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Chapter 222: Smoker's Subordinate and the Future Supernovas
🕑 Added 2025-09-30 12:39:15 +0000 UTCChapter 222: Smoker's Subordinate and the Future Supernovas
"Do you feel any remorse now?" a cold voice came from behind her.
Hancock, still retching, turned to see the dark-haired young man walking toward her.
"Your back is exposed," Shane said, his eyes falling on the mark. "The Hoof of the Celestial Dragon. So, you were a slave."
Hancock's body went rigid. She frantically tried to cover the brand, but in her panic, she only made it worse, tearing her dress and exposing it completely. "Turn around... Don't look!" she cried, a torrent of shame, humiliation, and rage overwhelming her.
"Stop mumbling, I can't understand you with your teeth missing," Shane said, ignoring her pleas. "It's rare to see one of their slaves out in the wild... Given your age, I'd guess you were one of the ones Fisher Tiger freed."
At the mention of her savior's name, Hancock froze. "What... what do you mean?"
"What do you think?!" he said, his voice like ice. "Tiger climbed the Red Line with his bare hands and risked his life to save you, and he never imagined he was freeing a piece of trash like you. I ask you, what is the difference between your arrogance, your cruelty, and the Celestial Dragons you so despise?!"
"I... I..." Hancock tried to argue, but the words wouldn't come.
"You may not know this, but Fisher Tiger was also once their slave. It was because of the hell he endured that he came to hate all humans, so much so that he would rather bleed to death than accept a human's blood. But what if he didn't hate all of humanity? What if he only hated the Celestial Dragons?" Shane sneered. "If you had been there when he was dying... I don't think it would have made a difference. He would have rather died than accept the blood of someone like you."
The words hit her like a physical blow.
"True beauty lies in the soul, not the skin. Fisher Tiger may have been a fish-man, but he was a hero. You? You're just... ugly." He spat on the deck and turned to leave. "Come on, Mom. You've got to be more careful. Stay away from women like this."
"Sigh. After hearing all that, I guess she really is a piece of work. I get it."
"That's my mom! I thought you were going to be like all the other old people and fall for her tricks..."
"Who are you calling old?!"
BONK!
"Owww! That hurts!"
The sound of the motorcycle faded into the distance. Hancock stared after it, then at her broken ship and her unconscious crew... Her fingers traced the brand on her back. "Ugly..." Shane's words echoed in her mind, a knife in her heart.
"Empress!" a few of her warriors, finally coming to, stumbled over to her. "Are you alright? That man was terrifying..."
"Silence!" she shrieked, her eyes red. The warriors froze. She staggered to her feet. "Back... back to Amazon Lily," she rasped. Every step was agony, every word a fresh wound. 'No different from a Celestial Dragon.' 'Ugly.' 'Tiger would have rather died.' 'A piece of work...' The world spun, and she collapsed, her last conscious thought a vision of a red-skinned man in a sea of fire... Was I wrong, Tiger...?
The hover-motorcycle sped along the Calm Belt, the Sea Kings parting before it like water. In ten days, they would be in the New World. And in those ten days, on the first half of the Grand Line, a new generation was beginning to make its move.
...
Kuraigana Island.
Smoker's subordinate stood before the gate of the old castle. It was a good day to set sail. She clutched the two swords at her waist. One, Shigure, was just a common blade, but it had been with her through countless days and nights of training. The other, a wooden sword named Lake Toya, was her most prized possession, a gift from the dark-haired young man she had admired since she was a child.
She turned and knelt before the man sitting on the throne in the grand hall. "Mr. Mihawk," she said, her voice firm. "Thank you for your year of tutelage. The time has come. I must be on my way."
Has it been a year already? Mihawk paused in his polishing of the Black Blade, Yoru. Outside, he could hear the faint sound of the baboons crying. "That baboon king... I hear you've been beating him quite badly these last few days," he said without looking up.
"Yes," she said with a proud smile. A month ago, it had taken her a full day to defeat him. Yesterday... it had taken three strikes.
"Go, then," he said, sheathing Yoru. He finally looked up, his hawk-like eyes meeting hers. "You are now... barely worthy of standing behind him."
"I will never forget your kindness," she said, bowing her head to the floor. "If the day ever comes, I will repay this debt."
There was no reply. She heard him stand and walk toward the dining room. Not even a proper goodbye. But... when she looked up, a steaming cup of tea was sitting on the floor in front of her.
"Drink this before you go," Mihawk said, his back to her. "The winds on the Grand Line are harsh. You wouldn't want to catch a cold."
She stared at the cup, then at him. Did Mr. Mihawk really just say that? She carefully picked up the cup, and as she brought it to her lips, the steam blurred her vision...
Drum Island, now known as the Sakura Kingdom.
"Hey, you idiot Chopper!" Dr. Kureha stood in the doorway, a cigarette dangling from her lips. "What are you waiting for?! That blonde brat has been waiting for you! Go on!"
Chopper stood in the snow, a small, bulging pack on his back, his eyes red. He looked over at Sanji, who was leaning against a tree, trying to look cool. I'm the one who's leaving. Why is he acting all moody?
"Doctorine... I..."
"Are you crying?!" Kureha slapped him on the head. "Be a man! It's not like you're going off to die!"
"But... if I leave, you'll be all alone..."
"Ha!" she scoffed. "Who do you think I am? I've been alive for over a hundred years! Do you think I can't survive without you?!" She softened, ruffling his fur. "Just don't bring shame to my name out there."
"He's not a pirate, he's the captain of the Chef Adventurers! And my dream is to find the All Blue, not the One Piece, you old hag!" Sanji yelled.
"Who are you calling an old hag, you disrespectful brat!" Kureha yelled back, and the two of them started brawling in the snow.
Chopper watched them and, despite himself, began to laugh. Big Brother Shane had been right. He'd told him to look for a blonde chef who was looking for the All Blue. But... he'd also said he'd be traveling with a moss-headed swordsman. Where was he?
On a small, dilapidated boat.
"Hahaha! Cooking isn't so hard! That damn curly-brow... who needs him?!" a green-haired young man laughed, emerging from the galley with a bowl of... something black and lumpy. He was about to take a bite when he looked up... and spat it out.
He was staring at the twin capes, the lighthouses, and the rushing, reverse current of a very familiar mountain.
"I'm back here again?!!!" Zoro wailed in despair.
Alabasta.
Law stood at the port, looking out at the vast desert kingdom. So this is where it all began for the man who runs 'The Curtain Call.' "Let's go," he said, a grin on his face. He didn't notice that a few feet behind him... Bepo, who had been struggling with the heat, had finally collapsed in a heap.
Whiskey Peak.
"Hey, Killer, if I remember correctly, this is where that Shane guy killed Crocodile, right?" Eustass Kid stood on a hillside, his red hair like fire in the setting sun.
"Yes, Kid," the masked man said. "And I should remind you, this place is full of bounty hunters. We're being watched."
"Oh?" Kid's grin widened. "They think we're easy prey? Shane made a name for himself here when he was our age. We can't let him show us up, can we, Killer?"
"There are no Warlords here for you to fight," Killer said.
"That's fine. There are other ways to make a name for yourself," Kid said, his fists crackling with magnetic energy. "There must be a few thousand people in this town, right? Bounty hunters or not... let's just kill them all! The World Government will be so scared, they'll have to raise our bounties!"
"Let's go, Killer!"
