April 30, 1504, Age of the Sea Circle
Two weeks after Orion's encounter with T Bone, on an island in the North Blue, a small boy was reading with intense concentration an ancient book in which various methods for creating all kinds of medicines were recorded.
"Oh, as expected from a nation specialized in medicine, the information in their libraries is truly useful," the boy murmured, amazed by the vast amount of knowledge he was absorbing as he read through the books he had found in the national library of this renowned island.
With some difficulty, the child raised his hand, and, trembling, turned the page to continue reading. Due to his innately weak body, he had been chronically ill with several rather aggressive diseases.
Even so, almost as if it were an absurd miracle, he had managed to survive simply because his illnesses canceled each other out. His body was so overwhelmed by different diseases that none of them could advance over the others, forming a strange balance that kept him alive, although each passing day was torture for him, since the symptoms of several of those diseases still lingered within him.
As the years went by, and seeing that his health remained just as fragile, the boy abandoned his homeland in search of a cure. Visiting every doctor he could find, he begged for knowledge on some occasions, while in others he simply stole it after killing the doctors.
In his pursuit of a cure for his frail, disease-ridden body, the boy was willing to do whatever was necessary, and felt no restraint from something as useless as morality or compassion.
Despite having accumulated medical knowledge for years, to the point where he could already be considered a competent doctor in this world, he had found no solution for his fragile body, and matters had intensified even further two years ago, when, at only ten years old, he found and consumed a Devil Fruit in the hope of curing himself: the Shiku Shiku no Mi (Sick Sick Fruit).
This mysterious Devil Fruit was capable of creating and controlling diseases, so the boy had hoped that by eating it, he would finally be able to solve his health problems simply by eliminating his own illnesses with his newfound powers.
Unfortunately, the powers of the Shiku Shiku no Mi did not work that way, and after consuming it, not only was he not cured, but all the diseases he already possessed were further amplified.
Even so, curiously, he became immune to his own diseases, no longer experiencing many of the symptoms he previously suffered from, although it was not entirely beneficial, as his body became even weaker as a side effect.
Now, he was practically a walking bomb of diseases, a kind of zombie that could not be affected by any ailment, and even his stamina and physical endurance had increased, despite always remaining in a constant state of weakness.
For him, this state in which he was practically a living zombie was not pleasant at all, as he had longed to live fully with a healthy and perfect body for as long as he could remember, and it was precisely for that reason that his efforts to gather and learn medical knowledge had increased even further after consuming his Devil Fruit.
However, he no longer used gentle methods, and instead destroyed everything in his path like a god of death, bringing pestilence to the cities he visited and stealing all the knowledge he could obtain.
Thus had he lived for the past few years, and now he had finally arrived at the city renowned throughout the North Blue as the most advanced in medicine.
"Bang!"
Suddenly, one of the corpses blocking the library door fell to the ground with a loud crash, and someone entered the premises, looking around with a hint of trepidation.
Doc Q, who had been reading his book with great interest, lifted his gaze to observe the newcomer—a skinny boy who looked as though a strong gust of wind could knock him over—and who bore a sickly expression similar to his own.
Absalom, who had just arrived at the library while searching for survivors as ordered by his captain Moria, trembled slightly upon witnessing the horrifying scene before him. A child was sitting on the floor reading a book, while around him were piles of corpses stacked high, decomposing and emitting a nauseating stench.
"Y-You, w-who are you?" Absalom asked in an extremely soft voice, which caused Doc Q to show a brief expression of surprise before lowering his gaze toward his groin.
"Interesting, he has undergone castration, which has resulted in lower testosterone levels and consequently affected the strength of his voice," the small boy analyzed with a clinical gaze, viewing Absalom more as a case study than as a person.
"Mmm, moreover, his body is also incredibly weak, very similar to my condition before consuming the Shiku Shiku no Mi… Perhaps I could use him as a test subject, I have a few theories I would like to try…" the grim child continued, paying no mind to the terrified expression on Absalom's face.
Doc Q heavily closed the book he had been holding and stood up with some difficulty. His frail body made his movements slow and clumsy, though he was rarely in danger because of it, as he could incapacitate anyone with his pathogens.
Furthermore, even if he were truly struck by a bullet or some other attack from an enemy, his body possessed a level of resistance that bordered on the absurd. Despite his weakness, he was almost indestructible like a zombie, and if he were ever to achieve his goal of freeing himself from his innate frailty, he would become a truly terrifying existence on a global scale.
Absalom saw the terrifying child stand up and begin walking toward him while slowly raising a hand, and every hair on his body stood on end. He wanted to run away from there immediately, but the terror he was feeling caused his legs to give out, and he fell to the ground in a seated position, while urine began to spill from the place where his manhood had once been, and which was now a horrifying mess.
Truth be told, after being castrated by Yukimura, Absalom had been rescued by Moria, but without the presence of an elite doctor like Hogback to treat him, his recovery had been impossible, and his life had turned into a living nightmare.
Although he had received medical attention to stabilize his wounds—Moria had taken him to a fairly competent doctor—the results of the treatment had not been very good, and he suffered from tremendous daily pain that forced him to remain constantly anesthetized just to avoid losing his sanity.
Moreover, it was impossible for him to control his urination, which had forced him to adopt the humiliating practice of wearing a diaper twenty-four hours a day.
"Stay away from me, m-monster!" Absalom shouted with his soft voice, just as Doc Q placed his hand over his face and began filling his body with all kinds of pathogens.
"AAAAAAAGH!" Absalom began to scream in agony, and his voice had returned to normal, though he lacked the presence of mind to notice it at that moment.
"Interesting, so it is possible to use this pathogen on the adrenal glands to alter hormone levels and restore his natural voice…"
Within the dark library filled with rotting corpses, a horrifying scene was unfolding, with the small, somber child using the unfortunate Absalom as a guinea pig to practically test some of his theories based on the medical knowledge he had acquired in the past few days of study.
"Would it be possible to induce in him a state similar to mine? After all, we share certain similarities in our base anatomy…" Doc Q continued murmuring, as he increased the amount of pathogens he was introducing into Absalom's body.
Little by little, the unfortunate pirate's body became filled with all kinds of diseases, until it finally reached a perfect equilibrium, just as Doc Q had planned. At that moment, it could be said that Absalom had become the most diseased person in the world—second only to Doc Q himself—and his body now displayed the zombie-like characteristics that were unique to Doc Q.
"Incredible, I didn't expect this to be possible. I thought he would break before reaching equilibrium…" said Doc Q, marveling at his work, as his lifeless eyes faintly lit up with interest.
From this experiment, he had obtained extremely valuable information for his future feats, and that put him in a very good mood. Even so, that did not mean he intended to spare Absalom's life, because now that he had fulfilled his usefulness as a test subject, it was time to discard him.
"I hope that in your next life you are reincarnated into a better body," the small child said with a somber smile, creating an image that was incredibly bizarre, though there was no one present to witness it.
Doc Q extended his hand with the intention of eliminating the unconscious Absalom, but at that very moment, a wall of shadow rose up in the area, preventing the child from touching him. Then, the shadows wrapped around the unconscious eunuch, and in an instant, they disappeared without a trace along with Absalom.
In his place, a gloomy individual with a macabre smile and eyes filled with madness appeared, looking at Doc Q with great interest.
"Boy, I like your powers. You're a doctor, aren't you? How about joining my crew as my subordinate?" Moria said with an aggressive grin.
Although he appeared to be making a suggestion, it was obvious to Doc Q that Moria would turn hostile if he rejected his offer. Even so, the small child had no intention of joining Moria, because he did not consider him powerful enough to deserve that honor.
Though it might not seem like it, Doc Q was extremely proud, and he would never bow his head to someone he did not respect. After all, he had crawled his way up from hell itself, suffering for years from his illnesses, until he transformed into an almost indestructible monster. It was impossible for him not to feel proud of his achievements.
"Interesting, those shadows are altering your body, aren't they? I wonder if it would be possible to enhance them with pathogens…" the child said, paying no attention whatsoever to the offer of the gloomy pirate before him, which made Moria feel greatly humiliated, as images of his disgraceful defeat in Wano resurfaced in his mind.
"You damned brat! You dare mock m—!"
Moria began to shout aggressively, but before he could finish his words, his Observation Haki flared, warning him that he was in great danger.
Without wasting a single instant, Moria wrapped himself in his shadows and used them to move away from the spot where he had been standing at a speed far beyond that of a human.
From a distance, he watched as the corpses that had been scattered around the place where he had been standing moments before began to rapidly decompose, while all kinds of foul fluids burst out from them.
A chill ran down Moria's spine, and using his Observation Haki once more, he sensed a wave of death rushing toward him at high speed yet again. Without hesitating for even an instant, he activated one of his most useful techniques: his Kagemusha (shadow warrior).
In an instant, Moria vanished without a trace, and his place was taken by his shadow clone, which, lacking a physical body, was completely unaffected by the powers of Doc Q's Devil Fruit. Then, the shadow raised its hand and, with a violent motion, launched several projectiles resembling shadow spears, which pierced through the sickly child like a sieve, pinning him to the ground in a rather horrifying scene.
Doc Q began to bleed profusely from his wounds, and the light in his eyes started to fade, until he finally closed them, surrendering peacefully to death.
Meanwhile, aboard a ship off the coast of the island, Moria was staring into the distance, still somewhat shaken by how close he had come to dying at the hands of a small child.
"Damn lunatic! He should've obediently accepted my offer—now he can enjoy his time in hell!" the gloomy pirate said irritably, feeling as though he had been ridiculed by a child.
In truth, Moria had not planned to kill Doc Q immediately, as he had still intended to try recruiting him into his crew. However, due to the humiliation he felt, he had momentarily lost his composure, ultimately ordering his shadow warrior to finish off the boy in a brutal and merciless manner.
"Sigh~ Well, what's done is done. There's no point regretting what can't be changed," Moria said, showing a surprisingly optimistic attitude, and then, glancing at Absalom—who lay on the deck of the ship, still unconscious—he added,
"Absalom seems to be fine… Now I need to focus on finding a high-level doctor to create proper vessels for my shadows.
This city was the most renowned in all of North Blue when it came to medicine, but not a single person was left alive because of that deranged brat…
And the famous Doctor Trafalgar from Flevance is probably dead as a result of the sudden epidemic that broke out there.
Arrrg! I guess this trip to North Blue was a waste of time. Where could I go to find a competent doctor now? One of the other Blues? Or perhaps directly to the Grand Line…"
Aboard the empty ship, where only Moria and Absalom remained, the voice of the gloomy pirate pondering his future echoed for quite some time, as the vessel slowly began to drift away from the island that had been completely devastated by the epidemics unleashed by Doc Q.
Meanwhile, inside the great library where Moria and Doc Q had clashed just moments earlier, the somber child lay on the ground, in a pool of his own blood and without breathing.
However, suddenly his body began to convulse violently, while a layer of black, unpleasant-looking liquid started to cover the wounds inflicted by Moria's shadow spears.
Finally, after a few minutes, Doc Q's convulsions subsided, and he stood up with difficulty, brushing off his clothes and cracking his neck with an indifferent expression.
"Just as I expected, it's possible to use this variant of cancer to heal wounds of this kind…"
The somber child began muttering again, contemplating the applications of his abilities and medical knowledge, and after a few minutes, he was finally satisfied with his analysis. He then walked over to where the book he had been reading earlier lay and picked it up once more.
"I suppose it would be best not to remain in this place any longer… I'll take only the most interesting materials…"
The small child, covered from head to toe in scab-like layers that resembled tar, emerged from the great library carrying several books in his hands. Then, he lit a torch and set fire to the ancient building, which had been a temple for physicians for generations. He had already obtained the information he needed from this place, so there was no reason for the great library to continue existing.
In the darkness of the night that had just fallen, the flames that had begun in the library and now spread throughout the silent city shone with a tragic beauty, as the small child walked toward the coast, ready to set out on his journey to the next city where he would further expand his medical knowledge.
…
Meanwhile, out at sea, not far from the island where Doc Q had been, two pirate crews were on the verge of clashing.
"Hongo, make sure Uta stays safe," Shanks said seriously, looking into the distance, where a ship that resembled nothing more than a massive raft was drifting toward them.
Hongo responded with a brief affirmative sound and ran deeper into the ship to take care of protecting the little girl, who was currently sleeping peacefully in her cabin, unaware of what was happening outside.
"It's troublesome that we've run into Blackbeard here, but it could be a good opportunity to halt the expansion of his power," Benny Beckman said with an aggressive smile.
Shanks nodded, and drawing his sword, he unleashed a powerful attack that surged across the surface of the sea like a sharp wave, cutting through everything in its path.
Blackbeard, who had been observing Shanks and his crew's movements with great interest, saw the red-haired pirate's powerful attack coming, and stepping forward, he began to release a massive amount of darkness from his hands—a darkness deeper than the night itself.
Shanks's attack collided with the wall of darkness Blackbeard had created, but after only a brief stalemate, it continued forward without losing much speed, completely destroying the barrier and cutting cleanly across his torso.
"AAAARRGGH! Motherfucker!" Blackbeard roared as a large amount of blood burst from the slash that ran diagonally across his body, from shoulder to waist.
Even so, Shanks and his crew did not relax in the slightest, because they could sense that Blackbeard had not suffered much real damage, despite the fact that he appeared to be rolling on the ground and screaming in pain.
Shanks had fought him before and knew just how dangerous he could be. Even before obtaining his powerful Devil Fruit, Blackbeard had been capable of gravely injuring him and leaving a scar over his eye—a permanent mark that forced him to take the man seriously.
"Ah, our captain is suffering again."
"His Devil Fruit does have its drawbacks, after all."
"Shouldn't we join the fight too?"
The members of Blackbeard's crew spoke casually, seemingly unconcerned about encountering the most famous rookie pirate of this generation. They possessed a confidence that was difficult to explain, yet it was not unfounded, as each of them knew their own level of power well and took pride in considering themselves among the strongest in the world—at least, the world as they knew it.
On the Red-Haired Pirates' ship, Yasopp, Beckman, and the others took up their weapons, ready to begin the battle. Both crews stared each other down for a few moments, while Blackbeard continued writhing on the ground and shouting in pain.
The calm lingered for a brief time, during which the tension steadily rose. Finally, Blackbeard recovered from Shanks's attack and stood up, panting heavily.
"Damn, that hurt more than I expected," the eccentric pirate said, touching the wound on his torso. Then he looked at his crew and added,
"What are you waiting for? Don't just stand there!"
At their captain's command, Blackbeard's crew charged into battle without much thought, thus beginning a clash against the Red-Haired Pirates that would last for several days, ultimately ending in a draw.
Even so, the fact that Blackbeard had appeared here at this moment was very different from the original timeline, since in that timeline he was still part of Whitebeard's crew.
Orion's actions in this world had led Blackbeard to obtain the Yami Yami no Mi much earlier, and consequently to leave Whitebeard's crew sooner as well. Now, he was traveling the world in search of powerful subordinates, as well as other things specifically necessary for his grand plan to conquer the world.
Originally, Shanks would not have encountered Blackbeard here and would have continued his journey without stopping for several days. This small change was enough to alter the fate of many people, and Orion would soon come face to face with the butterfly effect of his own actions.