In the slums of the West Blue, a musty odor lingered in the air, clinging to the warped, rotting wooden homes.
Masha sat in front of a wobbly table, her calloused fingers awkwardly fumbling with a mobile phone. Her movements were stiff, but her eyes were full of focus.
She had picked up the phone at a discount while selling newspapers, just one hundred Berries.
She originally bought it to entertain her grandson. She couldn't afford toys, not even the cheapest ones, which cost over a thousand Berries.
But this phone had only cost a hundred.
Today, her grandson wanted to watch a livestream, so she sat and watched with him.
Then, suddenly, the phone vibrated. A message popped up on the screen:
"Congratulations! You've won a lucky bag, receiving 500,000 Berries!"
Masha's cloudy eyes widened. Her cracked lips trembled.
"Fi… five hundred thousand?" Her voice was shaky, her expression full of disbelief.
When the notification sound played, she nearly dropped the phone into the vegetable basin beside her.
Her scrawny grandson gnawed on a piece of black bread. Seeing her reaction, he blinked in confusion.
"Grandma, what's wrong?"
Masha stared at the message on screen. Tears welled up in her eyes, and finally streamed down her face.
Her fingers trembled as she gently tapped the screen, confirming it wasn't a dream. She looked at her grandson, her voice choked.
"Child… we… we won't have to starve anymore…"
The boy looked up at her, confused at first, then suddenly joyful.
He dropped the piece of bread and threw himself into her arms.
"Grandma, we won't starve anymore? Really?!"
Masha hugged him tightly, her tears soaking through his clothes.
"Yes, child. We have money now. No more black bread. We can eat something delicious… wear new clothes… live a good life…"
In their tiny shack, a long-lost warmth and hope bloomed.
To them, those five hundred thousand Berries weren't just money. It was hope. A new beginning.
Masha was silently grateful. That little phone had completely changed their fate.
"Thank you, phone… Thank you to the people who made this phone… thank you…"
...
The livestream was in full swing. Bullet comments flew across the screen, lively and fast-paced.
More people were winning lucky bags. The prize money could be withdrawn instantly or stored as credit in their phone wallets. When shopping, users could place orders directly from others' Shopping Carts.
This feature made the stream even more addictive.
"Hello everyone. I'm blind. Are you guys grabbing lucky bags? I didn't get one. Could a kind soul send me one? I haven't eaten in three days."
This message suddenly appeared, instantly drawing attention.
>"Him again? Didn't he show up in Luffy's livestream yesterday too?"
>"Poor Nami. She just recovered and got scammed out of 1000 Berries by some fraudster."
>"You damn scammer! Give me back my 1000 Berries!"
>"I saw him faking a disability in front of the Marine base two days ago!"
Accusations and insults started flying through the barrage. Clearly, this "blind guy" wasn't new, and he'd already rubbed many the wrong way.
Queen glanced at the drama in the bullet comments and curled his lip in disdain. He adjusted the mic, spotlight shining down on his glistening head, and began to hype things up.
"Next up…" he croaked with his raspy voice, "I'll sing for you all—'The Greatest Pirate!'"
The moment the music dropped, gift effects blasted across the screen. Bullet comments surged like a tidal wave.
But in a far corner of the banquet, King silently turned off the sound. The corner of his mouth twitched beneath the mask.
"This moron…"
He watched Queen flailing around in front of the camera with contempt in his eyes.
Still, as much as he hated to admit it, Queen had successfully boosted the livestream's popularity.
...
The central bonfire of Onigashima suddenly flared, flames shooting skyward and lighting up the whole plaza.
A dragon's roar shook the heavens. In the skies above, a hundred-zhang-long dragon soared past, its powerful flight scattering the fire below.
Then—Kaido landed!
His massive form slammed into the plaza, millstone-sized eyes scanning the camera.
Kaido grinned, voice booming like thunder.
"Worororo! My little ones—drink!"
His roar made the plaza tremble.
The crowd erupted. Low-level subordinates grabbed bottles of sake and chugged them down!
Sake splashed everywhere. Laughter and cheers echoed across the island.
The Tobiroppo arrived next. Black Maria let smoke curl from her pipe, blowing a sultry wink at the camera. Her gaze oozed laziness and seduction.
Who's-Who, Sasaki, and the others appeared one after another on the stream.
Then, Orochi finally showed up.
His palanquin slowly entered the plaza, with the crowd parting to let him through.
As Orochi lifted the curtain, his eyes widened in disbelief.
All across the plaza, pirates were staring at glowing little rectangles in their hands, grinning like fools.
He rubbed his eyes.
"Wha… what are those?" His voice was confused, his expression blank.
"I don't know, but judging by their faces, they're obsessed… maybe even hypnotized!" a nearby subordinate replied, curious.
"Hmph!" Orochi snatched a phone from one of the underlings.
Suddenly, a heavily filtered image of himself popped up on the screen—sparkling eyes, flawless skin, double peace signs.
Startled, Orochi shrieked and tossed the phone away.
"A-a ghost! An illusion!"
"Could it be… some kind of ninjutsu?"
"Everyone's under genjutsu? That doesn't make sense…"
Nearby pirates burst into laughter at his reaction.
Kaido-sama also let out a thunderous laugh, voice shaking the plaza.
"Worororo! Orochi, what the hell is wrong with you?"
"Hmph! Nothing."
Orochi forced down the panic and masked his confusion, now even more curious about the boxes in everyone's hands.
Last time he came here, none of this tech was around. How had everyone suddenly gotten one?
He made his way to the main stage, watching the ongoing performances that bored him to death.
If Kaido hadn't invited him, he wouldn't have come at all.
"Komurasaki, who do you think sings better—me or that idiot Queen?"
Orochi turned to Komurasaki with a sleazy grin.
"Ah? Of course… of course…"
"Of course they're both trash! Utter garbage!"
Before Komurasaki could reply, King's cold voice cut in from the shadows.
Orochi froze, watching King storm off with a dark expression.
It wasn't until King vanished that Orochi snapped out of it.
"Did I… do something to offend him?"
He suddenly felt miserable. This whole banquet made him feel like an outsider, awkward and unwanted.
(To be continued.)