Watching the burly figure standing by the pirate ship's rail, carefully carrying a wooden box on his back, Xia Che's face showed surprise.
He hadn't expected to run into him here.
Bartholomew Kuma.
That was right. The man before him was the trending figure from the World Economy News these past few days—Tyrant Bear.
Of course—
Xia Che, who knew the story well, also knew that the man before him was no tyrant at all, but a gentle... unlucky guy?
That was right, just an unlucky guy!
But also a strong, gentle man.
Misery had followed him throughout his life, yet he still held onto hope, using his abilities to help others and protect his child.
Xia Che looked at Kuma.
At that moment, Kuma was frowning as he continued staring at the bald East Blue Overlord, who stood with his arms folded and an imposing expression.
Yet even when facing a kid who had merely come from the East Blue, Bartholomew Kuma remained wary, carefully shielding the small wooden box behind him.
To him, it was as though he carried the most precious treasure in these seas on his back—his very own One Piece.
Xia Che glanced at the wooden box Kuma carried. Perhaps this girl's birth was unusual, but to this burly man, she was surely his most important daughter.
At that moment.
As Bartholomew Kuma watched.
Moke, who had always remembered Xia Che's orders, had already struck the pose of the East Blue Overlord. The underlings specially trained for this had immediately brought out the East Blue Overlord's exclusive props upon encountering an enemy.
On the left: My fate is mine to decide, not heaven's.
On the right: If heaven seeks to destroy me, I will destroy heaven.
Above: East Blue Overlord.
This scene.
Immediately shattered the originally silent atmosphere, making the already quiet mood even more silent.
An unsettling silence.
Especially Robin and Guina, who had never seen this before... both wore strange expressions.
But before long, as though they understood what was going on, they turned to look at Xia Che beside them.
Was this your doing?
Luckily, Moke hadn't shown this off back on the Conomi Islands. Otherwise, he definitely would have been arrested by a Marine admiral.
It was simply... far too arrogant!
Even Pirate King Roger probably hadn't been this arrogant back then!
Xia Che, under their suspicious stares, gave an awkward grin. He hadn't expected Moke to become this proficient after only one training session.
In the blink of an eye, he had already put on the bearing of the East Blue Overlord?
He had even draped himself in his exclusive gear—the golden lion's mane cape.
Couldn't they see that when Moke lightly flicked his cape and glared with effortless authority, Kuma had genuinely been bluffed?
He became even more careful in shielding the small box behind him.
Bartholomew Kuma, who had traveled far and wide, probably never expected to encounter such an arrogant figure at the starting point of the Grand Line!
At that moment.
The two burly men stared each other down.
One had an infuriatingly imposing look in his eyes, while the other's gaze was full of vigilance.
Behind them.
A soft, childish girl's voice suddenly came from behind Bartholomew Kuma.
"Daddy, what's wrong?"
At the sound of her voice, Kuma snapped back to his senses. The vigilance in his eyes instantly softened, and he said quietly, "Bonnie, Daddy is fine. I'll settle this soon."
"Mm~, go, Daddy!"
After receiving his daughter's childish encouragement, Bartholomew Kuma raised his head again and continued watching Moke warily.
The East Blue's newly appointed overlord, the Captain of the Moke Pirates—Moke!
As someone who had always kept up with the newspapers, Kuma knew a little about the East Blue Overlord before him.
Though there was not much news about the East Blue in the papers, it could be said that this man appeared in every recent piece of news from there.
A pirate who had remained in the weakest sea yet received a massive bounty of 50 million Beli from Marine Headquarters before even entering the Grand Line.
Although such a bounty was nothing in the Grand Line or the New World, one had to remember that he had yet to enter the Grand Line.
He had merely stayed in the weakest sea, yet the Marines had put a 50 million Beli bounty on him!
There were even rumors... that he had successfully escaped from the hands of the Marine Hero—Vice Admiral Garp—giving Vice Admiral Garp quite the headache. The bounty of 50 million Beli had also supposedly been proposed personally by a Navy Vice Admiral.
Even the Marine Hero had treated him with such caution!
It was easy to imagine.
Although the Moke Pirates were still in that weakest sea, their strength absolutely made them rising stars among the younger generation of pirates!
Especially this guy...
He was actually this arrogant?
He had even supposedly stirred up a Pirate Feast in the East Blue not long ago, intending to massacre a Marine branch.
Although it seemed to have failed in the end, there were rumors that, in order to preserve the seeds of East Blue piracy, he had single-handedly held back two Marine Colonels and ultimately escaped unharmed.
One had to know that anyone in these seas who dared be this arrogant and had not yet been beaten to death absolutely could not be underestimated.
Such an enemy might not be a match for Bartholomew Kuma, but Bonnie was behind him. As her father, he would never allow any accident to happen.
Bartholomew Kuma looked gravely at Moke, who still stood with his arms folded and showed no fear before a Tyrant like him. Adjusting his rimless glasses, he said flatly, "Captain of the Moke Pirates!"
In order to find a cure for Bonnie's illness, after leaving the Sorbet Kingdom, he had taken little Bonnie across the seas in search of famous doctors while also keeping his promise to travel with her and show her the beautiful sights of the sea.
Although little Bonnie, who remained inside the box, could not see any of it, he had always worried that if he... if he ultimately failed to find a cure for her, then after letting Bonnie see this sea for herself... what would he do then?
He had promised Ginny that he would take good care of this child!
Therefore, even if it cost him his life, he would find a way.
Yet he had never expected...
That beneath the Red Line, he would run into a group of pirates attacking them. After dealing with all of those pirates, he had suddenly encountered this enormous pirate ship. Thinking they were with the pirates from before, he had charged over with his abilities, intending to deal with them swiftly.
And then.
This was what had happened.
Bartholomew Kuma narrowed his eyes and stared imposingly at Moke, who remained unmoved by his questioning. "East Blue Overlord, are you here to capture me too, just like those pirates?"
However.
In response to his words.
"???"
Moke, who had been striking a cool pose, froze. Then he scratched his head. "Pirates? Capture you?"
As though he had remembered something, he gave two fake coughs and resumed the East Blue Overlord's pose, his eyes narrowing.
"What's your bounty?"
"???"
Why was he asking about his bounty?
Wait, this guy seemed not to recognize him?
Hearing Moke's question, the serious Kuma froze as well. He seemed to have guessed something, and his expression became calm again. He turned away without answering Moke, intending to leave.
"Hey, hey, what's going on?" Nami hurried out of the helm room with Vivi in her arms, asking anxiously, "Did we run into pirates? Have they been dealt with?"
As she spoke, she turned toward Xia Che with a panicked expression.
"Xia Che, Vivi's sick. What do we do now?"
The moment those words fell.
Everyone's attention was drawn over again. Xia Che looked at Vivi in Nami's arms, her face pale and her eyes unfocused, seemingly trying yet unable to open them. Surprise filled his face. "She's sick?"
Hadn't she been perfectly fine when they set sail?
How had she gotten sick just after entering the Grand Line?
"I-I... I'm fine!" Vivi forced an ugly smile onto her weak face. "Please, don't... don't turn back. As long as Alabasta can be saved..."
However.
Before she could finish.
"Don't joke around. You clearly don't look fine. Out at sea, any illness could take a crew member's life." Nami directly interrupted Vivi, her expression stern. "Don't worry about Alabasta right now."
"Nami, I..."
Moved by Nami's words, Vivi was about to raise a hand to tell Nami not to worry.
"There's still one billion left unpaid! What if something happens to you?" Nami ignored Vivi's stunned expression and anxiously looked around. "A doctor? How could we possibly find a doctor here? That's one billion!"
"..."
Watching Nami's anxious face—though he could not tell whether she was worried about Vivi or the one billion—Xia Che was about to comfort her, telling her not to panic because there really was a doctor here.
"May I take a look?"
A deep, steady voice came from behind them.
They saw.
Bartholomew Kuma, who had originally intended to leave, had suddenly appeared behind them again. After hesitating for a moment, he said, "Perhaps I can make her feel a little better."
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