Rare Beast Island and the Strange Man in the Box

The Going Merry passed through a stormy region and finally arrived at the legendary "Treasure Island."

Just as the rumors said, the entire island was shrouded in a thick layer of white mist.

Dense jungle flickered in and out of view through the fog, looking gloomy and eerie.

The group disembarked and followed an overgrown path deeper into the island.

"Grrr..."

Usopp carried his bundle on his back and timidly trailed at the very end of the group.

He gripped his slingshot tightly with both hands, his eyes darting around like a startled rabbit as he cautiously watched for the slightest movement.

Suddenly, a giant carnivorous flower covered in sharp fangs thrust its head out from a bush by the roadside and opened its gaping maw at the passing Usopp.

"Crunch!"

"Waaaah!!!"

Terrified out of his wits by the sudden attack, Usopp let out a scream and jumped three meters straight into the air.

The others immediately stopped and turned back warily.

"Is there an enemy?!"

Nami reacted the fastest. She shrank back and instinctively hid behind Victor, peeking around him toward the rear.

However, there was no enemy.

They only saw Usopp standing there, his body wildly twitching in an extremely twisted and bizarre pose, cold sweat streaming down his face.

"Ah... ahaha... It's nothing, nothing!"

Seeing everyone looking at him, Usopp stiffly stopped moving and forced out a smile.

"I thought things were too tense, so... I did a dance to lighten the mood! Hahaha, isn't it funny?"

The others turned away speechlessly and continued onward.

Walking ahead, Nami lowered her voice to hide her earlier fright.

"Hey, did you know? They say this island holds an incredible treasure. Many pirates have landed here to search for it, but..."

"Everyone eventually ran away because they were too frightened."

"Too frightened?"

Luffy, walking at the front, turned around while picking his nose with a curious look.

"They got scared away? How terrifying could it have been?"

Nami lowered her voice further and glanced eerily at Victor beside her, trying to find even a trace of fear on the always-smiling vice captain's face.

"For example... one pirate suddenly woke up one night with the face of a wild boar.

"Another man's beard kept growing until it became a living snake and strangled him to death..."

"N-No way..."

Usopp's face turned pale as he listened. His teeth chattered, and he clutched Zoro's shoulder tightly.

Watching Nami's vivid performance, Victor could not help laughing.

He kept a straight face and spoke blandly.

"Ah, terrifying. So scary. I'm scared to death."

"Bam!"

A vein bulged on Nami's forehead as she swung around and punched him in the arm.

"You're not scared at all!! That was way too halfhearted!"

"Haah—"

Just then, Zoro, whom Usopp was clutching, let out a huge yawn, tears gathering at the corners of his eyes.

"Ah, I'm hungry and sleepy. I'm going to sleep."

As he spoke, the swordsman actually toppled stiffly to one side and lay directly on the ground, which was covered in weeds and unknown insects.

Less than three seconds later, snores began to sound.

"Hrrr—hrrr—"

Usopp stared at the scene with his mouth hanging open.

"H-He can fall asleep in a place this creepy?! Just how big is this guy's heart?!"

Nami also sighed helplessly and held her forehead.

"What are his nerves even made of... Freak."

Victor ignored their antics, his red eyes quietly scanning the mist around them.

In his senses, quite a few presences were already silently closing in from the surrounding jungle. They belonged to beasts.

So we really are surrounded... They must be those rare beasts... Victor thought.

Just then, Luffy, who had been scouting ahead, suddenly stopped beside a tree, crouched down, and shouted excitedly.

"Hey! Victor! Look at this! There's a snake with long ears here!"

Victor was just about to turn around.

Suddenly!

"Get out!!"

An aged yet booming voice seemed to explode from the sky, echoing throughout the entire forest.

"Ah!!"

Usopp, whose nerves had already been stretched taut, could not take it anymore. His legs went weak, and he collapsed onto the ground.

Nami also screamed in fright and, as if by reflex, pressed herself tightly against Victor again, gripping his arm without letting go.

"W-Who was that?!"

Luffy, however, was not afraid in the slightest. Instead, he shouted up at the treetops, "Oh! Are you up there?"

"How can you still smile?! That's a god!"

Nami screamed at Victor in despair, having noticed that he still had a smile on his lips.

"Get out! I am the guardian god of this island!!"

The voice rang out again, filled with anger and authority.

"If you want to live, get out of here at once! Humans are not welcome here!"

"Guardian god?" Luffy tilted his head.

"That's right! You must be pirates! If you want treasure, don't even dream of it!"

"Ah! I'm Luffy, the man who'll become the Pirate King."

"Luffy! This isn't the time to say that!!" Usopp shouted from the ground. "That's a god! We'll be punished by heaven!"

The voice from the treetops snorted coldly.

"Hmph, arrogant pirates indeed... In that case, accept divine punishment! I'll—huh?!"

The imposing voice suddenly turned into a startled cry, its next words forcibly cut off.

Because Victor had somehow appeared beside the bushes and lifted the "source of the voice" hiding in the grass with one hand.

"Hello there, Guardian God."

Victor smiled as he looked at the little thing dangling from his hand.

The others looked over and immediately cried out in shock.

"What is that?!"

Victor was holding a strange old man stuck inside a treasure chest.

He had explosive green hair and short limbs, making him look like a box with arms and legs.

"Wow!! It's Box Man!!"

Luffy's eyes instantly lit up with stars of admiration. "So cool!!"

Karmon, dangling in the air, desperately kicked his short little legs that could not reach the ground as he struggled and shouted.

"Y-You! Who are you?! Let me go!!"

When his struggles proved useless, Karmon flew into a rage and roared toward the depths of the forest.

"Minions! Come out, all of you! Bite them to death!!"

"Roar—!!"

At his command, countless pairs of eyes lit up in the mist.

Then, numerous bizarre-looking rare beasts charged out from every direction, surrounding the group completely.

There were giraffes that walked upright on two legs, sheep with enormous mouths like hippos, and foxes with rooster combs...

"Wah!! What are these things?!" Usopp scrambled away in terror.

Karmon laughed smugly in Victor's grasp.

"Hmph! See that? These pirates who offended me were all transformed into this state by my divine power! If you know what's good for you, put me down already!"

However, he had clearly picked the wrong people to threaten.

"Wow! They look delicious!"

Rather than being afraid, Luffy scooped up a little pig with a lion's head from beside his feet. Looking at its plump body, drool trickled from the corner of his mouth.

"They look so tasty, all meat!"

Nami could not help swallowing as she looked at the strange rare beasts.

"Victor... let him go first..."

"You bastards!!"

Karmon was furious. Seizing the moment Victor was distracted, he suddenly opened his mouth wide and bit down hard on Victor's wrist.

"Hiss."

Victor frowned. It had not broken the skin, but the old man had quite a bite.

He loosened his grip.

"Ow!"

Karmon fell to the ground, but he reacted quickly and rolled away like a ball. Then he shouted.

"Hmph! Accept my judgment! Divine punishment descends!!"

The moment his words fell.

"Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!!"

A barrage of wooden spears and huge rocks suddenly shot down from the thick forest above. It was clearly a trap that had been prepared in advance.

"Watch out!!"

Victor's eyes narrowed.

"Body Flicker!"

His figure became an afterimage.

He first appeared beside Usopp, who had not yet reacted, and mercilessly raised a foot.

"Off you go!"

"Ah!!"

Usopp screamed as he was kicked flying, landing precisely in the arms of a panda-like creature as soft as a cushion without a scratch.

Then Victor flashed again and appeared beside Nami.

He scooped her up in a bridal carry and lightly rolled toward an open patch of ground in the distance.

"Bang, bang, bang!"

Several sharp wooden spears slammed into the spot where Nami had been standing moments earlier.

Victor knelt on one knee, holding the still-shaken Nami in his arms as he effortlessly avoided the trap.

Meanwhile.

"Thud!"

A massive rock struck Luffy squarely on the head.

"Ow!"

The rock shattered. Luffy's head flattened slightly from the blow before springing back like rubber.

"Close one, close one. It almost hit my meat." Luffy still clutched the Lion-Headed Pig tightly.

Karmon, who had rolled to safety and turned back to check the results, stared at the sight with his eyes wide, his jaw nearly dropping to the ground.

"T-These guys... What the hell are they?!"

One could teleport, and another had a head harder than stone!

"Ah! Monsters!!"

Karmon shrieked. His little legs moved so fast they left afterimages as he fled deeper into the forest at full speed.