"This…"
Looking at the effect description on Tot Musica's ability panel, even Red found himself momentarily at a loss for words.
This seemed to be the longest, most complex ability with the greatest number of effects he had seen since setting out to sea.
More importantly…
Among the many effects of this ability, Red could only see all kinds of benefits. There was not the slightest drawback or restriction!
Oh, no.
The only restriction was probably that it required a Sing-Sing Fruit user.
Red had originally thought Tot Musica's ability would be something sound-related, like Punk Rock.
Never in his wildest dreams had he expected Tot Musica to awaken such an absurd ability because of its relationship with the Sing-Sing Fruit user.
Symbiosis…
This ability had three effects in total, and each one was more outrageous than the last.
However, compared to abilities that strengthened the user through others…
Tot Musica's ability was even more beneficial to Uta, its symbiote.
First of all, the shared life force and free transfer of damage were more than enough to compensate for many of Uta's weaknesses as someone whose physical talent was not particularly strong.
With this effect, it was as if Tot Musica's health bar had been conjured out of thin air and turned into armor layered over Uta's originally fragile health bar, completely solving her lack of defensive ability.
On top of that, any injury received could be freely transferred.
Although it was called "free," Uta definitely would not be able to withstand injuries suffered by Tot Musica. Conversely, however, every injury Uta suffered could be transferred entirely onto Tot Musica.
As long as Tot Musica did not die, Uta would be an invincible existence!
And the second effect of Symbiosis could even double all beneficial effects.
Uta received a buff once, Tot Musica shared it. Tot Musica then received the buff again, and Uta shared it in return.
One buffing move could become four buffs.
An absolute win!!!
By comparison, the effect that split debuffs evenly between them did not seem all that powerful.
The main reason was that in the pirate world, there were only a handful of Devil Fruit abilities that could truly be considered debuff-type effects.
As for the third effect of Symbiosis, it elevated the ability directly to the level of perfection.
As a byproduct of the Sing-Sing Fruit user, Tot Musica could already abandon its body in the real world and reside within Uta's spirit world.
When the time came, Tot Musica only needed to hand over all of its stats to Uta, while it itself did not even have to worry about taking damage.
A Level 80 being with a total stat value as high as 1,433 directly added onto Uta, who was only Level 65, completely solved her insufficient personal combat ability.
This ability—or rather, Tot Musica itself—had appeared at exactly the right time!!!
…
…
After successfully capturing Tot Musica, Red and Uta did not linger too long in Elegia.
Although this was the place where Uta had grown up, what it left her with was mostly unpleasant memories.
With the usual combination of Hyperspace Hole and Teleport, the two of them soon returned to the Going Merry in the Pokémon Sea.
The round trip had not even taken half a day, and most of the time had been spent on the road.
And that was despite Red not moving at full speed.
For the current Straw Hat Pirates, the pirate world truly could no longer contain their power.
The final battle against the World Government was not the end point of their journey in this world.
It was the starting point from which they would race toward outer space!!!
…
…
"Red!"
The moment Red returned to the Going Merry, Luffy and the others, who had already received the news, immediately gathered around him.
Zoro rested one hand on his swords, his eyes bright with fighting spirit as he asked,
"What's the situation? I heard the World Government is taking the initiative to attack us again?"
"Yeah."
Red nodded in reply, and the corners of Zoro's mouth instantly rose.
"They really are a bunch of people who never learn their lesson."
"But that works out perfectly. Ever since I finished forging my black blades, I haven't had a proper formal battle yet!"
"I hope that bald guy from last time can let me cut to my heart's content this time!"
Clang~!
A cold flash of light swept past. The long swords at Zoro's waist seemed to sense their master's battle intent and drew themselves from their sheaths one after another, revealing three sections of pitch-black blades.
On each blade, completely different patterns were engraved, emitting a faint, obscure glow.
As Zoro's strength increased at lightspeed, the speed at which he nourished his black blades had also reached an extremely impressive level.
In the past, it had taken him a very long time to nurture even a single blade. But now, in just these short few months, he had successfully turned all three of his swords into black blades.
And because Zoro had poured a large amount of Pokémon energy into them while nourishing them, these three swords had become different from the pirate world's conventional black blades. They had become three long swords carrying Pokémon attributes.
Steel type, Wado Ichimonji.
Dragon type, Narukami.
Ghost type, Sandai Kitetsu.
Each of the three swords had inherited one of Zoro's three powerful attributes.
At present, when Zoro used these three long swords in battle, he could already incorporate the special effects of Pokémon moves from all three attributes into a single sword technique.
As for how powerful that effect was, Sanji—who had been beaten until he coughed up blood—could be said to have the most say.
"They really are a bunch of guys with no memory."
At that moment, Sanji also grinned, his gaze turning toward the distant sky. It was as if his eyes had crossed time and space and seen the World Government, currently assembling its fleet and rushing toward this place.
"Isn't that perfect?"
"We can wipe them all out here in one go!"
Franky hammered his hardened body with two banging punches and likewise prepared himself for battle.
"It's still better to be careful. After all, that's Imu we're talking about!" Usopp waved his hand slightly, and a swarm of tiny insects suddenly emerged from his body, quickly spreading out across the entire Pokémon Sea. Like clouds and mist, they scattered into the air.
Only then did Usopp speak again.
"I've already released the nano insects. These are special insects I newly cultivated. They can suck a person's vital energy, disrupt their mind, and unless someone is a top-tier powerhouse, it will be extremely difficult for them to notice their presence."
"When the time comes, as long as the World Government's people enter the Pokémon Sea, they'll immediately be parasitized by my nano insects."
"Hehehehe~"
Usopp stroked his chin with one hand, a crafty, villainous grin appearing on his face.
Hearing this, Red and the others subconsciously released their senses to detect the nano insects Usopp had mentioned.
And sure enough.
If Usopp had not warned them in advance, even Red and the others might have nearly overlooked those floating specks in the air that were almost the same size as airborne particles.
However, once one noticed the existence of these little things, dealing with them was actually very easy.
A single top-level, large-scale burst of Conqueror's Haki would be enough to easily wipe out these fragile little lives.
In short, this was a small tool that could easily clear out enemy fodder. It could not be placed on the main stage, but it was still more than enough to intimidate enemies.
Of course, everyone in the Straw Hats knew very well…
These so-called nano insects were merely one of Usopp's countless insignificant methods.
If one truly compared them, Usopp and Franky—these two fellows who could store massive amounts of materials and living creatures within the warehouses inside their bodies—were the most versatile existences in the entire Straw Hat Pirates.
At least for now, aside from overwhelming them with sheer stats, even Red could not think of a way to defeat the two head-on when their strength was roughly equal.
"Hmph~ Is there really any need to make it that troublesome!?"
"When the time comes, all I need is for that Sea Roar guy to cooperate with me and spread my singing voice across the entire sea…"
"Then all of them will become puppets in my hands!"
Having successfully obtained Tot Musica, Uta smiled confidently and stepped out from behind Red.
In the past, because her strength had been too low, she basically had no chance to join in during moments like this.
But one must not forget: Uta had been someone who had toyed with Luffy since they were children.
She had never been the quiet and reserved type. She had merely never had the right opportunity before.
Now that she had finally obtained power, of course she had to show it off properly.
"Hm?"
Uta's sudden change naturally caused the Straw Hats to freeze in astonishment.
But Uta only smiled without saying a word, showing absolutely no intention of explaining herself to everyone.
Clearly, she wanted to make a big entrance.
"Miss Uta, you…"
Brook looked at Uta in confusion. Aside from leveling, he had spent almost all his time composing music together with Uta, so he completely could not understand why, after only a brief separation, Uta's entire aura seemed to have changed into that of a different person.
Seeing this, Red also smiled slightly. Then his gaze shifted, and he spoke directly to everyone.
"All right."
"Although, from the current situation, the World Government indeed no longer seems worthy of our full attention, no one knows whether Imu has obtained any other power over the past eight hundred years."
"So it is still right to be cautious."
"Jinbe, I'll trouble you to make a trip to Fish-Man Island. Have the forces of Fish-Man Island help set up defenses and patrol beneath the deep sea to prevent the World Government from having any army or powerful fighters capable of moving underwater."
"Robin, go notify the Revolutionary Army. Tell them that before long, Mary Geoise will enter its weakest period in eight hundred years!"
"Let them grasp the opportunity themselves. Even if the other side is Luffy's father and second brother, we can't feed the meal directly into their mouths."
"Franky, coordinate with the Scientific Research Corps. Have them bring out every result they've produced during this period. The coming battlefield will be the best stage for them to show off."
"Nami, find an open sea area later and use your Disaster ability to create a sheet of ice comparable to land as the battlefield."
"We cannot allow the coming battle to affect the islands of the Pokémon Sea. A battle of this scale—even the slightest aftershock—would be enough to destroy an island in an instant."
"…"
"…"
As Red issued a string of orders, everyone in the Straw Hat Pirates, aside from the idiot Luffy and the directionally challenged Zoro, received their respective tasks.
Even Laboon and Merry received the task of escorting people from any islands that might be affected to safe areas.
In an instant, the entire Straw Hat Pirates, along with all of their subordinate organizations, began operating rapidly like a precise machine.
The sound of hurried footsteps soon filled the entire sea area.
At the same time…
On the other side, the World Government had likewise entered a state of urgent war preparation.
After the previous sneak attacks, the World Government had already realized that trying to deal any serious damage to the Straw Hat Pirates through a rapid march was almost impossible.
So this time, they had abandoned any possibility of secret operations and began preparing openly and grandly.
At present, among the 170 member nations under the World Government, 126 were still willing to obey the World Government's command.
As the saying went, even a starving camel was bigger than a horse.
Although the World Government had suffered repeated setbacks at the hands of the Straw Hat Pirates, many people still believed these were only temporary fluctuations.
With the World Government's power, the Straw Hat Pirates would eventually become nothing more than dust in history.
Just like the Rocks Pirates who had once stirred up the world.
Moreover, the rulers of these countries were generally nobles who believed in bloodline supremacy, not that different from the Celestial Dragons.
Betraying the World Government was equivalent to betraying their own class, so naturally, it was impossible for them to abandon their current glory and wealth and turn around to side with some Revolutionary Army that wanted to unite the people of the world—or the even more ridiculous Straw Hat Pirates.
And so, under Imu's forced conscription, 126 armies from 126 countries likewise boarded their respective nations' warships and began surrounding the Pokémon Sea.
For a time, an army of more than ten million people was actually advancing toward the Pokémon Sea at the same time.
One should not think that every country was like the Kingdom of Alabasta, where the whole nation only had two "guardian deities" whose strength was, at most, around the level of pirates with bounties in the tens of millions.
In fact, in many countries, especially those in the Grand Line's "Paradise" and the New World, there might be more than one powerhouse whose strength surpassed that of a Marine vice admiral.
It could only be said that it was fortunate the Kingdom of Alabasta had an identity second only to that of a Celestial Dragon family protecting it. Otherwise, such a weak kingdom that controlled so much wealth would have been seized by others long ago.
In fact, if not for the appearance of the Straw Hat Pirates, the protagonist team in the original plot, the Nefertari family might truly have been erased from history altogether.
If these armies were truly allowed to invade the Pokémon Sea from all directions at the same time, that would indeed pose no small amount of trouble for the Straw Hat Pirates.
Fortunately, the Straw Hat Pirates were not pushovers either.
Just like Usopp's nano insects, their crew had as many methods for clearing out trash mobs as they wanted.
Time slowly passed.
No one knew where the news had leaked from, but word that the World Government was about to begin its final battle against the Straw Hat Pirates spread across the world in just a few short days.
Even some countries within the Calm Belt learned of this war, one that might change the structure of the world.
In an instant, the people of the world shifted their attention away from the shock of the Poneglyphs and focused on the coming great war.
Unknowingly, even the situation across the world began to grow tense.
After all, knowledge gained from paper would always feel shallow in the end.
The changes of the world a thousand years ago could only exist in their imagination.
But the changes of the world a thousand years later were happening in the very era they lived in today!!!
(End of Chapter)