In the silent depths of the underground ruins, a gut-wrenching retching echoed through the chamber, reverberating off the ancient walls.
Sakazuki paused, midway through placing a set of blueprints into a molten-gold suitcase. Hearing the sound, he smirked slightly, as if recalling something amusing.
Clack.
He shut the suitcase, picked it up with his left hand, and grabbed one end of the two-meter-long model of the Maxim with his right. With sheer strength alone, he hoisted the full structure off the table and stepped into the passage outside.
"Let's go!" he called.
Carlo was the first to come out, smiling as usual. Behind him came Enel, his face pale and waxy. He had to steady himself against the wall as he walked. His legs were still trembling, and he looked completely drained from all the vomiting.
Sakazuki gave him a sideways glance. "How did it taste?"
The moment the words hit, Enel's stomach turned violently again. He clutched his mouth and groaned, speaking through clenched teeth.
"Don't talk about that thing!"
Sakazuki chuckled, set down the Maxim model on the ground, and walked over to lift Enel up.
He placed the boy onto the model's deck. At two meters long, it was more than enough for a three-year-old to sit on comfortably.
Then he asked, "Can you use your ability now? Try it."
Enel took a deep breath as he sat on the Maxim, still catching his breath. He stretched out his hands, focused, and let that strange, instinctual energy inside his body flow.
Crackle—!
Electric arcs danced between his fingers. The sharp crackle of lightning echoed through the air. Enel stared at his hands and broke into a silly grin.
"Now put your hands on that lever," Sakazuki instructed. "Channel your power into it."
In many ways, this Maxim model functioned exactly like the full-scale version shown in the blueprints.
Just... scaled down to a toy.
Enel spotted the control lever and placed his hands on it. A steady stream of electricity surged from his palms into the mechanism.
Zzz—!
The energy flowed deep into the model's interior. After a few seconds, the quiet was broken by a mechanical rumble.
Clunk, clunk, clunk...
The sound of gears and pistons working grew faster and smoother.
Whirrr~
The row of fans on both sides of the ship and at the rear started spinning rapidly. Slowly, the entire model lifted off the ground and hovered in the air.
Carlo stared in awe. Enel, on the other hand, was completely stunned. His mouth hung open.
"Whoa!"
Seeing that it worked, Sakazuki nodded slightly and turned away.
"Let's go. Keep up."
With that, he started walking toward the exit. Enel, still sitting on the floating Maxim, had no idea how to make it move forward or back. Just as he began to panic, Carlo placed his right hand gently on Enel's back.
With a light push, he guided both the airborne Maxim and the boy forward, keeping pace with Sakazuki.
In a secluded corner of Birka, Sakazuki pushed open a section of cloud overhead and leapt through it. Below, Enel remained seated on the floating Maxim while Carlo, holding the small ship, jumped out with him in one smooth motion.
After closing the cloud panel, Carlo lifted Enel off the ship.
Sakazuki grabbed one corner of the Maxim, and with one solid step, both men vanished from sight.
Back aboard the warship, inside the office, Sakazuki stowed away the golden suitcase. The mission was complete. Without another word, he left the room.
Out on the deck, Enel sat proudly atop the Maxim model, floating in mid-air.
The surrounding marines, including Cricket, gazed up at the flying ship, their eyes sparkling in amazement.
After all, flight and warships were the stuff of every man's dreams.
Sakazuki gestured for his second-in-command to come over, giving a few orders. Carlo nodded and moved forward to announce, "Prepare for return!"
"Yeahhhhhh!!!"
The crew shouted in excitement. They'd been drifting in the White-White Sea for months. The strange landscape had its charm, but deep down, the hunger for battle—and home—had been simmering for too long.
Enel looked at all the cheering faces, his own expression turning a bit downcast, feeling a sense of loneliness.
Carlo noticed immediately. He walked over, and just from one look, he could guess what the boy was thinking.
'Kids really do overthink everything.' He sighed softly, then gently pulled Enel over to Sakazuki's side.
The vice admiral looked down at the quiet Enel and asked, "What's wrong?"
Hearing the question, Enel reflected on the experiences and warmth of the past two days. His eyes became slightly moist as he awkwardly turned his head away. "Nothing. When are you leaving?"
Sakazuki gazed at him and answered plainly, "Tomorrow morning."
"Oh," Enel murmured. He lowered his head and remained silent, lost in thought.
After a while, the sound of droplets hitting the deck echoed softly. The steady "plip-plop" of the water was all that could be heard.
Sakazuki's calm voice rang out again. "Recruit Enel."
The title felt like a melody to the boy, and he immediately looked up, surprised. His face, still streaked with tears, broke into a wide grin.
"Here!" he shouted, his voice filled with newfound energy.
...
Side Story - Ancient Weapons and the Prophecy
Long ago, the Moon exhausted its resources.
Aside from the automatas that had been left behind to guard the land, all the inhabitants of the Moon migrated to the massive blue planet.
They brought with them advanced technology far beyond what the blue planet had seen. Two tribes settled in the White-White Sea, while the other two descended to the Blue Sea.
Around 1,100 years before the current era, one of the Moon tribes that had journeyed towards the Blue Sea established a prosperous golden city called Shandora.
By 1,000 years ago, the golden city of Shandora was still thriving.
Roughly 900 years ago, Joy Boy began traveling the world. He discovered a mermaid princess with the power to command Sea Kings, and a warship capable of destroying entire islands, along with another incredibly powerful entity.
He named them Poseidon, Pluton, and Uranus—what would later be known as the Ancient Weapons.
During his journey, Joy Boy also witnessed countless forms of injustice and dreamed of creating an ideal nation built on freedom and equality.
Responding to his call, various tribes joined the Great Kingdom established by him, including the Three-Eye Tribe and the other Moon tribe who had come to the Blue Sea.
The inclusion of the Moon people brought advanced technology and super powerful warships to the kingdom.
Infected by Joy Boy's ideals, some people even added the letter "D." to their names, marking the origin of the "D." clan, passed down through generations.
The ideals and philosophy of the Great Kingdom began spreading across the world.
Over the years, the "Will of D." reached every corner of the world, drawing more and more people to it.
The Great Kingdom rapidly expanded, and its ideals of freedom and equality severely threatened the foundation of nations across the world.
The allure of these ideas was too great, too advanced. Twenty countries, including Alabasta, formed a World Government alliance to protect their interests and declared war on the Great Kingdom.
Details of the war are unknown, but the legend of the Ancient Weapons, capable of destroying entire islands, began to spread around this time.
Despite possessing immense power, the Great Kingdom was defeated by the allied forces.
Only a few tribes that had joined the Great Kingdom fought desperately, nearly facing extinction.
Before the final curtain fell, Joy Boy entrusted the Kozuki Clan with carving the Poneglyphs, recording the history of the kingdom and the "Will of D."
He then distributed these texts, in fragments, to the people from various countries and tribes who had once visited the Great Kingdom, allowing them to return to their distant homelands. They carried with them the prophecy for 800 years in the future.
To erase any trace of "D," the victorious World Government forces began a large-scale purge. Though they faced immense resistance, the purge proceeded steadily.
800 years ago, the once-glorious golden city of Shandora, after enduring a brutal war, was reduced to a primitive state.
All that remained was a spoken oath passed down through generations—guard the great golden bell and the unreadable Poneglyph.
...
Blue Sea, Jaya Island.
After escorting Cricket back to his home, Sakazuki prepared to return to Marineford to report in.
Three days later.
Purururu…purururu…pururu...
Carlo approached with a Den Den Mushi in hand. Sakazuki took the call. As he listened, his brows furrowed. When the voice on the other end finished, he gave a curt reply, then hung up.
"Change course to Kergashi Island. Get there at top speed."
A moment later, he unrolled a sea chart and scanned their position.
After a quick calculation, he grabbed his cloak and flung it onto the ship. His lower body turned into magma.
Boom!
He shot into the sky like an intercontinental missile, flying straight toward Kergashi Island.
"Damn you, Roger!"
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