One Piece: The Strongest Creature

"Is this really the current strength of the Cross Family? They've grown *this* powerful!?"

In the first half of the Grand Line—unchanged from where it was before its New World relocation—Sengoku sat in the Marineford marshal's office, poring over today's *World Economy News Paper.*

A deep apprehension clouded his face as he muttered, "The assets they've revealed aren't just cloned humans, like Germa 66.

Over these ten years, the Cross Family has shown their true might."

"What kind of force can wipe out the *Red-Hair Pirates*—an Emperor's crew with a combined bounty in the tens of billions—without alerting the world? The Red-Hair Pirates are like an iron fortress!" he pondered, worry evident in his voice.

Nearby, Vice Admiral Tsuru spoke up in a serious tone.

"The Red-Hair Pirates may have the smallest crew and least territory among the Five Emperors, but their overall strength is among the top three."

"After all, aside from Shanks himself, his first mate, Benn Beckman, is a combatant on par with the crew's captain, much like Silvers Rayleigh was for the Roger Pirates. Beckman is nearly as strong as Shanks himself. 

"Not a single member of the Red Force crew is mediocre—each one is a New World-level fighter.

Only the best of the best can even serve as deckhands with bounties of 80 million or more on that ship. 

"Without two Admirals leading a full Buster Call, fighting them would be a challenge. And to win, we'd need to send three Admirals at once.

But despite this, an Emperor-level force like the Red-Hair Pirates was quietly annihilated—without the CP0 or even Big News Morgans having the slightest hint."

Tsuru's tone grew darker. "The Cross Family—once brazen in their rise to power—became increasingly low-profile over the past decade, transforming from pirates to something more akin to dark-world merchants after cementing themselves as a force in arms, medicine, and entertainment."

"After seizing the safest and most secretive waters of Wano, they developed into this level of strength in just over ten years.

And if not for them hanging the Red-Hair Pirates' heads at Dressrosa's port, we might still not know they were wiped out."

Even with the Red-Hair Pirates' defeat confirmed, Sengoku and Tsuru still couldn't fathom the Cross Family's full capabilities or what hidden strengths they might have used to achieve this.

"But one thing is certain," Tsuru continued. "The Cross Family isn't just the most mysterious of the Five Emperors—they're likely the most powerful as well, surpassing even the Whitebeard Pirates."

Sengoku let out a sigh, nodding in agreement, though his concern only grew. "Yes, Tsuru, your analysis is spot-on. But the Cross Family today is no longer what it was a decade ago when we could consider wiping them out with an army."

"Now, the Cross Family is the wealthiest syndicate in the world, the unrivalled kingpin of the underworld, dominating arms, medicine, and entertainment. 

"In medicine, they control most of the island clinics worldwide, and their drugs' efficacy is unparalleled. Their munitions makeup 80% of the global market, used not only by the kingdoms but by our Marines.

Even the seastone we use to traverse the Calm Belt is sourced from them via the World Government."

Sengoku clenched his fist, frustration is evident in his eyes. "The cooperation between the Cross Family and the World Government runs so deep that we can't simply target them like the other Warlords of the Sea. Unless they break the World Government's laws, our hands are tied."

Tsuru nodded solemnly, a tinge of helplessness in her voice. "This is the power of economic restraint."

Although the Marines are the ruling force on the seas, neither the Five Emperors nor even the Revolutionary Army can match the size and scale of their influence.

But now, even as overlords of the seas, the Marines face a power they haven't seen before. The Cross Family is no longer just one of the Five Emperors—they've risen far beyond the shadow they cast a decade ago.

Without the World Government's interference, the Marines would have the strength to take down the Five Emperors of the New World one by one, even if vastly outnumbered.

But despite possessing the world's most powerful military, the Marines lack the means to fund themselves.

The cost of maintaining their forces depends entirely on the World Government, binding them under its control and preventing them from acting independently.

This dependency forces them to betray their sense of justice, turning a blind eye to the atrocities committed by the Celestial Dragons, the so-called "nobles of the world," and even cleaning up their messes.

Now, even as they recognize the Cross Family's strength has surpassed Whitebeard's and that it stands as the most dangerous pirate family in the world, they have received no orders from the World Government.

Even if a Cross Family ship were spotted at sea, the Marines would be powerless to attack it.

The very force that represents justice is unable to act against the world's number one evil. How humiliating is that?

Such is the absurdity of this world.

---

**New World, Long Ring Long Land**

"Hey, hey… Is this real?"

"You're joking! Red-Hair Shanks… *dead*?"

"When did this even happen? How could the Red-Hair Pirates just vanish? And when did they ever cross paths with the Cross Family?"

As the Whitebeard Pirates read today's *World Economy News Paper*, they, like the rest of the world, were stunned. Some even rubbed their eyes, struggling to believe what they were reading.

It was unthinkable.

Although they'd hate to admit it, as the Great Pirate Era has worn on, their "Pops" has grown older. The world's mightiest pirate crew at the beginning of the era has gradually declined.

Despite still being hailed as the "Strongest Man in the World" and holding this title for decades, Whitebeard's aging body limits his endurance in prolonged battles. Against two enemies of equal strength, he would surely be at a disadvantage.

Among the Five Emperors, there were only two other Emperor forces that Whitebeard's crew truly feared.

The first was the Cross Family, whose strength had forced their "Pops" to retreat time and time again.

The second was the Red-Hair Pirates, who were on equal footing with them only a few years ago.

By all logic, the Red-Hair Pirates should have been able to rival the Cross Family. And yet, now this crew—once thought equal to the Cross Family—had been completely annihilated, their heads hung at the port of Dressrosa's capital for all to see.

What in the world happened?

A shiver ran down the spines of many pirates who read the news, especially those with weaker nerves.

"After lying low for over a decade, just how far has the Cross Family developed?"

"How much power is Cross Kahn hiding?"

"This guy is terrifying!"

In a secluded corner, Teach's hands trembled as he gripped the newspaper, shadows obscuring his face as he tried to hide the twisted, maddened expression of envy.

"It's confirmed. The Logia Dark-Dark Fruit must be in his possession, and he knows the secret of Devil Fruit rebirth…" Teach muttered, teeth clenched.

For years, Teach had been uncertain whether the World Government or the Cross Family held the Dark-Dark Fruit. But now, he was sure: Cross Kahn possessed it.

There was no other way to explain how the Cross Family wiped out the "Red-Hair Pirates' fortress" without raising suspicions.

In the entire world, the Five Emperors stand at the pinnacle. Even the true overlords of the seas, the Marines, wouldn't dare to attack an Emperor's crew without caution. The balance of power was too delicate.

To wipe out an Emperor's crew in its entirety requires resources beyond imagination, something that only the 800-year legacy of the World Government could hope to wield.

But if not the World Government… then how did the Cross Family manage it?

The answer could only be that they achieved the impossible through a miracle—or perhaps a power long hidden.

After all, in over a decade, the most the Red-Hair Pirates could do was remain on par with the Cross Family, with both sides having two superpowers.

To eliminate the Red-Hair Pirates entirely, the Cross Family must possess a level of combat power far exceeding Shanks' crew.

According to Teach, the Cross Family has both the strength and the numbers.

And considering the number of powerful New World pirates who had disappeared mysteriously over the years, with their bodies sometimes found drifting in the sea, Teach was certain this was the work of the Cross Family.

They must have been secretly hunting Devil Fruit users all along. Who knows how many powerful cards they've hidden now?

It's likely they've cultivated several powerful fighters in secret, maybe even created superpowers.

Teach's own plan had involved obtaining the Dark-Dark Fruit and rapidly hunting powerful foes to reach Emperor-level status within a couple of years.

With five years, he'd be strong enough to rival other Emperor crews, maybe even challenge the Government itself.

So just how many years has the Cross Family held the Dark-Dark Fruit?

No one understands the power and terror of the Cross Family better than Teach.

And that knowledge drove him mad with jealousy.

Had fate not dealt him such a poor hand, everything the Cross Family held would have been his.

---

Elsewhere, the news rocked other Emperor crews, including Charlotte Linlin's Big Mom Pirates and Kaido's Beasts Pirates.

An Emperor-level crew being entirely wiped out by another of equal standing?

It was even more shocking than when the Cross Family had ousted Kaido from Wano a decade ago.

Now, the Cross Family had achieved something unprecedented: they were the only crew to have completely defeated an Emperor's crew *twice,* a feat that had left the other Emperors reeling.

When Kaido read the news, he felt his eyes sting with bitterness.

The gap between himself and the Cross Family hadn't closed at all in the last decade—it had only widened.

His dream of revenge now seemed further away than ever.

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