Donquixote Family

[Brain storage area]

[Handsome guys and beautiful girls who stopped by, may you all make a fortune.]

"Don't come any closer!!!" A desperate, terrified, and bewildered scream rang out in the quiet internet café.

Before anyone could even wonder what was going on, an even louder series of noises erupted.

"Bang!"

"Crash!!!"

"Skree..."

"Holy crap! This is the third floor! How did a whole damn truck fly up here?" Even as he lost consciousness, the man still couldn't figure it out.

In the world of pirates, at the border of the Kingdom of Flevance in the North Blue, in a remote little house in a small town on an unnamed island, two children were there—one lying down, the other sitting beside him.

The one lying down was a boy, around ten years old. His forehead was wrapped in bandages, which were being stained red by trickles of unclotted blood.

The boy was unconscious, but the unnatural twist of his face showed that he was enduring indescribable pain.

The girl sitting on the edge of the bed looked about six. She watched the boy with a worried expression, her hands clasped together in prayer.

"Gray-sama! Please wake up soon. You said you'd always need me!"

"Almighty Kami! If you can really hear me, please answer my prayer!" Baby-5 prayed silently, never taking her eyes off the boy named Gray on the bed.

Perhaps there really were gods in this world. Perhaps one had heard her prayer. As she waited and hoped with all her heart, the boy finally stirred.

"Don't come any closer!!!" The boy on the bed suddenly sprang up and shouted.

"Damn! My head hurts!" Barely three seconds after waking up and saying this, the boy passed out again.

"Gray-sama!" Baby-5 cried out. She'd been about to celebrate, but when she saw him faint again, her emotions plunged from joy to despair, and she was left completely at a loss.

"Gray-sama!" Unable to think of what to do, Baby-5 suddenly had an idea. "Young Master! Right. The Young Master will know what to do."

As she spoke, Baby-5 immediately ran out. "Young Master! Young Master! Gray's awake!"

Baby-5 had just run out of the room when a blond man wearing sunglasses barged in with a large group of people. "You don't need to shout, Baby-5! We heard you!"

The blond man was the head of the Donquixote Family, Donquixote Doflamingo.

As soon as he entered, Doflamingo looked toward the boy on the bed. Seeing him unconscious with his brow furrowed, he immediately ordered, "Ship's doctor!"

He didn't need to say anything else. One of his nameless underlings immediately stepped forward to examine the boy.

Though the underling had no name, he was still reasonably skilled at his job. In no time, he had finished examining Gray.

"Young Master, Gray's much better now. If he hadn't woken up this time, he might have ended up a vegetable."

"Right now, he's only unconscious because the pain has caused his body to protect itself. After all, the injury is to his brain."

"He should wake up within a few hours. As for what happens after that... we'll have to wait and see." After sharing what he knew, the underling obediently fell silent and stood to one side.

Doflamingo was quiet for a long while. Then he turned and led the others out. "Baby-5, let me know when Gray wakes up."

"Since he's joined the family, we won't mistreat him. I'll give him a Devil Fruit as compensation for this."

"Just take good care of Gray. As for the rest of you... meeting!"

"Yes, Young Master!" Baby-5 answered instinctively, then murmured dreamily, "Ah! Does this mean someone needs me?"

Because her parents had abandoned her, Baby-5 had developed psychological issues. Many One Piece fans called her the "freebie wife"!

After leaving the room, Doflamingo headed into the hall next door.

Behind him came the snot-nosed Trebol, the vain Diamante, the double agent Corazon, the masked Gladius, Senor Pink—whose sunglasses were practically part of him—the doll-voiced Pica, the big man Machvise, and the blond woman Jora.

And, last but not least, the little fatso Buffalo, who was huddled in a corner and had yet to make his presence felt.

Everyone sat down in turn. Doflamingo looked around at them, his lowered brow cast in shadow. No one could see his eyes behind his sunglasses, and no one knew what he was thinking. The heavy atmosphere made everyone's breathing feel a little more labored.

After a long silence, Doflamingo spoke in a low voice. "Corazon, you went too far this time!"

At that, Corazon, who was posing as a mute spy, hurriedly protested with gestures. "Mmph! Mmph!"

"I know you didn't mean to kill him!" Doflamingo cut Corazon off. "Whenever you beat them, I've always assumed you were training them."

"We became pirates. Once you're a pirate, you're a pirate for life."

"Among pirates, the strong prey on the weak. If someone dies, they can only blame their lack of strength."

"But that applies to outsiders. They joined the Donquixote Family, so they're our family."

"When it comes to our family, the Donquixote Family has a duty to protect its young and let them grow."

Hearing this, Corazon fell silent. He thought long and hard, but couldn't come up with anything to say in his defense. After all, he couldn't admit that he'd only been trying to stop the children from joining the Donquixote Family. In the end, he could only nod helplessly.

Only after Corazon gave in did Doflamingo continue. "Corazon was at fault for this accident. He's my younger brother, and I'm the head of the family, so I'm responsible for dealing with it. As compensation, let's give Gray the Spin-Spin Fruit!"

"Trebol, make a trip to the family warehouse and bring back the Devil Fruit."

"Na na na! Don't worry, Doffy!" Trebol, his long nose dripping with mucus and a blanket draped over his shoulders, nodded.

"Gray! Come over here!" While unconscious, Gray felt as if he were pinned down by a ghost. He wanted to wake up but couldn't; all he could do was watch memories play over and over in his mind.

In those memories, he became a child named "Gray."

"Gray! Hurry, run!!" The confused child was carried by two adults as they hurried through a grand palace, turning this way and that.

After who knew how long, one of the stern-looking men opened a trapdoor in a hidden room. "Gray, hurry. Go, and don't come back."

The man forced back the sorrow in his eyes as he urged him on. The woman holding the boy was streaming with tears. Her voice trembled with grief as she said, "Gray, go!"

"Never come back!"

"And don't even think about getting revenge!"

"Just live well!"

"Remember, from now on, your name is Fullbuster Gray. That's the only name you have."

"And... we love you!"

With those words, they pushed the boy into the passage, then shut the trapdoor tightly behind him.

Before the boy could even make sense of what was happening, a series of hissing sounds came from behind him. When he turned around, his eyes nearly bulged out of their sockets.

A gaping maw rushed toward him and swallowed him whole...

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