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The port smelled like salt, smoke, and trouble.
Crocodile was used to all three.
He walked through the crowded market streets with his massive fur coat dragging lightly behind him, cigar balanced between his fingers while people quickly stepped out of his path. No one wanted problems with Sir Crocodile.
Unfortunately for him…
A tiny black-and-white kitten clearly did not understand fear.
“Go away,” Crocodile growled without looking back.
The kitten meowed.
And kept following him.
Crocodile turned down another street.
Tiny paws followed.
He stopped abruptly.
The kitten nearly crashed into his boot.
Golden eyes slowly lowered.
The kitten stared up at him innocently.
“…No.”
The kitten blinked.
Then meowed again.
Five minutes later, Crocodile was sitting inside a tavern with an untouched drink while the kitten aggressively devoured an entire plate of fish.
“This means nothing,” Crocodile muttered.
The bartender nervously smiled.
“Looks like it adopted you.”
Crocodile looked at him.
The bartender immediately stopped smiling.
…
The problem should have ended there.
It did not.
Because after Crocodile returned to his ship…
The kitten followed him aboard.
“Boss!” one of the Baroque Works agents shouted. “There’s a cat on deck!”
“I can see that.”
The kitten proudly trotted across the ship like it owned the place.
Then, without hesitation, it jumped directly onto Crocodile’s expensive fur coat.
Silence fell over the deck.
The tiny creature circled twice.
And flopped down to sleep.
One of the agents swallowed nervously.
“Should… should we remove it?”
The kitten stretched in its sleep.
Crocodile exhaled smoke slowly.
“Touch it and I’ll bury you in the desert.”
“…Understood, boss.”
…
Three days later, things somehow became worse.
Because Dracule Mihawk arrived.
The swordsman boarded the ship uninvited, completely ignoring the terrified crew members around him.
“You still wear that ridiculous coat,” Mihawk commented calmly.
“And you still appear where nobody asked you to,” Crocodile replied.
Then—
Meow.
Both men looked down.
The kitten sat beside Mihawk’s boots, staring up at him curiously.
“No,” Crocodile said immediately.
Mihawk raised an eyebrow. “I haven’t done anything.”
“You’re about to.”
The kitten rubbed against Mihawk’s leg.
Traitor.
Mihawk bent slightly and lifted the kitten with surprising gentleness.
Instant purring filled the air.
Crocodile narrowed his eyes.
“…Unbelievable.”
“It appears to like me.”
“It likes anyone with functioning organs.”
The kitten climbed onto Mihawk’s shoulder.
Mihawk looked entirely too comfortable carrying it.
Crocodile hated this situation already.
…
Unfortunately, the kitten quickly decided both men belonged to it.
It slept on Crocodile’s coat.
It stole food from Mihawk’s plate.
It attacked Crocodile’s cigars.
It tried climbing Yoru once and nearly caused three heart attacks across the ship.
“This thing is a menace,” Crocodile muttered.
“You fed it.”
“You fed it too.”
“Yes.”
“…Stop doing that.”
“No.”
The kitten purred louder from Mihawk’s lap.
Crocodile considered throwing both of them overboard.
…
The crew became deeply unsettled by the entire situation.
“Who owns the cat?” one whispered.
“I don’t know.”
“I think the cat owns them.”
“Shut up if you value your life.”
…
One evening, Crocodile stepped onto the deck expecting silence.
Instead, he found Mihawk sitting near the railing with a wine glass in hand.
And the kitten—
Fast asleep on top of Crocodile’s enormous fur coat.
Mihawk glanced at him.
“It seems attached to your coat.”
“It’s ruining the fur.”
“You let it sleep there every night.”
“I tolerate it.”
The kitten rolled onto its back sleepily.
Without thinking, Crocodile adjusted part of the coat over the small body to keep the ocean wind away.
Mihawk stared.
Crocodile froze.
“…Say one word and I’ll kill you.”
Mihawk hid a smile behind his wine glass.
“Of course.”
…
The kitten continued growing.
Very slowly.
But its confidence increased dramatically.
It scratched at Crocodile’s cabin door at midnight.
It slept in Mihawk’s hat.
It knocked over important documents.
Once, it stole an entire piece of fish directly from Crocodile’s plate and sprinted away while several grown criminals watched in horror.
Nobody helped.
Nobody was brave enough.
…
Then came the bath incident.
The kitten accidentally fell into a water barrel.
An offended screech echoed across the entire ship.
Mihawk immediately pulled the dripping kitten out.
The tiny creature looked absolutely furious.
Crocodile stared for several seconds.
“…It looks ridiculous.”
The kitten sneezed directly into his face.
The crew gasped.
Mihawk laughed.
Actually laughed.
Crocodile slowly turned toward him.
“You finished?”
“No.”
That only made things worse.
…
The argument about the kitten’s name lasted nearly two hours.
“It doesn’t need a name,” Crocodile said.
The kitten meowed angrily.
“Everything needs a name,” Mihawk replied calmly.
“It’s a cat.”
“Exactly.”
“Absolutely not.”
Mihawk took another sip of wine.
“What about Sable?”
“No.”
“Arena?”
“Horrible.”
“Emperor?”
“Worse.”
The kitten eventually jumped into Mihawk’s lap…
Then onto Crocodile’s coat.
Then back to Mihawk again.
Like it couldn’t choose between them.
“…Duality,” Mihawk murmured.
“That is the stupidest name I’ve ever heard.”
The kitten purred happily.
“…Don’t tell me it likes it.”
…
Weeks passed.
The kitten became spoiled beyond repair.
It demanded attention constantly.
It slept between them whenever Mihawk visited.
And somehow—
Without either man noticing—
The ship slowly became quieter.
Warmer.
Less lonely.
One calm night, Mihawk sat beside the railing while the kitten slept curled in his lap.
Crocodile approached moments later.
“There you are.”
“Looking for the cat or me?”
“The cat complains less.”
Mihawk smirked faintly.
The kitten opened one sleepy eye before climbing directly into Crocodile’s arms instead.
Silence.
The entire crew froze.
Because Crocodile—
Sir Crocodile—
Automatically scratched behind the kitten’s ears.
Purring immediately followed.
Mihawk looked far too amused.
“You’ve grown attached.”
“No.”
“You bought special fish for it yesterday.”
“It was cheap.”
“You threatened a man for touching it.”
“He annoyed me.”
“You wrapped your coat around it during the storm.”
“The wind was loud.”
Mihawk’s smile widened slightly.
Crocodile scowled.
The kitten stretched lazily before curling up against Crocodile’s chest.
Completely comfortable.
Completely safe.
Completely convinced it owned both terrifying pirates.
Honestly…
It was correct.
Then one terrified crew member approached carefully.
“Boss?”
“What.”
The man swallowed hard.
“We just need clarification…”
Crocodile narrowed his eyes.
“About what?”
“…Who officially owns the cat?”
Silence.
Mihawk slowly lifted his wine glass.
“I found it sleeping in my hat yesterday.”
“It sleeps on my coat every night.”
“It prefers my lap.”
“It follows me first.”
“You bought it a blanket.”
“You bought it fish.”
“You threatened someone with murder over it.”
“That’s unrelated.”
“It absolutely is not.”
The argument continued for nearly twenty minutes.
The crew watched from a safe distance.
Deeply confused.
Slightly terrified.
And the kitten?
The kitten simply climbed between the two most dangerous men on the sea…
Curled into a tiny fluffy ball…
And fell asleep happily while they argued over who belonged to who.