"What…"
In a dark, silent room, a man with golden hair lay on a bed, groaning in pain.He was none other than the head of the Donquixote Family—Donquixote Doflamingo.
His face twisted in pain, his forehead soaked with sweat. Then, suddenly, his eyes snapped open, and he sat up in shock.
Subconsciously, he reached out to the table, picked up his iconic sunglasses, and slid them on.Taking a deep breath, he muttered:
"Huff... Huff…"
"I'm… not dead?"
"This place…?"
"Reincarnated?"
"Donquixote Doflamingo?"
"The world of One Piece…"
"I've become that 'Heavenly Yaksha'...?"
At this moment, the soul inhabiting Doflamingo's body was no longer the same as before.
It wasn't just possession—it was more like fusion. Doflamingo's original soul had merged with that of a transmigrator from another world. Or perhaps, the transmigrator had devoured it. Either way, the man lying in bed now had the memories of both.
In his past life, he had been a battle-hardened mercenary. Emotionally detached, with no family, no attachments, and no regrets. A man who had seen war and death countless times.
Having watched One Piece in his spare time, he quickly accepted the absurdity of his new reality.
What surprised him most was the rush of foreign emotions—fury, ambition, pride. Echoes of Doflamingo's soul. Not unpleasant—just new.
All things considered, this was a pretty decent starting point for reincarnation.
As for why he was reincarnated? Maybe he was watching One Piece on his phone when he died?
But Doflamingo…Early on, he was such a dominant, mysterious villain. Stylish, powerful—borderline invincible.And then? Reduced to a "Newspaper King" behind bars…
What a waste.
But now that he had become Doflamingo?
He swore—he would never sit in Impel Down reading newspapers.
Digging through his memories, he quickly realized it was currently the year 1509 of the Sea Circle Calendar.
His younger brother—Rosinante, the "traitor" who would later die by his hands—had only returned a few years ago.
More shockingly, he discovered that this body already possessed awakened Devil Fruit powers…and had mastered all three types of Haki.
So… after more than ten years in the original timeline…Doflamingo's strength hadn't actually improved much?
Why?Had he been too focused on building his empire and neglected his own training?Or had he just hit a plateau?
As he pondered this, a memory flashed across his mind.And a rare expression of fear crossed his face.
Kaido.
Thunder Bagua.
He remembered now—just months ago, Kaido had flown to Dressrosa and sought out Doflamingo directly.He wanted the Donquixote Family to help the Beast Pirates expand their reach into the underground world.
Though the underworld wasn't yet as developed as it would be in the future, it already held immense potential.
Figures like Du Feld, the future "Loan Shark King"; Drug Peclo, known now as the "Assassination King"; Morgans, the head of the World Economic News Paper; and Umit, the so-called "Shipping King."There were others too—Giberson, who controlled countless warehouses around the world.
Combined with the Donquixote Family's monopoly on weapon production, a powerful and far-reaching black market trading platform was taking shape.
Doflamingo didn't know how Kaido had learned about this.But what he did know was that he refused to hand it over without a fight.
Yes—Kaido was famous. But with an awakened Paramecia and all three types of Haki, Doflamingo didn't think he was far behind.
That is, until Kaido defeated him effortlessly—with just two blows.
Only then did he understand the true gap in power.A shadow had taken root in his heart.
No matter how hard he trained, how could he ever beat a monster like that?
That loss crushed his confidence.
In a way, it was similar to what happened with Gecko Moria—once a rising star with natural Haki, crushed by Kaido and reduced to a pathetic shell of his former self.
Doflamingo clenched his fists, gritted his teeth, his body shaking.
"Afraid? What the hell is there to be afraid of?!"
"Thunder Bagua? Monster?"
"It's just Conqueror's Haki infusion!"
"He can do it? Then so can I!"
"Maybe not now—but definitely in the future!"
"I awakened my fruit in my twenties. I mastered all forms of Haki. You think I'm inferior?!"
"Bullshit!"
"Failure isn't what matters—it's how you respond to it!"
"You hate the Celestial Dragons so much, and you let Kaido of all people shake your will? What right do you have to talk about vengeance, about pulling down the gods from their thrones?!"
"Only trash lets failure define them. The strong? The strong break through it!"
His blood vessels bulged like writhing serpents beneath his skin. He roared with fury as a terrifying aura exploded from his body—
BOOM!
BOOM!
CRACK!
WHOOOSH...
The Conqueror's Haki flooded the room, shattering furniture and sending cracks along the walls.
Doflamingo slowly calmed down. He reached for his broken sunglasses, crushed them underfoot, and exhaled in relief.
When he recalled the fight with Kaido again—it was… different.
The fear was gone.
He looked around the devastated room and muttered:
"So this is… Conqueror's Haki?"
"To cause this much destruction with sheer presence…"
"Truly… incredible."
Suddenly—
"Dover!"
"Are you having nightmares again?"
From the ceiling, Trebol dropped into the room.
Doflamingo scowled and shouted:
"Hey! Trebol, back off! You're too close!"
"Snnnrrrk…"Trebol sucked back his ever-present snot and laughed, still upside-down on the ceiling.
"Hehehe… Dover, your Conqueror's Haki seems even stronger. The damage is… hehe… impressive—"
CRACK!
"GRASSHH—!"
"WAH—!"
BOOM!!
The entire room collapsed.
As the dust cleared, Trebol climbed from the rubble, coughing.He looked at Doflamingo, completely unscathed, and asked in disbelief:
"Dover, why do I feel like you've gotten stronger again…?"
Retracting the wall of strings he'd used to shield himself, Doflamingo let out a wild laugh:
"Fufufufufufu…"
"Stronger?"
"Of course."
"Only by constantly growing stronger can I become… truly unstoppable."
Doflamingo looked out the shattered wall at the beach, the waves, and a few coconut trees swaying in the wind.
He saw the Numancia Flamingo, a memory of the past—his past self—and made a silent vow.
"Go without regret. Your dream is now mine."
"The Newspaper King? Fufufu…"
"Luffy? Kaido? Marines? Celestial Dragons?"
"World Government? Revolutionary Army? Pirates?"
"I'll rewrite it all."
"I'll change my fate."
"And make the world kneel at my feet."
"Furufurufuru…"