Cregan

(Starrk's POV)

"Huh?" I said aloud, "How do you know me?"

I stared up at him as he gave me a smirk.

"You fucking bastard, Cregan!!" The pirate captain growled, "How'd you sneak up on us!!"

Cregan looked at him, "Don't take this personal, Jean." He said, "But I was just bored so I decided to hunt you down. In the name of Whitebeard, that is. But in my search for mere copper, I struck gold!"

Whitebeard? So he is allied with him.

Jean pointed his cutlass at him, "You fiend! You're using Whitebeard's name to do this?!" He exclaimed, "He and I had a deal! I wouldn't touch his territory and he wouldn't have any of his men attack us!!"

Cregan then jumped off the ship and landed in front of us. I heard as the rest of the pirates gasped in fear.

I could feel an incredible amount of pressure coming from this man.

He was strong.

I saw as he looked at Jean with a serious look, "You stupid fool…" he said, "You think a puny little pirate such as yourself has any right to demand deals with a Yonko? Who do you think you are?! A mere ant compared to The Strongest Man in The World!"

Before I could react, He had rushed past Jean as he had his sword drawn.

I didn't even notice the longsword he had strapped to his side. I could barely see when he struck Jean in the chest with the blade, cutting him open.

Jean widened his eyes as blood spurted out of the cut, flying everywhere.

He then collapsed to the ground without making any noise.

"Captain!!!" The pirates yelled out

Cregan then smirked as he pointed his sword at the nearest pirate.

"If you wish to share the same fate as your captain, step forward and attack!!" He shouted, "Otherwise, begone from my sight!"

He then gave them a glare and I felt an invisible force exude from him. It was overwhelming, my senses felt as if they were being overridden, my legs were starting to shake and I struggled to keep my composure.

I gritted my teeth and stood my ground, wobbling in place.

I then looked around to see the pirates collapsed to the ground, unconscious with foam in their mouths.

"What the?" I said aloud, "Is this….Conqueror's Haki?"

I then looked at Cregan who stared at me with his dark brown eyes.

"Hmm…." He said as he sheathed his sword, "You barely managed to resist it, huh? Your will needs to be stronger."

"Huh?" I said as I grabbed ahold of Ice, "What do you mean?"

"The wielder of Ice shouldn't be this weak-willed." He said as he walked towards me, "Your skill needs some work."

He stopped before me and eyed me down. He was as tall as me and very muscular from the looks of it. The more I paid attention, the more I recognized his attire. He wore similar leather garments as I did. Except he had a wolf's pelt over his coat.

It was an odd sensation.

"Starrk." He said simply, "It seems fate has brought us together."

I assumed a defensive position, "What?"

He smirked, "Don't bother. In your current state, you wouldn't pose a threat to me." He said, "I mean you no harm, Starrk. I am here to help you."

Help me? What does he mean? Could he be related to the Old Man I met months ago?

Maybe he could be. The same strange feeling I got from that old man, I'm getting from him.

I lowered my blade, "Who are you?"

"I am Cregan, The Wolf of The North." He said simply, "You can trust me, I am not like Torrhen."

"Torrhen?" I asked

He nodded, "The Old Man who sat atop a horse." He said, "I know you two met a couple of months ago."

I looked at him even more confused, he saw this and chuckled.

"As I said, Fate has brought us together. It is my duty to bring you in." He said

"What do you mean bring me in?" I asked him, "If you think I'm gonna just go along with you-"

He then punched me in the gut really hard. I knew this because I somehow was able to see the movement but couldn't react fast enough for it.

"Agh!" I shouted out as I buckled to my knees

I clutched my stomach as I coughed hard.

"I knew this was going to be difficult, but you leave me no choice." He said as I looked up to him, "We have much to do."

"Wh-What?!"I exclaimed

"Do me a favor and don't be a pain in my ass, asking all these questions." He said as he grabbed me by my shoulder and dragged me along the sand, "Your body may be strong, but I can still break it."

This guy was insane, holy shit. He grip strength was crazier than I imagined. And his punch was really devastating, did he use Armament Haki? The pain was too great to handle.

"Like I said, we have much to do. First, I have to beat some skill into you, can't have the wielder of Ice be so weak, especially in the New World." He said as i clutched my stomach, "Then after that, I'll take you to him."

"To Whitebeard."