One Piece: I, the Strongest Intern of the Roger Pirates

Splash… As Fang Yi rowed the lifeboat to the side of the naval warship, a rope ladder suddenly dropped down from the deck—almost as if it was intentionally lowered to help him board more easily.

Who's up there? he muttered. A rope ladder doesn't lower itself for no reason, and it dropped exactly when he arrived. That meant someone, or something, was watching him closely.

"Wangzai, go!" He checked his gear. Strangely, he wasn't that afraid anymore. Compared to the terrifying unknown, being sure something was up there gave him a bit of confidence.

"Little guy… I'm counting on you now! If anything gets close, warn me immediately!" He climbed onto the warship and looked around, confirming it was indeed the same ghost ship that had docked beside the Oro Jackson earlier that day.

"Xiao Yi… found anything?" Roger's voice called out from below as he and the crew arrived at the side of the ship, ready to climb up.

"Nothing yet, Captain!" Fang Yi replied, turning to answer.

"Woof woof…" But just as he turned, Wangzai suddenly barked fiercely in one direction.

Without hesitation, Fang Yi gripped his dagger and entered full alert mode.

"Xiao Yi! What's happening?" Roger must've heard the barking too, and shouted in concern.

But Fang Yi didn't answer.

By the time Roger and the others climbed aboard, they were stunned to find the deck empty. Fang Yi was gone—and so was Wangzai.

"What's going on? Where's Xiao Yi?" asked Yamon, who had come with them.

"No idea. He wasn't here when we got up," Roger said, frowning.

"Xiao Yi~~!" Yamon shouted, but his voice only echoed off the empty ship.

"This is strange… maybe he went into the cabins. Let's look around," Roger suggested.

"Roger, something's off. Xiao Yi wouldn't just vanish. Everyone, be cautious," Yamon warned, his instincts alerting him that something was wrong.

CLANG—THUD!

A noise suddenly echoed from the rear of the ship.

"It's Xiao Yi!" Yamon took off running, the rest following close behind.

Sure enough, they found Fang Yi and Wangzai lying near the stern.

"Xiao Yi! Are you okay?" Yamon rushed over and checked on him.

"Ugh… Yamon-sensei?" Fang Yi slowly opened his eyes, seeing the worried expression on his mentor's face.

"You alright? Who attacked you?" Yamon asked.

"I don't know," Fang Yi shook his head. "Wangzai noticed something, then I heard the Captain call me. I got distracted and suddenly felt super sleepy—then I just blacked out. I don't think I was attacked physically."

"Yeah, there are no injuries on him… or the dog," confirmed the ship's doctor after examining both.

"That's even stranger. What did this do to him?" Roger rubbed his chin.

"I… think it might've been a ghost," Fang Yi said, gulping.

"Ghost?" Everyone turned to look at him, surprised.

"I mean, I didn't use to believe in that stuff," Fang Yi explained. "But this time… I'm sure it wasn't a human in stealth. It felt more like… a spiritual entity. I couldn't feel a thing."

While they were all stumped, a faint sound began to drift through the air—singing.

"…That's… a mermaid's song?" Langram said, listening carefully.

"Mermaid's song?" Everyone turned to him for an explanation.

"Yes," he nodded. "It's said that long ago, mermaids could sing such beautiful melodies that they'd put people in a trance. Some legends say they could even control nearby sea creatures."

"Wait… you're saying the Navy crew on this ship were killed by mermaids?" someone asked, stunned. They'd been to Fish-Man Island before—and unlike the fierce fish-men, mermaids were known to be very gentle.

"But if that's the case… then what attacked me?" Fang Yi asked, confused.

No one could answer that. And no one knew what to do next.

THUD…

A loud noise came from below deck, as if something had fallen.

"Let's check it out!" Roger said seriously.

Everyone headed down. Fang Yi carried the unconscious Wangzai with him.

But once again, the cabins revealed nothing. No one. No clues.

"Same result," Roger muttered. "What are we missing?"

They had more people than before, but still came up empty-handed.

"Captain!" Fang Yi called out suddenly.

"What is it?" Everyone turned toward the sound—and found Fang Yi and Wangzai near something.

"It's a hidden passage. Looks like there's a second layer beneath the ship's hold," Fang Yi said. "After I woke up… I felt like something was guiding me here."

"Step back. I'll open it," Roger said, motioning for Fang Yi to move aside.

When the passage opened, everyone was stunned.

"A… water prison?" Langram immediately recognized it.

"A prison? Right here? That seems careless. What if someone breaks through the hull from inside?" Fang Yi said, confused.

"It's not a regular cell—it's for Devil Fruit users," Langram explained. "Since Seastone is rare, the Navy sometimes imprisons ability users in water chambers to suppress their powers."

"So… there could be a Devil Fruit user down there?" Fang Yi asked.

"Let's check," Roger smiled. He wasn't a Devil Fruit user, so seawater didn't scare him.

Soon, Roger surfaced carrying the corpse of a man dressed like a pirate. He hadn't been dead long.

"He's dead," Langram confirmed after a quick examination.

But then, Wangzai started barking madly at the corpse.

"Everyone, be careful!" Fang Yi warned, stepping back with his weapon ready.

And then they all saw it—a transparent figure, identical to the corpse, began to materialize in the air.

The ghostly man looked at his body and showed a pained expression.

"What… what is that? A soul?" Even Roger was stunned by the surreal sight.

"Thank you for recovering my body," the ghost began writing on the floor using seawater. "I'm a pirate… and an ability user. The Navy captured me and locked me in this water prison. But my power was special—I could separate my soul from my body and move freely. I used the last of my strength to escape in soul form… and ended up like this."

"So… your soul killed the Navy crew here, but you couldn't free your body, and it drowned?" Fang Yi blinked. "So, are you dead or alive?"

"Dead, of course," the soul wrote. "My soul power is fading. If I weren't near my body, you wouldn't even see me. And even now, it's fading fast."

"You… followed us from the port by controlling this ship?" Roger asked.

"Yes. I saw you were pirates and hoped you might help free my body."

Fang Yi narrowed his eyes. If he could control the ship, why not rescue himself?

The ghost seemed to sense Fang Yi's doubt. "My body was completely submerged. I couldn't reach it… so I needed help."

"So the one who attacked me earlier… was you?" Fang Yi asked directly.

"Yes. I tried to control you with my soul to open the prison. But my power was too weak, and your soul is unusually strong. I was forced out before I could reach the cell, and nearly exhausted the last of my energy."

As they watched, the pirate's spirit slowly began to fade away.

"Who would've thought there's a Devil Fruit that lets your soul leave your body…" Fang Yi muttered on the way back to the Oro Jackson.

"Ahahaha… what a shame. I wish ghosts did exist," Roger laughed.

"Captain… don't tell me you want to recruit a ghost as a crewmate?" Fang Yi asked, face twitching.

He was reminded of a certain rubber man in the future who always picked the strangest companions.

"Pfft—Captain, if you bring a ghost on board, Xiao Yi will be begging to leave before we even hit the next island!" another crewmate teased, sparking laughter.

Fang Yi tried to defend himself, but it was no use.

From that moment on, his fear of ghosts became a running joke on the ship.