"Their captain is a really strong rookie," one of Whitey Bay's subordinates explained.
"A rookie? You're saying you got beaten by a rookie?" Whitey Bay found it hard to believe.
Even if her crew wasn't the strongest, they were still New World pirates—veterans who had survived the fiercest battles.
Some of her officers had even come from the Whitebeard Pirates. While they weren't top-tier members, they were still at squad captain leaders—yet they'd been beaten by a newcomer?
"They also stole our treasure," another crewmate muttered.
"They WHAT?!" Whitey Bay's eyes flared with rage. "Where are they now?"
"They already left."
"Chase after them."
"Yes, Captain!"
The crew scrambled into action until they saw the strange shells Roy had brought back. Some of them grumbled under their breath.
Still, because Roy was Whitey Bay's husband, they didn't dare speak up.
"Store those gold bars properly," Whitey Bay said, pointing to a few large chests nearby. Upon opening them and seeing the treasure inside, everyone was stunned.
"How can there be this much gold?"
"HOLY—! How is there this much gold?!"
"Don't ask questions. Just secure it—Roy brought it back."
The gold had been melted and poured directly into the chests by Enel, forming solid blocks. Ten chests in total, each so heavy it took four men to lift one.
"You find these seashells more interesting than the gold?" Whitey Bay said as she sat beside Roy.
Roy was playing with the shells. He picked one up and said, "This is a Wind Dial. If you combine it with a Heat Dial, you can make a hair dryer. I'll use it to dry your hair next time." He grinned.
Seeing Roy's smile, Whitey Bay felt warm inside and turned away shyly.
"Hmph, at least you've got some heart."
On the Grand Line, the sailing routes are fixed. The pirate crew that had attacked Whitey Bay's men would definitely appear on the next island.
Sure enough, by the third day, they caught up.
"That flag looks familiar..."
Roy squinted at the enemy ship's Jolly Roger. It triggered a memory—he recognized it, but couldn't quite place it.
"Captain, it's them!"
With Whitey Bay backing them up, her crew had regained their confidence and were eager to fight.
"Charge! Take them down!" Whitey Bay shouted.
After over 30 years of battling at sea, she'd seen all kinds of opponents.
With her crew stronger than the average pirate crew and Whitey Bay herself joining in, they quickly overwhelmed the enemy.
"Y-You're done for! Our captain will make you regret this!" one of the defeated pirates spat.
"Your captain attacked my men while I was gone. Let's see how strong he really is," Whitey Bay sneered.
After a while, a group hurried back, led by a young man in a cowboy hat and a light yellow shirt.
"Let my crew go," he demanded.
"So you're the one who messed with my people? You've got some nerve."
"Captain, that's the guy. Be careful—he defeated one of the Seven Warlords, Hanafuda!"
"Oh? Defeated a Warlord? Not bad."
The Seven Warlords were certainly no pushovers. For a rookie to take one of them down was impressive.
"Fire Fist!"
The young man didn't hesitate—his fist erupted in flames, launching a blazing punch straight at Whitey Bay.
"A Logia?!"
Whitey Bay drew her sword, coating it in Armament Haki. She slashed at Ace's flaming punch.
Boom!
With a boom, the flames were extinguished. Ace realized this woman was no ordinary opponent, she cut through his fire attack with ease.
The two clashed fiercely. Whitey Bay possessed the strength of a Whitebeard Pirates division commander.
The two clashed fiercely. Whitey Bay's strength was on par with a Whitebeard Commander more than enough to rival most Warlords.
Their battle dragged on for half a day. Both were panting heavily, eyeing each other warily.
Ace had been cautious the whole time, he could sense the danger from Whitey Bay's sword. If not for his quick elemental transformation movement, he might've been killed.
"What the hell…? Why do I feel so threatened?" Ace muttered. Even against Hanafuda, he hadn't felt this much pressure. But this woman was different.
"Since when are rookies this strong?" Not only a Logia user but powerful in combat too," Whitey Bay said, flicking her sword and becoming even more serious.
"You're probably hungry. Want to stop and eat something?" Roy came out just then with a bowl of noodles and walked over to Whitey Bay.
"Dear, I'm in the middle of a fight!" Whitey Bay complained.
"Fighting on an empty stomach is bad for your health," Roy chuckled, then turned to Ace. "Right, kid?"
The moment Ace heard Whitey Bay call Roy "big bro," he felt something was off. Wait... could this man be the actual captain? He could maybe handle one of them, but both? Not a chance.
"...You make a good point," Ace said as his stomach growled.
"Go ahead and eat, then fight again later." Roy picked up some noodles and blew on them. Whitey Bay bit her lip, feeling a little embarrassed to be doted on in public. Was Roy really going to feed her in front of everyone?
"I-I can feed myself!" She reached out and took the bowl.
The others were used to this. Roy and Whitey Bay had a child who was already thirteen nothing about their relationship surprised anyone anymore.
Ace went back to his crew to eat. After resting, he and Whitey Bay resumed their battle.
By dawn, Ace began to gain the upper hand and was about to end the fight when Roy finally got up.
"Alright, kid. You can leave now." Roy said with a smile.
"Big Bro, I haven't lost yet!" Whitey Bay protested.
"You have now. Let them go," Roy replied calmly.
"Hey, our captain was about to win! What do you mean, let us go—"
"Enough. We're leaving."
Ace cut off his crewmate, his gaze locked on Roy.
Something about this smiling man set off every alarm in his instincts.
For just a second, he had sensed it—a presence so terrifying it reminded him of Garp.
Ace and his crew left. Whitey Bay was still a bit unhappy.
"Why let them go?"
"You'll understand soon enough." Roy smiled mysteriously.
"Ugh, not this again… Fine."
They continued their adventures, and a few months later, Whitey Bay finally understood what Roy meant.
"He actually joined our pirate crew?!"
Whitey Bay was stunned when she saw the news. Just recently, she'd read that Ace had been defeated by Whitebeard and laughed for a while about it.
Now, only a few months later, Ace had joined the Whitebeard Pirates.
A few months after that, he became the Second Division Commander.
"He took Oden's old position… Could it be that Pops is thinking…"
....
If you enjoy the story, my p@treon is 30 chapters ahead.
p@treon.com/DaoistJinzu