"Hey, Carlmand, help me think of a name for our pirate crew."
After eating, the two rested on deck, planning to settle on a name for their crew first.
Then they would design their pirate flag around the name. That would make it more fitting, wouldn't it?
"What do you think of the Kazu Pirates?"
"Or how about naming it after my hair? The Blond Hair Pirates?"
Kazu rattled on, while Carlmand merely curled his lip and said, "Could you get any tackier, Captain?"
Hearing Carlmand's words, Kazu refused to take that lying down. "You're so refined, then let's hear you come up with one."
Carlmand picked up his glass of red wine, swirled it, and took a sip. "Since you've asked so sincerely, I'll be merciful enough to tell you."
"What do you think of calling ourselves the Dream Pirates?"
"We're warriors sailing the seas in pursuit of our dreams!"
"Rejected!"
"Tch. A captain with no taste."
Kazu shook his head, feeling that asking Carlmand had been a mistake.
"Enough thinking. We'll just call ourselves the Blond Hair Pirates."
Kazu thought it over. His own father's crew was called the Whitebeard Pirates. If he named his crew after hair too, wouldn't that have a similar charm?
Besides, hair grew on top of the head, clearly higher than a beard. He was going to surpass his father. Otherwise, how could he fulfill his mother's dying wish?
"Fine, fine. You're the captain. You call the shots."
Carlmand waved a hand indifferently. After all, Kazu was the captain, and the ship belonged to him too. It was only natural that he should name the crew.
"Hey, Carlmand, stop lying around. Let's go make our pirate flag."
Brimming with enthusiasm, Kazu pulled Carlmand up, and the two began painting their pirate flag on black cloth out on deck in the sea breeze.
There was no helping it. Kazu's artistic talent was decidedly average, while Carlmand, who often drew nautical charts, was an expert. With a few flicks of his hand, a perfect skull was finished.
Kazu wanted golden hair drawn on top of the skull. They could simply copy his hairstyle.
The teeth had to show too, bared in a grin. That was called keeping with tradition.
"Yeah, not bad. Looks pretty cool."
"Here, Carlmand, hoist our pirate flag. I'll let you have the honor of raising it for the first time."
Kazu handed the pirate flag to Carlmand, who showed no impatience.
Although he didn't know why Kazu liked this name and design, he had already joined the crew, and he would keep loving it.
Carlmand briskly raised the pirate flag. As the two watched it flutter, they felt a surge of drive fill their hearts.
As for the previous crew's pirate flag, Kazu had thrown it into the sea long ago.
The two continued sailing like this for another two days. Besides plotting nautical charts, Carlmand often asked Kazu for advice on getting stronger.
As captain, Kazu naturally wanted his crewmate to grow stronger too, so he held nothing back.
He taught Carlmand physical combat and advanced applications of Armament Haki, and even coached him in Observation Haki. However, Observation Haki required more time; it wasn't something he could learn in a day or two.
The outline of an island was already visible not far away. Carlmand excitedly ran down from the lookout to the deck and shouted, "Captain, I see an island! Judging by the map, it should be the Goa Kingdom!"
"Hahaha! Are we finally here?"
Ever since buying the map, Kazu had chosen this place as their first stop. The feeling of stepping into the manga's story was quite novel to him.
After all, since he was already in the East Blue, the Goa Kingdom and Loguetown were places he had to visit.
"Come on, bring the ship in!"
The two had been drifting at sea all this time. Now that they had found land, Carlmand wanted to rest and resupply too.
The two were in immediate agreement, and their pirate ship headed for land at full speed.
"Captain, there's a pirate ship on the far right. Should we go take a look?"
The sight of that ship instantly set Kazu's mind racing.
Wasn't that the ship of Shanks, one of the future Four Emperors? By his reckoning, Luffy was already seven this year. It seemed this was the year he ate the Gum-Gum Fruit-no, the Sun God, the Human-Human Fruit, Model: Nika.
"Let's go join the fun."
Before long, Kazu and Carlmand arrived at Foosha Village.
"Boss, look. There's a pirate ship coming."
The plump Lucky Roux held a chicken drumstick in his left hand, eating as he watched the rapidly approaching pirate ship.
"Hmm?"
"That's a pirate flag I haven't seen before. Newcomers from the East Blue?"
Shanks and the others had been about to leave and continue their crew's voyage, while Luffy was still making a racket nearby.
Now, the arrival of Kazu and his companion immediately drew everyone's attention.
The Blond Hair Pirates finally arrived, mooring their ship right beside the Red Hair Pirates' Red Force.
"Hahaha! Red Hair Pirates, are you here to welcome us?"
Standing at the bow, Kazu jumped straight down, with Carlmand following close behind.
Shanks and his crew were already famous pirates now. In a few more years, he would become one of the emperors of the New World, the so-called Four Emperors.
In the original story, the Red Hair Pirates and the Beasts Pirates frequently clashed in the New World. The two sides were constantly fighting, yet neither could wipe out the other. Judging by that, their strength was roughly equal.
This was the strongest person Kazu had encountered since coming to this world.
Even if Shanks had yet to reach his peak strength as one of the Four Emperors, he was probably already at the level of a top emperor's first mate. After all, Shanks with both arms regularly sparred with Hawk Eyes.
As for taking down that little glutton Kid, with his three-billion-Beli bounty, in a single slash, that would happen twelve years later.
"I don't know who you are, but if you're here to wreck this place and disturb my friends' peaceful lives, I won't stand by and watch."
Shanks drew Gryphon first, his gaze blazing as he stared at Kazu and Carlmand approaching.
Carlmand was one thing, but Kazu didn't feel ordinary to him. Shanks was somewhat puzzled that someone like this had appeared in the East Blue.
"Hey, hey, don't be so tense. I only came over because I saw your pirate ship."
"So, interested in a spar?"
Kazu's tone was very relaxed. He didn't seem to have come specifically to cause trouble.
That put Shanks considerably more at ease. Since the other man had said as much, as a man of the sea, he had no reason to refuse Kazu's challenge.
"No problem. As captain, I'll be your opponent."
Shanks took a few steps forward too, and the Red Hair Pirates beside him showed no intention of stopping him.
They could also tell that the other party had come here specifically for them, so a fight was clearly in order.
Besides, they had confidence in their captain. Otherwise, they wouldn't have followed this idiot captain.
"Hey, who are you? Shanks is really strong! He's definitely going to beat you!"
Little Luffy didn't care about any of that. He didn't know Kazu, but he and Shanks were as close as could be.
If he didn't back Shanks now, when would he?
"Hey, Luffy, don't stand so far forward. Get behind me."
Beckman caught hold of the somewhat excited Luffy and pulled him behind his back.
A battle between powerful fighters wasn't that gentle. Even the shock waves were more than the current Luffy could withstand.