One Piece: Reborn in God's Valley

Kano Royal Palace

The members of the Helgrave Pirates were feasting heartily under the warm hospitality of Kano.

The King of Kano, the leader of the military, and Chinjao himself all took turns toasting drinks with Ashen.

"Hahaha. Ashen, I can't believe it's only been a little over a year, and you've already made such a name for yourself."

Chinjao laughed heartily. Compared to their last meeting, he looked much healthier.

"Heh, it's just empty fame."

Ashen gave a slight smile, neither confirming nor denying it. Then his gaze drifted curiously toward a boy in the arms of a maid behind Chinjao.

"Oh, this is my grandson, Sai. He was too young the last time you visited, so I didn't bring him out then."

Noticing Ashen's gaze, Chinjao turned and took the boy from the maid's arms, holding him with affection.

"Haha. What a lively brat. Judging by the look of him, he's sure to become the next leader of the Happo Navy someday."

Ashen watched as the young Sai clung to Chinjao's already graying beard and tried to climb up his chest with all his might.

Ashen couldn't help but sigh emotionally, no matter how men might grow up, they're always adorable as children.

"Ashen, since it's rare for you to visit, if you're not in a hurry, why not stay in Kano a little longer? Let us show you proper hospitality."

Ramen set down his wine cup and extended a sincere invitation.

"I'm afraid we can't. We need to enter the New World as soon as possible. Time's a bit tight.

The main reasons we came here were to reconnect with old friends, and to work on Blackthorn."

Ashen had previously obtained seastone from the Marines in preparation for crossing the Calm Belt.

However, to his surprise, the shipwrights on Gangster Island were only skilled enough to repair ordinary vessels. They were completely incapable of embedding seastone into a ship's hull.

Luckily, the Kano was nearby and well known for its shipbuilding. Ashen decided to reconstruct the Blackthorn here before departing.

Seeing that Ashen was determined to leave, the people of the Kano stopped insisting and instead continued their warm reception, until everyone was so drunk they had to be helped to bed.

…

Seven days later, near the Calm Belt

The Helgrave Pirates had already left Kano and were now sailing near the edge of the Calm Belt, where the sea breeze had noticeably weakened. 

From time to time, the massive silhouettes of Sea Kings could be seen moving beneath the surface.

"Ah.. I really didn't want to leave Kano. Especially that meat…? Spicy as hell, but it was so damn satisfying."

Walton yawned as he reminisced about the food, suddenly finding the honey in his hand far less tasty.

"Yeah, if we had more time, I would've eaten my way through the entire country."

Parnell, unusually, agreed with Walton.

At the bow, Lafitte was steering the ship. Noticing that Salles looked a bit downcast beside him, he asked with concern:

"Salles, what's wrong? Still worried about Gangster Island?"

"Yeah... Even though the Captain gave those two Devil Fruits the Marines traded for Ulysses to Greig and Valen, I still can't help worrying."

Valen, trained by Salles himself, was a loyal and capable leader, considered above average in strength by West Blue standards. 

Salles had left him behind to manage the Black Hand mafia on Gangster Island.

The two Devil Fruits the Marines used to trade for Ulysses were ordinary Zoan-type fruits. 

Knowing Salles' concern, Ashen had left both fruits on Gangster Island for Valen and his brother to consume.

Boom!

Just as the two were speaking, an enormous wave suddenly surged near the Blackthorn, crashing down as tons of seawater flooded toward the ship.

"Aaah…. We're gonna die."

Ashen had been sleeping in his room when he heard the panicked cries of his crew. He instantly felt the ship rocking violently beneath him.

By the time he rushed to the deck, all the crew members were staring ahead, frozen in shock.

There, rising from the sea, was a colossal Sea King with the head of a crocodile. Just the portion visible above water stretched over 300 meters long. 

Its massive eyes curiously observed the Blackthorn like it had discovered a new toy.

"Captain. It's coming right at us."

Lafitte was on the verge of tears as he watched the Sea King heading straight for the ship.

"Don't panic. Lafitte, weren't you worried about a lack of propulsion in the Calm Belt? Well, here's our free labor delivered straight to us."

With that, Ashen leapt into the air using Geppo and charged directly at the Sea King.

Half an hour later, the once dominant predator of the sea was covered in wounds, obediently swimming across the surface. 

A long rope was tied to its tail fin, towing the Blackthorn deeper into the Calm Belt.

…

Meanwhile, at the entrance to the Grand Line

Several massive Marine warships were anchored near Twin Cape. On deck, Marines watched with interest as a giant whale repeatedly slammed itself against the Red Line.

Puru... Puru...

Hearing the call of his personal Den Den Mushi, Sengoku picked it up immediately.

"Sengoku, return at once. We just received intel, after leaving Kano, the Helgrave Pirates didn't head for Reverse Mountain at all. They've gone toward the Calm Belt."

Kong's voice carried a hint of disappointment.

"What? Has Helgrave lost his mind? Entering the Calm Belt is practically suicide."

Sengoku wasn't wrong. Any ship entering the Calm Belt would be swarmed by Sea Kings. Even the strongest of warriors would eventually die from exhaustion.

Even if Sea Kings didn't attack, without wind, a sailboat would be stranded in the Calm Belt forever, starving to death.

"Fleet Admiral. The Golden Lion, he hasn't made any moves, has he?"

A sudden thought struck Sengoku, and he asked urgently.

"I know what you're worried about. But our spy within Shiki's crew just reported, Ashen hasn't made any contact with him.

He must've realized our ambush was set at Reverse Mountain and decided to risk it all in the Calm Belt instead.

You should bring the fleet back. The Helgrave Pirates won't be passing through Reverse Mountain."

Kong had been shocked too when he first got the report. 

For a moment, he even thought Ashen had allied with the Golden Lion and was planning to fly into the New World using the power of the Float-Float Fruit.

"Let's hope that's true. The best outcome would be... the Helgrave Pirates never coming out again."

Sengoku hung up the Den Den Mushi and began issuing orders for the fleet to retreat.

…

The next morning, deep within the Calm Belt

The Blackthorn had already ventured far into the Calm Belt. The Sea King pulling them showed no signs of fatigue, steadily towing the ship across the water.

"Captain. Look ahead, two massive islands."

Everyone was eating breakfast when Lafitte, who was at the helm, called out his discovery.

Hearing there were islands, the crew all stood up and turned to look in the direction Lafitte pointed.

On the horizon, the outlines of two large islands could be seen, sitting side by side.