East Blue, Syrup Village.
This was a well-known peaceful town in the East Blue—so quiet that it bordered on dullness.
Compared to the remoteness of Foosha Village, Syrup Village carried a faint air of prosperity.
Tobirama stood calmly, his gaze fixed on a second-floor window of a large villa.
There, a frail, pale young heiress sat by the window, holding a thick medical tome, her eyes unfocused as she watched fallen leaves drift outside.
Kaya.
Though sickly at present, the medical talent and gentle resilience she displayed in the original story were exactly what the Empire's medical division desperately needed.
Tsunade's medical skill was peerless, but her temperament was violent and her logistical management disastrous.
A thoughtful, meticulous girl like this was the perfect complement.
"Go purchase supplies," Tobirama ordered Hancock and the others. "I'm going to fetch someone."
In the next instant, he vanished from where he stood.
---
The bedroom was on the second floor.
"Cough… cough…"
Kaya closed the book in her hands. Her face was pale, her eyes filled with longing for the world outside.
"If only I could go out to sea someday… and save people like the doctors in these books…"
"Do you want to study medicine?"
A calm, magnetic voice suddenly echoed through the room.
Kaya gasped in shock, the book slipping from her hands.
She spun around and saw a handsome silver-haired man sitting casually on her windowsill.
Sunlight bathed him in gold, as though a god had descended into the mortal world.
"W-Who are you…?"
She covered her mouth, her heart pounding.
"I am Uchiha Tobirama."
He stepped down from the windowsill and walked toward her.
Each step carried an oppressive presence that made it hard to breathe—yet it was carefully restrained, so as not to harm her fragile body.
"Your poor health is caused by an innate deficiency of vital energy."
He picked up the fallen medical book and flipped through it casually.
"This kind of knowledge will never make you a true physician."
"My Empire lacks a chief medical officer responsible for pharmacology."
"Although you are weak now, under my guidance, you can master medicine that transcends life and death."
He raised his hand. A green, palm-shaped chakra condensed at his fingertips and gently touched Kaya's forehead.
"Can you feel it? This is the power of life."
Buzz.
Warmth flooded through her body.
Kaya felt the heaviness that had plagued her for years vanish in an instant. Even her breathing became smooth and effortless.
"Is… is this magic…?"
She stared at Tobirama in disbelief, completely mesmerized.
"Come with me," he said calmly.
"Stay here, and you will remain a sickly girl waiting for death. Follow me, and you will become one who governs life."
There was no hesitation.
For someone who had suffered from illness since birth, the temptation of health surpassed everything else.
"I… I will!"
Kaya lifted her skirt and bowed deeply.
"Teacher… please take me with you!"
---
Ten minutes later, Tobirama reunited with Hancock and the others, Kaya now accompanying him.
After brief preparations, the massive merchant ship set sail once more.
However—
Not long after leaving port, behind an inconspicuous fish stall on the dock, a middle-aged man wearing a straw hat stared fixedly at the departing ship.
The fish-cleaver in his hand trembled.
His name was Johnny. On the surface, he was a fishmonger. In truth, he was a sergeant of the Sixteenth Marine Branch, home on leave.
"That silver hair… those red eyes…"
"…There's no mistake."
"That monster with the trillion-Beri bounty…!"
Cold sweat soaked his back.
With shaking hands, he pulled a portable Den Den Mushi from beneath the fish basket and dialed a number.
"Moshi moshi… this is Sergeant Johnny!"
"An emergency report! Uchiha Tobirama has appeared in Syrup Village!"
"They've already departed—heading northwest!"
"The only place in that direction is Cocoyasi Village!"
"Report this to headquarters immediately! This is top-priority intelligence!"
---
Marine Headquarters, Marineford.
Marshal's Office.
Crash!
The teacup in Kong's hand shattered.
"Is it confirmed?!"
He shot to his feet, murderous intent flashing in his eyes.
"Confirmed beyond doubt!" the operator replied. "Based on their route, their next stop is Cocoyasi Village!"
"Excellent," Kong snarled. "Perfect."
He turned toward the man already radiating molten fury.
"Sakazuki."
"The opportunity has come."
Akainu's lips twisted into a vicious grin, magma-like veins pulsing beneath his skin.
"I've waited a long time for this."
"Rest assured, Marshal. I'll turn Cocoyasi Village—and that entire sea—into scorched wasteland."
"Issue the order!"
Akainu strode out, roaring at the ten elite warships assembled outside.
"Target: East Blue, Cocoyasi Village!"
"Full speed ahead!"
"For justice—eradicate that demon completely!"
The piercing alarm echoed across the sky.
The Buster Call fleet surged through the Gates of Justice, carrying absolute annihilation.
A storm was coming.
---
Several hours later.
East Blue, Cocoyasi Village.
Once a beautiful land of orange groves, it had become a living hell since the arrival of the Arlong Pirates.
The villagers lived in terror, forced to pay crushing "protection fees" to survive.
At the edge of the village, within a golden orchard, stood a modest yet cozy house.
Bellemere, a former Marine, watered the orange trees with an unlit cigarette dangling from her lips.
Nearby, two little girls—Nami and Nojiko—ran and laughed through the yard.
"Nami! Slow down! You'll trip!"
Bellemere watched them with gentle eyes.
Life was hard—but as long as her family was together, it was enough.
Then—
Buzz.
The sky suddenly darkened.
An overwhelming pressure descended upon the orchard.
Bellemere's instincts screamed.
She looked up sharply, her pupils shrinking.
Above the sea, a massive ship hovered ominously.
In the next instant, several figures appeared at the edge of her yard.
At their head stood a young man clad in an impossibly magnificent robe.
His gaze swept across the orchard before settling on Nami.
Tobirama watched the girl—barely eight or nine years old—waving a wooden stick like a navigator's baton.
A faint smile touched his lips.
"Who are you?!"
Bellemere shouted sharply, snapping him out of his thoughts.
She dropped the watering can and pulled Nami and Nojiko behind her, shielding them with her body.
Her other hand quietly reached for the old musket at her waist.
That face…
She had seen it in this morning's newspaper.
The man who had defeated Vice Admiral Garp and earned a trillion-Beri bounty—
The Uchiha Emperor.
"Damn it… why would a monster like this come here?"
Cold sweat trickled down her forehead.
She knew it—before such a being, resistance was meaningless.
But—
She was a mother.
"Mom…" Nami whispered, clutching her clothes.
Tobirama looked at Bellemere's hostility with indifference and took a single step forward.
That step alone crushed her knees with mountain-like pressure.
"Bellemere," he said calmly.
"The one I've taken an interest in is your daughter."
He pointed at Nami.
"This child has the potential to become the greatest navigator in the world."
"Give her to me."
"To ease your mind, you and the blue-haired girl may come as well."
Cold, domineering words.
They struck Bellemere's deepest nerve.
"You want my daughter?"