"In this world, the weak follow rules, while the strong create them. Never force yourself to live by rules made by others."
Rolan's indifferent voice echoed across the island.
Everyone looked at him with strange expressions.
That kind of thinking sounded absurd to ordinary people, yet somehow it felt completely natural coming from him.
"Haha, as expected of Rolan," Issho said with a helpless laugh.
"In this world, anything involving Rolan stops making sense the moment you try to apply common logic to it," Zoro said bluntly.
Kuro rarely agreed so quickly.
"That's true."
The others nodded unconsciously.
Trying to judge Rolan using normal standards was pointless from the beginning.
Meanwhile, Nami was still unwilling to accept reality.
"There's no way! This is the legendary One Piece! There has to be treasure somewhere!"
She searched around the small island repeatedly.
Behind rocks.
Inside cracks.
Even beneath piles of dirt.
Unfortunately, reality remained cruel.
After a long time, she finally gave up with a defeated expression.
Lina immediately ran over and hugged Nami's arm.
"Alright, alright, Nami. Haven't we already found the greatest treasure?"
Nami pinched Lina's cheek lightly.
"Do you even know what treasure means?"
Lina tilted her head innocently before answering without hesitation.
"I have Rolan, I have Nami, I have Robin-oneesan, Hancock-oneesan, and everyone from the Ion Pirates. That's my greatest treasure."
The entire island suddenly became quiet.
Everyone froze.
Even Rolan looked at Lina for a second longer than usual.
Nami's expression softened instantly, and a faint blush appeared on her face.
She gently rubbed Lina's head.
"That's right. People chase gold, power, and fame while ignoring the things already beside them."
The crew slowly fell silent.
At that moment, everyone understood what Lina meant.
Every person on this ship had their own dream.
Nami wanted to draw a map of the entire world.
Robin wanted to uncover the true history hidden within the poneglyphs.
Zoro sought the title of World's Greatest Swordsman.
Enel wanted to stand above the heavens like a god.
Others carried ambitions, hatred, justice, or freedom.
Each person had their own version of the One Piece.
Yet after traveling together for so long, their companions had already become more important than those dreams.
That was the true treasure they had found during this journey.
"AHO! That's right!" Franky suddenly shouted while dancing excitedly. "Who cares what the One Piece actually is? As long as we're together, there's nothing we can't do!"
"How about choosing burial plots together too? Then we can all be buried side by side someday."
Robin smiled gently as she spoke.
"Oi! Robin, don't ruin the atmosphere!" Nami immediately snapped.
Robin chuckled softly.
"Hehe, don't forget, we're not just some ordinary pirate crew. Time is running short."
Deep down, Robin was genuinely grateful.
Without Rolan, she would probably still be running from the World Government like a hunted criminal.
Or worse, she might have already been captured years ago.
The Ion Pirates had given her a place where she could openly pursue her dream without fear.
Long ago, she had already found her own treasure.
After finishing the copies of all the poneglyphs, everyone boarded the ship and prepared to leave Laugh Tale.
Just as the ship began sailing away, Robin suddenly smiled mischievously.
"Should we replace the treasure on this island?"
Law raised an eyebrow.
"That's actually not a bad idea. Most people wouldn't understand these poneglyphs anyway."
Lina's eyes sparkled immediately.
"Then let's fill the island with mountains of gold and treasure! That way it'll finally deserve the title of the world's greatest treasure!"
"No!"
Nami's voice exploded across the deck instantly.
"Gold and treasure are my life!"
Her tone carried overwhelming authority.
Zoro casually leaned against the railing.
"I think replacing it with fine wine would be better."
Nami slowly turned toward him.
"Zoro."
"…What?"
"Do you even have money?"
"…No."
"Then stop talking like you own the place."
Zoro immediately shut up.
At that moment, the pressure surrounding Nami became terrifying.
Even Issho's expression changed slightly.
"T… this pressure… Haoshoku Haki?!"
Cold sweat appeared on his forehead.
There were already more than eight Haoshoku Haki users aboard this ship.
That was beyond ridiculous.
Could this even still be called a normal pirate crew?
Even under Nami's terrifying aura, Franky still found the courage to speak.
"But Nami, we already own the Golden City and Gem Island, so we're not exactly short on treasure, right?"
Nami slowly cracked her knuckles.
"Hm?"
BOOM!
"AHHHHH!"
Franky instantly flew across the ocean like a cannonball.
Lina stared at the scene in horror.
"So scary…"
A while later, aboard the ship, Franky sat on the deck while rubbing the massive bump on his head.
"If you agreed anyway, why did you still punch me?"
"Hmph. Can't I vent a little?"
Nami raised her fist again.
Franky instantly retreated.
In the end, Nami still agreed to replace the poneglyphs on Laugh Tale with mountains of treasure.
For this decision alone, she spent trillions of Berries worth of gold, jewels, and precious treasures.
As for the original poneglyphs, Rolan stored all of them inside his system space.
Watching Laugh Tale slowly disappear into the distance, everyone felt slightly unreal.
The legendary One Piece, desired by the entire world, had ultimately fallen into the hands of the Ion Pirates.
Law leaned against the railing thoughtfully.
"Still, something feels off."
Franky nodded.
"Yeah. They said the One Piece was supposed to connect the entire world somehow."
Rolan casually took out the empty chest they had found on Laugh Tale.
"I think this box originally held the true treasure."
Vivi looked over curiously.
"The only strange thing on the island really was that empty box."
Robin stared at it thoughtfully before speaking.
"If my guess is correct, it once contained the Mythical Zoan, Human-Human Fruit, Model: Sun God Nika."
The deck instantly fell silent.
Rolan nodded slightly.
"That should be correct."
"Nani?!"
"Huh?!"
Hancock frowned slightly.
"Isn't that Straw Hat Luffy's Devil Fruit?"
The others were equally shocked.
"So the real treasure of Laugh Tale was actually a Devil Fruit?" Crocodile muttered while touching his golden hook.
Vivi spoke softly.
"Robin said the world eventually needs to be connected to survive the disaster of the oceans rising. Maybe Nika was meant to do that."
Kuro adjusted his glasses calmly.
"That may be true for others, but not for us."
Law looked at him.
"What do you mean?"
Kuro replied indifferently.
"Because we already possess the power to connect the world ourselves. Even without Nika, we can still accomplish it."
He paused briefly before continuing.
"We can even raise islands into the sky if necessary."
Everyone fell silent.
That statement sounded outrageous.
But coming from the Ion Pirates, it no longer felt impossible.
Suddenly, a newspaper was thrown onto the deck by News Coo.
Nami picked it up casually.
Then her eyes widened.
"What?!"
Everyone looked toward her.
"The World Government is publicly executing Vegapunk?!"
===
Read chapters ahead on Patreon, with every chapter organized into collections.
Subscribing a membership gives you access to "ALL" fanfictions,
Or you can buy only the collection you want, to gain access to chapters ahead.
P-a-t-r-e-o-n.com/_Zeph.