BOOM!
The ground beneath Luffy and his crew suddenly shook violently!
As the Golden Lion fell into the sea, the power of the Float-Float Fruit vanished instantly!
"Ahhhhhh!!!"
The sudden sense of weightlessness threw Usopp and Chopper into panic!
At that moment, a streak of purple light suddenly shot across the distant sky.
Swish! Swish! Swish! Swish!
A dozen black-purple blades cut through the air, striking the islands suspended in midair.
The islands that had been teetering on the brink of falling stabilized immediately, once again hovering steadily in the sky.
"It's Admiral Fujitora!"
Koby exclaimed, his face lighting up with anticipation as he looked toward the direction of the attacks.
Because Fujitora embodied the justice Koby aspired to, their connection—though brief—was exceptionally deep.
Luffy and the others followed Koby's gaze to the sky.
"Luffy-sensei!!!"
Far above, a massive jet-black hound slowly approached from the horizon toward their location.
Robin's eyes widened in surprise.
"It's Godia! How… why are they here?"
Usopp quickly chimed in:
"So… does that mean we're back over Arabasta?"
"Impossible!"
Nami descended from the sky, her wings folding back into human arms.
With light steps, she landed gracefully on the ground. The intense battle had drained a huge amount of her magical energy, but as the navigator of the Starry Sky Pirates, she still held herself upright, explaining to the group:
"We set out north from Arabasta, and the Milky Road is even further north of Skypiea."
"Coming from the Milky Road, it's impossible for us to have returned to Arabasta!"
"I see!"
Zoro crossed his arms, chuckling.
"Usopp, your sense of direction is really terrible!"
The atmosphere suddenly fell silent.
Everyone looked at Zoro with unusual expressions.
Zoro blinked, confused:
"Huh? Why is everyone staring at me?"
At that moment, Godia, carrying Fujitora, landed in front of the Starry Sky Pirates.
Returning to his human form, Godia walked forward with a smile, shouting joyfully:
"Luffy-sensei! Robin-san! It's so good to finally find you!!!"
"Godia! Uncle Fujitora!"
Luffy immediately ran forward, his questions spilling out:
"What happened, Godia? Why did Shiki just say we're now 'Emperors of Paradise'? Did something go wrong?"
Godia paused, then a look of sudden realization spread across his face:
"Oh… so you don't know yet, Luffy-sensei…"
...
After a lengthy explanation, Luffy finally understood:
Because of their excavation of the Minga King, they had been blacklisted by the World Government!
It was unclear whether the government didn't have full information or deliberately withheld it—but they hadn't exposed that Luffy and the crew had already obtained the Minga King.
However, the ambitions of the Starry Sky Pirates were now fully visible to the World Government.
According to Godia, the day they were removed from the Shichibukai coincided with the day after Doflamingo's strange conversation with Luffy.
Thinking back to Doflamingo's warning before leaving, it had come true the very next day.
This suggested that Doflamingo held significant influence among the Celestial Dragons—or at least within a faction of them.
Truly incredible.
The more Luffy learned, the more he realized that the World Government, despite having massive intelligence, sometimes seemed even more confused than they were!
Fortunately, their strength would not fail them.
Now was not the time to challenge the World Government directly.
The World Government had ruled for eight centuries; their power was beyond that of any Emperor or Pirate King.
Thinking of the ancestor who looked exactly like him—and the terrifying power they wielded—Luffy knew he could not face such a force alone.
Yet even such a being led armies with the determination to face enemies without retreat.
How formidable the enemy was!
Perhaps the "Destined Child" from the original story, Luffy, was meant to inherit this role, becoming the key to resolving everything.
But…
This Luffy was not the same as before. He would have to find his own path to uncover the truth.
As for why Godia and Fujitora had come here—it was because Vivi had received intelligence:
The legendary pirate, Golden Lion Shiki, was recruiting an army, intending to destroy the entire East Blue!
As a leader of the Hero Academy, Vivi could not allow such a catastrophe to occur.
So she led a formidable force to confront Shiki, while also reinforcing the Hero Academy's reputation across the seas.
Earlier, Fujitora had sensed unusual energy ahead, so he and Godia had come ahead of the main force.
During the time of Luffy's accident, the Hero Academy faced enemies everywhere—Marine, pirates, and underground forces.
Few supported the establishment of the Academy, yet Vivi, relying on the Academy's overwhelming combat power, weathered the storm.
With students performing good deeds, and with the joint backing of the Arabasta princess and the Shichibukai, the World Government had no reason to eliminate the Starry Sky Pirates, and reluctantly tolerated the Academy's existence.
Perhaps the World Government saw the Academy as a public entity to monitor the Starry Sky Pirates.
Otherwise, finding Luffy and the others in this vast world would have been nearly impossible.
With the Hero Academy bearing the Starry Sky name, the world now viewed the Starry Sky Pirates as an unrivaled force capable of challenging the Emperors.
All eyes awaited the Starry Sky Pirates' arrival in the New World.
What will this world become now?
...
After some time, Luffy and his crew finally saw several massive warships approaching from the horizon—the Hero Academy fleet.
After a brief greeting with Vivi—who now carried the aura of a "Valkyrie" princess—she attended to other matters.
With the Hero Academy's strength and Fujitora's control over Skypiea, Shiki's remaining forces were quickly subdued.
By the next morning, the battle was over.
Vivi's fleet was still at sea, recovering the injured Golden Lion.
Luffy knew Shiki, though gravely wounded, would not die.
Just consider Whitebeard during Marineford—these old-generation pirates had bodies of iron.
The living are always more valuable than the dead!
With Fujitora on their side, Vivi's forces feared no one in the East Blue.
Thus, the matter concluded.
With Fujitora's assistance, the Going Merry safely returned to the sea, heading toward the next destination…
Forward!
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Completed version available on P@treon(.)com/Veltoria