Asura Pirates

Thousand Lake Island was famous for the thousands of freshwater lakes scattered across it, large and small alike. When Thousand Island Lake had formed, movements in the earth's crust had created this uniquely distinctive terrain.

This country possessed abundant natural resources. First were its water resources; its freshwater reserves ranked among the best of all islands in the West Blue.

Second were its mineral resources. Due to the volcanic crustal movements that had formed Thousand Lake Island, many underground ores lay shallow beneath the surface and were easy to mine. Quite a few gold deposits had also been discovered.

Third were its forest resources. With plentiful freshwater and abundant underground minerals, the forests here grew exceptionally well, covering ninety percent of the country.

Because the trees grown here had long growth cycles and were remarkably tough, they were commonly used for shipbuilding, giving Thousand Lake Island a highly developed shipbuilding and papermaking industry.

Among the wealthiest islands in the West Blue, Thousand Lake Island definitely ranked near the top. The nation on the island was also a member state of the World Government, with a Marine fortress nearby to protect it.

Yet even with Marine protection, this country was still ruled by pirates. Relying on Thousand Lake Island's rich resources, the Bloodhand Pirates had become the largest pirate crew in the West Blue, numbering seven thousand members and possessing more than twenty pirate ships.

Rogge had heard of this country before, but he had never visited it. The first time he came to Thousand Lake Island, its sights left him utterly stunned.

"Hey, hey, hey, you never said this country had hot springs." Rogge stared in surprise at a lake whose steam rose like water spouting from a whale's back.

"Thousand Lake Island sits atop a volcano. Is it really strange for there to be hot springs here?" Ham said.

The seasoned Ham had traveled to many countries as a mercenary. He had visited Thousand Lake Island before, so he was naturally familiar with it.

"This country is rich," Jelly said.

"Then should we pull a job?" Rogge rubbed his chin.

"Pull my ass. The Bloodhand Pirates are nearby. They have over seven thousand men. Going up against them would be completely irrational," Ham said irritably.

Rogge spread his hands. "But I feel like I could take on a thousand people by myself now."

"If you can't handle the remaining six thousand, we're not playing along with you," Cook said.

"You guys are really cautious." Rogge could only follow them onto the island helplessly.

"Where is this Ares?"

As they headed toward the town on Thousand Lake Island, Rogge asked Cook.

"He's in the town ahead. I don't know whether he's still here." Cook pointed toward the town built amid the forest in the distance.

The entire city was hidden beneath the trees, and no buildings could be seen from outside. The structures here were not tall, at least none taller than the trees. Their architectural style was distinctive as well: wooden houses with gabled roofs, each supported by four pillars that raised the house about a meter above the ground.

"Pretty distinctive," Rogge said.

"It rains a lot here, so all the roofs are built in this style. Also, because of the rain and geothermal heat, they can't build their houses directly on the ground. There'd be too much dampness, so their houses are all raised above it," Ham said.

The city was crowded. The streets were filled with merchants selling fruit, timber, paper, seafood, and all sorts of other goods. It was bustling, and many lavishly dressed traders were asking the vendors about prices.

Rogge and Jelly wandered the streets while Cook and Ham went to find Ares. They agreed to meet at a restaurant. As Rogge and Jelly ate the local specialty, wild fruit pizza, Cook and Ham returned.

The two men looked somewhat grim. After sitting down, they grabbed the local specialty liquor and gulped it down.

"What is it? Couldn't find him?" Rogge asked as he ate his pizza.

Ham shook his head. "We found him."

Jelly elegantly wiped the corner of his mouth. "He refused to join us?"

"It's not that he refused. We didn't get to see him," Cook said.

"Didn't get to see him?" Rogge looked at the two of them in surprise.

"Ares was taken away by the Bloodhand Pirates," Cook said.

"Huh?" Rogge exclaimed.

A month ago, Ares had been rescued by Cook and brought to Thousand Lake Island. More accurately, the Marine fortress where he had been imprisoned was the one near Thousand Lake Island. The volcano beneath the island had caused the earthquake at that fortress.

Cook had not thought much of it at the time, so he left Ares on Thousand Lake Island. After being imprisoned for twenty years, Ares no longer looked the way he once had. Arriving on Thousand Lake Island without money and needing food, he began treating people.

Unfortunately, while treating patients, he encountered someone who had been bitten by a venomous insect. For many doctors, detoxification was extremely difficult, but Ares had spent years researching poisons and could even create plague viruses. His research into toxins was far too extensive. Once he identified the insect, he quickly completed the antidote and cured the patient.

That made Ares famous. With so many forests on the island, there were plenty of venomous insects as well. Loggers were poisoned every day, and many people came to seek Ares's help.

A month passed like that, and Ares's reputation grew greater and greater. Finally, yesterday, a member of the Bloodhand Pirates was bitten by a venomous insect. Hearing that there was a doctor on the island who could detoxify poison, he came to find Ares.

After seeing Ares's superb medical skills, he decided Ares was valuable and wanted to recruit him into the Bloodhand Pirates.

But Ares had no desire to become a pirate, so he refused. His opponent was a pirate, though; why would he care? He simply kidnapped Ares. Ares was now imprisoned at the Bloodhand Pirates' base.

"So, what's the plan now?" Cook asked Rogge.

Rogge was the captain, so the decision had to be his.

Rogge smiled. "That guy is talented. We really are short a ship's doctor. Isn't it just the Bloodhand Pirates?"

"What are we waiting for, then? You're full, right?" Jelly said with a smile.

"Perfect. I can test out my Devil Fruit ability. I don't even know how strong I am now." Ham swallowed the pizza in one bite, clenched his fist, and grinned.

"A pirate crew of seven thousand people. How many will you have left this time? This seems to be our pirate crew's first battle too," Rogge said with a smile.

"I think our pirate crew's name is terrible," Jelly said.

"What's wrong with Asura Pirates?" Rogge stared wide-eyed at Jelly.

"We'd be better off calling ourselves the Jelly Pirates. Asura is way too cliché," Jelly complained.

"I don't care. It's Asura," Rogge said through gritted teeth.

"Alright, the pirate crew's name is the captain's business. Asura is pretty good. Actually, I prefer Hell," Ham said.

"Bullshit Hell!"