Four hours after Sin left Wano, the sun started sinking, basking the clouds into a beautiful reddish hue.
"Woah!" Yamato exclaimed at the beautiful surroundings, laughing merrily and enjoying the ride on his back.
There had not been a single minute where she was not brimming with excitement, and she had been like that since they left Wano. Even the simplest of things made her laugh, but then again, it was likely the first time she was flying in the air.
On the other hand, the turquoise-haired girl, whom he was carrying in his arms, was feeling some motion sickness now, but she still seemed mesmerised by the shining clouds.
Sin was deliberately flying quite slow for their comfort, but he realised that they needed to call it a day now and find land to get some rest. And so, he descended to the sea.
He frowned a little when he found out that they were quite close to the Calm Belt, but he did not know exactly where they were in the New World.
However, they were in luck because he soon found land, just on the edge of the Calm Belt, and as they kept going down, the Island became clearer to them.
It was a big Island, one of the biggest he had seen in his life, shaped like a seven-pointed star. And from the sky, it looked breathtakingly beautiful.
There were tall mountains in its centre, reaching high up into the sky, their peaks covered in snow, and from these mountains flowed seven rivers, five of which flowed into the New World Sea, and two of which flowed into the Calm Belt. These rivers divided the Island into Seven Sections, three of which were situated in the Calm Belt, and four of them were in the New World.
The side of the Island that was in the Calm Belt was covered in lush green tropical forests and highlands, and the side of the Island that was in the New World was covered in beautiful autumn colours.
Sin picked up uncountable life signatures from the Island, which meant that it was a place thriving with life.
These signatures mostly belonged to animals, which he noticed were very strong, a little too strong, especially those that were residing in the Tropical Forests and the Mountains. And other than the wildlife, there were several thousand people on the island as well, who resided in five towns, spread all across the land that was in the New World.
All these Towns could be seen from the sky as they were surrounded by massive walls, and only two had access to the sea.
The biggest town was located in the right-most section of the Island, and it had a few thousand people residing in it. The Town had a port too, which was busy, but not too busy, and Sin could see lots of Merchant Vessels stationed on it, and some Pirate Vessels as well.
However, he decided to land near the second biggest town, which had a relatively smaller port and beautiful beech with white sand.
The first thing the girls noticed after they landed a little away from the town was how tall the trees on the Island were. And it shocked them to the core.
From the sky, they did not seem too huge, but now that they stood on the ground, they were stunned at seeing them rise well over a hundred metres in height, forming beautiful and large crowns of autumn leaves.
Standing in these woods was an experience that they would remember forever, but it also made them feel very small.
And when Hiyori remembered that the walls surrounding the Towns towered well over these trees, she became a little tense.
What were those meant to protect the town from?
"We are not in Elbaf, are we?" Yamato asked, wearing a very excited smile on her face.
"No." Sin smiled and shook his head as he stretched his arms. "The Beasts on this Island are a little too strong, and I suppose that is the reason why the people here have such high walls guarding these five towns. Also, there are six Beasts on the Island, up in the mountains, and they are as strong as you." He looked into her orange eyes and grinned when they sparkled in excitement.
"Let's go see them!" She said, but Sin shook his head.
"Hiyori needs some rest." He gently said and looked at the timid girl, who lowered her head at his words.
"Thank you." She timidly whispered, holding tightly onto her sword, and Sin patted her head.
"You are welcome, my dear wife." He said and grinned when she became a little tensed at his words. "What? Am I not handsome enough?" He teasingly asked, and she immediately shook he read and then nodded, not sure how to answer him.
She did not think that he was not handsome. He was handsome, but he was an old man...
He laughed at her behaviour and then stretched his arms again.
"I suppose I should change back to my real appearance now."
His words caught her attention, and she timidly raised her head to look at him, and then her eyes widened as she watched his stature become smaller, and his face become more youthful.
Soon, a young man, who was no older than his early twenties, stood before them. His jet-black hair and cold grey eyes formed an alluring contrast, and the subtle beard on his face gave him a very mature charm.
Yamato curiously looked at Sin, who was now as tall as her, standing at 7 feet in height, and she unceremoniously reached forward to pinch his cheek.
"How can you change your appearance like that?" She asked in wonderment.
"I have someone in my family who has a very special Devil Fruit. She can turn living beings younger and older with her powers, and I asked her to turn me older before I came to Wano. The effects were only going to last for seven days, and I still had a day to go. But since Hiyori seemed a little uncomfortable with the idea of marrying an Old Man, I decided to fight against the effects of the Fruit."
"How?"
"Haki." He tapped Yamato's head. "Armament Haki and Conqueror's Haki can help you resist Devil Fruit Powers, but if she had permanently turned me into an old man, then only she could have returned me to my youth."
"Woah! She sounds amazing!"
"She is." He smiled and then looked at Hiyori was was staring at him in a daze. "Happy now?"
His words made her blush and she shyly lowered her head, and then to his amusement, she timidly nodded as well.
He knew very well that she was not really bothered by his age, but was bothered by the sudden change in her life.
Sin chuckled and then grabbed her hand before he started walking towards the town. He was going to have so much fun teasing this maiden.
It took them some time to find their way to the closest gate, which was numbered 4, and the guards seemed a little surprised at seeing three people come out of the forest.
"State your name and purpose!" Someone shouted from behind the gate, and Sin smiled a little.
"Black D. Sin. The Eighth Warlord of the Seas."
Since this place was not cut off from the world and there were merchant ships in the Ports, it was unlikely that they were not aware of his identity.
Sure enough, a few seconds later, a door in the massive gate opened, and the guards nervously stepped aside to let him enter the town.
"What's this Island called?" He asked a man, who immediately answered him.
"This is Star Island, Sir. And this town is called Eretzia Town."
"Country?"
"There is no country. The Towns on the Island are all independent and each town is run by its City Lord."
"So, each town has its own army?" He smiled.
"Yes." The man nodded, and Sin looked at the red star emblem on his uniform before he glanced at all the guards and then looked at the tall man again.
"Come with me." He said, and the man hesitantly followed him inside the town. "Tell me everything you know about this Island." He ordered, and the man gulped when felt a weight pressing on his heart.
"This Island was discovered 83 years ago, and there were no people present on it. These walls and these Gates already existed on the Island, but any settlements inside these walls had been completely razed. Skeletal remains of humans and minks were found, and an independent team of Archeologists, some forty years ago, arrived here and did their research. According to them, the remains were, at least, 700 years old, and these walls and gates are over a thousand years old..." The man, who was seemingly well aware of the history of this place, told him everything he knew. "The Beasts on this Island are extremely strong, and people are only safe within these walls. However, the Island is filled with precious herbs, minerals, and fruits, so, the people have settled here again. It is believed that water on the Island has rejuvenating properties, and those who regularly drink it rarely get sick." He smiled.
"You were born here?" Sin smiled, and the tall man nodded his head.
"I was born in this very town Sir, and my parents are carpenters here." The man replied.
"What's your name?"
"Kubo, Sir."
"When was the last time you got sick?" He curiously asked.
"When I was nine, Sir. I am thirty years old now."
"Oh. Anything else you can tell me about this place, Kubo?" He asked.
"There is a temple made of Gold in the centre of the Island, up in the mountains. I have never been there, but a team that discovered it 20 years ago told us that there is a Golden Statue of some Tiger Beast God, and all the Beasts on the Island become aggressive when you go near it. They are very protective of that place, and only five members from a party of twenty-one returned alive. The survivors also said that there were strange inscriptions in the temple, a language that they had never seen before."
"Where can I find a surviving member of that team?"
Kubo remained silent at his words for a few seconds and eventually answered.
"They are all dead, Sir." He nervously said. "The five survivors tried to go back to the temple a couple of months later, but they never returned. Since then, no one has ventured towards the centre again."
Hiyori instinctively clutched his arm when she heard those words, and Sin smiled at her.
"Are there any homes for sale here?"
The question took Kubo by surprise, but he kept his curiosity to himself and honestly answered.
"The City Lord owns a few good houses in the Town, Sir. He is the only one who can sell land or property in the town. If someone wishes to sell their property, they sell it back to the City Lord, and the interested party can buy thay place from him."
"Lead me to him."
"Yes, Sir."