If Kaguya wasn't mistaken, the Gothic-style loli standing before her was Perona. Only she would dress in such an eccentric fashion. Though, to be fair, she was rather cute.
"Since you've come here, I can't just let you leave so easily. Horo-horo-horo!" Perona placed her hands on her hips and let out a triumphant laugh. With a wave of her small hand, she commanded, "Go! Negative Ghosts!"
At her command, three translucent ghosts, each making eerie faces, materialized and flew rapidly toward Kaguya.
Perona's delicate face already bore a victorious smile. No one had ever resisted her Negative Ghosts before. She could already imagine Kaguya collapsing to her knees in utter despair.
"Defeating enemies so easily is boring… But what can I do? I'm just too strong." Perona feigned indifference, but the smug curve of her lips betrayed her true feelings.
The Negative Ghosts effortlessly passed through Kaguya's body.
However, the expected scene did not unfold. The woman before her neither collapsed nor showed any sign of despair.
"Eh?" Perona's large, beautiful eyes widened in shock. "What's going on?"
"You're saying these things are ghosts?" Kaguya casually reached out and grabbed one of the ghosts that had passed through her, holding it firmly in her hand. "Doesn't seem like much to me."
She then squeezed the ghost a few times as if it were a ball of dough.
"What… what is happening?!" Perona looked as if she had seen a ghost herself. "H-How can you grab a ghost?!"
Kaguya gave her a look as if she were an idiot. "Isn't it common sense that humans can grab ghosts?"
Of course, she was referring to exorcists—professionals in ghost-hunting. It was their job, after all.
Perona clenched her fists and shouted in frustration, "That's NOT common sense!"
Ordinary people couldn't touch ghosts, but Armament Haki could easily make contact with them. For instance, Bartholomew Kuma could swat them away effortlessly.
As for Kaguya, who possessed an all-encompassing power, grabbing them was trivial.
Moreover, thanks to her immense spiritual strength, even if a Negative Ghost touched her, it wouldn't cause her to collapse in self-loathing or mutter nonsense about wanting to be reborn as a sea cucumber.
"By the way, the 'Lord Moria' you mentioned… If I'm not mistaken," Kaguya continued squeezing the ghost as if it were a balloon, "you're talking about Gecko Moria, right?"
"How dare you be disrespectful to Lord Moria!" Perona pointed at Kaguya angrily.
"Oh? You got a problem with that?"
Perona's pupils shrank sharply.
So fast!
She hadn't even noticed when Kaguya had moved—yet now, she was already behind her.
Before Perona could react, Kaguya grabbed her by the collar like a kitten and lifted her effortlessly. "Alright, little girl, you can take me to Moria now, right?"
"Let go of me! Let go!" Perona flailed in mid-air, struggling with all her might.
Unfortunately for her, she was just a small girl with tiny limbs—no match for Kaguya in the slightest. However, if she kept resisting, Kaguya would have to resort to other methods.
Smack!
A light slap landed on Perona's backside.
Perona froze. Then, her struggling intensified as she screamed, "Ahhh! How dare you hit me?!"
She thrashed like a fish out of water, swinging her fists wildly. But her arms were too short to reach Kaguya.
"That was just a warning," Kaguya said with a friendly smile, leaning in. "If I recall correctly, there are a lot of cockroaches around here, aren't there?"
Perona's body went rigid. Her neck creaked like a rusty machine as she slowly turned her head, forcing a smile. "H-Haha, cockroaches? As if I'd be scared of such tiny little things. Don't be ridiculous."
Kaguya stared speechlessly at the stubborn loli. Her face was already pale from fear, yet she was still putting on a brave front.
"This is your last chance. Tell me where Moria is," Kaguya said.
"Hah! Keep dreaming! I won't tell you anything!" Perona stuck out her tongue and made a silly face. "Idiot! Moron!"
"Well, if you insist on bringing this upon yourself, I have no choice." Kaguya sighed.
"W-Wait, you're not actually going to find cockroaches, are you?!" Perona's bravado crumbled as panic crept into her voice. "T-There aren't any here! And even if there were, they're disgusting and creepy!"
"Don't worry, I just happen to have some right here," Kaguya said with a warm smile. "Look."
She extended her hand.
Perona's eyes widened in horror as she saw Kaguya's pale palm crawling with black cockroaches—big and small, their tiny legs writhing against her smooth skin. The contrast made them look even more prominent and terrifying.
Perona froze completely, her entire body stiff as a board.
"AHHHHHHHHHH!!!"
A bloodcurdling scream pierced the air.
"HELP! SOMEONE SAVE ME! GET THEM AWAY!"
"Hey, shut up, or I'll shove them down your collar."
"LORD MORIA! HELP ME!"
"I told you to stop screaming. If you don't, I really will."
"AAAAAHHHH!!"
Perona's eyes widened in sheer terror before rolling back into her head. With a final, pitiful gasp, she fainted.
"Hey, you okay?" Kaguya shook the unconscious Perona gently. "You didn't really pass out, did you? If you don't wake up, I might actually drop one down your back."
But Perona remained completely still, like a marionette with its strings cut. Tear stains were still visible on her face.
No way… She's really that scared of cockroaches?
Kaguya was at a loss.
She honestly didn't understand what was so terrifying about cockroaches.
With a casual flick of her wrist, the crawling insects disappeared—they had only been an illusion.
…Maybe that was a bit too much?
Looking down at the unconscious Perona in her arms, Kaguya sighed. Hopefully, this wouldn't leave her with lasting trauma.
...
"Bad news! Bad news, Lord Moria!" A zombie wrapped in bandages came rushing in, panting.
"Huh?" The hulking figure of Gecko Moria turned around, irritated. "What now?"
"Lady Perona! Lady Perona has been kidnapped!"
"What?! You're saying Perona was captured?" Moria turned his head in surprise.
"Yes, Lord Moria," the zombie reported anxiously. "Just now, we saw that intruder inside the castle taking Lady Perona away!"
"Useless fools!" Moria roared in anger. "Are you all complete idiots?! Get out there and bring Perona back!"
"Y-Yes! We'll go immediately!" The zombie trembled violently before scrambling away in a panic.
A voice chimed in from the side. "Anyone capable of defeating Perona isn't just some small fry. Let's hope they aren't as troublesome as that skeleton from before."
The speaker resembled a vampire—round-faced with sharp fangs, wearing black-rimmed glasses. He was a rotund man dressed in an elegant black coat, none other than Hogback, the so-called genius surgeon and one of Moria's subordinates.
"Even if they were a skeleton, so what? That one was captured all the same," Moria scoffed. "The real issue here is the sheer incompetence of our forces! We have an entire army of zombies, yet they couldn't defeat a single human?!"
"Still, I have a feeling this intruder isn't just an ordinary person. We should be cautious."
At that moment, a figure materialized out of thin air. He had a lion-like face with a savage expression, long, wild hair, and was dressed in an extravagant suit with a top hat perched atop his head.
It was Absalom, Moria's subordinate and the user of the Clear-Clear Fruit.
"It's just a woman. How much trouble could she possibly be?" Moria scoffed dismissively.
"No," Absalom said seriously. "She's not just any woman."
"Not just any woman?" Moria frowned in confusion.
"That's right!" Absalom's expression suddenly transformed into one of infatuation, his eyes shining like beacons. "She's an absolute beauty! I've never seen such a gorgeous woman before. I've decided—she will be my bride!"
…Huh?
Moria and Hogback both turned to look at him with expressions that screamed, Are you an idiot?
"Here we go again…" Hogback groaned, rubbing his temples. "Can't you act normal for once? What's so special about women that makes you this obsessed?!"
Absalom scoffed. "Says the guy who won't even let corpses rest in peace. You have no right to lecture me."
"What did you just say?!" Hogback shouted, fuming.
"Am I wrong?" Absalom sneered. "A mere dancer who's been dead for ages—rotting away—and yet, you still wanted her? Your tastes are beyond questionable."
"You little—! You wanna end up as one of my zombies?!" Hogback's veins bulged in fury.
"Enough!" Moria slammed his hand on the table, shouting, "Quit bickering! Get out there and capture that intruder! Now!"
Absalom and Hogback exchanged glares before simultaneously huffing in annoyance.
"If you're looking for me, there's no need to search," a melodious voice suddenly rang out. "Because I'm already here."
Everyone froze, immediately turning toward the source of the voice, their hearts tightening in alarm.
At some unknown point, an additional presence had appeared in the room, and none of them had even noticed.
Standing there was none other than Kaguya, and slung over her shoulder was the unconscious Perona.
"Oh? So you're the one who infiltrated our castle?" Hogback adjusted his glasses, flashing his sharp fangs. "I must admit, you're quite the beautiful woman."
"See? I told you!" Absalom's eyes gleamed with excitement. "She's gorgeous!"
But when Moria got a clear look at Kaguya, his pupils suddenly shrank, his hands trembled, and his face turned deathly pale.
She—She's…!
"So, you're the one who took Perona?" Hogback scoffed, crossing his arms. "And you still dared to show up here? You must have quite the nerve. But that's fine—I could always use more test subjects for my experiments. Just stay put and be a good specimen."
The moment he finished speaking, a massive scalpel appeared in his hand. With a forceful stomp, he lunged toward Kaguya at high speed.
"Hey! What do you mean 'experiment subject'?!" Absalom also charged forward, shouting in protest. "She's my future bride! I won't let you lay a hand on her!"
"You people really don't know when to quit. Rushing to your own deaths like this…" Kaguya sighed. "Fine. If you're so eager to die, I'll grant your wish."
She lifted her arm, her eyes narrowing.
"Shinra Tensei."
An overwhelming, invisible force burst from her palm like a tsunami, engulfing everything in its path.
Hogback and Absalom were sent flying as if struck by a freight train. With a thunderous crash, they slammed into the walls, leaving deep, web-like cracks upon impact.
"Pathetically weak," Kaguya remarked, turning to Moria with a dazzling smile. "Tell me, Lord Moria, don't you agree?"
"Y-Y-Y…" Moria stammered, unable to form a coherent sentence. "Why are you here?!"
"Oh?" Kaguya raised an eyebrow in mild surprise. "I didn't expect the great Warlord Moria to recognize me. I'm honored."
"N-No, that's not it…" Cold sweat dripped from Moria's forehead as he forced a strained smile. "How could I not recognize someone as famous as Lady Kaguya? Your name is well-known everywhere."
Damn it! Of all people, why did it have to be her?!
How did she even end up here?!
What Kaguya didn't know was that her reputation had already spread across the Grand Line. Years ago, she had beaten up the now-Admirals of the Navy. Later, she had tossed Doflamingo into the sea like fish bait. Not long after, she had fought Whitebeard to a stalemate. And most recently, she had done the unthinkable—forcing Kaido into a humiliating retreat.
With such overwhelming strength, even Whitebeard—hailed as the world's strongest man—might not be her equal.
Moria's fear of Kaguya had deep roots. Years ago, he had clashed with Kaido and suffered a devastating defeat. He had barely escaped with his life after nearly losing his entire crew. Even now, the mere memory of that battle filled him with dread.
And now, standing before him was the very woman who had forced Kaido to flee in disgrace.
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