I'm A Plunderer In The World Of One Piece.

"Cough, cough…"

A blood-soaked guard dragged himself through the blizzard, leaning heavily on his rifle like a crutch. Blood loss had left him woozy, but his willpower—fueled by the need to warn the town—kept him moving.

"I have to tell Dalton… Wapol… and that swordsman..."

He didn't know how long he'd trudged forward before finally collapsing face-first into the snow. Luckily, a traveling merchant passing by on a sled spotted him and hauled him back to the village.

Under the glow of firelight, his body gradually regained warmth. When he opened his eyes and saw Dalton, he immediately became frantic and sputtered:

"H-He's back! Wapol is back! And he brought someone—someone dangerous!"

"Calm down, Will," Dalton said, his expression darkening. "Speak slowly."

Just as that mysterious pirate had warned… Wapol had returned.

"I... I…"

Will gasped, his words stuck in his throat.

A gentle hand passed him a cup of warm water.

"Here," Vivi said with a soft smile. "Drink this to calm down."

"Thank you!" Will downed the cup in one gulp, his breathing slowly steadying.

"I feel much better... thank you..."

Then, as he looked up and saw who handed him the cup, his face froze with guilt.

"I-I'm sorry…"

It was the light blue-haired girl from the pirate ship—the one he had nearly shot.

"You can explain now," Vivi said kindly.

"Wapol!" Will stood up abruptly, grabbing Dalton by the sleeve. "He took out all our men at the dock. And on his ship… there was someone terrifying—Mushuru! The same criminal who nearly destroyed Drum Kingdom twenty years ago!"

Dalton's face went pale.

"That can't be. Mushuru was exiled to the Land of Fire by the former king…"

"Cough… cough…"

Will's body collapsed back onto the bed, drained.

"And…"

He struggled to turn toward Vivi and murmured,

"Your three-sword companion… he was ambushed by Mushuru during the fight with Wapol. Mushuru's strange ability hit him, and he fell into the river... He probably didn't…"

Will fainted before he could finish the sentence.

"Zoro fell into the river?!"

Vivi, Sanji, and Usopp's eyes met in alarm.

"We need to get back to the dock immediately!" Vivi shouted. "Zoro might still be alive!"

Usopp clenched his fists, trying to swallow his fear. "Yeah! Let's go, Sanji!"

"Calm down," Sanji said, lighting a cigarette. "Panicking won't help. That moss-head won't die that easily."

He exhaled a puff of smoke.

"Usopp, you and Vivi stay here. Wait for Shirogai, Luffy, and Nami. I'll go alone."

Dalton stood up sharply.

"Wait. I'm coming too. We can't let Mushuru reach the town."

His tone was firm.

"The people have already suffered enough. I won't let them suffer again."

Both men dashed out.

"Sanji! I'm coming with you!" Usopp called out, trying to follow.

Sanji turned, pressing both hands on Usopp's shoulders.

"Usopp, we need to move fast. You'll only slow us down. Besides, it's dangerous here too. If we don't stop those guys, it's up to you to protect Vivi and the townspeople."

Usopp froze, seeing Sanji's rare seriousness. He swallowed hard and nodded with misty eyes.

"Alright… just be careful. And find Zoro, okay? He's a terrible navigator. If he gets lost, he won't find his way back…"

Sanji gave a small grin as he waved goodbye.

"Don't worry. That idiot's tougher than we give him credit for. He hasn't become the world's greatest swordsman yet. No way he's dying in a place like this."

Sanji sprinted forward. Dalton galloped beside him on horseback—until he frowned.

"This is too slow!"

Dalton's body began to morph, growing in size, his muscles thickening. His clothes stretched and creaked before bursting as he transformed.

His jaw lengthened, fur erupted across his body, and thick bull horns curved from his head.

He had taken the form of a bison.

Landing hard in the snow, Dalton's four hooves pounded into the ground with explosive force.

He turned his bloodshot eyes to Sanji and bellowed:

"Get on, Sanji!"

Without hesitation, Sanji leapt onto Dalton's back.

"Hang on. I'm going full speed!"

Dalton surged forward, tearing across the snowy plains like a stampeding beast, hooves kicking up trails of snow.

…

On the mountain above, a black aircraft spewing dark smoke rose through the stormy winds, heading toward the snow-covered summit.

"Hahaha! Fly! This Smoke Fruit ability is awesome!"

Luffy cheered wildly in the front cockpit.

Shirogai had fused smoke and propulsion into a makeshift aircraft, shielding the cockpit with Armament Haki to block the icy winds and raging blizzard.

He had modeled the cockpit after planes from his original world, complete with faux buttons, levers, and displays—though most of them were just for show.

"Whoa! What are all these buttons?" Luffy asked, eyes sparkling like a kid in a candy store.

Nami sat beside him, equally amazed. "Shirogai, did you invent this?"

From the speaker, Shirogai's voice replied with a smirk:

"No, I copied someone else's design."

Nami admired the snow-covered peaks below, flakes swirling in the storm.

"It's beautiful… I wish Nojiko could see this."

Shirogai's chuckle echoed through the loudspeaker.

"She will one day."

Then his voice changed to mimic a flight attendant:

[Ding-dong. Dear passengers, we have arrived at Witch Castle Airport. The current temperature is minus 60 degrees Celsius. The aircraft is descending. For your safety, please remain seated and do not open the overhead compartments.]

"Oh-ho!" Luffy clapped in wonder. "Sugoi! That was amazing!"

…