The Passage of Time
Nami nodded repeatedly.
"That's right… being a navigator is just a step toward fulfilling my dream. It doesn't mean it's the only thing I can do."
Still, she had to study more and try to keep up with Bai Yu's pace.
"Then, how long have we been sailing in total?"
Bai Yu pondered for a moment.
Their speed was truly absurd.
He wasn't even sure if the Straw Hat Pirates had left the East Blue yet. There hadn't been any updates about them in the newspapers lately.
In the original timeline, the Straw Hats had reached Sabaody Archipelago three months before Ace's scheduled execution.
Currently, there was no mention of them in the news.
"Even with this past week of training included, it's been… less than a month," Nami calculated.
"Less than a month?!"
Bai Yu did the math. If nothing changed, there were still at least two months before the Summit War.
That was plenty of time.
Enough for him to gather a few more subordinates… then head to the New World to take down one of the Four Emperors.
He chuckled to himself.
"Shocking! A new Emperor rises—a supernova takes over in an instant?"
"Breaking news: Bai Yu, the newest Emperor, is coming to the Summit War!"
Bai Yu stroked his chin.
"That actually sounds pretty interesting."
The Diary Incident
Kaya suddenly raised her hand. "I'll check the sailing log. I wrote everything down!"
Bai Yu blinked.
"Wait… who actually writes a travel log seriously? Do you all keep a diary or something?"
The girls: "…"
Excuse us… we all do.
Bai Yu suddenly felt out of place.
"So I'm the only 'serious' one here? Great. Guess we're all 'not serious' together from now on."
Then, he suddenly remembered something and glanced at the girls.
"By the way… where's the blonde secretary?"
The Forgotten Secretary
The girls froze for a second.
Bai Yu blinked.
Right… Kalifa.
During their week in Little Garden, she hadn't been with them.
With the spaceship flying on autopilot the whole time, she must have stayed aboard.
He had completely forgotten about her.
At the time, all the girls on the deck were present, so he never really thought about it.
"…She's in her room," Nami finally answered.
Bai Yu used his Observation Haki.
Kalifa hadn't left the ship, of course—she couldn't. The energy shield was active, and Athena had been monitoring everything.
After checking with Athena, Bai Yu realized something interesting.
Kalifa had stayed in his room the entire time.
Aside from meal times, she hadn't set foot anywhere else on the ship.
"Smart."
However… he had kidnapped her.
Now what?
The Decision
"Next time, stop abducting people." Bai Yu sighed. "It's not a good look. Why should women make things difficult for other women? I'll handle these things myself…"
The girls exchanged silent glances.
"That's… a strange hobby."
Bai Yu shook his head and headed toward Kalifa's room.
The Confrontation
Knock, knock.
Bai Yu knocked on the door and waited.
When it finally creaked open, Kalifa stood there, eyeing him warily, full of caution.
"You… You're not here to sexually harass me, are you?"
Bai Yu's eyebrows twitched.
Kalifa was clearly uneasy.
After all, he was a billion-berri pirate.
No one knew what a man like him might do.
But more than that—
She was terrified of Nami and the others.
They were downright brutal.
Breaking hands and feet at the slightest provocation… these female crew members were demons!
And the captain?
They called him the Demon King.
If the crew was like that, then what the hell was he like?!
Bai Yu's Response
Bai Yu smirked at her words.
"Oh?"
His gaze became amused.
"Let me ask you something—what exactly is sexual harassment?"
"…Huh?"
Kalifa was momentarily stunned.
Then she immediately straightened up.
"If you're going to kill me," she said resolutely, "just do it. Make it quick."
Bai Yu shook his head.
"I'm not going to kill you."
He recalled Kalifa's past—
She had a father in CP9.
She was chosen to be part of the group from a young age due to her natural talent. After years of intense training, she had finally joined CP9 through sheer strength.
Her role could be valuable aboard the ship.
At the very least—she could help train the other girls.
"By the way," Bai Yu added casually, "do you want to know what happened to your former comrades?"
Kalifa's eyes flickered with interest—but then, her expression darkened again.
She collapsed onto the ground, defeated.
"The mission failed," she murmured. "It's over."
"The bounty, the hunt, death… That's our future now."
Her voice was hollow.
Years of loyalty—only to become a fugitive overnight.
Who could accept such a fate?
Bai Yu's voice dropped to a whisper.
"From now on… you belong to me."
Kalifa's head snapped up.
She looked at Bai Yu in disbelief. "What did you just say?"
Bai Yu smirked.
"Sorry, that's for the future. You're not mine yet."
"If you're feeling hopeless, go take a nap."
And with that—
Bang!
Bai Yu moved in an instant.
With a swift chop to the neck, Kalifa lost consciousness in his arms.
Her body went completely limp.
"That should do it."
Since she was now powerless to resist, Bai Yu took her directly into Purgatory Prison.
A Roar in the Distance
As soon as he entered—
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
A deafening roar echoed through the space.
Bai Yu narrowed his eyes.
"Now… what's going on here?"
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Thank you for choosing this novel, visit us
And access the complete novel in PDF format : ko-fi.com/abrahamsmith1b