Time is a relentless tide. On Mt. Colubo, the leaves withered and turned gold three times, marking the passage of three grueling years.
Deep within the borders of the Goa Kingdom lies the Grey Terminal—the filthiest scar on the face of the country. Here, mountains of trash reach for the sky, and the air is a thick, choking veil of rot and chemical stench.
Inside the rusted ribs of an abandoned galleon deep within the heaps, a rasping, arrogant laugh broke the silence.
"Hahaha! Look at you now, brat. No matter how tough your hide is, these Sea Prism Stone cuffs make that rubber body of yours useless, don't they?"
Bluejam, a veteran pirate of the East Blue with a 14.3 million Berry bounty, leveled his flintlock pistol. The cold iron muzzle pressed hard against the forehead of a ten-year-old boy in a tattered straw hat.
Behind the captain stood dozens of cutthroats, their blades unsheathed and muskets aimed. The floor around them was littered with the groaning bodies of pirates who had already tasted defeat.
Despite being chained to a support pillar, ten-year-old Luffy didn't flinch. His eyes burned with the ferocity of a cornered wolf. After three years of Ace's "special hell," the snot-nosed crybaby of the past was dead. Only a warrior remained.
If Bluejam hadn't resorted to a net gun ambush and those rare Sea Prism Stone shackles, these bottom-feeders wouldn't have stood a chance.
Pah!
Luffy spat a glob of blood onto the floor, his gaze unwavering. "You're all weak. You couldn't even beat me fairly. Once Ace and Sabo get here, they're going to grind you into the trash where you belong!"
"Ace? Sabo?" Bluejam sneered, mocking the boy by tapping the pistol barrel against his cheek. "You mean those two brats playing hero in the slums? I'm a Great Pirate bound for the Grand Line! If they show their faces, I'll turn them into—"
BOOM—!!
The massive iron bulkhead of the ship didn't just open; it disintegrated. It was as if a cannonball had struck it dead-center. The screech of shearing metal drowned out Bluejam's words as a shockwave of debris tore through the four pirates standing guard at the entrance, sending them flying like broken ragdolls.
Through the swirling dust and smoke, two figures stepped over the wreckage.
The youth in the lead was an anomaly. At thirteen, he stood nearly 1.8 meters tall. His red vest hung open, revealing a torso sculpted like hammered bronze—every muscle defined, corded, and humming with explosive intent. Beneath a mop of dark, curly hair, his eyes flashed with a wild, predatory light.
Beside him walked a blond youth in a blue tailcoat and a top hat. He tapped a length of iron pipe against his palm, the end of the metal ground to a razor-sharp, wicked point.
"Yo, Luffy."
Ace shoved his hands into his pockets, his lips curling into a sharp, jagged grin. "Getting caught by low-tier trash like this? I guess tomorrow's endurance training is getting doubled."
"Ace! Sabo!" Luffy didn't call for help; he shouted a warning. "Watch out! The one in the big hat is actually strong!"
"So, you're the brats who don't know their place?" Bluejam's face contorted, his pride stung by the destruction of his door. As a man with a double-digit million bounty, he hadn't survived this long by being patient. "Kill them! Turn them into Swiss cheese!"
"Fire!"
A thunderous volley of lead erupted from dozens of flintlocks. A rain of metal whistled through the cramped cabin, sealing off every inch of the doorway. The air turned acrid with the sudden stench of gunpowder.
"Sabo, take the left."
"Copy that, Captain. Make it quick—I'd rather not get their filth on my coat."
Just as the bullets reached them, a dull sonic boom cracked under their feet.
Bang!
The wooden deck shattered. Before the pirates could even blink, the two figures vanished into a blur of motion.
"What?! Where did they go?"
"Behind you, morons," Sabo's voice drifted from the left.
He cut through the crowd like a blue phantom. His pipe whistled through the air with surgical precision. Crack-crack-crack! Five musketeers went down instantly, their jaws shattered before they could even register the pain.
On the other side of the room, Bluejam's pupils shrank to pinpricks. A violent gust of wind was screaming toward his face.
"Don't mock me, brat! I am Bluejam!"
The pirate captain roared, drawing a massive, broad-backed machete stained with the rust of old blood. His veins bulged like snakes as he swung the heavy blade in a horizontal arc, aiming to cleave the incoming afterimage in two.
It was a strike meant to fell an elephant.
But Ace didn't dodge. He didn't even slow down. A spark of pure, defiant excitement lit up his dark eyes.
"Kami-e!"
Just as the steel was about to bite into his chest, Ace's body went limp. He became as fluid as a silk ribbon caught in a gale, his torso leaning back at an impossible angle. The heavy blade whistled past the tip of his nose, catching only a few stray hairs.
"He dodged?!" Bluejam gasped, but his instincts took over. He twisted his wrist, bringing the massive blade down in a vertical chop to crush the leaning boy.
"Decent reflexes," Ace laughed, his voice dripping with arrogance. "But your power? It's pathetic compared to the old man's!"
Ace's legs coiled like massive springs. Instead of retreating, he lunged forward. He ignored the descending steel and threw a straight, unadorned punch directly at the flat of the blade.
Flesh and bone met tempered steel.
BOOM—!!
The collision unleashed a visible shockwave. The rotting floorboards beneath them gave way, splinters spraying outward like shrapnel.
"This... this is impossible!"
Bluejam felt the recoil travel up his arm like an electric shock. The skin between his thumb and forefinger tore open, blood spraying across the hilt. He stared in horror—a thirteen-year-old child had stopped his full-power strike with a naked fist.
What kind of monster was wearing this boy's skin?
"Focus, old man," Ace grinned, the muscles in his arm rippling as his strength surged.
Bluejam felt an irresistible, mountain-toppling force erupt from the boy's knuckles. He was thrown backward, his boots carving deep ruts into the deck as he struggled to stay upright.
"You... you little monster!"