others—was an unbearable feeling.
Just as he was about to coax more information out of Hancock, the sound of approaching footsteps echoed through the corridor.
Prison guards.
They were coming to brand him with the Hoof of the Soaring Dragon.
Hancock's expression changed as well, and she hurriedly reminded him again, "Chu Yang, you have to endure it."
Chu Yang forced a weak smile onto his pale face.
With a loud bang, the cell door was kicked open. A tall, burly man stepped out of the darkness.
He wore a black uniform from head to toe, his face covered by a black hood—like an executioner from ancient Western times.
Chu Yang took a deep breath, doing his best not to show fear.
Without a word, the guard grabbed Chu Yang like a chick, sneered as he sized him up, and dragged him out of the cell.
Hancock stared fixedly at their retreating backs. She didn't want anything to happen to this boy who'd only just arrived.
Over the years, many slaves had been tortured to death on a guard's "whim."
Most of them were ordinary humans like Chu Yang.
Other races were considered more valuable to the Celestial Dragons. Losing even one would result in severe punishment for the guards.
Amid overwhelming terror, Chu Yang was hoisted up by several guards. Beside him burned a furnace, sparks flying as red-hot branding irons glowed within.
A guard picked up one of the irons and advanced toward him with a twisted grin.
Chu Yang locked eyes with him, like a cornered beast on the brink of extinction. In that instant, all fear was replaced by rage and hatred.
"I've seen that look plenty of times," the guard sneered. "None of them ended well."
He raised the branding iron and slammed it viciously against Chu Yang's chest.
The burn itself lasted only a moment. The agony that followed was indescribable.
As the guard pressed down harder, the iron sank into Chu Yang's flesh. The pain made his entire body go rigid, trembling violently.
Somehow, a surge of willpower rose from within, preventing Chu Yang from screaming. He continued staring at the guard, his eyes gradually turning blood-red.
That hysterical madness sent a chill through the guard's heart.
His grip loosened. He stumbled back a few steps.
Only then did he realize that Chu Yang had already lost consciousness.
"Tch. Thought you were tough—turns out you passed out this easily."
As the guard mocked him, Chu Yang's soul drifted into a mysterious palace.
The palace was vast and majestic, yet riddled with signs of erosion and damage. A sense of immense history washed over him.
Deep within stood countless thrones—row upon row.
Most of them were broken.
Only twelve of the closest thrones remained intact.
At the very center, two thrones glowed with terrifying crimson light, like spreading blood.
On one of them sat a figure. When he noticed Chu Yang, he immediately stood up.
Through the haze, both saw each other's faces clearly—and froze, then turned pale in shock.
They looked exactly the same.
As the two identical figures locked eyes, a strange sensation flooded them—an unparalleled sense of familiarity. They instantly understood that they were the same person.
Both were Chu Yang.
Fragments of memories that didn't belong to either of them surfaced in their minds.
Clearly, these extra memories belonged to the other.
"So… another me transmigrated to a different world," one murmured.
"Our souls must have encountered an accident during transmigration," the other replied. "They split into multiple parts…"
"And this palace seems to be our shared soul space."
After sharing memories, the two Chu Yangs began piecing together what had happened.
The Chu Yang from the pirate world stared at the other in amazement. "I didn't expect you to end up in the Naruto world."
The Naruto-world Chu Yang gave a bitter smile. "The timing is brutal. I arrived far too early and temporarily lost the advantage of knowing the plot."
The pirate-world Chu Yang sighed as well. "Same here. I arrived thirteen years early and got trapped in Mary Geoise as a slave."
"Then you've got it way worse than me," Naruto Chu Yang joked. "At least I didn't end up as a slave—though I arrived more than thirteen years early."
The pirate-world Chu Yang asked curiously, "How early are we talking?"
Even with shared memories, fully sorting everything out would take time.
Naruto Chu Yang's expression turned bleak. He said helplessly, "I don't know the exact year, but at this point, the ninja villages of the various nations haven't even been established yet…"
The pirate-world Chu Yang sucked in a sharp breath. "Good grief—that's the Warring States Era!"
Naruto Chu Yang said seriously, "In the Naruto world, I have another name—Senju Yang."
(End of Chapter)