19 years ago, inside the Red Line.
A thriving ecosystem existed within the Red Line, the hidden village buried in the rocks was doing well.
Shit couldn't be the leaves since, you know, they lived inside red rock. It doesn't get more rock than this.
They used to live on top of the Red Line, but some stuff happened. Big Mu decided to put his dick down and say that shit was his, and back then, they one, didn't have the firepower, and two, did not want to risk sliming out so many people and making themselves known, or worse, becoming public enemy number one.
So, they went inside.
They did help a few of their kind go to other islands though, using transformation jutsu to have them blend in for the most part.
Shit was doing fine.
Their civilization was thriving. They had advanced their tech by about 800 years. You know, they hadn't been idle since the Void Century, so their tech of course advanced quite a lot, making it even more futuristic.
They even had tech on the soul, but those kinds of things didn't get touched much.
Every single race in the One Piece world was in here.
Like every single one.
Oni, Fishmen, Minks, Giants, Ancient Giants, Lunarians, Buccaneers, Humans, whatever the dude with the chestnut hair was, the Tontattas, whatever species those fish from Long Ring Long Land Arc were.
Further inside the clan was a compound, which was their archive.
Shit possessed every single piece of information since the first world.
It was like Ohara Plus, alongside having actual video, 4K video of every single crime committed by any pirate or the World Government.
Akainu bombing Ohara? Shit was there in 4K.
This info may be used in the future for blackmail.
The God Valley game, every single one of them was there, having the face of every single participant and every willing Navy cuck that allowed it to happen.
Alongside how many kills that action caused.
Had to be thorough.
Their ninja went on missions all over the world. Hell, they knew where the One Piece was.
However, they never wrote that info down.
That info was better given by word of mouth instead.
They knew what it was, and if you wanted to know, you had to reach a pretty high rank, speaking ANBU Black Ops commander or some shit like that.
Ungodly levels of trust were needed.
They perfected the art of Haki well.
Some could make clones...
And some...
Could manipulate Haki to such absurd degrees they practically bent reality around themselves.
Inside one of the homes—
A woman groaned in annoyance.
"Why is he kicking so hard?"
Her black wings twitched slightly behind her as she glared down at her stomach.
A man beside her laughed nervously.
"Well... you did marry an eater."
Now was not the time to boast about your kitty-eating talents.
"I heard that."
"I know."
The man looked entirely unbothered.
Mostly because his wife could absolutely beat his ass.
The room itself was warm and peaceful.
Traditional architecture mixed with futuristic technology.
Ancient scrolls sat beside holographic monitors.
Sealing talismans glowed faintly on the walls.
A sword rested beside the doorway.
The woman sighed softly.
"...Do you think he'll inherit it?"
The man paused.
That question carried weight.
Because "it" could mean many things in their clan.
The Voice of All Things.
The Abyss connection.
Monstrous Haki.
Or worse—
The eyes.
The man scratched the back of his head.
"...Hopefully not."
"Not exactly reassuring."
"He'll be fine."
The woman looked at him flatly.
"You said that after blowing up the kitchen."
"That was one time."
"It happened seven times."
"In my defense—"
"You tried to put Conqueror's Haki into soup."
"...I thought it would taste better."
Silence.
"...You married me willingly," he defended himself weakly.
"I question that decision daily."
Despite her words—
She smiled softly.
Because this was peace.
Real peace.
No Celestial Dragons.
No slavery.
No Marines.
No fear.
Just family.
Outside—
Children trained in the courtyards.
One group practiced Lightning Body Flicker techniques learned from Mink Electro.
Another practiced Water Style derived from Fishman Karate principles.
Nearby—
A swordsman coated his blade in Ryuo while explaining black blades to younger students.
At another section—
Sealing experts worked on preserving ancient records.
History.
Truth.
Everything the world had forgotten.
Or rather—
Everything the World Government wanted forgotten.
One older Lunarian looked over the children training.
"...They're getting stronger younger."
Another nodded.
"The world is changing."
"Mm."
A pause.
"...You still think the Government will come eventually?"
Silence lingered.
Then—
"Yes."
The answer came immediately.
"They fear what we know."
"And they fear what we can do."
The first Lunarian sighed.
"...Then why stay?"
The older one looked toward the artificial sky above the village.
"Because someone has to remember."
Elsewhere—
Deep within the village—
A hidden chamber existed.
Massive.
Ancient.
Forbidden.
And inside—
A fruit rested upon a pedestal.
Golden-red.
Covered in swirling patterns.
The Saru Saru no Mi.
The fruit Joyboy himself had entrusted to them.
A safeguard.
A promise.
A future weapon against the world itself.
Seals covered every inch of the chamber.
And surrounding the fruit—
Several masked Lunarians sat silently.
Watching.
Waiting.
Protecting.
One finally spoke.
"The child will be born soon."
Another nodded.
"The prophecy advances."
A third scoffed.
"I hate prophecy."
"Everyone does."
"...Fair."
Back in the house—
The woman suddenly froze.
"...Oh."
The man blinked.
"Oh?"
"...The baby's coming."
Silence.
Then—
"OH SHIT!"
Chaos erupted instantly.
The man launched himself across the room at full speed.
Immediately tripped over a chair.
CRASH.
"YOU IDIOT!" the woman yelled.
"I PANICKED!"
"GO GET THE MEDIC!"
"I AM TRYING!"
Outside the house—
A younger Ace, barely a toddler, sat nearby eating fruit while watching the chaos unfold.
"What are they doing, mommy?" he muttered. He was like 2 years old.
Rouge held him gently.
"They're just getting ready for something."
She gave her child a light kiss. Ace would let her hold him, it felt so soft, he liked it.
If only he knew that in a matter of months, he would not be here anymore.
Minutes later—
The village medic arrived.
An older Lunarian woman with the exhausted expression of someone who dealt with idiots professionally.
She looked at the future father.
"You passed out?"
"I was stressed!"
"You fainted from stress before your wife even started labor."
"She yelled at me!"
"She should've yelled harder."
The wife snorted despite herself.
Hours passed.
Then—
Finally—
A cry echoed through the house.
A baby boy.
Small.
Wrapped in cloth.
Tiny black wings flickering weakly with embers.
When the mom got to hold her baby, her eyes softened.
"I will name you Kairo..."
The baby giggled.
"Hey, don't I get a say in the name?" the dad retorted, to which she looked pissed and said—
"You joked about your eating skills while I was in labor. You lost that privilege."
The man was now in a corner looking sad, drawing circles on the floor.
"But I thought you liked it..."
She had a tick mark on her forehead.
Dick.
Her gaze returned to her baby.
"Soryu D. Kairo... that will be your name."
The child giggled all innocent, his red eyes glowing a bit as he looked at his mom.
Meanwhile, inside a certain safe—
A certain fruit would glow...
A child with the potential to flip the world had been born that day.