Captain Rosen carried the unconscious Crocodile back onto the flying warship.
The heavy rain had drenched Rosen's hair.
He tossed Crocodile to the ship's doctor and ordered him to heal him.
The doctor, along with a few others helping to support Crocodile, glanced at the "patient" after hearing those words.
His left arm had completely vanished yes, vanished.
The severed stump had turned black and charred.
A deep wound split across his face, cutting it almost in half.
His clothes were in tatters, hanging off him like rags, making him look no better than a beggar off the streets.
Blood seeped endlessly from his body, turning him into nothing more than a walking blood bag.
And that was just what the ship's doctor could see from the outside.
The internal damage wasn't something a village doctor who had only ever treated simple injuries before could even assess.
Crocodile's internal organs had also been wrecked.
Anyone else would have died countless times over.
But Crocodile still clung to life, his breath unbroken, not about to die just yet.
That sheer vitality that too was the foundation of strength. In this world, it all still came down to bloodline and talent.
Since he had boarded Captain Rosen's ship no matter how it happened he would never be allowed to leave again.
At this moment, Rosen had already acknowledged Crocodile as his crewmate.
"Hehehehehe! Captain, is this our new comrade? He looks half-dead already."
"If he dies, can I turn him into a zombie? His body looks like excellent material."
Moria walked over with his trademark eerie laugh, eyes glinting with interest at Crocodile's condition.
After all, this was premium zombie material.
Back then, Moria hadn't considered using the Shadow-Shadow Fruit in this way.
It was Rosen who had casually asked him why he had no zombie crewmates.
After Moria's brief embarrassment, Rosen had told him a few development ideas for the Shadow-Shadow Fruit.
The idea of combining shadows with corpses had instantly sparked Moria's curiosity.
Unfortunately, because of Roger's execution, he never had the chance to try it.
"Oi, oi, old Mo, how can you hope for your own comrade's death? That's not the mindset a proper crewmate should have."
Captain Rosen's tone was stern, like a commander giving a lesson.
"Hehehehehe! What do you mean by 'proper crewmate'? Captain, this guy hasn't even agreed to join us yet. For all we know, he's the stubborn type who'd rather die than submit. So technically, I'm not wishing death upon a comrade!"
Moria quickly explained himself. He valued comrades deeply and didn't want Rosen misunderstanding him as the kind of man who would backstab his own crew.
"Ah-la-ah-la… If he'd rather die than submit… then we'll just have to lock him up. A Logia like the Sand-Sand Fruit is far too valuable to waste."
Rosen's tone was indifferent. He had his system, after all the ability to seize others' powers.
One day, he would intercept Blackbeard and take the Dark-Dark Fruit for himself.
And he didn't even need to wait for Blackbeard to grow strong. He could search for the fruit himself.
Once he obtained it, his crew's power would undergo yet another qualitative leap.
His subordinates, paired with a lineup of devastating Devil Fruits, would become unstoppable.
So if Crocodile refused to submit, Rosen would simply lock him away and wait for the day death claimed him.
"Captain! About that ship down below can I try it out?"
"Ah, if you want it, then of course."
Out on the sea.
Aboard the pirate ship below, the crew looked up at the warship soaring into the skies, turning and preparing to leave.
Relief washed over them.
They had just brushed past death's door not a bad deal!
At least they'd shaken off Crocodile, that cursed plague!
"I knew it! A man's dream never dies!!"
The pirate captain stood tall, hands clenched before him, shouting with conviction.
"Hehehehehe! No, your dream as a man is about to die right now!"
"But even as a zombie, one must still have dreams. A zombie with dreams will attract stronger shadows!"
A chilling, sinister laugh came from behind him.
The captain whipped his head around only to see a writhing black shadow on the ground, rising and twisting into a hulking figure.
Before he could react, his world plunged into darkness.
The warship soared above, carrying its crew, watching the impossible upward current that defied all reason, surging toward the peak of Reverse Mountain.
Even Captain Rosen had to marvel. This world truly was full of wonders.
He even suspected something lay hidden beneath Reverse Mountain.
Some unknown technological creation, or perhaps something that distorted the magnetic fields.
But for now, such mysteries didn't matter.
There was no need to smash through Reverse Mountain just for a guess.
If some forbidden existence were disturbed, and five old men suddenly descended upon them, that would be… no fun at all.
His current crew was nowhere near ready for a battle of that level.
Better to keep developing first.
"Hehehehehe! Captain! I can already see the waters of the Grand Line!"
Moria shouted in excitement, his tall figure giving him a clear view.
He had never stepped foot onto the Grand Line before.
To him and to all pirates only once you set sail into the Grand Line did the real adventure begin.
Unpredictable weather, colossal whirlpools that devoured everything, islands home to creatures from forgotten ages…
That was the Grand Line thrilling and full of wonder.
Every island was different, each with its own strange qualities.
Compared to that, the Four Seas were far too tame.
Unchanging. Stable.
Stability was good for many people.
But not everyone longed for that kind of life.
"Old Mo, calm down. Don't act like you've never seen the world before."
Captain Rosen stood at the bow, letting the sky-wind whip past him. Eyes closed, he seemed lost in his own world, unmoved by the scenery ahead.
"Uh…"
Beside him, Shiryu the Rice Dumpling Man looked on awkwardly.
He remembered vividly when he and Rosen first passed Reverse Mountain on their way to Loguetown.
Rosen had jumped around like a child, screaming like some wild beast.
That moment… Shiryu had actually regretted his decision to join him.
Just recalling it made him shudder involuntarily as though a predator's gaze had locked onto him.
"!"
He had no doubt Rosen had sensed his thoughts just now. At this point, Rosen's strength was beyond description.
To see through a man's heart? Not impossible. After all, Redfield of Level 6 could do it.
It was just a higher level of Observation Haki…
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T/N:
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