One Piece: The Arm of Fate

"Borsalino—!!!"

Seeing this, Kaido was furious, roaring like thunder:

"Damn it, when did you start following me?! And who gave you the courage to interfere in my battle?!"

"So scary~ I'm angry now~"

Kizaru raised his hands in a gesture of surrender, smiling as he spoke:

"Don't be so tense, Mr. Kaido~ I'm just following orders. Since a dignified Yonko entered the first half of the Grand Line, someone has to monitor, right?"

Kaido's face darkened: "You mean you were following me from the beginning?"

"Of course. It's not easy keeping up with you and staying unnoticed by your Observation Haki."

Kizaru scratched his head with a troubled look. "Although I really didn't want to do such a troublesome task, there was no choice. I'm the only one at Marineford who could manage it."

Kaido stared at him blankly.

Suddenly, his eyes turned red, and tears welled up.

"Waaahhhh!!!"

He sat down heavily, crying like a child, "Shano! It was me! I hurt you!!!"

He was overwhelmed by guilt at the thought that Kizaru followed him to track Shano and ended up sneaking in an attack during the chaos.

The more he cried, the sadder he became, slamming his huge fists into the ground, shaking the entire Enies Lobby.

His expression resembled that of a child whose favorite toy had been snatched away.

"Still drunk?"

Kizaru raised an eyebrow. He didn't seem surprised at all.

Over the years, he had dealt with Kaido many times and knew full well that Kaido often lost control when drunk.

But…

For him to cry this hard over Shano's "death"… it confirmed Kizaru's suspicions.

The Marine headquarters originally misjudged Kaido's intent, thinking he was out to kill Shano, so they allowed him to pass through the first half unchecked.

Kizaru had thought so too.

But the more he observed, the more he noticed something strange.

Kaido didn't seem to harbor killing intent toward that kid—rather, it looked like he wanted to recruit him.

That absolutely couldn't be allowed.

The Beasts Pirates were already a major headache for the Marines.

If they gained a new powerhouse, a teenage cadre with "big boss" strength, the balance of the New World would tip.

So Kizaru had gone all-in, hiding his presence and launching a full-force sneak attack.

As an Admiral, doing this to a junior pirate might be disgraceful—

But if it could eliminate a threat before it grew…

He'd do it again.

"...Huh?"

Kizaru's expression suddenly changed.

Kaido had stopped crying and stood up slowly, gripping his mace tightly. His pupils burned with pure killing intent as he glared at Kizaru.

"Wait, are you serious?!"

Kizaru chuckled nervously and took a few steps back. "You want to fight me now? No need for that. Let's just meet another day—"

"Go ahead and run!"

White steam blew from Kaido's nostrils as he roared, "You're the fastest in the sea, right? I won't bother chasing you! Instead, I'll just destroy this whole Judicial Island and see if the World Government will drag you to Marijoa to be punished!"

Kizaru's steps paused.

Kaido didn't give him a chance to react. He suddenly stomped down and roared to the sky!

"The Third World — Inducing Naraku!!!"

His mace spun, wrapped in terrifying, world-destroying force, and slammed down!

Kizaru's face changed drastically. His body turned into particles of light to dodge.

But Kaido's furious strike came with overwhelming Conqueror's Haki—its shockwaves spread too wide, cutting off Kizaru's ability to move.

"Shit..."

Kizaru could only raise his arms before being smashed into the ground.

The foundations of Enies Lobby crumbled layer by layer, and the shockwave even split the distant sea into a massive vacuum trench.

"Cough!"

Kizaru crawled out of the ruins, wiping the blood from his mouth.

He looked at Kaido, who approached with a furious aura, and finally dropped his usual lazy expression. Rubbing his temples, he sighed:

"Man... I really didn't want to fight a monster like you."

Then he spread his arms. Countless beams of golden light formed into a sword. His expression became serious.

"But since you're so insistent... I'll have to go all out."

Gurgle...

7,000 meters deep under the sea, beneath Enies Lobby—

A pitch-black world, where even sunlight couldn't reach. Shano's body floated silently in the cold currents, slowly drifting outward.

He was covered in wounds, the bloody hole in his chest especially horrific.

But…

If anyone had seen him, they'd be shocked to discover that his wounds were visibly healing and regenerating.

In no time, his body was completely restored.

"Hah…"

Shano suddenly opened his eyes and looked up.

"That old geezer Kizaru really thought that level of attack could kill me..."

He sneered.

Too naive.

He rolled his wrists and tested his body. There was no serious damage, and he still had plenty of stamina.

Plus, he had already reached beginner-level in the Deep Sea Breathing Method, so staying here for a few days was no issue.

What a shame—he was just about to fight Kaido seriously and get valuable battle experience.

Now, he had no choice but to fake his death.

There was no alternative.

Being hunted by a sneaky old bastard who ate the Glint-Glint Fruit? That's no joke.

If Kizaru hadn't shown up, it wouldn't have mattered if he fought Kaido to the end. After all, Kaido hadn't shown killing intent.

Worst-case scenario, he'd be knocked out and taken to Wano.

Even then, there'd be chances to escape.

But Kizaru?

That bastard came in swinging to kill. He didn't say a word—just appeared and went all-out with a sneak attack.

Why the hell did he go easy on Nika, but went full force on me?!

Unfair!

...Still, the outcome wasn't bad.

Thanks to Kizaru's ambush, he had time to comprehend the basics of Conqueror's Haki entanglement and escape.

But he was still pissed.

Don't underestimate the poor!

Wait, second uncle! We'll settle this later!

Shano muttered bitterly and suddenly remembered something.

Revenge could wait—but collecting loot? That couldn't be forgotten.

He swam outward, hugging the seabed to suppress his aura.

After traveling dozens of kilometers, he finally surfaced. At the edge of the horizon, two tiny black dots were still fighting.

Still going at it?

Kaido really is loyal…

Almost made him feel guilty about fleecing him.

—Almost.

He summoned his "Sign Sheep" card deck. Last time, he used one card against Aokiji in Food City, so he had four left.

Looking toward the two battling figures, he activated two cards.

Snap!

Two golden flashes—

Suddenly, he was holding:

One pair of finely ironed striped suit pants.

One pair of oversized light blue cotton underwear.

"What the hell?!"

He angrily threw both into the sea. "Where are my supreme sunglasses?! Where is my supreme mace?!"

His luck this time was trash!

What he didn't notice—

As the two pants vanished from the fight, the two distant figures paused slightly.

The next moment, Kaido's aura grew even more violent...

Five days later—

Two explosive headlines swept the world.

One—

The fall of Enies Lobby.

The island that symbolized the World Government's iron triangle of justice was completely destroyed in a massive battle.

The combatants? Kaido of the Four Emperors, and Admiral Kizaru.

Their clash collapsed the island and sank it into the sea!

The World Government lost face, and Kizaru was seriously wounded. If not for Akainu's sudden arrival via the whirlpool current, Kaido might not have left.

Two—

In June 1516, the strongest rookie in history—swordmaster Shano, bounty 1 billion—was declared dead.

According to the World Government, Kaido and Kizaru joined forces to hunt down Shano on Enies Lobby. Admiral Kizaru eliminated him and upheld justice.

Kaido turned on Kizaru out of frustration from losing his "spoils."

The truth? Another story.

But—

Shano's bounty was revoked.

The End Pirates were declared wiped out!

The shock from this news was immense.

Shano, who had once slain two Warlords and survived battles with admirals—

Died just like that?

It made sense.

How many could survive attacks from both a Yonko and an Admiral?

Some rejoiced, others mourned.

Still others doubted—

No corpse?

Too fishy.

Speculation and controversy spread wildly.

Meanwhile—

The End continued its slow journey across the sea under the morning sun.

"Bah! So shameless! Failed your sneak attack and still acting all righteous!"

Nami angrily threw down the newspaper and looked at Shano.

"Brother! They're all saying you're dead. Aren't you going to clarify?!"

"How?"

Shano lay under a parasol, sipping orange soda. "Send Morgans a selfie with the caption: 'I'm not dead'?"

"Huh?"

Nami blinked, then clapped her hands. "That's genius! You really are my brother!"

"What the hell?!"

Shano pulled her ear. "Let your brother enjoy some peace and quiet for once."

Since entering the Grand Line, he'd faced admirals, Kaido, even Garp...

All high-level bosses.

If not for his survival tricks, he'd be long gone.

Now that the world thought he was dead, he could finally relax and strengthen himself.

—

Four days ago, he had secretly returned to Water 7 and reunited with the crew.

Mayor Iceburg, grateful for saving his life and revealing the CP9 spies, personally helped upgrade the End.

As Tom's top disciple, Iceburg gathered expert foremen and rebuilt the ship in one day.

He reinforced the training room and even fixed the flame thruster Smoker had struggled with.

Now, with a simple flame injection from Nami, the End's speed could double.

Shano had considered recruiting Iceburg, but that was impossible.

Water 7 needed him too much.

Instead, Iceburg passed all his shipbuilding knowledge to Smoker.

Shano saw potential—Smoker might become a real shipwright!

So he dropped the idea of recruiting someone new.

As for the remaining CP9 agents, Kuina eliminated them while Shano was gone.

She said:

Lucci and Bruno were already killed. The two sides were enemies. There was no room for mercy.

Shano completely agreed.

Kuina was growing more capable—handling matters steadily when he wasn't around.

—

Returning from his thoughts—

Shano sipped his soda and opened his system panel.

He had been focused on practicing Conqueror's Haki entanglement.

But now it was time to check the trading market.

And first, his points—

[You sacrificed Kizaru's striped pants — 3600 points]

[You sacrificed Kaido's cotton pants — 4000 points]

[You sacrificed Jack's ivory — 1800 points]

[You sacrificed Lucci's pigeon — 1500 points]

[Misc CP9 agents + Iceburg — 1100 points]

Total: 12,000 points!

His points balance soared to 44,500!

"Feels good."

Shano nodded in satisfaction and opened the trading market.

Sure enough—new items had refreshed.

The first entry stunned him—

[Flesh and Blood Furnace Method – Core Chapter]

Type: Cultivation Manual

Price: 4,800 points

Description: The final core of the Flesh and Blood Furnace Method. Perfectly refines body, organs, and cells. Requires all four previous chapters at 'Great Success' level. Greatly enhances internal organ strength and overall vitality.

Seller Note: The Dark Master Collection is complete!

It was finally here!

The last core chapter!

He remembered getting the first chapter before defeating Arlong.

He'd waited so long for this!

He grinned wildly and added it to his cart without hesitation.

Lucky day!

Next item—

[Granny Tose's Kuchikamizake]

Type: Consumable

Price: 400 points

Description: Swap bodies with Granny Tose from Gintama for one month. Only works on the host.

Seller Note: No one else? I'll just drink it then.

"Big-headed ghost!! Who the hell would buy this?!"

A black line ran down Shano's forehead as he skipped to the next item.