Ren opened his eyes to the thick, metallic smell of blood filling his lungs. The air itself felt heavy, choked with smoke and salt and something burned beyond recognition. Pain pulsed through his body in dull waves, each breath reminding him that he was very much alive.
He pushed himself up on trembling arms and looked around.
Chaos ruled the island.
Buildings were shattered as if crushed by a giant's hand, flames devouring what remained of once-grand estates. Screams echoed in the distance—slaves, soldiers, pirates—it was impossible to tell. The sky above was split by black clouds swirling unnaturally, lightning crawling between them like veins.
Then it came.
A massive blood-red lightning bolt tore across the heavens.
The island trembled as a colossal slash followed, splitting the earth in the distance with a thunderous roar. Mountains cracked. The sea churned violently against the cliffs.
Ren's eyes widened.
He had seen that before.
His gaze slowly shifted toward the towering mountains at the center of the island—the strange shape, the unnatural layout, the extravagant architecture in ruins.
A chill ran down his spine.
"God Valley…" he whispered.
His heart began pounding violently.
"This is God Valley… from One Piece…?"
His mind raced. That red lightning. That overwhelming presence. That slash.
"That looked like the strike Rocks used against Figarland in the manga…"
His breath grew uneven.
"No way… how did I get myself stuck in God Valley?" he muttered hoarsely. "IMU could be here. Rocks is here. Roger. Garp. Whitebeard. Kaido. Big Mom… any one of them can kill me just by breathing too hard."
He swallowed.
"I have to survive."
The word echoed in his skull louder than the explosions around him.
He staggered to his feet, legs weak but responsive. His clothes were torn, soaked in dirt and dried blood that might not even be his. He tested his fingers—no missing limbs. Good.
"If I remember correctly…" he murmured while scanning the horizon, "the Celestial Dragons were holding some kind of hunting game here. Slaves, prizes, Devil Fruits…"
His eyes sharpened.
"That's where Kuma and Linlin got their Devil Fruits."
His chest tightened.
"They only found two… but if there were two, there could have been more."
Hope flickered in his chest like a fragile flame.
"If I want to escape this island alive, I need power. I need something now."
Another surge of pressure slammed down from the sky.
Ren nearly dropped to his knees.
The air thickened.
It felt like an invisible mountain pressing down on his back, forcing him toward the dirt. His ears rang violently as distant clashes shook the heavens. The spiritual pressure was suffocating, overwhelming, primal.
"Conqueror's Haki…" he growled through clenched teeth.
Multiple bursts were colliding across the island.
Rocks.
Roger.
Maybe even Garp.
Monsters were fighting.
If anyone had seen him still standing under that pressure, they would have called him insane. Or a monster.
Ren forced one step forward.
Then another.
"I'm not dying here…" he hissed.
He began running toward the ruined town near the stage platform where the Celestial Dragons had gathered earlier. His legs burned, but fear was stronger than pain.
Another clash thundered overhead.
The sea split in the distance.
The ground cracked beneath his feet.
Still, he ran.
He darted into a partially collapsed building near the grand stage. Marble pillars were broken in half. Gold decorations lay scattered like trash. Blood stained the white stone floors.
Then he heard it.
"Hey you filthy slave! Save me!"
Ren froze.
Slowly, he turned.
Under a fallen beam, half-buried beneath rubble, lay a Celestial Dragon. His bubble helmet was cracked, blood running down his soft face. His once-luxurious clothing was torn and dirtied.
Ren's expression shifted instantly.
Disgust.
Cold hatred.
Celestial Dragons.
The people he hated most.
He scanned the room calmly and spotted a pistol lying near a broken pillar. A fallen guard's weapon. Untouched.
He walked toward it slowly.
The Celestial Dragon's eyes widened.
"Y-you! Hurry and lift this!" the man screeched. "Filthy slave! Do you know who I am?!"
Ren picked up the pistol and checked it.
Loaded.
He walked back and aimed it at the man's forehead.
The Celestial Dragon's face turned pale.
"Y-you filthy slave! I am a World Noble, descendant of a god! You can't kill me!"
Ren spat to the side.
"You fat pig," he said coldly. "Do you think this is a cultivation novel? That you're some young master and your family will come save you at the last minute?"
The Celestial Dragon blinked in confusion.
"C-cultivation? Young master? I don't understand what you are saying!"
His breathing grew erratic.
"S-stop! Wait! I will tell you where the special Devil Fruit is! Spare me!"
Ren paused.
"Special Devil Fruit?"
The man nodded frantically.
"Yes! Yes! It's mysterious! It was born here! I found it! It appeared ten minutes ago!"
Ren's eyes narrowed sharply.
Ten minutes ago.
He had woken up roughly ten minutes ago.
Coincidence?
Or fate?
"Show me," Ren commanded.
The Celestial Dragon shakily reached inside his coat and pulled out a Devil Fruit.
It had a deep silver-purple color.
Nine swirling tail-like patterns wrapped around its surface like fox tails. At its center, a sun & moon symbol gleamed faintly.
Ren stared at it.
A strange pull stirred in his chest.
He raised the pistol.
The Celestial Dragon's eyes bulged.
"W-wait! You promised! I told you! I am a god! You cannot—"
Bang.
The shot echoed through the building.
Blood splattered the marble.
Ren fired again.
Bang.
Silence returned.
He lowered the pistol slowly.
"You think I would let you live?" he muttered coldly. "What if you were the one who hurt Hancock in the future? Can't take that risk."
He holstered the pistol in his waistband.
Then he looked down at the fruit in his hand.
"Nine tails… sun & moon symbol… "
He exhaled slowly.
"If this is real… this is my only chance."
Without hesitation, he bit into it.
The taste was revolting.
Like rotten metal soaked in poison.
He forced himself to swallow.
Instantly, something ignited inside him.
His veins burned.
His muscles tightened violently as if reforged from within. Energy surged through his limbs, sharp and electric. His senses sharpened—he could hear distant explosions more clearly, feel vibrations beneath the earth.
He dropped to one knee.
"What… is this…"
Then—
BOOM.
Three massive waves of spiritual pressure crashed into him at once.
His body trembled.
His instincts screamed at him to kneel.
To submit.
To bow.
His teeth ground together so hard his gums bled.
"I… won't…"
The pressure intensified.
His back bent slightly.
Anger erupted inside his chest.
His pupils thinned vertically.
Fox-like.
Golden light flickered in his eyes.
"I WON'T KNEEL!"
He roared.
Something exploded outward from him.
A small, raw burst of Conqueror's Haki surged from his body.
It was weak.
Infantile.
Like a candle in a hurricane.
But it existed.
It clashed faintly against the overwhelming storms of Haki dominating the island. Compared to Rocks and Roger, it was insignificant.
No one noticed.
But Ren felt it.
His will had answered.
The pressure around him eased just enough for him to stand straight.
He panted heavily, sweat dripping down his face.
"I have Conqueror's…?"
A slow smile spread across his lips.
"Good."
Outside, another explosion split the sky.
The age of legends was tearing God Valley apart.
And in the ruins of a shattered hall, unnoticed by the world's strongest monsters—
A new will had been born.