Listening to Umit's words, Ryuuto fell into deep thought.
"If it's about gold, then it might just make sense!" Ryuuto couldn't help but recall the golden city of Shandora on Skypiea, which had been knocked into the sky by the Knock Up Stream. The Shandian warriors there were said to be descendants of the Lunarians.
It would be perfectly logical for these Lunarians to come to the Blue Sea and plunder vast amounts of gold to synthesize an infinite energy source. Similarly, Imu has always demanded the Heavenly Tribute from the World Government's member nations.
Imu's goal is very likely the same: infinite energy.
Imu probably possesses some technology to convert gold into this infinite energy, but their technique must be incomplete. That would explain why, over the past 800 years, they have failed to create more than a few samples of it. Furthermore, Ryuuto knew that the so-called Ancient Weapons, like Uranus and Pluton, required this infinite energy to be activated.
Everything was starting to connect.
And the truth was just that. Vegapunk's ongoing "Mother Flame" experiment was being conducted with funding from Imu. Imu hoped to leverage Vegapunk's intellect to develop a substitute for the infinite energy source.
But Vegapunk had clearly held something back.
This was how Dragon had managed to obtain the Mother Flame first, leading to the subsequent battle for Pluton. In that fight, Imu had suffered a complete and utter defeat. Not only was the devastatingly powerful Ancient Weapon, Pluton, stolen, but Imu themselves was wounded in the process.
Fortunately, Imu had 800 years of accumulated power. Just recently, they had finally succeeded in activating the bridge at Tequila Wolf, greatly increasing their strength.
Therefore, Imu's retaliation was imminent.
Especially with the traitor, York, in the picture—
If things went as expected, Imu would soon appear on Egghead with the God's Knights, for they knew that a new Mother Flame was about to be created there.
Immense danger awaited Dragon and Vegapunk.
However, Ryuuto had no time to worry about any of that for now.
While the Giant Hammer Pirates worked tirelessly to repair the Ark Noah, he was racing to every corner of the world, bringing those in need of rescue back to Fish-Man Island. With the sea levels rising at a terrifying rate, the number of people requiring aid was staggering. Most of them were concentrated on small islands or in minor kingdoms, places that lacked the resources to build ships and escape to the sea.
The rest were the elderly, deemed to have little value. They had been deliberately left behind by their kings.
As a result, the number of people needing rescue skyrocketed, and the number of ships appearing on the ocean's surface expanded rapidly.
Perhaps this was the true Great Pirate Era.
Because the land was almost completely submerged.
Rescuing all these people required an enormous amount of time and manpower, but thankfully, with Mohmoo's help, the problem was solved. Mohmoo, with his kilometer-long back, could carry hundreds of people at a time.
"Captain, you're back?"
Seeing Mohmoo speeding toward the Ark Noah, Nami stood at the bow, shouting to Ryuuto. The Ark Noah itself had been completely transformed. Under Nami's organization, the deck had been divided into a farming area and a living area.
The farming area was now sectioned into uniformly sized fields, all overflowing with a variety of crops. Golden and crimson hues painted a picture of a bountiful harvest. The soil and the seeds for these crops had all come from his System.
In the living area, a considerable number of houses had been built. Fearing that they might run out of space as the population grew, Ryuuto had planned ahead, designing a high-rise structure akin to a modern apartment complex—a series of compact, efficient homes.
By now, Ryuuto was no longer short on reputation points. He not only had millions of points, but the number was still soaring, and at an ever-increasing rate.
The name of the Four Emperors—Ryuuto—now resounded throughout the world!
With a gust of wind, a sudden gust of wind swept across Mohmoo's back, lifting everyone and depositing them safely onto the deck of the Ark Noah.
Soon after—
A pirate wearing a shirt with the characters "Ryuuto" emblazoned on it came over. He began assigning the newcomers to different groups and guiding them toward the buildings in the living area.
This was one of Buggy's men.
Although Buggy himself hadn't grown much stronger recently, he had a massive number of subordinates, all of whom were fanatically loyal, as if they'd been brainwashed. After arriving at the Ark Noah, Buggy had designed these white shirts bearing Ryuuto's name as a sign of respect for his new captain.
When all several thousand of his men put them on—
And you know what? It actually looked surprisingly good. The men instantly looked more professional.
And so, they took on the responsibility of managing the people who had just arrived on the Ark Noah.
As for Foxy, who had come with Buggy, he had already set out to sea again with Umit. Over the past year, the Foxy Pirates had become accustomed to sailing back and forth across the ocean. Faced with a shortage of food, fresh water, and lumber, he had volunteered to assist Umit with transport runs.
"Nami, when will the others arrive?" Ryuuto asked softly, walking over to Nami's side. By "others," he was of course referring to the Kuja Pirates, the World Pirates, and the Barto Club.
"The fastest will be here in a day. The slowest might take a bit longer," Nami said with a helpless shrug.
The "slowest" was the Barto Club. Bartolomeo had been completely caught off guard; he'd only just crossed Reverse Mountain when he received Ryuuto's summons. At this point, Bartolomeo didn't even know where the Ark Noah was. His only guide was the Vivre Card Ryuuto had given him.
"Bartolomeo, huh?" Ryuuto guessed instantly, rubbing his head with a sigh. "Have Old Man Crocus go pick them up."
"Okay! I'll go tell him now!" Nami replied.
CRACKLE!!
With a flash of lightning, Ryuuto had already used his electrical powers to transmit the message to Crocus.
And then—
The massive Ark Maxim slowly began to move, heading in Bartolomeo's direction.
"No need. Old Man Crocus is already on his way," Ryuuto said, seeing the ship depart.
"That fast?" Nami thought to herself, her mind flashing back to the golden bolt of lightning she had seen just a moment ago.
...
Meanwhile, on a nameless island in the New World, Luffy was facing the greatest crisis of his journey so far.
But crisis often comes with great reward.
"Luffy, hang in there!!" Shanks watched as Big Mom brutally beat down Luffy, praying for him in his heart.
Big Mom's eyes were bloodshot, and she was in a complete frenzy. In her mind, only Luffy existed. Her sole purpose was to kill the monkey before her. As Big Mom swung Napoleon, arcs of black and red lightning erupted from the blade, twisting the very air around it.
The intensity of the battle had forced even her own children to keep their distance. In this state, Big Mom made no distinction between friend and foe. Anyone who dared to stand in her way would meet only one fate: death.
"Damn you, monkey! Just die already!!" Big Mom roared, her towering figure becoming a terrifying specter.
"Gum-Gum King Kong Gun!!"
Luffy was already covered in his own blood. Seeing Big Mom's fearsome attack coming, his expression grew grave. He transformed into his crimson-hued Bounceman form, charged his right fist with all his might, and unleashed it. Black and red lightning crackled around his fist.
That's right—Luffy had now learned to use Conqueror's Coating. This was the very reason he had been able to defeat Katakuri.
BOOM!!
As Napoleon crashed into Luffy's body, the King Kong Gun also slammed into Big Mom's stomach. In an instant, the two streams of black and red lightning shrieked against each other. A deafening collision rang out, and a terrifying shockwave erupted outwards.
The entire battlefield was engulfed in flying sand and debris...
But it was clear that Luffy was still no match for an Emperor like Big Mom. She possessed a natural talent, her "Iron Balloon" skin, which gave her body an incredible degree of durability.
And so—
The moment of impact, Luffy was sent flying by an immense force, coughing up a mouthful of blood as his body shot backward. Big Mom, however, took Luffy's punch without any apparent damage.
It seemed that to truly hurt Big Mom, one needed to master the advanced application of Armament Haki—Ryuo—or an even more advanced use of Conqueror's Haki.
"Shanks, Straw Hat looks like he's at his limit," Kuzan said from the deck of the Red Force, looking at Shanks with concern.
"Yeah, looks like he's about to be killed," Benn Beckman added dryly.
But neither of them moved a muscle. They were waiting for Shanks's decision.
Sengoku's face twitched uncontrollably. Unlike Shanks's crew and Kuzan, he was quickly losing his patience. His old friend was gone; he couldn't let Luffy die here as well.
"No, I have to save him!!"
In that instant, Sengoku made his choice. He leaped into the air, his massive fist crackling with black lightning, and charged toward Big Mom, the energy a clear sign of his inner turmoil.
"Don't you dare interfere with Mom!" Smoothie blurred, appearing instantly in front of Sengoku. With a sharp cry, she swung her right hand, unleashing a powerful sword slash.
The two stood their ground, their auras clashing violently.
"Damn you, get out of my way!!" Sengoku glanced at Luffy lying helplessly on the ground. He roared, his eyes growing fiercer.
"Sengoku!!"
But to everyone's surprise, Shanks moved first, appearing before Sengoku. He held his famed sword threateningly, demanding that he back down.
Seeing this, Smoothie's expression turned amused. She looked back and forth between Shanks and Sengoku. After a moment, she let out a disdainful laugh, sheathed her sword, and stepped aside.
"Luffy, I believe you can do it!" Shanks thought to himself, watching the still-struggling Luffy.
"You bastard!!" Sengoku was beyond furious, his voice trembling with rage. "Are you trying to get him killed?!"
"Shanks, I know what you're planning, but it seems impossible!" Kuzan, seeing Sengoku step up, moved in a trail of ice to stand beside him.
"Yo, yo, yo... Did you forget about me?!" Benn Beckman's nonchalant voice rang out. He was holding his flintlock, its barrel aimed squarely at Kuzan's head, making it clear that one wrong move would end with a bullet in the brain.
"Hmph!!" Seeing this, Sengoku snorted, flicked his beard, and turned back, returning to the table on the Red Force.
"Big Mom, I'm not going to give up! I'm the man who will become the King of the Pirates!!" Luffy, through sheer will, struggled back to his feet. Blood streamed down his face, but he refused to surrender.
"Then let me send you out of this world!"
"Ikoku!!"
With a ferocious roar, Big Mom gathered a brilliant energy along the edge of her blade. The immense power, combined with her terrifying Conqueror's Haki, created a scene of pure, unadulterated horror. She then swung Napoleon, and a cannonball-like slash shot toward Luffy in an instant.
What is this? Why wasn't she surprised when I made my declaration? This doesn't make any sense! Why isn't she giving me a chance? She's not giving me any chance at all! Luffy's mind raced, his thoughts drifting away as he realized he had no way to block this attack.
What do I do??
Am I going to die here just like this?
As the white slash grew larger and larger before his eyes, an infinite well of frustration surged within Luffy's heart.
I haven't even become the Pirate King yet!
"No! I can't die like this!!"
The indignant roar echoed in his mind, and a strange energy suddenly struck his consciousness.
DUM!!
He thought he heard the sound of a drum.
And then—
Luffy felt the world before him turn completely white. Everything around him seemed to pulse with a rhythmic, predictable motion.
At the same time, Luffy's body was undergoing a dramatic transformation. His hair and eyebrows turned white and curled like flames. His clothes also turned white, and a sash resembling a cloud of fire materialized around him.
In his moment of crisis, Luffy had—
awakened his Devil Fruit ability. This was the so-called Gear Five.
He had made the great leap from the Paramecia-type Gum-Gum Fruit to the Zoan-type Human-Human Fruit, Mythical Model: Nika.
But it was too late...
Luffy had no time to react.
Big Mom's "Ikoku" had already struck him. An immeasurable amount of energy exploded against his body. He felt several of his ribs snap on impact before the slash completely engulfed him.
...