The waters of the Gecko Islands covered a rather vast area. There were about twenty islands in total, both large and small, inhabited and uninhabited. Sailing from one end of the archipelago to the other would take a full day.
From Allen's current position, there was a small island on the opposite side of the archipelago dotted with several villages. Among them, one particular village's name caught his attention.
*'It really is Syrup Village...'*
Allen muttered silently. As he looked back at the pirates kneeling before him, he already had his answer.
He had crossed over into this world on the exact same day Luffy recruited Zoro. Factoring in his two days of sailing, it meant that Captain Kuro, who had been lying low for years, was preparing to close his net right about now.
According to his memories, after faking his death back then, Kuro had infiltrated the mansion of a wealthy family in Syrup Village disguised as a butler, plotting to seize their fortune.
Later, the wealthy couple passed away, leaving their entire estate in the hands of their only daughter, Kaya.
Kuro's plan was to have his former crew attack the village. During the chaos, his subordinate, the hypnotist Jango, would assassinate the young lady. But before killing her, Jango would use his hypnotism to force her to write a will leaving her entire inheritance to the butler.
Thinking of this, a cold sweat broke out on Allen's back.
What an incredibly meticulous plan! It was truly terrifying the more you thought about it, practically the absolute pinnacle of a battle of wits.
Allen was willing to dub it, "Kuro's Fake Death"!!
...
Setting aside how utterly absurd Kuro's "Three-Year Plan: I Just Want to Live a Quiet Life" was, Allen looked back at the pirates.
"Where are your crewmates? Are they all on this island?"
"Y-Yes... Our ship is anchored behind the cliff on the other side. The Nyaban Brothers are also on board."
One of the pirates nodded and answered honestly.
He also hoped that dropping the Nyaban Brothers' name might intimidate Allen a little.
However, he had absolutely no idea just how strong Allen truly was.
Having already made up his mind regarding the Black Cat Pirates, Allen smiled.
"Let's go. We're heading back to the ship."
"Eh? Back to the ship?"
Hearing this, the pirates exchanged confused glances.
Allen delivered a swift kick to urge them up to lead the way.
"Hurry up and get moving. If it gets dark, we won't make it in time to have dinner with the boys."
The pirates: "???"
Despite their utter confusion, they were forced to yield to Allen's strength. The pirates turned around and led the way toward the coast where their ship was anchored.
Allen followed them through the dense, overlapping shadows of the trees. The pirates walked ahead, carrying the wild boar and whispering among themselves.
"Talking about eating dinner with the boys... you don't think this guy wants to join us, do you?"
"Maybe he really does. He is a lone Marine, after all."
"I've got it."
A pirate wearing a white bandana suddenly lit up and lowered his voice.
"What if he didn't get separated from his unit, but actually stole loot from his warship and deserted?"
"Gasp... so that's it."
Hearing this, the other pirates gasped in realization, nodding in agreement with his deduction.
Finally, the pirate with the white bandana couldn't help but look back at Allen, timidly probing.
"Um... Mr. Marine, are you perhaps thinking of..."
"I'm not a Marine."
Allen interrupted him, adding, "I quit a couple of days ago to become a pirate."
"So that's how it is."
The white-bandana pirate chuckled awkwardly. Upon hearing Allen's words, he and the others all wore expressions that said, *'I knew it.'*
The pirates had completely convinced themselves that Allen's situation was exactly as they had deduced, and that he was now planning to defect to their pirate crew.
With this thought in mind, the pirates' fear immediately subsided quite a bit.
The man in the white bandana looked back with a wide grin.
"I get it, I get it. Don't worry, the guys on our ship don't care about anyone's background. Once you're on board, you're one of us."
"Really? That's great, hahaha! I was worried you guys wouldn't be able to accept me since I just beat you up."
Allen laughed along with them.
Seeing this, the pirates completely dropped their guard. The man in the white bandana continued to smile.
"Not at all, not at all! By the way, brother, what did you say your name was again?"
"Ah, sorry, sorry. I forgot to introduce myself to you all. As for what to call me..."
Allen gave a thumbs-up and pointed at himself.
With a faint smile, he said,
"You can all just call me Captain Allen."
"What's good about that at all?!"
The pirates glared at him, baring their teeth as they shouted angrily.
Allen came to a halt. The smile gradually faded from his face as he clenched his fist and swung it, punching a thick, sturdy tree beside him.
Bang!
Crack—crack—!
A fissure appeared on the trunk, spreading all the way around it. Finally, the entire massive tree collapsed with a deafening crash.
"I won't say anything if you call me by my name before we board the ship, but once we're on board..."
Allen's tone was teasing, yet his voice was ice-cold. "What do you think you should call me?"
"Yes! Captain Allen!!"
The pirates immediately dropped the wild boar they were carrying and bowed in perfect unison. Their posture was incredibly rigid, displaying the utmost respect.
Allen nodded, looking completely satisfied. "Not bad, not bad. As my very first subordinates, the four of you will be squad leaders once we get back."
"Thank you, Captain!!"
The pirates stood up and bowed again, shouting respectfully.
...
Soon, the group was on the move again. Allen pondered as he walked.
His ultimate goal was to build a massive grand fleet. Slowly recruiting members one by one was definitely inferior to directly seizing ships and poaching people. He had originally planned to target other pirate crews, but he hadn't expected to run into this group first.
Thinking about it carefully, the Black Cat Pirates were actually quite suitable. Their captain had been gone for three years, so their emotional attachment to him had surely faded significantly—especially considering Kuro was such a ruthless and cruel man.
They probably didn't have much of a bond to begin with.
As for Syrup Village, he had no intention of going there. His primary objective right now was to recruit Sanji before the Straw Hat kid could, so the faster he moved, the better.
Usopp and Kuro simply weren't worth wasting his time on a special trip.
The Marines had already revoked Kuro's bounty three years ago after executing his body double, and there was absolutely no need to recruit him onto the ship.
It was completely unrealistic to ask a man who intended to silence all his knowledgeable subordinates after a successful plan just so he could live a quiet life to follow him and be a pirate.
He couldn't trust someone who might pack up and run away at any given moment anyway.
His current goal was very clear: beat down all the pirates on the ship, claim both the vessel and the crew for himself, and then immediately set sail.
After poaching Kuro's crew, he would head straight to the sea restaurant to poach Sanji, and then make a beeline for the nearby Conomi Islands to poach Nami from Arlong Park.
With that lineup, he would be just about ready to brave the Grand Line. He could figure out the rest later; after all, the Grand Line had no shortage of talented individuals.
Starting with nothing but his two fists, he would rely entirely on poaching for both his crew and his ship.
...
A short while later, the pirates finally led Allen out of the forest.
"This is it, Captain Allen. Our ship is anchored right down there."
The pirate in the white bandana stepped up to the edge of the cliff, pointing at the coast below as he looked back.
Allen shot him a strange look.
*'You little punk, you sure changed your tune fast.'*
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