In One Piece, Watching Roger's Execution at the Start

"I've looked into it. This is the edge of Loguetown Marine Base's jurisdiction. It'll take the Marines some time to get here, and the highest-ranking officer at their base definitely won't come. I'm a great pirate with a bounty of eight million Beli, after all! Wahahahaha!"

There was a hint of cunning in O. Toman's brazen laughter. In the East Blue, known as the Weakest Sea, a bounty of eight million Beli was enough to qualify someone as a great pirate. No wonder he was so confident.

Frank said nothing more. After all, he was only the first mate, and his bounty was a mere five million Beli. His strength was far inferior to that of his captain, O. Toman.

Loguetown Harbor...

Colonel Randall solemnly watched the standard Marine warship slowly depart. Thinking back to the figure that had secretly slipped aboard just now, a smile crept onto his lips, and his rugged features gradually softened...

"Eh!??? Atlas, you little brat! What are you doing here?"

When Lieutenant Wright saw Atlas sneaking around, he immediately looked as if he had seen a ghost, his jaw nearly dropping to the floor!

"Huh? This... Reporting to you, Lieutenant Wright, Handyman Atlas requests permission to participate in battle."

After being discovered, Atlas decided to throw caution to the wind and directly state his request. He had already snuck aboard, after all. It wasn't as if Wright could throw him back off. Atlas thought indifferently.

"All right, then. You'll temporarily be listed as a ship's handyman."

Wright was helpless, but he knew this was the only thing they could do under the circumstances.

"However, stay in the rear later and don't wander around. The enemy are all great pirates with bounties exceeding ten million Beli."

Wright then spoke sternly, his deep eyes fixed tightly on Atlas as if demanding a promise from him. His concern was completely genuine. After all, Atlas was a promising youngster whom Lieutenant Wright himself had discovered!

"...Well, Wright, don't worry. I'll be careful."

Atlas was silent for a moment before casually assuring him. His words were filled with confidence in his own strength. The captain was only a minor figure with a bounty of eight million Beli, after all—and who knew how inflated that bounty was? Although bounties reflected strength to a certain degree, some pirates constantly committed arson, murder, and robbery to raise their bounties and build their reputations. Without a doubt, such pirates' strength did not match their bounties.

"Eh..."

The moment Wright saw Atlas's indifferent expression, he knew the boy hadn't taken his words to heart. He could only secretly decide to keep a closer eye on him once the battle began.

After saying goodbye to Wright, Atlas slowly walked toward the storage hold and selected a standard Marine sword. It was inferior to a Skillful Grade Sword, let alone a famous blade, but it was still better than using his fists. At present, Atlas's body had yet to reach the level required to cultivate Armament Haki, and he didn't even meet the standard for the Six Powers. In other words, his body was still within the bounds of an ordinary human and had yet to become superhuman. Swordsmanship was naturally his best choice for now.

Meanwhile, Wright ran to the command room and reported the matter concerning Atlas to his superior.

Finally, amid the tense atmosphere, the warship reached its destination. In the distance, the pirate flag bearing a skull with a rapier running through its center gradually came into view. The Marines aboard the warship tightened their grips on their weapons, and their constant swallowing betrayed the tension in their hearts.

After all, this was war.

And war... meant... people would die!

Atlas, standing on the deck, gradually put away his lazy expression. There wasn't the slightest hint of fear in his eyes. Instead, he was filled with excitement at the battle ahead.

"Men! The Marines are here! Fall back!"

The lookout of the Sharp Sword Pirates had already spotted the Marines' arrival and immediately raised the alarm.

After receiving the warning, the Sharp Sword Pirates hurriedly withdrew from all over the town in a panic, running straight into the Marines who had just assembled and landed.

Thus, the first battle of Atlas's life began!

Atlas drew the long sword in his hand, leaned forward, and accelerated straight toward O. Toman. The move gave Lieutenant Wright quite a fright. O. Toman was also startled, but after realizing that Atlas was merely a handyman, a look of contempt appeared on his face.

"Heh heh, strike first and gain the advantage! The first credit is mine, Atlas's!"

Atlas didn't care that O. Toman had underestimated him. Instead, he suddenly increased the strength in his hands.

"One Sword Style—Lion's Song!"

Atlas shouted, and an impressively grand technique name came out of his mouth. Of course, he was merely borrowing Zoro's technique name. In reality, he was just swinging his sword down without any particular technique. He shouted the name purely to look cool.

O. Toman merely raised his rapier horizontally in front of him. However, he regretted it the next second, because the strike sent him flying. He rolled across the ground several times before finally coming to a stop.

Seeing that his first strike had achieved such a great result, Atlas took a large step forward and charged at O. Toman with his sword raised. O. Toman wasn't helpless, either. He immediately rolled like a lazy donkey, narrowly avoiding a fatal blow. However, he had already lost the initiative, and one of his arms was severed for good.

"You little brat..."

O. Toman's expression darkened. He had actually lost an arm to a child. He wasn't Red-Haired Shanks, after all—someone who could still become one of the Four Emperors after losing an arm. It was obvious that his future was essentially ruined.

Of course, that was assuming he could escape first.

Without giving O. Toman a chance to recover, Atlas held his sword in one hand, stepped forward in a bow stance, and chopped down.

"Damn it!"

O. Toman didn't hesitate. He directly traded injury for injury, thrusting his rapier straight at Atlas's heart.

Unexpectedly, Atlas crouched low and feinted before thrusting toward O. Toman's lower body. O. Toman had exhausted his strength in the previous move and had yet to gather any new force. His steps stumbled, and his thigh took the blow head-on.

O. Toman collapsed to the ground and could no longer rise. He lowered his head and accepted the law.

The battle had lasted only a few dozen seconds from beginning to end. Seeing their captain so casually defeated by a Marine handyman, the other members of the Sharp Sword Pirates were utterly incredulous. However, the facts were right before their eyes. Their fighting spirit instantly vanished, and before long, they had all surrendered their weapons and been tied up on the ground.

After the battle ended, Lieutenant Wright walked over to Atlas and patted him on the shoulder in relief. Atlas turned around and grinned at Wright. His bloodstained face bloomed with a smile, revealing snow-white teeth—no more and no less than eight of them...

Smoker

Sea Circle Calendar 1499

Kanos Atlas was thirteen years old!

He was promoted to Ensign of the East Blue Loguetown Base!

A year later, at the Marine Training Ground.

"Huff~ huff~ huff~ huff~"

Atlas continued to carry out the day's training with absolute dedication. Even though he was already the leader of the younger generation at Loguetown Marine Base, even though he had slain a "great pirate" with a bounty of eight million Beli a year ago and been promoted to Ensign, he still felt weak! Very weak!

After the battle ended that day, he was assigned, as a handyman, to manage the casualty statistics and the return of supplies in the town after the battle. What he saw wasn't the joy of those who had survived, but face after face filled with grief or numbness.

And this was how the weak were treated. This was a world where the strong preyed on the weak!

But!

He still wasn't strong enough!!!

Thinking of this, Atlas swung his sword even faster.

Swish!

The bamboo sword snapped!

"Atlas, you little brat! Don't even think about taking another bamboo sword from me!"

The old man from the logistics department, who happened to be strolling leisurely nearby, saw what had happened. His nose nearly twisted with anger as he shouted loudly. This was already the fifth bamboo sword Atlas had broken that month!

"Heh... heh..."

Atlas could only smile awkwardly at that. He couldn't help it. His body was currently in its developmental stage, and his strength was increasing rapidly. His bone and muscle density was also constantly rising. The most obvious sign was that, at fourteen, he had already grown to two meters tall. He might even reach the so-called three-meter height of an Admiral by the time he became an adult!

"Big Brother Atlas!"

Suddenly, a white-haired boy appeared outside the training ground. He looked about the same age as Atlas and was panting heavily as he supported himself on his knees, his eyes filled with admiration as he looked at Atlas.

"Oh! Smoker?"

Atlas looked toward Smoker at the sound of his voice. Yes, Smoker—the future renowned "White Hunter," an almost invincible presence in the early part of the anime who repeatedly forced the protagonist Luffy into desperate situations. He was a Logia Smoke-Smoke Fruit ability user. Of course, he hadn't eaten a Devil Fruit yet. For now, he was merely a little brat and Atlas's sidekick.

Smoker had also joined the Marines around the time after Pirate King Roger's execution. Like Atlas, he had started as a handyman. He was now a Private First Class at the base and could be considered the strongest person below Atlas. Of course, Smoker knew exactly how strong he was. He estimated that he couldn't last a single move against Atlas.

After all, Atlas hadn't spent the past year merely hiding in the base and training bitterly. He had almost never missed a single Marine operation. He knew that flowers grown in a greenhouse couldn't withstand the test of the scorching sun. To become a true powerhouse, one needed tempering through blood and fire. Combat techniques and battle experience were things that couldn't be gained through painstaking training alone!

From returning wounded at the beginning to completing missions virtually unscathed, Atlas's combat power had improved tremendously. He estimated that, apart from the base Colonel, there was almost no one else at the entire base who was his match.

"Did you need something, Smoker?"

Returning to his senses, Atlas remembered that Smoker seemed to have been looking for him about something.

"Don't call me a little brat! Aren't you the same age as me?"

Smoker was somewhat annoyed. They were clearly the same age, so why did Atlas keep calling him a little brat?

"Colonel Randall wants to see you."

Although he was annoyed, Smoker still conveyed the colonel's order to Atlas.

"Why does Colonel Randall want to see me?"

Atlas was baffled, but he still followed the order and walked toward the base colonel's office.

"Old man Randall, what did you want me for?" Atlas didn't knock. He directly pushed open the office door and walked in. After all, he and Randall had dealt with each other countless times. He had to report to Randall before nearly every mission, so they were familiar enough to practically call each other brothers.

"Hey~ hey~ hey~"

"Atlas, show some respect for me as a colonel. You never knock when you come in."

Colonel Randall didn't hold back, immediately lecturing Atlas. However, he had always been highly tolerant of the base's future star. He could almost be certain that Atlas would one day serve as a Vice Admiral at Marineford, the headquarters. Atlas possessed nearly all the qualities needed to become a powerhouse: monstrous physical talent and a tenacious personality.

"All right, enough with the small talk. I called you here mainly for two things."

Atlas's expression turned solemn, and he immediately became serious.

Randall nodded in satisfaction and continued, "Would you be interested in going to the headquarters' Recruit Training Camp for a period of further study?"

Atlas was stunned. The headquarters' Recruit Training Camp could be considered a training ground for Marine officers. Those who graduated from it would basically receive officer ranks. It was an ideal place to gain prestige.

Moreover, the camp's chief instructor was former Marine Admiral Black Arm Zephyr. The current Three Monsters—Kizaru Borsalino, Akainu Sakazuki, and Kuzan—had all emerged from under Zephyr's tutelage!

So of course Atlas wanted to go there. He could obtain the most complete inheritance of the Six Powers and the Three Types of Haki there. It would be an extremely important foundation stone on Atlas's path to becoming a powerhouse!

"There are a few slots available at the base, so I wanted to ask what you thought."

Seeing that Atlas hadn't spoken, Randall continued.

"Sir, I want to go, but not now. I haven't reached my limit yet, and it wouldn't be suitable for me to go to headquarters at present."

Atlas thought it over carefully before replying to Randall with determination.

He was too young, and his strength was still far from reaching its golden period. Going to headquarters now would only waste this opportunity. What he needed to do now was properly temper his foundation.

"Hmm, that works too. I'll reserve this slot for you. When the time comes, you and Smoker can go to headquarters together."

Randall praised him. Being able to clearly recognize his own condition at such a young age was extremely rare. He truly was a fine prospect.

"Smoker?"

"That's right. I originally planned to send you first and Smoker a few years later. He's still too weak at the moment, so you'll have to look after him when the time comes."

Randall explained.

"No problem, sir! I'll take care of this little brat Smoker."

Atlas agreed.

Randall didn't react to Atlas calling Smoker a little brat. On the one hand, he had grown accustomed to Atlas's lack of seriousness. On the other, Atlas was mature enough to make people overlook his age.

"Next... I'll tell you about the second matter..."

The Philoc Pirates

Outside the office of the colonel of the Loguetown Marine Base, East Blue.

Atlas stood where he was with a complicated expression, tightly clutching a Wanted Poster in his hand!

Philoc! Bounty: fifteen million Beli!

"Kid, what I'm about to tell you concerns you. No, more precisely, it concerns your parents."

Colonel Randall solemnly placed a wanted poster in front of Atlas.

Atlas was stunned. Then, as he looked at the somewhat familiar face on the wanted poster, anger surged through him for no apparent reason. His mind involuntarily filled with blood-red images and cries of agony.

No! This wasn't Atlas's emotion! It was the previous owner of this body's past experience!

"Hey! Atlas, calm down!"

Seeing a hint of ferocity appear on Atlas's face, Randall hurriedly spoke up to stop him.

"Phew..."

Atlas let out a long breath and suppressed the grief and indignation that didn't belong to him.

He carefully examined the slightly yellowed Wanted Poster. Philoc, captain of the Philoc Pirates, with a bounty of fifteen million Beli. Three years ago, he had plundered a merchant ship. Kanos and Atlas's parents had been aboard that ship and had perished in the attack. At present, Atlas was the only known survivor.