The case had concluded. Walking down the bustling street, Ren was still discussing the details with Sonoko.
"That guy must have been used to being a tyrant at home. He probably never dreamed his wife would have the guts to poison him—and with a lethal dose, no less."
"Exactly! If you ever dare to cheat on me, I won't let you die that easily!"
Ren jumped in fright, quickly offering a string of guarantees. "Don't worry, my Queen! I, Ren Kurogane, am a firm believer that pure love is the GOAT!"
That Night.
The four Rens gathered in the Brotherhood Space, their eyes immediately landing on the newcomer, "Conan Ren."
After the habitual fist-bump and memory exchange, Conan Ren's expression turned incredibly odd.
"Wait, brothers... I just declared my devotion to pure love, and you guys are all thinking about cultivating the Yellow Emperor's Inner Canon (harem arts)?"
Ninja Ren looked at Conan Ren with equal bewilderment. "Brother, how can you be a 'pure love' guy? Forget Ran for a second—what about Plamya at the gym? What about Haibara Ai, who's about to escape the Organization? And all those beautiful, tragic widows involved in the murder cases? You're turning them all down?!"
The other three looked at Conan Ren with such profound disappointment that he started to doubt himself. Am I really wrong? Should I be more 'charitable' with my love?
"Charitable my foot! In this life, I only love Sonoko! Pure love is the absolute best!"
As his declaration ended, Conan Ren suddenly noticed that in the memories he had received from the others, the "lewd" or "harem-seeking" parts began to fade until they vanished entirely. His resolve had filtered the shared consciousness.
Seeing this, Scientist Ren's mind shifted. He decided to filter out Pirate Ren's reckless, "brawn-over-brains" impulses. Instantly, his mind felt lighter, and many complex scientific theories suddenly felt clear and accessible!
Scientist Ren took a long breath and shared his success. The others began to follow suit.
Ninja Ren and Scientist Ren both chose to block Pirate Ren's "reckless muscle" trait. However, Ninja Ren also blocked Conan Ren's "pure love" obsession. He considered himself a man of vast affection; if he committed to pure love, what would happen to all the beautiful kunoichi waiting for him in the future?!
After the adjustments, Pirate Ren laughed heartily. "Comfortable! Now I can finally focus on training without being distracted by outside junk!"
Everyone looked at him with deadpan expressions. No doubt, this guy had filtered out the "knowledge and logic" parts...
Hollow Ren spoke up: "Little U has been asleep for so long with no sign of waking. I almost want to just shake him awake."
"Doesn't your world have that scientist, Szayelaporro Granz?" Ninja Ren suggested. "Since you've got nothing else to do, why not track him down? He might help you research a way to fuse your three powers."
"That guy? I remember he's a freak with some... questionable leanings. Plus, at this point, he might be at his 'Cien' strength level. I'm not sure I can take him yet; better not to provoke him."
The group agreed with Hollow Ren's caution—except for Pirate Ren.
He actually suggested going to the Soul Society to steal Kisuke Urahara's Hogyoku. Facing their stunned stares, Pirate Ren said honestly: "Fortune favors the bold. Our combined power could level a mountain range. Surely we can take down one Kisuke Urahara?!"
"You're right. But I'm not sure I can handle the 'warmth' of Yamamoto's Ryujin Jakka," Hollow Ren rolled his eyes, utterly done with the brawny version of himself.
Conan Ren chimed in with a grin: "I think my world is the best. The timeline is a mess, but it's a low-power world. With your abilities added to mine, I'm essentially Homelander. I can do whatever I want!"
The group chatted for a bit longer before departing, leaving only Ninja Ren and Scientist Ren to discuss gene research.
One Piece World.
Ren opened his eyes to see his "best bro," Law.
"What are you doing in my room, kid?" Ren looked at Law with suspicion. "I don't roll that way!"
Law rolled his eyes, exhausted by his captain's nonsense. "The navigator told me to tell you: we've arrived near Drum Island. If you don't want to catch a cold, put on some extra layers. Message delivered. I'm leaving."
A blue sphere—a Room—manifested in Law's hand and expanded. In a flash, he vanished, replaced by a small pebble.
"These guys..."
Ren pulled two thick coats from his wardrobe and headed to the deck. Looking at the snowflakes drifting from the sky, he sighed with emotion. "I've been in the Grand Line for days, and I'm finally seeing a normal snowfall!"
Nearby, Gray and Blue nodded in deep agreement.
Hill stood on the second level, gazing at the island in the distance. "Ahead is the legendary land of snow, Drum Island. They say the people there never sleep. I wonder if it's true!"
"We'll find out once we get there!" Ren laughed.
As they drew closer, the crew marveled at the drum-shaped mountains that looked as if their peaks had been sliced clean off. Only Ren suspected that these mountains held a great secret. I'm getting more curious by the second! The One Piece... what exactly are you?!
However, as they neared the shore, they noticed something wrong.
Within the snow-covered kingdom, flashes of explosions and pillars of black smoke were rising.
What's going on? Has Luffy already arrived? No, that can't be right. I just saw the news of Luffy defeating Arlong and getting his first bounty two days ago. There's no way he reached Drum Island this fast, Ren thought, confused.
When they finally docked and saw the group causing the chaos, Ren realized he had overthought it. The one making trouble wasn't Luffy.
It was someone Ren recognized—one of the few "pure" pirates in the series: Blackbeard and his crew.
The black smoke was the result of Blackbeard's darkness powers.
Blackbeard's crew noticed the newcomers. When Teach saw Ren's face, he burst into a wild, arrogant laugh. "Heaven truly smiles upon me! Just when I'm in need of a Supernova's head, one gets delivered right to me! Zehahahaha!"