One Piece: Starting with Creating the Strongest Character Design

Sabaody Archipelago, Area 1.

"Boss, can we really expect to find murlocs here?"

"Stop talking nonsense, I saw it with my own eyes!"

"We've been waiting for so long..."

"Making millions of peles isn't that easy. Let's wait and see."

Several pirates huddled in the shadows of the abandoned port.

The man in the lead wore a red turban and had a fierce face. Whenever he mentioned fishmen, a greedy light would surge in his eyes.

Not long ago, he encountered a suspicious merman and followed him all the way here, watching as the man sank completely into the water.

He didn't dare to make any rash moves and immediately gathered people to keep watch—not on people, but on slaves that could be sold for exorbitant prices.

Especially female mermaids, those in good condition can fetch nearly ten million peggs.

Just then, the surface of the water trembled slightly.

The pirates instantly perked up, rubbing their hands together in anticipation, their breathing becoming heavy.

The water surface broke open.

A little mermaid with long, emerald-green hair poked her head out, glanced around warily, and seeing that no one was around, immediately broke into a happy smile.

The pirates were overjoyed.

Children are even better! The younger they are, the rarer they are, and the higher the price!

"Boss, shall we make a move?"

"What's the rush? Maybe there's a bigger fish out there."

The woman with the red headscarf hushed herself, her gaze fixed intently on the water.

The next second, another figure indeed rose to the surface of the water.

Upon closer inspection, everyone realized it was a starfish.

"Kemi, wait for me!"

The starfish flapped its short tentacles and hurriedly chased after us, saying, "Don't swim so fast, I can't keep up."

"Haha, Master, it's so much more fun outside than underwater!"

Kemi tossed her long, emerald-green hair, her fishtail gently slapping the water's surface, her eyes filled with curiosity.

"You can only play for a little while, it's very dangerous outside." Papagu's whiskers were tense, full of worry. "Many of our compatriots went out and never came back. They were all captured and enslaved."

If it weren't for the recent frequent naval patrols that have made pirates much more restrained, he would never have brought Camie ashore.

"I understand, Master."

Before the words were even finished, several dark figures suddenly shot out from behind the shipping container!

Several giant nets with sharp iron spikes descended from the sky, covering them tightly and instantly binding Kemi and Papagu.

"what!"

Kemi screamed in terror, her fishtail struggling desperately, but the iron spikes caught on her scales, and the intense pain made her eyes instantly turn red.

Papagu immediately curled up into a ball, shielding Kemi with his body, and shouted sternly:

"Who are you! Let us go!"

"Haha, I got it!"

The red-banded pirate laughed loudly as he stepped forward and kicked the fishing net.

"What amazing luck! Not only did we catch a little mermaid, but we also got a talking starfish! We've struck it rich!"

"The boss is brilliant!"

The henchmen swarmed forward, hurriedly stuffing the fishing net into a huge white backpack and zipping it up.

Inside, only weak struggles, suppressed sobs, and Papagu's angry but powerless curses remained.

On their way to the human auction house, the pirates chatted and laughed, their steps so light they seemed to float.

"This is much safer than seizing a ship at sea."

"Once we get the money, let's go to the tavern and have some fun!"

"Strange, it's not surprising that mermaids can talk, but how come starfish can talk too?"

A pockmarked pirate scratched his head, looking puzzled.

The woman in the red headscarf sneered and patted the backpack on her back.

"Who cares why? The stranger the better! This starfish might even sell for more than a mermaid!"

Inside the backpack, Kemi was trembling with fear.

Papagu lowered his voice, trembling but firm:

"Kemi, don't be afraid... someone will come to save us, Lord Tiger will definitely come..."

As soon as he finished speaking, the backpack jolted violently.

The impatient voice of the pirate carrying a bag rang out:

"Shut up! If you move again, I'll pluck all your scales and tentacles!"

He raised the wooden stick and slammed it down hard on the backpack!

At that very moment—

A clear, cool voice floated lightly into everyone's ears:

"It's not appropriate to do this in front of me."

A hand suddenly appeared out of thin air and firmly gripped the pirate's wrist.

The force was so great, it was like an iron clamp locking in, and the pirate instantly screamed in pain.

"Who did this brat come from, daring to tell me what to do?"

He turned around in a rage, and the moment he saw who it was, all the cursing stopped abruptly, as if an invisible hand had choked his throat.

navy?!

The pirates froze, their minds going blank for a moment.

Navy? How did I run into the Navy here!

This is Area 1, the territory where the underworld forces are entrenched!

Three seconds of dead silence.

The backpack crashed to the ground with a thud, and the pirate's legs buckled, causing him to collapse. He pointed at the figure in front of him and screamed.

"It's the navy! The navy is here! Run!"

The woman in the red headscarf was also instantly jolted awake, her greedy expression torn apart by panic.

He shoved his henchman aside and roared:

"What's the panic! He's just a young navy man! Let's all attack, kill him, and run with the money!"

The crowd was startled by the shout and looked closely.

The navy officer in front of me was indeed young, but he was tall and had a frighteningly cold aura.

But the thought of the exorbitantly priced prey in his backpack instantly overwhelmed his fear with greed.

He's just a kid, what's there to be afraid of!

Kitahara Tsune slowly released his grip, looking at the group of people who had surrounded him, a cold smile curving his lips:

"Selling slaves, plundering people... your audacity is truly outrageous."

The next moment, he moved.

It moved so fast that only a pure white afterimage remained.

The pirate leader had just raised his long sword, and before the blade could strike, Kitahara Tsune's fist had already landed on his abdomen.

There was no earth-shattering noise.

There was only a dull thud.

The pirate was struck as if by a heavy cannon, instantly curling into a shrimp-like shape and flying straight back, crashing heavily into a tree trunk before sliding to the ground.

Immediately afterwards, blood gushed out, mouthful after mouthful, continuously for several minutes before gradually stopping.

Surely not? He just grabbed a kid, how could one punch make him bleed for several minutes?!

That doesn't make sense!

The pirates who had just been clamoring to kill and rob were instantly frozen in place, forgetting even to breathe.

One punch.

Just one punch.

This is hardly some young navy kid...

This is a monster!

The people around them stared wide-eyed.

Kitahara Tsune looked at the surrounding crowd and said sternly:

"CP, cough, Navy investigation, seal off the entire area!"

No sooner had he finished speaking than dozens of naval soldiers appeared out of nowhere and sealed off the entire surrounding area.

Some people, seeing the situation was not good, hurriedly tried to escape, but were trapped by the fence and smoke and could not move.

In an instant, Kitahara Tsuneo completely took control of the scene.

Kemi, inside the backpack, slowly stopped sobbing, her voice trembling slightly:

"Master...is someone outside coming to rescue us?"

Papagu held his breath, listening to the deathly silence outside, his voice filled with disbelief and hope:

"It looks like... Kemi, wait a little longer, we... we'll be out soon."

Kitahara Tsune stepped forward, reached out and grabbed the zipper of the huge white backpack, and yanked it open.

"Sizzle..."

The bulging backpack was pried open, and two small figures immediately stumbled and rolled out, landing awkwardly on the ground.

The little mermaid with long, emerald-green hair was breathing slightly, and faint red marks from the fishing net barbs still lingered on her scales. Her once lively fish tail now seemed somewhat weak.

Beside her, a round starfish was dazed and confused, its short tentacles flapping wildly, looking completely shaken.

"Mermaids...and starfish?"

Kitahara Tsune raised an eyebrow slightly, a hint of surprise flashing in his eyes.

It's not uncommon for slave traders to capture mermaids, but this is the first time I've ever seen a talking starfish.

"Thank you, thank you for saving us..."

Kemi rubbed her slightly reddened eyes and whispered her thanks.

She looked up at Kitahara Tsune, her eyes filled with lingering fear of surviving a disaster, as well as pure gratitude.

Papagu quickly nudged his whiskers:

"Thank you for saving me."