The sea was deceptively calm.
Hours had passed since the escape from God Valley. The screams of the dying island had faded, replaced by the rhythmic creaking of the stolen Marine battleship. The vessel was in shambles—masts splintered, sails torn, and the deck stained with blood that was rapidly drying in the afternoon sun.
Ren sat on a barrel, staring at the translucent blue screen floating before his eyes.
[Status Window]
[Name: Ren]
[Class: Necromancer (System User)]
[Chakra Level: Genin (Low)]
[Summons Active: 1/2]
[Current Summon: Hidan]
[New Summon Available!]
He felt a strange concoction of exhaustion and exhilaration. He had survived. Not only that, he was sitting ten feet away from a young Kaido.
Speaking of Kaido, the future Emperor was currently standing at the edge of the ship, shirtless, staring at his hands. His skin was rippling—scales of azure blue appearing and disappearing along his forearms.
"It feels... restless," Kaido muttered, clenching his fist. The air around his hand distorted. "Like there is a storm trapped inside my chest."
"It's a Mythical Zoan," Ren said, standing up. His legs felt wobbly. "It has a will of its own. It chose you as much as you chose it."
Kaido glanced back, his eyes slit like a reptile's. "You know too much for a stray noble brat."
Ren shrugged, trying to appear confident. "I told you. I know the world."
"Hey! Oi!"
A loud, complaining voice broke the tension. Hidan was hopping around the deck on one leg. His other leg—the one that had been shattered—was fully healed, but he seemed to be nursing a grudge.
"This ship sucks!" Hidan yelled, kicking a dead Marine corpse. "There's no food. There's no booze. And my scythe is chipped! Hey, Ren! Summon me a blacksmith! Or a waitress!"
Kaido's brow twitched. A vein pulsed in his forehead. "Ren. Can you shut him up? Or do I throw him overboard again?"
"I'd like to see you try, horns!" Hidan retorted, spinning his scythe. "I'll curse you! I'll perform the ritual right here on this—"
"I can fix this," Ren said quickly, stepping between the two disasters.
He looked at the dead Marine Hidan had just kicked.
[Valid Sacrifice Detected.]
[Select 2nd Summon.]
Ren's mind raced. He needed someone who could control Hidan. Someone who provided utility. Someone who understood the logistics of an organization, because Kaido was too chaotic and Hidan was... Hidan.
He needed the Treasurer of the Akatsuki.
"System," Ren commanded mentally. "Summon Kakuzu."
[Confirming Selection: Kakuzu of the Waterfall.]
[Cost: 1 Corpse + 50% Chakra Reserves.]
[Initiating.]
Ren felt a wave of nausea as half his energy was siphoned away instantly. He dropped to one knee.
On the deck, the dead Marine convulsed.
"Oh?" Kaido watched with interest, leaning against the rail. "Another one?"
The grey ash swirled again, thicker this time. It wrapped around the corpse, consuming it, reshaping the bone structure. The body grew taller, broader. Dark threads—like muscle fibers made of black wire—stitched the flesh together.
A white hood formed. Then a mask covering the mouth. Then the green eyes with red sclera.
The dust cleared.
Standing on the deck was a tall, tanned man wearing the Akatsuki cloak (though it looked tattered, a result of the imperfect summon). He had stitches running down his arms and neck.
Kakuzu blinked. He looked at his hands. He flexed his fingers, the black threads under his skin writhing.
He looked around the ship. He saw the destroyed mast. He saw the dead bodies. He saw the vast ocean.
Finally, his eyes landed on Hidan.
"You," Kakuzu said, his voice deep and gravelly.
Hidan froze. His eyes went wide. "Oh no. No no no. Ren! Send him back! Send him back right now!"
Kakuzu walked forward, ignoring Kaido and Ren. He grabbed Hidan by the collar of his cloak and lifted him off the ground.
"Hidan," Kakuzu growled. "Where is my money?"
"I don't have your money!" Hidan flailed. "We're dead! Or... summoned! Or something! Look around, you greedy old miser!"
Kakuzu dropped Hidan and scanned the surroundings. He walked over to the nearest dead Marine, crouched down, and rifled through the soldier's pockets. He pulled out a few Berries (the currency of the One Piece world) and a silver pocket watch.
Kakuzu stared at the currency. "This isn't Ryo."
"It's Berries," Ren spoke up.
Kakuzu turned his terrifying gaze to Ren. "Berries?"
"The currency of this world," Ren explained, standing up and dusting off his knees. "I summoned you. Just like I summoned Hidan. We are in a different world. A world of pirates."
Kakuzu stared at Ren for a long, uncomfortable silence. The killing intent radiating off him was suffocating, almost as heavy as Kaido's pressure, but sharper.
"A different world," Kakuzu repeated. He looked at the ship, then at the vast ocean. "Does this world have bounty stations?"
"Yes," Ren said. "The Marines pay high prices for the heads of pirates."
Kakuzu's eyes narrowed. "And what is the exchange rate?"
"High," Ren promised. "Millions. Billions for the strong ones."
Kakuzu was silent for another moment. Then, the killing intent vanished. He pocketed the dead Marine's watch.
"Fine," Kakuzu said. "I will work with you. But you handle the talking. I handle the finances." He pointed a stitched finger at Hidan. "And if he annoys me, I kill him."
"You can't kill me!" Hidan shouted. "I'm immortal!"
"I can dismember you and bury you in a box," Kakuzu countered calmly. "Do not test me."
"Wororororo!"
The laughter shook the deck. Kaido was holding his stomach, laughing so hard tears were forming in his eyes.
"I like this one!" Kaido pointed his club at Kakuzu. "He's got a good look. Stitch-face, what can you do? Are you immortal too?"
Kakuzu looked at the giant. He didn't seem intimidated, merely calculating. "I am hard to kill. I have... multiple hearts."
"Hearts?" Kaido grinned. "I have a heart too. A heart that wants war."
Kaido walked to the center of the deck, towering over his small crew. A boy, a religious maniac, and a zombie treasurer. It was a circus. But it was his circus.
"Listen up!" Kaido bellowed.
Ren, Kakuzu, and Hidan (reluctantly) looked at him.
"We are the Beast Pirates," Kaido declared. "We don't have a flag. We don't have a base. We don't have a ship that isn't falling apart."
"We are financially insolvent," Kakuzu added dryly.
"Exactly!" Kaido smashed his club onto the deck. "So we're going to take what we need. Ren! Where are we?"
Ren scrambled to find a map he had looted from the captain's quarters earlier. He spread it out on a crate.
"We drifted South-East from God Valley," Ren said, tracing a line. "We're in the New World, but close to the entry point. The nearest island is... Hachinosu. Pirate Island."
"Hachinosu?" Kaido scoffed. "Wang Zhi will be there. Or Shiki. I don't want to see their faces right now."
"Then there's this one," Ren pointed to a smaller, jagged island nearby. "Raijin Island. Constant lightning storms. Most ships avoid it."
"Lightning?" Kaido looked at the sky. He remembered the feeling of the Azure Dragon—the power over wind and clouds.
"Perfect," Kaido grinned. "We go there. We hide in the storm. We fix the ship. And we train."
He looked at Ren.
"You rely on these summons, brat. But you're weak. If I flick you, you die."
Ren swallowed. "I know."
"On that island," Kaido said, his voice dropping to a serious growl, "I'm going to teach you Haki. If you don't learn it... Kakuzu can have your heart."
Kakuzu nodded approvingly. "I could use a spare."
Ren looked at the three monsters surrounding him. The difficulty setting of his new life had just skyrocketed. But looking at Kaido's burning ambition and the Akatsuki standing ready, Ren couldn't help but grin.
"Deal," Ren said. "Set course for the lightning."
[System Notification]
[New Quest Generated: The Path of Power]
[Objective: Unlock Armament Haki.]
[Time Limit: 1 Month.]
[Failure Penalty: Death by Kaido.]
Ren sighed. Welcome to the crew.