Sky Island, Angel Island—Upper Yard
Two full days had passed since Ron and his entourage had returned to the impossible island in the sky.
For forty-eight sleepless hours, Ron had all but vanished from the world, isolating himself completely within the humming, glowing confines of his laboratory.
Inside, the lights burned as bright as day, illuminating every corner of the vast, chaotic space.
Discarded coffee mugs, complex alchemical formulas scribbled on glass panels, and the faint, sterile scent of ozone filled the air.
Ron moved about tirelessly, his figure a blur of focused, almost frantic activity.
Day and night bled into one another as he poured every ounce of his energy and intellect into his work.
The world outside ceased to exist; there was only him, the intricate machinery, the mysterious, bubbling potions, and the rare, priceless materials laid out before him.
Despite this tremendous, non-stop effort, the monumental Devil Fruit order for Doflamingo was only halfway completed.
The sheer complexity of replicating three Admiral-class abilities was proving to be a monumental task.
Still, amidst the tense, exhausting experimentation, there had been some incredibly good news.
The plundering squad, led by Jozu, had returned from their lightning raid on the Marine supply lines.
They hadn't just been successful; they had hit the jackpot.
The final tally of their haul was a staggering 15.4 billion Berries.
After some careful maneuvering through Ron's underworld contacts, all the stolen gold and jewelry had been smoothly converted into liquid cash.
But the biggest surprise, the true windfall, came in the form of three genuine, naturally occurring Devil Fruits.
As it turned out, the squad assigned to raid a high-security Marine warehouse had stumbled upon a stroke of unbelievable luck.
While carrying out their mission, they accidentally discovered a triple-locked vault.
Inside, resting on velvet cushions, were three Devil Fruits, originally destined for Mary Geoise as tribute for the amusement of the lofty Celestial Dragons.
However, the gears of fate often turn in unexpected ways.
During the transport, the Marineford War had erupted.
Whitebeard's sudden, storm-like arrival at the heart of their power had thrown all Marine plans into chaos.
To counter the overwhelming threat, every available soldier was redeployed to the front lines—including the elite guards assigned to the Devil Fruits.
And so, these priceless treasures were left unattended.
The plundering squad, recognizing this golden, once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, wasted no time in liberating all three for themselves.
Now, those three fruits were carefully stored in a stasis chamber in Ron's lab.
At this moment, however, his focus was entirely on another, even more crucial project: the perfect replication of Haruta's Contract-Contract Fruit.
This single fruit would have a pivotal impact on their entire future.
He hadn't even had the time to properly identify the three new fruits yet.
Because in one month, the island of Jaya, floating just below them, would become the focal point of the entire pirate world.
An auction, a festival, a grand gathering of pirates from across the seas.
It was estimated that over seventy percent of the active pirates in the Grand Line would converge on that single spot.
What a breathtaking, chaotic spectacle that would be.
Against such a backdrop, the number of Devil Fruit transactions would undoubtedly shatter all expectations.
Among the many power-hungry customers, there would be no shortage of those who had the wealth but lacked the most crucial ingredient: the blood of their desired ability user.
For these customers, Ron had a solution.
He wouldn't simply turn away their billions.
He would offer them a path forward: a binding contract.
But relying solely on Haruta to draft every single one of these contracts was an impossible task.
Even if the commander pulled out every last strand of his hair, he couldn't possibly meet the overwhelming demand.
Taking all this into account, Ron created this—the Item Fusion Contract Fruit!
And the target for fusing this fruit had long been decided!
"Conis, Whitey Bay," he called out, his voice slightly hoarse.
"Keep an eye on the stabilization process. I'm heading out."
Without waiting for a reply, he strode out of the lab.
When Ron stepped out into the bright sunlight, Kingdew was already waiting quietly, having sensed Ron intent.
Ever since the battle at Marineford, the Seventh Division Commander had, with a strange sense of duty, become Ron's personal mount.
"Kingdew, let's go," Ron said, his expression serious.
"To the main trunk of the Giant Jack."
Kingdew froze for a moment with a flicker of confusion in his eyes.
He couldn't understand why Ron would suddenly want to go there, but the doubt vanished in an instant.
He didn't ask.
He simply obeyed.
His body began to undergo a wondrous, terrifying transformation.
His already massive frame rapidly expanded, his scales shimmering and shifting from their normal hue to a blazing, crimson glow.
In no time, the commander had transformed into a fearsome red dragon, steam venting from his nostrils.
Ron gazed at the majestic beast before him, the corners of his lips curling into a confident smile.
Without hesitation, he stepped onto the dragon's head, standing firm between its mighty horns.
"Let's go!"
"ROAR!" Kingdew threw back his head and let out an earth-shaking bellow that rolled across the sky island.
A fierce gust of wind howled.
Beneath Kingdew's powerful claws, clusters of crimson Flame Clouds emerged from thin air, lifting his massive body slowly into the sky as he flew toward the colossal, sky-piercing beanstalk.
Ron stood firmly on the dragon's head, his gaze fixed resolutely ahead, silently calculating everything he was about to set in motion.
The crimson dragon, a living legend, soaring into the sky drew the attention of the entire population of Shandora below.
"Look! It's Lord Ron!" a child shouted, pointing to the sky.
"He's heading toward the top of the giant vine! What's he planning?"
"I have no idea, but it must be something big!"
"Let's follow and see!"
A wave of excitement swept through the city.
People grabbed their Waver scooters, their sky-breathing horses, and took to the cloud roads, forming a massive, curious procession following in the dragon's wake.
At that moment, from various points across the two islands, dazzling bursts of golden light erupted, shooting like arrows straight toward the apex of the Giant Jack.
A closer look revealed them to be the members of Jozu's elite Pillage Unit, all converging on the target location.
Just then, two deafening thunderclaps resounded out of nowhere in the sky.
Blinding arcs of blue lightning slashed through the horizon.
Izo and Enel, who had been in the middle of a tense sparring session, were also drawn by the sudden, island-wide disturbance.
They exchanged a curious glance, and without a word, rushed forward to investigate what intriguing event their vice-captain was about to orchestrate.