Boom! Boom! Boom!
Thunderous cannonfire split the air. Shells streaked between the sea spray, the two ships locked in a brutal exchange. Yet strangely, the Marine warship's fire seemed off, every shot whistled past the Lucky Goddess, exploding harmlessly in the waves.
On the other hand, the Nightfall Pirates' volleys struck true. Each round hammered into the warship's hull, splintering wood and twisting iron. Within minutes, the Marines' proud vessel was half in ruins, deck engulfed in smoke and fire.
"Lieutenant Crane! We're hit everywhere! We can't-"
"Hold formation!" Crane's shout was lost beneath another explosion. Bodies and wreckage littered the deck. His ears rang; the smell of gunpowder was suffocating. What kind of pirates are these?! Why are their shots so precise?
Across the battlefield, laughter rolled over the waves. The Nightfall Pirates roared in victory, their fear of the Navy beginning to shatter with every cannon blast.
On the quarterdeck, Teach sat calmly in his chair, a satisfied grin on his face. Beside him stood Baccarat, her coin glinting between her fingers, luck flowing entirely in their favor. Every Marine shell that should have hit veered off course at the last second.
Exactly as Teach had planned.
He needed to break his crew's old fear of the Marines and what better way than with a total, crushing victory?
"Zehahahahaha! The Navy ship's finished! Lads, board her! Leave no Marine breathing!"
Weapons flashed in the sunlight. The Lucky Goddess surged forward, slamming against the crippled warship. Hooks flew, ropes snapped taut, and the pirates swarmed aboard like a dark tide.
Lieutenant Crane staggered to his feet, his knuckles white on his sword. "What kind of monsters are these?! Report this, report this to Branch 18! Now!"
The soot-covered petty officer fumbled out a Den Den Mushi. "This is Lieutenant Crane of Branch 18! We've encountered... great enemy… three skulls-"
The call cut off mid-sentence.
At Branch 18's base, Colonel Spank slammed his desk. "Crane? Crane, answer me! Damn it!" He scribbled the words Great enemy, three skulls onto a report sheet. His jaw tightened. "Lieutenants Marika and Dali, to me! One of our warships has fallen."
Back on the battlefield, Nelson appeared behind the officer still clutching the Den Den Mushi, his blade already sliding into the man's chest. The Marine gasped, choking on his own breath. Nelson twisted the sword once, then yanked it free.
Lieutenant Crane barely had time to react before Gar's shadow fell over him. A single blow from the white-furred Mink sent him crashing into the bulkhead, ribs shattering.
"Y-You… monsters…" he rasped, blood filling his throat.
Gar's twin short swords flashed once. The fight was over.
The Marines' morale broke completely. Those who could still stand were quickly cut down. By the time the sun dipped below the horizon, the warship was silent, save for the crackling of flames and the splash of waves against its ruined hull.
"Take everything useful!" Teach barked. "Weapons, rations, maps, if it isn't nailed down, it's ours!"
The pirates scattered, laughing as they looted the ship. For many of them, this was the first true taste of victory of power.
"Captain," Nelson said when the deck was clear, "we were a little late. Some information got through."
Teach waved a hand dismissively. "Zehahaha! Let them know! What's a pirate without a bounty?"
Nelson smirked. "Judging by their supplies, this was a Branch 18 warship."
"Then they'll be the first to come for us." Teach's grin widened. "Good. Let them. We'll announce our existence with fire and death."
When the Lucky Goddess sailed away, the sea behind them was littered with debris and Marine corpses.
Hours later, Colonel Spank arrived with two other warships. The sight that greeted them froze every man in place, a half-sunken Marine vessel, its flag scorched, bodies floating all around.
Spank's fists trembled. "Who did this…?"
"Sir, the message Lieutenant Crane sent, it said, 'great enemy, three skulls.'"
Dali adjusted his glasses, his expression grave. "That wasn't three pirate crews. It was one, their flag must bear three skulls."
Spank's face darkened. "Then spread the word. Every branch in this sector, watch for any pirates flying three skulls. Whoever they are, they've declared war on the Navy."
Over the next month, that symbol became infamous.
The Nightfall Pirates destroyed two more Marine warships and wiped out five rival crews. Not a single survivor remained from any of their victims.
Their numbers grew to a hundred, their flag, three skulls before a devouring vortex, recognized from one end of the East Blue to the other.
At Branch 18, Colonel Spank slammed a bounty poster onto his desk. "Forty million?! That's all they gave him?"
Dali frowned. "It's the highest in East Blue, sir."
Spank growled. "Then we'll raise it again after I sink that bastard myself. I'm calling Branch 20 and 22, we'll strike together."
On the Lucky Goddess, Teach leaned back on his throne, tossing the bounty poster aside with a laugh. "Zehahahaha! Only forty million? The Navy's underestimating me."
Baccarat sighed, rubbing her temple. "You haven't even fought seriously yet, Captain. What more do you want?"
"The highest bounty in East Blue, and it's still not enough," Wallace muttered, half in awe.
"It will rise soon," Teach said, tapping the armrest of his throne, eyes glinting. "The Navy's coming for us, and when they do, they'll learn what despair really looks like. For now, we sail to Bokapoka Kingdom. These seas are too quiet… and I want a musician."
As the Lucky Goddess cut across the waves, her black sails billowing, her infamous flag snapped in the wind, three skulls staring into the horizon.
And far away, on Sakhalin Island, hundreds of pirates and bounty hunters watched the sea, waiting. Some for gold, some for glory, all for the chance to challenge the crew that had humiliated the Navy itself.
The name of the Nightfall Pirates was no longer just whisper in the East Blue.
It was shouted.