From the depths of the gloomy corridor, clear footsteps echoed. On the flat stone floor, two shadows stretched long under the dim candlelight from the walls.
Soon, Cross, led by Perona, arrived at a room door at the end of the corridor.
"This is Moria-sama's treasure room!" Perona cautiously glanced at Cross. When Cross looked back at her, she quickly lowered her head.
Cross observed the eight-meter-tall black door before him. It had two rows of thick rivets and Moria's pirate flag emblem, clearly indicating it was an important area.
Clang—
Tzzz!
Tzzz!
Tzzz!
The next moment, the sound of blade against scabbard rang out, and several flashes of cold light suddenly illuminated the air.
Boom—
The large black iron door was struck three times by Cross, forming a triangle. Cross pushed it, and a triangular section of the door crashed down, revealing an opening.
"Go on in!" Cross sheathed Kagehide at his waist, then stepped through the two-meter-tall triangular opening into Moria's treasure room.
Perona, holding a silver candle lamp, meekly followed behind Cross.
This treasure vault was enormous, roughly the size of a standard basketball court. Interestingly, it contained many coffins of varying sizes.
"Huh?! Moria's treasure isn't just the corpses in these coffins, is it?" Cross asked Perona beside him, his expression grim.
"For Moria-sama, the bodies of strong individuals are indeed the best treasure..." Before she could finish, Perona saw Cross's face darken and quickly added, "But Moria-sama also collects gold and silver jewelry; it's all stored in the very back!"
Upon hearing Perona's words, Cross's expression relaxed slightly. "Take me to see it!"
Keeping corpses in a treasure vault... that's truly perverted! However, it did fit Moria's character. These coffins likely contained bodies he had meticulously collected but hadn't yet found suitable shadows to inhabit.
Next, Perona led Cross to the deepest part of the vault, where they found over a dozen treasure chests of various sizes. Some opened chests were filled with all kinds of gold, silver, and jewels, or exquisite antique porcelain, and even armor and weapons.
Seeing this, Cross's face lit up with joy. He quickly stepped forward and began sifting through the treasure chests. Not long after, with almost all the chests searched, Cross finally found what he was looking for in a single long, rectangular brocade box.
"The aura of a famous blade!" Cross's face showed delight. He reached out with some excitement, pulling out a black-purple katana from the long, rectangular box. The sword felt heavy in his hand, noticeably heavier than Kagehide.
He then drew the sword from its sheath, carefully examining the famous blade.
"No mistake about it," he muttered, "the legendary sword of the Dragon-Slaying Swordsman Ryuma, the national treasure of Wano Country, the Great Grade Blade - Shusui!"
The blade had a tumultuous, irregular pattern, and its body was black-purple with red jagged patterns. Furthermore, Shusui was not longer than other swords, but it was heavier than swords of similar size, meaning its spine was thick and exceptionally tough, with a high density. Not even a dinosaur stepping on it would bend it by a millimeter.
Cross gazed at Shusui in his hand for a while, completely engrossed. Then, he rotated his wrist, attempted a few swings, and then abruptly unleashed a powerful slash.
"One-Sword Style: Flying Edge!"
Boom—
The next moment, a sharp slash tore through the air, violently cleaving through the treasure room's thick ceiling. Not only that, but even the castle above couldn't withstand it; several layers of floor and ceiling were cut through, creating a massive, elongated crack through which the gloomy sky outside could be faintly seen.
"He just swung it once!" Perona's expression was blank, her mouth agape. It took her a long time to snap out of her daze.
"As expected of the famous blade Shusui! It's an unexpectedly perfect fit!" Cross nodded in satisfaction, then reluctantly sheathed Shusui.
Gulp—
Perona swallowed nervously, her expression filled with fright, trying hard to shrink her body and reduce her presence. Although she found Cross strange—he clearly had billions of Berries worth of gold and silver treasure here, yet he was obsessed with a single sword—his terrifying strength prevented her from making any sound.
With what he wanted in hand, Cross lost much interest in the other items. He wasn't short on money, and while the other weapons and armor were good, even excellent, there were no legendary swords or famous blades among them.
They couldn't even compare to Kagehide, which was one of the Skillful Grade Blades, let alone the Great Grade level of Shusui.
"Alright, time to take you back to Marineford. Be a good girl and join the Marines, Perona-chan!" Cross said, smiling at Perona. He raised a hand and ruffled her hair, deliberately messing up her hairstyle.
"Um, can I not go?" Perona asked meekly.
"What do you think?" Cross replied with a smile.
"..."
Facing Cross, who had messed up her hair and killed her father-figure, Moria-sama, Perona pouted, fuming, but dared not speak her anger.
'Just you wait, I'll definitely get revenge for Moria-sama someday!' Perona secretly vowed in her heart.
...
Marineford.
Fleet Admiral's Office.
"Tsuru, is that Cross guy still not back?" Kong angrily slammed his palm heavily on the desk, creating a loud thud that almost knocked the piled documents off.
"Isn't it obvious what happened?" Tsuru sat calmly on the sofa chair, leisurely sipping her teacup, speaking unhurriedly.
"Damn it, it's been four days, and there's still no news! I suspect that brat is deliberately messing around to get back at me for not giving him leave last time! 'Chasing down Moria'? He's just spouting nonsense!" Kong was quite frustrated, deeply regretting sending Cross on that mission.
"Don't worry, after all, Cross-kun's target was someone like Gecko Moria. It's perfectly normal for there to be some twists and turns," Tsuru said calmly, taking a sip of her hot tea.
"Don't make excuses for him!" Kong looked at Tsuru in dissatisfaction. "With Cross's strength, even if he couldn't beat Moria, escaping would be more than enough. I think he's clearly just having too much fun out there and doesn't want to come back!"
Knock, knock, knock...
"Come in!"
Suddenly, a knock sounded at the door. Kong put away his disgruntled expression and said in a deep voice.
Creak...
The door opened, and a young Marine officer entered. He respectfully saluted Kong and loudly announced, "Fleet Admiral, Vice Admiral Sakazuki has arrived!"
As soon as he finished speaking, a tall man with a stern face walked into the Fleet Admiral's office, wearing a Marine sailor cap and a beige cape wrapped around his robust body.
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