Chapter One: We All Arrived a Little Early

In the world of pirates, at the Holy Land of Mariejois, Chu Yang listened to the cries rising from beyond the prison bars in the lightless dungeon, his mood heavy beyond measure.

He had not even been in this world for a full month before he was kidnapped by slave traders, carried to the Sabaody Archipelago, and selected by a Celestial Dragon to become a slave.

Damn, what rotten luck.

Other people crossed worlds with systems, eating fine food and drinking fine wine, while he was about to have the mark of the Celestial Dragons branded onto his body.

At this rate, he might as well leave behind a souvenir.

The smell of scorched flesh in the air made Chu Yang intensely anxious. Even though the Chu Yang from before his transmigration had long since weathered the world and all its hardships, he still could not remain calm.

In the cell beside his, there were three girls about his age. Compared with Chu Yang, they were much calmer, as if they had long since grown used to this.

The three sisters had completely different hair colors.

The tallest and most solidly built had green hair, the one with the slender, long frame had brown hair.

And the smallest in stature, yet the most imposing, with all the bearing of a big sister, had black hair.

"Kid, you're new here, aren't you? Remember this: if they take you out in a little while, no matter what happens, you must hold it in and not scream. If you anger those bastards, your end will be miserable!"

Among the three girls, the black-haired one, who was relatively petite, wore a solemn expression. She spoke up to warn Chu Yang, and Chu Yang nodded in acknowledgment, accepting her kindness.

Only then did the girl's expression, as stern as an iceberg's, soften a little.

As the cries from outside gradually weakened, the oppressive and sinister atmosphere eased somewhat, and the girls began chatting idly with Chu Yang.

"Kid, what's your name?"

"Chu Yang. Could you please stop calling me kid? You don't look much older than I am."

"Chu Yang? What a strange name. It sounds awkward to say. My name is Boa Hancock, and you can call me Big Sister Hancock, kid!"

Hancock emphasized "kid" again, as if deliberately trying to irritate Chu Yang, but he was in no mood to argue with her.

Hancock? The Pirate Empress?

Looking at the young empress, still a slave in Mariejois, Chu Yang understood the point in time he had landed in. It had to be at least about thirteen years before the official start of the story. As for the exact year, that would depend on when the "hero" Fisher Tiger set the Holy Land ablaze.

With Mariejois's defenses, escaping from here would be harder than reaching the heavens.

At the thought of this, Chu Yang's expression darkened.

That feeling of being at the mercy of others, of entrusting one's life and death entirely to someone else's hands, was unbearably suffocating.

Just as Chu Yang was preparing to wring more information from Hancock, he suddenly heard a set of footsteps drawing near.

The guards!

They were coming to brand the mark of the Celestial Dragons onto Chu Yang.

Hancock's expression changed as well, and she hurriedly reminded him again, "Chu Yang, you must hold on."

A pale, strained smile appeared on Chu Yang's face.

With a bang, the cell door was kicked open, and a tall, powerfully built man stepped out from the darkness.

He wore an all-black uniform, and his head was covered with black cloth, making him look much like an executioner from the ancient West.

Chu Yang took a deep breath and did his utmost to keep fear from showing on his face.

Without a word, the guard lifted Chu Yang as easily as though he were a chick, cast a cold glance over him, and then led him out of the cell.

Hancock stared intently at the receding figure, unwilling for this boy who had only just arrived to suffer any accident.

Over the years, many slaves had been tortured to death because of a guard's momentary whim.

Most of them were ordinary humans like Chu Yang.

Other races were considered precious to the Celestial Dragons; if even one were lost, the guards would be severely punished.

In terror, Chu Yang was hung up by a group of guards. Beside him was a brazier spitting sparks, inside it a branding iron glowing red-hot.

The guard picked up the iron and approached him with a ferocious expression.

Chu Yang stared at him dead on, like a beast on the brink of extinction. In that instant, all fear was replaced by fury and hatred.

"I've seen eyes like yours many times. None of them ended well!" The guard sneered as he raised the branding iron, then slammed the searing metal hard against Chu Yang's chest.

The burning lasted only an instant. What followed was agony beyond words.

As the guard kept pressing down with force, the iron sank into Chu Yang's chest, and the pain made him arch tautly, his whole body trembling.

Somehow, from an unknown depth, a will emerged within him. Chu Yang did not cry out. He kept staring at the guard, his eyes gradually turning blood-red.

That kind of frenzied madness planted fear in the guard's heart.

The branding iron in his hand loosened, and he instinctively stepped back.

When he came to his senses again, he realized that Chu Yang had already fainted.

"Heh, I thought he had more backbone. Who knew he'd pass out so easily!"

As the guard sneered, Chu Yang's soul arrived in a mysterious palace.

The palace was grand and imposing, yet on closer inspection there were many damaged and weathered places, and the weight of history came crashing down from every direction.

Deep within the palace stood many thrones, countless at a glance.

Most of them were broken.

Only the twelve thrones nearest Chu Yang remained intact.

The two thrones at the very center flickered with a frightening red light, like blood spreading outward.

On one of those thrones sat a figure. That person seemed to have also noticed Chu Yang and hurriedly stood up.

In the hazy light, the two of them clearly saw each other's faces, and both froze for a moment before their expressions changed in alarm.

The two of them looked exactly alike!

The moment the two similar figures met eyes, a peculiar sensation flooded their bodies. An incomparable sense of closeness made both of them realize that they were the same person, both Chu Yang!

Then memories that did not belong to either of them surfaced in both of their minds.

Clearly, these extra memories belonged to the other.

"So there was another me who crossed into a different world..."

"Our souls seem to have encountered some accident during the crossing and split into many parts..."

"And this palace seems to be the shared space of our souls."

After sharing memories, the two Chu Yangs began to reason simply about the strange things that had happened to them.

The Chu Yang from the pirate world looked at the other Chu Yang in amazement. "I never expected you to end up in the world of ninja."

The Chu Yang from the ninja world gave a wry smile. "The timing of the crossing was terribly unlucky. I came many years too early, and for now I've lost the advantage of knowing the story."

The Chu Yang from the pirate world sighed as well. "Same here. I came thirteen years too early, and now I'm trapped in Mariejois as a slave."

"Then you're a lot worse off than I am. At least I didn't end up a slave." The ninja-world Chu Yang teased him. "Though I didn't just arrive thirteen years early."

The pirate-world Chu Yang asked curiously, "How many years early did you arrive, then?"

Even with shared memories, fully sorting everything out obviously would not happen in a moment.

The ninja-world Chu Yang immediately grew melancholy, and with a look of despair said, "I don't know the exact date, but at this point, the ninja villages of the various countries haven't even been established yet..."

The pirate-world Chu Yang drew in a sharp breath at once. "Good heavens, so it's the Warring States era!"

The ninja-world Chu Yang said with absolute seriousness, "In the world of ninja, I also have another name: Senju Yang."