After Donquixote Doflamingo perished during the Summit War, the Donquixote Family halted all their operations—except for the production of artificial Devil Fruits. At all costs, they expended enormous resources and manpower in pursuit of the reborn Tremor-Tremor Fruit.
And they succeeded. Before any other faction could react, they had already secured it.
To restore the family's power and ascend to new heights, they even went as far as having Vergo—an undercover Marine for years—reveal his true allegiance, return to the family, and consume the Tremor-Tremor Fruit…
Everything was done to reclaim the family's former glory.
But—
As Vergo fell, the Donquixote Family's highest-ranking officers, Trebol and Diamante, felt as if they could hear the sound of shattering glass echoing endlessly within their minds, like a sawblade mercilessly tormenting their spirits.
One strike…!!!
Despite granting Vergo the power of the Tremor-Tremor Fruit…
He had been felled by a single strike from a man who had yet to fully establish himself in the New World.
"No way… No way!!?"
Trebol's enraged and unwilling voice reverberated through the port.
Diamante remained silent, but his expression had darkened to an almost terrifying degree.
"This might be the first time 'Vergo-san' has ever suffered such a humiliating loss in over a decade… and, of course, it's also his last."
Without even needing to turn around, Law could already predict the outcome of the battle between Maude and Vergo.
Hearing Law's words, Trebol and Diamante glared at him with sheer hatred, as if their eyes alone could tear him apart.
"Stop staring. Glares alone can't kill."
Law's expression remained calm. His left hand gripped the sheath of Kikoku, while his right tightened around the hilt. In that moment, he bore a striking resemblance to Maude before he unleashed Extreme Darkness.
Trebol and Diamante's faces contorted with malice.
"Brat, don't forget who taught you swordsmanship!!"
Diamante tore off his red cape, activating his ability to transform it into a long sword.
"You fool, Law. Do you really think you can take on both me and Diamante alone? Listen up—no matter what happens to the family today, we're dragging you, this traitor, down to hell with us!!!"
Trebol lifted his cane and slammed it into the ground, causing the sticky mucus covering his body to splatter.
Listening to their threats, Law let out a cold laugh. He was just about to attack when a memory from his sparring sessions with Maude surfaced in his mind.
...
"Law, every time you use 'Shambles,' it's either to dodge an attack or to increase your strike accuracy. Aside from that, I haven't seen you use it in any truly creative way."
"My ability can only be used like that, right?"
"Of course not. I've told you before—what limits a power's evolution the most is a lack of unrestricted imagination. The greatest mistake is defining an ability's potential before it has even fully matured."
"..."
"Listen up, Law. Your teleportation ability is one of the most versatile offensive tools granted by the Ope Ope no Mi. So why do you insist on treating it as just an auxiliary skill? Watch—"
Maude raised a finger and used his shadow to lift a small stone, then flicked it in a particular direction.
The stone traveled hundreds of meters, tracing a graceful arc before plopping into the sea near where the Underworld Ferry and the Polar Tang were docked.
Plop!
The stone created a small splash before sinking into the depths.
Watching Maude toss the stone into the sea, Law was momentarily lost in thought.
Maude smiled and said, "If you ask me, the most troublesome aspect of teleportation is that it allows you to forcibly relocate anything within your sphere of influence. Since you decide where your 'targets' get transferred… why not choose to send them to—"
...
The memory ended there.
A strange smile crept onto Law's face. Slowly, he relaxed his grip on Kikoku's hilt, bent down, and picked up two small stones.
Trebol and Diamante, noticing Law's unsettling smile, suddenly felt a chill run down their spines.
For some reason, an ominous premonition filled them.
"The sea view here…"
With the two pebbles between his fingers, Law's smile grew even more sinister.
"Not bad at all."
Before his words even finished, Law flicked his wrist, sending the two stones flying towards the harbor's waters.
Enhanced by his precision, the stones skimmed the water's surface like swift swallows before bouncing across the sea, leaving a trail of ripples.
"Room!"
At that moment, Law's middle and index fingers pressed together, expanding his translucent, glowing sphere to envelop Trebol, Diamante, and the skipping stones.
"Shambles."
With a smirk, Law activated his ability.
Swish! Swish!
In an instant, Trebol and Diamante—who had been standing firmly on the dock—suddenly swapped places with the stones bouncing across the sea's surface.
"!?"
The moment they realized they had been teleported over the ocean, their eyes nearly bulged out of their sockets. Before they could react, they plunged straight into the water.
"L-Law, you… gurgle gurgle… bastard… gurgle gurgle… damn y—gurgle gurgle…"
As Devil Fruit users cursed by the sea, Trebol and Diamante instantly lost all strength, flailing helplessly as they sank.
Just moments ago, they had been planning how to make Law suffer.
But before they could even act on their thoughts, Law had already ended the battle in a single move—perfectly embodying the essence of instant defeat.
Sheathing Kikoku at his elbow, Law strode toward the dock's edge. As he peered down at the two struggling figures, he reached into his coat and pulled out a flintlock pistol.
He wasn't one to use firearms, but at Maude's suggestion, he carried one as an extra tool to complement his teleportation abilities.
"Weren't you going to drag me to hell?"
Law adjusted his aim, pointing the gun at the two helpless "sitting ducks."
"Since you decide where your 'targets' get transferred… why not send them to the sea?"
Recalling Maude's mischievous smirk as he had explained that strategy, Law couldn't help but smile himself. Then, he pulled the trigger.
Bang! Bang!
Two lead bullets spun out of the barrel, heading straight for Trebol and Diamante.
As the shots rang out, the two men—on the verge of sinking—felt a wave of despair wash over them.
Whoosh! Whoosh!
Yet, instead of hitting them, the bullets splashed harmlessly into the sea, several meters away.
They stared in shock.
From the dock, Law nonchalantly remarked, "My shooting skills aren't great. But that's fine. I have plenty of bullets."
Trebol and Diamante's expressions twisted. Rather than suffer further humiliation, they gave up resisting and sank beneath the waves, bubbles rising in their wake.
"That's it?"
Watching the last of the bubbles, Law shook his head, holstering his gun before turning to Arthur.
"Make sure they survive. I'll leave that to you."
"Got it."
Arthur nodded, shooting Law a peculiar look before tossing two silver needles into the water.
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