"This world isn't fair. You struggled your whole life and got nothing… and now you die the same way, how ironic, you old relic of CP09…"
Clam's lips trembled, "You… phwahh… you're …evil incarn—" Spitting blood his body collapsed before he could finish.
He had lived in darkness all his life, seen countless injustices and twisted realities but the brat standing before him… was born evil.
Leo turned toward the Marines.
They had formed a human shield, forcing the prisoners in front of them to protect themselves from any stray attacks. Never in their wildest dreams had they thought their captain, a former CP09 agent, would die like this.
"This ship is under my control now," Leo said calmly. "Surrender… and explain what's going on here." Before he could even finish the Marines fell to their knees, trembling.
One of the slaves, a well-built man, stepped forward and bowed, as if asking permission to speak but was suddenly shoved aside.
A beautiful, slim woman in pirate attire hand cuffed in seastone cuffs and chains stepped forward instead.
"Hey, white haired bastard!" she snapped. "This is all because of you! Release me from these seastone cuffs and compensate me for destroying my ship!" Leo blinked.
"I have no idea what you're talking about, lady. I don't think I've ever met you." She scoffed.
"Oh? You don't even recognize me?" Her lips curled. "I'm the pirate queen, Alvida the one you sent flying the other day!" Leo stared at her for a moment, then burst out laughing.
"You… you're that fat, old hag I punched and sent flying?!" Her face twitched in anger.
"Ever since that day, my life has been miserable! It was a good thing I found a Devil Fruit and became like this but then I got captured by these bastards!" she snapped, rattling her cuffs. "I fought them, but they imprisoned me here. So take responsibility and free me!" Leo laughed again, louder this time.
"Can't you see I'm dealing with my own problem, get it done yourself?" he said, raising his hands. "Or Drop dead for all I care." He replied in serious expression as his blue eyes flickered and her expression froze.
She looked at him, remembering how effortlessly he had just killed the Marine captain, her heart flickered.
She understood the feeling, the same dominance she always imposed on others.
Leo ignored her contemplating look and looked back at the man she had interrupted.
"You were saying?" The man stepped forward again.
"My name is Chris. Most of people here are ordinary citizen, who were treated unjustly and stripped of their freedom." Leo tilted his head slightly.
"And how exactly does someone lose their freedom, confused?" Chris hesitated, then answered.
"There are many ways… but most of us come from kingdoms ruled by tyrants. When people can't pay taxes, they're stripped of citizenship and shipped off like this for lifelong labor."
"Some of us are criminals. Others are soldiers of the Revolutionary Army, captured while opposing the government…"
"…like myself." Leo fell silent for a moment, contemplating his words.
"I'm losing interest in your backstory," Leo said flatly. "Do you know what CP09 is… and those strange abilities that Clam guy used?"
Chris explained how the World Government operated beyond the Marines, a secret organization ranging from CP01 to CP09, with CP09 being among the strongest, second only to CP0, the elite directly serving the Celestial Dragons.
'Hm… the old man did mention a Celestial Dragon put a bounty on me, just for my looks. Hope we cross paths in the future hehe…' Leo thought, an unsettling smirk settled on his lips at the idea of what he would do to him or her.
Chris noticed the change immediately but said nothing and continued as if he hadn't seen it.
He also explained the abilities Clam had used.
"The Six Powers," Chris called them, a combat style developed by the Marines. Clam had only used four of the six techniques in battle and Leo wondered what the other two powers would do.
By the time he finished, Leo had a clear understanding.
Soon after, Leo unlocked the chains of all the prisoners, except for confirmed criminals, whom he identified using reports found in Clam's cabin. The Marines, on the other hand, were imprisoned alongside them.
"Chris, was it?" Leo said, turning toward him. "You mentioned you're with the Revolutionary Army. I don't have any feud with them… unlike the Marines. So I'll let you all go. Where do you plan to head?" Chris didn't hesitate.
"We were instructed that if we ever escaped, we should regroup at the ruins of the Oykot Kingdom. There's a hidden Revolutionary base there. If you wish, you could come with us—"
"No." Leo cut him off without a second thought.
The ship's course was changed from Tequila Wolf to the east, toward the long destroyed Oykot Kingdom.
"I'll leave along the way," Leo added. "Once my vessel is repaired. Sailing around in a Marine ship like this is just asking for trouble." Leo paused.
"If you have any shipwrights among you, send them to me."
Chris nodded. "We have two. I'll send them right away."
Taking charge, Chris organized the situation perfectly. The Marines and criminal prisoners were locked below, while the rest of the freed people began to settle, many of them thanking Leo for saving them.
Leo, however, had little interest in that, so he searched the ship thoroughly but found no treasure, no Berries.
Only a few personal notes from Clam remained, detailing his experience while mastering the Six Powers, not for himself, but for someone else. It seemed he had been a teacher as well.
"Well… beggars can't be choosers."
Leaving the cabin, Leo began repairing his Shark Sub-Ski with the help of two shipwrights. Fortunately, the Marine vessel carried unique materials, batteries and many other parts suited for long-distance travel because it frequently passed through the Calm Belt.
Over the next two days, they worked without pause.
By the end of it, the Shark Sub-Ski was not only repaired but reinforced.
The large Marine ship, powered slowly by paddle wheels, avoided dangerous waters as it sailed forward. It took three more days before Leo finally spotted a destination suitable for stay.
It wasn't an island but a floating restaurant named 'Baratie'.
A place in the middle of the sea, offering food and lodging, perfect for a short rest.
Yet something was wrong.
People were running out in panic, abandoning the place and fleeing in their ships.
***
"Garp, what is the meaning of this? Why is your grandson attacking Marine base?!" Sengoku's roar echoed through the Den Den Mushi across the ship's deck.
On the other end, Garp lay sprawled, basking in the sunlight, casually munching snacks.
"Oh, I got the report," Garp said lazily. "The guy was corrupt. I'll go arrest him myself, don't worry, Sengoku." That laidback remark only made Sengoku angrier.
"Don't joke with me! I'm asking why your grandson is running around the East Blue shouting he'll become a pirate king! And on top of that, why is that boy, Portgas D. Leo, roaming free? Don't tell me you let him escape on purpose…" Garp waved it off.
"Ah, don't worry about my grandson… he's dumb as a sea king chasing its own tail. He'll get bored of playing pirate and come back. I'll make him a Marine then." Sengoku stared at the Den Den Mushi in disbelief, a memory surfaced in his mind.
"That's exactly what you said when your son, Monkey D. Dragon, rebelled! You said he'd be back in a few days and now he's the most wanted man in the world. I won't believe a single word you say." His temper spiked even higher.
"Calm down, Sengoku. As for the other kid, Portgas D. Leo, he slipped sleeping medicine into my booze and ran off. Kids these days…" Garp scratched his head. "Next time I see him, I'll teach him a lesson. Besides, he's still wearing seastone cuffs. He won't get far. You can relax, he'll be caught in a day or two." Sengoku nearly fainted from frustration.
"Do you even know what he's done?! He destroyed a prisoner transport headed for Tequila Wolf and killed its captain, a former CP9 agent, Clam! The man had mastered the Six Powers and possessed a powerful Zoan Devil Fruit. At this point, no one in the East Blue can stop that boy, even with his abilities sealed!"
"Bwahahaha! He did what?!" Garp burst into laughter. "After I told him to go easy on people… kids these days…"
"You told him what?!" Sengoku snapped, catching the slip instantly.
"Eh? Forget it, Sengoku, it's nothing." Garp waved it off. "If I run into either of those brats, I'll drag them back to headquarters. Don't worry." Sengoku sighed, rubbing his temples.
He didn't believe a word that old men said.
"Just so you know… that boy, Portgas D. Leo, has already attracted enough trouble as it is." Garp's expression shifted slightly.
"What kind of trouble?" Sengoku's voice turned grim.
"His physical appearance has caught the attention of several female Celestial Dragons. They've placed a bounty to capture him alive. There are even rumors that some of them might personally set out to capture him once he enters the Grand Line… turning it into some kind of hunting game." This time Garp didn't laugh.
"…I see."
"You understand what this means, don't you?" Sengoku continued. "We need to capture that boy before things escalate. With his personality, I doubt he'd hesitate to kill a Celestial Dragon… and if that happens—"
"It'll be a disaster," Garp finished, his tone now serious.
For once, they were in complete agreement, Garp stood up, cracking his knuckles.
"Alright… I'll handle it."
Changing course, he began following the trail of both Luffy and Leo, this time with a clear goal in mind.
Capture Leo, and force him into becoming his protege for his own good.
***
"Yes, Koala, thanks for the update. I'll inform Dragon that the prisoner ship heading to Tequila Wolf has been rescued… by someone named Portgas D. Leo." Sabo paused.
"…Why does that name sound familiar?"
The success of the mission should've made him relieved but the name stirred pain in his mind, like a memory just out of reach.
"Oh, how dumb are you, Sabo?" Koala shot back. "He was on the front page of the newspaper, few days ago, the handsome guy with white hair and blue eyes. Don't tell me you forgot." At her words, the image clicked into his mind, pushing aside the unease.
"Ohh, that guy… I remember now," Sabo said, a grin forming. "That playboy, right? you remember him clearly, don't tell me he's your type?" A angry, annoyed grunt came from the other end and the call cut off.
"…Why do girls get so angry sometimes? Must be that puberty thing people talk about." Shrugging it off, he turned his attention back to more important matters.
Unlike most, Sabo had a direct way to contact to Dragon and as luck would have it, Dragon was currently somewhere in the East Blue.
Sabo relayed the incident, but even as he spoke, a strange thought lingered at the back of his mind.
'I don't know why… but I don't want him to join the Revolutionary Army…'