The World of One Piece. The Holy Land, Mary Geoise.
Inside a pitch-black dungeon completely cut off from the sun, Chu Yang listened to the agonizing wails echoing from beyond his cell bars. His heart felt unimaginably heavy.
It hadn't even been a month since he transmigrated into this world. He had woken up in the body of a young teenager, only to be immediately snatched up by human traffickers at the Sabaody Archipelago. Then, worst of all, he was purchased by the Celestial Dragons to be a slave.
What absolute dogshit luck. Other transmigrators usually woke up with an overpowered System, lived the high life, and ate like kings. He, on the other hand, was about to be branded with the "Hoof of the Soaring Dragon."
I guess you could say I'm getting a local souvenir, he thought bitterly.
The sickening smell of charred flesh wafting through the damp air made Chu Yang's nerves pull taut. Even though he had spent years grinding through the harsh realities of society in his previous life, staying calm in this situation was impossible.
In the cell right next to his, there were three girls around his age. Compared to Chu Yang, they were much calmer, bearing a look of numb resignation, as if they were already used to this hell.
The three sisters all had entirely different hair colors.
The one with the largest build had green hair. The tall, slender one had brown hair. And the most petite of the three—who paradoxically carried the strongest aura, acting exactly like a big sister—had black hair.
"Hey kid, you're new here, aren't you? Remember, if they drag you out later, no matter what happens, you have to endure it. Don't scream. If you annoy those bastards, your fate will be a thousand times worse!"
The petite black-haired girl spoke to him with a stern, solemn expression. Chu Yang nodded, accepting her goodwill.
Seeing his response, the girl's icy expression finally softened just a bit.
As the wailing outside gradually weakened and died down, the oppressive, terrifying atmosphere in the dungeon eased slightly. The girls began to chat with Chu Yang to pass the agonizing wait.
"Kid, what's your name?"
"I'm Chu Yang. And could you do me a favor and not call me 'kid'? You don't look that much older than me!"
"Chu Yang? What a bizarre name. It's so awkward to say. I am Boa Hancock. You can call me Big Sis Hancock, kid!"
Hancock deliberately emphasized the word "kid" again, seemingly trying to rile him up. But Chu Yang had zero interest in bickering over petty titles. His mind was racing.
Hancock?! The Pirate Empress?! Looking at the young future Empress who was currently suffering as a slave in Mary Geoise, Chu Yang instantly pinpointed his exact timeline. He was at least 13 years prior to the official start of the canon plotline. As for the exact year, he would have to figure out when the "Hero" Fisher Tiger was scheduled to set the Holy Land ablaze.
Given the insane security of Mary Geoise, escaping on his own would be harder than ascending to the heavens.
At that thought, Chu Yang's face darkened. This feeling of being a lamb led to the slaughter, having to entrust his life and safety completely to the whims of others, was suffocating.
He was just about to fish for more information from Hancock when he heard a sudden set of footsteps approaching from down the hall.
The jailers! They were coming to brand the "Hoof of the Soaring Dragon" onto him.
Hancock's face paled, and she hurriedly warned him one last time, "Chu Yang, you must hold on."
Chu Yang forced a stiff smile onto his chalky white face.
Bang! The iron cell door was kicked open. A massive, burly man stepped out of the shadows. He wore a black uniform and had a black hood over his head, looking exactly like a medieval executioner.
Chu Yang took a deep breath, trying his hardest not to let his fear show.
Without a single word, the jailer hoisted Chu Yang up by the collar like a baby chick. He gave him a mocking once-over, then dragged him out of the cell.
Hancock stared intensely at their retreating backs. She genuinely hoped this new boy wouldn't meet a tragic end. Over the years, countless slaves had been tortured to death simply because a jailer was acting on a "whim."
The majority of those victims were ordinary humans like Chu Yang. Other races were considered rare commodities by the Celestial Dragons; if the jailers carelessly killed one of those, they would face severe punishment.
Amidst his rising panic, Chu Yang found himself strung up by a group of jailers. Right beside him was a roaring furnace spitting sparks, and buried deep within the coals was a glowing red-hot branding iron.
A jailer pulled the iron from the fire and walked toward him with a twisted, sadistic grin.
Chu Yang locked eyes with the man, glaring like a cornered beast. In that single moment, all his fear was completely swallowed by raw anger and hatred.
"I've seen that look of yours plenty of times. None of them ever met a good end!" The jailer sneered, raising the branding iron high before slamming the scalding metal mercilessly onto Chu Yang's chest.
The burn itself was instantaneous, but the ensuing agony defied all description.
As the jailer violently pressed down, the iron sank into Chu Yang's flesh. The blinding pain caused Chu Yang's entire body to pull taut, violently trembling in the air.
Yet, driven by a sudden, inexplicable surge of sheer willpower, Chu Yang didn't make a single sound. He kept his eyes locked dead onto the jailer, his gaze rapidly turning a bloodshot, manic crimson.
That hysterical, silent madness sent a sudden chill down the jailer's spine!
The man's grip loosened, and he subconsciously stumbled back a few steps in fright. By the time he regained his composure, he realized Chu Yang had already passed out from the pain.
"Heh... thought you were tough, but you passed out that easily!"
While the jailer mocked him, Chu Yang's consciousness drifted away... and arrived in a mysterious, grand palace.
The palace was majestic and awe-inspiring, though upon closer inspection, the stonework was weathered and crumbling in places, giving off an immense, ancient aura.
Deep within the hall stood a multitude of thrones. At a glance, they were densely packed. However, the vast majority of them were shattered or incomplete.
Only the twelve thrones closest to Chu Yang were perfectly intact.
And right at the center, two of those thrones were pulsating with a terrifying, blood-red light.
A figure was seated on one of those glowing thrones. Seeing Chu Yang arrive, the figure hastily stood up.
Through the hazy mist, the two finally got a clear look at each other's faces. Both froze, and then their expressions shifted to pure shock!
They looked exactly the same! The moment their eyes met, a bizarre sensation flooded their bodies. It was an unparalleled feeling of intimacy, making them instantly realize: they were the exact same person. They were both Chu Yang!
Immediately after, a flood of memories that didn't belong to them surfaced in their respective minds. It was blatantly obvious that they were receiving each other's memories.
"I can't believe another 'me' transmigrated into a completely different world..."
"It seems our soul encountered some sort of accident during the crossing, splintering into multiple fragments..."
"And this palace... it must be our shared soul space."
After digesting the shared memories, the two Chu Yangs began to quickly piece together the bizarre phenomena surrounding them.
The One Piece Chu Yang looked at the other with amazement. "I can't believe you ended up in the Naruto world..."
The Naruto Chu Yang smiled bitterly. "Yeah, but the timeline is a killer. I arrived way too early. I've temporarily lost any advantage of knowing the plot."
The One Piece Chu Yang sighed in solidarity. "Same here. I'm 13 years early, and currently trapped as a slave in Mary Geoise."
"Damn, you've got it way worse than me. At least I haven't been reduced to a slave," Naruto Chu Yang teased. "Though, I arrived a lot earlier than just 13 years."
One Piece Chu Yang asked curiously, "How early are you?"
Although they shared memories, fully sorting through a whole lifetime of information wasn't something that could be done in an instant.
Naruto Chu Yang immediately looked depressed, speaking as if he wanted to cry but had no tears left. "I don't know the exact year... but right now, none of the Hidden Ninja Villages have been established yet..."
One Piece Chu Yang gasped sharply. "Good grief... you're in the Warring States Period?!"
Naruto Chu Yang nodded with utmost seriousness. "Yeah. And in the Naruto world... my name is Senju Yang."