Whoosh!!
A hundred-meter-long flaming giant sword tore straight through the island without resistance, its tip erupting from the top in an explosion of rock and debris.
A sinister black aura swirled around the massive blade of Enma, merging with the flames to give rise to eerie black-purple ghostfire.
A raging storm of sword energy roared from the tip, blasting through the dense clouds overhead and scattering them in all directions.
The massive island's descent was suddenly halted by the strike, as if frozen in mid-air.
Shiki's twisted grin froze on his face. Blood vessels instantly filled the whites of his eyes, his eyeballs nearly bulging out of their sockets.
That strike... it nearly pierced the heavens!
For a moment, even time itself seemed to stop.
On the ground in Marineford, hundreds of thousands of civilians and Marines stood stunned, their faces frozen in disbelief. None could trust their eyes—none could accept what they had just witnessed.
That enormous floating island that had blotted out the sky... had been pierced clean through by a single sword?
From afar, that towering purple-black sword looked like a pillar propping up the heavens, guarding this sacred bastion of justice!
Such a scene would be etched into their memories forever—unforgettable, indelible.
"What... is that...?"
Zephyr stared blankly at the massive blade, then turned instinctively toward Sengoku.
But Sengoku looked just as stunned. It was clear he had no idea what had just happened.
He knew Daren possessed a Cursed Sword from Wano Country.
Sengoku had assumed it was a gift from the mysterious woman Amatsuki Toki and hadn't given it much thought. To him, it seemed like a waste for someone like Daren, who didn't even practice swordsmanship, to wield such a weapon.
Even if it was a Cursed Sword, it was still just a rare type of weapon.
It was a lifeless object—so how could it suddenly unleash something so bizarre?
Wait a second!
Sengoku suddenly recalled something.
Not long ago, Borsalino's Science and Technology Department had mentioned a breakthrough they'd made, supposedly based on research from Dr. Vegapunk, the scientist said to be "500 years ahead of his time."
Borsalino had dutifully reported the matter to Sengoku, stating that Vegapunk had finally cracked the conditions for transferring Devil Fruit powers and had developed a new technology.
—To let inanimate objects eat a Devil Fruit, and gain its power!
At the time, Sengoku had scoffed at the idea.
"What a load of crap technology…" Those had been his exact words.
Of course, his reaction may have had something to do with his personal bias—he'd always thought Borsalino was full of nonsense.
Let a lifeless object eat a Devil Fruit?
What kind of joke was that!?
Devil Fruits were incredibly rare—even the Navy had very few.
If you had a powerful Devil Fruit, wouldn't it make more sense to give it to a person?
After all, humans could grow stronger and continuously develop the fruit's power over time.
But now...
As he stared at the giant Cursed Sword impaling the island, Sengoku felt the corner of his mouth twitch.
The answer was right in front of him.
...
"What kind of power is this!?"
"Is it Commodore Daren's Devil Fruit ability?"
"No, it's not!"
"It looks like it's the sword's power!"
"How can that be!?"
The Marines quickly snapped out of their shock, staring at Daren in disbelief.
"That sword… it actually grew bigger…"
Kuzan's eyes lit up as he looked at Enma piercing the heavens. Turning his head with stars in his eyes, he exclaimed,
"Daren… this is seriously awesome!!"
Even Sakazuki looked stunned.
Daren gave a faint smile, his face visibly weakening.
At last, it had worked.
He'd found the perfect vessel for the Moa Moa no Mi—Enma.
Ideally, the Moa Moa no Mi should've gone to someone strong, but in the short term, Daren hadn't found a suitable candidate.
He already possessed the Jiki Jiki no Mi, so eating a second Devil Fruit was out of the question.
Then, not long ago, Borsalino had come to him with an intriguing piece of news—Vegapunk had cracked the secret of Devil Fruit transfer conditions.
And with that, a bold—no, outright insane—idea had flashed through Daren's mind: Let Enma eat the Moa Moa no Mi!
Just like how Spandam's sword had consumed the Zou Zou no Mi in the original story, if Enma ate the Moa Moa no Mi, it would gain the ability to massively increase its size and speed.
The best part?
It didn't require any additional stamina from Daren.
He just needed to use a bit of energy to launch Enma via magnetism at supersonic speed.
Then, thanks to the Moa Moa no Mi's power, Enma would instantly multiply in size and velocity dozens of times over—capable of destroying a town, or even piercing an entire island in one strike!
Maybe… this was the true potential of the Moa Moa no Mi.
"Now then… time to finish this."
Daren grinned at Shiki.
"Sorry, but in the end, you lost."
Whoosh—
Blue lightning crackled across Enma's enormous blade.
Then—
In Shiki's widening, nearly-bursting eyes,it was as if an invisible god had swung the blade of the apocalypse—and brought it down with devastating force!
Crack—crack!
Riiip!!
The chilling sound of the island tearing apart echoed across all of Marineford.
With a thunderous boom, the infamous cursed blade split the floating island in two, slicing through even the dense sea of clouds above.
The island split straight down the middle. As it fell, it continued breaking apart, scattering into countless fragments that rained down into the ocean on either side of Marineford.
Amid the deafening tremors, a massive column of seawater shot into the sky, triggering a tsunami over a hundred meters high.
It surged outward, overwhelming the naval port and artillery positions—until Kuzan, having recovered just in time, froze it solid.
Chunks of the island, like miniature meteors, plummeted toward Marineford's ground.Trails of crimson flame followed in their wake like a meteor shower.
Buildings were pulverized.
Flames erupted across the city.
Fire spread everywhere.
But compared to the apocalyptic destruction of the entire island's fall, it all seemed insignificant.
After unleashing its power, Enma swiftly shrank back down and flew to Daren's side.
Shiki clenched his teeth, glaring furiously at the Marine Commodore standing his ground, eyes locked with his.
But just as he gripped his twin blades and prepared to strike—
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!
Several figures appeared in front of Daren almost simultaneously, forming a tight formation around him like stars encircling the moon.
Sakazuki, Kuzan, Borsalino, Sengoku, Zephyr...
Shiki's movement froze.
Blood spilled from the corner of Daren's mouth, and he sneered contemptuously at him.
"What's the matter? Do you need me to give you a ride?"
As soon as he finished speaking, Enma at his side turned again, its tip pointing straight at Shiki.
Shiki's pupils shrank slightly.
"Hmph!"
He sheathed his twin swords, then suddenly let out an eerie laugh.
"That's enough fun for today... Daren, our score isn't settled yet!!"
"Jihahahaha!!"
He burst into laughter, shot into the sky, and quickly vanished behind the clouds.
Seeing Shiki retreat, Sengoku and the others quietly let out a sigh of relief.
The wind howled. Flames spread across the battlefield.
Fragments of the shattered island streaked across the sky like brilliant meteors.
A golden streak of dawn slowly emerged from the sky Enma had cleaved, like the fingers of a giant reaching down toward the earth.
The warm sunlight spilled like golden sand across the devastated land, the collapsed buildings, and the ruins of military fortifications. It shone on the wounded bodies of every Marine.
They clenched their fists, hearts swelling with emotion.
"We... protected our home."
Someone murmured.
The sunlight grew brighter.
Dawn had come.
The darkness had faded.
Faces young and battle-worn bathed in sunlight. Though exhausted and in pain, they couldn't help but smile at one another.
Kuzan, Tokikake, Gion, Yamakaji, Onigumo, Doberman, Dalmatian, Strawberry... one by one, they supported themselves and turned to look at that tall, commanding figure.
In the center of the crowd, the Commodore stood, smiling at them.
Dazzling.
Swish!!
Kuzan, his face red with excitement, could no longer hold back. He suddenly raised his hand and saluted the figure.
Next came Yamakaji.
The third.
The fourth.
...
Marine after Marine, without needing a single order, saluted the distant figure.
"Tch, he hogged all the spotlight!" Tokikake grumbled, wiping the blood from the corner of his mouth. Under Gion's fierce glare, he shrank his head and raised his hand in salute.
"What a touching scene..." Borsalino said with a smile.
Sakazuki was silent for a moment, then also lifted his hand in salute.
Zephyr and Sengoku exchanged a look. Smiles of pride and relief crossed their faces. They took two steps back and saluted together.
At that moment, no one in Marine Headquarters had their arms lowered.
Except for one.
He stood atop the ruins, blood-soaked, a spent cigarette clamped between his teeth. Yet he looked as if he were bathed in a thousand rays of sunlight.
...
In the Sea Circle Calendar year 1493, the legendary Great Pirate known as the "Flying Pirate," Shiki the Golden Lion, launched an assault on Marine Headquarters Marineford.
With his flying fleet annihilated, he allied with the Great Pirates Kaidou of the Beasts and Charlotte Linlin in a campaign of revenge against the Marines.
With world-ending power, Shiki nearly succeeded in sinking all of Marineford into the sea.
The battle shocked the world, leaving most of Marineford in ruins.
It's worth noting that, in the absence of legendary Marine powerhouses, the young generation trained by the former Admiral Zephyr, known as "Black Arm," played a pivotal role in the battle.
Their unyielding will and immense strength shone like stars in this era—brilliant and captivating like gold.
Among this field of dazzling lights, the brightest of them all was none other than the "King of the North Blue"—Rogers Daren.
Following this battle, the strength of the younger generation rose rapidly, becoming the pillar of justice for the world to come.
Later historians would refer to this group of Marines, driven by an unshakable "Golden Will," as...
"The Golden Generation"!
— World Economic News Agency, President Morgans.