New World — Navy G5 Branch.
A man in a white coat and sunglasses stared at the paper in his hands, disbelief written on his face.
"Even that Navy Admiral Akainu was defeated?" he muttered, stunned.
"The Beast Pirates have become this terrifying… Doflamingo's death wasn't in vain after all."
That sunglasses man was Vergo — the highest surviving officer of the Donquixote family who had been hiding inside the Navy as a mole. At first, when he heard Doflamingo was dead, he refused to believe it. Decades ago the young Doflamingo had already awakened Conqueror's Haki; Vergo had always believed Doflamingo would become a king. He never imagined that before reaching that goal Doflamingo would be killed — nearly insta-killed — by Roseng, the man the Beast Pirates were now calling the Fifth Yonkō.
Vergo had no intention of trying to avenge Doflamingo. If Doflamingo could be nearly slain, Vergo — far weaker — avenging him against the Five-Emperor Roseng would be like an ant trying to shake a mountain. He wasn't that foolish.
Vergo stared at the bold headline: "Navy Rout." A strange light blinked in his eyes.
"Doflamingo's dead. So the one who becomes king won't be him. Roseng, Kaido, the Beast Pirates — they made an Admiral fall. They've already surpassed Whitebeard's crew. Maybe the future belongs to them."
A thought crept in: he might defect to the Beast Pirates. Don't imagine this was betrayal out of sentiment. Vergo was a schemer and an opportunist: victory writes the rules. Doflamingo was dead — why not side with the stronger power?
But Vergo also knew he couldn't just kneel and be accepted at once. The Beast Pirates were crowded with terrifyingly strong people; even Vergo would be just another face. He needed to bring something weighty to prove himself — a trophy valuable enough to make Kaido and Roseng smile.
Suddenly he brightened. He knew the perfect candidate to hand over.
"Someone, check the Navy's recent wanted notices — any new pirate named Trafalgar Law?" Vergo barked to the marines nearby.
"Yes, Vice Admiral Vergo!"
——
First half of the Grand Line.
Trafalgar D. Law, the young captain who left the Donquixote family after Corazon saved him and later founded the Heart Pirates, didn't yet know he'd been singled out by the very man he once feared: Vergo. Law felt aimless — his great purpose had been revenge against Doflamingo for Corazon. With Doflamingo suddenly dead and the family destroyed, Law had no clear target. He sat quietly on deck, roused only by Bepo's loud shout.
"Captain, snap out of it! This is the Grand Line — danger every minute!"
Law ruffled the fur of the comrade beside him. "I know, Bepo. As pirates in the Grand Line, even if it's for One Piece, we keep sailing."
Bepo slapped his hand away, complaining, but the ship sailed on.
——
Somewhere else in the first half of the Grand Line, in a shady island, a black-coated figure sat under a tree reading a newspaper. He grinned, showing missing teeth.
"The Beast Pirates replacing Whitebeard's position? First they killed Doflamingo, then made Admiral Akainu taste defeat…" he chuckled darkly.
The face in the half light was none other than Marshall D. Teach — Blackbeard. He had killed Satchi and stolen the Dark-Dark Fruit, fleeing to this place. Blackbeard's arrogance and ambition were on full display; now free of Whitebeard's shadow, he openly dreamed of his own era. "Before my era arrives, I need powerful allies," he decided, rising and scanning the sea for traces of Ace. Finding none, he swaggered off.
——
Wano Country.
The Three Disasters — En (Jin), Queen, and Jack — had returned victorious. Kaido himself came to greet them and burst into booming laughter.
"Excellent! En, you lot did splendidly! You humiliated the Navy — their face's ruined!" Kaido roared.
Although their powers had soared, the Three Disasters still showed respect: "This is all thanks to the lord's Dragon-class Monster Cells. Without them, we couldn't have beaten Admiral Akainu."
Indeed — without those cells, even combined the Three Disasters plus the Flying Six probably wouldn't have prevailed over Akainu. Akainu is one of the most fearsome figures of the Summit War era; the Three Disasters' growth was only possible because of Roseng's invention.
Kaido looked at Roseng and, with a grin and a hint of embarrassment, said, "Hey son-in-law, can you give your old man a Dragon-class Monster Cell too?"
The Three Disasters' power increase made Kaido envious. Roseng noticed his father-in-law's longing and smiled inwardly. Even the strongest creature had appetite for more power. But now was not the time to hand out Dragon cells — and besides, those weren't the top tier.
"Father-in-law," Roseng said, "you shouldn't be impatient. I'll make an even higher-grade Monster Cell and you'll be the first to try it."
"Higher than Dragon-class?!" The Three Disasters gaped, dumbfounded. If Dragon-class produced such results, what horrors lay beyond?
Kaido's eyes gleamed. Roseng cleared his throat and added, "However, making something higher in the short term is difficult. Dragon cells shouldn't be wasted. I have one candidate in mind who can eat one and become another great strength for our crew."
"Oh? Who?" Kaido and the Disasters asked.
Roseng pointed to the sky with a mysterious smile: "A god."
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