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Chapter 58: Nightmare Line (R-18)
Through Densuke's telepathy, Big Brother's strategy echoed in my mind.
I, Big Brother, and Densuke will hold off Aokiji, Akainu, and Kizaru... In that opening, Perona and Moria will help the slaves escape. Once everyone is safe, Big Brother will activate his "Supreme King Haki: Clad Mode" for a massive, temporary power boost to blow the Admirals away. Then, we use that chance to escape Mary Geoise. A happy ending.
That was the plan. But...
"Rahahaha! To think you'd actually send those three flying! I gotta admit, you took me by surprise!"
"...So this is the rumored dwarf... the strength of the Invisible Phantom Thief, is it? My, my... how utterly terrifying."
The plan had been going perfectly. Yet, the sudden arrival of the enemy's fresh reinforcements—Marine Admirals Ryokugyu and Fujitora—had completely shattered our hopes.
Kzzzhhh! "Auuu!? M-My body is so heavy... I can't move..."
"My deepest apologies, Miss... I'm going to have to ask you to stay quiet for a bit..."
Me, Big Brother, Densuke, and Perona were pinned flat against the earth by Fujitora's Zushi-Zushi gravity powers. Moria, meanwhile, was completely bound by Ryokugyu's Woods-Woods Fruit vines. Utterly drained of Haki and stamina, there was absolutely no way we could break free in our current state.
We were completely doomed. Or so I thought, until—
"Kishishishi!! I'm sending you the shadows I collected from the slaves, Line! Take them! Shadows Asgard!!"
"Uwoooooooohh!!!!"
A massive mass of shadows stretched out from Moria and plastered itself directly onto Big Brother's body. Instantly, something began forcefully pumping into his tiny frame.
Thump, thump... Thump, thump...
Thump, thump... Squelch, squirt♡ Splurt, splurt♡
"...W-What is that? What's happening? It sounds kind of erotic...!"
"It's not erotic!! Just what exactly is going on inside that head of yours, you slutty rabbit!?"
I merely voiced my honest thoughts, but Perona angrily snapped at me. I was completely offended. I am not an erotic rabbit.
"Listen to me, Esune. Lord Moria is a user of the Shadow-Shadow Fruit! He can steal the shadows of others and command them."
"Command... shadows?"
"Exactly. If he puts a stolen shadow into a corpse, it becomes a zombie. But if he puts it into a living person, it grants them a massive, temporary power boost."
"Wait... then right now, Moria is..."
"Yeah. It looks like he's injecting the shadows he took from the slaves directly into Line... and a staggering amount of them, too..."
Thump, thump. Thump, thump. Shadow after shadow poured relentlessly into Big Brother's body.
"Hah!? Hey! Moria, you bastard!! What the hell do you think you're doing!? Stop that right now!"
"Gah!! Gubo! Bubeh!"
Realizing what was happening, Ryokugyu began viciously beating Moria to a pulp. But Moria endured it. Through sheer willpower, he took the brutal hits, desperately continuing to funnel the shadows into Big Brother.
Thump, thump. Thump, thump. "O... O... O...!"
As the shadows flooded into him, Big Brother's body began to rapidly swell. He grew larger and larger, his frame expanding at a terrifying rate.
"Ooooh... Ooooh... Aooooohh...!!"
His skin took on a ghastly pale-blue hue. Dark, heavy bags formed under his eyes, his teeth sharpened into jagged fangs, his tail lengthened and thickened, and even his voice twisted into a guttural, eerie roar.
"P-Pe-Pe-Perosho... Perona!! Is this...!? Is Big Brother's body going to be okay!? Is this actually safe!?"
"D-Don't ask me! ...Just how many shadows did Lord Moria take!? And how many is he planning to shove into Line!?"
According to Perona, the number of shadows a living body could hold wasn't determined by physical strength, but by "spirit." As long as a person's mental fortitude held out, they could absorb an infinite number of shadows.
Mental fortitude... Ah! Come to think of it, Big Brother had spent the entire past year doing nothing but grueling mental training. Which meant—
"Kishishi...! Amazing! He took every single shadow I borrowed from the slaves! I never thought he'd actually be able to hold them all! Ki~shishishishi!"
Thump, thump. Thump, thump. The shadows... they were all inside him.
And then...
"Ugaaaaaaahhh!! Gaooooooohhh!!!"
Big Brother had become a monster.
"W-W-What the hell is that...!?"
"...My eyes cannot see a thing, but... is there perhaps a truly unimaginable monster standing before us right now...?"
Both Ryokugyu and Fujitora stared up at the monsterized Big Brother, completely appalled and drenched in cold sweat. Of course, we were just as terrified by his new, horrific form.
⌁ "Jiiii!!!!? Master!! Maaaster!!" ⌁
"Liiiine!! You...!! A-A-Are you okay!?"
"Kishi... L-Line...! Are you still conscious!? Have you lost your mind!?"
"Big Brother... you finally got your tall height... I'm so happy your dream came true... U-Uuu... congratulations..."
"This is no time for jokes, Esune!! He's not just tall... he's the size of a giant!!"
"Iii'm taaaallll!! Yaaaay!!"
The monsterized Big Brother thrust his massive hands forward, flashing double peace signs.
It seemed he was still somewhat conscious... Or was he? I genuinely couldn't tell. He looked like he was completely out of control.
"Peace! Peace!" he yelled, repeatedly thrusting his arms out. With every movement, devastating shockwaves ripped through the air, obliterating the surrounding streets of Mary Geoise.
Seeing the destruction, Ryokugyu lost his temper.
"Whoa, hey!? Stop destroying the city!!"
Tossing Moria aside like garbage, Ryokugyu rushed toward the double-peace-signing Big Brother.
"Don't get cocky just because you got a little bigger, you damn runt!! You were knocking on death's door a second ago!! Forbidden Hate: Profuse Woods!!"
A massive, sprawling forest erupted from the ground, centered around Ryokugyu. Countless gigantic trees, tipped with massive wooden fists, shot out and surged toward Big Brother all at once.
"Die!!"
"Kyaaaa!! Big Brother!! Dodge!!"
I screamed without thinking. At his current size, there was no way Big Brother could evade a barrage of that scale. He was going to take it all! A direct hit from an Admiral's ultimate attack! If that happened, he'd suffer way more than just a few broken bones! What do we do!?
But in the next instant—
"O-Owiginal styyyyle! Tondadda Gombad!!"
"!?"
"Shadow BAN!!"
"!!!!"
Big Brother simply swung his massive arms down toward the incoming Ryokugyu. He didn't even use Haki. It was nothing more than a strike driven by sheer, brute physical force. But that alone was enough.
KRA-THOOOOOOM!!! The sacred earth of Mary Geoise violently split perfectly in two.
Struck with the force of a falling meteor, Ryokugyu vomited a massive fountain of blood. His eyes rolled to the back of his head, and he lost consciousness instantly, plummeting into the newly formed abyss.
"Eeeeeeeehhhh!!!?" x4
He one-shot an Admiral!! Big Brother is way too strooooong!!!!
"Gaoooo!!"
Without missing a beat, Big Brother continued his frantic rampage. Mary Geoise crumbled further by the second. Watching the sheer carnage, Perona, Densuke, and Moria all screamed.
"Uwaaaaaaaah!!? He's attacking indiscriminately!!"
⌁ "Jiiii!! Master is so stroooong!!" ⌁
"Did the shadows completely take over!? Did I put too many in!?"
While the three of them panicked over Big Brother's rampage, I somehow found myself staring up at him with total, serene calmness.
Crash! Boom! Smash! It was all breaking. The city of the Celestial Dragons—the monsters who had robbed me of my parents. The land of the gods... it was all turning to dust.
I felt a sudden, weightless relief wash over my body and soul. ...It really felt like a heavy burden had been lifted.
Wait. My body actually was lighter.
At some point, the crushing Zushi-Zushi gravity pinning us down had been lifted. I instinctively turned toward Fujitora, only to find him staring straight at Big Brother.
"...I am blind, you see..."
"Eh?"
"Therefore, I haven't the faintest idea what is happening in this place right now."
With those words, Fujitora offered a gentle, knowing smile.
"...This is merely me talking to myself, but... I am truly obliged to you... for saving the slaves..."
Bowing his head respectfully, Fujitora intentionally stepped off the edge, dropping down into the massive chasm Big Brother had just cleaved into the earth.
...Eh!? Did he just jump to his death!?
Ah, no... he probably went down to catch the unconscious Ryokugyu. I didn't entirely understand it, but he had willingly removed himself from the battlefield, completely ignoring our presence.
What a strange Admiral...
"Well, whatever the reason, Ryokugyu and Fujitora are gone now."
The only enemies left were the three who had groggily stumbled back into the plaza: Aokiji, Kizaru, and Akainu.
"My, my...! What is that monster!? Is that Line!? What in the world happened to him!?"
"The beautiful streets of Mary Geoise are in ruins. This is going to require way more than a simple written apology."
"Where did Ryokugyu and Fujitora go!? Don't tell me they were defeated!? Those arrogant rookies let their guard down!!"
All three radiated intense, suffocating bloodlust... but Akainu's was on a completely different level. The sheer, boiling heat radiating off his body was melting the ground beneath his feet.
I-Is Big Brother going to be okay...?
"If the damage is already this extensive... then there's no point worrying about collateral damage to the city! Our only priority is killing that thing!! We'll sort out the rest later!! Ryusei Kazan!!"
"!!"
A barrage of colossal magma fists—each unfathomably larger than anything he had used against me—erupted from Akainu's arms and rained from the sky.
"Guh!? Get aaawaaayy...!!"
Though he looked slightly pained, Big Brother batted the apocalyptic magma meteors away as if he were simply swatting annoying flies.
Eeeh!? Are you serious!?
"You bastard!! Invisible Phantom Thief!! Just die already!! Great Eru—"
"Fungaaaa!!"
"Gabaaah!!?"
SMACK!! A sudden, colossal backhand slap.
Big Brother sent Akainu soaring over the horizon with a single strike. Ding~☆ Wait, eh!? F-Following Ryokugyu, he just one-shot Akainu too!? So strong!! Big Brother right now is seriously too strong!!
Witnessing that, genuine panic finally cracked through Aokiji and Kizaru's composure. They moved simultaneously.
"Hey, hey! What the hell is that!? You've gotta be kidding me! Just do me a favor and freeze! Ice Age!!"
"Freeze, and then shatter to pieces~!! Yasakani no Magatama!!"
Aokiji's freezing wave encased Big Brother's broad back in solid ice, instantly followed by Kizaru's devastating barrage of light bullets. Boom! Boom! Boom! Explosions tore into Big Brother's frozen flesh.
Several shadows hissed and leaked from his body, but Big Brother didn't even flinch.
"Ugaoooo!! Shadow Tail!!"
Swinging his colossal tail like a bat, Big Brother violently swept Aokiji and Kizaru away in a single, devastating motion.
Craaaaaaaaaaaassshhh!!! "B-Big Brother... that's amazing... he's completely overwhelming the Admirals and the Fleet Admiral..."
"H-Horohorohoro... Isn't he a little too amazing...?"
"Kishishi... Yeah, I never expected it to be this effective..."
⌁ "Jiiii! I don't really get it, but Master is so strooong!" ⌁
...It was true. Big Brother was incredible right now. Way too incredible. ...But...
He was outputting a terrifying amount of power. The strain on his body had to be unimaginable. I was terrified of what would happen to him once he reverted to normal.
"Ugaaaaaaooooooohhh!!"
"Kishishishi!! The power boost from a shadow injection only lasts about ten minutes... but Line wiped the floor with Aokiji and the others in less than three! Ki~shishishishi!"
This is no time to be laughing, Moria. Is Big Brother really okay fighting this recklessly? I'm so worried about him... I'm so worried...
Since he had already defeated the Admirals, I opened my mouth to beg Moria to pull the shadows out of him immediately. But right at that moment—
"To think the highest military powers of the Marines would be wiped out so effortlessly..."
"This is quite the unexpected development."
"Eh? Does that mean we have to fight that monster next!?"
"Chapapa! We're CP0! We must fight any enemy we're ordered to, no matter who they are!"
"N-No... wait... um... are we seriously going to fight that thing!?"
Stepping out from the swirling dust clouds, a group of men dressed in pristine white suits emerged. A leopard man, a giraffe man, a wolf man, a man with a zipper on his mouth, and a man in a protective mask...
Who in the world were they...?
...Wait, the guy with the zipper on his mouth! Did he just say they're CP0!?
Shakky had taught me about them once. CP0... Cipher Pol Aigis Zero. The direct, top-secret intelligence agency of the World Government. If the Marines were the public face of the World Government, Cipher Pol was its dark underbelly.
I didn't know if they were stronger than the Marine Admirals, but there was no doubt they were formidable enemies. This was bad...
But things only got worse. From behind CP0, an entirely different group stepped forward.
"Gihahaha~! A Fleet Admiral and three Admirals taken down together!? What a joke! But man... this might be a bit too heavy for CP0 to handle alone!"
"This is bad. Really bad. First things first... we can't let them destroy the Land of the Gods any further."
"Let's finish this quickly."
...People who looked even stronger than CP0 just showed up!? What is this!? Who are they!?
"Kishi!? T-Those are God's Knights!!" Moria screamed.
God's Knights...? I had never heard the name before, but for them to appear at this exact moment meant they had to possess monstrous strength. An old man with sunglasses, a man with a horse-like head, and someone who looked exactly like the Four Emperors' "Red-Haired" Shanks...
Enemy reinforcements just kept piling up...
What do we do? Big Brother's Shadow-Shadow power-up probably had less than five minutes left. Worse, if he took any more damage, he might actually die!
"Gaoooooh!!"
Even so, Big Brother raised his massive fists against CP0 and God's Knights. Probably... because he was trying to protect us.
He was still Big Brother. He hadn't lost his mind. My beloved Big Brother... I absolutely couldn't let him die here!
...How could I save him? If we kept fighting, we'd eventually lose. Our only option was to find an opening, grab Big Brother, and run! That was the only way!
"...Gihahaha! You scheming something over there, cute little bunny? It's a shame to kill a face that pretty. I'd love to keep you as a slave... but oh well! 'Invincible Slave'! Wipe out that pile of garbage over there in one sweep!"
While almost everyone's attention was completely locked onto Big Brother, the old man with the sunglasses pointed sharply... not at him, but at us. Instantly, with a sudden pop!, a massive figure appeared right before our eyes.
"...Eliminate."
It was one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea: Bartholomew Kuma.
"Eeeeh!? Why is a Warlord here...!?"
An Admiral, a Fleet Admiral, CP0, God's Knights, and now... a Warlord? How were we supposed to deal with this!?
"T-That's the Invincible Slave! Kuma!" Moria shouted.
...Invincible Slave?
"W-What do you mean? That's the Warlord, Bartholomew Kuma... right!?"
"Yeah. Former Warlord."
"Former?"
"That bastard Kuma had his body completely modified by the Government."
"Huh?"
"His body is a cyborg, and his personality was completely erased. The thing standing there has absolutely no memories of when it was human!"
"Eeeeeehhh!!?"
What is that!? That's terrifying!! His body is alive, but his mind has been completely murdered!?
⌁ "Jiiii. I see. That explains why he was the only slave in the plaza I couldn't establish a telepathic link with." ⌁
Densuke clapped her hands together, a look of profound understanding on her face. This is no time for understanding!
"—Eliminate."
Kuma raised his hand and aimed it directly at us. There was some sort of paw pad on his palm, but what was...
"—Pad Cannon."
"Kyaaaaaa!!"
"Waaaaah!?"
⌁ "Jiiiii!!" ⌁
With a deafening boom, a hyper-compressed mass of air shot toward us at terrifying speed. We barely managed to dodge, but what on earth was that!?
"He's a 'Paw-Paw Human' who ate the Paw-Paw Fruit! He can use the paw pads on his hands to repel anything and everything! Whether it's people, or even the very air itself...! Kishishi..."
So even as a cyborg, he still retained his Devil Fruit powers... How were we supposed to fight someone who was already this strong and had an insane Devil Fruit? If he didn't have a mind, we couldn't reason with him either... Uuuu...
And we had no time left...
⌁ "Jiiii, hey, Esune-sis." ⌁
"What is it, Densuke?"
⌁ "That person... his heart was erased, right?" ⌁
"Yes. That seems to be the case."
⌁ "Jiiii. With my powers, I might be able to bring it back, you know?" ⌁
"Eh...!?"
⌁ "Kuma's heart." ⌁
The halo above Densuke's head gave off a brilliant, shining glow.
—————
"Ugaa...! Go! Uga... Pant, pant...! Gaooooo~!!"
Thanks to the power of Moria's Shadow-Shadow Fruit, Line had achieved a massive, temporary power boost. Even so, the relentless, overwhelming assault from the new enemies was slowly pushing him back.
"Rokuogan!!"
"Moonlight Ten Finger Pistol!!"
"Pasta Machine!"
"Gafu...! Ga, oo!!"
He swatted Fukuro away and stomped Spandam flat, steadily whittling down the enemy forces, but the physical toll was simply too great. His movements were growing sluggish. And on top of that... God's Knights possessed some sort of bizarre "immortality"...
"Pant, pant...! Shadow BAN!!"
"Gaha!! You scooped out my heart! I'm dying~!! ...Just kidding! That didn't hurt at all!! Gihahaha! Briar Rush!!"
"Ugugaaaaaa...!!?"
No matter how many times he hit them... even if he blew their heads off... any damage inflicted upon God's Knights instantly regenerated with a sickening cracking sound. There was no way to win.
(Pant, pant... How much longer will this power last...!)
With every hit he took, shadows leaked from his body. Worse, his time limit was fast approaching. It had already been 9 minutes and 50 seconds since Line began fighting with the Shadow-Shadow powers.
"This is the end. Cerberus...!"
The sword in Shamrock's hand morphed into a giant, three-headed dog. And then—
Stab!!! "Gugo... Hogya!!!!"
The Cerberus blade plunged deep into Line's chest.
"Aghooooooohhh..."
With a loud hiss, the remaining shadows violently expelled from Line's body, and with a soft poof, he reverted back to his 20cm dwarf form. His time was up. He had absolutely zero Haki or stamina left. Falling flat on his back, he couldn't even twitch a finger. Blood poured steadily from the gaping wound in his chest.
"Fuhaha hohii..."
"...You certainly threw quite the violent tantrum..."
"!!"
A chilling, raspy voice brushed against his ears. Shifting his gaze, he saw an elderly man with the massive lower body of a spider standing over him. Another enemy reinforcement this late in the game? I'm completely stuffed already... Line thought weakly.
"...Saint Jaygarcia Saturn."
"Step back. All of you."
"Yes, sir."
The spider-old man called Saint Saturn ordered CP0 and God's Knights to fall back as he slowly lumbered toward Line.
"...You do not appear to be... a D."
"D~? What's that? Fu, hehe, he... Cough... pant, pant... Are you the boss of these Celestial Dragon guys...?"
"...I am."
"Ida...!?"
One of the spider legs slammed down onto his stomach, twisting cruelly. The agony felt like his stomach was being ripped open... but Line didn't even have the strength left to writhe.
"Oeppu... Gubo!"
"...Throughout the history of Mary Geoise, a few intruders have managed to breach this land... but this is the first time anyone has caused such extensive devastation. Not even Rocks or Harald were capable of destroying this much..."
"Pant, pant... Who the hell are Rocks and Harald..."
"I suppose I will humor you with a question. Why did you commit such an act? Are you a member of the Revolutionary Army?"
"Revolutionary Army? Nope. I'm just me. I just felt bad for the slaves, so I threw a fit. That's it! Fuhehe..."
"...I see. I have nothing more to ask you. Die."
Saint Saturn raised a razor-sharp spider leg high into the air. He didn't even need Observation Haki to see the future. If that leg came down, Line was dead.
(Ah... I guess this is it... I really can't go on anymore...)
He weakly shifted his eyes toward the spot where Esune, Densuke, Perona, and Moria had been. There was no one there.
(Fuhehe... It looks like Esune and the others managed to escape safely while I was throwing my tantrum. That's all that matters...)
He had plenty of regrets, but he had managed to save everyone, including the slaves. If he was the only casualty in the end, it was a fair trade... As his life flashed before his eyes, a final image gently floated into his mind. Viola.
(Viola... Dressrosa... I'm sorry I couldn't save you...)
Shliiik!!! "R-Rabbit-Rabbit Combat! Trance Deception...!!"
"...Huh? E-Esune!!?"
Right before Saint Saturn's spider leg could pierce Line's body... Esune violently threw herself between them, taking the blow meant for Line. No, she didn't just block it. It had pierced right into her.
"Geh...!!"
"E-Esune...!!? You... what are you doing...!!?"
"I'm okay...! I blocked it... with my Haki...! Ehehe..."
She clearly hadn't blocked it completely. Even as blood poured from her mouth, she smiled down at him.
"...Little girl, where did you scurry out from?"
"I was just getting our escape route ready... you arrogant, half-assing spider geezer...!"
"What?"
And in that precise moment... A massive man appeared with a pop! right in front of Esune and Saint Saturn. He stood nearly seven meters tall. His name was Bartholomew Kuma.
"Kuma-emon!? What? Eeh!?"
"...Kuma? Why are you here? I gave no such order."
Line's eyes widened at Kuma's sudden appearance, while Saint Saturn narrowed his eyes in suspicion. While the two of them floated question marks over their heads, Kuma slowly opened his mouth.
"Saint Saturn... This might actually be the first time I've faced you with my own will intact."
"!!? Kuma... you... your ego has...!?"
A bead of cold sweat trickled down Saint Saturn's forehead.
"To cure Bonney's illness, you and I made three 'promises'. I would join the Warlords... I would undergo the cyborg modifications... and finally, I would surrender all thought and ego... Was that not the deal?"
"...!"
"Those promises have been fulfilled. Have they not?"
"!!! Wait! Kuma, you bastard! What are you planning!?"
"In other words, I am now free!!"
Pulling Line and Esune tightly into his arms, Kuma turned his paw-padded palm toward himself. The hand of liberation, capable of repelling absolutely anything and everything!
"Stop! Kuma! You insolent fool! You won't escape!!"
Realizing what Kuma was about to do, Saint Saturn's eyes glinted with murderous rage... but he was too late. Still clutching Line and Esune, Kuma's figure simply...
Pop! ...vanished from the spot.
"You wretched scuuuuuum!! How...! How did he regain his ego...!? Kumaaaaaaaaaa!!"
—————
—On this day, an unprecedented, historic event occurred: every single slave held captive in Mary Geoise was completely liberated. The mastermind behind this incident was the "Invisible Phantom Thief," Line.
Line, alongside his accomplices, assaulted Mary Geoise and literally freed every last slave from the holy land. Furthermore, Line personally confronted and simultaneously defeated the highest military powers of the Marines: Aokiji, Akainu, Kizaru, Fujitora, and Ryokugyu. Accompanied by former Warlords of the Sea, Gecko Moria and Bartholomew Kuma, he successfully escaped Mary Geoise.
Their current whereabouts remain completely unknown...
—World Economy News Paper, Morgans—
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