"Who's there?!"
Sanji stared in surprise. "A flower?"
The newcomer was a bald old man, but his hair stuck up behind his head like flower petals. No wonder Sanji had mistaken him for a flower.
Zoro gripped his sword hilt. The old man hauled on three ropes and quickly dragged the squid ashore. He glanced at the group, then adjusted his glasses.
Luffy shouted, "Hey, old man! Do you own this place?"
The old man dumped the squid by the door, settled into a beach chair, and picked up the newspaper beside him.
How the hell had he gotten a newspaper inside a whale's stomach?
Sanji snapped. "Say something, damn it!"
Sanji's shout woke Usopp, who scrambled to his feet in terror. "There's a giant squid!"
Zoro held him down. "It's not a threat anymore."
Usopp looked around. The squid's corpse lay on the island before them, and only an old man stood in their way.
His courage returned. Pointing at the old man, Usopp said, "Don't underestimate us! If you want a fight, we'll give you one. We've got a cannon!"
The old man shot them a sidelong, gloomy look and muttered, "You'd better not. Someone could die."
Sanji lit a cigarette. "Oh? Who's going to die?"
"Me, of course."
The old man sipped his flower tea, looking utterly unconcerned.
Luffy said, "You're hilarious, old man. Can you tell us who you are?"
Zoro added, "And where are we?"
Still wearing that gloomy expression, the old man said, "Shouldn't you introduce yourselves before asking someone else?"
He stared at Luffy's straw hat for a long time, tears glinting in his eyes.
Luffy apologized at once. "You're right, old man. Sorry! I'm Luffy. We're the Straw Hat Pirates, and I'm the man who'll become the Pirate King!"
"The Pirate King,