The Big Daddy Pirates

The crewmen were eating and drinking heartily. When they saw Daddy return without any prey, carrying only a pink fruit, they were a little disappointed. No extra meal after all.

Only Kuro stared at Daddy in shock. Had this guy actually gotten a Devil Fruit?

"This is... a Devil Fruit? What can it do?"

Kuro sprang to his feet. If it was a powerful Devil Fruit ability, he didn't mind becoming a lousy swimmer.

Only then did the others react, especially El Drago, who had the Sound-Sound Fruit ability.

"That pattern! And it tastes awful!"

El Drago remembered that unforgettable, disgusting flavor. He'd never forget it for as long as he lived!

Zoro was only a little curious. He was utterly committed to his path as a swordsman and would never eat a Devil Fruit. He was going to become a swordsman through and through!

"Paramecia: the Sube Sube no Mi. It's a Devil Fruit that can make someone beautiful!"

Daddy chuckled. He planned to save it for one of his women to eat. Maybe he could make her even more beautiful than the Pirate Empress!

"More beautiful?"

Kuro lost interest at once. What use was it if it couldn't greatly increase his fighting power? It would only turn him into a lousy swimmer.

"Is the captain going to sell it?"

The Cat Brothers gazed at Daddy enviously. He'd gone out for a stroll and found a Devil Fruit worth over a hundred million Beli. How come they never had any luck like that when they went out to gather supplies?

"I'm not short on money!"

Daddy replied casually, then found a treasure chest and put the fruit away for safekeeping, waiting for its owner to show up!

Once the Devil Fruit was put away, the others finally stopped staring at it.

"Daddy, have you thought of a name for our pirate crew?

Once we take down the Krieg Pirates, we'll be famous throughout the East Blue!

Unless you let all of us go and keep Mosshead for yourself, the Marines will put bounties on all of us. Better to choose our own name now than let the Marines give us one later!"

Kuro asked, biting into a grilled fish. Apart from Daddy and Zoro, every one of them had a bounty on their head.

Even Gollas, a pirate swordsman who'd barely made a name for himself, had a bounty of ten million Beli!

"Pirate crew names are either nicknames or the captain's name. What else is there?"

Daddy laughed. What else could they call themselves besides the Big Daddy Pirates?

The Four Emperors' crews were all named after their captains' nicknames. His Big Daddy ship couldn't be outdone by Charlotte Linlin's Big Mom Pirates!

"Daddy Pirates? Babaya Pirates? Big Daddy Pirates?"

Kuro listed three options. He knew the details of this captain quite well: the former strategist of the Barto Family, the East Blue underworld group, [Big Daddy] Daddy Babaya.

"So your nickname is Big Daddy! Damn, you're really taking advantage of people—and your name's the same!"

Mosshead Zoro said irritably. Why not call them the Daddy Pirates while he was at it?

"Call me Big Daddy! Hahaha!"

Daddy burst out laughing. At last, he could put the opportunistic potential of his nickname and name to good use.

"..."

Zoro, Kuro, and El Drago all stared at their captain with deadpan expressions.

"Long live the Big Daddy Pirates! The Big Daddy captain is the strongest!!"

Jango, a lackey who also served as their dancer and musician, immediately broke into a song, dance, and rap routine, making sure everyone noticed him—a trainee lackey for two and a half weeks.

"Haah, can't be helped. You're the captain, after all! The Big Daddy Pirates it is!"

Kuro of a Hundred Plans took a deep breath, adjusted his glasses, and said resignedly.

"What an awful name! Don't worry, everyone! In two months, I'll beat the captain, and then we'll rename the crew the El Drago Pirates!"

El Drago thumped his chest and declared passionately, full of confidence. But all he got in response were a few looks that said he was an idiot. Even Gollas, one of his former crewmen, thought his old captain had a screw loose!

"Hah, a number four daring to brag! Your name's even worse than Big Daddy!"

Pirate Hunter Zoro took a swig of liquor and said whatever came to mind, without the slightest concern for anyone's feelings!

"What! Say that again, Mosshead swordsman!!"

El Drago's eyes blazed with fury. His voice was so loud that light seemed to spill from his mouth.

"Number four, is that any way to talk to number two?"

Zoro grinned and rested his hand on his sword hilt. At the slightest provocation, he was ready to reassert the dignity of the second-in-command!

"Bam!!" x2.

Two figures went flying. Daddy let the Armament Haki fade from his hand. His Armament Haki had gone from a faint coating to black Haki covering half his fist, and it was growing rapidly!

"I'll give you a chance to fight at full strength and settle your ranks once a month! Behave yourselves the rest of the time! If you want to spar, come to me!"

After knocking the two away, Daddy accepted the grilled fish and fine liquor the Cat Brothers respectfully brought him. He was getting a little tired of fish, but they didn't have a proper cook on board yet, so this was all they could eat.

The crewmen who'd come from the Black Cat Pirates liked grilled fish, and grilling fish was all they were good at. Everything else they cooked tasted awful.

Unless Daddy cooked for himself, this was what they were stuck eating.

"Daddy, how come I still haven't awakened Armament Haki? Are you teaching me wrong?"

Zoro came back with a bump on his head, but he was eager to master Armament Haki. Daddy could block blades with his bare hands, which showed just how tough it was!

"You've got a solid foundation, but you're a little too skinny right now. You're not much better than Kuro—like a bamboo stick. Eat more meat, train more, and build up your muscles. Only muscles pushed beyond their limits can keep producing Armament Haki!"

Daddy spoke seriously. Just look at Straw Hat Luffy and Zoro. After two years of training, they'd each doubled in size, their muscles knotted and thick. Getting bigger had made them stronger, too!

"Hmph!"

When Daddy dragged him into it, Kuro gave a quiet snort. Still, he'd already decided to step up his training.

Otherwise, just as Daddy said, he wouldn't be able to keep up with the training and would die somewhere along the road to the Grand Line and the New World!

"So I really haven't been working hard enough!"

Zoro took the advice to heart. From now on, he'd eat more and train more. Back when he was a bounty hunter, he'd never known if he'd get another meal. No wonder his strength had improved so slowly.

He watched Daddy wolf down food. What an enormous appetite—and what a powerful digestive system!

Was that what all strong people were like?

Seeing how fast Captain Daddy was eating, the Cat Brothers immediately sped up their grilling and cooked more at a time.

All they wanted now was for the captain to recruit a cook. They'd gladly scrub the deck instead.

After eating their fill and resting for a day, the Big Daddy Pirates finally left the deserted island and set off to attack the Krieg Pirates' territory.

The Cat Brothers and the other lackeys were still terrified, but the four heavy hitters, each comparable in strength to Krieg, gave them a little confidence.

After all, Krieg's bounty was only 17 million Beli, while El Drago, their fourth-in-command, had a bounty of 16.6 million. Kuro, their third-in-command, had already had a bounty of 16 million Beli two years ago.

Captain Daddy and Pirate Hunter Zoro had no bounties, but they were even stronger. They might even be stronger than Arlong, whose 20 million Beli bounty was the highest in the East Blue!

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