One Piece: The user of the Nen-Nen Fruit, who overturned the sea.

The first half of the Grand Line.

The Ark Proverb sails through the waves, its dark golden hull gleaming in the sunlight.

In the distance, the outline of the Sabaody Archipelago is already clearly visible.

The enormous mangroves and floating bubbles create a dreamlike scene.

"That's the Sabaody Archipelago!"

Yamato pointed excitedly ahead.

"How beautiful! Those bubbles can fly!"

"Those are bubbles formed from the resin secreted by the Yarchiman mangrove, produced by the respiration of the tree roots."

Stella explained,

"The Sabaody Archipelago consists of 79 trees, each with its own town and facilities."

Cyrus and Scarlett also looked around the world-famous island with curiosity.

As a gladiator champion, Cyrus had heard of the fame of Sabaody.

"Captain, shall we stay in Sabaody?" Savi asked.

Roy nodded: "Going to see an old friend."

The old friends he was referring to were, of course, Shakky and Riley.

It's been over two years since I last saw him. I wonder how that intelligence operative is doing now.

And then there's Rayleigh—after the Roger Pirates disbanded, that old drunkard will most likely be mooching off Shakky at her tavern.

Just as the Ark Proverb was slowly sailing towards area 13 of the Sabaody Archipelago,

An ordinary-looking merchant ship approached from the side.

The lookout on the ship was observing the Ark Proverbs through his binoculars, and his eyes widened when he saw the scene on the deck.

"Captain! There's a rare species on that ship!"

The captain of the merchant ship—a middle-aged man with a fierce face—snatched the binoculars.

Through the lens, he saw the girl with small red horns on the deck, and Charon, who clearly had fish-man characteristics.

"Those little red horns... Could they be demons? And fishmen too..."

The captain's breathing became heavy, and a greedy glint flashed in his eyes.

They were captains of slave-hunting ships who served the Celestial Dragons, codenamed "Hounds," and were notorious in the Sabaody Archipelago area.

The Celestial Dragons have an almost pathological craving for slaves of rare races.

A slave of a rare race can fetch an astronomical price on the black market.

There are actually two on this ship right in front of us!

What's even more interesting is that, despite the ship's ornate design, the deck was filled with what appeared to be young people.

There wasn't even a decent guard.

"Captain, that ship is flying a pirate flag..." a subordinate whispered a reminder.

"A pirate flag?"

The hound looked closely and finally noticed the flag fluttering on the mainmast of the Ark's Proverbs—

A black background with crossed swords and skulls, the skulls' eyes being eerie swirling shapes.

"This logo... looks familiar..."

The hound tried to recall, but greed had clouded his judgment.

So what if he's a famous pirate?

Their slave ship was heavily armed, and the crew were all seasoned outlaws.

Moreover, once they succeed, they should immediately hide in the slave auction house in Sabaody Archipelago.

With the Celestial Dragons protecting them, what pirate would dare to cause trouble?

"Prepare for shelling!"

The hound gave the order,

"Aim at the ship's rudder and sails, but don't sink it! Capture those two rare races alive!"

"yes!"

The slave ship adjusted its angle, and the cannons on its side slowly aimed at the Ark Maxim.

Meanwhile, on the Ark's Proverbs.

Roy was discussing swordsmanship with Hawkeye when he suddenly frowned and looked at the "merchant ship" to the side.

"I sensed hostility with my Observation Haki..." he murmured.

Almost simultaneously, Hawkeye also raised his head, his sharp eyes sweeping across the slave ship.

"Shall we make a move?" Barrett grinned.

"etc."

Roy waved his hand.

"Let's see what they're up to."

Roy was actually a little puzzled—the Ark Maxim clearly had a pirate flag flying on it.

Moreover, his reputation is not small in the world, so how could he dare to target any random ship?

Is it that Roy's reputation as "Heavenly Path" is not high enough, or that the Roy Pirates' fame has not reached Paradise?

Just as he was having doubts, the slave ship opened fire.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

Three cannonballs roared in, their target clear—the rudder and mainsail of the Ark Proverb.

"They actually dared to make a move..."

Roy sighed and was about to make a move when Hawkeye moved.

There wasn't even a visible movement of drawing the sword; only three faint streaks of silver light flashed in the air.

The three shells were neatly cut in half in mid-air and fell back down, muted.

On the slave ship, Captain Hound was stunned.

"What...what just happened?"

His men were also bewildered, only seeing the shell suddenly break apart and fall into the sea halfway through its flight.

"Keep firing!"

The hound gritted its teeth.

"It might be some kind of defensive device! Fire all the cannons!"

More intense artillery fire followed.

This time, the young members of the Roy Pirates couldn't sit still.

"Someone's provoking us again!"

"It's my turn now!"

"I was the one who said it first!"

Savi, Enel, Pea, Charon, and even Yamato are eager to try.

Roy waved his hand helplessly.

"Go on, go on, finish this quickly, don't waste time."

"oh--!"

Five young people rushed out excitedly.

Savi used Moonwalk to leap into the air, landing on the deck of the slave ship in a few bounds.

His fists, covered in Armament Haki, blasted away the approaching pirates with each punch.

Enel transformed into a cloud, and countless arm-like clouds enveloped the slave traders, suffocating them.

Peas were scattered into the air, and vines sprouted from the cracks in the deck, wrapping around the pirates' ankles.

Charon demonstrated Fishman Karate, unleashing a punch that sent a row of pirates flying with a powerful shockwave.

Yamato wielded a spiked club. Despite his young age, he possessed astonishing strength, smashing a large crater into the ship's planks with a single blow.

The battle ended within five minutes.

On the slave ship, only Captain Hound was still standing.

He slumped onto the deck, looking at the monstrous young men before him, and finally remembered who the pirate flag belonged to.

"Heavens... Roy...you're the Roy Pirates!"

The hound's bark trembled with fear.

How could he not recognize him!

The tsunami that Roy caused in the Sabaody Archipelago a few years ago was a major event that shook the entire Grand Line!

He simply didn't want to believe that the legendary pirate crew would appear here.

And there were so many children on board...

"It's too late to recognize me now."

Savi kicked him unconscious.

After the battle, Tesoro immediately began his "job"—looting treasure.

"Boss, this ship is a slave ship, and there are many slaves locked up in the cabins."

Tezzolo's voice came from the cabin.

Roy frowned and led the group down from the cabin.

Inside the dark and damp ship's cabin, dozens of iron cages were crammed together, each containing a ragged slave.

In the innermost three cages, there were three girls locked up.

The oldest was about twelve years old, with long black hair, and her beauty was already beginning to show.

But at this moment, his face was covered in dirt, and his eyes were filled with fear.

The other two, both younger, one with short green hair and the other with short orange hair, huddled together, trembling.

"This is......"

Roy's eyes narrowed.

Although he was still young, he recognized him—

Boa Hancock, and her two sisters, Boa Sandersonia and Boa Marigold.

The future Queen of Amazon Lily, captain of the Kuja Pirates, and one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea.

I can't believe we met here.