Fujitora, Issho

After that night, many changes took place in Crocker Town.

With the bandits in the nearby mountains gone, the townspeople no longer had to worry about their safety. Simple and honest by nature, smiles of relief appeared on their faces.

The bearded owner's tavern also regained its former bustle, with an endless stream of customers coming and going.

The town's gang of thugs disbanded, and the thug named Zik vanished without a trace. But no one cared about the whereabouts of trash like him.

Even now, neither the people of Crocker Town nor Long Yi knew that it was Zik who had led the bandits there.

The town returned to its usual peace, and after resting for a week, it was time for Long Yi to set off.

"Long Yi, are your wounds all right? Do you need... Well, have a safe journey."

Outside Crocker Town, the bearded owner and a large group of townspeople who had come to see him off looked reluctant to part. They thought over the words they wanted to use to persuade him to stay, but in the end, they never spoke them.

They knew that someone like Long Yi would never spend his entire life in a remote town like theirs.

The colorful, vast world was where this young man belonged.

"I'm fine. The hard bread and wild strawberries worked pretty well. My wounds have almost healed. Owner, everyone, thank you for taking care of me during this time."

Long Yi bowed to the bearded owner and the townspeople, then flashed a brilliant smile. He suddenly ran forward a few steps, turned around, and waved hard.

"Goodbye! Take care of yourselves!"

Everything that had happened in Crocker Town during this period flashed before Long Yi's eyes. In the end, he buried all those memories deep in his heart, turning them into the motivation to keep moving forward.

He still had a long road ahead of him.

Watching Long Yi's retreating figure gradually disappear, the bearded owner felt a little sad. Although Long Yi had not stayed in town for long, he had left an indelible mark on Crocker Town.

Many years later, when Long Yi shook the world beneath the title of the world's strongest, the people of Crocker Town would always proudly tell their descendants about how Long Yi had instantly killed the bandit leader that night.

As the place where the legend of the "Ghost God" began, Crocker Town became a holy land like Loguetown. Countless people came from afar, greatly improving the lives of the town's residents.

Half a month later, Ulabia, a port city.

As a coastal city, Ulabia's prosperity was worlds apart from that of inland towns.

Though it lacked the grandeur of the royal capital, Ulabia was no less lively.

However, its enormous transient population and mixed crowd also planted hidden dangers for public security.

In the city's dark corners gathered gamblers, swindlers, thieves, and even pirates.

"Tch, what kind of dump is this? It really pisses me off. I'd love to set this place on fire!"

On the bustling street, a burly man wearing a sailor's kerchief, a red short-sleeved shirt, and a pistol at his waist glared fiercely at the vendors on both sides of the road.

"Brother Flame, please don't act rashly. This is government navy territory."

Behind him, two sleazy-looking lackeys hurriedly tried to dissuade him, speaking to the big man with lowered brows and submissive expressions.

At the words "government navy," the man called Flame gave a disdainful sneer, the contempt in his eyes completely undisguised.

In a place like the Grand Line, the government navy might have posed some threat to pirates like them.

But this was the North Blue—the most chaotic sea, and also the one with the greatest number of pirates. The people at the naval branches were corrupt and mixed in with pirates like them. There was nothing to fear.

Still, remembering his captain's warning, Flame restrained himself and did not cause trouble in the street.

But just because he did not want trouble did not mean trouble would not come looking for him.

As Flame turned a street corner, preparing to take his men to the underground casino to find his captain, a figure carrying a strange greatsword blocked their path.

The person wore a hood that concealed his face. He was more than half a head shorter than Flame, and the enormous sword on his back looked incredibly heavy, giving him an almost absurd appearance.

"Are you Flame? Flame of the Burning Pirates?"

The person opposite him spoke slowly. The voice did not sound like that of an adult; it still carried a hint of childishness.

The voice made Flame pause. After a brief moment of distraction, he threw his head back and burst into laughter.

"Hahaha! Are even little brats becoming bounty hunters now? Hey, you little punk, are you tired of living?"

As a vicious pirate who had roamed the seas for seven or eight years, Flame had never imagined that one day he would be threatened by a brat still wet behind the ears. It was as ridiculous as a rabbit facing a lion, not turning to flee but baring its rabbit teeth at the lion instead.

Seeing their captain laugh so happily, Flame's two lackeys also laughed along, quick to read the situation. Their arrogant laughter soon filled the alley at the street corner.

The figure opposite them remained silent throughout, saying nothing.

After Flame and his group had laughed enough, the hooded youth finally removed his hood, revealing a face far too young.

"I don't need that many people. Hmm, leaving one alive will be enough."

Ignoring Flame and the others' mocking gazes, the youth did not reach for the greatsword on his back. Instead, he drew the katana at his waist.

"Hey, hey, kid, waving a blade around carelessly will get you hurt."

Even now, Flame and the others had not realized what kind of opponent they were facing. They watched Long Yi with teasing smiles, and one of the lackeys even gave him a "kind" reminder.

"You should worry about yourselves."

A cold smile curled at the corner of Long Yi's mouth, and his figure vanished instantly before the three men's eyes.

One second later, the smile on Flame's face froze. His face reddened as though someone had gripped him by the throat. He watched in disbelief as the lackeys who had just been laughing wildly with him collapsed, fear surging into his heart.

Long Yi flicked the blood from his blade and let out a deep sigh.

The Burning Pirates committed every kind of evil and loved nothing more than murder and arson. Long Yi felt no pity whatsoever for killing such scum. He merely regretted that these small fry had no bounties on their heads.

Turning around, Long Yi looked up at the towering Flame, a trace of displeasure flashing through his eyes.

Feeling Long Yi's icy gaze, Flame, who had been so arrogant moments ago, involuntarily staggered back three or four steps. In his panic, he lost his balance and fell onto the ground.

He stared in terror at Long Yi as he slowly approached. Tears and snot ran from his eyes and nose, and the shadow of death loomed over him. His fear had nearly reached its limit.

From Long Yi's attack just now, Flame could tell with certainty that he could never run faster than the other man's sword. In other words, his life and death rested entirely on a single thought from his opponent.

"I don't want to waste words. Where is Gels the 'Arsonist'? Tell me obediently, and I—"

Long Yi spoke calmly as he looked down at Flame sprawled on the ground. Before he could finish saying, "I'll make it quick," Flame's mental defenses completely collapsed, and he spilled his captain's whereabouts in full detail.

"Captain Gels is at the underground casino! It's two streets from here. You can enter through the hidden door in the bar at the end of the street! I swear I'm telling the truth! I've told you everything, please spare my life!"

Looking at the cooperative Flame, three dark lines appeared on Long Yi's forehead.

After thinking for a few seconds, he ultimately chose to knock the pirate unconscious and leave the alley.

"Sir, it looks like someone died in there. There's also a pirate claiming to be from the Burning Pirates lying unconscious inside. Could you please inform the patrolling navy?"

After leaving the alley, Long Yi casually stopped a kind-looking middle-aged man. Ignoring the man's shocked and confused expression, he slowly left the street and headed toward the underground casino Flame had mentioned.

Today was Long Yi's seventh day in Ulabia as a bounty hunter.

Before leaving Crocker Town, Long Yi had refused to claim the reward with Gubo's corpse. So the bearded owner and the kind townspeople had pooled together some travel money for him, ensuring that he would not arrive in Ulabia penniless.

But that money had long since run dry under his daily expenses. Left with no other choice, Long Yi could only begin hunting pirates.

Although Long Yi was still technically part of the navy headquarters, he had decided to conceal his identity for the Yatogami Family's entrance trial. He would formally return to the navy only after taking revenge on "One-Eyed Belik."

As the saying went, money made the world go round; without it, one could not take a single step. After leaving the headquarters base, Long Yi had fully understood the importance of Beli.

The pirates on wanted posters had thus become his main source of income.

For example, Gels the "Arsonist," captain of the Burning Pirates, whom he was currently pursuing, had a bounty of 50 million Beli—enough to support Long Yi's expenses in Ulabia for a long time.

Following the directions of the traitorous Flame, Long Yi smoothly arrived at the bar at the end of the street.

He did not have an astonishing amount of entrance money, but Long Yi had blades sharp enough. Under the threat of his sword, the bartender ignored Long Yi's age and let him into the so-called underground casino.

However, the instant he entered the underground casino, Long Yi was nearly driven back out by the smell of smoke and sweat.

The place was dark and filthy, filled with foul air. Everywhere were gamblers with bloodshot eyes, shouting at the tops of their lungs.

Long Yi frowned tightly, held his breath, and began searching for his target.

Passing through the fanatical gamblers, Long Yi paced through the underground casino. At last, in a corner, he found the person he had been looking for—Gels the "Arsonist."

Just as he was about to walk over, the person sitting opposite Gels and gambling with him made Long Yi's eyes widen in disbelief.

A wooden cane sword, a purple kimono, vicious crossed scars on his face, and those unmistakable blind eyes.

"Admiral Fujitora, Issho?!"

Long Yi swallowed involuntarily and finally confirmed the man's identity. That burly blind middle-aged man was Issho, who would later become a navy admiral under the codename Fujitora.

"But why is he here?"

Rubbing his smooth chin, Long Yi withdrew the killing intent around him. His fingers brushed the hilt at his waist as he quietly made his way toward the corner.

The moment he moved, Fujitora's ears twitched. He turned his head slightly, and his clouded eyes happened to face Long Yi's direction.