Out at sea, not far from Foosha Village, a Marine ship with a dog's head at the bow and a bone in its mouth was heading toward another Marine vessel that remained completely still.
"Vice Admiral Garp, we have a motionless ship ahead!"
"It belongs to Branch No. 7, sir. The one assigned to escort the Shichibukai Sir Crocodile!"
The officer paused, his voice clearly tense.
"That ship was supposed to carry at least five hundred Marines… but there's no one visible on deck."
Garp immediately frowned and, wasting no time, gave the order:
"Let's move in! I'll inspect it myself."
...
Minutes later, Garp's ship was anchored beside the motionless vessel, and with a single leap, the legendary Hero of the Marines landed on the silent deck.
The echo of his boots rang against the empty wood, amplifying the funereal silence that engulfed the ship.
"Report!" he growled with his arms crossed.
One of the soldiers who had boarded ahead of him responded instantly after a quick inspection:
"Vice Admiral Garp, there's no soldier on board. We've checked every cabin and compartment. But yes... we found multiple traces of Sir Crocodile's ability."
"Could it be that... Sir Crocodile massacred all our men?"
But before the speculation could continue, a shout interrupted from atop the ship:
"Vice Admiral Garp! We've found Sir Crocodile! He's on the roof of the command cabin!"
"?"
Garp narrowed his eyes.
Without a word, he leapt again and landed on the roof of the cabin. And there he saw him.
Crocodile lay curled up in a fetal position, his face turned toward the sky.
He was still breathing... but barely.
His skin was pale like a corpse, his lips dry, his eyes wide open and unfocused, with not a trace of will or awareness.
There was no blood. No visible wounds. But the silence surrounding him spoke louder than any scream.
Garp looked down at him sternly. He had seen the face of a defeated man many times... but this was different. What lay before him was not an injured body, but a spirit completely broken.
Kneeling beside him, he examined him calmly and noticed traces of sand on various parts of his body: faint ripples, crystallized remnants clinging to the skin.
But nothing else.
There were no signs of struggle. Nothing destroyed. Nothing burned. Not a single piece of evidence suggesting a real battle had taken place.
"There are no signs of combat," he muttered with a deepening frown, increasingly unsettled.
Nothing made sense.
Crocodile had clearly used his ability — that much was evident. But he showed no signs of being struck, no traces of an ambush, no indication of crossfire.
Absolutely nothing!
"What the hell happened here...?" Garp muttered, lifting his gaze toward the sky.
With a hardened expression, he leaned over him.
"Hey! What happened to you? Who did this to you?"
But Crocodile didn't respond.
His lips remained still, his eyes open but empty, lost in a thick fog that seemed to have no way out.
It wasn't pride that kept him silent… it was something worse. As if his mind had abandoned his body.
Garp clenched his teeth, overtaken by a rising fury. He grabbed him by the collar and yanked him up.
"You bastard! What the hell happened here? Where are the soldiers from this ship? ANSWER ME!!"
And without waiting for a response, he delivered a punch straight to his face.
But Crocodile didn't defend himself. He didn't flinch. He made no sound.
He simply fell face down, like an empty sack.
And it was then, as his body collapsed, that Garp noticed something out of place: a strange tear, discreet but unmistakable, near the lower part of his clothing.
!
He stood motionless, observing in silence.
Before him wasn't an enemy. All that remained was the hollow shell of the man who was once Crocodile. And in that moment, the conclusion was inevitable.
There was no need to say it aloud. His face said it all.
"To think you were once a feared pirate…" he muttered, lowering his head slowly. "You faced Whitebeard… even Bullet. You had guts."
"And now look at you… this is how it ends. Pride shattered, spirit broken. You can't even speak."
"Tch… you're nothing more than a useless Shichibukai now. In this state… you're good for nothing," he growled, stepping back in disgust.
Then, without another word, he gave him a sharp kick that sent Crocodile's limp body rolling across the deck.
It landed with a dull, hollow thud — like the echo of a fall into nothingness.
"Arrest him! And prepare him for transfer to Impel Down. They can come collect him in a few days."
"Yes, Vice Admiral Garp!"
Several Marines approached cautiously. The scene still had them on edge, and though they knew Crocodile was defeated, they moved with the wariness of someone unsure if the monster still breathed.
But there was no resistance.
Crocodile allowed himself to be shackled with Kairoseki cuffs without saying a single word.
And they escorted him to a cell in the lower levels of the ship.
...
"Vice Admiral Garp… I just noticed that Crocodile's black cape has a rather large hole in the back. Could that be the clue we're looking for?"
One of the Marines who had returned from locking Crocodile up suddenly remarked.
Before Garp could reply, another soldier came running in, visibly shaken.
"Vice Admiral! We found this among Crocodile's belongings. It was hidden inside a concealed compartment in his cloak," he said, holding out a blue Den Den Mushi.
Garp took it with a look of disgust. "Connect it. Maybe Vice Admiral Momousagi is on the other end, and we can inform her of what happened."
"Understood."
Within seconds, the communication was established.
"This is Garp. Crocodile is useless now. He's completely finished."
He reported bluntly.
On the other end, there was only silence. Gion listened without saying a word. Her face remained grim as she processed the magnitude of the report.
Hundreds of Marines missing… and Crocodile reduced to that?
"Damn it! What the hell happened?" she muttered through clenched teeth, jaw tightening with restrained anger.
She was responsible for this operation. She had never imagined they would lose an entire crew in such a sudden and humiliating way!
"What's wrong, Gion? That call… it was about Crocodile, wasn't it?" asked Tokikake, concerned.
He had noticed Gion had been in a foul mood lately—very unlike her—and that worried him.
Because deep down, he knew.
Gion had been raped by Tiberion Hanma.
And even so, no matter how much it hurt, no matter how hard he tried to understand… Tokikake couldn't stop feeling something for her. He still loved her. And he wanted her to know it, no matter what had happened.
"Garp says he's destroyed," Gion finally said in a low voice. "That he's no longer of any use… And that all the Marines from the ship have disappeared. Most likely, they're dead."
"This must be Tiberion's doing. Even if he was sent flying… with his strength, we can't judge him by normal standards."
"Yes! It was definitely Tiberion," Tokikake affirmed with complete certainty.
Gion glanced sideways at him. She still had doubts, but the conviction in Tokikake's voice shook her. A chill ran down her spine. She knew that underestimating Tiberion would be an unforgivable mistake.
"Then we're in trouble," she murmured. "If he can move freely across the sea, it's highly likely he's already on his way back. Foosha Village could be his next target."
"And if we don't intercept him in time… everyone there could be in danger."
Wasting no more time, she turned toward the Marines on deck and raised her voice.
"Use the Den Den Mushi! Contact the Foosha Village garrison right now! Tell them to hide in a safe place, quickly!"
Immediately after, she issued new orders: every one of Tiberion Hanma's comrades captured in Foosha Village was to be escorted without delay to Marine Headquarters and locked up in Impel Down.
No exceptions.
It didn't matter whether they were active pirates or merely circumstantial allies. They were now pieces on the board.
Gion knew very well the value of a hidden card played at the right moment.
If necessary, they could be used as bargaining tools against him.
And there was one piece that was especially valuable.
Among the captives was Princess Shirahoshi. The strangest thing was that, despite the brutal and ruthless behavior Tiberion had shown in other situations — even with Gion herself — with Shirahoshi, it had been different.
He had been protective. Gentle.
And that, coming from someone like Tiberion, couldn't be a coincidence.
To Gion, the conclusion was obvious: Shirahoshi was his weak point.
And if that were true… then she was worth more than any weapon.
After that, she established contact with all the Shichibukai involved in the operation.
"To all Shichibukai on mission!"
"Return to Foosha Village immediately! The enemy may be heading there at this very moment. Regroup, coordinate your positions, and prepare to defend the area. We must be ready to face Tiberion Hanma at any time!"
…
In different parts of the sea, seven warships from Marine Headquarters sailed with a single objective: to find Tiberion.
But upon receiving the new order, all turned their prows in unison.
The new destination: Foosha Village.
…
Among those who received the order was Hancock. Aboard her personal ship, she maintained the elegance and presence that always defined her, though a slight blush colored her cheeks upon hearing Gion's voice through the Den Den Mushi.
"Return to Foosha Village...?" she whispered, surprised.
She hadn't expected to see Tiberion again so soon. The last time, she had fled without thinking, leaving him behind without a word, without a glance. Her reaction had been very childish.
Now, remembering it, she realized she may have been too cold. Perhaps, unintentionally, she had hurt him with her silence.
"Next time… I'll explain everything to him," she murmured with a faint smile on her lips.
No matter what happened.
To her, Tiberion was still a unique man.
Someone who combined brutality and power with a masculine presence that made her shiver. Where others saw a grotesque and threatening musculature, she saw nothing but a perfect manifestation of strength… and desire.
And if she stopped to think about it, he was also beautiful.
There was a wild energy within him, one that gave her a sense of safety she had never felt with anyone else.
"Only a man like him could be worthy of a woman like me…" she whispered, caressing her own face.
And so, between narcissistic thoughts and the gentle rocking of the sea, she began to mentally reconstruct every detail of Tiberion… his voice, his body, his gaze.
Wishing he were in front of her.
…
Over the vast immensity of the sea, a colossal Sea King with the elongated, spotted silhouette of a giraffe slid through the waters.
On its back, Tiberion remained motionless like a statue. Seated cross-legged, eyes closed, breathing deeply, he was fully concentrated.
He was training.
His body radiated an invisible energy, a suffocating heat that distorted the air around him. The pressure he emitted was so intense it altered the sea's behavior: the waves, which normally danced freely, pulled back as if obeying his will.
All his focus was on a single objective: to elevate his Armament Haki to a higher level.
He was already, by nature, an anomaly. His natural talent had reached 650 points—more than six times what an average human could ever dream of. His will was an abyss, his vital energy an inexhaustible source. He was, by definition, a monster that should never have been born in this world.
With every breath, he channeled that inner energy, pushing it into every muscle fiber, trying to coat his entire body with Haki.
It wasn't enough to just cover his fists or legs. His goal was far more ambitious: full-body coverage.
Little by little, his body began to darken. His skin took on a metallic sheen, cloaked in a deep, intense black.
It was no longer just a defense.
It was the embodiment of his will.
With relentless focus, he condensed the Haki, compressed it, and solidified it—elevating both his offensive power and his resilience to a whole new level.
It was no longer just a barrier; now it was a weapon.
And in that instant, he crossed the threshold.
He had reached the advanced level of Armament Haki.
But he didn't stop.
Without changing his posture, he slowly raised his right hand and pointed toward the open sea. His fingers tensed, channeling the gathered energy, and in the next moment, he released the Ryuo.
An invisible strike tore through the air and exploded against the surface of the sea.
"..."
For a fraction of a second, everything fell silent.
And then, the world seemed to break.
Boom
The point of impact collapsed violently, as if a colossal force had slammed down from above. Then, a massive column of water was catapulted into the sky, rising more than fifty meters high, accompanied by a deep rumble that shook even the farthest currents.
The pressure of the Haki had crushed and warped the sea.
Beneath the surface, fish scattered in a stampede.
The Sea King, unsettled, turned its neck slightly. A warm mist began to rise around its body—the sea itself was reacting to the being it carried on its back.
The crater that formed on the surface was so deep and precise that for a moment, it looked like a bottomless abyss. The waves crashed against each other as they closed over the void left behind by the strike.
Tiberion didn't open his eyes. He exhaled softly, and a thin stream of vapor escaped through his nose.
He had moved nothing but a single hand.
He had mastered Ryuo mere seconds after achieving full control of his Haki. Now it felt natural, fluid… as if his body had been born to channel it.
...
Suddenly, he opened his eyes.
He sensed something.
He stood up in a single motion, and without hesitation, began sprinting across the surface of the sea, each stride launching columns of water skyward.
His speed exceeded 1,300 meters per second.
He was a lightning bolt racing across the ocean.
In the distance, a warship came into view.
Lowering his stance, he tensed his legs like coiled springs and gathered all his power into his ankles.
Boom
The jump detonated like an explosion, leaving behind a crater of foam and steam.
His body tore through the sky like a comet, and within seconds, he crashed down onto the deck of the warship with a deafening impact.
The wood splintered beneath his feet, the entire ship trembled, and his aura spread like a wave of radiation.
The Marines on deck were paralyzed. Their bodies went numb, and their scalps prickled.
It was as if death itself had fallen from the sky.
"COME! LET ME KILL YOU!"
The screams didn't just shake the ship — they shook the very souls of those who heard them. Moria, who was in the command tower, flinched immediately.
"DAMN IT! Why did I have to run into Tiberion?!" he stammered, drenched in sweat.
Desperately, he grabbed the Den Den Mushi to contact Gion.
"Guh—!"
But he didn't even get a word out. A Marine was hurled through the air and slammed into his chest. Both of them were flung into the mast wall, and the Den Den Mushi fell to the floor, rolling across the wood.
"Hello...? What's going on?" Gion's voice came through the snail.
"WHY AREN'T YOU ANSWERING?!"
…
Amid the oppressive silence, the Den Den Mushi continued transmitting her voice — but no one could clearly hear her anymore.
Moria wasn't listening.
Or rather, he couldn't react. Sweat poured down his face like rivers, and his entire body trembled uncontrollably. He felt Tiberion's bloodlust piercing through him like needles.
Every cell in his body begged him not to move an inch.
And then…
Tiberion appeared.
Without making a sound, his body materialized in front of him. His spiked hair moved like flames in an invisible wind, and his eyes — red and locked in — had the gaze of a predator mid-hunt.
The only thing he wore was a loincloth tight around his waist, leaving the rest of his figure fully exposed.
And although Moria was a large man, in that instant, he felt like a mere ant.
Not even when he had faced Kaido did he feel such crushing pressure. This… this was different.
"G-Glup…"
His legs trembled.
Involuntarily, his mouth opened — he didn't know if to beg or to scream. But he knew that in his current state, he didn't stand a chance. He didn't think twice and used his shadow absorption ability.
A stream of darkness shot across the entire ship. The shadows of the five hundred fallen or unconscious Marines were absorbed as if the vessel itself were breathing.
One after another, they were devoured by Moria's open mouth.
And with each shadow, his body began to transform.
He grew — and kept growing.
His body expanded. His neck stretched and thickened grotesquely, his face twisted into a demonic expression, and his silhouette became more and more colossal.
Within seconds, he surpassed fifty meters in height.
"Kishishishi!" he laughed in a deeper, heavier voice. "You left me no choice! You forced me to use my final ability! There were exactly five hundred shadows on this ship… a perfect number!"
He raised his enormous fist toward the sky.
"With a single blow, I can destroy this ship! Or I can launch you like Kuma did!"
But in his excitement, Moria didn't realize what he was doing. He had absorbed incredible power, yes — but his sanity was crumbling.
Euphoria clouded his judgment. He had become arrogant.
And worst of all… he was underestimating Tiberion.
Tiberion smiled, not showing the slightest concern about his size.
His hair whipped wildly, his muscles vibrated with anticipation, and his aura surged.
"Jajajaja!" he laughed with savage intensity. "Your transformation… at least managed to stir a bit of excitement in me."
He knew exactly what that power meant.
In canon, Moria had absorbed a thousand shadows and, with that, attained strength said to be capable of destroying an island with a single punch. Now, with five hundred, his power shouldn't be far below that level. Enough for his blow to be considered a real threat.
And precisely because of that…
Tiberion clenched his fists.
This was the perfect moment to test the ability he had just mastered.
CRACK
The floorboards gave way instantly, splintering as if struck by a giant hammer, and in that same moment, his body exploded upward into the sky.
He soared more than a hundred meters with a single burst.
His silhouette tore through the air like a comet, and on his face, the wild smile still burned. He was enjoying every second. Every cell in his body buzzed with excitement.
As he ascended, his right arm began charging with energy. His veins bulged like pipes on the verge of bursting, and a wave of pressure expanded from his limb, distorting the air around it.
Without haste, he coated his entire arm with Armament Haki, and the dark tone clung to his skin like a second layer of flesh.
But that was only the beginning.
A burst of steam began to rise from his skin. The temperature climbed by the second, and the air crackled around him.
Then, with unwavering focus, he channeled every ounce of power into his fist. Every drop of Haki, every fragment of heat, every muscle fiber... all of it was concentrated into a single point.
Without uttering a word, his body descended.
Like a dark star wrapped in red tones and radiating a destructive aura, he fell straight toward Moria.
At first glance, it was just a punch.
But in that strike was everything.
Though he didn't use the Demon Back, the accumulated force exceeded sixty thousand tons.
Moria, completely unaware of the magnitude of what was coming, let out a crazed laugh.
"Kishishishi! Come here, monster!"
With that shout, he raised his right arm and clenched his fist tightly.
And then he struck.
BOOM
The two forces collided in midair, releasing a blast of power so dense that the sound seemed trapped within it for a split second.
For a moment, nothing felt real.
The sky darkened—not from clouds or smoke, but from the sheer distortion of space. The colors of the world seemed to shift.
But the clash didn't last more than three seconds.
And that was more than enough.
CRACK
The deck beneath Moria's feet gave way completely. The ship creaked as if it were made of cardboard. The weight of his own body, combined with the pressure of the blow, was unbearable.
And then, he felt it.
Terror.
It was as if an entire mountain had fallen on him. The force of the punch shot through him from his arms to his legs. The latter began to buckle, to tremble, to give in. They were on the verge of collapse.
And amid that agonizing scene, Tiberion's voice rang out.
"Je… You're not much. When you can fully absorb a thousand shadows, then we'll talk about a fair fight."
He said it without arrogance. Only with contempt.
And then, what seemed like the climax… was only the prelude.
Tiberion clenched his teeth, and on his face, the smile widened.
His aura erupted without restraint.
The air compressed around him. His eyes turned completely white, inhuman, as if reason had been replaced by violence.
His fist seemed to weigh more. Much more.
The veins in his arms bulged, pulsing with overwhelming force, as if they were about to burst.
This time, Moria had no way to resist.
His massive body hovered in the air for a second, like a balloon inflated beyond its limit… and finally, it collapsed.
Hundreds of shadows began pouring from his mouth, one after another, like souls being forcefully released.
And in the blink of an eye, his figure shrank.
His gigantic body, now reduced, crashed heavily onto the remnants of the deck. He barely managed to cling to a floating plank to keep from sinking. One of his arms hung limply to the side, completely unrecognizable.
And as if the scene needed a fitting conclusion, the ship gave way.
"CRACK!"
The creaking began deep within the structure and then burst upward. The entire vessel split in two, like a dry log. The wood splintered, the masts collapsed, and the sea — patient and silent — began to swallow everything.
[Congratulations to the host for his victory in combat. Interpretation percentage has increased by 1%.]
[Al attributes have increased by 1%.]
[Current total interpretation percentage is 57%.]
[For more details, please check your personal attribute panel.]
The system's voice echoed once more.
It wasn't a surprise, but it was confirmation. He had advanced again.
Some time ago, during his confrontation with Crocodile, an unexpected event had triggered an even deeper response within him.
Thanks to that masculine impulse, he had reached an unforeseen threshold. In that moment, something in his perception shattered and reorganized.
Now, he saw the world through different eyes.
Everything around him began to feel different. He no longer distinguished by simple categories. To his eyes, everyone was a woman. It didn't matter the gender, strength, or physical appearance.
This had caused a sudden leap in his interpretation, raising his purity percentage from an initial 51% to 56%.
And now, after the devastating victory over Moria, it increased by another 1%.
…
Elsewhere at sea…
Gion had changed course.
Something inside her screamed that Moria had fallen. She had no proof, but she felt it clearly. So, without wasting a second, she ordered a full-speed heading toward that area.
However, midway through the journey, her Den Den Mushi began to vibrate.
"V-Vice Admiral… Vice Admiral Momousagi…"
She frowned.
"Who's speaking? What's happening?"
"…"
A tense silence responded.
Then, another scream — more desperate.
"AHH… HELP US…!"
And then, nothing.
The line went dead.
Gion felt her heart stop for a second.
Her hand trembled. All the strength she had been holding onto until now crumbled.
________
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