By the time Jaya Island had shrunk to a faint gray line on the horizon, Bullet finally let go of the helm.
With the wind at its back, the single-masted speedboat sailed on its own, the bow slicing through the calm surface of the sea and leaving behind a slowly fading white wake.
All around, there was nothing but the sound of waves and the whisper of the wind.
Absolute silence.
Bullet leaned against the rail and took the silver coin out from inside his clothes.
It was a coin that carried history.
Now, it belonged to him.
He slipped the coin back over his neck, wearing it close to his chest.
The cool metal pressed against his skin with a clear, distinct sensation, like a silent anchor that reminded him where he came from and where he was headed.
He stepped into the cabin and began taking stock of everything he had for this solo voyage.
First, supplies.
The food the chef had packed for him was enough to last a month. The freshwater tank was full. Spare canvas and ropes were stacked neatly in one corner.
The treasure he had taken as his share from Carl's hoard was divided into three waterproof pouches, each hidden in a different secret compartment in the cabin.
Next was equipment.
The sword Shanks had given him hung on the cabin wall, with the steel blade he had bought for himself mounted beside it.
Two sets of training clothes and one set of casual clothes were folded and stored away.
Then came the key items.
He opened the iron box and took out the rubbing.
The leather-like sheet looked even older in the dim light of the cabin.
Those mysterious characters seemed to come alive, faintly shifting and flowing across the surface of the paper.
Bullet tried infusing Observation Haki into it, wanting to sense more information.
This time, the rubbing reacted in a way he had not expected.
Hum...
A faint golden halo spread across the surface of the sheet.
The characters that had been still moments before began to rearrange themselves, forming a hazy pattern.
It looked like a map, marked with several strange symbols.
One of those symbols, Bullet had seen a similar mark on Roger's sea chart.
"South Blue... Crescent Bay?"
The image lasted for only three seconds before it faded, and the rubbing returned to its original appearance.
But Bullet had already memorized that location.
He quickly unfolded the sea chart Roger had given him and carefully searched through the South Blue.
There it was.
Crescent Bay, located slightly west of central South Blue, a natural harbor shaped like a curved moon.
Roger's note beside it was brief.
"A natural harbor, but there are undercurrents beneath the surface, enter with caution."
Yet the reaction from the rubbing proved that the place was far from being just another ordinary port.
Bullet put the rubbing away.
To reach South Blue, he would first have to cross the Paradise half of the Grand Line, then either pass through the canal beneath the Red Line or find some other route.
This would not be an easy journey, especially for someone sailing alone.
However, Bullet was in no hurry.
He had time, and he had patience.
Before heading to South Blue, he needed to gather more strength on the Grand Line and devour more "prey."
The speedboat kept moving forward.
Around midday, the first other ship appeared on the sea.
It was a two-masted pirate ship, flying a flag marked with a blood-dripping iron hook.
The same crew as the three pirates he had met in the junk district of Jaya.
The hull bore obvious marks of repair, proof it had recently gone through a battle.
They spotted Bullet's speedboat as well and immediately changed course to approach.
Bullet stood at the bow, calmly watching their ship draw nearer.
Within the radius of his Observation Haki, he sensed around forty people on board, three of them with relatively stronger auras.
The rest were just ordinary pirates.
"Hey! Small boat!"
A hoarse voice blared out through a speaking trumpet.
"Stop right there!"
Bullet did not answer, and he did not slow down.
The speedboat continued on at its original pace.
The pirate ship was clearly provoked. It sped up, then swung around to block his path about thirty meters ahead.
The deck was packed with pirates brandishing weapons.
At the front stood a one-eyed brute with two curved blades hanging from his waist.
"Kid, you deaf?"
The one-eyed man grinned viciously.
"I am the first mate of the Blood Hook Pirates.
If you know what is good for you, hand over everything valuable, and I might leave you a whole corpse."
Bullet finally lifted his head and looked at him.
In his scarlet slit pupils there was no trace of emotion, only a cold, measuring gaze.
He was calculating.
This ship, these forty men, how much "food" could they provide?
The conclusion was: very little.
Devouring ordinary pirates yielded almost no energy, and it would contaminate the purity of his own.
"Move."
Bullet spoke at last.
His voice was not loud, but it carried clearly across the water to the other ship.
The one-eyed brute froze, then flew into a rage.
"You are asking for it!"
He slashed his hand down.
"Fire!"
Flames burst from the side cannons, and three cannonballs shrieked through the air toward the speedboat.
Bullet did not even bother to transform into his dragon form.