High above the Grand Line, the Ark Maxim glided silently across the skies. On its deck, two new prisoners sat in chains—both former wielders of Paramecia-type Devil Fruits.
Souta Kiryuu was convinced that his Seraph Squad would unleash the full potential of those stolen powers—the Slow-Slow Fruit and the Heat-Heat Fruit.
Don Achino's strength was formidable, but Foxy… Foxy had been nothing short of a disappointment. To squander such a fruit with such pitiful talent was almost criminal. Souta knew the Slow-Slow Fruit could be pushed much further—weaponized into something terrifying.
Standing over a chart, Souta studied his next target. This one mattered most. It wasn't just another raid—it was the real reason for this campaign.
"Kuma," Souta asked casually, his tone deceptively light, "has the Revolutionary Army learned anything about where the Celestial Dragons held last year's so-called 'Native Purge' tournament?"
The question carried weight. Souta didn't know if it would stir up the scars of the God Valley Incident in Kuma's heart.
"The Celestial Dragons' hunt takes place once every three years," Kuma answered softly. "It's overseen by the World Government, the Holy Knights, and CP organizations. Apart from the Fleet Admiral and a handful of Admirals, very few in the Navy know the locations. The World Government keeps those secrets locked down tight. You'll never hear them whispered across the seas."
Even the Hero of the Marines, Monkey D. Garp, hadn't known the truth when he was sent to God Valley. He'd been told only to fight the Rocks Pirates and the Roger Pirates, to protect the Celestial Dragons. It was only when he saw the grotesque bloodsport of the "hunt" that Garp's disgust took root.
From then on, he loathed the Celestial Dragons, refusing every promotion to Admiral. He would not become their attack dog.
Dragon, too, had learned fragments of the truth from his father Garp's lips. When combined with the darkness he himself witnessed within the Navy, it hardened his resolve to leave and forge the Revolution.
"But we can narrow the search," Kuma went on. "The Celestial Dragons always select resource-rich islands that refuse to join the World Government. If an island carries a sacred name—'Holy,' 'Divine,' 'God'—it rises to the top of their list."
Once the purge was complete, the island would be stripped from maps, erased from history, its people slaughtered or enslaved. At times, it became a Celestial Dragon's personal resort. At others, abandoned ruins.
That was God Valley's fate—erased, nearly forgotten—until Ginny the transponder snail expert leaked word of the treasures hidden there. Only then had titans like the Rocks Pirates and Roger Pirates converged on that cursed island.
"I want the next one," Souta said, a feverish gleam in his eyes. "The next purge. I'll find it."
His words trembled with madness. The timing stunned him—the next purge would take place in the very year Straw Hat Luffy first set sail.
Unbelievable.
Just months before the boy's adventure began, somewhere in the world, an entire nation would be wiped off the map.
The same had happened when Ace set sail. The world never knew.
For eight centuries, countless islands had been erased this way. Some bore ruins of kingdoms long forgotten. Rusukaina, where Luffy trained for two years, had once been a nation. Chopper's "Bird Kingdom" had once been the Kingdom of Torino, famed for its libraries and medical texts—now nothing but abandoned stacks.
Even Mihawk's home, Kuraigana Island, had once been the kingdom of Shikkearu. Now, only broken castles and silent stones remained. Its people gone.
Were these nations wiped out in the Void Century's great war, or later purges, or natural disasters? No one knew.
"You really mean to challenge the Celestial Dragons?" Kuma's eyes widened. Not even the Four Emperors dared touch them, and yet this man—this captain—was eager to provoke the gods of the world.
"Why not?" Souta grinned, a wild fire burning in his eyes. "If so many of them gather in one place, shouldn't we set the whole thing ablaze?"
It was madness. But it was also conviction. Rocks had dared. Why not him? And he would go further still.
Marijoa itself was a fortress—guarded by Imu, the Five Elders, and even the fabled ancient weapon, Uranus. Untouchable.
But when the Celestial Dragons came down to play their hunting game, they became vulnerable. That was the moment to strike.
"Roger and Garp together brought down Rocks," Souta mused with a crooked smile. "In doing so, they may have saved the Celestial Dragons. Don't you see? To the Elders, the D-bearers are just squabbling monkeys, tearing each other apart."
Kuma fell silent, his massive shoulders tense. These were secrets so deep, so dangerous, that even the Revolutionary Army had spent decades without uncovering them.
Souta's eyes narrowed, glinting like steel. "Perhaps CP0 will know the exact island. If not, the Holy Knights surely will."
He thought of Stussy—the clone woman under Vegapunk, masquerading as the Queen of the Pleasure District, a CP0 agent at the same time. If he could pry the truth from her, the game would change.
Kuma nodded reluctantly. "The Knights will know. CP0 may as well. But if you do this… it won't just rival God Valley. It will shake the world to its core."
Nearby, Capone Bege's cigar shook between his teeth.
Damn it!
This boss wasn't just thinking of striking a Celestial Dragon. He wanted to massacre a whole gathering of them.
This wasn't kicking a hornet's nest—it was cutting out the heart of the World Nobles.
There would be no turning back. The seas would boil. The world would explode.
Law and Lafitte exchanged looks, their faces betraying shock and disbelief. They hadn't realized just how insane Souta's ambitions truly were.
Only Enel stirred with excitement, lightning crackling around his frame. "So… these 'gods' call themselves divine as well? Then I'll see just how strong these false gods are."
"Hah! We've got a year to prepare." Souta laughed, baring his teeth. "Plenty of time to plan."
To live is to be mad, he thought. The crazier, the bolder—the stronger my Conqueror's Haki becomes.
As Bonney and Mansherry laughed together on deck, the Ark Maxim descended toward a bustling island. The harbors overflowed with pirate ships, merchant vessels, and even warships, all streaming toward its seven entrances.
This was a sacred land of shipbuilding—renowned across the seas.
Legend claimed that Pluton, the ancient warship, had once been forged here.