New World — Beehive Island, Hachinosu.
"Captain Rocks! I want the Teleportation Fruit too!"
Miss Bakin's sharp voice cut across the table. Her eyes gleamed with greed as she pressed closer, unashamed in front of Rocks. With such an ability, she would never have to cower before Captain John again.
This time, the Rocks Pirates had mobilized nearly everyone to hunt down the Night Walker, Kurt Wagner, for his precious fruit.
Among the core cadres, only three remained without Devil Fruits—Miss Bakin, Captain John, and the newly recruited Eric Dane. Bakkin was by far the weakest of the three, but despite her lack of strength, Rocks trusted her more than the others.
"Bakkin, you want the Teleportation Fruit? You can't even fight!" John barked, slamming his fist on the table. "Why don't you hand it to me? I'll make good use of it—kill more enemies, eh?!"
Though he preferred fruits of wealth and fortification—the Golden Fruit, Silver-Silver Fruit, or Diamond Fruit—John would gladly settle for one that gave him an escape route.
King Eric Dane, once a pirate captain in his own right, sat silent. His crew had been disbanded by Rocks, his pride shattered. Though his strength was formidable, his loyalty was uncertain. For now, he had no interest in squabbling over scraps.
"John, you shameless bastard!" Bakkin spat. "Can't you yield, just once, to a poor, defenseless woman?"
The two had long been rivals in their hunt for treasure, their relationship sour and filled with disdain.
"Hmph! Giving it to you is the real waste. At least in my hands, that fruit will kill more enemies!" John sneered, his eyes narrowing with greed. On Rocks' ship, strength was law. And strength was on his side.
Their bickering was silenced by a low, commanding voice.
"Enough," Rocks growled. His hair, now streaked with gray, no longer carried the swagger of his youth. What remained was cruelty, sharpened to steel. "You're arguing over something you haven't even caught yet. Do you fools truly think Kurt will fall so easily?"
Wang Zhi, seated nearby, rose to speak. The great swordsman's aura filled the chamber, drawing every gaze. "Captain Rocks, news has come from the underground networks—about Roger. Do we prioritize him?"
At the mention of Roger, the room chilled.
Not long ago, Roger had raided Hatchinosu itself, humiliating the Rocks Pirates and stealing treasure right from under their noses. It was a disgrace, one that still festered in their pride.
Wang Zhi's strength had been soaring. Once a footnote destined to die after God Valley, now he was a pillar of Rocks' crew. Under Brook's disruption, Newgate and Linlin had been lost. Kaido's loyalty wavered. But Wang Zhi… Wang Zhi grew sharper by the day.
He now wielded the Confinement Fruit, stolen from the Knight of God Raphael, and combined with his swordsmanship, his killing power rivaled even Golden Lion Shiki's. In Rocks' eyes, Wang Zhi was becoming indispensable.
After hearing Wang Zhi's report, the room fell quiet. The question hung heavy: chase Kurt, or strike at Roger?
The Beehive Island raid was more than theft. It was humiliation. A stain no overlord could allow to stand.
"Forget Kurt!" Rocks thundered, rising to his feet. "We kill Roger first! That bastard dared mock me—dared trample on my base! This time, we'll make the seas remember the name of Rocks!"
His fury burned. Once hailed as the undisputed king of the seas, he now watched the Hell Pirates rise as the new overlords. His own name was mocked as relic of the past. The decline of the Rocks Pirates was intolerable.
They would restore their honor in blood.
The Rocks Pirates readied for war, setting their course to crush Roger's crew. None of them knew that far above, the true King of the World, Im, had already marked both them and Brook for destruction.
Meanwhile, in Wano.
Onigashima, once surrounded by waterfalls, now loomed as a mountain above the drained inland sea.
And there, above its jagged peaks, a giant two-winged serpent danced among the clouds. Winds howled. Thunder rolled. Rain lashed down as the mythical beast reveled in its newfound form.
"Come back, Seven!" Brook's voice rang out.
The serpent shrieked and twisted in the air, before folding its wings and streaking down. In a flash of light, it shrank, coiling and reshaping. What returned to Brook's hand was no ordinary sword.
The Seven-Star Demon Sword now bore wings along its blade, and a long tail curled from its hilt.
"So this is what it feels like to become a divine beast!" Seven's voice was filled with wonder. Its body trembled, as if drunk on the power coursing through it. To transform from a sword into a living myth—this was beyond anything it had imagined.
Vegapunk's eyes shone behind his spectacles. "Incredible… objects really can consume Devil Fruits and gain life! If this can be replicated, the possibilities are endless…"
Brook grinned, gazing at his weapon with undisguised pride. "You adapted quickly. A full beast transformation on your first attempt—that's talent!"
He admired his new artifact, more than worthy of the title. With its sword spirit, Devil Fruit power, and ominous will, it surpassed even the Supreme Grade blades. Against it, those legendary swords looked like scrap iron.
"Master! Let me take you flying! That stupid cloud is too slow!"
With a beat of its wings, the Seven-Star Demon Sword grew large, shifting into a half-beast form. It scooped Brook up, soaring into the skies.
Far below, Hera—the Homies cloud bound to Brook by Linlin's power—puffed indignantly and hurried to follow. Though it bristled at being called "stupid," its duty was clear: protect Brook at all costs.
Thus, it chased after the gleaming sword-serpent, the two of them spiraling together through the stormy skies above Wano.
-------------
Brook soared through the sky, standing proudly upon his Seven-Star Demon Sword. The air rushed past his head, his speed leaving Hera's somersault cloud lagging behind. A faint thrill passed through him—was this what it felt like to be a sword immortal?
Still, Brook knew the truth. In battle, the Seven-Star Demon Sword was meant for killing, not carrying him around. Hera, despite its slowness, remained essential. Linlin had forged it into a top-tier Homies, yet even the greatest creations of the Soul-Soul Fruit had limits. No amount of power could make a Homies perfect.
"Let's go back! We're returning to Sky Island!" Brook commanded. His playful flight was over. The looming threat of the Celestial Dragons' "national treasure" demanded his attention. He had to show his strength, to make Im understand—Pluton was now in Brook's hands.
The Quetzalcoatl Sword circled once in the clouds before descending, obediently returning Brook to the deck of the Pluton battleship. Hera soon caught up, puffing heavily, floating beside Brook with a mix of resentment and timidity.
"Let's explore as we go," Brook ordered calmly.
He directed Vegapunk and Golden Lion Shiki to escort Pluton back toward their base. The possibility of Im unleashing the "national treasure" on Ballon Island or Doragonzo Island was too great to ignore. Both had to be protected.
Back in Wano, Brook entrusted governance to Hyogoro, Ashura, and Mugiken. Toramaru and Token also agreed to their leadership, leaving the core management of the country in their hands. Sukiyaki and Kamisawa, however, could only swallow their pride. They were left to manage the Flower Capital and their new stretch of land in the ruins of ancient Wano, rebuilding what they could.
By the time Brook's fleet departed, Wano's most precious treasures—the seastone quarry, the red historical text, and now Pluton—had all been taken by him. What remained for the daimyos to exploit were Devil Fruits yet undiscovered and the fighting power of their samurai.
Among these, two mythical beast fruits still eluded them: the Dog-Dog Fruit, Model: Okuchi-no-Makami and the Nue form. Brook reminded the daimyos once again to intensify their search. Finding them was far more important than reconstructing ruins.
As Brook prepared to leave, Toramaru stepped forward. "Lord Brook, when you return… allow me to follow your fleet into the outside world. Wano has slept too long. I want to see the seas."
Brook's eyes gleamed. "I welcome it. Guard the seastone quarry for now. When the time comes, the seas will open wide for you."
Shiki, with a casual wave of his power, built a temporary gate at the massive gap they had carved into Wano's walls. Hyogoro and the others would be responsible for reinforcing it, ensuring their country remained protected.
The moment Brook's flying fleet and Pluton disappeared into the skies, Hyogoro, Ashura, and the other daimyos dove headfirst into planning. Territories were divided, resources mapped, and the ruins buzzed with fresh ambition.
On the deck of Pluton, the mood was heavier.
Vegapunk and his scientists had been working non-stop, following ancient schematics and dissecting Pluton's vast machinery. They had gained partial mastery of its systems, but the true power of the main cannon still eluded them.
Charlotte Linlin, drenched in sweat, had poured her soul into the colossal vessel, trying to bind it as one of her Homies. Yet even she failed. The ancient weapon was too massive, too resistant.
"Captain Brook," Vegapunk finally admitted, his expression grave. "I have bad news. Plutom's main cannon may require more than machinery. It may need some form of life factor—perhaps a bloodline—to activate."
Brook froze. His head tilted, eyes narrowing. "A… gene lock? Damn it, of course. It must be tied to the D clan."
The thought soured his mood. The "national treasure" of the Celestial Dragons already required sacrifices of their blood and lifespan to function. Now Pluton, too, was bound to bloodlines? Was this how advanced the world truly was, eight hundred years ago?
He chuckled bitterly. "Fingerprint locks are old news. Now we unlock with blood."
But where to find the D clan?
Rocks D. Xebec was gone. Roger was somewhere on the seas. Garp was chained to the Navy. Saul had fallen long ago.
Would Brook be forced to cultivate the D's himself, raising them like Im raised the Celestial Dragons?
The names flashed through his mind: Trafalgar D. from the North, Marshall D. from the West, Portgas D. from the South… He clenched his hand. They existed, but scattered, hidden.
Then his gaze shifted to Oden. The Kozuki family had long been entwined with the mysteries of the ancient kingdom. Oden could hear the voice of all things. His son, Momonosuke, could command the Elephant Lord. Could the Kozuki line, too, hold authority over Pluton?
"Oden," Brook called, his tone sharp. "Go with Vegapunk. Try your blood on Pluton's main cannon."
Oden's eyes widened. "Yes, Master!" He leapt forward eagerly, no hesitation in his step. Part of him even hoped… was he truly chosen?
The man once obsessed with adventure now firmly believed: the Celestial Dragons and their government were villains, the world's true scourge. Following Brook meant salvation, meant freedom.
The crew watched with wary eyes. Could Oden truly hold such power? Or was Brook mistaken?
Far away, in the Holy Land of Marijoa, Im's weapon stirred.
The "national treasure" surged forth, its colossal engines tearing across the seas toward the New World. Its first targets: Doragonzo Island and the Eighteen Hell Islands.
Beehive Island, Roger, Rocks—they would wait. For now, Im intended to erase Brook's footholds before the pirate could even react.
Inside the treasure, swarms of small, precise machines buzzed like locusts. And standing among them, clad in shimmering transparent barriers, was a man.
The Knight of God, Zebai.
His eyes burned with conviction as he looked around, the first human in centuries to step inside this forbidden weapon. "I will protect the national treasure. Master Im entrusted me. Brook, you will not breach this place with your damned soul!"
Barriers layered across his body, not mere walls but living shields, each one rippling with light. Even ethereal souls would find no gap.
The "national treasure" raced on, carving across the seas with terrifying momentum.
In Doragonzo, whispers spread. Allies of the Hell Pirates—those who knew too much—slipped away in silence. They had heard the rumors. They knew something terrible was coming.
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