"Yeah! It's time we went to see him!" Shanks's voice held a note of relief, yet it also seemed tinged with a hint of avoidance.
"Speaking of which, is Straw Hat Boy really the person you saw in the future? His performance so far feels a bit... lackluster," Benn Beckman suddenly said, frowning at Shanks with a look of doubt.
It was no wonder Beckman had such a question. Ever since Monkey D. Luffy set out to sea, his journey had indeed been somewhat unremarkable.
"I can no longer see the future clearly," Shanks said softly, a look of pain crossing his face for the first time. "In the future, all I see is a great, overflowing flood!"
"A great flood!" Beckman sighed, his tone heavy with unspoken worries.
"I saw a colossus standing in the middle of the sea, amidst the great flood! I couldn't make out its face—"
...
The Ark Maxim floated silently. The sky above was clear for thousands of miles, the weather perfect. The warm sun cast an even glow across the deck.
Ryuuto and Crocus were leisurely flipping through newspapers on a pair of sun loungers. Hancock, Nami, and Vivi were sunbathing, and under the sun's gentle caress, they soon drifted into a drowsy state.
Jean Bart and Jesus Burgess were having an arm-wrestling contest, with Van Augur acting as the referee.
CRACK!
With a dull thud, the contest ended without a winner. The large barrel they were using as a table shattered into dust before either could claim victory.
"No more, no more!" Burgess seized the opportunity to stand up and shout at Jean Bart. He had already lost to Jean Bart seven times in a row. Whether he used the power of his Blood-Rage Fruit or relied on pure physical strength, Burgess was completely defeated, which left him feeling quite disheartened.
"Erm... what happened?" Nami, startled awake by the noise, looked around in a daze.
"What is this? My barrel!" Vivi stared at the splinters on the ground, where not a single complete plank could be found. She let out a cry of anguish, her heart aching at the loss.
Hancock let out a graceful yawn, then walked over to Ryuuto and plopped down beside him. After wiggling her magnificent body, clad in its cheongsam, she finally found a comfortable position and snuggled against Ryuuto, falling back asleep. Life was just this peaceful and wonderful.
"Hahahaha, youth is a wonderful thing!" Crocus laughed heartily at the scene.
...Some time later.
Nami stood at the bow of the Ark Maxim, closely observing the Log Pose in her hand. The needle inside the glass sphere had shifted from pointing horizontally to aiming downwards.
"We should be arriving at the next island soon!" Nami deduced from this change.
Sure enough, after another half an hour, a lush archipelago appeared before them. Even from an altitude of several thousand meters, they could only make out a rough outline, but the abundance of green indicated it was a spring island.
"Captain, on my command, begin descent!" Nami shouted excitedly to Ryuuto.
"Roger that, our dear navigator!" Ryuuto replied with a smile and began to pilot the Ark Maxim downwards toward their next destination.
As the Ark Maxim docked in the harbor, Ryuuto immediately sensed that something was wrong. This island, called Dressrosa, was supposed to be a spring island, yet for some reason, he felt a palpable aura of deathly stillness.
ZAP!
With a flick of his finger, countless bolts of lightning shot out from Ryuuto.
"What are these things?" The feedback from his lightning gave Ryuuto pause. In his perception, strange creatures were wandering all over Dressrosa.
"Captain, what did you find?" Nami asked immediately, knowing that Ryuuto could sense what was happening on the island in advance.
Hancock and Vivi also turned their gazes to Ryuuto. Van Augur and Burgess waited curiously for his answer.
"I'm not quite sure," Ryuuto said, unexpectedly shaking his head. He then took the lead, stepping onto the path to Dressrosa. "Let's go."
Nami followed close behind, saying, "Let's go."
Along the way, Ryuuto's group encountered many people with decaying bodies, walking endlessly down the road. They were clearly dead. Their attire was a chaotic mix; some wore marine uniforms, while others were obviously dressed as pirates.
POW!
Jean Bart shattered an undead marine soldier with a single punch. The creature had been fearlessly charging, swinging a longsword despite its tattered body. The sight made everyone's expressions grow stranger.
"These people should have died long ago, by all rights," Hancock said, stroking her chin.
"I think they've been dead for a very long time. I wonder what kind of power is making them appear here again," Vivi mused, examining the remains on the ground.
"This makes no sense!" Burgess exclaimed, scratching his head in confusion.
"It seems some strange change has occurred here." Crocus used his medical knowledge to perform a quick examination, largely ruling out any kind of disease. He stroked his beard, a thoughtful look in his eyes.
"Let's keep moving forward," Ryuuto's face was grim. In addition to these undead, they had seen the corpses of many ordinary citizens. A horrific attack had clearly taken place here. It was the undead who had invaded, and from the looks of it, they had won the initial battle.
As Ryuuto's group continued toward the center of Dressrosa, they soon arrived before a massive colosseum.
BANG! BANG! BANG!
A series of tremendous crashes echoed from within.
"There's a fight going on in there!" Jean Bart shouted, and his feet blurred as he shot into the arena.
Inside, a fierce battle was raging. The two combatants were the deceased Vice Admiral Onigumo and Vergo.
"Onigumo, you probably never imagined you'd end up like this after you died!" Vergo held his obsidian-like bamboo staff defensively in front of him before retreating sharply, his eyes fixed grimly on his opponent. This was indeed the dead Onigumo. A large, stitched wound was visible on his chest—a wound Ryuuto would have recognized as the one left by his own blade.
Onigumo did not answer Vergo. He moved like a machine, eerie blue flames flickering in his eyes as he relentlessly slashed at Vergo. Vergo was completely overwhelmed, his body already covered in wounds.
As a Marine Headquarters Vice Admiral, Onigumo's strength had far surpassed Vergo's. In this undead state, he was impervious to pain and fought with reckless abandon, making him even more formidable than when he was alive.
CLANG!
With several flashes of light, Onigumo became a blur, wielding two swords as he charged Vergo. As his lips parted slightly, his hair behind him began to stir. It was his Life Return technique.
Vergo had no way to dodge and could only brace himself for the attack. But just as he managed to block the frontal two-sword-style slash, Onigumo's long hair, now grasping six additional swords, struck him from behind.
CRASH!
With a tremendous impact, countless black lightning sparks erupted. Vergo's bamboo staff, hardened like obsidian, fell limply to his side. A sword tip slowly emerged from his chest.
"You..." Before he could finish his last word, Onigumo pulled his blade free, and Vergo's eyes closed forever.
"Perhaps I shouldn't have risked coming out today," Vergo thought in his final moment.
"Aren't you dead?" Jean Bart appeared in the arena, his eyes filled with confusion. He clearly remembered that Captain Ryuuto himself had killed Onigumo.
Jean Bart was destined to receive no answer. The blue flames in Onigumo's eyes flickered as if recalling something. Then, he transformed into a blur and shot toward the sky.
"What's going on? Trying to run?" Seeing this, Jean Bart wasn't about to let Onigumo escape. His blood surged, and he moved with incredible speed to follow.
SLASH! SLASH! SLASH!
But just as Jean Bart was about to catch up, six thick strands of hair shot out from behind Onigumo, acting like six flexible arms wielding black katanas that slashed down at him. Countless black lightning sparks crackled.
BOOM!
Not daring to take the attack head-on, Jean Bart leaped into the air to evade it. The six slashes struck the spectator stands with immense force, sending stone and dust flying everywhere. When Jean Bart opened his eyes again, Onigumo was gone.
"Jean Bart, what happened?" The others had now entered the colosseum, and Vivi quickly asked him what was going on.
"Vergo?" Ryuuto said quietly, his gaze falling upon the body on the ground.
"Captain, I just saw Onigumo!" Jean Bart walked slowly to Ryuuto and recounted everything he had witnessed.
"Onigumo?" Ryuuto was instantly puzzled. If he remembered correctly, he had personally killed the man. "This is getting interesting. The dead are rising again, and with their strength intact?"
Ryuuto stroked his chin thoughtfully. "In that case, we just need to go deeper into this island. I'm sure we'll find the answers soon enough. There's no use in overthinking it. Let's move out!" With his thoughts sorted, Ryuuto gave the order, and the group set off for the King's Plateau, where Ryuuto had sensed several presences.
On the road from the colosseum to the King's Plateau, Ryuuto's group encountered more and more of the undead. Fortunately, they were all low-ranking marines and pirates, easily dispatched with a single blow from any of the crew.
Time passed, and soon the King's Plateau came into view. Along with it, a terrifying number of the undead appeared. These reanimated corpses, covered in all sorts of wounds, held their weapons and stared toward the plateau with the same eerie blue flames in their eyes. A rough estimate put their numbers in the tens of thousands.
"Captain, there are so many of them here."
"This must be their main base."
"What an insane number!"
Hiding inside a building, Ryuuto and his crew observed the staggering scene while speaking in hushed tones.
"Kyros, your disguise is terrible!" Suddenly, a young voice came from nearby. Two figures, covered in various paints, were cautiously making their way toward them. They were clearly pretending to be part of the undead horde.
The speaker was Rebecca, a young woman wearing a bright golden breastplate and a pink, petal-like miniskirt. Beside her was the one-legged Kyros.
Hearing their voices, Ryuuto and his crew immediately turned their attention to them.
"Ah, who are you?" Rebecca heard the movement and looked toward Ryuuto's group, her expression filled with alarm. After a quick assessment, she determined they were normal, living people. As Rebecca spoke, Kyros moved protectively in front of her, sword at the ready.
"We're the Ryuuto Pirates. We just landed on Dressrosa. Can you tell us what happened here?" Nami saw their apprehension and voiced her own questions in a low tone.
"The Ryuuto Pirates? You mean—that Four Emperors crew?" Rebecca's eyes widened as if she suddenly remembered something. She covered her mouth, her voice filled with disbelief. It was clear she was truly astonished. She and Kyros had come out with the intention of heading to Green Bit to seek help from the Tontatta Tribe.
Rebecca then explained the situation to Ryuuto and the others. It had all started one day when a pirate ship as massive as an island arrived. Under the direction of several powerful individuals on board, countless undead began to swarm the island. They seemed to be after Doflamingo's SMILE Factory.
At first, Doflamingo's top officers fought back fiercely. But then, one of the invaders made a move. The entire island shook. Doflamingo's officers were either killed or severely wounded, and soon, all the Devil Fruits known as SMILEs were plundered.
Then, the massive pirate ship departed, laden with the spoils of victory, as if the island had lost its value. They left only two powerful individuals behind to guard the place, perhaps to continue cultivating SMILE fruits.
This was the third day since their departure. Thanks to the efforts of Doflamingo's remaining officers, the King's Plateau had not yet fallen. But with their numbers dwindling rapidly, it was only a matter of time. That was why Rebecca had decided to venture out to find the Tontatta Tribe.