A massive pirate ship sat anchored in the harbor of Minion Island, its presence casting a shadow over the entire port. The flag snapping from its mast was enough to make hardened criminals nervous.
The Flying Pirates.
Golden Lion Shiki.
Minion Island was a den of villainy in the North Blue, a lawless zone where the Marines, the World Government, and the region's kingdoms conveniently looked the other way. Perhaps all parties benefited from this arrangement. After all, Minion Island served as the largest black market exchange in the entire North Blue, overflowing with goods both legal and forbidden. If you had the money, you could buy anything.
Consequently, there were essentially no good people on Minion Island. Not even ordinary citizens in the conventional sense.
Pirates, gangsters, middlemen, black market merchants, shady proprietors, and underworld operatives populated every street and alley. Because everyone here was compromised in some way, few dared cause trouble. Making enemies on Minion Island meant offending dozens of dangerous people simultaneously. That never ended well.
But there were always exceptions.
The island of evil had finally welcomed someone more evil than all its residents combined.
Golden Lion Shiki, one of the great pirates.
Compared to Shiki, a top-tier figure in the world hierarchy, everyone on Minion Island was small-time. Insignificant. None of them could challenge him even collectively.
Among pirate forces worldwide, Golden Lion could currently be ranked in the top three. Many would argue he deserved first place. A vast number of people called him the Pirate Overlord, and many believed he'd eventually surpass even Rocks in completing his pirate ambitions.
The only figures comparable to Shiki were Whitebeard Edward Newgate and the infamous Gold Roger.
The other three pirates who would eventually stand at the world's peak in future years? They weren't even close to Shiki's level yet.
Kaido was probably still plotting how to conquer Wano Country. Charlotte Linlin was building her idealized nation of Totto Land. As for Shanks, he was practically a child, still an apprentice on Roger's ship, spending his days playing with Buggy, swabbing decks, and doing menial chores.
Shiki was in his absolute prime. Though if you calculated the timeline, it was currently late 1495 in the Sea Circle Calendar. The new year was mere days away.
In 1496, Shiki would encounter the greatest setback of his life. The Battle of Edd War against the Roger Pirates would see a massive storm nearly destroy all his ambitions and plans, shattering his thriving empire in a single day.
But that hadn't happened yet. Right now, Shiki still possessed the momentum to conquer the world.
Therefore, when he arrived at Minion Island, the entire population submitted to his presence. The Golden Lion who roared across the seas was not someone they could afford to offend.
At the harbor, Shiki walked from the town's interior toward the docks.
He'd come to Minion Island simply to purchase specialized materials. Recently, he'd been supporting his subordinate, Dr. Indigo, in researching something new involving the ferocious beasts they'd discovered in the New World, creatures called IQ.
The Donquixote Family hadn't yet grown powerful enough to wrap the dark world in their spider web of connections and commerce. The circulation of goods through the underworld was far less sophisticated than it would become twenty years hence.
In the future, you could place an order with the Donquixote Family and have middlemen deliver anything directly to your location. Convenient. Efficient.
Now, everyone operated independently. Each major sea region maintained its own black market.
Minion Island served that function for the North Blue.
Shiki had traveled all the way from the New World because he'd heard what he needed was available here. Now that he'd acquired it, he was ready to leave. Nothing else in the North Blue warranted his attention. His ambitions lay in the New World, where he'd eventually march forth and sweep across the entire world with his power.
Just as Shiki prepared to board his ship, he stopped. He walked several steps toward the harbor's edge, gazed at the distant horizon, and frowned slightly.
A warship. A massive one. The North Blue Branch Marines definitely didn't possess vessels of that caliber.
These newcomers were from Marine Headquarters, from Marineford itself. Judging by their direct approach, they were undoubtedly here for him.
Well, there weren't many Marines with the qualifications and courage to pick a fight with Shiki like this.
"Is it Sengoku? Or perhaps Garp? Maybe Zephyr?" Shiki murmured to himself.
But he felt no fear whatsoever. He was different from most pirates in a fundamental way.
Shiki was aggressive.
Roger and Newgate, while not afraid of Marine power, generally avoided conflict when possible. They'd flee rather than engage unnecessarily. Nothing shameful about that. One side wore the badge of thieves, the other the uniform of soldiers.
But Shiki had never operated that way. Usually, he'd crush any Marine force that appeared in his sight.
He'd even had the audacity to attack Marine Headquarters itself once.
Of course, that had ended tragically. He'd been outmatched by Sengoku and Garp working together, landed in Impel Down for "rehabilitation," and lost both his legs in the escape.
"Let's see who it is, then..." A sinister smile spread across Shiki's face.
He stomped his foot lightly. An invisible force rippled outward from beneath him, spreading from the dock across the water's surface.
The next moment, the previously calm sea erupted into chaos. A massive tsunami manifested outside the harbor in a physically impossible configuration. Then, as if controlled by an invisible hand, the wall of water surged toward the approaching warship.
This was the ability of Golden Lion Shiki, one of the top-tier Paramecia-type Devil Fruits.
The Float-Float Fruit allowed Shiki to control virtually any substance in the world, even seawater itself.
Simultaneously, aboard the Marine warship, Admirals Sengoku and Zephyr observed the approaching tsunami.
"Tsk. He certainly knows how to make an entrance," Zephyr muttered, his tone dry.
"After all, Shiki's always been one for dramatics," Admiral Sengoku replied, adjusting his glasses with one finger.
In the cabin below, Finn also stared at the surging tsunami, genuinely shocked.
In his previous life, he'd naturally understood this world well. He'd known about the top-tier powerhouses and yearned to reach their level.
But seeing the apex strength of this world with his own eyes was completely different from experiencing it through a screen or pages in his past life. The visceral impact couldn't be compared.
Golden Lion Shiki, a pirate at this level, could casually destroy cities with minimal effort.
Still, though shocked, Finn wasn't particularly worried. Shiki was strong, certainly. But Admirals Sengoku and Zephyr were also at their peak. There was no reason they couldn't handle him together.
He just needed to be careful not to get caught in the crossfire between these titans.
"I hope the warship survives this..." Finn muttered under his breath.
At that moment, he felt the bow of the warship suddenly dip, as if the massive ship had nodded forward.
It obviously wasn't the ship communicating agreement with his concern.
Sure enough, the next second, golden light scattered from the bow, visible even through his cabin window. Though Finn couldn't see clearly from this angle, he already knew what was happening.
If his guess was correct, Admiral Sengoku had activated his ability.
Zoan-type. Human-Human Fruit. Mythical Beast Model: Daibutsu.
This was the origin of Sengoku's epithet, "Sengoku the Buddha."
Before Finn could process further, a massive shockwave erupted from the bow. The surging tsunami, powerful enough to obliterate the warship, was instantly shattered by the blast of concussive force.
The tsunami dispersed into spray and foam. The waves it created caused the warship to rise and fall dramatically, the deck pitching at severe angles.
"So strong... Is this the power of top-tier fighters?" Finn gripped the window frame to steady himself, awe coloring his voice.
Compared to these monsters, a casual sneeze from any of them would be enough to kill him. The gap was incomprehensible.
"Hahahahaha! Sengoku, is it?" After witnessing the display, Shiki stood at the port and laughed wildly.
Then his figure rose into the air, floating upward without any visible means of propulsion.
He didn't attack immediately. Instead, he snapped his fingers. With that gesture, the enormous pirate ship that had been anchored at Minion Island's port also lifted into the sky.
"You lot go on ahead. I want to greet an old friend," Shiki said with domineering casualness, waving dismissively at his crew.
Without waiting for acknowledgment, he raised his hand and pointed toward the warship.
"Go!" Shiki commanded, his voice low and dangerous.
As the word left his mouth, every vessel in Minion Island's harbor, dozens of ships of varying sizes, was seized by invisible force. They floated up from the water like toys. Then, transformed into massive projectiles, they hurtled toward the warship at tremendous speed.
"Zephyr, the ship is yours," Admiral Sengoku said, his tone grave.
Instructor Zephyr lit a cigar, the ember glowing as he took a long drag. He exhaled smoke slowly. "Don't worry about it."
With that assurance, Admiral Sengoku no longer hesitated. He pushed off with both legs, the thick wooden deck splintering beneath the force. His body shot upward at tremendous speed.
Only then could Finn see him clearly.
In the sky, a massive Buddha wreathed in golden light hovered, its form radiating divine power.
"Don't get cocky, Shiki!" Admiral Sengoku's voice thundered across the water.
Several devastating shockwaves erupted from his palms, obliterating everything in their path.
The flying ships Shiki had launched exploded into splinters mid-flight. The shockwaves continued outward, churning the sea into white foam, the air itself seeming to crack under the pressure.
Shiki laughed, unimpressed. He drew the twin swords at his waist, Oto and Kogarashi, legendary blades in their own right.
"Still as boring as ever, Sengoku!" Shiki roared, slashing upward.
Massive sword beams, dozens of meters long, cut through the air toward the golden Buddha. The attacks carried enough force to cleave islands in half.
The two titans clashed in midair above the warship. Each impact sent shockwaves radiating outward. The sea below churned violently. The sky itself seemed to darken, clouds torn apart by the sheer force of their battle.
On the warship's deck, Zephyr stood with his arms crossed, watching the combat overhead with a veteran's critical eye. Occasionally, a stray projectile or energy wave would arc toward the ship, and he'd move with casual precision to deflect it.
In the cabin, Finn pressed against the window, unable to look away despite knowing how dangerous proximity to this fight was.
This was the level he needed to reach. This was the power that mattered in this world.
Everything else was just noise.
Above, the Buddha and the Lion continued their deadly dance, two legends at the peak of their power, neither willing to yield even an inch of sky.