One Piece: Rising to Power as a Warlord of the Sea

"Oooh la la la la! Monkey D. Natsu defeats Golden Lion Shiki!"

Deep in the heart of Onigashima, Kaido, the Beast King, let out a strange laugh as he read the headline on the newspaper his subordinates handed him. The bottle in his hand shattered on the floor of the grand hall.

The Golden Lion Shiki—Kaido reminisced about his early days in the Rocks Pirates. As a new recruit, he'd admired Shiki's terrifying and domineering abilities, dreaming of one day surpassing him. Unfortunately, that dream had died with the dissolution of the Rocks Pirates.

Now, Kaido stood as one of the four emperors who ruled the seas of the New World, while Shiki had fallen once again into disgrace, returning to imprisonment. How the tides of fate shifted so unpredictably.

Kaido's gaze shifted to the smiling figure of Natsu on the paper. He recalled rumors and the mysterious weight the initial "D" carried. Though he didn't fully understand its meaning, he knew this news would shake the entire world.

"A brat with the name 'D.' I wonder how far he'll go. Oooh la la la!" Kaido reached for another bottle of sake, chugging it in long gulps. "Victory or defeat—it doesn't matter. The fall of the Golden Lion just heralds the rise of another powerhouse. But that brat... he's worth a closer look."

Meanwhile, on a remote island in the New World, the Red-Haired Pirates were in the midst of a grand feast when a news-bearing gull swooped down with the latest scoop.

"Shiki lost?" Ben Beckman, vice-captain of the crew, lit a cigarette and held up the paper. His expression remained calm, but there was a hint of surprise in his tone.

"Who took him down? The Navy?" Shanks paused mid-drink, raising an eyebrow as he turned to Beckman.

"Not the Navy," Beckman replied, exhaling a cloud of smoke. "It's someone you've met before—Luffy's brother, Monkey D. Natsu." He passed the paper to Shanks.

"Ho! Impressive!" Shanks chuckled as he skimmed the article. "Not bad for Luffy's brother. Taking down Shiki is no small feat."

"Shanks," Beckman said, his tone serious, "this guy is worth keeping an eye on. He has Conqueror's Haki and the 'D' in his name. Less than two years into his pirate career, he's already made it to the Shichibukai."

Shanks laughed heartily, clapping Beckman on the shoulder. "Don't overthink it. Besides, he's family to Luffy. Relax—I've got this covered!"

He stood and addressed the crew with a commanding call: "Alright, everyone! We set sail at dawn!"

Far away, on Baltigo, the headquarters of the Revolutionary Army, Dragon stood outside, feeling the sea breeze as he looked into the horizon with steely determination.

"So this is your choice, Natsu. Go ahead. Pursue it boldly," Dragon murmured to himself. With a flick of his hand, a small slip of paper was released into the wind, disappearing into the vast ocean.

In the East Blue, atop a hill near Windmill Village, a restless Luffy sat alone. Boredom etched his face as he stared at the bounty posters of his brothers, Natsu and Ace, and the newspapers detailing their exploits in the New World.

"Why do I have to be only fifteen? I want to set sail already!" Luffy groaned, resting his chin in his hands.

"Hmph! Just because they started earlier doesn't mean they're better than me!" Luffy exclaimed, puffing out his chest. "I'll train hard, master Haki, and when I set sail, I'll surpass them all!" He wolfed down a giant ham, patted his belly, and bounded up the hill with renewed determination.

While the world buzzed with talk of Natsu and the Smile Pirates, the man himself had just concluded negotiations with Sengoku and left with his bounty in hand.

On Smile Island, at the heart of the Uproarious Sea, a crowd gathered in the central square. Standing on a grand stage, Natsu called out to his followers.

"Y'alright, everyone! Today, I have a major announcement!"

The crowd of subordinate pirate crews fell silent, their eyes fixed on their leader with reverence and excitement.

They had joined him, believing his Shichibukai status would secure their survival in the New World. But now, having witnessed him defeat the legendary Golden Lion, their admiration had reached new heights.

"From today onward, Smile Island will be our capital. Thirty-six surrounding islands will form its cities, and fifty additional outlying islands will become towns. Together, we shall establish a new nation—the Smile Kingdom!"

"I, Monkey D. Natsu, declare myself its first king!"

The crowd was stunned into silence. For a moment, no one spoke as the weight of the announcement sank in. Then, the square erupted in thunderous cheers and cries that seemed to shake the very heavens.

"A kingdom?!" Many of the pirates felt their minds reeling. They had just witnessed history—a pirate establishing a nation.

"King Natsu! King Natsu!"

"Long live the Smile Kingdom! Long live King Natsu!"

The chants began when Kumo, the crew's exuberant mascot, repeated the words in its high-pitched voice. The crowd quickly joined in, their voices rising in waves that rolled across the island, scattering sea kings into the depths.

Unbeknownst to Natsu, the island's spies—both from the World Government and its largest news agency, Morgans' press—were scrambling to relay this unprecedented news to their superiors.

"Shock! Shichibukai 'Iron-Fist' Natsu establishes Smile Kingdom—what's his goal?"

"A new nation rises in the New World. How will the Four Emperors respond?"

"Can the Smile Pirates rival the Yonko? The real reason behind Golden Lion Shiki's defeat!"

As headlines spread, the world braced itself for the ripples of this audacious declaration.

To be continued…

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