Ash was stunned when he saw the sudden surge in the energy bar.
He had expected Youki and Kirk to handle Moria without much trouble. That outcome had never been in doubt. What truly shocked him was the sheer amount of energy Moria contributed.
When Absalom was eliminated earlier, the energy bar had rested at 255 points. Now it stood at 641.
That meant Moria alone had provided 386 points of energy.
Even after subtracting the standard 100 points granted by a Devil Fruit, Moria was still worth 286 points. The number far exceeded Ash's initial estimate.
But that hardly mattered.
Six hundred and forty one energy points meant they were suddenly wealthy.
While Ash was still processing the windfall, shadows began streaking into the sky from every corner of Thriller Bark, especially from within the castle. Countless silhouettes surged upward like a dark storm breaking free. Even the graveyard near the massive carriage released waves of fleeing shadows.
"Bro Ash, look at that?" Tsuki asked, his attention drawn from the ability he had been contemplating.
"Youki and the others must have finished Moria. The shadows he stole are finally free. They're returning to their original owners," Ash replied calmly, a faint smile forming on his face.
Tsuki laughed. "Then we indirectly saved a lot of people."
"Perhaps a few. Most of them are pirates," Ash said bluntly. "Even if Moria was reckless, he would not waste his time turning ordinary civilians into zombie soldiers. They would not be useful in battle."
"Fair point," Tsuki admitted. Then he glanced toward the horizon. "Oh, Youki and the others are back."
After doing a basic cleanup of the castle's structural damage, the group found an intact courtyard that had once belonged to Perona. Compared to the rest of Thriller Bark, it was relatively pleasant. They decided to hold a simple post battle feast there.
Ash took a bite of roasted meat and glanced at Youki, who still bore visible bruises.
"Bro Youki, you look like you went through a war."
Youki scowled. "How was I supposed to know that guy, who looks like a bloated onion, was that durable?"
During the fight, it had appeared that he and Moria were evenly matched. In reality, Youki had dominated most of the exchange. As long as he avoided having his shadow controlled, Moria's abilities posed little real threat to him.
The real nuisance had been the Shadow's Doppelman. Moria constantly swapped positions with it. Several times, Youki pounded away at what he thought was Moria, only for it to disperse into a swarm of shadow bats that clawed and bit at him. The damage was minor, but the irritation was constant.
The tide shifted when Kirk dismantled Oars and used his spatial ability to seal off the battlefield. With no room left to maneuver, Moria lost his greatest advantage. That was when Youki overwhelmed him.
Still, all three of them had underestimated Moria's resilience. As a member of the Seven Warlords of the Sea who had once challenged Kaido in the New World, Moria's endurance was no joke. Despite taking countless punches, he suffered no immediately fatal injuries.
Feigning defeat, Moria suddenly activated his ultimate technique, Black Box and then Shadow's Asgard, absorbing one hundred shadows into his body.
His strength spiked dramatically.
He slammed his massive fist into the ground where Youki and Kirk stood. Kirk instantly teleported away. Brook, who had been battling zombie generals earlier and was already exhausted, happened to be far enough to avoid the impact.
Only Youki remained at the center of the strike.
Pinned beneath the rubble, he endured a brutal assault. Kirk and Brook tried to intervene, but Youki, enraged beyond reason, unleashed his Devil Fruit power in full.
Seawater roared down from above.
Kirk had almost forgotten that Youki's ability allowed him to manipulate both wind and water. In his fury, Youki had drawn seawater from the surrounding ocean and forced it down upon Moria.
Soaked completely, Moria's Devil Fruit power failed instantly. His enhanced form collapsed.
This time, Youki showed no mercy.
Armament Haki coated his golden gauntlets as he drove punch after punch into Moria's skull. The sound of impact echoed through the ruined battlefield. He did not stop until Moria's heartbeat ceased entirely.
Thus, Gekko Moria, former Seven Warlord of the Sea and once famed pirate of West Blue, fell for good.
Fortunately, Youki's injuries were not severe. By the time he finished eating, most of his wounds had already healed.
After resting briefly, the group agreed to thoroughly clean Thriller Bark. From now on, it would serve as their vessel. Leaving it in a haunted, decaying state was not an option.
During the meal, Tsuki had been agonizing over his choice of Devil Fruit ability. At last, he looked up at Ash.
"I want something like Bro Ash," he declared.
Ash nearly choked on his food.
Designing a Devil Fruit with similar abilities was simple in theory, but he had carefully constructed a mysterious mythological background system. He could not afford to undermine it.
After a long moment of apparent contemplation, Ash presented two options.
The first was a Mythical Zoan, the Human Human Fruit, Model One-Legged Rain Spirit. It granted transformation into a divine cyan single footed bird, control over water and wood elements, precognition, and the Voice of All Things.
The second option was inspired by a thunder deity concept, focusing on lightning control and immense physical strength.
The first shared advanced perception abilities with Sali but differed in elemental affinity. The second overlapped in lightning.
After considering carefully, Tsuki chose the first.
Soon, the system information manifested.
Name: Human Human Fruit, Mythical Zoan, Model One-Legged Rain Spirit
Abilities: Flight, full transformation into a divine cyan bird, water control, wood control, precognition, Voice of All Things, enhanced physique.
Like Sali's fruit, the precognition and Voice of All Things aligned closely with advanced Observation Haki. However, the Voice could be activated independently at the cost of stamina.
That was more than enough.
Next, Ash awakened Perona, who had been pretending to remain unconscious. Tsuki used the Voice of All Things to sense her emotional fluctuations and confirm she was telling the truth.
Over the past three years sailing with Moria, Perona had focused mainly on building her Cute Zombie Dream Kingdom. She handled shadow assignments and received corpses from Hogback, but she had never personally killed anyone.
She had used her Negative Hollows to incapacitate over a hundred pirates, greatly assisting Absalom and the zombie forces, but she had not taken lives herself.
To Ash, pirates were fair game. By his standards, she barely passed.
Perona let out a long breath of relief. "As long as you don't kill me, I'll switch sides starting today."
Her eyes scanned the group.
First was Ash, who could directly harm her spiritual form. She shuddered.
Next was Kirk, who had immobilized her effortlessly.
Then Youki, who had beaten Moria to death without hesitation.
Tsuki, who could peer into her heart.
Finally, Saff, who had punched her and nearly yanked out her hair.
Perona immediately put on a bright smile and ran to Saff's side. "Big Sis, I'll follow you from now on."
Saff frowned. "How old are you?"
"I'm sixteen."
"I'm fifteen," Saff snapped. "Why are you calling me Big Sis?"
Perona nodded obediently. "Then I can be fourteen."
Silence fell over the courtyard.
No one knew how to respond.
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