One Piece: Bai Ye Deputy Captain of the Straw Hats

Translator: PapaSmurf0700

Usopp jumped at the sudden realization. "What? A trap? So when we opened it, someone got the signal?" His voice was filled with surprise and worry.

At that moment, Nami, ever vigilant, noticed a change in the air pressure and quickly took charge: "Hold on, everyone. We can deal with this later. Right now, we need to focus on the storm coming our way—it'll be here in eight minutes!"

"Merry, set a course southeast, full speed ahead!" she commanded decisively.

Without hesitation, the crew sprang into action. The sky was still clear, with blue skies and fluffy clouds, but they trusted Nami's expertise implicitly. And sure enough, eight minutes later, they all sighed in relief as they watched the fierce storm rage behind them, safely out of its reach. Facing such a natural threat, their only option was to escape.

Yet as they settled down, a new unease crept in. Sanji scanned their surroundings, a frown forming. "This sea looks odd," he remarked, tension in his voice.

Usopp, puzzled, looked around. "Yeah, we dodged the storm, so why's it getting dark? Is it going to rain again?"

Bai Ye shook his head, a serious look on his face. "No, this darkness isn't from clouds blocking the sun. It seems we've entered the area I mentioned earlier—the Florian Triangle."

Chopper's reaction was instant; his hat nearly flew off his head in shock. "What!!! The place with ghosts? I'm not ready for this!"

As if on cue, adding to the eerie atmosphere, a distant song floated over the water, mysterious and chilling: "Yo hoo hoo~ Yo hoo hoo~" "Yo hoo hoo~ Yo hoo hoo~". The melody seemed to weave through the mist.

As the haunting melody grew louder and neared, an eerie sight unfolded before the crew. A dilapidated pirate ship, resembling the ghost ships from the tales, emerged from the fog, heading straight toward the Sunshine Merry.

Usopp, drenched in a cold sweat, stuttered in terror, "Look! It's appeared! The ghost ship!!!" "I'm not ready for this! I haven't had time to prepare enough exorcist charms yet!!!" he exclaimed, his voice tinged with panic.

Chopper, clinging to Zoro's leg in fright, looked up at Usopp desperately, "Usopp, do you have any charms? Please give me one!"

"Really, Chopper? You're too scared," Zoro commented, trying to shake Chopper off. "Hey! Stop wiping your nose on my pants!" he barked.

Beside them, Merry tugged at Bai Ye's robe, her voice a whisper, "Merry wants one too."

Bai Ye looked down at her with a slight twitch of his lips, "You shouldn't be scared—you're not even human. You're a ship spirit."

Merry paused, processing Bai Ye's words. A moment later, she smacked her palm with a sudden realization, mimicking Luffy's typical gesture, and exclaimed, "Oh, that's right!"

Nami clutched her ears nervously and asked, "Should we cover our ears? What if this song curses us?"

Sanji flashed a confident grin and declared, "Don't worry, Miss Nami, Miss Robin, as your guardian knight, I'll protect you both."

Meanwhile, Luffy, unable to contain his excitement, had already sprinted to the ship's rail. He called back to his crew, "Hey, everyone! Look, there's someone on that ship!"

Curious, the others joined him at the railing, peering toward the ghostly vessel. A shadowy figure could be seen aboard, singing and holding something in its hands.

Robin pondered aloud, "Is it a ghost... or a human?"

Zoro, ready for a battle, rested his hand on his sword's hilt. "If it's an enemy, I'll cut him down with one strike."

As the tension mounted, Bai Ye decided to clear up the mystery. He cast a Fire Talisman in the direction of the ghost ship. The flickering flames lit up the scene, revealing the singer's true form.

It was an animated skeleton, clad in a sharp suit, complete with a stylish afro. In one of its bony hands, it held a cup of steaming tea.

The skeleton concluded its eerie melody with a gentle request for a pirate's drink, "Bring me some of Binks' sake," before taking a leisurely sip of its tea.

"Sluuurp~"

Lowering its cup, the skeleton looked towards the Sunshine Merry and exclaimed with a twinkle in its empty eye sockets, "This truly is a magnificent pirate ship."

In the original story, the ghost ship that carried Brook was significantly larger than the Thousand Sunny. However, next to the massive Sunshine Merry, it seemed rather small, which likely prompted Brook's compliments about their ship.

When the crew first laid eyes on Brook, Chopper, Usopp, and Nami—the trio notorious for their fears—couldn't help but scream in unison, "It's really a ghost!!!"

Reacting instinctively with their long-range abilities, Nami and Usopp launched their attacks:

"Sure-kill Flamingo!"

"Thunder Beast!"

Boom! Boom!!

Their attacks, born out of sheer panic, missed the skeleton and struck the ship's hull instead, causing a massive explosion nearby. This startled Brook but didn't harm him.

Luffy, witnessing the chaos, shouted, "Hey Nami, Usopp! What are you doing?!"

Nami, frustrated, responded, "You saw it, didn't you? A talking skeleton!"

Luffy, with genuine excitement, retorted, "That's right! Isn't that super interesting?!"

Seeing Luffy's enthusiasm, Nami sighed and massaged her forehead, realizing once more how differently Luffy's mind worked compared to everyone else.

As Nami readied herself to respond, a jovial voice drifted from the ghost ship, "Yohohoho~ You have quite a bad temper, guests."

They saw the skeleton standing up, looking a bit worse for wear. His gentleman's suit and top hat were singed with occasional flames, and the teacup he had previously held was missing. Yet, he still managed a polite salute and said, "Well, let me explain."

With a graceful motion, the skeleton grabbed his cane and hat and leaped towards the Sunshine Merry. "Zoro, wait a moment," Bai Ye called out, halting Zoro just as he was about to swing his sword.

Thanks to Bai Ye's intervention, the skeleton landed smoothly on the deck. He raised his hat in a genteel salute and greeted, "Yo-ho-ho~ Hello everyone! I apologize for my rudeness earlier. I didn't even introduce myself upon our meeting."

"But truly, it was quite a shock for me. I haven't seen a living soul in decades. I've only encountered ghost ships, and it was really... SCARY."

Internally, everyone had the same thought: ...You're obviously much scarier, being a skeleton on a ghost ship.