One Piece: Yujiro Hanma

Silence fell over everyone.

But amidst it all, a faint, tearful voice was heard.

"H-husband… I-I don't want to stay here… not anymore… please… take me…" said Shirahoshi through sobs.

Her gigantic body was curled up on the ground in a fetal position, trembling like a twig, as thick tears rolled down her rosy cheeks.

Tiberion, whose bloodlust had completely vanished, now recovered from the frenzy he had been immersed in, stopped.

The smell of death still hung in the air, but he no longer cared.

He slowly turned, and upon seeing her there on the ground, sobbing in a state of utter misery, his gaze softened.

"Easy now…" he murmured in a deep but calm voice, and with the overwhelming strength of his arm, he lifted her gently, as if her massive-ton body weighed nothing at all.

"You can open your eyes now," he said as they walked.

"O-okay…" she replied, her voice still shaky from crying, her nose red, her eyelashes wet, and a trail of tears lining her face.

As she rubbed her eyes with the back of her hand, her heart remained agitated. The fear was still there, but now it was mixed with the deep gratitude of having been protected.

She was in pain, yes… but also happy. Because her husband had kept his promise.

…

Tiberion didn't ask anything else.

There was no need. If she didn't want to stay, then they would leave. That simple. The world was vast and their journey was only beginning. And as long as he walked and breathed, no other living being would ever again have the right to look at her with ill intent.

Thus, with the monstrous red man carrying the mermaid princess in his arms, they arrived at the dock.

Before them stretched a long row of moored ships—huge pirate ships swaying with the waves.

Some of them surpassed thirty, forty, or more meters. On their decks, numerous pirates lounged, rested, played cards, or simply ate and drank, unaware of everything that had just happened on land.

But then, a powerful voice, erupting like thunder, made them all turn.

"TAKE ME TO THE EAST BLUE!"

Hundreds of heads turned in unison. And what they saw had no rational explanation.

Something that looked like a human being—muscular and enormous, completely shirtless—walked calmly along the dock, carrying in a single arm a COLOSSAL mermaid who, despite her size, clung to him like a frightened little girl.

And that mermaid was so stunningly beautiful that many of the pirates dropped their cups, their food, or even their weapons.

Despite this, the tension at the dock still hadn't disappeared when, from one of the decks…

"WHO THE HELL DO YOU THINK YOU ARE, HUH?!" shouted a pirate, his face red from alcohol, clearly drunk, swaying on the deck as he raised a half-empty bottle.

"Y-you want me to smash your face with this?"

The others, also drunk on their supposed numerical advantage and completely unaware of what Tiberion had just done in the Grove, burst into laughter.

"HAHAHAHA! He thinks we're his servants?!"

"If he hands over that mermaid first, maybe we'll consider it!" added another, licking his lips. "Maybe we'll take her to the New World so she can see what real life's like."

A filthy laugh spread across the decks. Some were already standing with weapons in hand, thinking they could take control with numbers and loud voices alone.

But then, in that exact moment…

"Close your eyes again."

Tiberion's deep voice allowed no discussion.

"Mmm… yes…" Shirahoshi nodded with a faint but obedient voice, already understanding what was about to happen. She lowered her face and closed her eyes.

Tiberion vanished.

It wasn't a simple leap. It was as if space itself had swallowed him and spat him out directly onto the deck of the ship from where the mockery had come.

He appeared like a red shadow, and before the pirate who had suggested handing over Shirahoshi could even realize he was no longer on the dock, his head was torn off by a single slap.

The strike was so sudden that, for an instant, his body remained standing, his spine smoking, while his head flew off and smashed against the mast.

"…"

An unnatural silence took hold of everyone present.

The other pirates on the deck were frozen, unable to fully comprehend what had just happened. Some blinked, others swallowed hard, but none of them could move immediately. It was only when they saw their companion's open neck that real fear reached them.

The drunk with the bottle was next.

Trembling, his eyes unfocused, he raised his weapon and staggered toward Tiberion. The bottle lifted toward his temple, but Tiberion didn't even look at him.

He turned slightly, as if his very presence were soaked in rage, and a savage grimace twisted his face, while his red hair bristled once more.

Then, with a single step that shattered the wood beneath his feet, he lunged at supersonic speed.

Extending his free hand, he grabbed the pirate's face, covering it entirely with his palm, his fingers slowly sinking into the soft flesh of his cheeks and temple.

The muscles of his arm glowed with heat, releasing steam. And then, he simply squeezed.

Boom

The drunk's head exploded like a watermelon, spraying pieces all over the deck.

Several pirates on nearby ships screamed in terror, their faces instantly turning pale. One of them, unable to hold back, vomited over the railing, while others began to tremble.

The aura Tiberion emanated in that moment wasn't just powerful. It was as if the entire history of the seas had conjured in his figure the very essence of annihilation.

He looked around, and the pirates on the decks broke down emotionally. One by one, they began throwing themselves into the sea, seeing it as their only escape—despite knowing they couldn't swim.

"Into the water, into the water! That's not a human!"

Within seconds, dozens of pirates hurled themselves into the ocean, trying to get as far as possible from that figure that should not exist.

On the very same deck where Tiberion still stood, a dozen men remained frozen, desperate to move, desperate to jump like the others… but their bodies simply wouldn't respond.

Fear had paralyzed them completely. Their legs wouldn't move, their muscles entirely locked up.

"…"

Silence devoured everything… until one of the pirates, unable to bear the weight of the fear any longer, collapsed to his knees, his trembling hands digging into the floor.

"P-please, sir… don't kill us!" he cried out in terror, his body shaking like a sobbing child. "We don't want to die! We'll do whatever you say! I swear, I swear on my life!"

Tiberion looked at him emotionlessly for a moment, and then spoke:

"Sail. Set course for the East Blue."

It wasn't a question. It was a decree.

"Y-yes, right away, sir! Please forgive us!" shouted another, and the rest immediately began to move, stumbling over one another as they raised the anchor, hoisted the sails, and scrubbed the deck with trembling hands.

One of them, pale as bone, dropped to his knees again.

"S-sir… I… we… we don't know how to get to the East Blue…"

Tiberion stared at this bunch of incompetents for a long moment, then exhaled slowly, his breath completely calming the air around him.

His fierce aura dissipated as if it had never existed. The monster went dormant, and in its place stood a version of him rarely seen.

Gently, he lowered Shirahoshi, still in his arms, and placed her softly in the center of the deck.

"You can open your eyes now..."

"Y-yes…" Shirahoshi nodded, though a new light shimmered in her pupils, which slowly opened to the world. Despite the fear and the tears, her eyes held space only for him. For her husband.

She gazed at him with devotion and gave a subtle nod.

"I'll do anything you ask, dear husband."

"…"

Tiberion looked at her for a moment. She was still trembling, and there were still traces of tears at the corners of her eyes. But the determination on her face had grown. And that was what he wanted to see.

"Very well. Now try calling a Sea King."

?

Shirahoshi blinked in confusion.

"Call…? But… Husband… I don't know how…" Her timid words revealed her uncertainty.

But Tiberion showed no impatience. Not with her. His eyes softened, and he leaned slightly forward, positioning himself right in front of her.

"Listen carefully. Close your eyes slowly. Don't think about anything else. Just listen to my voice."

She obeyed and let herself be guided.

"Now…" he continued, "focus. Don't fight the sounds. Let them in. Feel the breeze blowing gently across your face… Let it caress your cheeks. Hear the creaking of the ship's wood. The swaying of the waves holding it up."

Shirahoshi took a deep breath. Her body relaxed a little. The air flowed slowly from her nose. Her chest rose and fell like the waves she was beginning to sense.

"Deeper now… listen to the sound of the sea. Not the one on the surface, but the one that hums below. Imagine you're diving. Sinking slowly, like a falling pearl…"

"Down there, deeper, there are thousands of fish. Some small, others gigantic. Many of them know you. Others have only felt your tears."

A single tear, sweet and pure, slid down from one of Shirahoshi's closed eyes, without her realizing it.

"Keep going… deeper… that's where what you seek is."

And in that instant, something changed.

Her breathing stabilized. Her body stopped trembling. A spark ignited within her—an echo that had been dormant until that very moment. It wasn't something learned. It was something that had always been there.

Tiberion felt it, if only for a moment. He sensed the shift.

"Speak to them, Shirahoshi. From your heart. Ask for their help—not with words. But with your soul."

And she did.

Although her lips didn't move, although she didn't utter a single audible sound, something vibrated in the air. A pulse. A plea so pure and so deep that the very ocean seemed to pause for an instant to listen.

Tiberion smiled without saying another word.

She simply didn't know how to use her powerful and unique Observation Haki.

But as long as he guided her, she could achieve it easily.

And given her overwhelming talent—previously awakening Observation Haki in mere seconds—she now wielded it fluidly, fully understanding how to guide his wife.

And then, it happened.

The sea, which just moments ago had been gently rocking, began to change. At first, it was a subtle shift in the water.

Then, a faint tremor. The waves began to stir slightly, as if drawn by something colossal from the depths. The wind whipped into sudden spirals, the sails flapped violently as if a storm had arrived, and the birds overhead scattered abruptly in fright.

A deep rumble echoed from beneath the ship, and then—the surface was torn apart.

It emerged...

A colossal beast rose from the sea. It was a Sea King—but not just any. Its body was so massive that it completely eclipsed everything around, stretching over 10 kilometers in length. Its skin, covered in patterns of bluish and white stripes, resembled a gigantic zebra snake.

Enormous, serpentine, powerful. But the most striking feature was its eyes: large, round, and strangely human. Eyes that gazed with awareness, with memory—and above all, with devotion.

Everyone at the dock—from pirates to hidden marines—froze in place.

They couldn't even scream.

The Sea King rose majestically before the ship where Shirahoshi stood, and gazed upon her.

And strangely, enormous tears began to fall from its eyes.

They weren't mere droplets. They were rivers of emotion held back for centuries.

A voice—not audible, but as clear as a bell inside her mind—slipped into Shirahoshi's soul.

'Uuugh! WHAT JOY, QUEEN! YOU HAVE FINALLY RETURNED! AT LAST YOU REMEMBER US!'

'Now you can communicate with us… and it seems you're slowly mastering your power…'

'OUR QUEEN! OUR VOICE HAS FINALLY BEEN HEARD!'

!

Shirahoshi's eyes flew open and she cried out in surprise.

Clutching her chest, her body trembled—but not from fear. It was a mix of emotions, a kind of affection that was impossible to explain.

It felt as though she had always been connected to the being before her, even if she had never consciously known it.

"Husband!" she cried, turning to Tiberion with teary eyes, "It looks like he's speaking to me… and he says I'm his Queen!"

Tiberion, without taking his eyes off the Sea King, nodded calmly.

"Don't overthink it. In time, you'll understand everything. For now, tell him to guide us to the East Blue."

Shirahoshi nodded firmly, still unable to fully control her sobs. A small flame ignited inside her. For the first time since she had left Ryugu Palace, she felt that she wasn't just a burden—she wasn't just someone who had to be protected and nothing more.

Now, she could help too.

"Yes, husband!" she said with determination, placing her hands over her chest, closing her eyes, and communicating with a newfound confidence: the kind that is born from purpose.

The Sea King, with a bow that made the waters tremble, turned around and began to move, guiding them toward the East Blue.

On the deck, the more than ten pirates still present didn't know whether to laugh, cry, or faint.

They had witnessed a massacre.

They had come face to face with a monster of unknown strength.

And now… now they saw another monster, even more colossal, obeying the woman that the first monster called "wife."

A completely surreal day.

...

The incident at Grove 13 of the Sabaody Archipelago didn't take long to spread through every corner of the archipelago. Voices of shock, fear, admiration, and disbelief echoed across all the Groves, triggering an unprecedented uproar.

"WHAT!? SOMEONE KILLED A WORLD NOBLE!?"

"Killed him? THEY SAY HE WAS TORN APART ALIVE! IN FRONT OF EVERYONE!"

"Yes, yes, yes! They say he sliced his flesh into layers so thin and perfect!"

"But the flesh of a Tenryūbito…! Puaaagh! Not even stray dogs wanted to eat it! A disgusting plague even to beasts!"

"BRAVO, FINALLY!"

"A HERO!!! A MAN WORTH FOLLOWING! LET HIM STEP ON MY NECK IF HE ISN'T A WONDERFUL MONSTER!"

"What's the name of that magnificent lunatic? Give me his name and I'll pledge my loyalty right now!"

"They say his name is Tiberion Hanma… But careful! The World Government must already be boiling with rage!"

And while the cheers rose like an unstoppable wave across the archipelago, at the highest seat of power, inside the Hall of Authority in the Holy City of Mariejois, the atmosphere was entirely different.

The Five Elders received the report swiftly. The contents were simple and direct: a Tenryūbito had been killed in the Sabaody Archipelago… and not just killed, but publicly dismembered in broad daylight, in full view of everyone.

The reaction was as furious as it was immediate.

This wasn't just a murder. It wasn't just a provocation. It was a direct, brutal, shameless offense… against the very authority of the World Government.

"THIS ACT CANNOT GO UNPUNISHED!"

At the same time, beyond the hall, both inside and outside Mariejois, the scandal spread quickly.

Dozens of Tenryūbito suffered nervous breakdowns upon learning of the crime. Some screamed, demanding that the killer be torn apart in front of everyone, and that his family—and his family's family—be exterminated to the last drop of blood.

The level of pressure became unbearable.

To prevent the chaos from escalating any further and to appease the wrath of the Celestial Dragons, the Five Elders wasted no time in issuing an extraordinary order.

The highest possible.

It was publicly announced that Tiberion Hanma was, from this moment onward, the target of an unprecedented global manhunt.

The bounty spoke for itself.

5 billion berries.

Newspapers began printing non-stop, and in less than seven days, the faces of people across the world were flooded with an image they could not ignore: the fierce and savage face of a man named Tiberion Hanma, printed on a wanted poster whose letters left no room for doubt.

It didn't matter where one was. In every location, the poster fluttered in the wind like a flag of tension. The number at the bottom of the poster was absurd: 5 billion berries.

A bounty so high was no random figure—it was a symbol of absolute priority.

In response to this, the World Government wasted no time and ordered the Marines to act with the highest level of urgency.

The order was clear: capture Tiberion Hanma at any cost. And if capturing him alive was not possible, then he was to be eliminated without hesitation. The reputation of the World Government was at stake. Its authority, its image, its hegemony—everything hung by a thread.

However, within Marine Headquarters, Fleet Admiral Sengoku maintained a stoic composure, though his mind was working at full speed. He knew the current landscape was a minefield. He could not afford a reckless move.

The Headquarters did not currently have enough strength to carry out such a large and risky operation. Reports were clear: a significant portion of the Whitebeard Pirates' high-ranking officers had recently been captured by the Marines, thanks to the unique opportunity created by the appearance of Tiberion Hanma.

And that, to Sengoku, was an important achievement—but also a ticking time bomb.

Because if Whitebeard himself decided to take it as a provocation and personally came with his entire fleet to recover them, the Marines would have no choice but to face one of the most brutal battles in their history.

The risk was enormous.

The Headquarters needed to preserve its forces. They couldn't afford to bleed themselves out in an open chase while they had enemies in custody waiting to be rescued.

For that reason, Sengoku sent an urgent message to the Commander-in-Chief of the World Government, the man known as Kong. He requested that Kong intercede with the Gorosei, arguing the necessity of keeping the Marine's main power intact. Kong, with his vast experience, immediately understood the delicacy of the situation.

He relayed the message to the Five Elders at once, and upon receiving it, they quickly realized that the situation also lent itself to a greater political move.

If Whitebeard moved... they would move as well.

In their minds, the appearance of Tiberion Hanma no longer represented just a crisis—it was also an opportunity. The chance to force the most feared Yonko into action.

And if they managed to provoke a war on the right ground, perhaps they could eliminate one of the Four Emperors of the Sea.

It was a risky possibility, but a valuable one. The Five Elders, always cold, always calculating, knew when to act—and when to let others wear down the enemy for them.

Thus, they allowed the Marines to preserve their main force without lowering the level of alert. But they did not remain idle.

They then issued a new direct mobilization order.

The Seven Warlords of the Sea, better known as the Shichibukai, were summoned immediately, with a clear and unquestionable directive: they were to head without delay to the East Blue.

Their mission was singular and left no room for interpretation:

Locate, capture, or—if necessary—execute Tiberion Hanma without hesitation.

And so, a new hunt began.

________

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