East Blue.
Shimotsuki Village.
Isshin Dojo.
From the center of the dojo came the rhythmic swish of bamboo swords and the excited shouts of training children.
In the back garden, beneath a blooming cherry blossom tree, a silver-haired boy around eleven years old, lay sprawled lazily on the grass.
A book rested on his face, shielding his eyes from the sunlight. Its title: The Journal of an Unknown Navigator.
The spring breeze carried delicate petals through the air, their soft pink glow glistening with morning dew under the gentle light of the rising sun.
"Kongtai, are you slacking off again?"
A girl, maybe ten years old, burst out of the dojo. She wore a white T-shirt and baggy shorts, and her dark blue hair danced in the wind. In her hand, she clutched a bamboo sword.
Her face still held traces of baby fat, and her pouting cheeks puffed up as she looked toward the boy lying under the tree. Her big, bright eyes reflected the fluttering sakura petals.
"It's time for training!"
Still basking in the warmth of the morning sun, Kongtai lifted the book from his face, revealing a charming and delicate expression beneath.
He squinted up at the girl, yawned, and shook his head lazily.
"Oh, it's you, Kuina... The weather's so nice today. Just let me sleep a little longer... just a little…"
The sunlight was warm and comforting. It made him want to close his eyes again—and roll over for good measure.
Kuina watched him with a look of exasperation. With an exaggerated sigh, she rolled her eyes, puffed out her cheeks, and squatted beside him, tugging at his hand.
"Kongtai... Come on. Why have you been so lazy lately? You used to train like your life depended on it."
Without even opening his eyes, Kongtai muttered, "I don't know… Maybe I'm going through a growth spurt or something. Just don't feel like moving."
"Kongtai…" Kuina smacked his hand away, then pounded on him lightly with her fists. "Would you stop talking nonsense?"
"I've hit a wall lately," he said, still lying down. "Pushing harder won't help. I asked Master about it, and he just said something vague like, 'Enlightenment will come naturally.' Useless advice. I've been thinking about how to break through."
Her eyes lit up. "So you're saying... you're close to becoming a sword master? That's amazing, Kongtai!"
But then her smile faded, replaced by a quiet shadow.
"Hey... Kongtai, when do you think I'll become a sword master? My father keeps saying that girls have a flaw, that we'll never be the strongest. I know what he means, but... I can't accept that."
Kongtai felt the grip on his arm tighten. He turned his head and opened his eyes.
His irises shimmered with a misty silver-blue, nebula swirling at their depths. They looked like distant stars flickering in the night sky, drawing others in with quiet gravity.
His otherwise ordinary features became strikingly beautiful under the glow of those eyes.
Looking up at Kuina, he gently smoothed her furrowed brow with his hand. Then he placed that warm, reassuring palm on her head, gently ruffling her hair.
With quiet certainty, he said,
"Of course you will, Kuina. One day, you'll become the greatest female sword master in the world. Promise me that."
"…What?"
"Don't hesitate. Don't despair. Just keep moving forward, with unwavering resolve. I'll be right here with you, and you will become the strongest."
Kuina slowly lowered herself, resting her head on his chest. Listening to the steady rhythm of his heartbeat, her fears finally began to dissolve.
"Mhm… Kongtai, I'm really glad you're here."
Then, with growing strength in her voice, she whispered,
"I promise."
Kongtai narrowed his eyes against the sun as he looked to the sky, memories flickering across his face.
It had been almost five years since he arrived in this world. Even now, he wasn't sure how he crossed over.
He had been an ordinary programmer back on Earth, just another overworked code monkey. His real name was Li Xiaokong. When he first arrived, he couldn't understand the language and thought he'd landed in feudal Japan, everyone was speaking Japanese, after all.
At the beginning, even Koshiro and Kuina couldn't understand him. When he introduced himself, they only caught the "Kong" part. So that's what they called him. Later, to make it sound less odd, he just tacked on a "tai."
Just one syllable at first, but now it had become his new name.
He grew up in an orphanage, quiet and reclusive, with few friends. In college, he'd become obsessed with anime and slipped happily into the world of a classic otaku.
By the time he turned thirty, he had a car and an apartment… but no hair and no girlfriend.
He'd just resolved to turn things around and find someone to share his life with, when he woke up drifting in the middle of the ocean.
His Simmons mattress was gone. His spacious three-bedroom apartment was gone. And worst of all, he was now a five-year-old child.
He still got chills remembering that moment.
Luckily, as is customary for transmigrators, he was granted a "golden finger" a unique ability triggered by crossing dimensions.
His body had mutated. It now existed in a perpetual temporal displacement, surrounded by countless layers of spatial shielding. The seawater could never reach him.
He drifted on the ocean for two full days. Thankfully, no sea monsters found him during that time.
Just as he was about to pass out from hunger, Koshiro, who happened to be out on business found him.
Back then, Kongtai had no control over his ability. No one could touch him. Anyone who got too close would be repelled by the space around him.
Only if he wanted them to approach could they make contact.
It took about a year for him to learn the language of this world and to realize, with disbelief and awe, that this was the world of One Piece.
No wonder Koshiro looked so familiar!
As for his hair and eyes turning silver, he eventually understood that, too.
The mutation he experienced during transmigration had given him what he called a "spatial constitution."
His body constantly emitted overlapping fields of space. The closer something came to him, the more layers it had to cross. What looked like a short distance was, in reality, unreachable a step away, yet worlds apart.
Unless he allowed it, no one could bridge that infinite distance.
That's how he had survived in the sea. Later, he learned to manipulate this space, pushing it outward like a personal domain.
In that zone, if he focused hard enough, he could even freeze space, though this depended on the strength of his opponent.
The more layers he added, the harder it was to control and the more it drained him physically and mentally.
His spatial constitution also let him see dense clusters of spatial nodes all around him. By stepping on them, he could teleport freely as easily as walking.
The mutation didn't just affect his body, his mind had strengthened as well. Within a year, he awakened Observation Haki.
And because of his enhanced spirit, he could sense spatial nodes intuitively, without even opening his eyes. After all, the eyes have limits. The mind does not.
Right now, yes he was practically invincible. But it was all defense. He could only watch enemies, not fight them. And that meant he couldn't protect the people around him.
When he first realized this was the world of One Piece, he was terrified. Who knew what strange powers might instantly kill him?
But over time, his fear subsided.
Because he realized something: his body was constantly evolving.
The spatial fields around him were growing stronger, scaling with his own development.
And thanks to his relentless training, he believed it wouldn't be long before he awakened Armament Haki as well.
That steady, unstoppable growth gave him confidence, one day, he would stand tall atop this world.
"Kuina!" Koshiro's voice rang out from the dojo.
"Coming!" she called back, standing and heading inside.
Kongtai snapped out of his thoughts, watching her back as she walked away. The cheerful chaos of the training hall reached his ears, along with the childish bravado of fresh challenges.
A crooked grin tugged at the corners of his lips.
He stood, dusted himself off, and picked up the bamboo sword and book lying nearby.
He slid the sword into the rack beside the tree, tucked the book under one arm, rested his head lazily on the other and strolled toward the dojo.
Interesting people have arrived.
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Hey everyone! I'll be dropping an extra 1 chapter once we hit 200 power stones! If you're enjoying the story, don't forget to spend some power stones. I'd really appreciate the support. Thanks a bunch!