Pirate: It’s not a phantom beast, it’s a phantom god!

Chapter 383 The World's Number One Pirate Crew
Da da da!
The wooden clogs made a series of clattering sounds as they stepped on the ground.
On a small island in the New World, a tall samurai, wielding two swords, charged forward with an excited expression, like a demon.

Opposite him was a sharp-looking man who also looked excited and eager to try.

The distance between the two closed rapidly...

Clang!
In the instant before their figures crossed, the samurai crossed his twin swords in a preparatory stance for an attack... but the man opposite him was faster!

"Yo~ Samurai~"

Stab it!

A flash of crimson and black lightning streaked across the sky, followed by a terrifying slash that seemed capable of repelling even the gods.

"God avoids!"

"Varied--"

boom!
In a split second, the samurai's figure flew backward at a speed invisible to the naked eye... The giant trees with diameters of tens of meters along the way were as fragile as paper and could not even provide any resistance before being pierced through!
Kozuki Oden—the strongest samurai in Wano Country, a man who had almost never encountered an opponent since he set sail… was now defeated in a single blow!

But no one present showed any surprise, because he was facing the man standing at the very top of this vast ocean!
……

"What, what is this?!"

Oden, who had been knocked away, finally managed to stand up again. Before he could even be surprised, a figure swept past his head.

"Yo! Roger!!!"

A blond-haired man with a white beard leaped down from the sky, a bold smile on his face, the [Murakumogiri] he held high was already wrapped in a fierce and domineering aura.

"Whitebeard, huh?"

"Sashi ignores me~"

As if by telepathy, Roger looked up at the white-bearded man who was swinging his sword as if he were about to split the entire island in two... A red light flashed in his eyes, and then he suddenly took a step forward, gripping his sword tightly with both hands.

Clang! ! !
The next moment, everything changed!

……

This conflict, which took place in the New World, between the two most powerful pirates on the high seas at that time—the Roger Pirates and the Whitebeard Pirates—lasted for three days and three nights.

……

Fourth day.

"Hey? Your shirt is a nice style!"

"That's~"

"This is a limited edition 'Sumo Panda' this year, it cost me a whopping 52,000 Berries!"

"That's right, that's the price!"

"Your wine is excellent, it tastes fantastic!"

"Haha~ This is a high-end wine produced by Fenrir, which is very difficult for ordinary people to obtain."

"Hmm! So it's wine from there?!"

"It is said that one of the best spirits in the New World, Snow Wolf, is produced on that island."

"However, I have no chance to get my hands on that level of stuff."

"Hehe! We were lucky enough to try it back in the day!"

"That taste...tsk tsk..."

What should have been a scene of mutual slaughter and plunder turned into a lively trade fair for some reason... The two pirate crews actually started exchanging goods with each other in a pleasant manner.

Um... of course, there were also some less pleasant ones.

"what?!"

"You want two sets of 'ghost money' for a pair of broken revolvers? That's outrageous!"

"You might as well just rob it!"

Marco, who already looked like a teenager, was so angry when he heard that the other party was asking for such a high price for two broken guns that he immediately lost his temper.

"Hey, you little brat..."

Peter, who was holding the gun, was immediately displeased upon hearing these words, and his two little mustaches stood up high.

"Take a good look, this is the 'E-type' twin revolver produced by Hundred Beasts Heavy Industry, which is said to never wear out!"

"I've used it for three years and it still looks brand new!"

"Do you know how many of these guns there are in the whole world? If this were auctioned on the black market, it would be enough to buy three brats like you!"

The 'E-type' twin revolver was a revolver produced by Beast four years ago, and it was also the last one in the revolver series.

The so-called "E" refers to "Eternity," which was forged by the researchers of the Beasts using the failed products that Obey had discarded when he was experimenting with the Phantom God Alloy.

Although it was a failed product, its properties far exceeded those of ordinary alloys... Saying it would never wear out might be an exaggeration, but it could easily last for thirty to fifty years.

Since only about fifty pairs were ever produced, making them even rarer than famous swords, they are among the most sought-after items in the gun-wielding and collector circles.

Peterm wouldn't have taken out his precious gifts if it weren't for the need to make up for Bucky and Shanks' birthday presents.

"Tsk!"

Seeing the other party's expression, Marco also looked troubled.

He was also planning to get a pair of good guns as a birthday gift for Izo.

Having spent so many years together on the same ship, Izo, who had initially treated the Whitebeard Pirates members coldly because of Oden, has now long since become part of this big family.

Among them, Marco was his closest friend.

On Marco's birthday last time, Izo learned from some source that Marco had a hobby of collecting coasters, so he made a set of coasters in the Wano Country style for him by hand.

Marco absolutely loved it.

Now that the other person's birthday is coming up soon, he wants to buy a pair of pistols as a return gift.

"I only have one set..."

"Two sets available, not one less!"

Peterm refused to back down in the face of Marco's bargaining... He knew that if he didn't treat everyone equally and give each person a set, Bucky and Shanks would definitely start arguing again.

"..."

"Then, can I use another version to make up the difference...?"

Marco pursed his lips, wanting to pull again, but Peterm shook his head.

His attitude was firm.

"No, it has to be two sets of the 'World Edition'."

"you……"

“We’ll take it. Here’s the ‘ghost money,’ but we’ll give you the gun.”

Just as Marco was about to ask the others on the ship if they could put together another set, a voice made the decision for him. "Vista?"

"Hey Marco, I'll cover the cost of the remaining 'World Edition' set. Consider it a gift we'll give together."

"After all, it was me who persuaded Izo to put down his sword and switch to a gun. I have to take responsibility."

Vista put his hands on his hips and said with a smile.

A few days ago, Izo performed a target shooting demonstration to cheer up Momonosuke... As one of the miscellaneous skills he learned to make a living when he was a child, his unerring accuracy made everyone on the ship gasp in amazement.

When Vista, a master swordsman at the time, saw this, he advised him to simply give up swordsmanship, which he was not very good at, and instead use a gun as his weapon.

Why would a samurai protecting his lord be so fixated on a sword he is not skilled with?
Protect them in the way you're good at... Being a samurai should be a way of life.
Upon hearing this, Izo readily agreed and replaced the samurai sword he always carried with him.

……

After Vista took out his treasured set of 'ghost money', he and Marco finally got what they wanted, exchanging it for the red and blue twin revolvers, which were like works of art, amidst Peterm's pained expression.

……

On Roger's side, Buggy, watching Teach from a distance, whispered to Shanks beside him:
"Hey Shanks, have you seen that guy in the hat?"

“Yesterday, the day before yesterday, the day before that… during the truce at night, it seemed like he hadn’t slept at all.”

"Huh? Why?"

Upon hearing from his friend that the other person hadn't slept for three days and three nights, Shanks' eyes widened in surprise, wanting to see what was so special about them.

"It is said that he has never slept since he was born."

"Huh? Is that so?"

"That's great! Doesn't that mean he can enjoy life twice as much?"

"Huh? It's not that simple, okay?"

Upon hearing his friend's bizarre thought process, Bucky immediately offered a reminder:
“That’s a complete ‘monster’.”

"You need to be careful in the future..."

"Hey~ you two kids, what are you talking about?"

Peter's greeting interrupted their whispers.

He returned to the Roger Pirates with a sigh and handed the two sets of 'ghost money' to Buggy and Shanks, who were looking on with curiosity.

"Here, this is a belated birthday gift for you guys. Don't you dare call me stingy anymore!"

"Uh-huh?"

"What is this...?!" *2
Bucky and Shanks were slightly taken aback when they saw the two exquisitely packaged items Peter handed them, then their eyes widened and they ignored Teach across from them.

"You guys have been talking about her a lot, so here you can have this."

……

With the crew members who had already become close friends on the side, Roger, Whitebeard, and Oden sat down on the ground and began to chat.

"I heard you had a big fight with that Golden Lion guy, Roger."

The white-bearded man picked up a bowl of wine, his tone both teasing and inquiring.

"Well, that was a close call! Haha! If it weren't for that lucky storm, I really don't know what I would have done."

"Honestly, I just can't get along with that guy."

Roger laughed heartily, completely unconcerned about the near-mishap he had just suffered.

He finished the drink in his glass in one gulp, and then took out a stack of paper-like objects from his pocket.

"Okay, let's get down to business."

“Newgate, have you guys come across any red historical texts over the years? I’m looking for those right now.”

As he spoke, he unfolded the paper, revealing a dark rubbing.

Seeing this, Whitebeard and Oden also lowered their heads slightly and leaned closer to look at the text on the rubbing.

"Hmm? Is this... the coordinates of a location?"

Oden murmured:
"Huh?! You, you can actually understand this kind of writing?"

"Yes, I can understand it."

Oden looked at the rubbing of the Road Poneglyphs that Roger showed him and nodded in approval.

"This is a secret code passed down through generations of the Kozuki family in Wano Country. I never expected to see it here."

"Hey, Roger. What are you collecting this stuff for?"

The white-bearded man standing to the side asked, somewhat puzzled.

Roger didn't hide anything and answered directly:

"Hehe~ Whitebeard, you probably don't know him, do you?"

"【Water Star Island】—The last island that the log pointer pointed to, which we arrived at more than a decade ago… It’s not actually the last island."

"?"

"Although the pointer has been erratic ever since then, unable to point in any direction... there is a true 'last island' behind [Mercury Star]!"

Roger excitedly pointed to the rubbing on the ground and continued:

"Only by reaching there can you truly say you've traveled around the world!"

"And the coordinates of that island are recorded in these four 'road sign history texts'!"

"Once we get there, we will truly be the world's number one pirate crew!"

"Number one in the world?"

Oden's mouth dropped open in shock as he stared at the man he had just met.

"That's right!"

"And then I...!"

"..."

"Huh?!" *2
ps:
【Princess of the Underworld】Osiris has a wide fan base all over the world, and her wanted posters and other photos and posters can be used as currency among this group and are called 'underworld money'.

The value of "ghost money" is determined by a variety of factors, including the clarity of the photograph, the shooting angle, and the person's expression, making it quite complex. This has even led to the emergence of specialized appraisers and appraisal institutions who assess the face value of each piece of "ghost money."

Among these, the most valuable is undoubtedly the 'World Edition Ghost Money' published by the World Economic News Agency without its agency authorization.

The wanted posters, photos, and posters printed by Sekesha are among the best in the industry in terms of materials, ink, clarity, and the number of photos they contain. They even include photos of the War Princess, which are extremely rare and exist as 'bonus' items.

A complete set of "world-class ghost money" is of immeasurable value within fan circles and is undoubtedly priceless.

　I took some time over the weekend to go back to Black Wind Mountain. It's been over a year since I last went back, and I really missed it.
　　
　
(End of this chapter)