Uchiha Puppet Master, Starting from One Piece

After drifting at sea for several days, Uchiha Hakuha purposefully traveled to the next island.

Until one morning many days later.

The azure sea began to recede behind us, and the outline of a shimmering island came into view.

The Kingdom of Balleywood, the famous "dream capital" of the West Sea, exudes an atmosphere of hustle and bustle even before we land.

"This is my first time here, and it seems very different from other countries in the Western Sea."

Nico Robin adjusted her hat and looked at the dock with some curiosity.

"Connor wants to buy some snacks..."

Soon, Bai Yu and his group moored the boat, tidied everything up, and stepped onto the dock.

As soon as they stepped onto the dock, Bai Yu and his group of four felt as if they had stumbled into a giant open-air film studio.

Instead of the fishy smell typical of ports, this place reeks of a mixture of hairspray, paint, and popcorn.

Similarly, the roads here are not flat, but rather cut into various exaggerated angles, like a movie set.

The pedestrians on the roadside weren't walking; they were following the camera's movements.

Meanwhile, the men were wearing sequined suits, while the women were mostly dressed in brightly colored saris, and everyone was trying hard to control their expressions.

It was obvious that Bai Yu had run into a film crew that was shooting a movie.

The extras were about to cross a street when they were stopped by a group of directors with megaphones.

"What about the movements! The movements! And the expressions?!"

The director's roar was deafening.

The scene on camera was clearly a chase, and when filming resumed, roadside vendors cooperated by throwing fruit into the air to create an explosive visual effect.

"Filming is still a bit too exaggerated."

Amid Robin's complaints, the group quickly moved away from the film crew that was shooting.

Unfortunately, their joy was short-lived, as it seemed the entire country was in the same boat as the film crew.

Just like a juice vendor on the street who doesn't directly call out their wares, but suddenly strikes a dramatic pose and begins singing in an operatic high note: "Ah! This watermelon juice, it's redder than the sun, sweeter than a lover's kiss!"

Bai Yu and the others couldn't help but look at each other in disbelief. This atmosphere of "acting out" all the time was really hard to handle.

Connor, however, became very interested in the watermelon juice in the vendor's hand, tugging at Bai Yu's clothes and staring at it longingly.

"Looks like you have to attend a concert before you can even buy a drink here."

Uchiha Hakuba smiled helplessly and stepped forward.

"Boss, four glasses of watermelon juice, quick."

When the vendor saw a customer coming in, his desire to perform intensified. While juicing the fruit juice, he began an extremely exaggerated dance, and even did a 360-degree Thomas Flair at the end, steadily placing the four glasses of bright red juice on the counter.

"This is too much..." Matsumoto Rangiku couldn't help but wipe the cold sweat from her forehead as she watched this scene.

"People with heart problems probably wouldn't survive more than three days living in a place like this."

Robin, on the other hand, observed everything around him with great interest, and for some reason, he found this abstract feeling somewhat appealing.

He then took the juice, but his eyes were drawn to a huge poster on the street.

The poster features a woman in a gorgeous dress against a backdrop of a dazzling starry sky, and is titled "A Midsummer Night's Dream."

"This is Alicia, the hottest movie star in Hollywood recently, a dancer who comes along once in eight hundred years," the boss said as he saw Robin looking at the poster.

"I heard that her movie tickets are extremely hard to come by in Xihai."

"Movie?"

Uchiha Shiraha raised an eyebrow. He wasn't particularly interested in these kinds of entertainment activities, but since he was already there, he figured he might as well show them to his companions.

Just then, a series of hurried footsteps interrupted their conversation.

A group of burly men in black suits and sunglasses suddenly rushed out of the alley and surrounded Bai Yu and his companions without saying a word.

"That's them!"

The burly man leading the group pointed at Bai Yu and his companions: "These guys are so good-looking, they're definitely the kind of newcomers trying to steal our jobs! Beat them up!"

"Huh?" Bai Yu was completely bewildered. What was all this about?

Before he could react, the group of burly men had already charged at him, fists waving.

But they clearly chose the wrong opponent.

"This is such a hassle..."

Bai Yu sighed, too lazy to even draw his sword, and simply raised his hand casually, an invisible aura instantly spreading out.

Although it wasn't Conqueror's Haki, it still intimidated these guys.

The passersby seemed to be used to it, and a few even complained.

"These guys are still so brainless. Even if the director didn't choose these good-looking people, he wouldn't let them act. It's pointless to target newcomers like this every day."

Bai Yu's lips twitched. So these people really were a bunch of bored and idle individuals.

Just then, a middle-aged man in a white suit with slicked-back hair rushed over, holding a megaphone. He looked at Bai Yu excitedly: "That moment just now! Absolutely perfect! That cold gaze, that overwhelming aura! Young man, which agency are you with? Interested in making movies?"

"Making a movie?"

Bai Yu paused for a moment, then shook his head.

"Sorry, not interested."

"Don't refuse so quickly!" The middle-aged man didn't give up; instead, he moved even closer with more enthusiasm.

"If you sign a contract, I guarantee you'll become the hottest superstar in the West Sea! Fame, fortune, beautiful women—you'll have it all!"

"Connor wants barbecue..."

Just as Bai Yu was speaking, Connor had finished his watermelon juice, grabbed Bai Yu's hand, and looked at Bai Yu with a blank expression.

The middle-aged man was taken aback by Connor's adorable, blank stare, then his eyes lit up: "Wow! This little girl is really bright! She looks like a natural child star!"

"Sorry, we have other things to do."

Not wanting to get entangled any longer, Shiraha led Robin, Rangiku, and Kanna past the middle-aged man and headed straight into the depths of the city.

Watching Bai Yu and his companions walk away, the middle-aged man shouted resentfully, "I'm one of the most famous directors in Hollywood! If you change your mind, remember to contact me! My name is Jingxi!"

Bai Yu ignored the shouts behind him. He could sense that this seemingly glamorous "city of dreams" was definitely not simple.

"The more glamorous a place is, the deeper the shadows often are."

Just then, the street ahead suddenly became crowded, with a large group of people gathered in front of a theater, seemingly waiting for someone.

"Is that star named Alicia going to be making an appearance? Is this a promotional event?"

Nico Robin glanced at the theater entrance.

"Should we go check it out? I'm really curious about what the movie is like."