With a sharp sweep of Dr. Vegapunk's hand, Ivalis and the others did not hesitate to sever the heads of Shiryu of the Rain and his cohorts.
The moment their heads hit the floor, blood did not spill onto the ground from their severed necks. Instead, it defied gravity and surged toward the sky, drawn as if by a primal summons, into Alucard's body.
"Tastes terrible, but the effect is decent."
Alucard sat within his suite, savoring this "course" known as the Blackbeard Pirates.
Meanwhile, Law's group had also begun their move.
"ROOM!"
The spherical operating space expanded. Walls were non-existent to Law as he teleported through the inner mechanisms at the very bottom of Gran Tesoro.
"Th-this is..."
Chopper, hanging from the hilt of the Kikoku like a decorative charm, stared wide-eyed at the golden sand beneath them. His blue nose twitched. "All the sand here is actual gold!"
As far as the eye could see, a vast desert stretched out, composed entirely of gold dust. It was impossible to fathom the sheer magnitude of such a fortune.
"Inside Gran Tesoro, gold is the least valuable thing," Law said, his face shadowed and his voice low. "And keep your voice down."
"Eh?"
Chopper froze and looked ahead. He saw toy after toy emerging from a tunnel, heading down a path toward their back right.
"What are those toys exactly?" Chopper whispered in shock.
Ever since they boarded this ship, they had seen toys with their own will working everywhere. At first, it was surprising, then it became a common sight; now, looking at them again, the scene felt profoundly eerie.
Law smirked. "Finally found it. Let's go."
Avoiding every gaze with desperate precision, Law led Chopper toward the passage the toys were exiting. Only after confirming the passage was clear did they slip inside.
Inside was a massive, darkened chamber. From the ceiling, another chute connected downward, dropping a continuous stream of people.
When these people fell, they slid down a pipe to land before a young girl. With a light tap of her hand, the people were instantly transformed into toys.
"Mmph!!"
Chopper covered his mouth to stifle a scream. He never imagined that those toys were transformed humans.
That meant the broken and discarded toys they had seen along the way... were actually the corpses of living people?
"That is our target. The most vital member of the Donquixote Alliance: Sugar."
Law's gaze locked onto Sugar, who was snacking on grapes with her right hand while casually patting the falling victims with her left. His brow furrowed at the sight of the two towering figures behind her.
"Trebol and Pica? A troublesome combination. If we don't take them out instantly, reinforcements will be endless once they arrive."
Law thought for a moment before whispering to Chopper, "Tony-ya, I'll deal with Pica and Trebol. Sugar herself has no combat strength. Once I draw them away, you knock her unconscious."
"What's the point of this? Also, stop calling me that!"
"Sugar is the user of the Hobby-Hobby Fruit. If the user is forced into a state of unconsciousness or mental collapse, the toy transformations are automatically undone. When that happens, every toy in Gran Tesoro will revert to human form. That is the chaos we need."
Chopper realized the weight of the task, but looking at Sugar, his voice held a hint of pity. "But, to strike a child like that..."
"She's much older than you. If you show mercy, we're all dead."
Law spoke coldly, creeping along the wall toward the guarding Pica and Trebol. "Approach Sugar from the other side. I'll stall them as long as possible, then use my ability to shift you to her side."
Hiding behind a massive pillar supporting the room, Law drew Kikoku. It would be best if I could kill Sugar directly, but with Pica and Trebol covering her, it's too risky, he thought.
Shaking his head to clear his mind, Law leaped over ten meters into the air, expanding his ROOM until it enveloped the entire chamber.
Trebol, Pica, and Sugar were startled. In the next heartbeat, a flash of sword light carved a supporting pillar into several chunks.
"Takt!"
Law raised his left index finger, and the severed stone blocks hurtled toward Sugar.
"Law! So it's you, you ungrateful brat!"
Pica screamed in his high-pitched, squeaky voice. His right hand turned black with Armament Haki as he shielded Sugar, his immense strength swatting the stones aside.
"Sugar, hide by the exit! Law is a handful to deal with, behehehe!" Trebol said, leaning on his staff.
"Okay."
Sugar turned and ran toward the exit door. There, a hidden elevator led directly to the executive suites of the luxury hotel.
"ROOM!"
Risking complete physical exhaustion, Law expanded his space to its absolute limit. "Shambles!"
In an instant, Law used his ability to swap Chopper directly in front of Sugar, who was less than ten meters from the elevator.
"Another toy?"
"Dammit! Law distracted us! Save Sugar, Pica!" Trebol yelled in a panic.
"I know!"
Pica's body began to merge with the surrounding ground.
To facilitate Pica's powers, the building materials of this room were stone, not gold. Once merged with the rock, a gargantuan stone palm swiped toward Chopper. Meanwhile, Trebol focused on Law, flicking his wrist to unleash a wave of exploding mucus.
"Do it, Tony-ya!"
Law took Trebol's attack head-on, shouting a reminder to Chopper.
"I TOLD YOU NOT TO CALL ME THAT!"
His fur bristling, Chopper tossed a Rumble Ball into his mouth. His body swelled to three times its size, and the antlers atop his head grew incredibly long. He charged fiercely toward Sugar. "Even if you look like a child, I won't hold back!"