Moonfang Isle
The Crimson Raiju sliced through the water like a bloodstained ghost, its crimson sails catching the eerie moonlight as it glided toward the jagged cliffs of Moonfang Isle.
The crescent-shaped harbor was protected by the steep cliffs, veins of raw gold glittering in the stone like veins of power buried deep within the earth.
[System Notification: Island Discovered – Moonfang Isle]
[Treasure Vein Detected | Vault Construction Available]
[Base Status: Registered as Crew Stronghold]
Kael D. Raen stepped ashore, the scent of mist, salt, and opportunity thick in his lungs. His obsidian horns gleamed under the pale light, casting an imposing figure against the rugged beauty of the island.
"This is ours now," he declared, sounding like distant thunder.
Yamato cracked her neck, stepping forward with her signature grin. "Finally. A place to train without some idiot Marine interrupting."
Smoothie stretched, smirking. " Let's go find the treasure, then we can have our duel, Yamato."
Carmen, their sharp-tongued cook, arrived, hauling crates of spices on one shoulder. "And a kitchen with an actual roof. Praise the sea."
Behind her, Richie, the massive battle lion, let out a low growl. His purple mane rippled as the lion padded to Kael's side. Kael grinned at the sight of his new crewmates, his pride and joy.
"Alright," Kael said, turning toward the island's heart, "let's claim what was left buried."
Elsewhere on the sea
Onigashima, Wano Country
Kaido smashed his bottle of sake, his eyes narrowing as he looked at the spy's report. Rage surged through him as he reviewed a picture of Yamato and Kael, side by side, holding hands like a couple. There was tension there, something more than just battle-hardened comrades, something that pulled at his very core.
His roar cracked the stone walls around him, filling the throne room with the thunderous sound of an overprotective father. Jack, your mission is to bring my daughter back home. Offer that brat an opportunity to sail under our flag if he refuses, you are to deliver the brat to me.
Totto Land
Big Mom let out a hearty laugh, her booming voice ringing through the room. "Ma-ma! Smoothie found an Oni-buccaneer hybrid. I might just forgive her for leaving if she can give me a few grandchildren with that Kael boy."
Katakuri, her eldest son, looked at her with an unreadable expression. "Mama, what should we do about Smoothie? Should we force her back home or send assassins?"
Big Mom shook her head, her grin widening. "For now, we will send Pekoms and Tamagoto to watch their little crew's growth. As long as they don't get in our way, we won't bother them. Smoothie has always been one of my smartest daughters. If she's with him, either she finds something interesting in the boy, or she loses a duel and joins him. Either way, we'll wait until they reach the New World."
She paused, her eyes narrowing slightly. "Maybe we can try to find you a nice giantess girl from Elbaf, Katakuri."
Moonfang Isle — The Vault
Kael and his crew followed the system-generated treasure map deep into the island's heart. They trekked through dense jungle, past ancient trees and vines, their path winding down into the depths of the island. Soon, they arrived at a decaying stone path spiraling down into the earth. The sound of dripping water echoed off the walls, and ancient chains and talismans barred a massive vault door.
The name carved into the arch:
" The Vault of the Forgotten Serpents"
Kael grinned. "This is our kind of trouble."
The tunnels tested them with traps, spear points shooting from the walls, collapsing floors beneath their feet, and venomous mist hanging in the air. Yet, with each challenge, the crew only grew bolder.
Yamato's kanabō shattered a wall of spikes.
Smoothie's great blade bisected a falling slab with liquid grace.
When a six-headed hydra lunged from the shadows, scales dull gold and fangs dripping toxin, Kael's grin turned feral.
"Mine!"
[Hebi Hebi no Mi — Kuraokami Zoan Form: Engaged]
His storm-serpent form burst forth, mercury-like scales flashing in the gloom, wings of mist unfurling.
"Thunder Pulse."
A torrent of storm lightning tore through the hydra's throats, leaving smoking, blood-slick ruin. Richie, the massive battle lion, pounced, finishing off a severed head with a bone-crunching bite.
Carmen whistled.
"Damn, I'm on a ship of monsters."
As they made their way deeper into the chamber, they noticed the walls were lined with Devil Fruit-shaped carvings. Yamato and Smoothie both reached for a glowing pedestal at once, as their hands collided.
"Back off, juice girl," Yamato snapped.
"Not happening, Oni princess."Smoothie grinned.
Tension crackled like flint on steel.
"You think you can beat me?" Yamato grinned.
Smoothie smirked. "I think you should stay in your lane."
"I know I can."
In a heartbeat, kanabō met Greatblade, the shockwave rattling the vault walls. For minutes, they clashed thunder and steel, flame and mist. Carmen ducked behind Richie, grinning.
Kael didn't intervene.
This was necessary.
When the dust settled, both women stood bruised and bloodied, panting, grinning like devils.
"I'll admit it," Smoothie panted. "You hit harder than you look."
"Same to you," Yamato smirked. "Next time, no holding back."
They bumped fists, a bond forged through violence.
Kael chuckled.
"I guess they're my Zoro and Sanji."
The Mythical Zoan Discovery
At the vault's heart, atop a stone altar, lay a single Devil Fruit. With deep violet, shaped like a coiled serpent with crimson sigils.
Item Acquired: [Inu Inu no Mi, Model: Raiju]Mythical Zoan: Raijin's Thunder Wolf Abilities: Wolf Hybrid and Full Form, Lightning Devour, Stormstep, Thunder Howl, Shockwave
Yamato's eyes gleamed. "That's Wano myth. A storm wolf that ran with Raijin himself."
Smoothie licked her lips. "Powerful enough to shatter islands in the New World."
Kael turned the fruit over in his hands. For a moment, temptation gnawed at him. A second Mythical Zoan. A storm wolf and a serpent together. But then, he looked at his crew. Individuals might shine, but it's the strength of the whole crew that turns tides and carves out legends.
"…This one's not for me," he said quietly. "It belongs to the one strong enough to claim it."
Yamato's brow raised. Smoothie went still.
Kael smirked. "When we find our next real crewmate or someone worthy, it's theirs."
The fruit vanished into his system storage.
At that moment, the system chimed, informing Kael that he and his crewmembers could have a total of two Devil Furits.
Kael looked at Yamato and Smoothie. "Whoever wins the next duel between you two will get this new Devil Fruit."
The other spoils from the vault were "Gold, relics, a Supreme Grade blueprint wrapped in faded silk, the broken hilt of a sword that once split skies, a poneglyph pulsing with secrets buried at the center, a crystal sphere, and vibrating softly... the very core of a tempest."
Cipher Pol Ambush
System rewards: Mythical Zoan-type Inu Inu no Mi, Model: Fenrir, Logia Mori Mori no Mi, Chuubou Chuubou no Mi, Random Ship Upgrade, and an Advanced Haki Manual.
Before Kael could check the reward information, the shadows around them moved.
Figures dressed in white suits and masks appeared from the darkness, Cipher Pol agents.
"Target confirmed. Priority: the treasures from the Vault of the Forgotten Serpents."
A dozen agents, faces masked, weapons gleaming.
Kael's eyes narrowed, storm mist curling from his lips.
"We are not giving up our treasure, you damn dogs!"
Yamato's kanabō cracked the earth.
"Finally. Real prey."
Smoothie unsheathed her wringer blade.
"Been a while since I broke government bones."
Carmen darted behind a pillar, hurling a kitchen knife that lodged itself clean through an agent's throat.
Richie leaped, claws tearing through a Cipher Pol gunman.
"Storm Pulse."
Kael's blast vaporized three agents in an instant.
The fight was brutal. The narrow tunnels amplified every strike. Yamato's thunder-infused swings sent agents crashing into walls. Smoothie's tidal strikes drowned them in bursts of crushing water pressure. Kael, in his Kuraokami form, moved like a storm made flesh, with claws, lightning, and fangs.
When the last agent fell, Kael stood over him, rain of mist hissing from his body.
Meanwhile — Marineford: Fleet Admiral Sengoku's Office
Sengoku slammed a stack of bounty papers onto his desk.
"Your grandsons are driving me insane."
Garp grinned like an unapologetic old bastard.
"Which one?"
"Luffy's causing riots in Loguetown. Ace is tearing through the New World. And now Kael, the one you swore was the quiet one, has two Yonko's daughters, one from Big Mom's crew, and the other is Kiado's daughter under his flag."
Garp chuckled. "Well, I always said the D family throws wild reunions."
Sengoku glared. "You didn't think to mention he's a Buccaneer-Oni hybrid? Those three grandsons of yours could've been future Marine admirals if you had raised them better, Grap!" Sengoku's scream of unbridled anger shook his office as he glared at his best friend.
Garp fell silent, looking out the window.
"…Kael was always big on family," the old man finally said. "It's what kept him from turning into a monster. Frankly, I'm surprised he didn't go berserk when Luffy left Dawn Island."
Sengoku's frown deepened. "And what happens if he does?"
Garp's smile faded.
"Then the world will face a storm on par with the likes of Rocks or Roger."
Sengoku let out a sigh, then asked," So we have a mini Whitebared in the making?"
Garp let out a low laugh," That grandson of mine is the only one of my grandkids to practice my fist techniques and swordsmanship.
Sengoku:" What type of monster did you create, Garp!"
Garp took a long sip of Sengoku's aged whiskey before responding, " The boy is not a monster, I raised him to do something that I can't do. To protect our family, something I can't do as a Marine. I always taught those boys to do what they see is right."