Rare Beast Island

Kaya was explaining things to Merry, who wore a look of deep reluctance, while Usopp was mired in heartbreak over Kaya's "change of heart," unable to pull himself out of his misery.

This was because Kaya had just announced her intention to become the ship's doctor for the Moya Adventure Group, following the knowledgeable and insightful Moya to embark on a path toward becoming a world-renowned physician.

Merry tried his best to persuade Kaya, whose health had always been frail, to stay home and recuperate properly.

Meanwhile, Usopp kept asking her sorrowfully why she wouldn't join his ship if she was going to set sail.

"Because Moya-kun is very handsome, and he's incredibly capable. He is the captain I've envisioned on my journey to become a famous doctor! Besides, the Moya Adventure Group isn't a pirate crew, so it's much safer. I'm sorry, I can't follow you to become a pirate and board Luffy's ship."

Kaya's words shattered Usopp's fragile heart.

Just then, Moya walked in. Merry hurriedly asked Moya to help persuade Kaya, though Moya, of course, had no intention of doing so.

However, he still wore an expression of feigned ignorance, acting as if he would help.

"Kaya, what's wrong?" Moya asked gently.

Seeing Moya, Kaya immediately turned into a fan girl and trotted over to him.

She stood before Moya, looked at him with pure adoration, and gathered her courage to speak.

"Moya-kun, I want to join your adventure group and follow you. Just as you said, I want to become a world-renowned doctor and help more people!"

Moya looked at Kaya's upturned, pretty face, and his heart skipped a beat. My old man's maiden heart!!

Though he was already as happy as a pig in mud inside, he put on a look of hesitation on the outside.

"This..."

Kaya didn't know why Moya's attitude was different from what he'd said last night, but it didn't matter much.

She still intended to keep their agreement from the night before and board the Moya Adventure Group's ship.

"Moya-kun~" Kaya continued, acting coquettishly.

"Alright, I have no objections!" Moya agreed immediately. He couldn't handle Kaya's sweet, pleading voice—what a hypocritical 'protagonist,' directing and acting in his own play!

Merry and Usopp were both stunned; they had expected Moya to refuse due to Kaya's frail constitution.

They never imagined that one coquettish plea from Kaya would make Captain Moya agree. Usopp's heart was broken, and Merry's mind was left in a daze...

In the end, a heartbroken Usopp was dragged onto the Going Merry by Luffy and Zoro, beginning their own adventure...

Merry resigned himself to fate and could only entrust Moya to take good care of Kaya.

Kaya brought her medical books and a portion of her gold Beli fortune onto the Yanhuang, while leaving the rest of her assets and fixed property under Merry's management.

Moya took Nami and gathered the members of the Moya Adventure Group, beginning his own adventurous voyage...

On the ship, Nami looked at Kaya with jealousy, Kaya looked at Moya with earnestness, and Moya looked at the pouting Nami with a helpless expression.

Rika looked back and forth between the three of them with a naive, dazed expression.

Buggy and the others acted as if they saw nothing, the atmosphere growing somewhat awkward.

Moya gave a cough and spoke solemnly to his crew: "Kaya, our new ship's doctor."

He then turned to Kaya and added: "Nami, our navigator; Rika, my maid and cook; Rim is our head chef."

Seeing that the atmosphere was still off, Moya continued his introductions quickly.

"Buggy, our combat officer;

Dis, our butler; Jango, our dancer;

Beast Tamer Mohji, Acrobat Cabaji, Siamese cat Sham and Spotted cat Buchi, our squad leaders;

And of course, our pet, Richie."

Kaya also spoke solemnly and earnestly: "It's a pleasure to meet everyone. Please take care of me!"

Everyone responded one by one. Moya nudged Nami with his elbow, and Nami finally acted magnanimously, acknowledging Kaya.

"Captain, we've spotted an island ahead," the navigation observer reported to Moya.

"Good, full speed ahead. We're landing."

Moya took the opportunity to break the awkward atmosphere, eager to escape the scene.

With only two of them, his future harem was already like this—Moya fell into deep self-reflection.

Why couldn't he be like those transmigrator predecessors, where one release of their 'kingly aura' would make subordinates flock to them and keep their harems stable!

It seemed he would need to learn a new skill in the future: the art of stabilizing a harem.

Caw, caw, caw. A flock of birds scattered from the forest.

With a 'thud,' the three ships—Yanhuang 1, 2, and 3—docked, and the group stepped onto the unknown island.

"Why does this forest feel a bit strange, Captain?" Dis asked, his brow furrowed with unease.

"What are you afraid of! With me, the Great Buggy, here, there's no dangerous place in the East Blue!" Buggy shouted boisterously.

"Lord Buggy is the best!" Cabaji, Mohji, and the other underlings echoed.

A look of haughty pride appeared on Buggy's face.

The original members of the Buggy Pirates had all noticed the change in Buggy—he had become even more childish—but none of them dared to ask why.

"Rika, Kaya, Nami, you three sit on Richie and stay in the middle. Everyone else, form a perimeter to protect them. Leave a guard for the ships, and let's move out!" Moya issued his orders.

"Yes, Captain!" the group responded.

They hadn't gone far when suddenly, a bizarre, chimerical creature sprinted past them, startling everyone into a defensive stance.

Seeing the monster, Moya thought to himself, Why does this creature look so familiar? Could it be...

The group continued forward, but a dark shadow suddenly darted through the forest. Everyone assumed it was just some animal.

However, this shadow kept following them, constantly harassing the group. Had they not been as bold and skilled as they were, ordinary pirates might have been scared off.

Moya, already having a guess, was starting to get annoyed by the shadow.

"Slip-Slip Fruit: Glazed Ground!"

Moya pressed one hand to the ground, and with "Fast Slide," he vanished from his spot in an instant.

With a thud, a strange man stuck inside a treasure chest was kicked out by Moya.

Sure enough, Moya's guess was correct; this had to be Rare Beast Island.

He hadn't expected them to end up on the same route as Luffy from the original story. He wondered where Luffy, currently lacking a navigator, had ended up!

"You wretched pirates, get off this island!" Gaimon shouted angrily.

"We aren't pirates, mister," Rika's soft voice piped up.

Ignoring Gaimon, Moya gave orders to his crew.

"There is no danger on this island, and it's home to many rare beasts. Everyone, spread out and gather supplies for the ship. If you get the chance, bring back a few cute and docile rare beasts to keep as pets or sell as merchandise."

There were no powerful rare beasts on this island, nor anything Moya particularly wanted, so he planned to do a quick sweep and leave.

The crew scattered, each beginning to collect navigational supplies and resources.

Upon hearing about the many rare beasts, Mohji immediately rushed off with Buggy and the others to search for them.

In an instant, only Moya, the three girls, and Richie the Lion remained, looking at Gaimon...

"You hateful devils, don't you dare touch my rare beasts!" Gaimon roared, his voice cracking with anguish.

"Big Brother Moya, what's wrong with him?" Rika asked, while Nami and Kaya also cast questioning looks his way.

"This man is named Gaimon. Over twenty years ago, he was a pirate. He went looking for treasure, got stuck in this chest, couldn't get out, and was accidentally left behind on this island by his crew. Now, he's the guardian of the rare beasts here. Am I right, Gaimon?"

Moya turned his head to address Gaimon.

Gaimon stared at Moya in shock. How could this handsome youth know so much about his past?

"Who on earth are you? How do you know about me?"

Moya had no intention of recruiting Gaimon, so he turned to the three girls and said, "This Rare Beast Island has many cute animals. If you like, let's go find some. Let's go on an adventure; staying on the ship is too boring."

"Yay! Let's go on an adventure!" Rika cheered happily.

Nami and Kaya also wore happy smiles. Kaya hadn't set foot on another island in a long time, so she seemed even more delighted.

Nami, meanwhile, held a pen in her mouth and a nautical chart in her hand, beginning to observe the island's environment and record the details.

Left behind was Gaimon, who remained trapped by the Glazed Ground, cursing incessantly.

Without any intense battles, the Moya Adventure Group only stayed on the island for a few hours. Mohji managed to tame a new rare beast for combat.

The three girls captured some cute and docile rare beasts, and the crew collected fruit and fresh water.

They also gathered a portion of the rare beasts, which could be raised, sold, or kept as emergency food supplies.

The adventure group's three ships set sail and vanished into the horizon. The Glazed Ground trapping Gaimon eventually faded away after Moya's departure, leaving behind only the sound of Gaimon crying and cursing.

The Moya Adventure Group continued their voyage across the vast, boundless sea.