One Piece: Rising to Power as a Warlord of the Sea

The carriage rumbled and jolted as it made its way into the castle grounds. Suddenly, Hilton soared into the sky, disappearing into the shadows above.

"Ha! You fools really thought I'd take you to meet Master Moria! Zombie soldiers, take care of them! Offer their shadows to Moria!"

With a haunting creak, an unending horde of zombies dressed in armor began shambling toward Natsu and his crew. At the front of this terrifying army was none other than the legendary swordsman Ryuuma, wielding the famed blade Shusui at his side.

"Fast work, Moria. So you've already stolen Brook's shadow, have you?" Natsu muttered, frowning slightly.

"This is our first large-scale battle," Natsu declared, his voice steady but fierce. "I expect everyone to go all out! Let's see how we stack up against the Warlord of the Sea!"

This wasn't a clash between the Smile Pirates and Moria's Thriller Bark crew; it was a test of strength between their forces. Natsu had no doubt Moria would have to rely on more than just his title to stand a chance.

"Ehehahaha! Then let this god wreak havoc!" Eneru laughed maniacally, arms stretched wide as he floated off the ground, electric energy crackling as he eyed the advancing zombies.

"Captain's orders are absolute!" Gin stated firmly, as a spectral image of the Gashadokuro—a giant skeleton monster—began to materialize behind him, with huge wings flapping furiously.

"So, these are zombies?" Hiro mused, his body expanding until he was a five-meter-tall giant, swinging a large blade in powerful arcs. "Interesting. I hope I can study them later."

"How disappointing! Zombies, and they look so ugly!" Kumo pouted, clearly disgruntled that they didn't meet his terrifying expectations. Fueled by his annoyance, a surge of energy surrounded him as a yin-yang symbol appeared at his feet, releasing his power for the first time in front of the others.

"I'll never accept these things being called 'zombies!'"

"Though I'm not the strongest here," Noriyuki declared, cracking his knuckles, "I'll give my best. Can't let the captain down!" As a master of Fish-Man Karate, Noriyuki could still handle most opponents.

Karina, looking around at her teammates getting ready for battle, raised an eyebrow. "Uh…you're all going in? What's a 'normal' person like me supposed to do?" Still, she picked up a wooden stick from nearby, glaring ahead, prepared to fight if necessary.

"All right then, let the battle begin!" Natsu's voice rang out as his figure disappeared in a blur. Moments later, an explosive crash echoed from the zombie army's rear as he smashed a massive hole in the castle's gates.

"Listen up, you ugly freaks! Get lost or get wrecked!"

"Tai Chi: Yin-Yang Reversal! Fire Formation: Blazing Sun!"

Kumo extended his hands, and a furious blaze erupted before him, the intense heat distorting the air. The yin-yang symbol spread outward, enveloping the entire zombie army within a vortex of flames.

With a deafening roar, blazing fireballs rained down, searing everything in their path. The flames consumed the zombies' bodies, forcing the shadows to separate from their hosts.

"Fwoosh, boom!"

While the fire incinerated ordinary zombies, Ryuuma—bolstered by Brook's shadow—nimbly evaded the flames. Drawing the legendary sword Shusui, he lunged at Kumo.

However, before Ryuuma could strike, his blade was intercepted by Hiro's massive nine-ringed saber.

The message was clear—Ryuuma was his opponent. Although Hiro wasn't a swordsman by trade, Ryuuma here was just a shadow-imbued zombie, and Noriyuki was ready to back him up if necessary.

Meanwhile, without Natsu holding him back, Eneru was in a frenzy, leaving a trail of lightning and destruction in his wake. Buildings crumbled, and under the power of his Rumble-Rumble Fruit, he decimated everything in his path, nearly invincible.

"It ends here, big ears!" a furious voice rang out, interrupting Eneru's spree. His relentless assault had devastated the zombie forces, reducing them to shambles even with their supposed immortality.

"Hm? Who's there?" Eneru looked around, intrigued. "Ah, another Devil Fruit user! Haha, interesting!" His recent experiences had taught him the Devil Fruit abilities in the Blue Sea could be fascinating, yet even a power like the Clear-Clear Fruit couldn't escape his Observation Haki.

There was an old saying among pirates: No Devil Fruit is useless—only the user's skill defines its worth. A user's strength and experience played a huge role, and the Clear-Clear Fruit's effectiveness could differ drastically in skilled hands.

"Beast's Hand!"

Smack!

Eneru, using Observation Haki, easily sidestepped the sudden attack, grabbing the assailant's arm mid-swing. Now armed with Armament Haki, Eneru's strength had reached a whole new level.

"30 Million Volts: Thunder Beast!"

With a light tap on his drum, Eneru summoned a massive wolf made of crackling electricity, which leaped forward, baring its fangs.

"Awooo—"

"Ahh!"

The Clear-Clear user, Absalom, struggled in vain, unable to escape Eneru's grip as the Thunder Beast lunged, biting down hard. Lightning crackled, and Absalom's screams echoed as he was engulfed in a radiant display of lightning bolts.

"Pathetic! Are all Blue Sea Devil Fruit users this weak?" Eneru scoffed, grinning. "If so, then the Smile Pirates can easily dominate the seas! Ehehehaha!" He couldn't help but indulge in his fantasies of conquest, unaware that he'd soon face opponents who would shatter his illusions.

"Horohorohorohoro!"

A strange, eerie laugh rang out as Gin, who had been following Natsu, found his path blocked by Perona, the Ghost Princess. Floating above with her parasol, she grinned, eyes alight with mischief.

"Out of my way, unless you want me to crush you," Gin warned, his gaze as cold and intense as ever. The sight of his piercing eyes made Perona hesitate.

"What's with this guy? That look…like he's some kind of demon," she thought, unnerved. Still, for Moria's sake, she couldn't back down, even if her opponent was terrifying.

"Negative Ghost!"

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