Chapter 289: Vegapunk's Plan (Part 1)
The World Conference at Mary Geoise came to an abrupt end.
After everything that had happened, neither the Celestial Dragons nor the leaders of the attending nations had any interest in maintaining the appearance of normalcy.
To prevent the situation from deteriorating further, the Five Elders ordered the conference terminated immediately.
At the same time, responsibility for the assassinations was placed entirely on the Revolutionary Army.
The organization was officially declared the World Government's greatest enemy, and every Member Nation was ordered to assist in hunting down its members.
Elsewhere, inside a sealed laboratory, a steady ticking sound echoed through the room.
Tick.
Tick.
Tick.
It sounded almost like a clock.
But there was no clock.
A man in a long white coat stood before several rows of glass containers.
From a distance, he might have looked like a doctor. Up close, however, the illusion quickly disappeared.
His coat was wrinkled and untidy, hanging loosely over a gaudy floral shirt.
The man was Vegapunk.
He stared at the glass tubes with an excited grin.
Bubbles continually rose through the liquid inside them, producing the strange ticking sound. Whatever substance filled the containers, its bubbles sounded nothing like ordinary air passing through water.
What floated inside was even more disturbing.
Human brains.
Or rather, reconstructed brain specimens created from samples obtained through dissection.
Each brain pulsed rhythmically within its container.
Its grooves shifted slightly with every contraction, creating an unsettling sight.
Vegapunk watched without the slightest discomfort.
His eyes moved rapidly from one specimen to another, filled with the fervor of someone completely consumed by his research.
Then, almost without warning, the excitement disappeared.
His expression sank into frustration.
Then disappointment.
Then doubt.
Like a child suddenly losing interest in a favorite toy, he stared at the experiments with growing dissatisfaction.
"Why?"
Vegapunk leaned closer to one of the containers.
"Why, why, why...?"
"The structure is the same."
"The operating pattern is the same."
"Yet the result is completely different."
His fingers tapped lightly against the glass.
"What am I missing?"
"How can thought alone interfere with the external world?"
He began pacing.
"Some principles behind Devil Fruits are similar, but I already tested those possibilities."
"They still cannot reproduce what happened with that child."
Vegapunk stopped.
"Did I overlook something?"
His thoughts returned to the day Sentomaru had brought Axel to the laboratory.
The moment Vegapunk examined the boy, he had noticed something abnormal about his brain.
He had intended to conduct a deeper examination.
But just as he prepared to use his instruments, Axel's brain had begun operating autonomously.
Some form of energy had emerged from his body and created a protective force that repelled Vegapunk's tools.
That phenomenon immediately captured his interest.
Using precision equipment, Vegapunk had recorded the brain activity responsible for the reaction.
Afterward, he reconstructed identical brain models inside laboratory containers and attempted to reproduce the same process.
To eliminate the possibility of errors from relying on a single sample, he had created multiple specimens.
Every one of them failed.
No matter how precisely he recreated the structure or replicated the recorded neural activity, none produced the phenomenon he had observed from Axel.
For Vegapunk, failure itself was not unusual.
But this kind of complete dead end was rare.
It had been a long time since he had felt this frustrated.
He eventually forced the disappointment aside.
Only curiosity remained.
That was an emotion a scientist could never afford to lose.
Vegapunk did not fear what he could not understand.
He did not avoid it either.
To him, the unknown was simply a puzzle waiting to be solved.
And there were few things he enjoyed more than tearing apart a mystery until its answer was exposed.
Unfortunately, this particular puzzle could not be solved today.
Vegapunk turned away from the glass containers.
His eyes landed on a newspaper resting at the corner of a nearby table.
Reading newspapers was one of his few ordinary hobbies.
His time was precious, but keeping up with major events during his breaks was a convenient way to relax.
A massive headline dominated the front page.
[REVOLUTIONARY ARMY STRIKES? SEVEN CELESTIAL DRAGONS DEAD!]
Vegapunk read the headline with growing interest.
Then he smiled.
The anchor had been dropped.
The bait had been taken.
Now it was his turn to act.
He summoned his personal bodyguard.
Sentomaru entered the laboratory not long afterward.
"What is it?"
He made no effort to hide his impatience.
There was even a trace of disgust in his voice.
In the past, Sentomaru had regarded Vegapunk as simply an eccentric scientist.
Recently, that opinion had changed.
Now, he saw him as something closer to a scientific madman.
What sane person created artificial human brains inside glass containers?
The experiments surrounding him looked far too similar to human experimentation for Sentomaru's liking.
Vegapunk paid no attention to his expression.
To him, Sentomaru's disapproval was insignificant.
"About what we discussed earlier," Vegapunk said. "I agree."
Sentomaru raised an eyebrow.
"But I have one condition."
"A condition?"
There was no surprise in Sentomaru's voice.
Whenever Vegapunk accepted a request or agreed to cooperate, conditions usually followed.
"I need people," Vegapunk said.
Sentomaru frowned.
Considering the nature of Vegapunk's recent research, his first thought immediately returned to human experimentation.
"What kind of people?"
"We're establishing a Science Unit."
Vegapunk turned toward him.
"We'll use Bartholomew Kuma of the Seven Warlords of the Sea as the primary template, then incorporate other useful elements into the design."
His smile returned.
"Right now, the ability I'm most interested in belongs to Admiral Kizaru."
"The Old Man?"
Sentomaru's eyes widened.
He did not question Kuma's involvement.
Kuma had volunteered for the project, and whatever reasons the Warlord had for doing so were none of Sentomaru's concern.
Kizaru was different.
He was not merely Sentomaru's superior.
He was also his mentor.
Hearing that Vegapunk wanted to involve him immediately drew Sentomaru's attention.
"Exactly."
Vegapunk gestured casually.
"Admiral Kizaru's ability is based on light."
"The two most useful characteristics of light are speed and destructive power."
"A laser is extremely difficult to evade once fired, and if it strikes its target, the resulting destructive force is tremendous."
Sentomaru lowered his head and considered the idea.
"I see."
The Science Unit being developed by the World Government was intended to help maintain global order.
In the current era, however, the world needed overwhelming military power for suppression more than it needed gentle policies.
Whatever Vegapunk created would therefore need to follow that direction.
The qualities he had just described fit that purpose perfectly.
Speed.
Accuracy.
Destructive power.
Sentomaru looked back at him.
"Anyone else?"
"Yes."
Vegapunk thought for a moment.
"I'll need a few researchers to assist me."
"Nothing exceptional. People capable of handling basic work will be enough."
His expression sharpened slightly.
"I don't like other people touching my research."
Sentomaru frowned again.
But he did not object.
Vegapunk had made similar demands before.
Talented researchers were valuable assets to the World Government.
Compared with Vegapunk, however, they were replaceable.
....
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