The Hachinosu Skull.
After the God Valley Incident, Wang Zhi had been the first to rush back to the New World, seizing this place and claiming what had once been the headquarters of the Rocks Pirates as his own territory.
And ever since then, for a variety of reasons, no one had come to contest him for it.
After all, Shiki preferred the far more ideal territory of Merveille; Whitebeard wished to roam freely upon the seas; Kaido had gotten himself captured almost the moment he set out; and Charlotte Linlin had returned to Totto Land.
As for the others — people like Ganzui and Captain John — none of them had shown any interest in Hachinosu either.
Thus, from that day onward, Wang Zhi had occupied the island without interference, living quite comfortably while steadily expanding his power and influence.
"Patriarch, the climate in the southwestern district of the island has been acting very strangely these past few days," one of Wang Zhi's officers reported respectfully.
Sitting leisurely in his boss's chair, Wang Zhi was counting stacks of cash in his hands, barely paying attention as he replied indifferently, "What do you mean by strange climate?"
"Haven't you noticed the temperature dropping lately?" the officer asked.
"The temperature?" Wang Zhi paused for a moment before thinking it over. "Now that you mention it, I suppose that's true. The weather has felt colder these past few days. But Hachinosu's supposed to be a summer island — the climate should remain stable year-round… Hm. Has anything changed in the surrounding seas? Some kind of extreme weather approaching?"
"The surrounding waters are normal. There've been occasional heavy storms, but nothing affecting us directly. The main issue is the southwestern district. It actually snowed there last night," the officer explained. "The island doesn't have sufficient cold-weather supplies or equipment, so many of the 'guests' visiting the island are refusing to stay in that district now. It's already starting to affect our income."
Since it merely seemed like an issue of weather and falling temperatures, Wang Zhi did not think too deeply about it. After all, who could possibly predict the climate of the New World?
So after considering it briefly, he waved his hand dismissively.
"Tell everyone the weather's just acting up for a few days and things will return to normal soon. Suppress the rumors a bit. Don't let it ruin the mood for the other guests and cost me money."
At that very moment, however, the door to his office was suddenly pushed open by one of his underlings. Wearing an excessively fawning expression, the man respectfully stepped aside and gestured behind him.
"Please, come in. Boss Wang Zhi is right here…"
Wang Zhi froze for an instant.
What the hell? Who trained this idiot? Does he even know the rules? Bringing people straight into my office without my permission!?
"You bastard!" Wang Zhi roared furiously. "What do you think you're doing!? Who's arrived!? Don't you know to report to me first!?"
As the so-called Patriarch of Pirates, Wang Zhi maintained authority over his subordinates through all sorts of bizarre indoctrination methods that made his organization resemble some kind of cult. His prestige among his followers was immense.
Under normal circumstances, one angry outburst from him would have terrified an underling so badly they would collapse to the floor in panic.
Yet today, the subordinate unexpectedly stiffened his back and spoke in a firm tone.
"Boss Wang Zhi, an old acquaintance of yours has come. Please, whatever you do, don't be rude to her!"
Wang Zhi: "???"
The hell? Now you're lecturing me?
Which one of us is actually the boss here!?
And just then, a graceful figure stepped calmly into the office.
Shakky removed her veil and headscarf with casual elegance, revealing a warm smile as she looked toward Wang Zhi.
"Mr. Wang Zhi… it has truly been a long time," she said softly. "After all these years apart, I must confess that I have thought of you every single day and night, without pause…"
The smile on Shakky's face instantly shattered the composure of the officer who had been reporting to Wang Zhi moments earlier. The man stood there with a dazed, infatuated expression, muttering incoherently under his breath, "Beautiful… too beautiful…"
Only Wang Zhi reacted differently.
The moment he clearly saw Shakky's face, a flash of fear crossed his eyes, and his voice cracked as he shouted:
"Shakky!?"
Yet he was still a great pirate of the seas. In barely an instant, Wang Zhi forcefully suppressed his shock. His gaze darkened as murderous intent surfaced across his face.
"Why have you come looking for me?"
"Mr. Wang Zhi truly knows how to joke," Shakky replied with the same gentle smile and soft voice as before. "There are still many unresolved matters between us, are there not? Today, I have come precisely to settle them once and for all."
Wang Zhi stared at her coldly, hostility thick in his eyes.
"You?" he sneered. "And what exactly do you intend to settle?"
"Naturally..."
At that point, the smile on Shakky's face vanished instantly.
An icy chill surfaced within her pupils, and even her voice became laced with murderous intent as she spat out:
"I want your worthless life!!!"
The moment the words fell, Shakky moved.
As the former Empress of Amazon Lily and a great pirate renowned throughout the New World, Shakky's strength was naturally no joke.
The instant she exerted force beneath her feet, her figure blurred forward and appeared directly before Wang Zhi. Her long, fair leg lashed out mercilessly, coated in Haki and accompanied by a violent howl of wind.
But Wang Zhi was even faster.
As the user of the Paramecia-type Warp-Warp Fruit, he had always held an overwhelming advantage in speed against nearly any opponent.
And because he had already been wary of Shakky from the beginning, he was fully prepared.
With a sharp whoosh, his figure vanished from the office instantly.
Shakky's kick missed its target and slammed brutally into the wall behind him instead.
BOOM!!!
Haki erupted violently. A massive hole several meters wide was blasted straight through the forehead of the skull-shaped fortress, allowing brilliant sunlight from outside to pour into the office.
At the same time, Wang Zhi reappeared in midair outside the fortress, his expression dark with fury.
"Just you alone aren't worthy of taking my life," he snarled. "For the sake of our past relationship, if you leave now, I won't pursue this any further—"
Truthfully, had this happened in private, things would have been different.
But Shakky's kick had already drawn the attention of nearly half of Hachinosu. Wang Zhi genuinely did not dare kill her publicly on such a stage.
After all, he knew better than anyone how terrifying Shakky's charm truly was.
Back then, how many monsters of the sea had stormed God Valley for her sake?
If he killed her here today, then within days Shiki, Roger, Rayleigh, Whitebeard, Silver Axe, John, Kaido, and even Charlotte Linlin herself would probably descend upon Hachinosu demanding his head.
However, before Wang Zhi could even finish speaking—
BOOM!!!
A violent explosion suddenly erupted from the harbor.
Several pirate warships were blasted directly into the sky and torn apart on the spot. Numerous nearby vessels were shredded by the shockwaves, reduced to wreckage incapable of sailing again, while nearly half the harbor itself was crippled instantly.
Many pirates died before they even realized what had happened.
Immediately afterward, a terrifying wave of freezing air spread outward at astonishing speed. In the blink of an eye, the sea surrounding Hachinosu for over a thousand meters froze solid into ice.
Then towering walls of translucent crystal ice rose skyward from the frozen sea.
Before long, a massive transparent dome of ice had completely sealed off the entire island.
"Wang Zhi!!! It has been a long time indeed… and today, I shall take your life!!!"
A thunderous roar echoed across the battlefield.
Wang Zhi turned toward the sound at once.
Then he saw Rayleigh.
Holding the famed blade Higan in his hand, murderous light flashing within his eyes, Rayleigh leapt from an extreme distance away as sword energy surged wildly around him.
"Higanbana Bloom…"
Wang Zhi had absolutely no intention of confronting Rayleigh head-on.
His Devil Fruit ability activated instantly, and his figure disappeared into thin air once again.
But before he could reappear—
Roger suddenly leapt from the rooftop on the opposite side.
Ace was already unsheathed in his hand.
Without the slightest hesitation, Roger swung his blade toward an apparently empty rooftop and roared, "Divine Departure!!!"
It was Advanced Observation Haki—Future Sight!
Roger had already predicted exactly where Wang Zhi would teleport.
The moment Wang Zhi materialized, Divine Departure was already crashing straight toward his face. There was no longer enough time for a second teleport.
"You've gone too far!!!" Wang Zhi roared furiously as he hastily drew his own blade and slashed toward Roger's attack.
But how could a hurried counter possibly compare against Roger's fully prepared Divine Departure?
The instant the two attacks collided, Wang Zhi was blasted away violently.
BANG!!!
His body smashed straight through the high-rise building behind him, causing the entire structure to explode apart.
And before the rubble had even begun to settle—
Waiting there all along, Gaban swung both battle axes with savage delight, a vicious grin spreading across his face.
"Yasotakeru!!!"
An overwhelming storm of axe blades engulfed the collapsing tower instantly.
The chaotic debris filling the air was sliced apart into a dense web of fragments in the blink of an eye.
"It's the Pirate King!?"
"The Roger Pirates!!!"
"Shakky! It's the beautiful Lady Shakky!!!"
"The Patriarch's been killed!?"
"Idiot! How could the Patriarch die that easily!?"
"Help him already!"
"Hey! What are you doing!? Why are you attacking our own people!?"
"Huh? Didn't you just tell us to hurry up and help?"
"I meant help the Patriarch! Which side are you on!?"
"Sorry, I thought you meant help Shakky…"
Caught completely off guard by the Roger Pirates' overwhelming assault, the entirety of Hachinosu instantly descended into chaos.
Meanwhile, Morgans was nearly losing his mind with excitement.
He dragged Photo King around frantically in search of the best camera angles while shouting at the top of his lungs:
"This trip was worth it! Absolutely worth it! To witness a spectacle like this up close — even dying now would be worth it!!!"
Standing atop a rooftop with Ace in hand, Roger raised his voice and declared loudly across the island:
"Wang Zhi! Back then, you betrayed Shakky and triggered the chaos of God Valley, leading directly to Rocks' death! Today, we will personally sever your worthless head!!!"
--------
Read Advanced Chapters on : www.patreon.com/c/ReadJin
~ Every 100 PS = Bonus Chapter!
~ Push the Story forward with your [Power Stones]