"Just this one?" Blackbeard asked, clearly stunned.
"Yes. Do you want it?" Leon's tone was dismissive, making it clear he didn't care either way.
Blackbeard gritted his teeth for a moment, then broke into his signature ugly laugh.
"Zehahaha! Of course! Thank you, Dr. Leon!" He adopted a fawning tone. "By the way, Doctor, I'd also like to know the conditions for purchasing a 'second Devil Fruit' and one of those 'Anywhere Doors'..."
"Forget it," Leon interrupted coldly. "You don't qualify for either."
Sengoku had already given him the same answer, but Blackbeard, ever the opportunist, had decided to push his luck.
Hearing the flat refusal, Blackbeard could only manage a helpless smile.
Since that was the case, he wouldn't press the issue.
"Dr. Leon, can we go to the experimental plaza to test the Seraphim's power?" Blackbeard asked, looking eagerly at the machine before him.
"Hmph. Go on," Leon said with a wave of his hand, letting Blackbeard and his crew go by themselves while he returned to his laboratory.
*****
FWOOSH!
A laser beam shot from the Seraphim, kicking up a cloud of smoke and dust as it struck the ground.
"The laser's power is impressive! Not bad at all! Let's try its other skills..."
Blackbeard spent time while testing his new Gecko Moria Seraphim, a wide grin spreading across his face as he realized its strength was easily on par with his own.
With a Seraphim, it was like having another powerful, completely loyal crewmate!
"This thing is truly amazing," Lafitte sighed.
They had all fought Seraphim before and knew how difficult they were to defeat.
"Yeah, the captain said we had to get one, and now we finally have," Burgess laughed.
"To invent something with this much power... Dr. Leon is a terrifying kid" Van Augur marveled.
Their awe and fear of Leon grew with every moment.
*****
Days passed.
"Pops, we're back!" Marco said, dragging his battered body onto the deck of the Moby Dick, the Whitebeard Seraphim trailing behind him.
A flash of shock crossed Whitebeard's eyes.
"Marco, you didn't bring Ace back? You went with a Seraphim and still couldn't defeat Blackbeard?"
Hearing his captain's question, Marco's face filled with guilt and he gritted his teeth.
"No, Pops... I defeated Teach. I was about to capture him, but at the last second, the Marines used an Anywhere door to appear out of nowhere."
Marco's expression soured.
"Not only did Teach escape, but the Marines took Ace."
"The Marines...?" Whitebeard's voice was low. "Tell me everything. Why would the Marines help him?"
Marco nodded and carefully recounted what had happened.
"What?! Aokiji has a second Devil Fruit ability—and it's the same as yours?!" Whitebeard and the surrounding commanders were stunned.
They knew the power of Marco's Phoenix fruit was extraordinary.
For the Marines to have replicated it .... it was a terrifying development.
"Yes. Dr. Leon gave it to him," Marco said grimly.
"So Teach has already allied with the Marines and he handed Ace over to them..." Whitebeard's face was dark.
A hoarse voice spoke up. "If that's the case, now that the Marines has Ace, they'll certainly use him as leverage against us."
"And with the power of second Devil Fruits, the Marines strength has increased dramatically. I believe they'll be making their move soon... they'll declare war on us."
'War?!'
Marco and the others exchanged uneasy glances.
"Gurarara..." Whitebeard nodded, taking a deep, heavy breath.
"Marco, send the order. Contact the others at our command! We're entering a state of war. Full, emergency assembly!"
"Yes, pops!" Startled by the gravity of the situation, Marco immediately rushed to carry out the order.
At the same time, Whitebeard make a call to Big Mom.
"Linlin," he said, getting straight to the point. "I need to order another Seraphim from you. One with power on par with my Seraphim."
A great battle was coming and strengthening their forces was the highest priority.
"Mamamama! Of course, Whitebeard, no problem!"
"Just prepare your Lineage Factor. I'll come to get it personally."
Hearing this, Whitebeard frowned. "Linlin, it's not a good time for you to come here. With the Marine on high alert, our two crews meeting would make them far too sensitive."
"It could trigger the war before we're ready. We should send someone to trade, just like before."
Unexpectedly, Big Mom just laughed on the other end of the Den Den Mushi.
"Mamamama! It's fine, they won't know..."
Whitebeard's brow furrowed.
He couldn't understand why she was so insistent on coming herself.
Just as he was about to argue further, a pink, shimmering doorway materialized out of thin air on his deck.
''Anywhere Door! We're under attack! Its the Marines!''
As a master of Haki, Whitebeard was the first to sense the door's appearance.
His face hardened instantly as he grabbed his bisento and walked toward the door.
"Pops!" Marco and the others reacted a split second later, surrounding the door with their weapons drawn.
The entire Whitebeard Pirates crew was on high alert, ready to fire at a moment's notice, all eyes locked on the shimmering door.
Then... the door swung open.
A familiar voice boomed from within.
"Mamamama! Newgate, relax, will you?"
"Lin..lin?!" Whitebeard's was stunned.
Marco and the others were equally stunned.
It wasn't the Marines?
They lowered their weapons as a massive, obese figure strode out from the door.
It was, without a doubt, the Yonko Big Mom, followed by a number of her children.
"Linlin! It really is you!" Whitebeard stared in disbelief. "How do you have anywhere door? I thought your operation to steal one from the Celestial Dragons failed."
"Mamamama... it did fail! The Marines destroyed that door. Such a shame," Big Mom said, a flicker of regret in her eyes.
"Then how did you...?" Whitebeard started to ask, but the realization hit him.
His pupils shrank.
"Could it be..." he looked at her in horror. "Linlin, did you... successfully replicate an Anywhere Door?"
"Mmm-hmm! Of course! With our three great scientists, it's not surprising we managed to copy it!" Big Mom declared proudly.
Whitebeard looked skeptical.
While he didn't have scientists, an Emperor of the Sea could easily gather intelligence.
He knew the technology behind the door was incredibly advanced.
Even with the combined genius of Vinsmoke Judge, Caesar Clown and Queen, replicating it should have been nearly impossible.
Why else would they have risked attacking the Celestial Dragons?
"Hahahahaha, Whitebeard..." A new voice sounded.
A man with a burly figure and long golden hair stepped out from behind Big Mom, looking immensely proud.
It was the head of the Vinsmoke family, Judge.
"Vinsmoke Judge?" Whitebeard recognized him.
"That's right," Judge nodded. "To be honest, that brat Leon's invention is far too complex. The three of us couldn't crack it on our own, which is why we had to steal the original. However, while that operation failed, we didn't leave empty-handed. We managed to acquire the core technology."
"Once we had the core, integrating it was simple enough!" Judge puffed out his chest.
Then, his expression soured.
"But that Leon is a true monster. Even with the core, we couldn't fully replicate his work. This Anywhere Door is merely a downgraded version!"
Whitebeard was stunned. "What's the difference?"
Judge sighed. "Compared to the original, our imitation can't be maintained for long—ten minutes at most. And it requires a massive, continuous supply of stamina from the user to power it. It's a poor copy, really."
Though Judge feigned dissatisfaction, Whitebeard fell silent.
True, this replica had its flaws, but its main function—the ability to instantly mobilize troops or retreat across vast distances—was intact.
Even this "downgraded version" would be a game-changer on the battlefield.
"Big Mom, how much for it?" Whitebeard asked in a deep voice, knowing she was the one in charge.
"Mmm..." Big Mom smiled but shook her head. "Sorry, we only have one core, so we can't make another. It's not for sale. We need it for ourselves."
Seeing Whitebeard's silent disappointment, Big Mom laughed.
"Mamamama! But Newgate, we both know we share a common enemy now: the Marines!"
"So, Kaido and I are willing to share this Door with you. The only condition is that your Whitebeard Pirates join our alliance. The three of us, Three Yonko united against the Marines. What do you say?"
"Sorry, Linlin," Whitebeard refused without hesitation. "We have no plans to join you."
"Come now, Newgate! You and Kaido should put your grudges aside. The Marines is too powerful..." Big Mom pressed.
But Whitebeard stood firm.
"Mamamama... fine, fine! Forget it. I knew forming an alliance with you would be impossible," Big Mom said, though she showed no disappointment.
His response was expected.
"But!" she added, changing the subject, "if we can't be allies, we can still cooperate. We can still make deals, right? I have two for you right now."
Whitebeard narrowed his eyes.
"I'm listening."
"Mmm..." Big Mom smiled.
"First deal: you provide us with more of your Lineage Factor, and we will build you a custom Seraphim, free of charge."
"Second deal: if you can provide the Lineage Factor of another Emperor-level powerhouse, we will build an anywhere door for you for free the next time we acquire another core."
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