The New World—Lilga Island.
Nestled in the first stretch of the New World, Lilga Island stretched northwest to southeast, its mountainous terrain rich in minerals. Most of the islanders made their living mining the earth.
Tonight, far from the bustling port, the island's darkened shore hid a Marine warship, barely a hundred meters from the coastline. Magma flowed across the deck, veined with pitch-black Armament Haki, and surged toward the land.
Moments later, a jet-black staircase—over a hundred meters long—took shape. Sakazuki and Sengoku were the first to descend, followed closely by their troops. The squad fanned out, encircling the World Pirates' ship at the harbor, setting up a silent ambush.
Sakazuki and Sengoku swept the area with their Observation Haki. Instantly, they picked up the presence of Byrnndi World and his crew, holding a raucous bonfire feast in the ruined town center.
The two exchanged a glance, nodded, and suppressed their auras before moving quietly toward the heart of the town.
In the square, Byrnndi World lounged in his captain's coat, a helmet with a broken horn perched on his head. His face was crowned by that iconic W-shaped mustache, and he threw back a barrel of wine in one go, cheeks flushed.
Setting the empty cask aside, he burst into laughter as a figure approached from the darkness.
"Bararararara! Gai-ram, how's our haul looking?"
Gai-ram—shaped almost like a walking egg, with a round torso, long, spindly limbs, and hair tied into a square hammer—lugged a massive, person-sized cube hammer across his back. He took a seat by the fire, grinning.
"Better than we hoped. The ore stockpiles in this town are huge," he reported. "We can finally start building the Guloseadi."
Gai-ram was both a frontline fighter and the designer of the Guloseadi—a massive submarine, engineered to unleash World's More-More Fruit powers to their fullest. As a Cube-Cube Fruit user, he could turn anything into cubes and control them at will.
World's eyes gleamed. He threw his head back and roared, "Bararararara! To our dream—cheers!"
The crew raised their cups, convinced that once their colossal ship was finished, nothing in the world could stop them.
"WOOOOOAAAH!!"
None of them noticed the faint disturbance atop a distant tower.
Buzz—!
A translucent shockwave began to pulse in Sengoku's hand.
Suddenly, Sengoku—perched atop the tower—transformed into his Great Buddha form, swelling into a golden giant dozens of meters tall. The tower crumpled beneath his weight, alerting the pirates below—but it was already too late.
As the tower collapsed, Sengoku unleashed the shockwave, blasting it straight into the heart of the celebration.
BOOM!
A blinding mushroom cloud erupted, thunder shaking the night.
It was the signal. From a hundred meters out, waves of magma exploded inward, surging toward the blast's epicenter in layer after burning layer.
At the harbor, the Marines sprang into action the moment the explosion sounded, storming the World Pirates' ship and cutting down any who remained.
At the center of the magma storm—
Bang!
A gaping hole burst open, and World—his body cloaked in Armament Haki—sprang out, clutching his brother Binjack.
He shouted desperately, "Gai-ram! Sebastian! Naiqin!"
Nearby, the magma shifted, transforming into floating cubes that moved aside as Gai-ram's voice called out, "I'm fine!"
Burns marked his body, but he hefted his giant hammer and staggered to his feet.
"Fish-Man Karate: Arabesque Brick Fist!!!"
A furious roar burst from beneath another magma patch.
Bang!
The molten rock erupted, revealing two more figures: the blue-skinned, sunglasses-wearing fish giant Sebastian, and the World Pirates' doctor, Naiqin, her pink qipao singed, white coat nearly burned away.
Seeing his closest comrades alive, World exhaled in relief. The rest, he knew, were gone—no one could survive that blast.
He set down Binjack and glared at the golden giant.
"Sengoku!!!"
Buzz—!
Armament Haki coated his entire body. He snatched up a handful of pebbles, infusing them with Haki as well.
"More-More! Shotgun!!!"
Whoosh!
With a sharp whoosh, the pebbles shot forth—growing a hundred times larger mid-flight, their speed multiplying a hundredfold as they slammed into Sengoku's golden body.
Bang!
The stones shattered harmlessly against the Buddha's shining form. Sengoku swept away the smoke with a massive hand. But World had vanished.
Suddenly, a chill ran down Sengoku's spine—he spun, striking behind him!
BOOM!
But his palm smashed only an afterimage, gouging a crater into the earth.
Sengoku's expression stayed calm. Fifty times speed, huh…
Elsewhere—
As World charged out, Gai-ram was about to search for his crewmates when a primal warning screamed through his body—every nerve alight with dread.
He spun, unleashing his power. "Cube Destruction!"
CRACK!
A sickening snap as bones shattered—Gai-ram was sent flying, crashing through a ruined house with a thunderous boom.
Sakazuki stood where Gai-ram had just been, glancing at his right hand as it fell away in magma cubes.
He raised an eyebrow. What a ridiculous Paramecia…
In that instant of contact, he'd realized his Armament Haki was instantly destroyed. He withdrew it, letting his arm shift to magma, and his fist fell away in cubes.
Channeling his power, a new fist formed, his arm solidifying. In a flash, he darted toward the wreckage where Gai-ram had landed.
"Cube Booster!"
Gai-ram's shout rang out as the entire ruin transformed into giant cubes, shooting skyward.
Sakazuki leapt atop the rising blocks, channeling his power and slamming his arm downward.
"Flower Fruit Mountain!"
A massive magma fist smashed through the cubes beneath his feet, detonating in midair like a shower of fireworks, raining molten destruction on the ground below.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
In the square pit, Gai-ram dodged magma bombs, arms thrown wide as he clapped his hands before his chest, conjuring a translucent cube.
Facing the descending Sakazuki, he roared, "Air Cube Booster!"
He hurled the solidified air bomb skyward, but the instant it left his hands—
Sakazuki's figure vanished, reappearing right in front of him.
Before Gai-ram could react, Sakazuki's entire body was cloaked in Armament Haki. He seized the air bomb and slammed it down onto Gai-ram's terrified head.
BOOM!!!
~~~❃❃~~~~~~~~❃❃~~~
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