East Blue - An unknown location on the sea.

 

On 'Black Star', the Black Storm pirates were doing their own things and relaxing in their own ways.

Brain was lying on the ship's deck, basking in the warm sunlight and having a nice nap.

Zero was in the gym, working out.

Erya was sitting in the control & monitoring room, keeping watch on the area around the ship.

While Sebas, who was previously enjoying a cup of tea, was now receiving the latest newspaper from a News Coo ( the bird who delivers the newspaper).

 

On the other hand, Austin was sitting on a chair on the ship's deck, enjoying the sea view.

With a smile on his face, Austin was looking at the endless sea, thinking. - ' It's been a day since we left Conomi Island. So I look forward to our wanted posters.'

According to Rayan, their wanted posters should be out yesterday, but Austin's group has yet to meet with any News Coo, so they have yet to see their bounties.

At least, that is what Austin thought until he suddenly heard some approaching footsteps.

When he turned around to see who it was, he was surprised to find Sebas coming toward him with a smile on his face while holding a newspaper.

" My lord, it's finally here," Sebas said as he handed the newspaper to Austin.

" Finally, Let's see! " Austin excitedly opened the newspaper and found the posters on it.

 

{ Ray . D . Austin | Dead Or Alive | 50 000 000 Berry }

{ Brain Unglaus | Dead Or Alive | 20 000 000 Berry }

{ Zero | Dead Or Alive | 18 000 000 Berry }

{ Sebas | Dead Or Alive | 15 000 000 Berry }

 

Inspecting the wanted posters, Austin couldn't help but smile because the pictures on the posters were the same ones Rayan had taken for them.

He looked at his first bounty, which was 50 million Berry, and was surprised, thinking. - 'Huh? 50 million! Why?'

Austin quickly started reading the newspaper to see what was written in it.

He was surprised after he found out that the News mentioned him taking down Buggy, Ganzack, and Arlong.

' As expected of the Navy, their intelligence department is unmatchable.' - Austin scratched his chin, thinking. - ' I know that Rayan had told them about me taking down Arlong. But apparently, the reason it took them two days to issue me a bounty is likely because they were gathering more information about me! '

Continuing to read the News, Austin quickly found what made his first bounty very high, considering this is only the East Blue.

Simply put, his bounty was high because he had killed many Navy soldiers and 'important' officers.

The newspaper clearly mentioned that he killed twenty soldiers, two Lieutenant Commanders, and a Captain.

And as usual, the News didn't mention that Captain Nezumi was corrupted or the incident with Captain Axe-hand Morgane.

 

After finishing reading the newspaper, Austin grinned, thinking. - '50 million is not bad as a start. At least, that's more than Luffy's first bounty.'

He looked at Sebas and gave him the newspaper and the bounties.

The old butler took them and quickly started reading the News, and at the end, he checked the bounties and smiled.

" 15 million, huh?" Sebas smiled, " A good start, I would say!"

" Indeed, this is just the East Blue, after all." Austin nodded in agreement.

" But still, 50 million as a start is not worthy of you, my lord. You deserve at least double that amount, " Sebas said with displeasure.

" It can't be helped, Sebas! ... I asked Rayan not to tell the Navy about my true strength. I don't want to get targeted this soon," Austin smirked, saying, " We need to get much stronger before we reveal our true strength."

" I see." Sebas smiled and asked, " Should I give those two their bounties ?"

" Yeah, go call them over." Austin grinned.

Sebas quickly called Brain and Zero. And soon, the two surrounded Austin like puppies waiting to get their toys. They were eager to see their bounties, especially Zero.

Austin smiled and gave the duo their bounties.

 

" HAHAHA, 18 million as a start is actually quite good. " Zero said happily after inspecting his bounty.

" Indeed." Sebas nodded.

" How much is your bounty Sebas?" Zero asked curiously.

" 15 million. " Sebas replied with a soft smile.

" I see ... Well, it's not bad as a start either," Zero encouraged Sebas, but despite his effort, he couldn't hide that expression of smugness that naturally arose on his face when he knew that his bounty was higher than Sebas'.

Sebas noticed this but just smiled gently in return because he already knew Zero's personality and the latter's love for competitions and winning.

" What about you, Brain?" Zero asked in anticipation.

"These bastards are looking down on me ... Humph!" Brain remarked angrily.

" How much is your bounty?" Zero couldn't hide his joy when he heard Brain's complaint, so he hurriedly asked.

" Tsk, it's 20 million." Brain shook his head as he responded in disappointment.

" What?!" Zero yelled in shock as his expression of joy instantly evaporated. He quickly asked in disbelief, " You got a higher bounty than me?!"

" Huh? What did you expect? You expect me to have a lower bounty than you?" Brain scoffed, " Humph! Dream on!"

" F**king hell!" Zero cursed, adding, " How is that possible? Aren't we on the same level?"

" That has nothing to do with this ..." Brain smirked, saying, " Simply put, the Navy thinks of me as more of a serious threat than you."

" F***!" Zero cursed, barking angrily in response, " What did you say?"

" Humph! Believe it or not, it's your problem," Brain smiled evilly, adding more salt to Zero's injury by saying, " In the end, my bounty is higher than yours, and you can't change that for now."

Zero gritted his teeth and couldn't find anything to answer him because it was indeed the truth, so he changed his approach to avoid losing this 'fight'.

" It's all Rayan's fault!" Zero angrily stated as veins started popping out on his forehead.

 

" My lord, can you allow me to speak to Rayan using your Den Den Mushi ?" Zero asked Austin, who was watching their entire exchanges with a smile from the side.

" Huh?" Austin was surprised to be called suddenly. But upon hearing Zero's request, he immediately shook his head, stating, " Rayan has nothing to do with this. Keep him out of this."

" You heard our lord," Brain grinned with a smug expression, stating, " Rayan has nothing to with this. The man has done his job perfectly, so keep him out of this."

" F***!" Zero cursed furiously before coming up with an idea, which made him smile evilly.

" Alright, whatever ... But the next time I meet him, I will have a small sparing match with him to see his progress. " Zero smiled evilly, saying.

" Dream on! You just want to beat him up ..." Brain sneered, adding, " I will not let you touch him."

" You think you can stop me?" Zero narrowed his eyes dangerously, glaring at Brain.

Austin and Sebas looked at each other before they shook their heads in unison.

They quickly left the area, leaving those two to continue their barking alone.

 

Austin went to the ship's front, observing the sea and thinking aloud. " I wonder what happened to Luffy and the other straw hats."

.....

Meanwhile, at Cocomi Islands, a ship with a pirate flag arrived and docked at Cocoyashi's village shore.

An orange-haired girl jumped from the ship and quickly ran toward her house at Mikan Grove.

Yes! The girl is Nami, and the ship is the Going Merry!

 

As for what led Nami to arrive here alone and on the Going Merry on top of it, it's actually the same thing that happened in the Anime.

Despite Austin's intervention which caused a delay in Luffy's journey, the latter still managed to eventually create the Straw Hats.

The first one to join him was Zoro. The two met on a random island while fighting the same pirate group who terrorized that area, which turned out to be extremely weak pirates.

After Luffy and Zoro eliminate the weak pirates easily, a lot happens between the two, leading Zoro to join Luffy eventually.

Simply put, the two of them were fated to meet each other!

 

The second one to join was Nami.

Some days ago, Nami left her village quickly, searching for the last 2 million needed to finish the deal with Arlong.

And since it was her 'final' voyage before 'freedom', she decided to search for a quick and easier catch because she didn't want to risk losing everything at the last minute due to rashness.

That's how she met Zoro and Luffy, who she considered her perfect prey, as they were kind, easy to fool, and strong individuals.

So since then, she has stayed with them, waiting for an ideal opportunity to rob them and run away!

 

The third one to join was Usopp.

Taking Austin's advice seriously, Usopp stayed at his village training while waiting for the supposed 'Fated' group.

Some days ago, Luffy and the rest arrived at the village, and after some minor events, Usopp felt that this group was the 'one' he was waiting for, so he joined them on their journey afterward.

 

And the last one to join was Sanji.

Luffy's group arrived at the Baratie restaurant guided by the duo of pirate hunters who had been saved by Luffy before.

They arrived at the restaurant the same day the Krieg pirates planned to attack.

Next, the same thing that transpired in the Anime occurred. Nami saw Arlong's wanted poster and decided to speed things up, so she took advantage of the mess created by both Krieg Pirates and Mihawk arrivals to run quickly toward Arlong Park, stealing Going Merry in the process.

Zoro fought Mihawk and lost, getting a severe injury as a result, while Luffy fought Krieg and won.

The events afterward were the same as in the Anime, Sanji joined the group, and they left to chase after Nami later on.

 

As for why Nami arrived at Cocoyashi village instead of Arlong Park, well, it was because when she was on her way to the Park, a news Coo arrived at the ship with the latest newspaper.

When Nami checked the News, she was shocked when she found out about the incident in her village, which made her change the ship's course, heading to Cocoyashi village to verify the truth and ensure that her village didn't get destroyed or harmed in the 'fierce' battle.

.....

The News didn't reach Nami alone but circulated worldwide, especially in the East Blue.

A new pirate crew named 'The Black Storm Pirates' has been formed.

The captain with the nickname 'Black Storm Austin' took down the two strongest pirate crews with the highest bounty on the East Blue. And he also killed many Navy officers and soldiers, which resulted in him receiving 50 million Berries as a globally unprecedented starting bounty.

In addition to the captain, the crew had three other members with bounties on their heads, with the lowest bounty being 15 million Berries.

These News shocked the entire East Blue as waves of uneasiness spread among its residents. Everyone was frightened by these new criminals!

 

Yet, contrary to the atmosphere of fear and anxiety in most of East Blue's islands, the islands previously visited by Austin's group were dancing with joy and celebrating.

On Conomi island, everyone in the island's villages and towns was celebrating the new wanted posters of the Black Storm pirates.

Nojiko pinned Austin's poster on her house's wall, smiling happily every time she glanced at the picture.

 

At the now-damaged Baratie restaurant, Zeff examined the posters with an apparent surprise on his face, remembering the group that had visited him before.

During the Krieg pirates' last attack on his restaurant, he was tempted to use 'that' Den Den Mushi but stopped at the last moment after remembering Austin's last words.

That man clearly advised him not to use his favor on something weak and stupid.

So Zeff kept 'that' Den Den Mushi to be used in case those monsters of the New World ever came knocking on his door.

 

In Orange town, the townspeople were cheering while holding the posters of their saviors!

And in Shell town, the people were happy seeing their savior's face on the poster, especially Koby, who was beaming with joy, vowing to achieve his dream too.

On the island previously occupied by the Ganzack pirates, the villagers were having a festival celebrating the first bounties of The Black Storm Pirates, the group of pirates who saved and freed them.

 

Overall, the situation changed dramatically with this new News.

Everyone learned that a new and strong group had emerged in East Blue as its top dogs.

All the East Blue pirates and Navy alike remembered the names and appearances of the new locale's strongest crew, The Black Strom Pirates!

 

_________________________

( A/N: If you like to read some chapters in Advance, you can visit my Patreon page! You will find there up to 5 weeks' worth of Chapters in Advance.

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PS: If you wish to see the illustration of the wanted posters, you can find them on the discord server or my Patreon and Ko-fi pages. ( By the way, they are available for the public for free.)

Here is the link to my Ko-fi page: https://ko-fi.com/asbarta.

 

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