The night sky was like a vast black curtain covering the heavens. Moonlight draped it in a layer of silvery gauze, and together with the twinkling stars, made the sky brilliant, profound, and mysterious.
A sea breeze swept past, carrying the salty scent of seawater.
Ages lay reclining on the beach with a blade of grass between his lips. He chewed it gently, and a faint bitterness spread through his mouth...
Ages slowly raised his fair hand in front of his eyes and gazed through his fingers at the crescent moon in the sky.
"The starry sky is as beautiful as ever..."
Gazing at the silver moon's gentle glow, Ages murmured to himself, then lazily lowered his hand and rested his head on both hands, his eyes somewhat absent...
"Ten years... Time really flew."
His thoughts drifted with the sea breeze. Suddenly, Ages murmured softly to himself.
Ages was not from this world. He had originally been a marine from China on Earth. After returning from a mission, he had inexplicably transmigrated while resting.
He had transmigrated into an abandoned newborn, taking over the infant's soul.
Ages had been extremely depressed. Transmigration was one thing, but why did he have to end up in an abandoned newborn's body? Didn't that mean he would die as soon as he arrived?
Just as Ages was about to starve to death with no one paying him any attention...
A blind man came walking over. He wore a light-purple yukata with a dark-purple sash, a purple cape, and wooden sandals. He carried a Cane Sword, had bandages wrapped around his arms, and wore hand guards.
He adopted Ages, saving him from starvation.
The name the blind man gave Ages also surprised him.
The name the blind man gave him was actually the same as his code name when he had been a marine on Earth: Ages.
After transmigrating, Ages gradually learned more.
He came to realize that the world he had transmigrated into was actually the world of "One Piece," an anime his teammates in his previous life often watched.
Ages knew about One Piece only through his teammates, and even then, he had only a basic understanding of it. He knew practically none of its characters.
After hearing his teammates talk about One Piece, Ages had grown curious about it and had planned to watch it after completing that mission. But who could have known that he would transmigrate before he got the chance?
When Ages learned that he had come to the world of One Piece, he was both excited and depressed.
He was excited because he was someone who enjoyed passion and excitement, and being able to transmigrate into such a hot-blooded world thrilled him.
What depressed him was that he knew this world was far worse than his original one. Powerful people had the strength to destroy a country single-handedly, and a single attack could rival the power of a nuclear bomb.
With the fighting skills from his previous life, he would be stronger than ordinary people at best. How could he live freely in this world like that?
But Ages's gloomy thoughts did not last long.
That was because Ages discovered that the blind man who had adopted him was a powerful swordsman.
Oh, no. He should call the blind man his adoptive father now.
Ages was overjoyed. As soon as he could speak, he asked his adoptive father to teach him swordsmanship and hand-to-hand combat.
His adoptive father readily agreed. As soon as Ages asked, he began teaching him swordsmanship.
Time flew by.
In the blink of an eye, ten years had passed. Ages was now ten, but if anyone underestimated him because of his young age, that person would be in for a miserable time.
By now, Ages had basically mastered the essence of his adoptive father's swordsmanship.
He already carried himself like a swordsman.
As Ages murmured to himself, he suddenly turned toward the bushes behind the beach. A warm smile tugged at his lips as he said,
"Pops, you're here."
"Hehe, Ages, slacking off again?"
After a moment of silence, a hearty, powerful laugh, weathered by age, came from the bushes.
The branches swayed, and a middle-aged man walked out with a smile on his face.
The middle-aged man wore a purple yukata and leaned on a wooden cane. He had a self-inflicted X-shaped scar on the left side of his forehead. His hair was black, and a beard framed his mouth.
He was Ages's adoptive father and swordsmanship teacher, as well as the future Marine Admiral, Fujitora Issho.
"Hehe, Pops, wasn't it you who said not to train too hard because it would hurt my body?"
Looking at Fujitora, Ages smiled even more broadly and spoke with a chuckle.
Although Ages had memories of his previous life, he had been an orphan then, with neither father nor mother, and had never felt the warmth of a family.
After he came to this world, Fujitora's affection and care gave Ages a sense of family he had never known, making him willing to call him Pops.
Fujitora smiled, walked up to Ages, and ruffled his hair, saying with a fond scold,
"You little brat, you always have an excuse. Come on, it's late, and we have to leave tomorrow."
Ages chuckled and nodded. With his hands behind his head, he walked toward the bushes with Fujitora.
A while later.
Ages and Fujitora returned to Passatemu Town, where they were staying temporarily during their travels.
"Hic... Issho, remember to come back and play a few more rounds next time. Hic... I'll win every last thing you have, hahaha..."
An old man carrying a wine jug spoke to Fujitora between hiccups.
Fujitora turned toward the old man, a skilled gambler who had played dice with him and nearly won everything from him but his underwear, and said,
"Hehe, sure. We can play again tomorrow, but first I need a bowl of soba. I'm starving."
Ages looked at Fujitora, speechless. He raised a hand to his forehead and shook his head helplessly, then pouted and said,
"Pops, I keep telling you not to gamble, but you still do it."
"It's just a little gambling. It's fine, it's fine, hahaha."
Fujitora's carefree manner left Ages with black lines all over his forehead.
"Captain, we'll reach the next island tomorrow."
A man with a big red nose who looked like a clown listened to his subordinate's report and nodded, muttering to himself,
"Hehe, I wonder how much money we'll get this time. I can't wait, hahaha!"
As the clown spoke, he burst into laughter, and his crew laughed along with him.
To be continued.
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