Imu recalled the century long war from eight hundred years ago. Back then, the giant elephant Zunesha, the mermaid princess Poseidon, even Joy Boy himself, had all been deceived and toyed with in his palms. In the end, those so called great saints shattered under his schemes. The foolish elephant was used like a tool and later punished by Joy Boy, and even Joy Boy had to write an apology letter to the mermaid princess.
"This little brat Roger has Observation Haki that lets him hear everything. He is also from the D clan. Since he dares to step onto that island, we should snuff out this light first."
Imu muttered to himself. Then he decided to have the Five Elders push Roger into the spotlight, praising him as the Pirate King for the world to see. He wanted to drown Roger in glory and watch whether Brook and Rocks, the two pirate overlords, could tolerate someone riding above their heads.
Let the New World pirates decide if they would accept Roger as Pirate King.
Imu only wanted one thing, to watch the D clan pirates kill each other.
In truth, his idea was not far from Brook's. Brook wanted the Roger Pirates to draw the World Government's attention. Imu wanted to praise Roger to death and ignite a war among pirates for the title and the treasure of the final island.
So the seas entered a strange calm.
The Hell Pirates looked like they were quietly sharpening their blades. Marineford watched greedily, ready to storm the New World at any moment. And within Rocks' territory, people grew uneasy, fearing the war for New World supremacy could erupt overnight.
That unnatural stillness lasted more than half a month, as if the world itself was holding its breath for the right spark.
Meanwhile, on Ballon Island in the sky, there was no trace of war tension at all.
Brook was in high spirits, personally guiding Hades, Osiris, and Kanna as they learned to control their newly awakened Haki step by step.
Satan, Hela, and the other younger siblings were so jealous they could bite through steel. They wanted to awaken Conqueror's Haki too. First, because it meant strength, and second, because it meant more time under their father's direct teaching.
After weeks of Brook's training, the second generation descendants and his group of students were all growing rapidly.
The eleven year old Gekko Moriah, driven by his fierce competitive streak and the pride of being the oldest, finally passed Brook's repeated tests and won himself a Devil Fruit.
The Shadow Shadow Fruit was already gone, but he received the Paramecia Corruption Fruit taken from the former pseudo overlord Saracha. Anything his hand touched decayed. It was countless times more terrifying than the Paramecia Rust Rust Fruit, a truly superior ability.
Metal rotted at a touch, and living things could fester and collapse the moment he grabbed them. Without overwhelming Armament Haki, there was no real defense against that absolute decay.
Brook had once considered saving this fruit for his fifth son Mephisto. But after Mephisto obtained the Nature type Earth Fruit, Brook changed his mind.
The Corruption Fruit was simply too horrifying, and its side effects were nasty. If the user lost control, even their own food would rot the moment they touched it. When Moriah first gained the power, he ruined half the camp's supplies and went hungry for several meals.
In the end, he had to rely on others feeding him until he could rein the decay in properly. Even now, people were wary around him, afraid of being caught by accident.
So Moriah started wearing gloves like Big Bear. He only revealed those terrifying hands in battle.
Brook had left the Corruption Fruit aside for a son because he did not want any of his children to shoulder that burden too early. Yet Gekko Moriah fell in love with its raw, brutal power.
And so, in the end, the Corruption Fruit became his.
Ben Beckman, also eleven, loved swimming and dreamed of becoming a sniper who could drop enemies from a thousand meters away. For now, he had no plans to become a special ability user.
Jesus Burgess was the same, aiming for the sniper path. Vista wanted to walk the road of a pure swordsman like Shiki, so he also refused any Devil Fruit for the time being.
As for Kuzan and Marco, Brook had already prepared their fruits. The Logia Type Ice Fruit for Kuzan, and the Cloud Cloud Fruit for Marco, shaping them into the next generation of Logia type monsters.
Brook even helped Marco develop auspicious cloud wings through the Cloud Cloud Fruit. Their beauty and speed were no less dazzling than Hera's Phoenix Fruit.
Under Brook's guidance, Thundercloud Wings and Raincloud Wings were already being developed as well.
The only one who escaped Brook's training camp was the big bird Morgans. He swore he had learned enough and declared he would return to inherit his father's World Economic News Agency, becoming the next true "Big News."
But recently, another of Brook's almost forgotten bargain apprentices arrived.
Ashura Doji of Wano came to Ballon Island, bringing Shimotsuki Koshiro with him.
From Ashura Pengnan's Den Den Mushi report, Ashura Doji had monstrous sword talent. At seventeen, he already stood at the level of a junior great swordsman, able to cut steel and launch flying slashes. Now he officially joined the Hell Pirates to fight, train, and grow under Brook.
Koshiro, only twelve, was also a kendo prodigy with a strong sword heart. The head of the Shimotsuki family, Shimotsuki Toramaru, had personally approved him to study the clan's dragon slaying sword style. Even at this age, Koshiro already carried the rudiments of sword intent.
At the request of Shimotsuki Kozaburo and Toramaru, Ashura Pengnan allowed Koshiro to follow Ashura Doji into Brook's camp.
Among the Hell Pirates, who would not want to send their children here, to grow beside Brook's princes and princesses and be shaped into the next era's titans?
After a few days of brutal drills, Brook sent Ashura Doji to train under Kaido and Kozuki Oden's squad instead of letting him remain by his father Ashura Doji Senior's side.
Brook was deliberately forging bonds and battle rhythm among the younger generation.
Just like Vista, Koshiro chose the path of the pure swordsman and joined Brook's training camp.
Watching these young talents bloom, Brook felt as if he was holding the next era in his hands.
The World Government had the Five Elders, the Divine Knights, ten branches of CP, and the Navy.
Brook had the Four Hell Kings, countless cadres, the Four Rookie Kings, the Four Fallen Angels, and these fast rising stars who would one day light the seas on fire.
He would do everything to bridge the eight hundred year gap in foundations.
After a round of high pressure training, Brook returned to his strategic office to review the latest operations.
Then a single report flashed across his desk.
It made his eyes widen.
Damn it. He had only told Morley to head into the West Sea and gather like minded people, so how in the world did the Revolutionary Army end up being born early?
------------
Brook still remembered what happened a few years ago.
A giant little dwarf had stumbled onto Doragonzo Island, eyes full of stubborn light, babbling about racial coexistence, equality, peace, and a world where everyone could live together without fear. At the time, Brook had found it amusing more than anything.
Later, in one of Antonio's casual intelligence summaries, Brook finally matched that memory to a name and an identity.
Morley. Western Army commander of the Revolutionary Army, and the user of the Push Push Fruit.
This woman was the real first escapee of Impel Down. She had even dug out the secret Level 5.5 herself.
Brook had moved fast. He fed her a neat stack of bright red pacifist theory, wrapped in just the right amount of idealism and rage, and snagged her loyalty like a fisherman hooking a sea king. Before Morley even realized it, she was already walking in Brook's orbit.
Back then, when Dragon was still a child, Brook had also ordered someone to quietly slip that same theory into his hands. If Dragon ever saw enough of the Celestial Dragons' darkness, that spark would catch fire sooner or later.
And lately, the world had been giving him plenty of fuel.
After the Navy was forced out of the New World, the Celestial Dragons raised the tribute quotas in the Four Seas and the Grand Line to make up for the gold they had lost from New World member states. The result was obvious.
Kingdom wars had become more frequent in the last few years. Islands burned, nations crumbled. To keep their membership, the powerful countries kept crushing non member states and weaker member nations, looting resources just to refill their tribute coffers.
Brook guessed the Grand Line country where Bullet lived was already drowning in that endless war. In two years, that boy would be scooped into the youth corps and thrown into battle as a disposable suicide soldier.
Now, spurred on by Brook's "gentle encouragement," Morley had returned to the West Sea to raise a new kind of force. Not pirates. Not pirate hunters. Not Navy.
A brand new organization that existed for one purpose only.
To overthrow the brutal rule of the Celestial Dragons.
To fight for a day when all races could live in peace and equality.
Morley had already set up a self defense force inside a non member country, using it to resist the plunder of a brutal king from a member state, keeping civilians alive by sheer stubborn will.
"Dragon, hurry up and grow a backbone, or you will lose the spot of Revolutionary leader to me."
Brook laughed as he approved the report.
"In this era, maybe Morley becomes the Revolutionary Army's founder, and I become its guiding principle."
With a flick of his pen, Brook ordered Stussy and Shakky to work with the Shipping King Umid, moving food and standard weapons toward Morley's budding army.
He wanted Morley's Self Guard Force to be the first flame of a wildfire that would spread across the seas.
Some common folk would rather die than become pirates. But a self defense force built for their survival was different. If they wanted to live, they would join without hesitation.
Brook was drawing a blueprint for his own future empire.
Pirates, underground darkness, and the revolutionary movement.
Even the Navy.
Could Dragon one day become an admiral, then flip the Navy from inside?
Brook snorted. That was a nice dream, but it probably would not happen. The Celestial Dragons had always guarded against the D clan. They would never gladly hand a D to the rank of admiral.
Even in the original timeline, Garp had refused promotion to admiral. Brook suspected the old fox saw the unspoken rules clearly and turned it down himself.
To even be considered for admiral, you had to spend time in Mary Geoise, "cultivating loyalty" and serving as a shield for the Celestial Dragons. Every admiral had to memorize every adult Celestial Dragon, and stay ready to obey their emergency Den Den Mushi calls at any moment.
Under those chains, would Monkey D Garp, the so called natural enemy of God, ever agree to become a Celestial Dragon's lapdog?
Not a chance.
So undermining the Navy through Dragon was unlikely. But Dragon could still rise through the revolutionary road and become another pillar inside Brook's growing forces.
Brook even considered feeding Dragon some military merit, letting him climb rank faster, then gifting him a top tier Devil Fruit through "accident."
Whether it was a Wind Wind Fruit or a Mythical Wind Dragon Fruit, Dragon would be lucky if he got one for free.
Brook also needed spies inside the Navy, but that path was narrowing. Borsalino was already a known piece, and Kuzan had taken the Ice Fruit straight from a Celestial Dragon stash. Any deep infiltration risked exposure.
That made Brook think of someone else.
A child he had just received a file on.
Brook pulled out the newest personnel report. Grand Line.
The boy was only five, but there was a cold bloodthirsty gleam in his eyes and a natural military aura in the way he stood.
"His father is a prison guard, too."
Brook stared at the photo and the family line. The name printed underneath was Shiryu.
"This kid is a born killer. Now where the hell is that little monster Bullet?"
Brook chuckled.
Shiryu and Bullet both carried the same iron battlefield aura. One was bloodthirsty, the other obsessed with being the strongest, and together they reminded him of Sakazuki's ruthless, iron blood presence.
Right now, nobody knew where Bullet was.In a war soaked country, the youth suicide unit was called Demon Heir, and its commander was named George.
So the boys in that unit were known as Demon Heir.
Bullet 9 had been Douglas Barrett's childhood code number in that unit. The death rate was absurdly high, and the members were replaced over and over.
Bullet was the only surviving "hero."
Brook's intel people could not tell which generation of Barrett 9 was the one he wanted. So all they could do was keep watching until the one true "hero who would not die" finally appeared.
Brook scribbled those arrangements into the approval sheet, then moved on to the next stack of urgent reports.
"The Pluton battleship's flight transformation and second upgrade are complete."
"The Pluton replica, Adam wood version, is fully constructed."
"Artificial Devil Fruit, Azure Dragon model, is complete."
"The Dragon clone, Ryuga, has been developed. Intelligence normal. Ready for special training."
Brook raised an eyebrow.
"Can Dragon's clone really live like a normal person?"
He remembered Ryuga from before, blank eyed and baby foolish. Now the clone had finally grown to the mind of a nine year old child.
Brook's thoughts drifted.
"If Ryuga eats the artificial Azure Dragon Fruit, could he become another peerless monster, a second Kaido?"
The idea hit him like thunder.
With Dragon's talent and the power of the Azure Dragon Fruit, this clone's ceiling would be terrifying.
Vegapunk had tattooed a dragon totem across Ryuga's face, making him distinct from Dragon at a glance. Brook had also given him a new name and a different hairstyle.
Even Ryuga himself did not know he was a clone.
To him, he was simply a new life.
A fresh D clan seedling, growing toward the storm.
<><><><><>
[P@treon Discount: 20% OFF]
[Check Out My Patreon For +40 Advance Chapters On All My Fanfics!]
[[email protected]/FanficLord03]
[Join Our Discord Community For Updates & Events]
[https://discord.gg/MntqcdpRZ9]