"What? Morley is missing, and some of the Heavenly Gold has been stolen? What exactly is going on!?"
In the grand palace, the king roared in fury upon hearing the bad news. His treasured bottle of fine wine, sitting on the table before him, was instantly hurled away in his rage.
The bottle smashed against a marble pillar, shattering into countless fragments that scattered across the floor along with the spilled wine. Yet even that wasn't enough to vent his fury.
"Your Majesty, Lord Morley discovered an intruder and went to pursue him," the captain of the guard said cautiously. "Before he left, to avoid exposing the Heavenly Gold, he ordered us to guard our posts. But… we waited a long time, and Lord Morley never returned. We don't know his whereabouts now, though I found many traces of combat."
"Hmph!" The king drew a deep breath, forcing himself to calm down. The matter was done; the only thing left was to deal with the aftermath. "How much Heavenly Gold was lost?" he asked quietly, a trace of dread flickering in his heart.
"Roughly two billion Berries worth of treasure and half of the tribute wine," the captain replied.
The king exhaled in relief. That much treasure could still be compensated for. But the loss of the tribute wine—ah, that was another matter entirely.
The Heavenly Gold was replaceable; the tribute wine was not. The remaining portion for this year, aside from what the royal family kept for themselves, had already been promised to others.
Whenever the domestic grape harvest was particularly good, the royal family would brew extra bottles of tribute wine for collection. Now, to replenish the stolen amount, nearly half of their cherished reserves would be depleted. The king's heart ached as though he'd been stabbed.
"Investigate immediately! Seal all ports and coastal towns. Maybe we can still recover what was lost!" the king ordered.
But even as he spoke, he knew it was futile. Morley had been missing for days, likely dead, and the culprits had long since escaped the Kingdom.
The ship sailed across the vast ocean. Many days had passed since leaving Grape island, and a new companion had joined the crew, the thief, Nelson. After several days together, he had begun to fit in.
Nelson trained tirelessly. Having brushed so closely with death, he now yearned for strength more than ever. Teach, too, had great expectations for him.
Unbeknownst to Nelson, his desperate will to survive had awakened Observation Haki during his battle with Morley. In that moment of near death, he had instinctively dodged a fatal claw strike. Though the awakening was fleeting and crude, it was genuine.
To master it fully would take time and effort but his foundation was already stronger than most.
Teach, meanwhile, continued his own training daily—refining his martial arts, pushing his limits, and strengthening his physique. Now that he had fully matured, the constraints that once held back his strength were gone. It was a time of rapid growth, and Teach could afford no complacency.
A few days later, startled exclamations erupted on deck, drawing Teach and the others outside.
Their ship had arrived near Reverse Mountain, at the entrance to the Grand Line. From afar, they could see the colossal mountain rising into the clouds, majestic and awe-inspiring.
The waves surged violently. As they drew closer, the sea grew increasingly unstable, whirlpools appearing one after another.
Yet for Teach's crew—seasoned by nearly two months of sailing through the Grand Line—this was nothing new. They had already survived Sea King attacks, tempests, blizzards, and tsunamis. The unforgiving sea had hardened them. Gar, who now served as helmsman, had grown into a capable sailor through sheer experience.
"So this is the Red Line," someone murmured in awe.
"It's truly magnificent," another said.
Teach and Peto had both seen the Red Line before, though from the other side, near the New World. Augur had seen it as well, having come from the East Blue.
But for Baccarat, Gar, Wallace, and the newly joined Nelson, this was their first glimpse of its colossal splendor. The Red Line towered endlessly into the heavens, its summit veiled by clouds.
The crew's awe was short-lived. Suddenly, the ship began to shake violently.
"Captain, this is bad! The current's getting stronger—the ship's losing control!" Gar shouted, gripping the helm. The current had accelerated sharply as they neared Reverse Mountain.
"Zehahahaha! Then we're almost there! Don't panic... just keep her straight!" Teach's booming laughter echoed over the roar of the waves. They had finally reached the Red Line, the gateway to the East Blue.
Through his Observation Haki, Teach had already detected the entrance to Reverse Mountain. He guided Gar to steer toward it.
From a distance, the narrow cleft in the Red Line came into view—the legendary Reverse Mountain.
The ship was now being pulled forward by the ocean's immense force. The converging currents of the North, South, East, and West Seas were so powerful that they defied gravity, surging upward.
From afar, one could see seawater streaming up the mountain, climbing toward the sky.
The entrance was perilously narrow. Countless pirate ships had met their end here, crushed against the rock walls before even beginning their journey into the Grand Line.
Gar had done well to bring them this far, but what came next was beyond his skill. A single mistake here could mean death.
Teach stepped forward. "Gar, let me take the helm."
He took position, his Observation Haki spreading out to read the currents, adjusting the ship with precise control. Slowly, the violent swaying eased.
"Captain, that seawater's flowing down from up there! How are we supposed to go up?" Wallace shouted, eyes wide.
"Zehahaha! Don't worry about it. The sea's full of wonders!" Teach laughed heartily.
The ship drew closer and closer to the towering wall of Reverse Mountain.
"Everyone, hold on tight! The ship's about to climb!" Teach called out.
The crew braced themselves as the ship plunged into the narrow channel. At the entrance, crimson gates of water parted as they surged upward, climbing Reverse Mountain against the current.
"I never thought we'd actually sail up a mountain," Baccarat said in awe. "It's truly a miracle of nature."
Under Teach's control, the ship rode the raging current flawlessly. Before long, they reached the mountain's peak—above the clouds. Then, gravity took hold, and the ship began to descend rapidly.
Below, the current calmed slightly, but danger was far from over. Four water channels came into view, converging into an "X" shape—each leading to a different sea.
"Captain, which one do we take? These must be the routes to the four Blues, right?" Nelson asked.
"The fourth one, the East Blue," Teach said, grinning as he turned the helm.
The ship plunged downward again, racing against the roaring current.
Meanwhile, another pirate ship approached Reverse Mountain from the East Blue side.
"Lads! Once we pass Reverse Mountain, we'll enter the Grand Line! The legendary pirate Iron-Hand Hoover will soon make his mark!"
At the bow stood Hoover, captain of the Iron-Hand Pirates, laughing loudly as his men cheered.
"Captain's invincible! He'll surpass even the Pirate King Roger someday!" one shouted.
As their ship neared Reverse Mountain, excitement and fear mingled among the crew. The Grand Line was, after all, the "Pirate's Graveyard."
"Captain, something's coming down from above!" a sharp-eyed lookout shouted, pointing upward.
"What!?" Hoover turned, eyes widening as he saw a black dot rapidly growing larger in the sky above the mountain's summit.
"It's… it's a ship! It's coming straight down!" another pirate yelled through his telescope.
Hoover's face went pale. "Damn it! Move! Turn the ship now, or we'll be crushed!"
Their ship was directly in the waterway's path. If the descending ship hit them head-on, the impact would obliterate them.
"Of all the cursed luck…" Hoover muttered, his face twisting in panic. He barked orders, and his men scrambled to steer clear, the helmsman desperately turning the rudder.
Some pirates froze in terror; others dove for cover.
On the other ship, Augur narrowed his eyes. "Captain, there's a pirate ship below us! We're about to collide!"
"Don't worry," Teach said with a grin. "They've already started to move."
Augur's gaze flickered. So fast. The captain's perception was sharper than anyone's, even sharper than his long-range vision.
Frustration stirred in him. As a gunman, he prided himself on awareness and accuracy. But compared to Teach and even Peto, he still lagged behind. He needed to awaken Observation Haki soon.
He had the talent; he was already on the verge of awakening it through relentless training. And he wouldn't stop until he did.
"Hold on tight! Don't fall off!" Teach shouted, gripping the helm as the ship roared downward, wind whipping through his hair.
The ocean below grew closer—fast.
Boom!
A thunderous crash shook the seas as Teach's ship burst out from the waterway, half-submerged upon impact. A colossal wave exploded outward, towering dozens of meters high, surging violently across the surface.
"Oh no—brace yourselves!" Hoover yelled.
Though they had managed to steer aside, the Iron-Hand Pirates were still caught in the massive wake.
The giant wave slammed into their ship with unstoppable force. One by one, the pirates were hurled into the sea, screaming as they vanished beneath the foam.
Hoover clung desperately to the mast, his body trembling as the violent sea pounded him. When the water finally calmed, he collapsed onto the deck, drenched and gasping for breath.
"How… how could this happen…" he stammered, staring blankly at the wreckage around him. His proud ship was destroyed, his crew decimated, bodies floating lifelessly in the water. His grand ambitions—gone in an instant.
"Damn it… you bastards! It's all because of you!" Hoover roared, his eyes bloodshot with hatred. He leapt onto a floating plank and surged toward the other ship.
A single gunshot rang out.
Bang!
Before Hoover could even react, his vision blurred—then went dark. A bullet pierced straight through his skull.
On Teach's ship, Augur lowered his smoking gun.
"How boring," he said coldly. "Weakness is a sin."
He holstered the weapon, sparing not another glance at Hoover's corpse as it drifted away on the waves.