"Hey! You two, stop fighting!"
Seeing that the two intended to keep going, Oden immediately prepared to draw his swords to intervene. However, he was stopped by Rayleigh.
"The battlefield between those two isn't a place just anyone can step into," Rayleigh said. "Let us help you evacuate the others instead."
Oden froze for a moment. He had assumed these people were Shiki's enemies who had tracked him from the sea to Wano to seek revenge. He never expected they would help him evacuate the civilians.
"Thanks!"
Rayleigh led the Roger Pirates in moving the people of Kuri to a safe distance, and then they all watched from the sidelines. They did not interfere to help Roger, nor did they take advantage of the situation; they simply sat outside for three days and three nights.
During this time, Shiki's subordinates arrived. They stood in confrontation with the Roger Pirates, but no fight broke out. The grand battle between Shiki and Roger continued for the full three days.
Finally, at night, they held a bonfire party. Roger and Shiki sat together, drinking heavily. This was the strange relationship between pirates on the high seas—they could try to kill each other by day, but by night, they could throw a party together.
Shiki took a massive bite of meat and washed it down with a gulp of booze. "Jihahaha! To be honest, that woman is a total freak. Even with Newgate and me teaming up, we were no match for her."
There was no shame in admitting it, as the opponent was simply that powerful. There was no point in belittling an opponent you couldn't beat; otherwise, wouldn't that imply you lost to someone pathetic? He recounted the events of Sphinx to Roger, letting him know exactly what had happened.
Roger couldn't help but remark, "Back at God Valley, Rocks, Newgate, and I all saw a monster from the World Government." He was referring to Imu. During the great battle at God Valley, Imu had descended upon Saint Saturn, transforming him into a terrifying monster. The six of them had combined their attacks but failed to kill it. Instead, after recovering, it extended tentacles and easily controlled Rocks.
After hearing Shiki's story, Roger felt the scenarios were quite similar. At God Valley, Rocks was the one controlled, and it took the combined efforts of Roger and Garp to take him down. At Sphinx, Newgate was also controlled later, but before he could go on a rampage like Rocks, Beltz had taken him away.
"If you put it that way, could that woman be the same entity that possessed the Five Elders?" Shiki mused, then shook his head. "No, probably not. That woman shouldn't be the 'ultimate existence' that the World Government represents."
"Ultimate existence?"
"I've seen the monster you're talking about too," Shiki said, seeing no reason to hide it. "It was back at Elbaf..." He described Harald's experience. At that time, a monster had also descended. Though Shiki was busy fighting two of the Five Elders, he had sensed the terrifying Haki coming from Beltz's direction.
Even though it appeared for only an instant before being drowned out by an even more terrifying Haki Beltz produced—which even sent the Five Elders packing—Shiki had definitely felt that presence. He was certain that while there was a slight similarity, the Haki of the woman on Sphinx was entirely different from the Haki felt at Elbaf.
Roger was even more shocked. He hadn't expected that a trip to Wano would reveal not only the truth of Sphinx but also the reality behind Harald's death. So the World Government had tried to move against Elbaf and nearly succeeded? It seemed he was still too ignorant.
Roger looked at Oden, who was sitting near Shiki, and suddenly said, "Shiki! We're old friends! I have a favor to ask. You wouldn't refuse to help, right?"
Shiki's eyebrow arched. He waved his hand dismissively. "I refuse immediately."
"Don't be like that! I have something very important to do!" Roger said. "Years ago, we reached Lodestar Island. It's the final island marked by the World Government. But when we arrived, we discovered that through the Government's deliberate concealment, there exists one final island that is not on any map and doesn't even exist in history!"
Hm? Shiki's interest was piqued. While he wasn't interested in sightseeing, the idea that the World Government was hiding something made it interesting. "A non-existent island?"
"Yes! Later, I discovered that to reach that mysterious island, you need guideposts—four red stones carved with this text." Roger pulled out a scroll-like item covered in dense characters that Shiki couldn't read at all.
Roger continued, "This is the 'Poneglyph' that the World Government banned people from reading long ago. We thought it was just a cultural heritage, but it turns out to be the map we need! It's as if the Government is telling people not to go to this island where all secrets are hidden! It only makes the legend seem more real!"
"Why are you telling me this?" Shiki frowned, not quite following Roger's intent.
Roger turned to Oden. "You can read the text on this, can't you?"
Oden was visibly stunned. From the moment Roger pulled out the Poneglyph, he realized he could read the characters. Isn't this just the ancient script mastered by the Kozuki clan of Wano? Was this the forbidden "Poneglyph" research banned by the World Government?
Following Roger's words, Shiki looked at Oden in surprise. Oden nodded. "Yes, I can read it."
"That's great!" Roger was fired up. "Shiki, please lend me Oden for a while! If I can reach that final island, I can tell the whole world that we are the number one pirate crew in name and reality!"
"What kind of nonsense are you talking?!" Shiki roared. "Why should I give Oden to you just to fulfill your 'number one' fantasy?"
"Don't be like that! I can trade something else with you!" Roger held up a finger. "What do you want? I can give you anything!"
Shiki scoffed. "What could you possibly give me? Roger, stop joking! You guys are dirt poor!" Compared to Shiki, Roger really was penniless. Shiki had territory and men; Roger had nothing but combat power that could match him.
"I think it's fine."
Beltz arrived, having heard Roger's words. "If Oden agrees, we can let him go to your ship, but we have one requirement."
Seeing Beltz, whom he recognized, Roger asked, "What requirement?"
"No rush for now. We can discuss it in a few years," Beltz said. "Rest assured, it won't be anything you can't do. We might just need you to fight someone."
"A fight?" Roger felt relieved. "Leave it to me!"
"Then it's settled. You just need to convince Oden." Beltz looked at Oden. "Go if you want to, stay if you don't. We won't interfere with your choice."
Shiki frowned, looking at Beltz with annoyance. Beltz pulled Shiki aside, leaving Roger and Oden to talk privately.
"Hmph, why did you just agree for me?" Shiki muttered. "Oden is my subordinate. You're making decisions for me?"
Shiki and Beltz were partners, but Beltz ignoring his opinion annoyed him. Beltz replied, "Even if Roger borrows Oden, he won't reach the final island immediately. This will pit Roger against the World Government and distract them from us. Why not?"
"Hm?" Shiki frowned. "You mean the World Government knows Roger is looking for the final island and will stop him?"
"More than that," Beltz said. "Of the four stones pointing to the final island, one of them is with Linlin. Do you see what I mean?"
Shiki realized it instantly. The Poneglyph was with Linlin, but Linlin had been captured by Kaido. Thus, the Poneglyph was now in the hands of the World Government! They would certainly keep it heavily guarded. If Roger wanted to collect all four to find the final island, he would inevitably have to clash with the Government to steal it back!
This would keep a significant portion of the Government's attention on Roger. Seeing Shiki wavering, Beltz struck while the iron was hot. "The World Government moves like ghosts and possesses a means of cross-spatial teleportation. If they wanted to invade Wano, we don't have a good countermeasure yet. It's better to let them be distracted by Roger. Our time is precious; it's not time to go to war until the Pluton is functional."
Shiki sighed. "Fine, I can't out-argue you. But next time, consult me before you make a decision!"
"No problem." Beltz gave an "OK" sign. Shiki was a man with Conqueror's Haki; such people are hard to control, so Beltz never intended to treat him as a subordinate. Allies are allies, even if Beltz's strength eventually surpassed his.
Ultimately, Roger did borrow Oden. Unlike the original timeline where he reached Laugh Tale in one year, this journey was bound to be much more difficult. It might take several years just to gather the four Poneglyphs. Regardless, Roger set out on his journey, and Beltz began considering his return to the Wandenreich. This time, he might not be able to return to the One Piece world for a while, so he had to settle everything.
Two months later, Vegapunk successfully created a clone of the Azure Dragon Fruit. However, Vegapunk noted it was imperfect; eating it wouldn't turn a person into a blue dragon, but a pink one. The color issue was insurmountable. To Vegapunk, it was a failure, but to Beltz, as long as the performance was there, it was perfect.
Erensig consumed this "Pink Dragon Fruit" and fused with the Hogyoku. The Hogyoku had been unsealed after two months, and Vegapunk had finished collecting its data along with the blueprints Keiko obtained from the Central 46, preparing for further research. The Hogyoku taken from Rukia was handed to Erensig.
After consuming the fruit and fusing with the Hogyoku, Erensig's body transformed! Originally a dark-skinned, winged fish-like creature, his body immediately expanded upon eating the fruit. A massive pink dragon appeared before Beltz. Unlike Beltz's Azure Dragon, this pink dragon possessed a pair of enormous black wings!
These wings represented his Lunarian lineage, though they had mutated from "fallen angel" wings into draconic wings on the dragon body. Honestly, the color scheme was weird—very weird. It might make sense in the One Piece world, but in Bleach world, it looked completely out of place. In Bleach world, black and white are the main themes; this pink was far too flamboyant.
At this stage, he fused further with the Hogyoku. Perhaps sensing Beltz's internal dislike of the pink color, Erensig's body changed once more. Previously appearing as a winged oriental dragon. Erensig now became a gargantuan Red Dragon! Like the Great Red Dragon of western legends, his body grew even larger, and the pink deepened into a blood-red color! While not the white Beltz preferred, a Great Red Dragon sounded much better than a Great Pink Dragon.
The transformation didn't stop at the Red Dragon! The massive body began to contract and slowly... turned into a human form! Under the influence of the Hogyoku, he had achieved Arrancar!