If all they managed to snag from this God Valley war was just some gold and silver treasures, that clearly wouldn't meet Captain Rocks' expectations. They could already picture Rocks exploding in rage—who the hell dared to pull a fast one right under the noses of two overlord pirate crews?
The Rocks Pirates and the Hell Pirates had busted their asses fighting the Navy head-on, only for the most valuable spoils to get swiped out from under them. How were they supposed to swallow that?
"Do those fleeing Celestial Dragons really not have any Devil Fruits on them?"
Skal stared blankly at Captain John and Silver Axe, who had been chasing down the Celestial Dragons. He suspected these guys had pocketed the precious top-tier Devil Fruits for themselves!
After all, if they grabbed the best Devil Fruits, Skal would get first pick, putting him on par with the Redfield and Whitebeard—or maybe even stronger!
And now they were telling him they got zilch?
What was the point of him nearly losing an arm storming God Valley, then?
Just to haul back some loot?
"Skal, those guys really don't have any. The Celestial Dragons said they got knocked out right in front of their treasure rooms, and the Devil Fruits are long gone!"
Captain John hurried to explain. Sure, he'd loaded up his own pirate ship with plenty of treasures, but he honestly hadn't scored any Devil Fruits. No way was he taking the fall for this!
"Maybe the one fighting Captain Rocks is the thief. Hurry and go help him out, Skal!"
Miss Buckin chimed in quickly. She didn't want Skal sniffing around her personal pirate ship—she'd skimmed off quite a few rare gems, and if they got spotted, they'd probably end up confiscated and divvied out by Rocks!
Skal knew exactly what kind of scum these officers were—greedy bastards, every last one. He'd deal with them later when they got back. For now, the priority was finishing the mission and recovering those top-tier Devil Fruits!
"Everyone, focus on hunting down the Devil Fruits first, or Rocks' wrath is something none of you can handle!"
After barking that order, Skal headed off toward the battlefield where Rocks was fighting. His departure left Captain John and Miss Buckin breathing a sigh of relief!
Deep down, Captain John was actually cursing Rocks to die right there. That way, he could sail off with all that gold and silver treasure and start his own crew again!
The thought of having to hand over more than half of the loot he'd worked so hard for made his heart ache!
"Quit spacing out—go grab more Celestial Dragons! I refuse to believe every single one of their Devil Fruits got stolen!"
Miss Buckin wanted a top-tier Devil Fruit for herself too. If they scored some this time, with her seniority and how much Rocks valued her, she'd definitely get one allocated!
Even if there wasn't a suitable one this round, Captain Rocks would snag a Devil Fruit ability for her eventually!
The Rocks Pirates' officers scattered immediately, taking advantage of the Hell Pirates clashing with the Navy to loot everything in sight. If Golden Lion Shiki got involved, there'd be nothing left—just look at those palaces floating in the sky!
...
Meanwhile, on the Golden Island, Parrot, Bra Kara, and Tenmoku were still trembling a bit from the massive haul on their backs—a mix of excitement and nerves they couldn't shake!
This loot had completely shattered their worldview. What did it mean to be world nobles? Gods among men? The pinnacle of power controlling the World Government!
Even Stussy was breathing heavily and rapidly!
Big Bro Brook was smart not to check out the haul before heading into battle. If he'd seen these treasures first, he'd probably be too distracted thinking about them to fight properly—or he'd just want to bolt back to the sky island!
"You three, snap out of it for me! Don't you dare pass out!" Stussy's voice trembled a little. Screw being the financial overseer for a New World overlord—in front of these Celestial Dragons, she was just a beggar!
She casually kicked aside a head-sized pure sapphire to prop up her foot, wiping a smudge off her red high heels. Then, with a grin, she smashed a massive night-luminescent pearl with one slap, turning it into glowing powder that she sprinkled into the air, cheering!
"From now on, my toilet's gonna be sculpted entirely from gems. No objections, right?"
Stussy covered her mouth and laughed, nearly climaxing at the sight of those treasure chests stacked like a small mountain—thirty or forty boxes of Devil Fruits. And if the Celestial Dragons collected them, they couldn't be junk, right?
The Hell Pirates were about to skyrocket from this!
She picked up a black dagger encrusted with gems—a famous blade from the same series as the Supreme Grade Sword, Black Blade Yoru. It was a legendary weapon that had evolved into a black blade!
Sure, it wasn't listed among the Twelve Supreme Grade Swords, but its quality was every bit as good!
The four main fighters already had their weapons, and now she finally had a handy black blade dagger of her own. She slipped on a blue necklace called 'Mermaid's Tear' and skipped over to a mirror with a beaming smile. She was thrilled—both worth over a hundred million Belly!
"We should wait for Brook to get back before opening those Devil Fruit chests!"
Stussy said, feeling like she wasn't in the right headspace for fighting. She'd stay on Golden Island to watch the battle, though honestly, she just wanted to grab the treasure and hightail it back to Balon Island.
Brook's appetite was huge, but damn, she loved it!
After snagging the lion's share, they were still going to compete with the Rocks Pirates for the rest of the gold and silver loot. Shiki had even floated up some palaces—this time, they were really going to strike it rich!
Her eyes suddenly landed on the tallest Celestial Dragon palace. Instinct told her a high-end place like that had to have good stuff, but it was close to where Rocks was fighting, so it could be dangerous!
Still, the itch of seeing treasure and not being able to grab it was unbearable!
She glanced at Parrot and Tenmoku—nah, better not complicate things!
She'd leave that one for Brook to handle, but she could remind him about it!
...
On the front lines where the Hell Pirates clashed with the Navy.
Screams and roars of fury echoed nonstop. Every agonized wail from a Celestial Dragon stabbed deep into the hearts of the Navy and CP agents. Today, the lofty world nobles were being slaughtered by the Hell Pirates' crew!
"Urorororo, you worthless scum! What gives you the right to make so many countries fight tooth and nail just to hand over Heavenly Tribute to you!"
Beast Kaido's eyes burned red as he recalled his parents dying in war when he was seven, forcing him to enlist at eight and fight in a pointless battle!
Heavenly Tribute, Celestial Dragons—those were the words he hated most in his ears!
"This is war! Can you feel this despair?!!"
Kaido hoisted up a Celestial Dragon in each hand, his feral beast-like glare scaring them so badly they soiled themselves, terror robbing them of speech!
Kaido had seen his parents' mangled corpses. After enlisting as a child soldier, every charge left nine out of ten comrades dead, bodies strewn everywhere. Deep down, he'd dreamed of building a peaceful world!
If they wiped out the Celestial Dragons, there'd be no more Heavenly Tribute, no more endless, senseless wars!
"Answer me! Celestial Dragon, do you like war?!!!"
Beast Kaido panted in fury, nostrils flaring with white mist, his scarlet eyes narrowing sharply as he glared at the one in his grip. A massive aura erupted from him!!
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Fanfic is finished 955 chapters in total on p@treon/tambeerg