At the same time another corner of the World
Rakesh Island, North Blue
Imu was sitting in a bar. He was very hungry because he had been flying all night.
'Flying is useful, but it makes you tired and hungry,' Imu thought. He looked at his empty plate and the cup in his hands.
He had flown like a silent shadow under the moon, leaving his special home, Mary Geoise, far away. He came to this island this few moments ago.
This island have its own ups and downs, Long ago a very powerful and scary pirate named Doflamingo was attacked on this island. But now, this island seemed to have fixed everything and looked happy.
The bar was calm and clean. A friendly-looking man was cleaning glasses. People were talking quietly about fishing and work. No one seemed scared or worried about the past.
'It looks peaceful,' Imu thought as he sipped his drink. 'But are they really happy, or are they just quiet because they're scared of something else?' Over many, many years, Imu had learned that peace can sometimes be a lie ready to break at any moment.
He finished his drink and stood up. He wore simple dark cloak, so no one would know how important he really was. He left a pile of money on the counter, which was more than enough for the food.
The bartender nodded. "Are you just visiting?" he asked.
Imu gave a small nod. "I am just passing by...."
The bartender smiled, but his eyes looked a little sad. "It is good that you are not from here....There's not much to see here anymore. We like it quiet now."
'They want everything to be quiet,' Imu thought as he walked outside into the bright sun. 'They think if it's quiet then they are safe, how pitiful'
The town looked just as peaceful as the bar. The streets were made of stone, and the buildings were painted bright colors with flowers in the windows. Kids were laughing and chasing each other in the town square. It looked like a perfect, happy town.
But it was a lie.
Imu walked outside of from the bar and walked Towards port of this island to go for his next destination. But at that time, Suddenly everything changed. The children stopped laughing and ran to their mothers, who pulled them inside. Shopkeepers who had been smiling now looked afraid and started panicking.
Because the pirates came.
They walked down the middle of the street like they owned the whole island. They were a messy group with cheap swords and guns. Their captain was a big man with a tangled beard and a mean look on his face. He saw a cart full of fruit and kicked it over just for fun, laughing loudly as the old man who owned it hurried to pick up the fruit, too scared to say anything.
"It's collection day..." the captain shouted, his voice echoing in the silent town. "The Leviathan Pirates are here, Give us your money so we can keep 'protecting' you. We doing this for your own good....CHIHAHAHAHAHA"
His men spread out and started taking things. One pirate grabbed a bag of money from a baker. Another scared a young woman until her father ran out and gave the pirate a pouch of coins. The people of the town gave them whatever they wanted.
Imu stood perfectly still and watched. He wasn't angry or surprised. He was just curious, like he was watching a show.
'This is just like the Heavenly Tribute' he thought, and he almost smiled.
Imu is the secret ruler of the entire world. Every few years, the kings and queens from every country would come to his home and give the world government treasure. They did this so the World Government would protect them. They called it the "Heavenly Tribute"
'These pirates are doing the same thing, just for one small island,' he thought. 'They steal money and call it 'protection'. World Government take treasure and call it a 'tribute'. It's the same idea: the strong take from the weak.'
Imu looked down on the pirates. Not because they were taking things, but because they were so messy and ugly about it. He felt like a great artist watching a little kid scribble with a crayon. They made people feel scared, but they weren't powerful or important. They were just bullies.
Imu was so busy thinking that he didn't see one of the pirates leave the group and walk toward him. The pirate was skinny, with a mean smile that showed a missing tooth. He had noticed Imu standing all alone, not looking scared like everyone else. A new person on the island was a new person to steal from.
The pirate walked right up to Imu and spit on the ground near his feet.
"Hey," the pirate growled. "You're new here."
Imu slowly turned his head. His eyes were calm and so deep it felt like they could pull you in. The pirate felt a shiver of cold run down his back, but he ignored it and tried to look tough.
"I know everyone on this island, but I don't know you," the pirate said with a nasty grin. "Since you're here, and you've seen how things work… don't think about leaving without paying us."