"Stop the ship!"
Lin Yan raised his hand, and the Flame Emperor traced an arc across the sea, coming to a steady stop a hundred meters from the battlefield.
A one-eyed captain aboard one of the three pirate ships surrounding the merchant vessel shouted arrogantly, "Another one here to die! Boys, loot that ship too!"
He had not noticed the Sun Pirates' flag at all-or rather, he did not understand what it meant.
Jinbe frowned, preparing to deal with these human pirates who had no idea what they were getting themselves into. But a moment later, he stopped.
Because the black-haired young man aboard the Flame Emperor had moved.
Lin Yan did not even leave the deck. He merely raised his right index finger and aimed at the three pirate ships.
"Flame Emperor Finger Pistol: Fire Serpent."
A crimson point of light shone at his fingertip.
Then-
Whoosh-!!!
A flame beam as fine as a strand of hair shot from his fingertip, instantly extending two kilometers! It passed precisely through the centers of all three ships' keels, and then Lin Yan swept his finger lightly sideways.
Sizzle-!
The beam moved horizontally like the sharpest thermal cutting blade, slicing all three ships neatly in half through the middle!
The entire process took less than three seconds.
The pirates' cheers abruptly stopped, replaced by terrified screams and splashing. The cuts where the ships had split were smooth, their edges showing traces of melting that revealed the terrifying heat.
"This..." Jinbe's pupils contracted.
Severing three ships with one finger from two kilometers away... what precise control over flames!
The crew aboard the merchant ship were also stunned senseless. Only after a long while did they erupt in cheers at having escaped death. "W-we're saved!"
Only then did Lin Yan slowly walk through the air using Geppo toward the Sun Pirates' main ship, where Jinbe stood.
"Captain of the Sun Pirates, Mr. Jinbe." He landed on the deck and nodded slightly. "I've long heard of you."
Jinbe watched him warily. "You are...?"
"Monkey D. Yan, captain of the Flame Emperor Pirates," Lin Yan introduced himself. "This is my younger brother, Portgas D. Ace."
Ace also jumped over and stood beside Lin Yan.
Jinbe's expression visibly changed when he heard the surname "D." He studied Lin Yan closely, then looked at the Double D Flag aboard the distant Flame Emperor.
"That flag... what is your relationship with Fisher Tiger?" Jinbe suddenly asked.
Lin Yan paused. "Fisher Tiger? I don't know him."
"You don't?" Jinbe frowned. "But your flag is almost identical to the 'Sun and D' flag Tiger designed before he died. He said it was a design he brought back from God Valley, symbolizing 'dawn.'"
God Valley?
Lin Yan felt a jolt. He remembered that the documents Garp had given him mentioned his birth mother's participation in the God Valley Incident, after which she had disappeared.
Could Mother have crossed paths with Fisher Tiger?
"Could you tell me more?" Lin Yan asked. "About the flag Fisher Tiger saw."
Jinbe considered for a moment, waved the other Fish-Men away, and invited Lin Yan and his brother into the cabin.
Inside the cabin, Jinbe took out a yellowed drawing and spread it on the table.
The drawing depicted a flag: a rising sun on the left and a "D" on the right, the two designs intertwined.
It bore a strong resemblance to Lin Yan's Double D Flag. The difference was that Lin Yan's "D" took the shape of burning flames, while the "D" in the drawing used ordinary lettering.
"Tiger gave this to me before he died," Jinbe said gravely. "He said that over twenty years ago, at God Valley, he saw a human woman holding this flag, fighting the Celestial Dragons' Holy Knights alone. Golden flames burned all over her, making her look like the sun."
"Later, that woman saved Tiger. She told him, 'If one day you see a similar flag rise again, it means dawn is approaching. Please help the person carrying it.'"
Lin Yan and Ace exchanged a glance.
A human woman covered in golden flames... fighting the Holy Knights...
"Was she..." Lin Yan's voice was somewhat dry. "Wearing a pendant engraved with a sun and flames?"
Jinbe snapped his head up. "How did you know?!"
Lin Yan pulled the pendant out from beneath his collar.
The instant Jinbe saw it, he froze. Several seconds later, the tough Fish-Man's eyes actually reddened.
"That's it... the pendant Tiger described... you're that lady's..."
"Son," Lin Yan finished. "I'm her son."
Jinbe took several deep breaths to compose himself. He stood and bowed deeply to Lin Yan.
"The Sun Pirates owe your mother a life. From today onward, the Flame Emperor Pirates will be our allies forever."
Lin Yan helped him straighten. "You give us too much credit. My mother saved Fisher Tiger because she shared Fish-Man Island's ideal of the 'sun'-racial equality, freedom, and coexistence."
"That is precisely our goal," Jinbe said solemnly. "Then what brings you to the East Blue...?"
"Taking out the trash." Lin Yan's gaze turned cold. "For instance, Arlong's gang, who have enslaved humans in Cocoyasi Village for eight years under the Sun Pirates' banner."
Jinbe's expression changed drastically. "Arlong?! He's still committing atrocities in the East Blue?!"
"You didn't know?"
"I..." A pained expression appeared on Jinbe's face. "Arlong was once an officer in the Sun Pirates, but after Tiger died, he left with a group of men, saying he would take revenge on humans. I thought he had long since..."
"He hasn't restrained himself at all. He's only grown worse," Lin Yan said coldly. "Ruling villages by force, demanding exorbitant 'protection fees,' and killing anyone who refuses to obey. Quite a few humans have already died at his hands."
Jinbe slammed his fist onto the table, shattering the wood. "That bastard! He's completely betrayed Tiger's ideals!"
"So I'm going to deal with him," Lin Yan said. "Jinbe, would you like to come along?"
Jinbe remained silent for a long time before shaking his head. "No... this is a disgrace to our Fish-Man Race, but it's also an internal matter. If I intervene, it might provoke even greater human hostility toward Fish-Man Island."
He looked at Lin Yan. "But please allow me to send a few men to assist you. Also..."
Jinbe took a shell from inside his clothes-a Tone Dial, a specialty of Sky Island.
"This contains recordings of all Tiger's recollections of God Valley, including details of your mother's battle. Perhaps it will help you."
Lin Yan accepted the Tone Dial. "Thank you."
"One more thing," Jinbe added. "If you're going to Cocoyasi Village, please be careful. Arlong's strength may be unremarkable, but he holds the terrain advantage-his base, Arlong Park, is built by the sea, half underwater. It's easy to defend and hard to attack. He also has a special technique called Water Shot, which creates high-pressure water bullets underwater. It's a serious threat to ability users."
Ace scoffed. "Underwater combat? Just leave that to my brother. He can breathe underwater."
"What?!" Jinbe was stunned. "A flame ability user can breathe underwater?"
"Just a little trick." Lin Yan did not explain further. "Then this is where we part. Jinbe, when we meet again in the New World, I hope Fish-Man Island will have welcomed its true sun."
"It will."
Lin Yan and Ace returned to the Flame Emperor and continued toward Cocoyasi Village.
Jinbe stood at the bow, watching them disappear into the distance, and murmured to himself:
"Tiger... perhaps the 'dawn' you were waiting for really is coming."
Two days later, off the coast of Cocoyasi Village.
The Flame Emperor slowly approached. The conspicuous complex on the coastline was already visible-Arlong Park. It was a compound fortress built from sturdy stone, half on land and half extending into the sea, shaped like a shark's open jaws.
"So that's Arlong Park?" Ace stood at the bow, narrowing his eyes. "It does have something going for it."
Lin Yan spread his Observation Haki over the entire area.
There were thirty-seven signs of life inside the fortress, eight of them Fish-Men and the rest humans-probably enslaved villagers. In the village outside the fortress, several hundred more feeble presences lived in hardship.
In the room deepest within the fortress, a presence stronger than all the other Fish-Men was drinking and making merry with two human women in his arms.
Arlong.
Lin Yan's gaze was icy.
"Ace, you handle the small fry around the fortress. Leave Arlong to me."
"Got it!"
The Flame Emperor charged straight onto the shore and smashed through Arlong Park's gates.
"Who's there?!"
"We're under attack!"
A dozen or so Fish-Man lackeys rushed out, wielding swords and harpoons.
Ace grinned. "A little warm-up."
He brought his hands together, compressing flames into a ball between his palms, then thrust them forward.
"Fire Fist: Rapid Fire!"
Boom, boom, boom, boom-!!!
Dozens of fist-sized fireballs shot out like a torrential downpour, each striking a lackey precisely. The Fish-Men were blasted off their feet. Their tough hides kept them alive, but they were left unable to fight.
"Not even worth a hit." Ace shook out his hands.
Just then, an enraged roar came from deep within the fortress.
"Which bastard dares invade my territory?!"
Heavy footsteps sounded, and a blue-skinned Fish-Man nearly three meters tall walked out, sporting a sawtoothed nose. A massive saw blade hung at his waist, and his eyes were vicious.
It was Arlong.
Three officers followed him: Chew, the kissing Fish-Man; Kuroobi, the cartilaginous Fish-Man; and Hachi, the black-belt Fish-Man.
"Humans?" Once Arlong saw who had come, he grinned savagely. "I wondered who it was. Just two brats with a death wish. Perfect, I've been short on toys lately-"
Before he finished, Lin Yan was already in front of him.
It was not Geppo, but a burst of pure speed, so fast Arlong could not react.
"You're too noisy."
Lin Yan drove a fist into Arlong's stomach.
Thud-!
Arlong's eyes bulged as he flew backward, smashing through three stone walls before stopping in the rubble, coughing up blood.
"Arlong!" Chew and the others cried in alarm.
Kuroobi charged with a furious roar, water flowing over both fists. "Fish-Man Karate: Hundred Brick Fist!"
Lin Yan neither dodged nor blocked, letting the punch strike his chest.
Bang!
The water burst apart, but Lin Yan did not budge. Even his armor remained undented.
"How is that possible..." Kuroobi froze.
"Too weak." Lin Yan seized his fist and squeezed lightly.
Crack-!
The bones in his hand shattered.
"Aah-!!!" Kuroobi screamed and collapsed.
Chew opened his mouth and spat a high-pressure jet of water, while Hachi swung six swords at Lin Yan.
Lin Yan did not even look at them. He merely stamped his foot.
Boom-!!!
A ring of crimson-gold fire spread from him, evaporating Chew's water jet and melting Hachi's swords into molten iron. The shock wave hurled both of them away, knocking them unconscious.
The entire fight took less than ten seconds.
Arlong crawled out of the rubble, his face covered in blood, but even more filled with shock and fury. "You... who the hell are you?!"
"Monkey D. Yan." Lin Yan walked toward him, step by step. "Here to send you to hell."
Arlong suddenly laughed wildly. "D? Hahaha! So it's that damned surname! But you've forgotten-this is my domain!"
He leaped up, clasped his hands together, and smashed down from the air.
"Fish-Man Karate: Five Thousand Brick Roundhouse-!!!"
The attack did carry some power, the kick bursting even the air.
Yet Lin Yan merely raised his left hand and extended his index finger.
"Flame Emperor Finger Pistol: Sun-Piercer."
Crimson light shone at his fingertip again.
But this time it was not a beam. It was a point of flame compressed to the limit, its temperature instantly exceeding ten thousand degrees!
The instant Arlong's leg struck that point of flame-
Hiss-!!!
There was no explosion, no thunderous noise.
Like a hot knife through butter, it directly vaporized Arlong's right leg from ankle to knee! The cut was smooth as a mirror, without even any blood-the intense heat had instantly sealed his blood vessels.
Arlong landed and stared blankly at his missing lower leg. Only after several seconds did he let out an agonized scream.
"Aaaaaah-my leg!!!"
"This is only the beginning," Lin Yan said coldly. "You enslaved this village for eight years, killed seventeen people who resisted, broke more than thirty people's legs, and tore apart over a hundred families."
With each sentence, he took another step forward.
"You thought the Fish-Man Race's powerful bodies meant you could do whatever you wanted?"
"You thought hiding in this corner of the East Blue meant no one could stop you?"
"You were wrong."
Lin Yan reached Arlong and looked down at him.
"Today, I'll show you-"
"What true despair means."
He extended his right hand and pressed it against the top of Arlong's head.
"Flame Emperor Body: Memory Burning."
Crimson-gold flames poured into Arlong's brain, not burning it but reading it-reading all his memories, then extracting the portions containing his "evil deeds" and converting them into images.
"Ace, bring all the villagers here."
"All right!"
Several minutes later, hundreds of Cocoyasi Village residents gathered outside Arlong Park. Most were sallow and emaciated, with wounds on their bodies and numbness in their eyes.
But when they saw Arlong lying on the ground screaming, their numbness turned to shock, then wild joy.
"Arlong... was defeated?"
"Who are those two?"
"We're... free?"
Lin Yan looked at the villagers, his voice carrying across the entire gathering:
"People of Cocoyasi Village, I am Monkey D. Yan. From this day forward, you are free."
He raised his hand, and flames coalesced into a screen of light in the air, which began playing images from Arlong's memories-
Eight years ago, how Arlong had killed the old village chief;
Six years ago, he had broken a boy's leg simply because the boy had glanced at him;
Four years ago, he had raped a human girl, who had then killed herself;
Two years ago, for his own amusement, he had forced two villagers to beat each other to death...
One after another, his bloody crimes unfolded before everyone's eyes.
The villagers' expressions shifted from shock to anger, and then they broke down in tears.
"My daughter..."
"Dad..."
"You monster! You monster!"
Lin Yan dismissed the screen and looked at Arlong. "What else do you have to say?"
Arlong had already broken down. He lay on the ground, pleading, "Spare me... I'll give you all my treasure... So much treasure..."
"Treasure?" Lin Yan sneered. "I won't take a single coin of that bloodstained treasure."
He turned to the villagers. "Tell me, what should we do with him?"
After a brief silence, an old man who had lost his son roared, "Kill him!"
"Kill him!"
"Kill him!!!"
Their cries surged like a roaring sea.
Lin Yan nodded and looked at Ace. "Ace, he's yours."
Ace stepped forward, searing white flames igniting around his right hand-a sign that their temperature had surpassed five thousand degrees.
"Arlong," Ace said, "be a good person in your next life."
"No... Don't... Aaaah!!!"
"Fire Fist: Purification!"
White flames engulfed Arlong.
There was no pain, no struggle-under the extreme heat, his nervous system was instantly destroyed, and then his entire body vaporized within a hundredth of a second, leaving not even ashes behind.
The tyrant who had plagued the East Blue for eight years vanished completely.
The villagers fell to their knees, sobbing aloud. Eight years of oppression, eight years of despair, had finally ended.
Lin Yan walked over to the old man who had lost his daughter and crouched down, warm golden flames kindling in his hand:
"Sir, hold out your hand."
The old man held out a trembling hand.
Lin Yan pressed the flames onto his hand, and the Flame of Life coursed through his entire body. The old man's graying hair began to turn black, the wrinkles on his face diminished, and his hunched back straightened a little.
"This... This is..."
"A little compensation." Lin Yan stood and addressed everyone. "All of Arlong's treasure will be distributed among the villagers to fund the rebuilding of your homes. Also-"
He looked toward the distant sea, where several of Arlong's ships lay anchored.
"Those ships are yours too. If pirates attack again, use them to fight back. Remember, freedom isn't something others bestow on you. It's something you fight for yourselves."
A girl with short orange hair stepped out of the crowd. She was about sixteen or seventeen, with a resolute gaze. It was Nami.
"Wait!" Nami called. "Are you... pirates?"
Lin Yan looked at her. "Yes."
"Then why did you help us?"
"Because pirates aren't necessarily evil, and Marines aren't necessarily good," Lin Yan said. "We only do what we believe is right."
Nami bit her lip, then suddenly dropped to her knees. "Please let me join you! I want to become stronger! Strong enough to protect my village, so no one can ever bully us again!"
Lin Yan looked at her, and the image of the strong girl from the original story who had stolen treasure alone for the villagers flashed through his mind.
"What's your name?"
"Nami!"
"How good are your navigation skills?"
"If I ranked second in the entire East Blue, no one would dare claim first!" Nami lifted her chin.
Lin Yan smiled. "Good. But you're too weak right now. If you joined our ship, you'd only hold us back."
Nami's face went pale.
"So," Lin Yan changed tack, "I'll give you a test. Within three years, sail alone to Alabasta on the Grand Line and find us. If you manage it, I'll let you aboard."
"Three years... Alabasta..." Nami clenched her fists. "All right! I accept!"
Lin Yan took a booklet from inside his clothes-it was the Basic Physical Techniques and Haki Primer he had written in his spare time over the past few days.
"This is for you. Practice what's in it. It can keep you alive."
"Thank you!"
He looked at the other villagers again. "I'll tear down Arlong Park and use the stone to rebuild your homes. It'll be finished within three days."
With that, Lin Yan turned and walked toward the Flame Emperor.
Ace followed and asked quietly, "Brother, are you really going to take that girl in?"
"She's very talented," Lin Yan said. "And... she has an aura of 'wind' about her. In the future, she might awaken a special branch of Observation Haki."
"Wind?"
"Yes. Let's go. Next stop-Orange Town."
The Flame Emperor set sail once more.
Nami stood on the shore, watching the Double D Flag recede into the distance as she tightened her grip on the booklet.
"Monkey D. Yan... Wait for me. In three years, I'll definitely come find you!"
She turned and shouted to the villagers:
"Everyone! Let's rebuild our home! We're going to make Cocoyasi Village the most prosperous island in the East Blue!"
Hope rekindled in the village that had suffered eight years of oppression.
And the name of the Flame Emperor quietly began to spread across the East Blue.
Before you continue