Only five days remained until the world was set to witness the public execution of "Fire Fist" Ace. Two full days had now passed since the earth-shattering clash between Kaido and Shanks. Far away, under the guidance of the Pirate Empress, Boa Hancock, "Straw Hat" Luffy was on a warship bound for the great underwater prison, Impel Down, a three-day voyage from their current position.
Meanwhile, under the cloak of night in the City of Water, Water 7.
A small group moved through the shadows, their identities concealed by dark trench coats and deep hoods. Yamato, Bonney, Red, Diaz, and Perona had arrived at Blue Station, one of the terminals for the legendary Sea Train.
"Is this the place?" Red muttered, his voice low.
They all looked up at the massive, pearly-white station, a sense of unease settling over them. The place was completely deserted. Not a single soul was in sight, giving the grand structure the eerie feeling of a ghost town. The only sound was the lonely whisper of the wind as it blew through the empty archways.
Suddenly, a calm, disembodied voice spoke, seemingly from the air all around them.
"Don't just stand there gawking. See that house on the left? Go there. I'm waiting for you inside."
The group flinched, their heads whipping left and right, but they saw no one. Even Yamato, who focused her Observation Haki, couldn't pinpoint the source of the voice.
"A-a ghost?" Perona yelped, jumping back. Despite being a Devil Fruit user who commanded ghosts, she was easily the most timid of the group.
Yamato, however, didn't hesitate. "Let's go check it out!"
The five of them quickly made their way to the house the voice had indicated. As they stepped through the doorway, they were plunged into pitch-black darkness. The silence was absolute, so profound that they could hear their own frantic heartbeats.
Just as they began to wonder if they had walked into a trap, a single flame flickered to life in the darkness. It hung in the air like a will-o'-the-wisp before drifting over to a nearby candle, igniting its wick.
As the dim, yellow light spread, they could finally see where the flame had come from. An invisible door seemed to shimmer and open in the middle of the empty room, and a man dressed in a sharp black suit stepped out. He had a blocky build and a beard styled to look like ox horns. After casually extinguishing the small flame he held between his fingers, he looked at the five cloaked figures before him.
"Which one of you is Young Master Yamato?" he asked, his voice the same one they had heard outside.
Yamato was startled by the familiar, formal address. With a slightly dejected sigh, she stepped forward. "That's me."
She pulled back her hood, revealing her face. The others followed her lead, removing their own hoods. The man's gaze moved from Yamato to Bonney, a flicker of recognition in his eyes.
"Jewelry Bonney, confirmed," he said slowly. "You must be Young Master Yamato." He gave a slight nod. "My name is Blueno. I am a subordinate of Lord Who's-Who. What you just witnessed was my ability. I ate the Door-Door Fruit. I can create a door on any surface, even in the air, that connects to another space. I will use this power to get you to Impel Down, but that is all I will do. I will not be risking my own life."
As a former member of CP9, Blueno understood the horrors of Impel Down better than anyone. Just agreeing to transport them there was an enormous risk.
Yamato nodded respectfully. "Thank you. So, how do we get there?"
"It's simple," Blueno explained. "We'll take the Sea Train to Enies Lobby. From there, we'll take a ship to Impel Down."
"Uh… is it really that simple?" Perona asked from the side, a suspicious look on her face. It sounded far too easy.
"For ordinary people, it would be impossible," Blueno replied. "The real obstacle to reaching Impel Down from Enies Lobby is the massive Gates of Justice that separate the three main government strongholds. But with my ability, I can create a door that will take us right through the gates, even if they remain closed."
Bonney, however, looked curious. "Why do we have to go through the Gates of Justice at all? Isn't there another way to get there?"
"Of course," Blueno said. "You could also travel through the Calm Belt. But that route is extremely dangerous, and more importantly, we no longer have enough time."
"Time?" Yamato asked.
"That's right. There are only five days left until Fire Fist Ace's execution. But you have to subtract the one day the Marines will need to transport him from Impel Down to Marineford. That means you only have four days left. How long did it take you to cross the Calm Belt to get here?"
The answer was obvious. "Two and a half days," Red answered grimly.
"Exactly. And that was an ideal travel time. If we depart from Enies Lobby, it will only take five hours to reach Impel Down. From here to Enies Lobby by Sea Train is only an hour and a half. More importantly, Marine warships transport prisoners to Impel Down from Enies Lobby every day. While I can get you past the Gates of Justice, Impel Down itself is a different story. It's guarded by a monster who is every bit as strong as a Marine Admiral. So, if you're thinking about a frontal assault, I suggest you give up on that idea right now. Besides, reinforcements from Marineford can arrive in just five hours."
"I understand," Yamato said without the slightest hesitation. "From now on, we'll follow your arrangements."
"Good." Blueno didn't waste any time. He walked over to a nearby cabinet and pulled out several sets of clothes. "Then you'll need to change into these. We will be entering Impel Down under the guise of CP9."
Back in the New World, on the island of Wano.
Onigashima had been completely converted into a massive experimental base for Queen. Deep inside a secret underground laboratory, waves of frustrated shouts echoed off the cold, metal walls.
"Impossible… It's impossible!" a sharp, duck-like voice screeched from Caesar Clown's throat.
Beside him, Vinsmoke Judge had also widened his eyes, unable to believe what he was seeing.
Before the two scientists, floating inside a glass vessel filled with a glowing, specialized liquid, was a seemingly ordinary katana. The only thing unusual about it was its hilt, which had a small tube embedded in it, filled with a swirling green liquid the size of a thumb.
Queen stood at a control panel beneath the vessel, a smug grin plastered on his face. As he pressed a series of buttons labeled 1, 2, 3, and 4, the katana began to transform. From its initial sword form, it morphed into a flintlock pistol, then a heavy cannon, and finally a sleek, modern missile.
Seeing the dumbfounded expressions on the faces of his two old colleagues, Queen's vanity swelled. "Well, how about it, Caesar, Judge? Are you surprised by my latest research? I've managed to achieve something that even Vegapunk couldn't!"
"IMPOSSIBLE!" Caesar spun around and roared at Queen, his face contorted with jealousy. "You stupid dinosaur, do you think I don't know your limits? There's no way you could have done this on your own! You combined a Paramecia-type Devil Fruit with an inanimate object! Tell me, how did you do it?"
Caesar's own research had only ever allowed him to fuse Zoan-type Devil Fruits with objects. This was a completely different level of science. Judge also stared at Queen with deep suspicion. As former colleagues, they knew Queen's scientific capabilities all too well.
Queen's expression stiffened. He was right, of course. With his own intelligence, he never could have pulled this off. But now, things were different. He had the blueprint for the Ancient Weapon, Pluton. It contained technology that was eight hundred years ahead of the current world. That, combined with a few key insights from Kaido himself, had made the impossible possible.
The real key to his success, the secret to creating this weapon by integrating the Lineage Factor of the Paramecia user Baby-5 in such a short time, was the Lineage Factor of another crewmate: King.
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