Chapter 29: Chapter 30: The Island of Giants and Traps
[New Gamble: Mini-Bosses Fight]
Before reaching the final boss, one must always face struggles along the way. You accepted this challenge, fully aware of the danger. Put your life on the line against his minions.
Objective: Defeat the mini-bosses. No escape allowed.
Rewards:
- Mystery Box for each mini-boss (Tier 3 and above)
- 20 Draw Points for each mini-boss
Stakes:
- 50 points
- Your life
Josh had no choice but to sigh and accept the mission. Even if he wanted to refuse, he would still have to face the agents. Accepting the task sweetened the journey with some valuable rewards, so he gave in and pressed forward.
---
Sitting atop the sail of his boat, Josh watched the shadow of a large island appear in the distance.
Mikita, floating while holding a compass, nodded. "This should be the place."
"How can you be sure?"
"Because it's the closest island to Whiskey Peak, and with this compass, it's where we're supposed to go."
"Fair enough, but don't let your guard down."
"Kyahahaha... They shouldn't let their guards down!"
Josh shook his head. Though he'd been training hard recently, increasing his physical strength to nearly 8.8 tons, he didn't allow himself to get overconfident. He might not be able to throw 15-ton punches yet, but it was still a relief to have an ally like Mikita by his side.
As they neared the island, the shadow grew larger and larger until they finally reached the beach. The island was enormous, blanketed in thick trees. It was clear no one lived there. Josh and Mikita stepped onto the sand and started walking inland.
"This place... it feels familiar."
Josh wracked his brain, trying to recall where he had seen this island before.
**Bam... Bam...**
"Josh, be careful!" Mikita warned, pointing ahead.
Suddenly, a giant brown dinosaur, standing 15 meters tall, appeared before them. Mikita lightened her weight and floated upward, while Josh quickly activated Shave and vanished from the creature's sight, narrowly avoiding its snapping jaws.
Josh reappeared above the dinosaur, crouched, and made a fist. "Kung-Fu. Brick Breaking Punch!" he declared, since he was facing a mindless dinosaur and could afford to be dramatic. His punch hit with enough force that the dinosaur let out a pained roar. Though Josh was smaller, his concentrated strength caused significant damage.
With his higher agility, Josh managed to avoid the creature's next attack. The dinosaur stumbled back, but before it could fully recover, Mikita descended from the sky, her impact crushing its skull and knocking it unconscious.
"Well, it's not as scary as a sea monster," Mikita said with a smirk.
"Agreed."
Josh leaped and grabbed Mikita's waist, guiding them both safely to the ground, away from the dinosaur. However, they quickly noticed a giant blade swinging toward the spot they had just vacated. A massive man, 20 meters tall, swung an axe, decapitating the dinosaur.
"Great, we've got dinner for the night," the giant said, lifting the dinosaur's limp body. He hadn't noticed Josh or Mikita.
Both of them stared up in shock, mouths agape.
"These... these are the leaders of the Giant Pirates!" Mikita exclaimed.
"You know them?"
Josh recognized them from the show, but he hadn't expected Mikita to know about them, considering they'd disappeared 50 to 100 years ago.
"I've seen their wanted posters and read articles. These giants have been missing for 50 years. They were said to be dead after fighting each other for so long," Mikita explained, rubbing her throat nervously.
The giant they had just seen, a fat one, had a bounty of 100 million berries. And 100 million berries 50 years ago were worth far more than they were today. No wonder Mikita was anxious.
"Well, they're still alive," Josh said, jumping high to get a better view of the island.
He spotted another giant—this one more muscular—who was slicing up a dinosaur with a sword, presumably for his own dinner.
"Should we hide?" Mikita asked.
"Don't worry. They're gentle giants."
Anyone who could tolerate Luffy's antics deserved a "good citizen" award in Josh's book. He even pitied them a little, knowing how their fight would play out.
"Do you think Crocodile wants us to hunt them down?" she asked.
"I doubt it. This is a trap, remember? Mr. 5 is probably watching and planning to use them as bait."
"Yeah, I figured as much. But I wonder what Crocodile's plan really is."
"Who knows," Josh replied with a shrug.
He considered asking the giants to help him in Alabasta but decided against it, knowing their decades-long battle wouldn't be easily interrupted.
As Josh and Mikita continued walking, they soon came upon two figures sitting on the ground.
"Oi, you two sure took your sweet time getting here," a strange voice called out.
Josh turned to see a tall black man, about 198 cm, wearing sunglasses. Next to him stood a woman, roughly 175 cm tall, with shoulder-length green hair, an hourglass figure, and a large chest.
"Gem," Josh greeted.
"It's Mr. 5 now, Josh," Gem corrected, stepping forward with a smirk. "And who's this cutie next to you?"
Josh turned toward the green-haired woman. "My partner. Ms. Liberty."
"Nice name," Mikita said, barely suppressing a laugh. She seemed amused by Baroque Works' knack for picking uninspired names.
Gem—or Mr. 5—adjusted his sunglasses and glanced at Josh. "So, Mr. 7, I see you've moved up quickly too."
"Not as quickly as you," Josh replied with a smirk of his own.
"Anyway, what's the deal here?" Josh asked.
"We're hunting those giants down," Mr. 5 declared.
"Seriously? For someone as strong as them? Nah. At least Mr. 1 should be here," Josh said, his voice dripping with sarcasm.
"Don't worry. With my Devil Fruit abilities and your agility, we can take them down," Mr. 5 boasted confidently.
Josh and Mikita exchanged knowing glances. They both understood this was a trap. But their enemies had no clue that they were aware of it.
Josh nodded at Mikita, signalling her to play along. They would bide their time, waiting for Mr. 5 and his partner to drop their guard. Then they'd strike.
As Josh glanced at the green-haired woman, he couldn't help but wonder, What's her ability?
"Let me explain my strategy," Mr. 5 began, placing his hands behind his back and pacing as he laid out his plan.
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone