A tavern on Hachinosu Island.
"Wah!"
A pirate went flying, crashing heavily onto a table. The immense force sent him tumbling across the floor, even knocking into several other tables.
"Nice!"
The other pirates in the tavern raised their mugs and bottles, cheering loudly.
In the center of the tavern, an area specially cleared out, Katakuri proudly twirled his trident, his eyes gleaming as he stared at the few pirates with stiff expressions. "Who's next?"
The pirates exchanged glances, then, with a resolute bite of their teeth, they lunged at Katakuri together. "Don't get too cocky, kid!"
"Hahahaha! You're the cocky ones!"
Katakuri, barely ten years old, showed no fear. He laughed and swung his trident to meet their attack.
Although only ten, Katakuri was already taller than most adults, and his strength far surpassed theirs. After all, he was Charlotte Linlin's most cherished son, the natural-born Destroyer, the masterpiece of the Charlotte Family!
With a single swing of his trident, the powerful force directly sent three pirates flying.
Then, his body turned into white mochi, casually allowing the pirates' weapons to pass through him. One could say he already possessed a hint of the future Observation Haki he would wield. While the special Paramecia Mochi-Mochi Fruit allowed for elementalization, it wasn't a true Logia. Katakuri would still be hit if he didn't actively transform into mochi.
"Mochi Thrust!"
His right arm also turned into white mochi and began to spin, swallowing his trident.
Immediately, the trident spun wildly, thrusting forward.
In an instant, blood splattered. The remaining pirates were all sent flying by this single strike. Worse than the previous pirates, they bore huge wounds, and one unlucky fellow was even cut in half.
"Hunt complete!"
Katakuri dragged his left thumb across his nose, slammed his trident onto the ground, and declared loudly.
The pirates in the tavern cheered. "As expected of Katakuri! Amazing!"
Roa slumped listlessly on a table, lazily watching Katakuri's display of power. He joined the chorus of praise, "Indeed, you're cool, my good brother! I declare you the strongest ten-year-old on Hachinosu Island!"
For young boys, Hachinosu Island, teeming with pirates, offered little in terms of entertainment. What kind of entertainment did pirates indulge in? Nothing but eating, drinking, gambling, and visiting brothels—hardly suitable for children.
So, bored children had to rack their brains to find their own fun. Katakuri's idea of "playing" was to randomly select pirates on the island and initiate a thrilling pirate hunt.
It was a hyper-realistic game of house, tailored for the "babies" of Hachinosu Island.
Roa inhaled. The dark aura released by the pirates was drawn into him. He considered himself a pacifist and had no interest in killing or hunting, but who didn't enjoy a free afternoon snack?
The victorious Katakuri walked over excitedly, pulled up a chair, and sat down. "That was exhilarating, Roa. Aren't you going to join? You haven't participated in any hunting activities since you officially joined the Rocks Pirates."
"I'll pass,"
Roa's head remained on the table as he slowly drew out his words. "I'm a pacifist, you know."
After becoming an officer of the Rocks Pirates, he no longer needed to hunt pirates for dark aura. He had the coliseum for that.
"Pacifist?"
Katakuri's mouth twisted downwards, almost tearing his stitches. "What are you, the guy who loves tormenting pirates the most, talking about? It's not like I haven't been to your coliseum."
Roa casually shrugged it off. "If all the troublesome pirates are cleaned up, won't there be peace?"
"So that's your kind of pacifist!"
Katakuri grumbled, annoyed. "Besides, aren't you a pirate too?"
"I'm a temporary worker, not a full-time employee. I only enjoy the rights, not the responsibilities."
"Where do you find temporary workers like that?"
The straightforward Katakuri grumbled as he pulled out a plate of donuts from his bag. He happily opened his mouth wide and swallowed one whole, then mumbled to Roa, "Want some?"
Roa waved his hand. Compared to dark aura, human food was truly unappetizing. After all, each time he devoured dark aura, Roa underwent a subtle evolution. This kind of sublimation from soul to body couldn't be compared to mere taste.
Just then, the pirates who had miraculously survived but were severely injured by Katakuri slowly got up. They fearfully circled around their table, trembling as they helped each other out of the tavern.
Roa watched their retreating figures, then thoughtfully said, "Aren't you afraid of them retaliating, Katakuri?"
Speaking of which, Brûlée was still safe and sound.
"Them? If they have the guts, let them come,"
Katakuri disdainfully wiped the cream from the corner of his mouth, then tossed another donut into his huge maw. His eating habits were truly unappealing, even frightening. No wonder he couldn't make friends.
He glanced at Roa. "And aren't you doing even worse things?"
"It's different, you know. I'm kind-hearted."
Roa said leisurely. Because Master Roa couldn't bear to see separation, the pirates sent to the coliseum were all "sent away" in a uniform manner. None were left behind, so how could there be any talk of retaliation?
As he spoke, Roa eyed Katakuri with interest. "Besides, I'm invincible."
"Invincible?"
Katakuri was somewhat puzzled.
Just then.
Bang!
The tavern door was pushed open, and a young boy rushed in. His long tongue hung out of his mouth, and his face was filled with urgency.
"Brother Peros?"
Katakuri was a little surprised. "Why are you here?"
Charlotte Family's eldest son, Charlotte Perospero, said anxiously, "Katakuri, something happened to Brûlée!"
"Eh?"
Katakuri was a bit dazed, and the donut in his hand suddenly dropped to the floor.
Roa blinked, lifting his head from the table. He looked at Katakuri, who was already emitting dark aura. What a coincidence!
My brother, you smell so good! That's why I said, good brother, unlike the invincible me, you have too many attachments.
A little later.
The Charlotte family's mansion.
"Brother Katakuri, I'm fine..."
The small girl lay on the sickbed, a diagonal wound running across her entire face. Even with emergency treatment, blood continued to flow. It must have been painful, especially for a five-year-old girl, but the girl forced a smile, comforting her brother. "It doesn't hurt at all, don't worry."
"Brûlée!!"
Katakuri looked at his beloved sister's pale face. He hurriedly looked at his brothers beside him. "What happened? Why did it turn out like this?"
"It was the thugs you taught a lesson to earlier."
One of Katakuri's triplet brothers, Daifuku, with a buzz cut, spoke in a low voice. "They couldn't beat you, so they went after Brûlée. They said that ugly guys like you shouldn't have such a cute sister..."
Another brother, Oven, with fiery hair, looked at Brûlée with heartache. "The doctor said it will leave a permanent scar."
Katakuri's body trembled, and his forehead was instantly covered in cold sweat. Was it because of him? Those thugs mocked his appearance, and he beat them up, which resulted in Brûlée being hurt? Was it all because of his self-centeredness?
"Don't worry, Brother Katakuri,"
Little Brûlée weakly grasped Katakuri's hand, enduring the pain, her face gentle. "Don't mind it. You just need to be yourself."
Katakuri's body shook violently. He suddenly clenched his teeth, gripping his sister's hand. "Brûlée, wait a moment! Brother will go avenge you now!"
With that, he grabbed his trident and turned to leave, but then suddenly paused. With a flick of his right hand, his arm turned into mochi and stretched out, grabbing a scarf from a nearby coat rack. He casually wrapped it around his neck, covering the lower half of his face.
"Hey! Katakuri!"
Perospero was greatly shocked. Katakuri had never cared what others thought of him!
"Brother Peros, where are they?"
Katakuri didn't look back.
"The port..."
Perospero instinctively replied.
"I will give them complete fear!!"
Katakuri said, then ran out the door.
Leaving the Charlotte brothers looking at each other.
"I'll go take a look."
Roa, who had been quietly watching the whole time, spoke up. When his good brother was in trouble, he, the timely rain of Hachinosu Island, naturally had to help out. It definitely had nothing to do with dark aura.