Vice Admirals Garp and Sengoku were currently leading several warships on a mission to capture the World Pirates. Under direct orders from Fleet Admiral Kong, the two were heading toward a specific island without public complaint—though internally, both were simmering with frustration.
The source of their irritation was simple: their orders explicitly commanded them to cooperate with a pirate alliance to secure Byrnndi World's capture.
"We should be more than enough to take World down on our own," Garp grumbled, leaning against the railing of the lead warship. "What the hell is Kong thinking?"
"You know how troublesome his ability is," Sengoku replied, adjusting his glasses. "His actions are causing direct damage to the World Government's interests. We cannot leave him unchecked... even if working with pirates leaves a foul taste in my mouth."
"Direct damage to the Government, huh?" Garp scoffed.
If that was the only metric, they should have done the same for Kanata. Then again, she had declared war so exclusively on the Government that no pirate in their right mind would have dared to stand beside her at the time.
Garp watched the fresh recruits scurrying across the deck, his expression souring further. "I hear Zephyr is starting to settle into his role as an instructor."
"Yes. After what happened to him, it wouldn't have been a surprise if he'd left the Marines entirely. I'm glad he stayed, even if he's moved to the rear."
"The Navy hasn't been able to train new recruits fast enough since the God Valley Incident," Garp noted. "His help is a godsend, frankly."
The era of Rocks D. Xebec had been a meat grinder. Throughout that era, pirates who had essentially become Rocks' personal army clashed head-on with the Marines across the globe. The sea had been filled with the corpses of pirates and Marines alike. Many officers—commanders, captains, and even the Admirals of that time—had fallen in those battles.
While a handful of monsters like Garp and Sengoku had survived, the Navy was still reeling from the loss of its middle and upper ranks. Meanwhile, the remnants of the Rocks Pirates—Shiki, Big Mom, and Whitebeard—had all gathered their own crews and were carving out massive territories. Even Roger, who had fought alongside Garp against Rocks, was still out there, stronger than ever.
The truth was simple: there were too many pirates and not enough Marines.
"I heard there's a new recruit with a Natural Logia on this ship," Garp said. "Zephyr mentioned he has high hopes for him."
"Hoh? A new generation starting to sprout, then? I look forward to seeing what he can do."
As they spoke, the recruit in question arrived to deliver a report. He was a tall man with a sharp buzz cut and a disciplined air. He stood at attention, saluting with crisp precision.
"Reporting, sir! We have reached a position where the target island is visible. Awaiting further orders!"
"Good work," Garp said.
"Maintain our current distance," Sengoku ordered. "We wait for the pirates to make their move. We strike only after the chaos begins."
Despite the "cooperation" agreement, neither Garp nor Sengoku had any intention of actually fighting alongside the pirates. It was better to act independently; their styles were incompatible anyway.
Garp picked up a pair of binoculars to see who exactly was in this "Alliance." He scanned the pirate ships anchored near the island, only to freeze. He lowered the binoculars, rubbed his eyes, and looked again.
"Wait, wait, wait... what the hell is she doing there?! She doesn't have a grudge against the World Pirates!"
"Who? Who did you see?" Sengoku asked, taking the binoculars from Garp's hand.
He focused on a massive ship without a pirate flag. On the deck stood a figure that was impossible to miss: a giant woman with purple hair.
"The Giant Shadow...!" Sengoku whispered. "Does that mean the Witch is here too?!"
"We aren't enemies today, technically," Garp muttered, "but what the hell is she thinking?"
There was no recorded history of conflict between Byrnndi World and Kanata. If they had clashed, the Navy's intelligence network would have flagged it instantly. Kanata's presence was an unpredictable variable—and Garp's gut was telling him that this was about to become a disaster.
***
Kanata stood on the deck of her ship, observing the ragtag "Pirate Alliance" she had joined. As she spotted the Navy warships on the horizon, her eyes narrowed.
This is a setup, she realized.
Most pirates don't have back channels to the Navy. This meant the captain who had organized this alliance was either a Marine informant or a puppet of the World Government. Their goal was clearly to capture World, but what came after was a mystery. They might turn on the rest of the alliance once the "World Destroyer" was in chains.
Kanata had no intention of being a puppet.
"The island where the World Pirates are staying is dead ahead," George said. "What's the play?"
"We wait," Kanata replied.
The pirates gathered here weren't impressive. Most were rookies or crews that had already been broken by Byrnndi World once before. They were useful only as a distraction.
If World proved worthy, she would rescue him from the Navy and offer him an alliance. If he didn't, she would take his ability for her own crew, even if she had to go through Garp and Sengoku to do it.
"We have to be a little arrogant today," she noted. "Facing those two Vice Admirals is going to be a massive drain as it is."
"Junxi is practically vibrating with excitement," Scotch added, exhaling a cloud of smoke. "But that's nothing new."
The weather was clear, but Kanata sensed the tension in the air. World wasn't a fool; he undoubtedly knew they were coming.
She extended her Observation Haki. She felt one powerful presence and several moderate ones. It was a threat, but not one that made her hair stand on end.
"Watch the cannons," Kanata warned. "World will likely strike first."
The Pirate Alliance ships moved to surround the island, unleashing a coordinated volley. The roar of cannon fire filled the sea, followed by the screams of the dying.
Byrnndi World lived up to his title. Using his More-More Fruit, he amplified the size and speed of his own cannonballs, turning a standard volley into a rain of meteors that obliterated the alliance ships. Even the Navy warships were forced onto the defensive.
The tide of the battle shifted abruptly an hour later.
"The fire stopped?" George blinked. "What happened?"
The relentless bombardment from World's flagship had ceased. Kanata looked through her binoculars. On the deck of the enemy ship, she saw a man—presumably World—being held at gunpoint by his own crew.
"A betrayal?" Kanata mused. "In the middle of a siege? Someone got to them."
"A mutiny?" George asked. "What's World doing?"
"He's been shot, but it isn't fatal yet. He's slaughtering the traitors with his own hands... but his crew is finished."
Whether she wanted World himself or just his Devil Fruit, she couldn't secure either from this distance. She had to board the ship.
"I'm going over," Kanata said, handing her binoculars to Scotch. "I'm going to provide some cover."
She extended her hand toward the sky. Thick, dark clouds began to swirl, and the temperature plummeted. Within seconds, a heavy snowfall began to mask the sea.
"The way you just change the weather like that... it's terrifying," Scotch muttered.
"It's only temporary," Kanata replied.
Leaving the ship's command to Dragon, Kanata stepped onto the surface of the water. She sprinted toward World's ship, her footsteps silent on the waves.
She reached the hull and vaulted onto the deck just in time to see a group of men in black suits confronting World.
"You... you're Cipher Pol?!" World roared.
"Cipher Pol?" one of his men blinked. "What's that?"
"The World Government's intelligence agency," World spat. "I can't believe I let you into my crew..."
"We've enjoyed our time as your 'comrades,'" the CP agent said coldly. "But our mission is complete. This is the end for you."
Kanata didn't wait for them to finish. She blurred into motion.
Ice spears erupted from the deck, pinning the CP agents where they stood. Those who weren't impaled were instantly frozen or had their necks snapped by Kanata's blinding strikes. One agent tried to fight back using Six Powers and Haki, but Kanata dismantled his defense in seconds, leaving the entire unit dead on the deck.
They were masters of infiltration, but their direct combat strength was nothing compared to a true monster of the New World.
Kanata stood over the wounded giant, Byrnndi World, and looked down at him.
"You're Byrnndi World, I assume?"
World coughed up blood. Beside him, a frail, elderly man on an IV looked up in shock. This was Byojack, the brains of the World Pirates.
"The Dragon-Slaying Witch...!" Byojack gasped. "A 1.5-billion-berry bounty... what do you want with us?"
World glared at her, his body riddled with bullet wounds from the betrayal. "You here for my head too?!"
"If I wanted fame, I wouldn't hunt a 200-million-berry man," Kanata said. "I came here to offer an alliance against the Golden Lion. But looking at you now..."
"Hah... you're here to laugh at the man who was sold out by his own crew?"
He was in worse shape than she had thought. The bullet wounds were deep, but the psychological blow of the betrayal seemed to be the real poison. Still, a few loyal crew members remained at his side.
"Do you still have the will to fight Shiki?" Kanata asked.
"What does it matter?" World spat. "I'm about to die anyway."
"Join me," Kanata offered. "I'll handle your medical treatment. I can keep Garp and Sengoku off your back. But in exchange, you and your survivors work for me. The choice is yours."
World looked at his brother, Byojack, and then at the few subordinates who hadn't betrayed him. He looked back at Kanata, his eyes burning with pride.
He forced himself to his feet. "Don't look down on me! I'm not bowing my head to anyone just to stay alive!!"
"I see," Kanata said, her expression softening into a cold respect. "Then I will honor your resolve."
World and his two loyal officers—the shipwright Gairam and the doctor Nightin—prepared for a final stand. Kanata leveled a spear of ice, treating them with the dignity due to warriors facing their end.
"Byrnndi World... I shall take your heart."
"Try it if you can! The Byrnndi brothers don't end in a place like this!!"
World was a user of the More-More Fruit, capable of amplifying the size and speed of anything he touched. He crouched low, coating his entire body in Armament Haki, and triggered a 100-fold speed increase.
He moved faster than the human eye could follow. Even for Garp or Sengoku, this speed would be a nightmare. But Kanata didn't move. She stood in a natural stance, her Observation Haki focused into a single point.
"Die!!"
"Amateur."
The clash was instantaneous. World's speed was legendary, but he couldn't bypass Kanata's foresight. She met his rush with a counter-thrust that pierced his heart with surgical precision.
Kanata stepped back as blood sprayed across the deck.
"W-World...!" Byojack screamed.
Even with a hole in his chest, World's legs didn't give out. He grabbed the spear, his hands trembling as he poured every ounce of his remaining Haki into his fist. He was determined to take her with him.
"A 1.5-billion-berry bounty... it wasn't for show," World wheezed. "But I'm not dying alone!!"
He launched a final punch. At this range, there was no dodging. But Kanata didn't try to move. She met his fist with her own Haki-clad palm, stopping the blow dead.
World's Haki shattered against hers. Kanata let go of the spear and looked him in the eye.
"You had the spirit," she said. "But you lacked the depth. Still, I acknowledge your will."
With a swift motion, she manifested a blade of ice and took his head before he could suffer another second.
"A waste of a good man," Kanata whispered.
He would have been a perfect ally against Shiki. Now, she would have to find another way. At the very least, she had secured a powerful Devil Fruit for her collection.
"You monster! You killed the Captain!!" Gairam roared, charging her.
"I'll kill you myself!!" Nightin screamed, lunging from the side.
Gairam used his powers to compress the air into cubes, hurling them at her with a hammer, while Nightin attacked with her specialized martial arts. They were loyal to the end, but they were no match for her. Kanata cut them both down without a word.
Finally, she turned toward a giant shadow that lunged from behind—the Wotan (Giant-Fishman hybrid), Sebastian. He swung a massive fist infused with Fish-Man Karate, a blow that would have leveled a building.
Kanata didn't even turn around. She unleashed a wave of frost that froze the hybrid solid in mid-air.
She walked over to the final survivor: Byojack.
"And what about you?" she asked.
"I... I only sailed because of World," the old man said, looking at his brother's body. "A sea without him... I have no interest in it."
"I understand."
Byojack and World had started with nothing, dreaming of reaching the end of the world together. They had destroyed everything in their path, earning the title of "World Destroyers," but it was all built on the bond between brothers.
"We made too many enemies," Byojack whispered. "That was our downfall. Be careful, Witch. Don't let the same thing happen to you."
"I'll take that to heart."
Kanata delivered the final mercy.
On that day, one of the most feared pirate crews in the New World was erased from history.
***
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