Chapter 3:

"Who's that kid? Could he be here to assassinate Pops?" Marco laughed, and then a heavy slap landed on his head.

"Idiot, who would carry such a huge bundle if they were here to assassinate someone?" Whitey Bay snapped, her long blue hair giving away her youth.

"Look, he's already here," Vista chuckled from the side. Teach stood before Whitebeard, the mere presence of the man exerting immense pressure.

"Kid, what do you want?" Whitebeard asked, looking at Teach.

"Let me join your crew, Pops," Teach replied with a grin. The surroundings suddenly fell silent, and everyone seemed to have turned to stone.

"He hasn't even agreed yet, and he's already calling him Pops."

"How shameless can this youngster be?"

Whitebeard stared into Teach's eyes for a moment. Teach didn't flinch in the face of Whitebeard's gaze. After a while, Whitebeard burst out laughing, "Gurarara, if you want to join, then hop aboard."

Teach let out a sigh of relief, and then an overwhelming excitement took over, his heart pounding with anticipation. Before he could grow stronger, the Whitebeard Pirates would undoubtedly be the safest place, and he could develop even better here.

The crew members of the Whitebeard Pirates were very friendly to their newest member, introducing themselves one by one. Soon, Teach became well-acquainted with them all.

Some crew members left to gather supplies, while those remaining on the ship passed the time playing games. "Hey, Teach! You're a swordsman too, right? Let's have a friendly match!" Vista said, eyeing Teach excitedly. At that moment, he had clearly noticed the two swords at Teach's waist and the sword on his back. As a swordsman, Vista had an intuition that these were no ordinary blades.

Just as Teach was about to agree, Whitey Bay spoke up, her eyes narrowing at Vista, "Don't bully the newcomer, Vista. Teach, this is a perfect opportunity to show us your skills." Whitey Bay turned to Marco, who was playing cards nearby, "Marco, as an apprentice, this duel is up to you. Don't embarrass us."

Marco was momentarily stunned – he hadn't done anything wrong. However, he didn't refuse; he was still an apprentice and was eager to see Teach's abilities. After all, Teach had the audacity to join the Whitebeard Pirates, and Pops had agreed – Teach's skills couldn't be as simple as they appeared.

At this time, Whitey Bay, the future Ice Witch, held considerable prestige within the Whitebeard Pirates, her beauty only adding to her status.

Standing up, Marco said, "This is troublesome, but I won't hold back." He walked over to Teach, and the surrounding pirates formed a wide circle, leaving a large space for the battle between Teach and Marco.

Teach smiled, drawing the two swords from his waist. "Likewise, I can't afford to be underestimated." The air grew tense and hot as Teach adjusted his breathing, pointing his swords at Marco before charging forward.

Teach's swordsmanship was remarkably solid. He swiftly changed his steps and attacked Marco from a clever angle. Marco was incredibly fast, retreating sharply to avoid Teach's relentless onslaught. With one slash following another, Marco barely dodged each attack, leaving him no opportunity to counter.

"Hey, Marco! Have you skipped a meal or something?"

"If you keep fighting rookies like this, you'll never make it past the probationary period."

The surrounding crew members burst into laughter. The young Marco was relatively weak but had strong potential, and it wouldn't be long before he grew stronger. However, Marco's real rise to prominence came after he consumed the Bird-Bird Fruit, Model: Phoenix.

Some of the stronger members of the crew were surprised to see Marco being pressured by Teach's swordsmanship. Although others may not have noticed, they could feel the waves of heat emanating through the air, which were rapidly draining Marco's stamina.

With a high level of physical fitness and speed, Marco narrowly dodged Teach's strikes time and time again. The onlookers knew that if the fight continued like this, Marco was bound to lose.

"This isn't good." Marco tilted his head to the side, avoiding Teach's Purgatory. Glancing behind, he realized he had little room left to retreat. "I have to counterattack, or I'll lose and be mocked for a long time." With that thought, Marco became serious. His speed increased suddenly, and he kicked at Teach's sword, Raiu. Teach held on tightly but lost his balance, giving Marco the opportunity to appear at Teach's right side. "This is bad," Teach thought.

By the time Teach had reacted and turned around to swing his Purgatory, Marco was already in front of him, landing a kick on Teach's chest.

Teach was sent flying several meters but managed to stay on his feet by driving his sword into the ground. He didn't make another move, instead analyzing the situation. His lack of combat experience had allowed Marco to exploit an opening easily. Although Teach's basic swordsmanship was well-practiced, fighting another person felt entirely different from mastering physical techniques.

Still, the abundance of strong fighters on the ship was perfect for honing his swordsmanship. As these thoughts crossed his mind, a smile spread across Teach's face. He pulled his sword from the deck and sheathed the Raiu. In comparison to dual-wielding, Teach was more proficient in single-sword combat. How could he possibly master dual-wielding if he hadn't yet perfected the single-sword technique?

The others observed Teach's transformation. "So he's a specialist in Ittoryu (One Sword Style), huh?" Teach seemed more adept with one sword, making his movements smoother than with dual-wielding.

"Ha! Let's go again. I'm getting serious now, so try not to die!" The temperature in the air began to rise, even higher than before. Teach's hand turned red, and flames danced along his sword as he charged at Marco.

Was this some kind of monster? The flames spread across the hilt of the sword, scorching Teach's arm, but his expression remained unchanged, even as his sleeve burned to ash.

This undoubtedly posed a threat to Marco, and the watching pirates had to take the fight seriously. No matter how robust their bodies, they couldn't face such intense heat without flinching—except, of course, for monsters like Whitebeard.

Marco felt a bit helpless. Why did he have to fight this monster? But, regardless, he steeled himself and pressed on.

The speed of Ittoryu (One Sword Style) wasn't as fast as Nitoryu (Two Sword Style) from before, but each strike was far more lethal, forcing Marco to be on high alert. The two tangled for a good ten minutes, neither able to gain the upper hand.

"Gurarara, you young ones sure have energy. Let's call this battle a draw. We'll fight again next time," Whitebeard declared. Teach immediately backed off, feeling a bit exhausted in body and spirit. However, the crew's gazes towards him had clearly changed; it was evident that the earlier battle had earned him the approval of these pirates.

The Whitebeard Pirates had no intention of lingering on this island. They quickly gathered enough supplies to continue their journey. Within two hours, the crew members who had gone ashore for shopping and sightseeing had returned. The Moby Dick was about to set sail.

Teach stood on the deck, leaning against the railing, gazing at the familiar town he had lived in for six years. There were few people left at the harbor, most having been frightened away by the Whitebeard Pirates, the top-tier pirates of the New World. How could they not strike fear into people's hearts?

Suddenly, Teach sensed a familiar gaze. Following his intuition, he turned his head and spotted Monica and Modi. "Goodbye, Teach! You must come back. I'll be waiting for you!" Monica shouted with her hands cupped around her mouth, tears glistening in her eyes.

Their gazes intertwined, and Teach waved at them joyfully. "I'll definitely come back. Uncle Modi, please take care of Monica for me."

"Damn you! If you ever make my daughter cry, don't bother coming back!" Modi shouted, clenching his fists.

"Hahahaha!" Teach laughed as the town receded into the distance until the island was just a speck on the horizon. Only then did he tear his gaze away.

Turning around, Teach's pupils contracted, and his heart skipped a beat. A large group of pirates had silently gathered behind him, staring at him intently. "Damn it, what are you guys doing? You nearly scared me to death!" Teach yelled, clearly startled.

However, they didn't seem to care. Marco wore a gossip-hungry expression. "Teach, we heard something. Monica, I'll be waiting for you to come back."

The others also looked curious, eager for gossip. "Teach, I heard you're only twelve years old, and you've already got a girlfriend?"

Upon hearing their words, Teach felt speechless at their nosiness. Crossing his arms and lifting his head with disdain, he scoffed, "So what? You're just a bunch of single dogs envious of what I have."

As if struck by lightning on a clear day, everyone's hearts were wounded, and their mouths hung open. "Single... single dogs?"

Seeing their reactions, Teach smirked inwardly. What's wrong with having a girlfriend? In this respect, he was already stronger than most of them. He remained silent, but they seemed to feel his contemptuous gaze, like an arrow piercing their hearts. Teach turned away, leaving them behind, their moods growing gloomy.

Joking aside, training was of utmost importance. In the previous battle, Teach hadn't used his full strength, relying solely on basic swordsmanship combined with the Flame Breathing technique.

His true prowess lay in his hand-to-hand combat skills. More importantly, neither Teach nor Marco harbored any murderous intent in their attacks.

Teach entered his own modest room, smaller than most as many pirates preferred to sleep outside on the ship's deck. With his belongings neatly organized, Teach commenced his training. Heavy wrist and ankle weights crafted by a blacksmith at Teach's request encumbered his limbs. Each arm bore two wrist weights, half a ton each, and each foot was similarly burdened by two ankle weights.

Teach's strength had grown tremendously, but the weights still demanded immense effort to bear, causing his stamina to deplete rapidly. Having donned the weights only a month ago, Teach had yet to fully adapt to them and needed more time to acclimate.

Wielding a hefty sword, Teach began honing his swordsmanship. The subtle whoosh of air accompanied each swing. His breathing transformed as heat enveloped him, causing his slightly long hair to levitate from static electricity while sparks danced across his body.

Teach had no intention of revealing his true power. He knew he would eventually leave the Whitebeard Pirates to recruit his own formidable crew. He didn't want to linger on in the Whitebeard Pirates for over two decades like in the original story, especially after they became one of the Four Emperors (Yonko). The environment within the crew had become too comfortable, lacking the intense competition of the Beast Pirates or the ever-expanding power of Big Mom's crew. Even when compared to the Red Hair Pirates, the Whitebeard Pirates lacked high-tier fighters, despite boasting numerous mid-tier combatants, with only Marco struggling to hold everything together after Whitebeard's death.

Entering the Breath of All Things state, Teach allowed his Observation Haki to permeate every corner of his room. Despite its range not expanding further, his Observation Haki continued to improve at a microscopic level.

Indeed, Teach's one trump card was his Observation Haki. When he arrived in this world, his soul merged with another, significantly increasing his mental strength and awakening his Observation Haki. Possessing an innate talent for it, he spent the past six years honing it, often keeping it active to expand its range. Had he not deactivated it earlier, they wouldn't have caught him off guard.

As the sky darkened, Teach's training showed no signs of stopping. A knock resounded from outside his door. "Teach, the banquet is about to begin. Come out," Marco called from the other side.

Teach halted his training, smiling. "Give me a moment; I'll be right there."

Teach soaked a towel in a bucket of water and wiped his body clean. He changed into fresh clothes, opened the door with a grin, and stepped into the brightly-lit night. The air was filled with the tantalizing aromas of food and the scent of alcohol.

A new adventure was about to begin.

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Hey everyone!

I'd love to hear your thoughts on a few things:

1. Regarding the Raiu sword that was found, do you think it should be a different sword, or does its unknown backstory before Shiryu acquired it make it a good fit in relation to the canon? If you know any details about its history, please share!

2. What are your opinions on the name for the Ancient Zoan Devil Fruit - Bat Bat Fruit, Model: Desmodus Draculae? Does it sound cool, or do you have any other suggestions?

3. Lastly, does anyone recall if Kozuki Oden was around when Marshall D. Teach joined the Whitebeard Pirates? I'm curious to know!

Looking forward to hearing your thoughts on these topics or any other that you think might be important! Thanks in advance for your input!