On the island, the sky was a bruised shade of purple, heavy with unshed rain.
The gloomy atmosphere threatened to unleash a torrential downpour at any moment, mirroring the suffocating tension on the ground.
Byrnndi World led hundreds of his elite pirates toward the Donquixote Family's stronghold.
The wind howled through the rocky crags, carrying a scent that made the inherently suspicious Binjack uneasy.
"World..." Byojack whispered, clutching his brother's massive shoulder. "I sense... something catastrophic is about to happen on this island. The air... it tastes like a trap."
Though Byojack couldn't pinpoint the source of his dread, the oppressive atmosphere weighed heavily on him.
His instincts, honed by years of surviving the Grand Line, were screaming.
After sweeping the island with his own Observation Haki, Byrnndi World replied dismissively.
"Brother, relax. I've already scanned the area." He gestured vaguely toward the palace. "The Donquixote Family executives we met last time are all there. There are two additional people—a young brat and a youth. My guess is they're the Donquixote Family's 'Young Master' and maybe his head steward."
Unfazed by the newcomers' capabilities, Byrnndi World, having witnessed the world's most formidable powers like Roger and Whitebeard, saw absolutely no threat in two youths from the North Blue.
To him, they were just ants with fancy titles.
After a long march, the World Pirates arrived at the Donquixote Family's heavy iron gates.
Dozens of black-suited Mafia members stood guard.
Their expressions were sharp with vigilance, their hands hovering near their weapons, but they didn't attack.
Upon Byrnndi World's arrival, they wordlessly opened a side passage leading to the family's forging workshop.
Smoke billowed from the chimneys—the fires were already lit.
"See?" World grinned. "They're ready to work."
There, the massive haul of Fine Iron brought by the pirates would be smelted and cast into the massive cannon World dreamed of.
Seeing this compliance, Byrnndi World dismissed his lingering concerns.
The remaining Mafia members, adhering to local customs (and strict orders from Doflamingo), bowed stiffly.
"Captain World," the lead guard said through gritted teeth. "Please. Follow us to the Council Hall."
Byrnndi World laughed heartily, the sound echoing off the canyon walls.
Last time, he had gotten what he wanted with his fists right in that hall.
"So," World mused aloud, "that little punk Doflamingo is finally back? Last time I came to visit, he ran away like a scared rabbit. Now I'll teach him what it means to lay low in the presence of a King."
He cracked his knuckles.
"Hah! A fledgling brat who hasn't even grown all his feathers dares to dream of being the Underground King of the North Blue? Truly doesn't know how high the heavens are."
The members of the Donquixote Family turned ashen with rage upon hearing Byrnndi World's insults.
Fire burned in everyone's eyes.
To them, Doflamingo was a messiah, a King.
If not for the Young Master's strict orders to maintain the "trap," they would have long charged at Byrnndi World in a suicidal wave.
"Doflamingo-sama awaits you in the council hall," the lead Mafia member said, his voice trembling with suppressed fury.
"We hope Captain Byrnndi will... honor us... with your presence."
Byrnndi World glanced back at his officers and pointed at a few key men.
"You lot! Arrange for the Fine Iron to be quickly transported to the weapons workshop. Watch them cast it. I want that cannon done by tomorrow." He turned to his inner circle.
"Nairu, Sebastian... come with me to meet this brat. Let's see if he has a spine."
As for Byojack on his shoulder, they were always inseparable.
...
In the Council Hall.
The damage caused by Byrnndi World last time hadn't been fully repaired.
The Donquixote Family members had only done minimal patchwork to keep out the drafts; scorch marks and cracked masonry were still visible, serving as a grim reminder of the power gap.
"Kehehehe! So this is the Young Master of the Donquixote Family?"
The moment Byrnndi World kicked the doors open, he brazenly scrutinized the room.
His eyes landed on the golden-haired figure sitting on the central throne.
Donquixote Doflamingo.
World completely overlooked Raleigh, who stood quietly in the shadows nearby, leaning against a pillar with his arms crossed.
"He's still just a kid after all," World sneered.
Doflamingo sat cross-legged on the throne, looking relaxed.
Trebol, Diamante, and the others stood behind him, tense and ready for battle.
They watched their Young Master with a mix of awe and confusion.
Doflamingo was smoking a cigar, his demeanor calm.
He no longer seemed as immature or volatile as before.
After taking several deep drags of his cigar, letting the smoke curl around his sunglasses, he suppressed his inner murderous thoughts without revealing a flicker of emotion.
"I see no issue with my appearance," Doflamingo said, his voice smooth and dangerous. "Let's discuss business. You want a custom cannon. A huge one at that." He tapped ash onto the floor.
"Such a cannon would be extremely expensive to produce. Even with you providing the raw materials... just creating the mold alone requires tremendous effort, skilled labor, and time."
Doflamingo leaned forward, a predatory grin spreading across his face.
"So, Byrnndi World... how many Belly are you willing to pay?"
After his operations in the East Blue and his prolonged, humiliating, yet educational dealings with Raleigh, Doflamingo had learned some hard principles.
Rule number one: Business is business.
One shouldn't let emotions interfere unless the returns were greater.
Now, the arrogance in his brow had diminished, replaced by an inscrutable, kingly mystery.
"Pay?" Byrnndi World stared wide-eyed at Doflamingo, genuinely confused. "You mean... after I went through all the trouble of stealing Fine Iron from the World Government... and shipping it here to your doorstep... I still have to pay processing fees?"
Doflamingo met his gaze unflinchingly, his sharp eyes hidden behind his red shades flashing.
"Even if you stole it from Mary Geoise itself," Doflamingo snarled, "you'd still have to pay the processing fees! This isn't a charity!"
As he spoke, an immense, physical pressure emanated from Doflamingo's body.
Conqueror's Haki.
It wasn't fully matured, but it was vicious.
It exploded outward, a wave of red-black lightning that rattled the windows and cracked the floorboards.
The weak-willed guards outside fainted instantly.
And inside the hall... Byojack, already frail and sickly, couldn't withstand the sudden impact of a King's will.
His eyes rolled back, and he slumped forward on World's shoulder, foaming at the mouth.
"BROTHER!" Bryndy World caught his unconscious older brother, his face twisting from shock to pure, unadulterated fury.
He carefully shielded Byojack, placing him in a safe position behind a heavy stone pillar.
Then, he turned back to Doflamingo.
The air around him began to distort.
"You bastard," World growled, his voice dropping an octave. "It seems you have a death wish."
"Moa Moa — Fifty Times Speed!"
"Ito Ito — Five Color String!"
BOOM!
Bryndy World's outburst caused the already heavily damaged council hall to collapse completely.
The roof was blown off by the sheer shockwave of his acceleration.
His figure vanished, moving faster than the eye could track.
He darted through the falling rubble, mercilessly smashing through stone pillars as if they were made of styrofoam.
A heavy, crushing fist, coated in high-level Armament Haki and accelerated to fifty times its normal speed, swung ruthlessly toward Doflamingo's head.
Ssshh!
The sharp sound of air being sliced echoed through the space.
Five nearly transparent, razor-sharp threads appeared in Doflamingo's hand.
He didn't dodge; he struck back.
He raked his hand downward, grasping toward the charging pirate captain.
The falling rocks that World had sent flying were sliced apart by the threads as easily as a hot knife through butter.
The threads continued, aiming to slice Byrnndi World clean in half.
CLANG!
A sound like clashing heavy steel rang out between the two monsters.
Sparks flew.
The threads on Doflamingo's fingers dug into World's skin but stopped.
They encountered an invisible, iron-hard barrier.
"As expected," Doflamingo gritted his teeth, sweat forming on his brow. "You also possess powerful Armament Haki."
His threads couldn't cut deeper.
His current mastery of Haki, while improved, was still rudimentary compared to a veteran of the New World who had clashed with Roger and Whitebeard.
"Kehahaha!" World laughed, seeing Doflamingo struggle. "Kid! Your strings are sharp, but your will is soft! It's time you learned a lesson!"
World didn't retract his fist.
He accelerated it again.
"One Hundred Times Speed!"
The force multiplied instantly.
Doflamingo's defense shattered. The fist, now a blur of destruction, hammered toward Doflamingo's exposed chest.
At this range, at this speed, it would turn his heart to paste.
Doflamingo's eyes widened. 'Too fast!'
THUD!
The sound was heavy, dull, and final.
But Doflamingo wasn't dead. He wasn't even hit.
A cloud of dust swirled between the two combatants.
As it cleared, Bryndy World's eyes narrowed.
His massive fist had been stopped cold. Intercepted by a single leg, clad in a sleek black military boot.
Raleigh stood there, one hand in his pocket, his leg raised high, blocking the 100-fold punch as if it were a gentle breeze.
The ground beneath Raleigh's standing foot had cracked into a spiderweb crater, but Raleigh himself hadn't moved an inch.
"Impressive speed," Raleigh said casually, dusting off his pant leg with his free hand.
"For a mere pirates."
Bryndy World shifted his gaze curiously to the man who now stood before him.
He felt the density of the Haki radiating from that leg.
"You..." World growled, retracting his fist and stepping back warily. "You don't seem like a member of the Donquixote Family. Who are you?"
Raleigh lowered his leg, his cape settling around him.
He offered a lazy, terrifying smile.
"Just a humble public servant," Raleigh drawled. "Here to handle a noise complaint."
Raleigh's elusive speed, his casual blocking of a lethal attack, and his skilled use of Haki made Bryndy World realize instantly.
'This wasn't a game anymore. This was a trap.'