"Shadow Wraith?!"
The moment that name was spoken, Akainu's mind jumped back to the shadowy figure he'd seen days ago in Sengoku's office.
Unaffected by physical attacks, completely invisible to even a top-tier expert like Sengoku… With those abilities, assassination and infiltration would be child's play.
The Holy Land of Mariejois was hailed as the safest place in the world. Even if the world were ending, it was said Mariejois would be the last place left standing.
"A Celestial Dragon got killed? That's terrifying… Even Fisher Tiger three years ago only climbed the Red Line with his bare hands to free slaves. He didn't dare lay a hand on the Celestial Dragons."
The one who spoke had curly black hair, wore a yellow-and-white striped suit, and kept a ring of facial hair under his shades. He was tall and lean, with a lazy posture.
This was Borsalino, also known as Kizaru, one of the Navy's three Admirals, though he'd only held the position for less than six months.
Hearing his words, Sengoku's expression grew even grimmer.
"A Celestial Dragon was assassinated inside the Holy Land. Now the entire place is in chaos. The Celestial Dragons are enraged, the Five Elders are scrambling to clean up the fallout, and as for the killer, they want the Navy to track him down."
He looked at the three Admirals standing before him.
"Do any of you know anything about this 'Shadow Wraith'?"
Aokiji, tall and broad, dressed in a sleeveless white suit vest and dark blue shirt, yawned in response.
"Never heard of him."
"Me neither," Kizaru added casually, as if this was all too boring to care about.
Only Akainu opened his mouth slightly, wanting to say something. But in the end, he closed it again and remained silent.
Sengoku took a deep breath. He knew the Celestial Dragons weren't exactly loved, even among Navy high command, there were plenty who couldn't stand them.
After thinking for a moment, he changed the question.
"This 'Shadow Wraith' claimed to come from the 'Dream Pirates.' Does anyone know that crew?"
Once again, the replies were identical.
"Never heard of them."
"Don't know them."
"No clue."
The three Admirals responded one after another. Clearly, this "Dream Pirates" had emerged from nowhere.
Sengoku clenched his fists, tempted to smash another desk.
"Then tell me, how the hell are we supposed to handle this?!"
"Hahaha, Sengoku, calm down," said Vice Admiral Garp with a big laugh. "It's just one dead Celestial Dragon. Follow normal procedures and move on."
Sengoku nearly erupted at the first part, but the second half gave him pause. He had to admit, he'd gotten a bit too worked up over the words "Holy Land," "assassination," and "Celestial Dragon" all being in the same sentence.
Taking a deep breath, he considered the matter and issued a firm order.
"Fine. First, put out a bounty. For the assassin known as 'Shadow Wraith,' a reward of 500 million Berries! Aokiji, you're to take a warship to Mariejois and investigate. As for the other two, start tracking this 'Dream Pirates' crew immediately. Classify them as a Special-Level Threat!"
"Special-Level Threat?!" Kizaru's eyes widened slightly.
That classification was reserved for the Four Emperors. It meant constant surveillance, real-time intel updates, and direct reports to the Fleet Admiral.
And yet… they didn't even know where the Dream Pirates were, or who was in it. What the hell were they supposed to monitor?
Meanwhile, outside the Navy and World Government's walls…
The assassination of a Celestial Dragon inside Mariejois, with the killer nowhere to be found, was only the beginning.
Like a stone dropped into a still lake, the ripples of that act were already spreading. The waves would travel, outward, endlessly, until they touched the edges of the world.
But in Amazon Lily, deep inside the Calm Belt, where news traveled slowly, no one had yet heard a thing.
At noon, Yato, who had been napping lazily against a tree, heard someone calling him and slowly opened his eyes.
"Lord Guardian Deity? Lord Guardian Deity?"
A member of the Kuja's National Defense Force stood before him.
"Morning," Yato yawned, stretching his stiff limbs.
The warrior blushed slightly at his sunny smile, though she couldn't quite explain why.
Shaking her head, she quickly said, "Her Majesty the Empress is preparing to set sail with her pirate crew. She's currently at the harbor and is looking for you."
"She's setting out to sea?"
Yato blinked, then immediately understood.
She owed him five hundred million. She was probably going out to pillage, or search for a Devil Fruit.
Then suddenly, something clicked in his mind. He asked silently:
"How long until this forced transformation ends?"
[One night left,] replied the Fantasy Gene.
"Perfect. Time to leave Amazon Lily."
Yato grinned. "Let's hope the Empress gets lucky and repays that assassination fee soon. Then I can buy a Devil Fruit and unlock my third transformation!"
With that, he nodded.
"Alright, take me to her."
"Yes, sir!"
Soon, they reached the harbor. The Kuja Pirates' ship was docked and ready, with crew members loading essential supplies for their journey.
Yato was led to the captain's quarters.
The Empress sat inside, hidden behind soft pink curtains.
"Where were you last night, Guardian Deity?" came her voice, cool as mountain springwater striking stone.
"You should be asking yourself that," Yato replied casually. "You sealed off the whole city just to take a bath. So dramatic."
He shook his head and chuckled. "Unlike you, I'm not so delicate. I just found a random place to sleep."
The Empress was slightly embarrassed by his teasing. Very slightly.
"This voyage," she said softly, "is to find another Devil Fruit. The last one… was eaten by you. So this time, I need your help."
"No problem."
Yato agreed without hesitation. After all, his transformation would end that night. He wasn't planning to stick around anyway.
His easy answer caught the Empress off guard, she'd prepared several arguments just in case.
"Very well. Amanda, inform the crew: set sail!"
With that settled, Yato returned to his cabin to rest.
The pirate ship, cheered on by the people of Amazon Lily, passed through the gates and set course for the Grand Line.
Pulled by twin Sea Serpents, their speed was impressive.
Within a few hours, they'd left the Calm Belt and entered the Grand Line proper.
Just then, a crew member entered the captain's quarters, holding a stack of bounty posters.
"Your Majesty, this fell from one of the Navy's trained seagulls. The latest bounty updates."
"Let me see."
She casually flipped through the stack, glancing over bounties that had gone up, or new wanted posters that had been issued.
Then suddenly, her hand froze.
One of the posters caught her eye.
There was no photo, just a large black question mark.
Below it, only the name:
Shadow Wraith.
Affiliation: Dream Pirates.
Bounty: 500,000,000 Berries.
Dead or Alive.
Her eyes widened.
"This… this can't be…"