In Ryugu Palace, King Neptune sat upon the throne, issuing calm, precise orders to steady his people.
Under his measured direction, no one was hurt. A few household items lay in shards, nothing more.
Anxious hearts eased as Neptune explained the tremors.
While the king spoke before a packed hall, Rakuya and Peach Rabbit, both in black robes patterned with red clouds, slipped into the palace.
No pirate saw them. Even if someone glanced their way, no one could make out their faces. A veil of mysterious energy masked them.
The palace was crowded to the rafters. Word of Rakuya crushing the Spider Pirates with a single slap had raced across the island, scaring off every other raiding crew. Terrified he might exact vengeance on their behalf, they had fled in secret, slipping out of Fish-Man Island as fast as coated ships could carry them.
Within the island's domed city, only its own people remained.
Rakuya and Peach Rabbit appeared above Neptune's head, and the hall burst into gasps.
"Who is that?"
"Wait, that's the Flowing Cloud emblem. And those black robes with the red clouds... aren't those exactly what our guardian designed a few days ago?"
"What is going on? Why are they wearing them?"
"Could they be our guardian?"
Hushed questions rippled through the hall. Seeing that everyone present was one of their own, Rakuya dismissed the energy masking his face.
The man who stood revealed was tall and straight as a spear, wrapped in a cold, solitary aura.
"Our guardian!"
"Rakuya! Our guardian!"
"A ten-billion bounty pirate, our god!"
"So handsome. Our guardian is too handsome!"
"And the girl is beautiful!"
"I suddenly feel unworthy. The lady beside our guardian is breathtaking!"
As their faces became clear, the dome exploded in cheers. The sound rolled like surf against the coral walls.
When someone shouted "ten billion," Rakuya blinked. So the estimate had landed there.
Ten billion would do. If word spread that he had smashed the World Government, the number would not stay that low.
"The quake will pass," Rakuya said from above. "The aftershocks are small. Do not panic."
A roar answered him.
"The guardian cares for us. I will follow you to the end!"
"Lord Guardian, let me join the Flowing Cloud Pirates. I want to become a pirate like you!"
"I will follow you and topple the Government!"
Blood ran hot in Fish-Man Island's veins. The crowd surged with excitement and pride.
Rakuya smiled. "Live well first. Most of you cannot yet afford a proper meal. How will you follow me to fight the World Government like that?"
He did not say that he had already done what they dreamed of. If he did, the island might riot with joy.
Neptune rose and bowed deeply. "Lord Guardian, thank you for your protection. Apart from you, every pirate has vanished from our waters. You truly are a god. I swear my loyalty."
He was radiant with relief. To live on Fish-Man Island without war or chains had always been a distant dream. It had taken only a handful of days to come true.
All of it, because of the man before him.
Insult the guardian, and Fish-Man Island would be first to bare its fangs.
"Go about your lives," Rakuya said. "Do not fear the tremors." With that, he and Peach Rabbit withdrew to their rooms.
Peach Rabbit lay down, exhausted. Not in body, but in spirit.
Marine justice. The arrogance of Celestial Dragons. Rakuya's thunderbolt methods.
The day unspooled in her head again and again. Whenever she closed her eyes, that overwhelming power returned in vivid detail.
She felt hollowed out, disappointed, as if her years of service had been a lie. The World Government and the Marines' justice had shattered everything she believed.
But only after breaking can one be reborn.
She let the dark take her.
Rakuya lay back as well, staring at the ceiling. Whether the Five Elders had died no longer mattered. If they lived, so be it. If they died and revived through a Devil Fruit, so be it. What mattered now was obtaining more fruits. Only Devil Fruits could be converted into points, and only points could push him to the next cap.
Without points, nothing moved.
Beyond the fruits, there was the sap of the Sunlight Tree Eve.
He had already claimed half. Should he really pay beli for the rest?
He would rather spend money buying more Devil Fruits and still secure the remaining half-year's supply of sap.
The sticking point was Fish-Man Island's livelihood. The island had to run safely while he drew the sap.
The problem was money.
Fish-Man Island lay ten thousand meters down. How could it build an economy?
Trade with the surface was the only way. But time costs were enormous. Fish-Men could rise. Pirates had a hard time descending. Without convenient routes, trade slowed to a crawl, and so did the flow of beli.
Transportation. That was the knot.
In any world, prosperity follows the roads.
"I have it."
After a long think, an idea clicked into place.
He pulled out paper and began to draft. It would not be simple. Even as the Sea's Overlord, it would take time.
One day. Two. Three. Four.
For four full days, Rakuya never left his room.
In the meantime, a pirate crew coated their ship and slipped into the depths to escape the surface cataclysm. As they neared Fish-Man Island and saw the glaring red cloud emblem blazing over the dome, every last one of them went wide-eyed with shock.
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