Perfume Yuda slowly docked.
The golden pier and the colorful lights hanging from the coral on both sides illuminated the entire harbor as brightly as day.
And amidst this golden brilliance, a group of people were already waiting there.
Leading them was a tall man with a green slicked-back hairstyle, wearing a pink suit. His chest was bare, revealing solid pectoral muscles.
He tried to maintain his usual confident smile, but a trace of barely perceptible nervousness lurked in his eyes.
Gild Tesoro.
The world's richest man, one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea, and the owner of this [Golden City].
Behind him stood a man and a woman.
The woman was named Baccarat, with long fiery red hair, a hot figure, wearing a tight black dress, and playing with a gold coin in her hand.
The man was named Tanaka, short and round like a ball, wearing a tight jumpsuit, with a perpetually fawning smile on his face.
In addition, there were more than a dozen bodyguards in black suits, standing neatly on both sides.
It was quite a grand formation.
Although Tesoro lacked clairvoyants like Violet under his command, he had used money to hire some fish-men who remained on Fish-Man Island to act as security, patrolling the island's perimeter daily.
Once they spotted a ship belonging to any big shot approaching, they would immediately report to him.
And the name 'Nishikawa Makoto' was clearly worthy of him coming out to greet in person.
Seeing Perfume Yuda dock, Tesoro's face immediately broke into a warm, enthusiastic smile.
He strode forward, arms spread wide, adopting a cordial posture like meeting an old friend after a long separation.
"Oh my, my! The King of the World graces us with his presence, what an honor! I am Gild Tesoro, I've long admired your reputation, and now that I finally meet you—"
"Go to hell."
A crisp voice cut off his words.
Tesoro's smile froze on his face.
He looked up and saw a blue-haired young woman walking down from the ship.
She wore a tight black combat suit, her long hair cascading over her shoulders. Her beautiful face held eyes filled with murderous intent.
One of the [Big Three] of the Kuja Pirates.
Nishikawa Hiyori.
"Th-this... young lady..."
Fine beads of sweat appeared on Tesoro's forehead.
"I haven't offended you in any way, have I?"
"Offended me?"
Hiyori sneered, walked up to Tesoro, looked up, and stared into his eyes.
"Fish-Man Island is my father's territory."
Tesoro's expression changed slightly.
"Did you report to my father?"
"Uh..."
Tesoro was stunned.
"...Well..."
"What do you mean, 'couldn't reach him'?"
Hiyori's tone was aggressive.
"So you just took the initiative? You think just because my father abandoned this place, you can take it? Then if you go out and leave your wife at home, can we just take her too?"
Tesoro's expression grew uglier by the second.
He turned to look at Hancock.
"Pirate Empress, could you please explain?"
Hancock looked at him expressionlessly and said plainly, "Hiyori, he pays an annual rental fee."
Hiyori's expression faltered.
"How was I supposed to know that?"
Sandersonia leaned over from the side and said helplessly, "You usually don't care about this kind of thing."
Hiyori's face turned green and pale by turns.
She bit her lip, remained silent for a moment, and then—
"So what? Even if 99% of the problem is mine, don't you have 1% of the problem as well?"
She puffed out her chest and raised her voice an octave.
"You didn't report to my father personally, so you still deserve to die!"
Hancock: "…"
Yamato: "…"
Sandersonia: "…"
Marigold: "…"
Everyone's expressions were indescribably awkward.
One must know, when Tesoro started his operation here, Makoto had already left using the Time-Time Fruit's power.
How could he possibly report this matter to Makoto personally?
Hiyori's behavior was simply being unreasonable and aggressive.
Tesoro looked at Makoto with a pleading expression.
Makoto looked at him, was silent for a moment.
Then—
"Then let him die."
Makoto's tone was casual.
After all, Tesoro wasn't a good person anyway. If he died, he died.
"Father! I knew you loved me the most!"
Hiyori's eyes instantly lit up. She looped her arm through Makoto's, stood on her tiptoes, and planted a kiss with a 'smack' on his cheek.
In her eyes, Makoto had made this decision purely to save her reputation.
Tesoro's expression turned completely dark.
He stepped back two paces, the humility and fawning vanishing from his eyes, replaced by a near-crazed rage.
"Nishikawa Makoto..."
He gritted his teeth, speaking word by word.
"You go too far!"
His hands suddenly raised, golden light surging from his palms like two golden serpents, lunging towards Makoto and his group.
Gol-Gol Fruit ability activated.
He intended to control the gold dust inside Makoto and his group, rendering them immobile.
But—
Nothing happened.
The golden light flickered in the air a few times, then went out like a light bulb with a dead connection.
Tesoro's pupils contracted sharply.
"H-how... is that possible?"
Baccarat behind him was also stunned, crying out incredulously, "Tesoro-sama's ability... has been discovered?"
Makoto smiled but said nothing.
"Hayasaka."
Makoto called out without turning his head.
"Here."
Ai stepped out from the crowd.
"Perfect time to test your new ability."
Makoto said.
Ai nodded and quickly approached Tesoro.
Tesoro instinctively raised his hands into a defensive posture.
In an instant, Ai raised her right hand, palm facing up.
A black, ink-like thick mist surged from her palm, coalescing, churning, and spreading above her hand.
The mist emitted a strange, unsettling aura, as if it could devour all light and hope.
Tesoro's pupils contracted sharply.
He instinctively felt that the black mist in that woman's hand posed a deadly threat to him.
Under pressure, Tesoro launched the first attack.
Gold, like Armament Haki, coiled around his hands and feet, forming a layer of golden armor.
The gold shimmered brilliantly under the lights, radiating intense heat.
"Golden Burst!"
Tesoro roared, launching himself like a golden leopard towards Ai.
Having become a Warlord of the Sea, his strength was naturally considerable. His fist, whistling through the air, aimed for Ai's face.
This punch carried not only the hardness of gold but also generated intense heat through the gold's thermal conductivity, along with a massive shockwave.
Yet—
Ai didn't even lift an eyelid.
She sidestepped, and Tesoro's fist brushed past her hair. Then, her right hand shot out like a viper, grabbing Tesoro's wrist.
"What?!"
Tesoro's pupils contracted sharply.
The gold attached to his wrist vanished without a trace the moment Ai touched it, as if something had devoured it.
Dark-Dark Fruit - Ability Deprivation.
Any Devil Fruit user who dares to engage a Dark-Dark Fruit user in close combat will have their fruit ability nullified.