Ace continued to absorb the immense fire energy, and slowly, a seventh Golden Crow began to take form. With intense concentration, he practiced for hours, letting this powerful energy permeate every part of his body.
Finally, after half a day, the seventh Golden Crow was fully condensed, marking a leap in Ace's fire-based abilities. He opened his eyes, a satisfied smile spreading across his face.
"Not only did I condense the seventh Golden Crow, but I also awakened the Mera-Mera Fruit. My strength has reached the level of the Four Emperors."
Ace's thoughts alone summoned the power of the Mera-Mera Fruit, instantly igniting his surroundings in a massive sea of flames. The flames were now several times stronger than before. But Ace, determined to stabilize his newfound power, continued practicing instead of rushing to show off his strength.
Meanwhile, chaos was spreading across the sea as Chiba's quest for rare medicinal materials had set off a frenzy.
On an obscure island—one rumored to be hiding a powerful pirate's treasure—Bartolomeo was in the middle of a heated fight. He laughed loudly, "If you don't want to die, get out of my way! I'm only here for money and medicinal herbs!"
Beside him, Cavendish's sword flashed, cutting down pirate after pirate with terrifying precision. His skill left the remaining pirates in shock, and eventually, the pirate leaders surrendered their treasures and medicinal supplies. Despite their cooperation, Cavendish ended up killing the pirate leader in disgust.
Bartolomeo shook his head. "Cavendish, was that really necessary?"
Cavendish, wiping his blade clean, replied, "He annoyed me. Besides, I'm the one who did the heavy lifting here, so I'll be taking 70% of the loot."
"What?! If it hadn't been for me covering you, you'd have been in pieces by now!" Bartolomeo argued.
Cavendish shrugged. "Without me, you wouldn't have even made it this far. Take it or leave it—you get 30%."
"Fine, I'll take it," Bartolomeo muttered, knowing his skill with money was no match for Cavendish's.
Elsewhere, out on the open sea, three Marine warships were on a mission to deliver the heavenly tribute to Mariejois, the Celestial Dragons' holy land. On one of the battleships, the Marine quasi-Admirals, Ghost Spider and Volcano, sat eating.
Volcano grumbled, "Escorting tribute to the Celestial Dragons? I'd rather be fighting pirates in the New World."
Ghost Spider replied, "I prefer this job over tangling with pirates. With Chiba turning pirate, things are only going to get harder."
Volcano nodded thoughtfully. "I heard Chiba created an artificial Mera-Mera Fruit in a Golden Crow form. And some guy named Sabo won it in a tournament in Dressrosa, then passed it on to a female swordsman. She's supposedly defeated Blackbeard's second captain, Burgess, and even burned Blackbeard himself. Recently, she also took down Virgo and destroyed Doflamingo's SMILE factory. Chiba's inventions are changing the balance of power."
"It's a shame the Five Elders pushed Chiba out of the Marines. If he were still with us, that Mera-Mera Fruit might have been ours," Ghost Spider added with a sigh.
The two Marines shared a rare moment of regret, but their reflections were cut short when they sensed danger ahead. In an instant, a Marine soldier on deck collapsed, his body cleanly sliced in two. Everything nearby was being cut into segments by nearly invisible threads.
Suddenly, explosions rocked the ship as cannon fire erupted. A group of pirates surfaced from beneath the water, storming the deck and shouting, "Surrender your weapons and we won't kill you!"
Ghost Spider and Volcano leapt to action, swinging their swords at the barely visible silk threads attacking the ship. But the threads were stronger than they anticipated, tough and nearly impossible to cut through.
As the threads closed in, the two quasi-Admirals were quickly entangled, bound tightly like rice dumplings. Joz leaped onto the deck, his eight white, spider-like legs sticking firmly in place.
Smirking, Joz said, "This String-String Fruit is incredible. Before, I'd never have been able to touch you two, but now, thanks to my new speed, you're completely helpless."
Ghost Spider stared in shock. "Joz! How did you get Doflamingo's String-String Fruit power? Did you kill him?"
Joz laughed. "This isn't Doflamingo's original fruit. It's the artificial String-String Fruit awakening, created by our Captain Chiba."
"An artificial String-String Fruit... awakening?" Volcano repeated, his face filled with disbelief.
Joz sneered. "Yes, and it's all thanks to you Marines for forcing Chiba out. Otherwise, I wouldn't have gotten my hands on this powerful Devil Fruit. As a token of my gratitude, I'll be taking the heavenly tribute for myself."
Joz leaned in menacingly. "Tell your men on the other two ships to surrender, or you'll all die."
Volcano glared at him. "Do you think we'd trust a pirate's word?"
Joz chuckled. "Taking you down is as easy as crushing an ant. I'm only giving you this chance out of respect for your past alliance with Chiba. Don't be foolish."
[•———•——•———•]
𝙥𝗮𝙩𝙧𝙚𝙤𝙣(.)𝙘𝙤𝙢/𝙂𝙤𝙙𝙊𝙛𝙍𝙚𝙖𝙙𝙚𝙧
✨ • 𝗘𝘅𝗰𝗹𝘂𝘀𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗔𝗰𝗰𝗲𝘀𝘀: 𝙂𝙚𝙩 𝟲𝟬+ 𝙖𝙙𝙫𝙖𝙣𝙘𝙚𝙙 𝙘𝙝𝙖𝙥𝙩𝙚𝙧𝙨 𝙖𝙝𝙚𝙖𝙙 𝙤𝙛 𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙧𝙮𝙤𝙣𝙚 𝙚𝙡𝙨𝙚.