The Game Begins

Sirius and the others stood not far away, quietly watching several adult pirates beat up the siblings.

The siblings were both quite young. The younger brother hugged his head and squatted on the ground, his face full of fear.

But the older sister was full of courage.

She was still a child of five or six, without Sirius's overwhelmingly powerful Devil Fruit ability. She was just an ordinary person, at most a bit stronger. Facing several adults, she had no chance of winning.

But she was still fearless.

"Don't you dare hurt Pay-tan!"

The little girl roared, charging and slamming into the waist of another pirate, making him stagger backward.

However, even the strongest fists are no match for four hands. She was immediately kicked to the ground.

Several pirates surrounded her, and the situation became critical.

But this little girl had no intention of giving up. She grabbed a pirate's leg and bit down.

"Ah!!"

The scream instantly became piercing.

"So fierce!"

Black Maria exclaimed in admiration, "Not only cute, but also so fierce!"

It wasn't fierceness in terms of combat power, but on the level of willpower.

Even surrounded by several adults raining blows upon her, the girl still roared and fought back with her teeth and fists.

Perhaps her attacks weren't very effective, but her will was incredibly firm. She would not compromise, would not admit defeat.

"I want to be friends with her even more!" Yamato said excitedly. She turned her head and asked, "Sirius, are we really not going to help?"

Sirius shook his head. "Let's wait a bit longer."

It was at this moment that the little brat, who had been cowering in fear, saw his sister being beaten. The fear on his face instantly turned into rage.

"Don't hurt my sister!"

The childish voice was filled with anger. The little boy pounced, grabbed a pirate's leg, and bit down.

"Gah! Brat!!"

The pirate's leg twitched involuntarily, and he flung the little boy away.

He turned back in anger, staring intently at the little boy who had just managed to get up. "You dare bite me! I'll kill you, you stinking brat!"

"Don't hurt Pay-tan!"

Taking advantage of the pirates' distraction, Ulti jumped up, drew a katana from a pirate's waist, and slashed his leg.

While the pirate screamed, she ran in front of her brother, holding the sword with both hands and pointing it at the pirates before them.

Her face was already bruised, and the hand holding the sword trembled, but she still didn't back down.

"I'm not afraid of you!" she roared.

"Brat!!"

The pirate whose leg was slashed was furious. "I'll kill you!"

"Wait."

But he was stopped by another pirate. "The commotion is too big, it'll attract others. Besides, Boss Kaido just brought them back today, don't go too far!"

He glared fiercely at the siblings. "Don't they want to participate in tomorrow's game? We'll have fun with them then."

The other pirates thought about it and didn't object. Then they quickly left.

After the pirates were all gone, Ulti collapsed as if drained, hugging her brother and trembling.

What an amazing girl.

Sirius, who had watched the whole thing, sighed inwardly.

Then he said, "Let's go, we can pass now."

"Can we go make friends with them?" Yamato asked expectantly.

"I don't think this is a good time," Sirius said casually.

The four walked forward, and Ulti and her brother naturally saw them.

The little girl, who had been slumped on the ground, instantly stood up, grabbed the fallen sword beside her, and pointed the blade at Sirius and the others.

"I'm not afraid of you!" she shouted.

Seeing the wary little girl, Sirius smiled. "See? I told you now wasn't the time."

Yamato pouted.

Black Maria chuckled. "But she's really cute, isn't she?"

Sirius didn't answer, just smiled. "Haha, let's go back to sleep. We have a big day tomorrow, and you won't have enough energy if you don't rest well."

"Do you have the right to say that?" Jack retorted.

The four of them gradually walked away.

Only after their voices could no longer be heard did Ulti finally relax.

She hugged her younger brother and whispered, "Big sister will definitely lead you to survive here, Pay-tan."

The night passed without incident, and time quickly arrived at the next day.

After the usual morning training, Sirius and the other three went to have breakfast.

Then, it was time for the game to begin.

The venue for the game was set up inside the giant Skull, on the central plaza of Onigashima.

Onigashima, which was basically completed seventeen years later, still had a spacious plaza, let alone now.

The venue was quite spacious, barely suitable as a battlefield for monsters like King and Queen, let alone the current situation.

Thousands of Pirates were gathered here at this moment, and there were quite a few who decided to fight to the death for the Okuchi-no-Makami Fruit.

However, more people were watching this grand event from the periphery of the plaza.

In the center of the plaza, a platform hung in the sky, connected by chains to the inner wall of the Skull above.

A man stood on the platform.

"Mwahahahaha!! Are you ready! Scum! The fun game is about to begin!"

Queen held a Den Den Mushi, and the loudspeakers installed throughout the plaza transmitted his voice to every corner of the venue.

"Oh!!!"

The Pirates responded enthusiastically.

Sirius sat on Jack's shoulder, looking up at Queen, "Didn't he say his Plague Calamity Bomb was at a critical stage?"

Jack chimed in, "Brother Queen loves lively occasions like this the most."

Indeed, Teacher Queen was a master of feasts.

Sirius smiled.

"The prize is in place!"

Queen held up a small box in his hand and laughed heartily, "Who will be the last person to obtain this fruit!"

He pointed to the plaza below with his right hand, "Will it be the Pillars, who exist like the mainstays?"

The Pillars he pointed at immediately cheered. They were the middle management of the Beasts Pirates, existing as something like junior officers.

"Or perhaps," Queen raised his finger and pointed towards the back of the plaza, where incredibly tall figures stood. "The embodiment of terror and violence, the strongest wall of the Beasts Pirates! The Numbers!"

"Hehehe! I'm claiming this fruit!"

The Numbers, whose height far surpassed even giants, gathered here and burst into laughter.

Their massive physiques generated astonishing gusts of wind even when they cheered!

Queen continued to shift his gaze. "But perhaps the final victor will be them!"

"The Little Beasts showing their prowess! The future stars of the Beasts Pirates!"

A beam of light, appearing from nowhere, struck Sirius and the other three, instantly making them incredibly prominent.

"Lord Sirius!!"

"Lady Oni-Hime!"

Sirius could even hear the cheers of his fans from afar.

"Mwahahahaha! Will the monsters currently growing be able to bare their fangs this time? Let's wait and see!"

Queen laughed heartily. "Then I declare,"

"The game, begins!"

Thanks to the 'Local Nascent Soul' big shot for the generous 600-point reward!