The Shikon Jewel was the ultimate treasure in the Inuyasha world, born from the fused souls of countless demons and the priestess Midoriko, holding immense power.
Now that it had become shards, of course it couldn't show its full power. But these five shards were already a big help.
Genichi had planned to wait longer—until Toguro trained his Haki enough to handle an admiral before facing Garp or Sengoku. But that could take a lot of time and might delay his plans at God Valley.
So he decided to do a summon now. Toguro embedded the five shards into his heart and limbs—five pieces in total. After merging with them, he felt his body and demonic power growing rapidly.
This power even gave him self-healing abilities, which made him more confident about using his ultimate 100% form.
He sat on a deck chair in the middle of the party, wearing sunglasses. This was a merchant ship headed to a small country not far from the Red Line. He leaned back, ignoring the noise around him, just staring at the distant sea.
With his strong body as a foundation, his Haki training had improved quickly. By now, he was at a level most people would call skilled. Of course, he couldn't compare to the top fighters, but right now his Observation Haki told him ships were surrounding them from all directions.
"They're here."
He adjusted his sunglasses without the slightest panic.
The merchant ship suddenly came to a halt, which meant the captain must have noticed the approaching warships too.
Judging from his senses, Garp wasn't nearby. So… was it Sengoku coming to catch him?
The guests who had been enjoying themselves on the deck froze when the ship suddenly stopped. Some were about to complain, but then they saw the Marine warships closing in and fell silent.
"Why are the Marines coming to this ship?"
"Could there be a wanted criminal on board?"
Panic broke out among the passengers. Toguro slowly stood up, hands in his pockets, and started walking away.
"Stop!"
A sudden shout rang out. Toguro ignored it and kept walking calmly. Right then, several armed Marines rushed out from the crowd. It looked like they had already sneaked onto the ship earlier.
"Move."
Toguro spoke lightly to a Marine in plain clothes blocking his way.
His tone was calm, yet carried an authority that couldn't be questioned. Behind those black sunglasses, it felt like sharp eyes were staring straight into the Marine's soul. The man froze, not daring to breathe, because behind Toguro's calm figure loomed the faint image of a terrifying demon.
"Ha…"
Just looking at Toguro felt like being crushed. The Marine's face twisted, sweat dripping down nonstop, and it seemed like he would kneel at any second.
Just as he was about to collapse, someone patted his shoulder. A tall, broad man stepped forward—it was Admiral Sengoku. Over the past few days, he had captured several others, and now Toguro was the last one left.
This was all Garp's fault. Originally, the order from Mary Geoise was for the two of them to split up and catch the suspicious people. But Garp completely ignored the command, saying something like, "The pirates in the New World are more important. I'll leave this job to you, Sengoku," and ran straight into the New World.
Toguro was the first to leave and went the farthest, which was why it took this long to find him. But…
This guy is different from the others.
Even though they had never fought and just met for the first time, Sengoku could tell at a glance—this was a strong man.
His Observation Haki warned him that this opponent was nothing like the others who had been captured. So he stepped forward and said, "Toguro, a merchant from Sabaody Archipelago. You came to the New World because of the Nine-Tails attack. We have some questions about that incident, and we need witnesses from Sabaody. Please come with us."
Toguro didn't react at all. That identity was just a fake name he used to get on this ship. With enough money, pulling that off was easy.
Besides, all the buildings on Sabaody had been destroyed, so there was nothing to investigate now.
Toguro glanced at Sengoku, then slowly turned around. Under Sengoku's watchful eyes, he walked to the edge of the merchant ship, lightly jumped, and landed hundreds of meters away—standing on the surface of the sea.
He fell from dozens of meters in the air, yet didn't make a splash. Only a small ripple spread across the water. His control over his body and strength was perfect.
Sengoku's eyes narrowed. He was a Devil Fruit user, and sea battles were his weakness. Fighting on a ship full of wealthy merchants was out of the question. But what surprised him most was Toguro's strength—this wasn't going to be easy.
He had thought this would be a simple job. Damn Garp—if he were here, this wouldn't be such a pain.
"You're not even going to try to stop me?"
Toguro stood on the water and spoke calmly. But instead of leaving, he just stood there, looking back at Sengoku with no emotion on his face.
"Are you involved in the incident with Sabaody and Mary Geoise?"
Sengoku called out from the ship. By now, the Marines had locked the merchants in their rooms, so only Sengoku remained on the deck.
"Do you know the one called 'Zero'?"
"..." Toguro said blankly, "That was Zero's doing. It has nothing to do with me."
Sengoku's eyes widened. "You know Zero?!"
That mysterious man—Zephyr said he might be more dangerous than any pirate. They had searched through countless records and reports and never found a single trace of him. And now, they were about to get information from one of their suspects?
Could this man be connected to both incidents?
"About a month before the Nine-Tails attack, he came to me."
Toguro watched Sengoku's expression, then smiled faintly. "He invited me to join something called the 'Invisible Empire.' I turned him down."
"Never thought he'd pull off something this big..."