Just then, a hand suddenly gripped the ship's railing from below, and with a surge of strength, its owner effortlessly leaped onto the ship, landing on the deck beside the rail.
The newcomer wore a wine-red overcoat and had silver-gray hair, with a handsome appearance.
This guy was also a student of the Isshin Dojo, having arrived after Zoro. His name was "Saka."
He was a kind-hearted, good-natured, and strikingly handsome man.
He was the navigator for Zoro's voyages at sea during this period and Zoro's fellow pirate hunter.
Like Ahua and the other two, Saka had left the dojo years ago. However, he had no family fortune to inherit, so he went to sea as a pirate hunter.
His encounter with Zoro happened at a Marine base while exchanging bounties.
Upon seeing Zoro, he was overjoyed and immediately invited Zoro to hunt pirates together. He was well aware of Zoro's strength!
Zoro, being the only one at the dojo who trained under Kouta and Kuina, was bound to be strong.
Indeed, his choice was not wrong. Since teaming up with Zoro, the bounties of the pirates they hunted had steadily increased, and it was always easy, with no danger.
However, there was one downside to teaming up with Zoro: he always finished off the pirates before Saka could even get on board, leaving him with no sense of accomplishment, just like this time... it was the same.
But this time, he seemed to have overheard something amusing, which he could use to mock this guy.
Saka looked at Zoro, who was approaching, and laughed heartily, "Hahaha!! The nickname 'Mosshead' really suits you, Zoro!"
Zoro's already cold expression became even colder. He yelled at Saka, "Are you looking for a fight? If you are, I'll remind you of the fear you felt facing me when we were kids."
"Hahaha!! Are you embarrassed?"
Saka was not afraid of Zoro!
Although this guy was indifferent to pirates and enemies, he was actually quite gentle towards those around him and ordinary people.
"You punk."
Zoro tightened his grip on the hilt of Kaiyo, then, as if remembering something, cast a disdainful glance at Saka, "You're always so slow. Why don't you go handle the pirate captain's head?"
Saying that, he arrogantly walked past Saka and stood at the bow of the ship, "You're the errand boy."
"You..."
Saka looked at Zoro and yelled angrily, "Am I slow? You're the one who always kills them too fast, alright!"
"Don't make excuses for yourself. Slow is slow. You're the errand boy."
Zoro turned and cast a proud glance at Saka, then turned back, letting the sea breeze ruffle his hair, "Hurry up, or the head will be harder to deal with later."
"You..."
He had no response to Zoro's words. He rolled his eyes in frustration, turned around, and hopped his way across the blood-splattered deck.
When he reached the pirate captain's side and looked at the lifeless head on the ground, he couldn't help but chuckle softly.
"Truly a monster!"
A target with a bounty of 7 million Berries. If he had faced this person before, he would have been extremely cautious and taken a lot of effort to hunt them down.
Thinking about the pirates they had hunted recently, he couldn't help but shake his head. He bent down, picked up the head, and put it into the special bag hanging from his waist.
Let alone seven million, even ten or twenty million might just be a single strike against this monster!
During his time with Zoro, his only feeling was: "Strong, too strong."
No wonder Kouta treated him so specially.
Thinking of Kouta, he couldn't help but turn, walk to the bow, and look out at the sea ahead with Zoro, saying, "It's been 4 months since we've heard any news from Kouta and the others. I wonder where those guys are enjoying themselves now!"
"Kouta."
Zoro tightened his grip on Kaiyo's hilt. Thinking of the reason he set sail, his gaze became even more determined.
"Wait for me, wait for me to challenge you!"
After months at sea, he could clearly feel his progress. He could sense a power gathering within him.
"Indeed, fighting others is the best way to improve one's strength."
"That power is what Kouta mentioned, the power everyone has within them!"
Before long, he would awaken his own power, just like Kuina, and become a true swordsman.
And then... he would also go to the Grand Line.
"Oh! Right, what terrible thing did Ahua do to be worth such a sky-high bounty of 500 million Berries!"
Thinking of Ahua, Saka couldn't help but laugh, "Hahaha!! This guy is the most timid among us. I wonder what he'll feel when he sees his own bounty is so high."
"Hahahaha..."
Thinking of Ahua, Zoro's lips couldn't help but curve upwards, a smile appearing.
"I suppose that's the reason Kouta disappeared for a few months!"
"After all, Ahua's strength..."
Saka didn't need to say it; he understood. Ahua and the other two were the weakest among them.
They exchanged a look and burst into laughter.
"Hahahaha..."
Their laughter echoed around the pirate ship, across the sea, and far into the distance.
...
Just as Zoro and Saka were thinking about Ahua.
Ahua was not what they imagined.
If one were to consider pure strength, perhaps even the current Zoro would not be Ahua's match.
The Grand Line, Little Garden.
At the foot of the central volcano lay countless colossal dinosaur skeletons.
Beyond the skeletons.
In the open space.
A giant white-furred rabbit was fighting a giant, bipedal ant with six arms.
The rabbit's eyes were blood-red, and white steam enveloped its entire body.
The steam was formed by evaporating sweat.
Little Garden was a summer island, hot and humid, and with a giant volcano behind them, the temperature was even higher.
The speed of their battle was so great that ordinary people couldn't see it clearly, only two streaks of white and black light colliding and entwining.
Bang bang bang—!!
The sounds echoed continuously.
At the edge of the battlefield, beside a colossal dinosaur corpse, sat two tall and mighty giants.
These giants stood over 20 meters tall, and even sitting down, they were about 10 meters high.
These two giants were the warrior giants who had been fighting on Little Garden for a long time, the two captains of the Giant Warrior Pirates 100 years ago.
"Dorry" and "Brodie."
Dorry, known as "Blue Ogre," bounty: 100 million Berries.
Brodie, known as "Red Ogre," bounty: also 100 million Berries.
100 years ago, these two each captured a Sea King.
However, a question from a little girl led them to argue about whose prey was bigger.
Unable to settle their dispute, they decided to resolve it through a duel.
Thus, the two of them began to duel on Little Garden, agreeing to fight whenever the central volcano on the island erupted. Only the survivor would return to their homeland.
Because their duels remained undecisive, the Giant Warrior Pirates disbanded, and the other giant warriors on the ship returned to Elbaf village to await news.
They waited for 100 years.
He wondered if their crewmates were still waiting for them in the village.