One Piece: The Arm of Fate

Bang, bang, bang!

Screams rang out across the deck in the night.

After beating the scum senseless, Nojiko shook her wrist and coldly looked down at the bruised nobles and wealthy merchants sprawled on the ground.

She bent over, picked up the shackles recently removed from the slaves, and with practiced hands, tightly bound the thugs in a matter of seconds.

The shackles were locked, and chains wrapped around their bodies, leaving them completely immobilized.

"You like locking people up like this, huh?"

Nojiko grinned, weighed the ring of keys in her hand, then tossed it into the sea. "Now it's your turn. Comfortable, isn't it?"

"N-No, please no!"

Were they going to be thrown into the sea? Jiade was horrified, struggling wildly, but the chains held firm. All he could do was cry out for mercy:

"Please let me go! You two, I have money—lots of money! If you let me go, I'll pay you 200 million... no! 300 million Berries as a reward!"

"300 million Berries?"

Nami scoffed, looking at him like he was an idiot.

"Who do you think I am? You think I care about your money?"

"What do we do with them, Shano?" Nojiko turned and asked.

"Up to you. Just kill them," Shano replied casually as he grilled skewers.

People like slave traders deserved no less.

"We'll kill them, sure, but not that easily," Nojiko snorted. She activated her Snow-Snow Fruit powers, creating a hollow ice cube that enclosed the men.

A fire pit was left in the center of the bottom floor.

Nami instantly understood. With a snap of her fingers, a large flame dropped into the pit—whoosh—it caught fire and roared to life.

Nojiko raised her foot and kicked the ice cube off the ship and into the sea.

"No—!!!"

Jiade, frozen in despair, screamed as the cube dropped.

Those two crazy girls—how could they do this to him?!

Was this… was this how he would die? Just like those "lowly slaves" he once scorned?

Sizzle!

Inside the cube, the flames raged, burning their skin. The six icy walls began melting under the intense heat.

Ice and fire.

Freezing cold and scorching heat alternated in brutal torture. Water from the melting ice drenched their clothes, only to be turned into scalding steam that scorched their throats.

"Aaaahh! It's burning! It's freezing! Help! Save us!"

"I was wrong! I was really wrong! Please let me go!"

The nobles and merchants thrashed inside the cube, but chained hand and foot, they couldn't even roll over. All they could do was scream and suffer.

Fear. Despair. Agony.

They were completely powerless.

At last, they understood how the slaves had felt—trapped in the iron cages below deck, struggling against rising seawater, with no way out.

…

On the End's deck, the rescued slaves stood in silence, watching the flames flicker within the massive block of ice floating in the sea.

"They're… really dying like that?" one muttered.

"Dying?" Nojiko crossed her arms, sneering. "Not yet. That'll last at least another twenty minutes—plenty of time to enjoy the ride."

"They got off easy," Nami said coldly. "If I weren't worried a rescue ship might pass by, I'd let them suffer even longer."

The freed slaves looked at each other, then suddenly dropped to their knees, bowing their heads to the crew.

"Thank you, everyone!"

"Thank you, Lord Shano!"

"You didn't just save us—you helped us take revenge…"

"We'll never forget this kindness!"

Shano gave a small grin. "Get up. No need for that."

He casually pushed over a huge plate of skewers. "I saw earlier that you all were too timid to grab any food. Still hungry? Dig in and regain your strength."

The men were stunned but accepted the food gratefully and began devouring it.

"Easy now, don't choke," Zeff chuckled, bringing over bowls of hot soup. "If it's not enough, there's plenty more. As long as I'm here, no one goes hungry!"

"T-Thank you… Thank you…"

The men were overwhelmed, eating and crying at the same time.

How long had it been…?

How long had it been since someone treated them like human beings?

…

Shano stood nearby, watching silently before letting out a long breath.

This damned world.

Fortunately…

He was no longer the kind of person who only cared about himself.

Now, he was moving toward something greater—toward the power to change this twisted world.

One day, with his own fists, he would overturn everything.

But for now…

He turned to look at the remaining survivors, still huddled together in fear. His expression gradually cooled.

Though the main culprits were gone, the accomplices remained.

Among the survivors were powerless sailors, oblivious passengers… but also thugs, lackeys, and business partners who had helped enable the traffickers.

Shano wasn't great at sorting people like that.

But there was someone on the ship who was.

He turned to Smoker, gave a slight nod.

Smoker, chewing on his cigar, understood immediately.

"Tch. What a pain."

Still, he got up without complaint and strode toward the survivors.

Before joining the End, he had been in the Navy's elite corps. Interrogation, screening, and prisoner handling were second nature to him.

With Smoker handling it, Shano relaxed.

Still…

The night's barbecue party had to be postponed.

After a simple meal, Shano left the deck and headed straight for the training room—to vent his rage on the Poneglyph.

…

Early the next morning.

Only a little over 20 survivors remained on the ship. The fate of the rest was obvious.

The remaining sailors and passengers, having a bit of money and no criminal ties, were thankful and made plans to leave at the next island and head home.

But the rescued slaves had a different idea.

"Huh? What's this?"

Shano, just finishing breakfast, turned to see a group of strong men approaching him.

They looked at one another, and finally, one stepped forward.

"Lord Shano, we… we'd like to follow you!"

"That's right! We're willing to join your crew!"

"We're strong. We can work hard. We might not be good at fighting, but you can count on us for anything else!"

"Follow me?"

Shano raised an eyebrow.

"Yes, sir!" the lead man said firmly. "Our homes are gone. Our families are dead… we have nothing left but our lives."

"We'd rather risk our lives with you than be slaves again!"

Shano scanned the group.

Most were strong, with resolute eyes—clearly used to hard labor.

As deckhands, they were more than qualified.

But…

"Sorry."

Shano shook his head. "I appreciate it, but I can't say yes. It's too dangerous to travel with me."

A big-name pirate might eagerly accept loyal laborers like them, even treat them as disposable when things got rough.

But Shano wasn't that kind of man.

Now that the World Government was watching him closely, the enemies ahead would only get stronger.

Letting civilians board his ship was no different from leading them to death.

Besides…

His plan wouldn't change.

The End's crew must be elite—modeled after Red-Haired Shanks' flawless "Iron Wall Royal Guard."

If they couldn't even beat Nami, a non-combatant, they didn't qualify.

"Sir…"

The strong men lowered their heads. They had expected this, but it still stung.

"Hey, don't look so down!" Shano smiled warmly. "Yeah, your past was ruined—but now you're free, and there are countless ways to start fresh."

"My ship isn't the right place for you, but I can give you money to help you start over on the next island. Then—"

"No need, sir!"

The men shook their heads furiously, eyes red with emotion.

"We have hands and feet—we can work!"

"That's right!"

The leader took a deep breath and nodded.

"You've helped us twice. If we take your money too, what kind of men would we be?"

"Yeah!"

"We might not be strong like you, but we can still lift and carry!"

"We'll find our way—no matter what it takes!"

Shano stared at them for a long moment.

Then laughed.

He clapped their shoulders, one by one.

He had saved the right people.

They were all good men—real men—of the sea.

…

Two days and nights passed.

On the morning of the third day, the next mysterious island marked by the eternal log pose came into view.

It was a medium-sized island.

From afar, they could see merchant ships at port, scattered buildings, and busy streets.

Shops lined the main road, and the smell of food drifted over on the sea breeze.

A huge sign stood at the port's entrance:

"Pukki Welcomes You."

"Pukki?" Zeff raised an eyebrow. "Now that's a surprise."

"That name sounds familiar…" Nami pinched her chin, then lit up. "I remember! It's in the book my brother gave me when I was little!"

"This is supposed to be the Grand Line's famous gourmet city!"

She looked out toward the town in awe, recalling the descriptions:

"Chocolate waterfalls flowing from cliffs, whipped cream forests, friendly chefs at the port giving out free desserts…"

"Wait a second… this doesn't look anything like that!"

The Pukki Island in front of them was bustling and tidy—but nothing like the dreamy food paradise in the picture book.

"Damn it, it's just a normal town. Picture books are all lies for kids!" Nami scowled. "Uncle Zeff, doesn't this place feel overrated to you too?"

"Actually…"

Zeff shook his head.

"This place used to be like the books described. But ever since the Great Pirate Era began, Pukki was looted constantly. With no navy nearby, the town fell into ruin within a few years."

He looked around at the now-busy port.

"But that's why I'm surprised. It's clearly come back from the brink."

"Even if it's not what it used to be… it's a lot better than it was."

"I see…" Nami murmured thoughtfully.

Meanwhile, Shano stood silently, eyes scanning the port.

He noticed the merchant ships near the dock were stirring in panic.

Even the pirate ships were quietly moving aside.

"…Looks like they recognized our flag."

He shrugged.

With his rising reputation, he figured he'd better get used to this kind of reaction.