[send power stones please]
Because of the "promotion" carried out by Chenos and Tesoro, news that the Gold-Gold Fruit was about to appear in the Sabaody Archipelago quickly made its way up the chain—eventually reaching the forces under Donquixote Doflamingo.
That news piqued Doflamingo's interest.
As someone who had once been a Celestial Dragon, Doflamingo knew very well that the Gold-Gold Fruit could not turn living people into gold.
Yet rumors claiming exactly that were spreading wildly throughout Sabaody.
That meant only one thing—
Someone was deliberately stirring chaos.
And there were only two possible motives behind creating such chaos:
First, to seize the Devil Fruit.
Second, to launch an attack on the Sabaody Archipelago itself.
The second possibility was almost nonexistent.
Sabaody lay right next to Mary Geoise, Marineford, and Enies Lobby—all places heavily guarded by the World Government and the Marines. Even a Yonko wouldn't attack this area without a compelling reason.
Which meant the answer was obvious.
The goal was the Devil Fruit.
But that raised another question.
If this person was confident enough to cause trouble in a place as chaotic as Sabaody—where pirates gathered in droves and Marines were everywhere—why didn't they simply take the fruit by force?
Why go through the trouble of spreading rumors and mobilizing the pirates of Sabaody instead?
There was only one explanation.
The person behind this had confidence in their own strength, but lacked manpower.
They had no subordinates—or at least not enough—to gather information for them.
So they let the pirates do the searching.
Once the fruit surfaced, chaos would erupt.
And then—
They would step in and take it.
Such a person…
Wasn't that exactly the kind of "family" he needed?
Standing atop a cloud, the man in the black suit let out a low, restrained laugh.
Anticipation flickered in his eyes as he continued to wait.
While someone above the clouds waited, the forest below was already boiling with tension.
More than a dozen pirate crews had gathered.
"Hahaha! Captain Jack, is that the Gold-Gold Fruit you're holding? Let us take a look!"
"Old man, you're still dreaming about retirement at a time like this? Hand over the fruit now, and we might spare your lives!"
"Tch—so many crews showed up. Only one fruit though. Looks like this ends in a bloodbath!"
The faces of the Jack Pirates turned deathly pale.
Forget everyone else—even Mad Bull Beck alone was more than they could confidently handle.
One of the crew whispered urgently,
"Boss, what do we do? If we insist on holding onto the fruit, we'll all die here!"
"Yeah, Captain! Forget retirement—surviving comes first. Give up the fruit!"
Jack clenched his curved blade tightly, unwilling.
That Gold-Gold Fruit had been obtained at the cost of his closest brother's life—the vice-captain of the Jack Pirates.
Jack had promised him he'd bring his family enough money to live comfortably for the rest of their lives.
Yet now, somehow, the secret had leaked.
They were surrounded.
Their retirement dream was shattered.
No matter how unwilling Jack was, reality was cruel.
If they didn't give up the fruit now, there would be no retirement—
Only a funeral feast.
And not just one village's worth.
Jack exchanged glances with his crew, then stepped forward.
"You're right. Looks like retirement will have to wait."
He took a few steps toward the center and spoke loudly.
"The Gold-Gold Fruit is right here. I'll leave it on the ground."
"You can fight over it yourselves."
"I only have one condition—let us leave."
"I'm sure none of you want an extra enemy competing for the fruit, right?"
With that, Jack opened the chest, revealing the Gold-Gold Fruit, and gently placed it on the ground.
The moment it touched the earth—
Jack leapt backward.
Together with his crew, who had already retreated to the edge of the encirclement, he fled at full speed.
The instant the fruit was released, the pirates exploded into action.
"Grab it! Whoever gets it becomes the richest man in the world!"
"Don't let it go! That fruit creates wealth!"
"Get the hell out of my way—the Gold-Gold Fruit is mine!"
Chaos erupted.
Everyone rushed forward—only to be gunned down or cut apart before reaching the fruit.
By the end, corpses littered the ground around it.
Yet no one could get within one meter of the Gold-Gold Fruit.
It was as if an invisible death zone surrounded it—step inside, and you died.
Even Mad Bull Beck, with his 95 million Berries bounty, hesitated.
He was a Zoan-type user.
If he got focused by everyone at once, he'd still die.
Then—
A figure appeared at the edge of the pirate encirclement.
Seeing that the fruit hadn't been taken yet, he let out a quiet breath of relief.
"Looks like I made it in time."
"Tesoro, wait here. I'll go get the Gold-Gold Fruit."
Tesoro looked at the dozens of pirate crews—hundreds of pirates—and his heart sank.
"Chenos… it's too dangerous. Maybe we shouldn't—"
"Tesoro," Chenos interrupted calmly.
"Trust me."
"The Gold-Gold Fruit is the fruit meant for you."
With that, he ignored Tesoro's protests and walked straight toward the deadly center.
High above, the man in the black suit watched Chenos step forward, eyes lighting up.
"He's here."
The pirates noticed Chenos immediately.
Without hesitation, guns and weapons were raised.
Gunfire erupted.
Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!
Bullets screamed through the air toward Chenos—
Only to stop midair around him, frozen in place.
"Rebound."
At Chenos's low command, the bullets reversed direction.
They flew back exactly where they came from.
In an instant, over a hundred pirates dropped dead where they stood.
Chenos coldly swept his gaze across the stunned crowd and spoke loudly:
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