Grand Line, Devil's Triangle.
Thick fog enveloped this area year-round.
The unique ocean currents made it impossible for even professional navigators to accurately determine their direction.
At least a hundred ships were lost in this sea area every year, and when they were found again, there was no one on board.
Various terrifying rumors had earned this place its name, the Devil's Triangle.
At this moment.
Somewhere in the Devil's Triangle.
A huge, dilapidated ghost ship drifted with the waves.
Footsteps and humming echoed on the old, moss-covered deck.
If there were cowards here, they would surely be scared out of their wits by the sight before them.
Because the one moving freely on the deck, even humming songs, was a white skeleton.
"Yohohoho, Yohohoho, Binks's..."
Brook, the sole survivor of the Rumba Pirates, who was dead and only a pile of bones remained, sang softly and sadly to himself.
Immersed in his past memories, he didn't notice the void behind him suddenly rippling.
Immediately after, a large fishhook shot out like a sword, hooking his back collar.
"Yohoho… Ahhh!"
The terrifying force pulled Brook's skeletal body instantly into the void.
When he opened his eyes again, a huge sense of powerlessness enveloped his entire body.
Gurgle ~
Just as Brook thought he was going to inexplicably drown.
The fishing line hooked to his back collar pulled him out of the sea and into the sky.
A graceful 720-degree aerial spin, finally a perfect… dogeza face-plant, his butt sticking high into the air.
The commotion here also attracted the girls from the cabin.
Thor, Nami, and Kuina rushed to the deck to watch.
"Yohohoho, that was a close call, I almost thought I was going to inexplicably fall into the sea and drown!"
Brook laboriously moved his body, which was almost falling apart, and slowly stood upright.
"Eh? Eh eh eh! Bone bone bone… a bone, a bone actually spoke! A ghost!"
Nami, who was naturally afraid of ghosts, immediately shrieked in fright, hugging Thor beside her for a sense of security.
"Whoa whoa whoa, a ske… a skeleton is moving, this this this…"
Kuina was also greatly frightened, unable to speak coherently.
In contrast, Thor remained calm throughout.
"Are there undead creatures in this world too? Don't be afraid, that's just the lowest level of skeleton soldier!"
Thor comforted them.
Having come from a fantasy world, she was already accustomed to undead creatures.
Even terrifying high-level undead lords would only tremble before her, let alone a small skeleton soldier.
"Everyone, don't panic, I'll hold off this skeleton, you go first!"
Crocus, who had regained his senses, immediately grabbed a harpoon and pointed it nervously at Brook.
Even as the Pirate King's ship doctor, a well-traveled man, it was still his first time seeing a ghost, so it was understandable he was nervous.
"Well, don't be too nervous, Crocus, this guy isn't some supernatural creature!"
Roland chuckled, speaking calmly.
Roland was, of course, well aware of the identity of the animated skeleton he had fished up.
This was truly a coincidence; just this morning, he had been thinking about when he could help the loyal whale Laboon.
And that evening, his idea came to fruition; Brook, from the distant Devil's Triangle, was directly fished over by him.
His fishing rod was simply more effective than the Soul-Reaping Chains of the Black and White Impermanence.
"Yohohohoho, although I don't know who you are, as this gentleman said, I am a genuine human, just transformed into this state for certain reasons!"
Brook took off his hat and bowed courteously to everyone.
"Well then, meeting is fate, first, an introduction, my name is Brook, a musician, my hobbies are…"
Before Brook could finish speaking.
"Eh eh eh, Brook, and a musician!"
Kuina seemed to realize something, her eyes suddenly widening.
"Looking closely, he also has an afro!"
Nami also looked full of surprise.
"A musician! Brook! An afro!"
These elements flashed through Crocus's mind, finally connecting.
Because he had just recalled it earlier in the day, Crocus's memory was at its clearest right now.
At this moment, the image of Brook from the Rumba Pirates in Crocus's mind completely overlapped with the skeleton before him.
"Are you… are you really Brook?"
Crocus's voice was filled with excitement and an unbelievable tremor.
"Uh…"
Looking at Crocus's expression, Brook, who had originally intended to show off, couldn't help but freeze for a moment.
His empty eye sockets stared intently, and a sense of familiarity unconsciously arose in his heart.
"Are you… Mr. Crocus?"
Brook asked tentatively.
"It's me! I am Crocus of Twin Capes!"
Crocus nodded heavily.
Hum ~
At this moment, Brook felt as if an invisible hammer had struck his head, making his mind buzz and almost unable to think.
He frantically ran around, looking, as if confirming something, and finally couldn't help but fall to the ground, crying out loud.
Tears flowed uncontrollably from his empty eye sockets, tracing paths down his bony cheeks.
"I'm back! I'm really back! This is Twin Capes, where my soul has yearned for fifty years! Laboon, I'm back!"
Brook cried and laughed, shouting uncontrollably.
Splash ~
A huge mountain of seawater rose from the sea.
Under the bright moonlight, a giant island whale surfaced.
The enormous whale's eyes were fixed unblinkingly on the skeleton on the shore.
"Giao ~ Giao ~ (Welcome back ~)"
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