The second half of the Grand Line—The New World.
To most pirates, this was a sea of demons.
Unpredictable weather, bizarre ocean currents—it was no exaggeration to call it a graveyard for pirates.
Yet, thousands of meters above this treacherous sea, a massive, dark shadow flew through the sky, trailing distorted air currents in its wake.
Each flap of its wings birthed a storm. Thunderclouds surged behind it, flashing with lightning.
A golden beast soared through the heavens. The strange weather patterns it created were mistaken as part of the New World's natural chaos.
No one knew…
They had just narrowly brushed past Death.
---
Punk Hazard, located near the front end of the New World.
Once a Navy research base, it had long since become a desolate, uninhabited island.
Its barren towns stood in ruin. Near the town, a towering mountain loomed. Midway up, a colossal stone gate was embedded into the rock—like an entrance to some hidden base.
But a thick layer of dust on the ground told the truth: no one had come here for a long time.
Due to Ghidorah's past actions, Akainu was dead, Aokiji had vanished, and no one had claimed the position of Fleet Admiral.
As such, Punk Hazard was no longer the dangerous, contested location it was in the original canon.
As Ghidorah and King circled high above, a pirate ship bearing the Donquixote Family flag slowly docked at Punk Hazard's abandoned port.
At the bow stood a man with tribal-like face paint and a red cape—his figure rugged and warrior-like.
"Diamante?"
From above, Ghidorah narrowed his eyes as he spotted the man.
He remembered seeing this one back on the King's Plateau, during a meeting with Doflamingo.
As he pondered, voices from the deck below drew their attention—
Pirate grunts led a group of children out of the ship's hold. The crying of the kids reached both Ghidorah and King instantly.
"The Donquixote Family, huh?"
King stared at the pirate flag, muttering to himself.
He was well aware of Doflamingo's dirty business, but seeing a group of abducted children still caught him off guard.
Not out of pity—King didn't care for such things.
He was simply surprised that Doflamingo had stooped this low.
As for the fate of the children… it had nothing to do with him.
---
"Heh… Perfect timing."
Ghidorah's cruel smile spread when his gaze landed on one specific child among the group.
"King, go down there and bring that target to me."
"...What?"
King blinked, puzzled, and glanced toward the deck. When his eyes locked on a small, trembling boy among the children—
He froze.
"T-That's… Momonosuke?"
Back when King had joined the Beasts Pirates, Kaido had already begun his invasion of Wano.
So King was familiar with the Kozuki clan, and had heard of Kozuki Oden's son.
He never expected to find Kozuki Momonosuke, long presumed lost for over twenty years, here.
But what puzzled him most—
That frail body still looked exactly like it did twenty years ago.
---
"Just as you're thinking," Ghidorah confirmed, "That's Oden's son."
"His mother possessed the Time-Time Fruit. After Oden's death, she used its powers…"
Ghidorah gave King a brief rundown of the events that had happened.
---
"Time-travel…? There's a Devil Fruit that can do that?"
King's eyes flickered with interest.
Seeing his curiosity, Ghidorah added coldly:
"Don't get your hopes up. The fruit was designed to only send people forward in time. Not a second backward. Not even one minute."
Hearing that, King's eyes dimmed slightly. With a flap of his wings, he dove straight down toward the pirate ship below.
---
Diamante, unaware of the danger above, was doing what he always did—delivering supplies and "specimens" to Punk Hazard.
Thanks to the Donquixote name, even in the New World, few dared to interfere.
As a result, he was the only executive onboard—the rest were grunts.
Given the secrecy surrounding Punk Hazard's operations, the Donquixote Family intentionally kept their visits quiet.
After all, some of their experiments were… far from ethical.
Diamante's gaze swept coldly across the children. There was no pity in his eyes.
In this law of the jungle world, weakness was a crime.
---
WHOOSH—!
Suddenly, the air trembled as a piercing sound tore through the sky.
"Hmm?"
Diamante looked up instinctively—spotting a tiny black dot falling rapidly toward them.
The dot grew larger… and clearer…
"Wha—!!"
"King…! One of the All-Stars!"
The moment he recognized the incoming figure, Diamante's face contorted in alarm.
While the Donquixote Family and Beasts Pirates were business partners, Diamante had no idea where the SMILE fruits were truly manufactured.
And now—he was face to face with King.
The implication was terrifying.
"Could it be… Kaido found out?!"
Watching King descend in a blazing trail of crimson flames, Diamante's mind raced.
He hadn't yet heard the news that the Beasts Pirates had been annihilated, so the fear in his heart only deepened.
But honestly, even if he had known Kaido was dead, he'd still be scared.
Because in the New World, King's strength was second only to the Four Emperors.
---
"Everyone, get ready—"
"RUN!!"
Seeing the flaming black figure draw closer, Diamante gave the order instantly.
BOOM!!
"Donquixote Family Executive… Planning to flee already?"
King landed on the deck in a burst of fire, glaring coldly at Diamante.
"Uh…"
"Ha-ha… So it's just you, Lord King! I thought we were under some kind of attack!" Diamante said awkwardly, forcing a smile.
---
"That kid. I'm taking him."
King didn't waste a single breath—he pointed directly at the small boy cowering among the children.
Without waiting for permission, he stomped forward, grabbed Momonosuke like a sack of rice, and lifted him into the air.
"Let go of me! What are you doing?! Let go!"
Momonosuke flailed wildly, his legs kicking in panic.
After being separated from Kin'emon and the others, he thought he had escaped the worst…
Never in his nightmares did he expect to fall into the hands of a Beasts Pirates officer.
Haunted by the memory of his father's death and Wano's ruin, he burst into tears on the spot.
---
King grimaced at the wailing.
Disgusted, he extended his arm to hold the boy as far away from himself as possible.
If it weren't for orders from his "superior up above," he'd have burned this annoying little brat to ashes already.
---
"L-Lord King, of course! Take him!"
Diamante, realizing that King wasn't here about the SMILE fruits, exhaled in relief and nodded furiously.
If he could get rid of a "specimen" and be left alone, so much the better!
King ignored him.
He turned to leave, dragging the sniveling Momonosuke along.
But just before lifting off, he paused—then turned his head.
---
"Lord Uranus asked me to give Doflamingo a message," King said flatly.
> "The SMILE project can be shut down. That thing is worthless."
---
"Uranus?" Diamante frowned. "Who's that?"
"Ghidorah."
With that, King shot into the air, dragging a crying, flailing Momonosuke with him, leaving nothing but flames in his wake.
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