Boom!
The sea erupted as towering waves surged violently into the sky.
Broken planks and shattered fragments of wood floated across the water. The once grand pirate ship had completely disappeared beneath the depths.
My invincible Yonko crew… wiped out just like that?
Is this a nightmare?
Gurgle… gurgle…
The Lying God King sank deeper into the endless sea, his mind clouded with despair as he fell toward the abyss.
"The moment confidence turns into fear, the mind becomes fragile."
A cold, emotionless voice echoed from nowhere.
"Creatures like that are always fragile. Once their beautiful dream shatters, it becomes a nightmare that drags them into darkness."
…
Within another nightmare.
Fish-Man Island, once vibrant and full of life, had fallen into ruin.
"Haa… haa…"
The protective bubble surrounding the island was riddled with cracks, on the verge of collapse. Once it shattered, the immense pressure of the ocean would crush everything.
"What… what happened here…"
Heavy breathing echoed across the devastated island.
"No… this cannot be real…"
A large figure staggered forward through the destruction.
This was Jinbe, the former Shichibukai and the Knight of the Sea, now a member of the Straw Hat Pirates.
"Everyone… everyone is… dead?"
He stared blankly at the corpses scattered across the island. Familiar faces, now lifeless and mutilated, filled his vision. His usual composure crumbled into panic.
"Why did this happen… I am sorry… I was not here…"
The streets were stained with blood.
Beautiful mermaids lay motionless, their expressions frozen in terror. Their pale faces looked almost lifeless even before death.
They had not even realized who killed them.
Jinbe's eyes shifted to their wounds.
Jagged bite marks covered their bodies.
Those marks… were familiar.
"These marks… could it be…"
His body trembled as he stepped back. Slowly, he raised his webbed hand and touched his mouth.
Wet.
He wiped it and looked.
Only saliva.
"Haa…"
Not me.
But these teeth… they are too similar…
A horrifying thought surfaced in his mind.
"No… that cannot be true…"
He forced himself forward, searching desperately.
"Is anyone alive? Answer me! I will save you!"
There was no response.
Not a single survivor.
Even Ryugu Palace was no different.
Corpses littered the halls. Everything was in ruins.
King Neptune lay among them, his massive body covered in brutal bite wounds. Half of his head was gone.
Even so, he still clutched his broken trident tightly.
Behind him lay another corpse he had tried to protect.
Both had been devoured.
"Crunch… crunch…"
Jinbe's eyes burned with rage. His teeth clenched as he gathered water in his palm and hurled it forward.
Boom!
The palace walls shattered from the impact.
"Who did this?! Who!!!"
His voice thundered with fury.
Nearby lay the remains of Princess Shirahoshi, her once unmatched beauty reduced to a lifeless form.
…
Far beyond the nightmare, a pair of cold eyes observed everything.
"When the mind enters sleep, it abandons its defenses."
The voice was indifferent.
"Even the strongest lose control. Their fears become exposed."
…
Admiral Verglas stood silently, like a puppet without will, watching countless dreams flicker like fragile bubbles.
He extended a pale finger and touched Jinbe's dream.
Crack.
The nightmare shattered, only to merge seamlessly into another layer.
"This is the power of the Dream-Dream Fruit. As long as someone sleeps, their thoughts can be rewritten."
The voice remained emotionless.
"Even an Emperor is no more than prey."
…
Back in the nightmare.
"Who dares do this to the mermaids?!"
Jinbe roared.
In reality, he would never lose control like this.
But here, in a dream born from fear, his emotions were laid bare.
Anger. Hatred. Fear.
Everything surged uncontrollably.
"Finally… I found the trail…"
He followed the flow of blood into a dark passage.
But when he looked up again, his body froze.
He was no longer in the palace.
He stood in Fish-Man Street.
The place where he was born.
Where he grew up.
Where he forged bonds and faced betrayal.
A place he could never abandon.
He did not question how he arrived there.
Dreams had no logic.
And within them, nothing felt strange.
"Why… does the trail lead here…"
Once, this place gave him a sense of belonging.
Now, it filled him with dread.
The blood across the island seemed to converge here, confirming his deepest fear.
"No… that cannot be true…"
His body moved forward against his will.
Step by step.
"No… no…"
He entered the street.
…
Figures filled the area.
Countless silhouettes stood silently, their backs turned.
"You finally came back."
A voice echoed from within the shadows.
"We have been waiting for you."
One of the figures twisted its head unnaturally.
Its jagged nose shook as blood-stained teeth stretched into a grin.
Scarlet eyes locked onto Jinbe like a predator.
"Shark hahaha… Brother Jinbe…"
Jinbe's eyes widened in shock.
"You…"
His voice trembled.
"Arlong!!!"