"Wapol! The country you ruled no longer exists!"
The voice belonged to Kureha, who now had her chain mace spinning in her hands.
"If you ran away from your country when people needed you most, you have no place here now!"
The moment her words finished echoing through the stone corridors, the chain mace was already flying through the air.
It streaked straight toward Wapol's scrawny, matchstick-like figure with enough force to crack stone.
But unfortunately for her, Wapol had learned a few new tricks.
His massive mouth opened wide, and he swallowed the entire weapon in one gulp. The chain, the spiked head, even the momentum, everything disappeared into his gullet like it had never existed.
His originally weak and withered body immediately began to change in response to the consumed metal.
The bony frame started to swell and expand as iron-like material flowed over his skin. Then wooden patterns slowly extended across the metallic surface, forming a bizarre shell that combined the properties of both materials.
"This wood really is impressive, it can even regenerate damage!" Wapol's laugh echoed through the armory as his transformation completed. "Mahahaha! Today I will once again rule Drum Island! Let everyone know that their rightful king has returned!"
From the top of his now-enlarged head, an iron cannon barrel emerged. A red glow began building inside the weapon as it charged up for an attack.
"Still remember this cannon? Back in the day, I used it to silence every voice of opposition on this island." He lowered his transformed head, aiming the barrel directly at Kureha. "Mahahaha! Die, you damned witch!"
"Don't hurt Doctorine!"
"Rumble Ball!"
A young voice rang out across the armory.
Wapol paused in his charging sequence, confused by the interruption. He looked down to see a small reindeer standing between him and his target. But in the next instant, the creature underwent its own dramatic transformation.
Not only did the reindeer grow significantly larger, but its arms swelled to absolutely massive proportions, muscles bulging with incredible power.
"Arm Point! Cloven Cross!"
The uppercut connected with Wapol's lowered head, instantly lifting his entire body upward and disrupting his cannon's aim. The charged shot fired into the stone ceiling, sending debris raining down.
"Tthat kind of attack won't be enough to—"
Chopper didn't give him time to finish the taunt. Countless hoof strikes flashed in rapid succession, creating a blur of motion that was almost impossible to follow with the naked eye. Each impact was perfectly placed and timed, targeting the same spots on Wapol's neck and torso over and over again.
The strikes created a drumbeat of impacts that echoed through the armory. With each hit, tiny hairline cracks began to appear and spread across the metallic wooden armor covering Wapol's body.
"No... this can't be happening!" Wapol realized what was occurring. His armor was failing under the assault.
The cracks spread like spider webs, growing larger and deeper, until the metallic wooden shell shattered completely.
The armor fell away in chunks, leaving him reverted to his original form.
He stared at his returned frailty. The power he'd felt just moments before had vanished as if it had never existed.
"Why? Why? WHY?"
"Because you turned your whole body into wooden blocks."
The voice came from the armory's doorway, where Marcus was leaning against the frame with his arms crossed.
"Making armor out of that wood-iron combo? That's actually pretty clever. But wrapping your entire body in it? Against high-frequency attacks like Chopper's, of course it's going to shatter."
He shook his head as he walked into the room.
The idea wasn't bad. Armor made from that fusion had both protective and block-like properties. Plus it couldn't be mined away like regular blocks. Until someone reached a certain power threshold, that kind of armor would be incredibly strong.
High-frequency attacks normally couldn't destroy it outright, they just created small cracks. But once you exceeded the material's durability limit, the whole thing became useless.
He crouched down next to some of the armor fragments, examining their structure. This stuff doesn't have durability mechanics. It's purely governed by block properties. And since Wapol turned his whole body into blocks instead of wearing them as armor, he lost all the protective benefits?
He stood up and brushed his hands off. The Munch-Munch Fruit really does give him some wild ideas about how to use Minecraft-style materials. Too bad he doesn't understand the mechanics.
Just then, Luffy burst into the armory and immediately focused on Chopper with stars in his eyes.
"Wow! That was amazing! Be my crewmate!"
Chopper, who had been caught up in the excitement of battle, suddenly shrank back into his small form. His expression became complicated as old insecurities resurfaced.
"I'm not really a person... I'm just a monster with a blue nose. Nobody wants someone like me around."
"So what?! You're incredible! You can transform into different forms, and you're a doctor too! That's super cool!"
Chopper's hooves started waving frantically in embarrassment, though his body language betrayed how pleased he was by the praise.
"Even if you compliment me like that, it's not like I'm going to be happy about it or anything!"
But his swishing tail and the slight smile on his muzzle suggested otherwise.
"So be my crewmate!" Luffy pressed on, completely undeterred by the denial.
Kureha watched the exchange from nearby and sighed deeply. "At this rate, there's no way I'll be able to stop him from running off with you pirates."
She quietly left the armory, knowing that Chopper had already made his choice even if he wasn't ready to admit it yet.
What followed was another round of Chopper being chased around the castle by Luffy, who continued his recruitment efforts.
Meanwhile, Marcus walked over to where Wapol lay sprawled on the floor.
The double failure of his block armor had completely drained his already minimal stamina reserves. At this point, he could only lie there glaring up at the ceiling, too exhausted to even attempt another transformation.
"Damn it! Why did everything go wrong?!"
"You're actually pretty smart when you put your mind to it," Marcus said, looking at the defeated king. "You created something impressive. But you're also incredibly stupid, because both times you lost, it was because of how you misused the block transformation."
Wapol turned his glare toward Marcus.
"It has to be you! You did something to sabotage my power!"
"Want to take a guess whose abilities you've actually been using?" Marcus chuckled and pressed his hand down on Wapol's forehead. "Think about where that wooden block came from."
"Wait, no, don't!"
But Marcus wasn't planning to finish Wapol off.
He had way too much interest in the Munch-Munch Fruit's potential to waste it by killing its current user. Right now, Wapol wasn't even scratching the surface of what that Devil Fruit could accomplish. Eliminating him at this stage would be throwing away future opportunities.
Just then, the rest of the Straw Hat crew arrived at the armory.
He grabbed Wapol and dragged him toward the Drum Castle Ropeway.
At the platform, not only the Straw Hats but also Dalton, the user of the Ox-Ox Fruit, emerged from the arriving gondola.
"Is that—?! Wapol?!" Dalton's eyes widened at the sight of Marcus carrying the former tyrant.
"Yep. He's been defeated." Marcus shifted his grip to get a better hold. "Huh, so you've got his brother in custody too?"
Dalton nodded grimly. "For some reason, Musshuru fell from the sky and landed right near our group. We thought about using him as leverage to make Wapol surrender without a fight, but apparently that plan's unnecessary now."
Before he could continue explaining, Alvida cut into the conversation.
"So Luffy was the one who took him down?"
Marcus nodded. "Sent him flying clear off the mountain. You guys just happened to be in the right place when he came down."
Dalton's mouth fell open slightly, as if he'd just heard something almost impossible to believe. Even knowing Luffy's reputation, the way Marcus described the victory was startling.
Alvida studied Wapol's unconscious form dangling from Marcus' grip and seemed to pick up on something in his expression.
"Want me to come with you? This looks like it might get interesting."
Marcus nodded. "That would be helpful."
Zoro stepped forward, scanning the group for their missing captain. "Where's Luffy?"
"Still inside the castle, trying to convince Chopper to join the crew. I've got some business that requires a trip back to the ship first." Marcus gave a brief explanation, and the others, including Vivi, didn't press him for details.
Kira quietly approached and tugged at Marcus' sleeve. She didn't say anything, but the worry in her eyes was clear as day.
"Don't worry about it. Do I look like I'm in any danger right now?" Marcus laughed and ruffled her hair. "I'll be back before you know it."
"Okay..." she said softly, though she still looked concerned.
Dalton noticed the interaction and frowned slightly. "You're planning to take Wapol somewhere, aren't you?"
Marcus looked at him thoughtfully for a moment. "Do you want him?"
Dalton instinctively shook his head. "Not at all."
His tone carried the same revulsion he might use when discussing garbage or sewage.
But Marcus kept thinking.
"Actually, I think you probably do need him. Or rather, the Drum Kingdom needs him for what's coming."
"What do you mean?"
Dalton looked puzzled.
Marcus' gaze shifted to Vivi, who was staring at Wapol's unconscious form with distant eyes, as if recalling some unpleasant memories.
"Vivi, I think you should come along for this."
She looked confused, not understanding why her presence would be necessary.
Marcus crooked a finger at her with a slight smile.
"Come with me. I think this experience will help you prepare for what you'll need to do in Arabasta."
The smile he wore carried just the faintest hint of mischief.