One piece: Black Cat

"Are you interested in becoming one of the Seven Warlords?"

The question hung in the air like a blade waiting to fall.

Seven Warlords. Of all the things they could offer me... Seven Warlords.

"Is that an invitation?" I asked, keeping my voice carefully neutral.

"What do you think?"

You bastard, avoiding a clear statement like that!

I forced a diplomatic smile. "I am truly honored that someone as esteemed as the Five Elders would show interest in someone as unremarkable as myself..."

『You refuse?』

"Robin is with me. I can't carelessly align myself with the government."

The subtext was obvious, they thought if they could get someone in power to oversee me, everything would fall into place. Idiots. At the same time, they clearly didn't want to become openly hostile. Their first instinct was probably to place both me and the dangerous factor that was Nico Robin under surveillance, especially given my strange connections with the Navy. But if I accepted their offer, it would make assassination laughably easy.

No, definitely not a good idea to walk into that trap.

"Above all," I continued, "there's no one less suited for this position than someone who has fundamental doubts about the Seven Warlords system itself."

"Doubts? About the Seven Warlords?"

"Yes."

"Is this about granting rights to pirates?"

"No, it's about giving them land and time."

Crocodile and that gaudy pink-sunglasses-wearing fool were perfect examples of what I meant.

"The Seven Warlords are pirates literally sanctioned to plunder under the World Government's banner." I paused, letting that sink in. The World Government was essentially a coalition of nations, like a United Nations with actual teeth, ruled by kings and... ah yes, the Celestial Dragons lurking at the top.

"Depending on the individual, these pirates can openly establish roots in World Government member nations and integrate themselves over extended periods. This is extraordinarily dangerous."

"Are you suggesting they're planning to overthrow kingdoms? No matter how powerful they are, they're still pirates. I doubt any king, let alone their people, would accept such a thing."

"No. In the great age of piracy that's coming, there's no greater allure than raw power."

Devil Fruits were well-documented enough to have encyclopedias written about them. Everyone knew they granted insane abilities, but who would think that something as simple as controlling strings could extend to controlling people? Even Bege had managed to produce tank treads using his castle ability. When you really thought about it, Devil Fruits were frustratingly... vague. Careless in their scope.

"Pirates have something governments and navies lack: a clear, quantifiable status symbol. Their bounty."

『...』

"As Robin mentioned, bounties actually represent the degree of danger posed to the World Government. But to the general public, they appear to be a measurement of pure strength. And paradoxically, these numbers are recognized and legitimized by the very government that issues them. That's where it gets complicated."

"The public's interpretation of 'danger' differs from the government's intent, leading to dangerous misunderstandings."

"Moreover, people naturally gravitate toward what they can understand and away from complexity, whether that's kings or pirates."

I still couldn't fully grasp Crocodile's approach in Alabasta. His plan was gradual infiltration, a slow burn. But Dressrosa... that was different.

"When someone develops serious grievances against their royal family, it's not difficult to imagine them seeking out someone with demonstrable power, regardless of the consequences."

The people could hardly be blamed for their choices in such situations.

"And when things inevitably go wrong, the pirates' actions will stain the government's reputation. It's simply too risky a gamble."

"Kuro of the 'Stealth,'" the voice shifted, becoming more pointed. "Why did you become a pirate? I know what triggered it, you refused Saint Jarmak's daughter's request to become her slave."

"That's correct."

"Afterward, a thousand-berry bounty was placed on your head simply for surviving. With such a small amount, couldn't you have simply disappeared?"

Do you all want your jaws broken?

The marine who'd issued that bounty, some afro-wearing officer whose name I'd never learned, probably had similar thoughts.

"No matter how small, a bounty is still a bounty."

『......』

Seriously, even buying basic supplies becomes a nightmare!

Especially in the peaceful East Blue, that pathetic bounty attracted every two-bit wannabe bounty hunter looking for easy pocket money.

"As one of the Seven Warlords, you wouldn't be pursued anymore. Neither would Nico Robin."

I don't need your protection, you idiots!

Do you even understand what the Seven Warlords really are? They're essentially practice targets for Luffy to test his growing strength!

If some kid with no significant achievements suddenly became a Warlord, every ambitious pirate, good or bad, would come hunting for the prestige of taking them down. Was that their real goal?

"I don't need it. Despite never having dealings with law-abiding citizens, I'm still a criminal who survives through plunder."

Robin was honest about O'Hara too. They'd been people of great character, and the ban on researching the Void Century was probably unjust... but law was law. In the World Government's eyes, they were undeniably criminals.

This was a world where countless rebellious souls would emerge over the next twenty years.

"There were certainly other underworld paths besides piracy available to me. Burglary, pickpocketing, banditry, organized crime."

"Yes, that's what I want to understand. Why did you choose the sea?"

Why indeed...

"All those alternatives prey on innocent people. I couldn't accept that as my way of life."

"Even focusing on criminal targets, burglars and pickpockets would still be vulnerable, and establishing roots anywhere would make me a target."

"This is especially true for bandits and organized crime, where territory means everything."

Wait... do they think I'm trying to uncover the Void Century or something?

"Living without causing trouble for anyone is impossible, even for honest people..."

Perhaps this recruitment attempt was partially about gathering intelligence on our goals through conversation. After all, I did have Robin as a companion.

"Now that I'm a wanted man, I want to choose a life I can be satisfied with."

Great, more dangerous people have taken notice of me. Nothing I can do about it now.

"Then at least hand over Nico Robin."

"Do you really need an obvious answer to such a ridiculous request?"

"You will regret this. As long as you harbor Nico Robin, we will continue to hunt you."

"So she was your primary target after all?"

"You seem to grasp the situation, which is exactly why that girl needs to disappear."

"The Void Century is inconvenient for the government?"

"Precisely."

"If you keep cutting away everything deemed 'unnecessary,' won't you end up with a diminished, hollowed-out world?"

『......』

"Everything has meaning. When that meaning is hidden, someone will always emerge seeking those answers, no matter how many years pass. Will you drag innocent people into this mess each time and erase everything?"

『...That's correct.』

Seriously, these people! I hate to admit it, but they're terrible at keeping secrets!

Are the Five Elders really the ones setting policy regarding the Void Century? It feels more like... a policy they've stubbornly clung to for so long that they can't recognize it's no longer appropriate.

Could a world that had been protected for centuries really collapse from a single unexpected revelation like Dr. Clover's research suggested?

Actually... it might. This was the One Piece world, ruled by corrupt aristocrats.

Come to think of it... wouldn't collapse be an improvement?

"I can understand their position. They fear that revealing something capable of causing massive upheaval, not knowing how large the resulting fire might grow, makes them want to keep it buried. That too is a form of justice."

"In that case—"

"But my code of honor declares this: It is absolutely not justice to kill everyone simply because they've acquired knowledge."

『Sigh—』

A sharp intake of breath echoed through the Den Den Mushi.

"Furthermore, like the recent slavery incident, this stems from an out-of-control situation born from lazily pursuing stability. If ordinary civilians had been the ones held captive instead, how far would the Marines have gone? How much sympathy would they have shown for the minds and bodies of those prisoners?"

A small, pained sound came through the connection. Probably one of the Marines listening in.

If that was Sengoku-san, I'm genuinely sorry. That was a direct assault on the future Fleet Admiral's conscience!

But now that I'd taken Robin under my protection, there was no path back, no escape route left!

"A Marine who fought me once said I should have accepted slavery. That such was the way of the world."

『...That's correct.』

"No. I couldn't accept that, but everyone else simply endured it. Those who were enslaved, those who lived in fear of enslavement... and thinking about it now, even that Vice Admiral at the time was trapped. In a way, even the Celestial Dragons could only survive within that kind of environment."

Garp's weathered face flashed through my mind. Garp was probably someone who truly understood the weight of endurance.

"It's easy for those at the bottom to simply endure. It's easy to accept it as inevitable. But there's always a limit to endurance. The day will come when people can no longer hold on."

In fact, that day was approaching rapidly. The Revolutionary Army didn't exist yet, but it would probably emerge by the time Luffy was born.

"They turn a blind eye to that possibility, refuse to reform the twisted organization called the World Government, and preach that their lazy stability, built on countless sacrifices, is justice, while hunting down and killing a girl whose only crime is reading ancient script."

I straightened, feeling the weight of my next words.

"Then with all my pride, I declare this:"

"Bring it on. I'll face whatever comes."

•°•

A single ship carved through the encirclement, defying the thunder of naval cannons. Salt spray and gunpowder smoke filled the air as cannonballs sent towering waterspouts crashing around the vessel's hull.

This nameless pirate crew, consisting of just four young pirates and a group of former bounty hunters serving under them, embarked on a voyage that would become legend.

"No... that's not quite right. I need to ensure their story survives, this voyage must be remembered."

A short distance from the battlefield, concealed in the shadow of a jagged reef, a man clutched an eavesdropping Den Den Mushi, watching the entire confrontation unfold. The wind carried the scent of battle: burning wood, metal, and the endless ocean.

"Continue on your path. Carry your noble pride forward."

"Either the world will rise to meet you, or you will forge a new world entirely."

The man with the distinctive facial tattoo laughed with deep satisfaction as ghostly apparitions swarmed the sole warship that had come close to intercepting the pirates. Ethereal hands tore through canvas sails like paper, leaving the naval vessel crippled in their wake.

"I need to steel my own resolve..."

The man quietly raised anchor, leaving the Marines desperately pursuing the pirate ship far behind. Ocean waves lapped against his hull as he disappeared into the vast blue.

The man's name was Dragon.

In time, he would be the one to challenge the world itself.

***

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