Whoosh!
Waves washed against the Marine Branch's harbor.
The sounds of the prisoners breaking out of their cells had already been terrifying.
Now things were truly frightening.
Several monsters had appeared near the harbor, free of their Seastone restraints.
How could ordinary Marines possibly handle them!
"I knew I shouldn't have come back to visit my family. I actually got caught by the Marines."
Morley was someone capable of carving out Level 5.5 in Impel Down, which was built with Seastone.
Even he had nearly come to grief this time.
But like Kaido, he was used to it. He could escape anyway!
Several supply ships and reinforcement warships had already arrived at the branch's harbor.
They were preparing to escort the giants and the newly arrived pirates.
When Sanjuan Wolf saw the mountain of crates piled up at the harbor, he knew they contained food.
He immediately grabbed them with his huge hands and began wolfing down mouthfuls.
The sight terrified many people, but some veterans had already suppressed their fear, letting reason drive them to fire!
Bang! Bang!
Bullets flew out one after another. Never mind Sanjuan Wolf-even to Shane, they were nothing more than an itch.
Unless they were Seastone Bullets, they posed no threat to people with unusual physiques.
"So hungry! So hungry!"
Sanjuan Wolf ignored everything, letting the others attack him.
Yet aboard a warship, two people had strange looks in their eyes.
One was a youngster who looked eleven or twelve.
He held a pair of scissors and a Stuffed Doll.
He wore a leather jacket with studs and looked decidedly punk.
His hair and lips were the same color, giving him a brazen look.
The other was the young Marine sergeant who had arrested him and brought him here, promoted to Navy Commander after the battle at God Valley.
Were it not for his father, he would only have risen higher.
After all, even a Rear Admiral from Marine Headquarters was no match for him.
As the gale stirred up by Sanjuan Wolf fluttered his cape,
the young Marine stood with his arms folded, his gaze fixed unwaveringly on the young pirate at the harbor.
"I thought I'd just be following the old man's orders, taking Sanjuan Wolf and Morley into custody and escorting them to Impel Down."
"To think there'd be a surprise, too. No wonder the old man had that wicked grin!"
Dragon hurled the unruly Punk Boy in his grip onto the harbor.
The panicked harbor suddenly calmed down.
When they saw the warship arriving to escort the criminals, they knew it was from headquarters.
"It's Dragon! He's Garp the Hero's son, the strongest of Marine Headquarters' new generation!"
Everyone's attention was instantly drawn to him, and their courage swelled.
"Dragon?"
Seeing the young man named Dragon for the first time, Morley turned to look curiously.
Under the sunlight,
Giant Morley wore a short pink skirt. With his scruffy beard, pursed lips, and the shovel in his hand, he looked especially cute.
As it turned out,
after Shane and Kaido had been locked up while fast asleep,
the Marine Branch had immediately notified headquarters.
Though they didn't recognize Shane, Kaido was an Apprentice Crew Member of the Rocks Pirates.
He was famous!
Garp had to pursue the great pirates who had yet to leave the West Blue, so he had sent Dragon to escort them.
He hadn't expected every last one of them to be trouble, escaping so quickly.
"Ptooey!"
The youngster sprawled on the ground stood up.
He looked at the towering giants, Kaido with horns like a devil from a story, and the relatively normal-looking Shane.
He shot Dragon a disdainful glance.
"Sooner or later, I'll become the strongest pirate on the seas! Just wait until I set sail! I'm the future king of the seas! Moria!"
Only twelve years old, Moria was a notorious Yakuza Boy in the West Blue, a thoroughly delinquent kid.
Young as he was, his physique was far from normal. After all, he would later reach 6.9 meters tall.
Purple-Hair, purple lips, and a pair of cute little horns.
Even at twelve, he stood several heads taller than an ordinary person.
"Shut up! That's no excuse for bullying civilians in town. You're getting locked up for at least three months!"
Dragon punched Gangster Moria.
"That hurt! Damn you, Dragon!"
Moria gnashed his teeth in fury. He had been no good even before setting sail.
More precisely, he was like a combination of Supernovas Bege and Bartolomeo the Delinquent.
He threw his weight around arrogantly while also working on gathering his own followers.
Dragon had happened to stop briefly in the town on his way to the branch.
He had arrested Moria while he was there!
"Let me go, Dragon!"
Moria refused to accept it. He believed he could be just as arrogant and unrestrained three months later.
"What's with those horns of yours? They're tiny."
Kaido had horns on his head too, and seeing Moria's similar features, he had asked an extra question.
His tone was full of mockery!
"Hey! You're the guy on that wanted poster!"
Moria's eyes widened. He remembered seeing him on a wanted poster.
The man before him was Kaido, a member of the recently destroyed Rocks Pirates!
Kaido!
A monstrous pirate just twenty-one years old, with a bounty of 270 million Beli.
And that was his bounty before God Valley.
Rumor had it that every member of the Rocks Pirates would have their bounty increased!
"Bastard!"
Moria came to his senses, remembered Kaido was mocking him, and immediately began cursing.
Sure enough, Moria was quite wild before he had taken a beating.
There was also a long saber at his waist, and he looked as though he had shed blood before.
"Moria!"
"Though you're ugly,"
"my Shane Pirates sincerely invite you to join!"
Shane?
Who's that?
Moria blinked. He had never heard of this guy. Did he even have a bounty?
But Kaido, Morley, and Sanjuan Wolf all seemed to be standing around Shane. Could he really be their new captain?
Even Dragon frowned at those words.
He thought Shane posed far too great a threat!
The frightening thing was that no bounty had been placed on him yet.
Before God Valley, he had been unknown, with no bounty-essentially someone with no record at all.
After God Valley, he had made his name in a single battle and promptly landed in prison, leaving no need for a bounty.
Now things were bad!
Who knew how many people he would bring disaster upon!
"Hey!"
Moria's angry voice interrupted Dragon's thoughts.
"Shane, you bastard, you're calling me ugly in a roundabout way!"
How rude!
He had become a young gangster in a West Blue town at just twelve years old!
And some nobody actually dared mock him!
"Shut up!"
Dragon didn't wait for Shane to speak, nor did he want Moria to keep yammering.
Kaido was even still attacking brutally, taking down one Marine with every swing of his club.
Morley had rolled up a stone slab nearly ten meters high to block the Marines' attacks, turning it into a defensive wall.
Not to mention the colossal giant Sanjuan Wolf, still sitting by the sea and helping himself to a buffet.
Whoosh!
In an instant,
Conqueror's Haki swept across the harbor.
The Marines turned their heads, then collapsed to the ground.
Shane grinned happily. The Black Dragon within him rebelled defiantly once more, trying to unleash a king's oppressive might.
"Dragon, that little bit of Haki isn't enough to intimidate my Shane Pirates!"
What!
Hearing Shane's words, Dragon was the first to object.
What did he mean, the Shane Pirates?
Though he hadn't settled on a name, it definitely wasn't going to be that!
It sounded as though he were working under Shane.
Kaido unleashed his Conqueror's Haki, trying to assert his position as captain by confronting Dragon!
"What did my little island ever do to deserve this!"
The Marine Branch's captain wore a bitter expression.
Boom!
As large numbers of Marines collapsed,
Shane remained utterly unconcerned, sandwiched between the two wielders of Conqueror's Haki.
The King's Aptitude within him thrashed like a wild beast. The more this happened, the easier it was to awaken.
"You underestimate me!"
Dragon's cape suddenly billowed, and a hurricane surged from the harbor with overwhelming force!
He had eaten the Devil Fruit from that Treasure Chest!
The situation reversed once again. Only Moria, facing it alone, could not believe these were the true powerhouses of the sea!
He had to set sail and witness this glorious new era!
Especially Shane!
Even Dragon and Kaido's clash couldn't affect him in the slightest. He was far too brazen!
"My head's spinning~"
Though Moria was tall and large, he was only twelve-a child!
After being struck by the impact, he passed out on the spot.
"How lame. You're an Apprentice Crew Member at best."
Shane clenched his fists.
He tried to awaken the ferocious beast within him.
To show the world the true King's Aptitude.
Before you continue