Katakuri's Fury

After the meeting at the Skull Building ended, each of the officers returned to their own camps and began preparing to set sail.

No matter how fast they moved, they could not depart immediately. No matter how strong humans were, they were still only human. Without food and fresh water, they simply could not survive.

Only a very small number of Devil Fruit users, such as Ryokugyu Aramaki from the original timeline, could go without eating and replenish the energy needed for activity simply by basking in the sun.

Besides, strictly speaking, the Rocks Pirates should have been called the "Rocks Pirate Alliance."

Rocks and the officers did not have a clear superior-subordinate relationship. The officers never called Rocks "Captain"; they had always addressed him by name.

Without sufficient profit to motivate them, no one would listen to Rocks's commands.

Each officer had his own faction and subordinates, each occupying their own territory on Hachinosu.

Many pirates who had just joined the Rocks Pirates often misunderstood one thing. They thought that after gaining Rocks's approval and joining the Rocks Pirates, they could act like brothers with the officers.

In reality, the officers did not care at all about those small fry who had thrown in their lot with Rocks. The only one worth their attention was Rocks himself.

This time, their shared objective in heading to God Valley was naturally Shakuyaku, but there was no way to divide those Devil Fruits equally. The same went for the treasure. Everyone wanted a larger share.

So naturally, a round of preparations for battle was unavoidable.

Very soon, Rocks's plan to head to God Valley and rescue Shakuyaku spread across all of Hachinosu.

"Rocks is making his move?"

"The Marines and Cipher Pol will undoubtedly appear in the West Blue too, right?"

"I can smell the winds of change!"

"The tides are about to turn! For this sea!"

"Who will be the winner?"

"Who cares! We can't stay on this island anyway!"

"We're setting sail! To see Shakuyaku! I don't care if I die! Who's coming with me?"

"Me!"

"Me too!"

Whether Rocks's true purpose really was to rescue Shakuyaku was no longer important...

What mattered was that Rocks had decided to set out!

The pirates sensed that something major was about to happen and began making preparations for the future in advance.

All over the island, pirates could be seen hurrying about.

Not every pirate on Hachinosu belonged to the Rocks Pirates. More people on this island had gathered because of Rocks's infamous reputation. They were not qualified to join the Rocks Pirates, but they were unwilling to leave, so they remained on the island.

Among them were also some criminals who had originally been imprisoned on the island.

Although Rocks had occupied this place back then, he had not killed them all. Quite a few had survived and continued living on the island.

These criminals had also begun moving at the news. One group of criminals had set their sights on a girl who was still wandering the streets.

"That kid is the little sister of that donut-loving Eel Eater, isn't she?"

In the darkness of a deep alley, a fat great white shark fish-man took a bite from the meat-covered bone in his hand and asked the criminals behind him.

"Yes, Boss Fat Shark. She's the sister of that brat who has a grudge against us!"

"Hmph! He actually dared bully my men! Since the Rocks Pirates are about to set sail, we'll take this chance to get revenge on him!"

"After this, we probably won't be returning to this island..."

"Let that bastard have a taste of what it feels like to have something important destroyed!"

As they spoke, the criminals led by the fish-man Fat Shark emerged from the alley and surrounded the girl. Pitch-black shadows swallowed the last trace of light in her eyes.

"W-Who are you?"

The young Charlotte Brulee blinked her beautiful, innocent eyes.

"Hehehe, how naïve, little girl. I almost can't bear to hurt you~"

"If you want to blame someone, blame your brother Katakuri!"

"With such a pretty little face, if it gets slashed, that guy will be heartbroken for a long time, won't he?"

A sharp blade suddenly left its sheath and sliced across the young girl's face, carving a deep scar diagonally across her entire face. Blood flowed like water, staining the ground red.

Charlotte Brulee crashed heavily to the ground, trembling from fear and pain as she let out a piercing cry.

"Run! This is close to that monster woman Charlotte Linlin's nest! If that monster woman gets here, it'll be too late to escape!"

With that, the criminals fled the scene at top speed.

In the distance, some passing pirates witnessed the scene but did not meddle. They silently moved away from the area instead.

Scenes of revenge like this played out every day on this pirate island. This time, the target had merely become the daughter of that woman, Charlotte Linlin.

Not long after, Charlotte Brulee's cries drew over the nearby members of the Charlotte Family.

"Brûlée is badly injured!!"

"What happened? Don't be scared! Tell your brothers!"

By the time the young Katakuri rushed over, Brûlée had already been placed on a stretcher and was about to be carried back to the Charlotte Family's camp for emergency treatment.

"It was those guys you beat up coming to get revenge!"

The young Perospero's words exploded in Katakuri's ears, and cold sweat gradually appeared on Katakuri's normally confident face.

"How could this be... If they wanted revenge, they should have come for me..."

"Don't you understand yet, Katakuri?! You're the one who hurt Brûlée! If you had hidden your mouth like I told you to, none of this would have happened!"

At that moment, Katakuri's mind had gone completely blank. His entire body felt weak as he kept doubting himself.

I hurt Brûlée...

I hurt her...

"Brother..."

That weak, timid voice pulled Katakuri's soul back into reality. Katakuri lowered his head and saw Brûlée on the bloodstained stretcher. She endured the pain, overcame her instinctive trembling, and showed him a pure smile.

"It's okay. It doesn't hurt at all. You don't need to change anything either, Brother..."

As Katakuri's sister, Brûlée knew Katakuri's personality well. He was proud and confident, the sort of man who would start a fight if someone mocked his appearance.

But when those comforting words reached Katakuri's ears at that very moment, they were no different from a thousand needles piercing his heart.

I'm a hopeless idiot...

I hurt Brûlée!

It's my fault! It's all my fault!

I was... too naïve!

Katakuri gently wiped the blood from Brûlée's face.

"Don't worry, Brûlée. I'll avenge you!"

Tearing off a piece of cloth, Katakuri covered his mouth for the first time since he was born—the mouth full of terrifying fangs, along with the horrifying scar that had split it open when he had opened it too wide while eating donuts, a scar that could not be erased even after healing.

That year, Katakuri was ten years old.