The chaotic buffer zone between the territories of the New World's two great overlords and the Navy's allied defense line was a turbulent no-man's-land.
Life for the pirates scraping by in this lawless sea had grown unbearable. Overlord Rocks wasn't content with his vast domain—he swept through the buffer zone, conscripting pirates and seizing territory, all while clashing with the Navy in massive battles every few days.
The Navy, meanwhile, had poured elite forces into the New World: two admirals backed by over a dozen crack vice admirals, holding the defense line with an iron grip. They deliberately funneled the fighting into the buffer zone, turning it into a meat grinder.
"Ugh, there's no room to breathe out here anymore. Let's just head back to Paradise in the Grand Line. The New World's too damn tough!"
Inside a grimy bar in the buffer zone, pirates grumbled endlessly. These were the rogues who refused to bow to either of the two overlords, clinging to their independence.
"Go back to Paradise? Might as well sign up with the Hell Pirates' guild in their territory. Word is, Brook's domain is thriving—a real pirate's paradise!"
Some pirates mulled it over. The buffer zone was becoming unlivable, and Rocks' crew seemed hell-bent on fighting the Navy to the death.
"Trouble! Big trouble! The Hell Pirates' airship fleet, Golden Island, and Golden Ark are here!"
A panicked lackey burst into the bar, shouting. If even the Hell Pirates were moving in, the buffer zone was doomed to become a battleground for the two overlords and the Navy.
"Son of a bitch! Those overlords already own half the New World, and they're still not satisfied? Coming here to slug it out? I've had it—let's take 'em on, boys!"
A pirate captain, cursing up a storm, leaped to his feet. His outburst was met with eye-rolls and sneers. How had this reckless idiot survived this long?
"What're you staring at? I'm Wilden, and I'll take you all on! I've got a hundred ways to make sure you can't survive on this island!"
The burly pirate, his nose hairs practically sparking with rage, climbed onto a table, bellowing with bloodshot eyes, teetering on the edge of sanity.
"Hmph! My dad's Li Gang, the boss of this street. Who the hell are you?"
A hulking young man clad in armor charged forward, shoulder-tackling Wilden off the table. He locked Wilden in a chokehold and started pummeling his face. The bar erupted into chaos as pirates joined the brawl, turning the place into a free-for-all.
...\
Outside, atop Golden Island.
"Hey, Brook, this island's in a prime spot. It could serve as a hub for the Umi Family's shipping business and our trade routes!"
Antonio marked the island on a map with a flourish. The Hell Pirates' airship fleet had been planting flags across the New World, claiming strategic islands to expand their network.
"Then let's stake our claim. Kaido, Tiger—your turn!"
Brook's Observation Haki and life-detection abilities picked up no major threats on the island. It was the perfect chance to let the rookies stretch their legs.
At ten years old, Kaido and Tiger were already forces to be reckoned with. In the original timeline, Kaido was the Vodka Kingdom's strongest warrior at this age. Under Brook's training, he'd grown even fiercer.
Kaido, ever the brute, leaped straight off the airship, smashing a crater into the ground below. Tiger dove into the sea, then charged into the town like a tidal wave.
The duo tore through the island's pirate crews and underworld gangs with reckless abandon. Atop the town's tallest building, they planted the Hell Pirates' flag, claiming the island.
Local factions, sensing the shift in power, surrendered in droves, swearing allegiance to the Hell Pirates and joining their ranks with pride.
...\
"Brook, big news! Rocks sent an invite—he wants us to team up and hit the Navy!"
Antonio burst out of the listening room, clutching Brook's Den Den Mushi. It was a call from Overlord Rocks himself.
"Jiehaha! Brook, didn't expect you here! Come on, the Navy's got some treasure. How 'bout we each take one?"
Rocks' brash voice crackled through the Den Den Mushi. His "treasure" were the two admirals with Mythical Zoan Devil Fruits. Both men knew the other could steal Devil Fruit powers, and their unspoken motives hung heavy in the air.
"Rocks, you're playing with fire. Stir up too much trouble, and Mary Geoise will have you in their sights—especially you, a D. Aren't you worried about the Celestial Dragons' 'national treasure' wiping you out?"
Brook wasn't ready to go all-in just yet. He wanted decades more to build his strength. Imu's eight-hundred-year legacy was no joke, and catching up to the World Government's might would take time Brook wasn't sure he had.
"Jiehaha! Brook, sounds like you know a thing or two about the World Government and those Celestial Dragons. Snatched Ohara for the Poneglyphs, didn't you? That probably put you on their radar too."
"Why die in silence? Join me, and we'll turn the world upside down! Let's knock those piggish Celestial Dragons off their throne!"
Rocks hadn't expected Brook to know the Celestial Dragons' secrets. This made him an ally worth recruiting.
"You take the lead this time, Rocks. I'm sitting this one out, but I'll make some noise—draw one of those admirals away to thin out the Navy's forces. Seize your chance!"
Brook wasn't ready to team up with Rocks openly. Going too hard too fast could force the Celestial Dragons to unleash their full power—or that mysterious 'national treasure.' That'd be a mess he wasn't prepared for.
For now, Rocks and Brook's grip on the New World was still within the World Government's tolerable limits. They likely assumed the two overlords—both Conqueror's Haki wielders—would never fully unite. History showed that prideful overlords always turned on each other, driven by greed and ambition.
"Brook, too much caution kills your nerve! You'll never topple the World Government like that. Only together do we stand a sliver of a chance!"
Rocks admired Brook's strategic mind but saw his caution as a flaw. Overthinking could let the World Government outlast them, leaving the Celestial Dragons unscathed.
"Enough talk. I've got my target—the World Government's allied nation, Prodence Kingdom. Handle your end!"
Brook hung up the Den Den Mushi. If he was going to make waves and pull some Navy heat off Rocks, hitting an allied nation was the way to go.
The Prodence Kingdom's King Punch caught Brook's interest. Rumored to rival an Emperor's might, it was a technique worth studying.
And that war fortress, capable of obliterating an enemy nation in a single blow? That was real—and the cornerstone of Prodence's power in the New World.
-----------
+400 chapters on p@treon/tambeerg