Next Bonus, 100!!
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STRONG WORLD.
On the floating island, Shiki the Golden Lion sat on his throne, looking down at the pirate captains he had secretly subdued over the years.
His appearance was true to his moniker. His hair and beard were both golden.
As a former member of the Rocks Pirates, he was known for his cunning. After the crew's collapse at God Valley, he had formed the Golden Lion Pirates and had become a dominant force in the New World, a long-time rival of men like Edward Newgate and Gol D. Roger.
Twenty-seven years ago, in his quest to rule the world, Shiki had proposed an alliance with Roger.
But Roger, whose ambitions lay elsewhere, had refused.
Enraged, Shiki had declared war, and the two crews had clashed in what would come to be known as the Battle of Edd War.
With his massive fleet, Shiki had nearly driven the Roger Pirates to the brink of annihilation.
But fate, it seemed, had other plans.
A freak storm had saved Roger and his crew, and more than half of Shiki's fleet had been sent to the bottom of the sea.
And in a final, cruel twist of irony, Shiki, a Devil Fruit user, had been struck by a ship's helm, which had become embedded in his head.
He was utterly defeated.
Since removing the helm would have been fatal, it remained there to this day, a symbol of his humiliation.
When Roger had turned himself in, Shiki had been unable to accept that his greatest rival had been captured. He had single-handedly attacked Marineford to confirm the news, killing a large number of Marines in the process.
He had learned from Sengoku and Garp that Roger was to be executed in his hometown of Loguetown. The news had infuriated him. He had always considered the East Blue to be the weakest of the seas, and he saw it as an insult to Roger's legacy.
To prevent Shiki from interfering with the execution, Garp and Sengoku had teamed up. At the cost of half of Marineford, they had captured him.
He had been imprisoned in Impel Down's Level 6, but he had escaped by severing his own feet, which had been bound in Seastone shackles.
After his escape, Shiki had come to an island called Merveille. There, he had discovered a species of animal that had become incredibly ferocious after eating plants containing a substance called "IQ."
His ambition rekindled, he had used his powers to lift the entire island into the sky, creating a floating fortress he called "Strong World."
For years, he had hidden himself away, working with his most trusted subordinate, Dr. Indigo, to research "IQ" and plot his conquest of the world.
And now, after twenty years of research, the "IQ" technology was perfected.
Shiki was older, but his ambition still burned as fiercely as ever. He was eager to announce his return to the world.
Originally, he had planned to destroy the East Blue to demonstrate his power to the World Government, by unleashing his army of "IQ"-enhanced animals.
But a recent, chance encounter had changed his mind.
"Sky Island," he announced to his subordinates. "Before we destroy the East Blue, we will conquer Sky Island!"
"Eh?"
"Isn't our floating island better than Sky Island?"
"What do we need to conquer it for?"
"Hey! Are you questioning the Admiral's decision, you bastard??"
"No! Of course not!"
"You idiots just need to follow orders!"
"Right, right! We just need to follow orders! Jihahaha!"
"With the Admiral's power, we'll be able to become the Pirate King, right?"
"What nonsense are you talking? Our Admiral's goal isn't to be the Pirate King! It's to be the King of the World!"
"That's right! The King of the World!"
The pirates all cheered, their voices a chorus of sycophantic praise.
Shiki smirked, crossing his arms and basking in their adulation. For a moment, he was transported back in time, to the days when he was young and powerful, leading his invincible fleet across the seas.
As a former member of the Rocks crew, he had never cared about the title of Pirate King. His goal, like Rocks', was to overthrow the Celestial Dragons and rule the world. He may not have had any loyalty or friendship with Rocks, but the man's power, his ambition, his sheer presence... even after all these years, it was still seared into his memory.
King of the World.
Shiki's gaze fell to the wine cup in his hand. For a moment, he saw Roger's face reflected in it.
If Roger had just agreed to join him back then, the world would be a very different place.
He hadn't been wounded then. He hadn't lost his feet. He was young and strong, a lion in his prime. Even the Roger Pirates, without the interference of that storm, would have fallen to him.
But... fate.
Life was full of accidents, of regrets.
And now, he was old.
The wound from the ship's helm was getting worse. He was having auditory hallucinations. He could no longer even use his Haki.
But his ambition burned hotter than ever.
"Roger! Watch me! This is my revenge... on you, and on the world!"
He threw his head back and drained the cup.
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"What's the situation?"
Jin had made for Sky Island at top speed. This time, he had come alone, using a combination of the Light-Light Fruit, the Pegasus-Pegasus Fruit, and the Rumble-Rumble Fruit to travel.
After Wyper had left for Mock Town, he hadn't left a "teleportation anchor" on Sky Island, so he couldn't just teleport there.
And the "movement" of the Door-Door Fruit wasn't true teleportation; it was a form of spatial folding. It required the user to be able to sense the "door" at the destination.
In short, he could open a door to anywhere within his line of sight or his range of perception. That perception included his insignia marks. So, even from a great distance, he could always open a door back to the demonic carrier, but he couldn't just open a door to Mary Geoise unless he had something there to act as a coordinate.
"Captain Niji is leading a search party," the commander at the base reported.
"Focus the search around the point where we lost the signal, and expand the radius," Jin ordered. "And get me Gan Fall and the Chief! Have them put the God's Guard, the Shandia warriors, and the White Berets on full alert. Prepare for battle."
"Sir!"
Jin gazed out at the sea of clouds. He had a strong feeling that Shiki would be back. He wouldn't have just appeared for no reason.
And he was right.
A search party's jet soon spotted several islands in the airspace between the White-White Sea and the White Sea. A swarm of monstrous birds emerged from them and attacked, and the jet was forced to retreat.
His cover blown, Shiki used his power to speed the islands' advance. They soon reached the White Sea, and one by one, the islands broke through the clouds.
The sky filled with the roar of fighter jets. Niji led his squadron in a direct assault on one of the islands.
In a single dive, a hail of bullets rained down on the giant birds and pirates below.
"Hey! What are those things??"
"Flying birds?"
"They're so strange!"
"They're firing! Take cover!"
"Look out!"
The pirates were still reeling from the shock of the fighter jets when another wave of aircraft appeared, this time dropping bombs.
A deafening explosion rocked the island.
Jin had started the development of his air force a long time ago. The fighters had come first, then the bombers. Of his three air bases—Conoyami, the Calm Belt, and Sky Island—was the most advanced.
And, of course, the main research and production facility was located within the demonic carrier itself.
The ground erupted in fire and smoke. Under the force of the high-yield bombs, the earth crumbled like a dry cracker, and massive craters were blasted into the landscape.
A cloud of dust and debris shot into the sky.
A few battered figures staggered out of the smoke, scrambling for cover.
Some of the pirates were strong, with tough bodies, Armament Haki, and defensive techniques like Iron Body. But most of them were just ordinary men. Against bullets and bombs, all they could do was run. If guns and cannons were useless, why would the Marines and the World Government equip their forces with them?
"Good... good..." Shiki said, rising into the air, his long sleeves fluttering in the wind. He looked out at the blossoming flowers of fire, the roar of the explosions like the wrath of a thunder god.
The buildings on the ground were reduced to rubble. The wooden structures were engulfed in flames, thick smoke pouring into the sky.
And the cause of all this destruction was the bird-like machines streaking through the air.
"Excellent!" he laughed. He wasn't angry; he was impressed. With these, and his army of beasts, he would be unstoppable.
And how to get them?
He would take them.
Niji spotted him and peeled off, his jet screaming toward him, guns blazing.
"Hmph," Shiki snorted. "Lion's Threat: Earth Bind!"
The debris of the shattered buildings, under the control of his Float-Float Fruit, rose into the air and formed a shield, blocking the bullets.
Then, a sharp wooden pillar shot toward the jet.
Niji, his face an emotionless mask, emptied his cannons, then ejected from the cockpit. In mid-air, he took out a canister.
With a hiss of smoke, his Raid Suit deployed.
At that moment, Gan Fall, the Priests, and the God's Guard, all riding on their wavers, closed in on the islands that had emerged from the sea of clouds, launching a counterattack.
The remaining White Berets were tasked with defending Angel Island and Upper Yard.
"Jihahaha!" Shiki laughed when he saw them. "You've got some nerve!"
He had known about Sky Island for a long time, but he'd never been interested in it. With his powers, he could create countless floating islands. What was the point in taking one?
But the fighter jets had changed everything. He had immediately recognized their value. He had to have them.
"You've got some nerve yourself, Shiki the Golden Lion," a voice said. "Coming to my territory and causing trouble."
Shiki looked up. A figure was floating in the air, looking down at him.
"Jihahaha!" he laughed. "So, you're the pathetic 'God' of this place?"
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