On the way from Sky Island to Water 7, York had gathered his companions for a secret meeting on the ship.
To be precise, this secret meeting was held inside Stussy's Mirror World.
Inside the Mirror World, composed of dark and light checkerboard patterns.
York, Gloriosa, Stussy, Shakky, Kaido, Dragon, Ivankov, Ginny, Kuma, and Teach.
Ten core members of the pirate crew were gathered together. Although Teach was still too young to understand much, York brought him along anyway.
"Our trip to Water 7 to meet with MADS and build a ship there will definitely be discovered by the Marines!"
"And there's a high probability that they will launch a large-scale encirclement campaign at the level of a Buster Call or higher directly!"
York got straight to the point, not entertaining any wishful thinking that they wouldn't be found.
Upon hearing this, everyone's expressions darkened collectively.
Ivankov, who didn't know much about the Battle of God Valley, asked, "Why? Is it because of us?"
York shook his head gently. "Mainly because of me."
He grinned and said, "You all know my ability. I hit two of the Five Elders, and the King of the World behind them, with a nasty surprise."
As soon as these words came out, Ivankov, who wanted to ask more questions, shut his mouth on the spot. Ginny even felt her teeth starting to ache.
"Hit with a nasty surprise by the Captain's ability... Eeek~~~"
Ginny shuddered all over.
"No wonder the Captain predicted the Marines would launch a massive encirclement against us."
Hearing this, Kaido grinned.
"Wororororo! Can we have another big battle like God Valley?!"
Amidst his laughter, Kaido exuded a considerable amount of fighting spirit.
York glanced at him, then looked at the others.
Traces of worry appeared in the eyes of Gloriosa, Stussy, and Shakky, but the moment York looked over, it instantly transformed into determination.
They didn't want to experience the brutality of God Valley a second time, but if it was unavoidable, they possessed the resolve to fight alongside York until the bitter end.
Dragon was more worried than determined.
Because he didn't need to guess to know that if Water 7 became a second God Valley, his father, Garp, would definitely participate.
When the time came for father and son to face each other, setting aside the chances of winning or losing, he simply wasn't mentally prepared for how to face this battle.
Apart from these combat-ready members, Kuma and Teach also showed different states.
Kuma was more fearful; he hadn't fully transitioned from the weak mindset of a former slave.
Moreover, York estimated that if this weakness wasn't cured by making him actually kill a Celestial Dragon, it might accompany him for the rest of his life.
Teach was simpler than Kuma.
Although he was only 2 years old during God Valley, children in this world couldn't be compared to ordinary children from York's previous life.
Teach, at only 2 years old, already had memory retention and could simply understand some principles.
So the attitude he displayed at this moment was hatred.
However, Teach knew he had no place to speak in this meeting, so he just stayed silent with hatred burning in his eyes.
York took in everyone's expressions and spoke calmly, "I don't plan to let you take risks in this battle."
"What?!"
Gloriosa was the first to frown, but York continued, "I intend to crush the Marine's grand encirclement alone!"
"You're joking, right?"
Anger began to rise in Gloriosa's tone.
"Even if Rocks is your idol, you don't have to imitate him like this!"
"Didn't you say yourself that the power of unity is far greater than that of an individual?!"
York smiled faintly and took one of Gloriosa's small hands, sandwiching it between his palms to comfort her.
"I'm not imitating Rocks; my strategic goal is different from his."
Pausing briefly, York continued to explain, "My Devil Fruit has awakened! I plan to use the power of awakening to deal the Marines a heavy blow!"
"The strategic goal this time isn't to kill experts like Garp or Sengoku, but to let them know that I possess the ability to take them down with me!!"
Hearing this, Gloriosa's brows remained furrowed.
"Fruit Awakening? Even if your fruit awakens, it just makes people more easily addicted to pleasure, right? What does that have to do with mutual destruction? Unless the ability becomes permanently effective after one use?!"
Reaching the last sentence, Gloriosa's eyes finally lit up.
"If it really makes it impossible to break free after being hit just once, your fruit awakening is truly terrifying."
Hearing this, everyone collectively imagined that scene.
Stronger effects than the original ability, unstoppable even for experts like Garp and Sengoku, and once hit, one could never wake up from the pleasure...
Everyone present, except for Teach, shuddered in unison.
"It's not what you guessed."
York chuckled.
"My fruit awakening is a bit special, but the lethal effect is about the same as you guessed. If Garp and Sengoku aren't careful enough, there's a high probability they'll die by my hands."
Hearing that York's fruit ability was actually this powerful, the anxiety in everyone's hearts finally eased slightly.
However, Kaido couldn't help but sigh, "I want to join the fight too, is that really not okay?"
York shook his head slightly.
"My awakening doesn't distinguish between friend and foe. Except for myself being unaffected, you might be taken out by me as well."
Kaido took a deep breath in dissatisfaction, two streams of white smoke jetting from his nose, but in the end, he chose to listen to advice.
"I'm still not strong enough!!"
...
Back to the present.
York sat cross-legged on a rock, turning his head to look at Dragon, who hadn't left with the others.
"Dragon, you should run too. With your ability, you should be able to reach the safe zone before I make my move."
Dragon looked at York with worry.
"Captain..."
York raised his hand to stop him from speaking further.
"Don't worry. If I didn't have enough confidence, I wouldn't have actively come out of hiding."
Seeing York's firm attitude, Dragon gritted his teeth and shouted at Garp, "Old man! Order the Marines to retreat!!"
"Captain York really came prepared this time!"
"Although I don't know how he plans to deal with you, if you don't retreat in advance, it's very likely you'll all die here!!"
Unexpectedly, Garp remained unmoved after hearing his advice.
"Stupid brat! Trying to trick us Marines into retreating with deception? You're still too green!!"
Seeing that he couldn't persuade Garp, Dragon went to persuade the old soldiers under Garp's command.
But these veterans were just as resolute as Garp.
"Marines catching pirates is only natural and right!!"
"Even if we die because of this, that is our long-cherished wish!!"
"Dragon, my boy, you should listen to your captain and leave quickly."
"Our only target is Adolf D. York! You aren't someone we must capture!"
"If you don't leave now, it will be hard to leave once Vice Admiral Sengoku and Vice Admiral Tsuru's men arrive."
...
He tried persuading back and forth, but he couldn't move anyone anywhere.
Dragon, clearly understanding the resolute attitudes of both sides, had eyes full of indescribable complexity.
Finally, after failing to persuade even the last Marine to leave the battlefield, Dragon could only transform into a breeze and vanish from the island, his heart filled with melancholy.
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