Pokemon battles have become the norm in the Pokemon World, and competitions among Trainers are common occurrences. But here, in the world of pirates, the many Pokemon created by Arceus mostly coexist peacefully.
Even if disputes and conflicts arise between individual beings, they have never fought against other Pokemon under human command.
Uta and Luffy are still unaware of what Pokemon represent, yet their Heracross duel, aimed at a competition, marks the first battle commanded by humans since Pokemon's emergence in this world.
"Oh, it looks like they're full of fighting spirit. Well, go outside to compete, and don't make a mess in here."
Seeing the two Heracross actually intending to duel, Shanks took one child by the hand and led them out of Makino's tavern, with other members of the Red Hair Pirates following Shanks out, except for one person—Gab.
A Beastman resembling a lion, while frightening in appearance, he was gentle at heart and afraid of bugs.
Heracross are also a type of insect. Even though they are much larger than typical bugs, they still belong to the insect category. Ever since Uta and Luffy brought them back, Gab has felt uneasy all over.
Fortunately, Heracross are beetles. If they were like caterpillars, he might have had a meltdown.
The beetle duels are child's play, but such large beetles dueling was a first for them. Given the Red Hair Pirates' nature, of course they wouldn't miss such an opportunity for fun.
Yasopp, who proposed the duel, drew a ring on the open ground for the Heracross duel. The rules were simple: push the opponent out of the circle, similar to a sumo match.
"If you're ready... then let's begin!"
With the two beetles in position, Shanks, like a referee, gave the command to start.
The levels of the two Heracross were not particularly high, but their "Trainer" levels were even lower. Uta and Luffy didn't know what Pokemon were, let alone Pokemon moves, so their battle commands were weak, relying entirely on cheering.
The two Heracross collided horns, which is a customary way for Heracross to duel.
"Go for it, beetle, and afterward I'll buy you delicious juice!"
"I'll not only buy you juice, but also let you hear my new song!"
Apart from material incentives, they couldn't do much else. The two kids, driven by competitiveness, cheered for the Heracross, but others noticed the Heracross's distinctiveness.
The Red Hair Pirates, now mingling in the East Sea, were simply bullying others. Strong in the Grand Line, they naturally noticed something unusual about the Heracross.
"Shanks, ordinary beetles shouldn't be this strong, and they're... too smart."
"Who knows? It's the unknown that makes the sea so intriguing, and besides, Uta is really happy."
As he spoke, Shanks joined in the cheering crowd, and this duel ended with Uta's victory, since she inadvertently used the strongest move from the Pokemon World—Quick Dodge.
As Luffy's Heracross charged, Uta attempted to instruct her Heracross to dodge the attack, as the victory condition was determined by who was pushed out of the ring first.
Being pushed out or rushing out both counted as leaving the ring.
Eventually, Heracross followed her advice, resulting in the outcome.
"Yay! 183 wins, Luffy, you lost again."
"Doesn't count! That's cheating! How did you make it dodge like that?"
"Nuh-uh~ Didn't say you can't dodge, you sore loser."
"I'm not! Fine, I'll let you win this time, but the previous 182 times, I clearly won!"
Amid Uta and Luffy's bickering, this duel came to an end, adding the presence of two Heracross in their lives.
Happy times always fly by quickly. Soon, Shanks's departure time arrived, and this time their destination was Ellegia—he planned to take the musically talented Uta there to learn music.
"Uta! Come back soon!"
On the coast of Windmill Village, Luffy and his Heracross watched the Red Force leave their sight.
.....
The Red Force set sail from Windmill Village, Tesoro's merchant ship from the Red Earth Continent. Though the starting points differed and Tesoro set sail earlier, due to the merchant ship's need to transport goods along the way, Tesoro had to travel a much greater distance than Shanks.
As a result, the two ships arrived in Ellegia at almost the same time, with Shanks even arriving a few days earlier.
"Mr. Tesoro, it's the Red Hair Pirates. Should we proceed with the usual docking?"
"Proceed as usual. No need to worry, they're not vicious pirates. Even if they were, we wouldn't need to be afraid. But what are they doing here?"
Shanks's reputation was significant, and among the "newcomers," he was the most renowned. As a former member of the Pirate King's crew, with his considerable strength, he became a Great Pirate on the sea. Yet he hadn't entered the New World for some reason.
Among the pirate circles, the Red Hair Pirates are undoubtedly among the more "friendly" types, with no negative reports involving them so far.
"So, Mr. Tesoro, where to now?"
"First, let's meet the King here. This team-building trip won't be short. We'll be guests here for quite some time. Tanaka, go send the letter of visit."
"Understood, please wait a moment."
Tanaka then sent a letter on behalf of the Hundred Beasts Fruit Performance Department, stating their intention to visit for an exchange and study for some time and hoping to arrange for admission.
This scenario wasn't uncommon in Ellegia. Foreign students were even a major source of economic trade for the island. Many people came here annually to study music, including numerous nobles, often offering substantial sponsorships.
Tesoro believed Ellegia had no reason to refuse this visit and directly led his crew into the streets of Ellegia, where they encountered an unexpected creature.
"Little White, where are you going?"
Walking down the street, Persian, who always followed Stella, suddenly darted in another direction. Persian's unusual behavior puzzled Tesoro and the others, so they followed, finding Persian staring at a large beetle in front of it.
"Heracross? Have the creatures created by Lord Arceus reached here too?"