A few days later, somewhere in the East Blue.
A Cow Sea Beast pulled a huge, three-masted ship along at high speed.
Daddy and the others had finished their day's training. They lounged in deck chairs, reading the latest newspapers.
"Following the East Blue Overlord Krieg Pirates, the Big Daddy Pirates have once again destroyed the East Blue's highest-bounty crew, the Arlong Pirates!"
"Tragic news! The Big Daddy Pirates destroyed a warship from the East Blue 16th Branch without provocation. Captain Nezumi was killed!"
"The bounties of every member of the Big Daddy Pirates have risen once again. They are now the strongest pirate crew in the East Blue!"
"The most beautiful country in the East Blue, the Goa Kingdom: Princess Sally Nantokanette is engaged to Sabo, son of the great noble Outlook III. The wedding will take place next year!"
"Mirabelle Island, birthplace of East Blue's popular trends: the annual dance festival begins in ten days. Everyone is welcome!"
"Loguetown's annual Cooking Competition begins in one week. The prizes for the champion: an Elephant Tuna and one million Beli!"
"Special report: Zeff, head chef of the Baratie, revealed that the restaurant's sous-chef has the makings of the First Chef of the East Blue!"
These were all East Blue news. Daddy also glanced through the world news in the World Economy News Paper.
"Thatch, commander of the Whitebeard Pirates' Fourth Division, and Fire Fist Ace, the newly appointed Second Division Commander, joined forces to defeat the Decalvan Brothers in the New World. They captured them and brought them into the Whitebeard Pirates' affiliated crews!"
"Cavendish, the Weasel of Rommel and one of the Supernovas, arrived at the Sabaody Archipelago today. His bounty is 280 million!"
"Daddy, looks like we can find a decent cook here!"
Kuro of a Hundred Plans pointed at a news story about the Cooking Competition and remarked casually to Daddy.
The others were busy looking over their new wanted posters. Jango, meanwhile, eyed the dance festival news with interest, though he knew the Big Daddy Pirates would never visit Mirabelle Island.
"Perfect. We're heading back to Loguetown!"
Daddy glanced at the paper and spoke flatly, but his voice seemed colder than usual. Even Kuro was a little surprised.
Then he remembered that Daddy Babaya came from the Barto Family, a criminal family in Loguetown. At that thought, Kuro gave him a teasing smile.
Looks like the captain had some unpleasant memories of Loguetown!
"Captain Daddy! Your bounty's up to thirty million Beli!"
Sonic pulled out one of Daddy's wanted posters and shouted. After wiping out the Arlong Pirates and killing Captain Nezumi, the Big Daddy Pirates' bounties had risen again.
Their reputation as the East Blue's most vicious pirate crew had spread!
The other crew members' bounties had also risen by around one to three million.
After all, massacring Marines was an especially heinous crime. They had to be punished severely.
Gin the Man-Demon and Iron Wall Pearl had also been added to the Big Daddy Pirates' wanted list. Only Cat Burglar Nami still had no bounty, which came as a relief to her. She didn't want to be hunted just yet.
"Full speed to Loguetown. Get ready to enter the Grand Line!"
Daddy paid no mind to the minor matter of the bounties. After finishing the papers, he resumed training. Their notoriety would soon draw a Marine Headquarters crackdown, which made him feel even more keenly that danger was closing in.
But he liked that feeling. Only when facing danger could a person keep pushing their limits, never daring to slack off for even a moment.
Seeing Daddy train again, Roronoa Zoro, who was just as much of a training fanatic, immediately got back to his workout.
His bounty was far below Daddy's, and that stung.
Still, his bounty had nearly reached the East Blue's previous record: nineteen million Beli!
Kuro and Sonic had each gained another million, bringing their bounties to eighteen million Beli.
Gin the Man-Demon had somehow gained three million, bringing his bounty to fifteen million Beli.
The other underlings had each gained a million as well, a fairly even increase.
Less than half a day later,
a strange island, towering into the clouds, came into view of the Big Daddy Pirates!
"Clockwork Island. I hear the Trump Pirates are based there. They've got a fleet of pirate ships, with no fewer than ten vessels!
"Their captain is the K-card, known as Bear King. His bounty is 11.6 million Beli.
"His officers are Jack, the Pin Joker, with a bounty of 9.9 million;
"the Q-card, Honey Queen, with a bounty of 7.8 million;
"the J-card, Pig Jack, with a bounty of 3.2 million;
"and the A-card, Skunk, with a bounty of six million."
Kuro of a Hundred Plans needed only a glance to recite the pirate crew's entire profile. No wonder the Big Daddy Pirates counted him as their brains!
"Then let's take them."
Daddy kept lifting his dumbbells, his tone unchanged, as if this lot wasn't worth his attention.
"Great! I've had my eye on Clockwork Island's famous Diamond Clock for ages! If they hadn't had so many people, I'd have stolen it long ago!"
Cat Burglar Nami said excitedly. She didn't feel even a little guilty about robbing or stealing from pirates!
"Let's do it! Let's go!"
Seeing that Daddy was still working out and had no intention of leading the attack, Sonic eagerly tried to take command, hoping to relive the feeling of being captain.
"Hey, hey! Fourth-in-command, your second-in-command hasn't said anything yet!"
Zoro immediately set down his giant dumbbell, wiped off his sweat, and walked to the bow.
How could he miss a fight?
Gin the Man-Demon, Iron Wall Pearl, and Gollas the swordsman also grabbed their weapons and fixed their eyes on Clockwork Island.
They were the strongest pirate crew in the East Blue now. Who did they have to fear?
The Cat Brothers in particular strutted around with swagger, proud to be members of the Big Daddy Pirates!
They were nothing like the trembling wrecks they'd been when attacking the Krieg Pirates.
"Then you can handle them."
Kuro of a Hundred Plans had no intention of joining in either. He entrusted the assault on Clockwork Island to Zoro and Sonic, the two officers.
Judging by their bounties, the Big Daddy Pirates' crew members should completely overwhelm the Trump Pirates.
But Clockwork Island was full of traps and hidden weapons. He hoped these guys wouldn't get in over their heads!
At Zoro and Sonic's orders, Momoo accelerated with all his might, aiming to reach Clockwork Island as quickly as possible.
Meanwhile, at the top of Clockwork Island, a lookout for the Trump Pirates spotted the intruders. When he saw the Big Daddy Pirates' flag, he hurriedly sounded the alarm and ran in a panic to report to their captain, Bear King.
The strongest pirate crew in the East Blue was coming!
If it had been some small pirate crew, he would have sounded the attack horn and led a strike to wipe them out.
But the Big Daddy Pirates, who had been making the biggest waves lately, were simply too fearsome. He couldn't summon even the slightest desire to resist!
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