Chapter 74: Survivor of Ohara
Twin Cape was called Twin Cape precisely because of the two lighthouses flanking the entrance to the Grand Line.
The lighthouses were situated on a slightly lower section of the Red Line continent. Although described as 'lower,' it was still very high relative to the Death Omen Star. However, below the lighthouses, there were rope ladders allowing access.
The ship dropped anchor, docking beside the cliff wall. Sag led his people onto the lower landmass and climbed up via the rope ladder.
Below the lighthouse stood a rectangular house. A bench was placed by the doorway. An old man wearing a flower-print shirt, with hair resembling a blooming flower, was collecting a nearby umbrella. Seeing people approaching, he turned his head, his gaze meeting Sag's group.
Then, silence…
Renettia raised an eyebrow, meeting the old man's eyes for a long moment, and couldn't help but say, "Bird man?"
The old man's pupils contracted. He stared deadly at Renettia, his eyes seeming to fill with solemnity and killing intent. That gaze made Renettia instinctively straighten up and place her hand on the small hammer behind her back.
"I'm not a bird man. I'm just an old man," the old man finally spoke. "What's on my head is decoration."
"Who asked you!" Renettia rolled her eyes and shouted.
"Alright, alright."
Sag rubbed Renettia's pink head and looked at the old man. "You're the lighthouse keeper of Twin Cape, correct? Let me ask you…"
"Before asking questions, shouldn't you introduce yourself?" the old man interrupted Sag. "Otherwise, it seems quite impolite."
Sag twitched the corner of his mouth. "Fine, my name is…"
"Norton Sag. I've seen your bounty poster. Seventy million in the East Blue is very high," the old man interrupted again.
Veins popped on Sag's forehead. He rolled up his sleeves angrily, "Do you have a death wish, old man?!"
"Of course, I will die…"
The old man held out his hand, stopping Sag's forward movement. The solemnity and seriousness in his eyes stunned everyone.
"…Me," he finished, pointing at himself.
"It *is* you!" the pirates who had followed behind all turned pale, shouting in unison.
Renettia angrily pulled out her tool hammer, twisted the handle to rapidly extend and enlarge it, and was about to bring it down on his head with both hands, but was stopped by Marika and Lily.
Sag waved his hand to the side. Pearl jogged closer, took out a cigar, and handed it over with both hands. After Sag took it, Pearl diligently lit a match, waiting for the cigar to light.
Sag took several deep drags on the cigar, exhaled smoke, and then said, "Old man, you…"
"My name is Cro…"
"Ah?!" Sag was stunned.
"Crocus. Seventy-one years old this year, Gemini, blood type AB. My favorite food is grilled giant squid," the old man continued.
"Sag, why are you so surprised?" Renettia asked, puzzled.
"I don't know, just a strange feeling. Forget it, it's not important."
Sag shook his head, laughing despite his anger, and looked at Crocus. "Old man, are you really not afraid of death?"
"What man of the sea fears death? I'm already seventy-one this year; I don't have much time left to live anyway."
Crocus folded the umbrella, sat down on the bench, and said, "So, what does a man like you want with a mere keeper like me? Also, you seem injured. Do you need treatment? I have some medicine here suitable for recuperating."
"Doctor?"
Sag paused again. Doctor, keeper, and named Crocus…
"It *is* you…" he realized suddenly. "A crewmate of Roger."
"Roger?"
The people behind him were all stunned.
"Gol D. Roger?" Marika opened her usually smiling eyes wide.
"The Pirate King?" Lily looked bewildered.
As for Gin and Pearl, their eyes lit up.
"It's Gol D. Roger, little girl."
Crocus glanced at Marika, his expression unchanged. "Do today's pirates even need to collect intelligence from decades ago? But I'm just an old man now. Being a crewmate was a very long time ago."
"That doesn't matter."
Sag leaned closer, holding out his hand. "Since you were a crewmate of the Pirate King, you must have an Eternal Pose for Raftel, right? Give it to me. Don't make me take it by force."
Although he wasn't interested in becoming the Pirate King *that* way, Sag certainly believed that the 'great treasure connecting all' (One Piece) existed.
If there was readily available treasure, why not take it?
"There's no such thing. If there were, I wouldn't be working as a keeper here; the government would have put a bounty on me long ago."
Crocus shook his head. "Although I was Roger's crewmate, I was just the ship's doctor. I have no strength and no bounty poster."
"Eh? Does Raftel really exist?" Renettia exclaimed. "I thought it was a legend. Sag, he's just a weird old man now. Would he really have that pointer thing?"
"Ah…"
Sag thought for a moment. "I just felt that with 'Kuro' and 'Kasu' in the name, there should be…" *(Mishearing/misremembering Crocus's name again)*
"My name is Crocus, not Kuro and Kasu."
Crocus glanced at them. "It seems you don't have a Log Pose either. Sailing the Grand Line without one is impossible. Unfortunately, a few days ago, I gave mine to pirates who also came from the East Blue. You seem to have gotten your bounties around the same time."
"The Straw Hat Boy?" Lily said. "The pirate with the thirty million bounty."
Marika asked, "You don't have any spare pointers? Will you get more? Old sir, if you do get more, how long would we have to wait?"
"I don't know. Maybe a month, maybe half a year."
Crocus shook his head. "Without a Log Pose, I don't recommend you sail."
"Not sailing might not be an option either."
Lily looked back at the sky. It was clearly sunny, but she closed her eyes slightly, feeling a breeze coming from somewhere unknown, fluttering her golden wavy hair.
"Sag, a wind is coming. A strong one."
"Go!"
Sag gritted his teeth, threw the half-smoked cigar on the ground, and turned to leave.
Since there was no Log Pose, wasting time here was useless. Besides, he trusted Lily's judgment.
A theoretically superb navigator just lacked practical foundation, not ability. Lily, having gained extensive practical experience in the East Blue, had proven that her theory wasn't wrong.
"Eh? Even wind is no problem! My ship has been tested!" Renettia was still somewhat confused.
But very quickly, she understood why Sag left so decisively.
Just as they stepped onto the deck, the breeze that had been blowing suddenly intensified, transforming into a fierce gale capable of stirring up giant waves.
*Splash!!*
The giant wave surged right beneath the Death Omen Star, lifting it up like an angry tsunami. The fierce gale blew, pressing everyone on deck directly to the ground, even tilting the ship severely to the side.
To this extent, the pirates in the engine room responsible for propulsion couldn't make adjustments. All they could adjust was the ship's sailing speed; they had no way to counter the tilting wind and waves.
"Are you kidding me!"
Renettia's eyes widened. She pressed her hands onto the deck, thin blue veins appearing on her neck.
"My ship won't sink under these conditions! This is too unfair!"
*Zizi…*
Dynamic electric sparks transmitted from her palms throughout the entire ship, applying a layer of dynamic force to the tilting vessel, unexpectedly righting it.
And the angry waves surged forward, carrying the Death Omen Star far away. The violent gale blew the ship even further forward.
Without needing sails or the propulsion system, relying solely on the flow of wind and waves, the ship rapidly moved away from Twin Cape and disappeared.
But magically, this fierce wind and the wild waves seemed to hit a barrier when they reached Twin Cape. Apart from a little scattered seawater rain, the land remained completely untouched.
"Coo! Coo!"
Even a News Coo flew in from the other direction, landing unharmed at Twin Cape.
"It's almost as if it was targeted..."
Crocus watched the ship disappear, dropped a coin into the box hanging around the News Coo's neck, and shook his head. "Strange people."
He took out a newspaper, unfolded it, glanced at it, and his pupils contracted.
"Why did it rise so high? Destroying a section of the Bridge-Top Kingdom bridge, and robbing Loguetown? That shouldn't be this high."
He pursed his lips and suddenly sighed. "The sea is always so lively…"
…
Marine Headquarters.
In an office with a plaque reading 'Justice Overlooking the World'.
Garp took out a *senbei* (rice cracker) and took a bite, laughing heartily while chewing. "Pwahahaha! Are we hiding it?"
"Garp!!"
On the inner side of the desk, a man with a long, braided beard and round glasses stood up abruptly, furious. "Isn't it because of you! If you had captured him at Bridge-Top Kingdom, there wouldn't have been so much trouble!"
"Sengoku, you can't blame this old man! He escaped; it's not like this old man didn't chase! Pwahahaha!" Garp threw his head back and laughed.
"Shut up! You always do inexplicable things! How much have Tsuru and I cleaned up after you? That takes a lot of effort!"
Sengoku glared at Garp, reached out, snatched Garp's senbei bag, and poured the contents directly into his mouth.
"Ah! My senbei!" Garp cried out, mouth agape.
"Hmph!"
Sengoku threw the bag aside and shouted, "Now even Zephyr can't catch him! Although asthma is a factor, it also means this guy is becoming more and more troublesome! Up until now, he destroyed Bridge-Top Kingdom and then looted Loguetown extensively. The complaint documents from those nobles have all reached me, but we are completely unable to recover the property."
*Bang!*
He slammed his hand on the desk. "The fact that you and Zephyr couldn't catch him must be concealed. But just destroying four kingdoms alone, his threat level is incomparable to a rookie pirate! Raising his bounty this high is unavoidable! We must deal with him when he enters the Grand Line!"
Where his hand slapped, there happened to be a bounty poster.
It was still Sag's face, laughing wildly amidst ruins and fire, but the bounty amount underneath…
"Two hundred and seventy million? Even if this old man and Zephyr didn't catch him, isn't that a bit high for a rookie pirate? Pwahahaha!" Garp glanced at it and laughed again.
"No. Escaping from battle with you and Zephyr is only one reason. There's another. Over in the East Blue, they found intelligence regarding Norton Sag…"
Sengoku's expression became solemn, and he slowly said, "He is a survivor of Ohara."
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