The members of the Kid Pirates had never seen a technique like this before, and all of them froze in shock.
Boom.
A dull thud echoed from inside the Kurohitsugi. Kid was clearly trying to break out.
Unfortunately for him, this was Hadō No. 90. It wasn't something that could be broken so easily.
Just to cast it, Oguro had burned through nearly half of the spiritual pressure of a Vice Captain-level Shinigami.
No wonder anything in the nineties and above could only be used by Captain-class Shinigami.
With this kind of spiritual pressure consumption, most Shinigami would lose all combat ability after firing a single shot.
Kid's struggle only made the black coffin tremble twice before everything returned to silence.
A few tearing sounds followed.
The Kurohitsugi slowly dissolved, revealing Kid inside.
He collapsed on the ground. All the metal scraps he had gathered with his Devil Fruit ability were scattered everywhere.
More than ten blood holes were gushing across his body.
They were the shadow blades of Kurohitsugi—ever-present and utterly unstoppable.
Even though Kid had formed a massive metal giant using mountains of metal parts, in front of those shadow blades, he was as fragile as thin paper.
"Kid!"
Killer rushed over and caught his childhood friend.
But Kid's internal organs were almost completely pierced through.
Even the best doctor in the world wouldn't be able to save him now.
"Cough… cough… sorry, Killer. Looks like I won't be able to go search for the One Piece with you."
Kid's usually fierce face softened for once.
Killer bit down hard, fighting desperately not to cry.
Kid continued.
"Go home. Stop being a pirate. Think about it… even Gol D. Roger, the Pirate King, still died at the hands of the World Government."
"How long can we even enjoy our freedom? Even if we survive today, we'll just die under someone else's blade someday."
"That's what the sea is. It never runs out of new legends."
He had to admit, after brushing against death, Kid suddenly saw things far more clearly.
He wanted Killer to return home because he genuinely didn't want his friend to repeat his mistakes.
"…Alright." Killer answered in a muffled tone.
In his fading vision, Kid seemed to see a girl smiling as she walked toward him.
"Victoria…? You came to pick me up?"
He felt his body getting smaller and smaller until it became the size of his childhood self.
Victoria stood before him and gently took his hand.
"Kid, I've been waiting for you. Let's go."
"Okay."
The two left together, hand in hand, just like they did in the old days.
On the Victoria Punk, Kid's breath finally faded. A faint smile remained on his tragic face.
Killer stayed silent for a long time before giving the order to the crew.
"Set course for the South Blue."
He never cared much about the One Piece to begin with. He only followed because he wanted to see his best friend's dream fulfilled.
Now that Kid was gone, all he wanted was to return home and bury him properly.
The Victoria Punk slowly turned away, not sparing even a single glance at the nearby Sabaody Archipelago, and sailed off.
High above, Oguro watched silently as Killer and the others retreated.
The only one who had offended him was Kid. He had no intention of punishing the rest.
Of course, if Killer had tried something stupid a moment ago and attempted to avenge Kid, Oguro wouldn't have shown mercy either.
When he returned to the Desert Rose, the ship continued toward Sabaody, and Oguro found himself holding a Devil Fruit.
A gray fruit wrapped with a thin golden vine, its tip shaped like a lightning bolt.
Kid's Devil Fruit.
The Paramecia-type… Magnet-Magnet Fruit.
As Oguro expected, the Magnet-Magnet Fruit could be exchanged for a Golden Legendary Lottery Ticket.
"Well, no surprise there. It's basically the same ability as Magneto. If the One Piece world had deeper scientific understanding, this single fruit could destroy the world."
Oguro couldn't help sighing.
Look at Magneto. He could casually drag giant celestial bodies around with magnetism.
He could even alter atomic bonds, manipulating chemical structures and reshaping matter.
With Magneto's mastery, magnetism was practically close to a unified field theory.
The power to manipulate every force in the world.
Such a high-level ability… and Kid used it like some Knockoff Gundam.
A complete waste.
Holding the fruit, Oguro felt a little tempted.
Who hadn't fantasized about flipping their hand and shaking the sun, moon, and stars?
If he ate this fruit, he could actually do it.
But the weakness to water was truly fatal.
Oguro hesitated.
"If not me… I could let Franky eat it. For a scientist, this kind of power is a dream come true."
The Magnet-Magnet Fruit was far too practical.
Using it just to summon one Captain-level Shinigami felt like a waste.
Ding.
The system suddenly chimed.
"The host may spend 100,000 Achievement Points to temporarily obtain the Soul King Authority: Soul Creation. This allows the host to modify the Devil Fruit's demon soul and remove its side effects."
Soul King Authority?
Oguro sat up instantly.
"I'm the Soul King. Why do I need to spend Achievement Points to use the Soul King's authority?"
The system replied bluntly.
"Although the host possesses the identity of the Soul King, you do not possess the Soul King's complete power. Naturally, you cannot wield the full authority yet."
There was no proof, but Oguro felt heavily insulted.
"100,000 points… that's expensive!"
He clicked his tongue.
He had been saving for months and finally reached almost 100,000.
He had planned to summon a Captain-class Shinigami.
But now the system wanted to empty his wallet in one go.
Oguro fell into deep frustration.
Should he choose a top-tier summon… or a fruit with unlimited potential?
After a long moment, he let out a roar.
"Damn it! I'll do it! No matter how strong your subordinates are, they can't beat being strong yourself!"
Oguro made up his mind.
He would eat the Magnet-Magnet Fruit.
Not because he could become the most dramatic man in the One Piece world.
But because the potential of this fruit was too great to ignore.
He put the Magnet-Magnet Fruit away for now.
He still needed a few more days to finish gathering the 100,000 points.
A few days on Sabaody should do the trick.
One day later, the Desert Rose arrived at the Sabaody Archipelago.
"It's beautiful!" the girls exclaimed.
The so-called Sabaody Archipelago was actually made up of the roots of the gigantic Yarukiman Mangrove trees.
Each tree was an island, and the roots constantly released bubbles, creating Sabaody's signature view.
The Desert Rose docked at Grove 44.
It was the civilian landing zone and fairly safe.
Zones 1–29 were all lawless, filled with pirates and criminals.
The slave traders Oguro planned to wipe out were mostly concentrated around Grove 1.
***
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