Totto Land, Cotton Candy Island.
Charlotte Flampe stood atop a tall lookout tower, holding a telescope steady in her hands. The sky had been calm just moments ago, but now a golden ship cut through the air at an alarming speed.
She adjusted the focus with her right index finger, narrowing her gaze on the ship's mast. A flag came into view, one that sent a chill through her entire body.
Against a black background was a skull, crossed diagonally with a magnet symbol and a lightning bolt.
There was no mistaking it.
It was the flag of the Ion Tempest.
Her heart skipped. The ship was moving fast, and its course was set directly for Totto Land.
This is bad.
Without hesitation, she pulled out a Transponder Snail and shouted, "This is bad, this is bad! The Ion Tempest is attacking!"
At the same time, she yanked the handbrake beside her.
A shrill alarm rang out across the entirety of Totto Land.
Inside Cake City Castle, a massive figure lay sprawled before an enormous cake. The sudden alarm caused her to jolt, her body trembling as layers of fat rippled.
"What is it? What happened? Why is it so noisy?"
A man with a long tongue and a cane rushed in, panic clear in his voice.
"Mama, this is bad! The Ion Tempest are invading Totto Land!"
"Nani!"
Charlotte Linlin, one of the Four Emperors and ruler of Totto Land, shot upright.
After the clash at Marineford involving the Marines, the Whitebeard Pirates, and others, the seas had not settled for long. Linlin had expected retaliation from Rolan.
She just had not expected it this soon.
Only a little over ten days.
Still, there was no fear on her face. A pirate who had ruled the New World for decades did not panic so easily.
"Rolan has finally come, huh?"
She grabbed a handful of cake and stuffed it into her mouth, cream smearing across her lips before she rose to her feet and strode out of the castle.
"Perospero, has Katakuri returned yet?"
Perospero hurried after her, replying, "Not yet, Mama."
"Forget him. Let's go see what that brat is planning."
"...Mama..."
"Perospero!"
He flinched, immediately falling silent. The words he wanted to say died in his throat.
Ever since Rolan appeared in the New World, both the Big Mom Pirates and the Beasts Pirates had been plagued with setbacks. It almost felt as though Rolan existed solely to oppose them.
But deep down, Perospero knew the truth.
They had been the ones to provoke him first.
Now there was no turning back. In the New World, only one side could stand at the top.
And the Ion Tempest were no ordinary crew. Their ties with the Whitebeard Pirates were strong, and even Red-Haired Shanks maintained an unclear but undeniable connection with them.
This time, with Rolan's crew taking the initiative, the outcome did not look promising.
For once, Perospero felt uneasy.
...
By the time they arrived at the square outside Cake Island, it was already packed with members of the Big Mom Pirates.
Opposite them, in the sky, hovered a single ship.
Linlin looked up.
Only five figures stood on the deck.
No sign of Rolan.
"Rolan! Get out here! Stop hiding!"
Her voice boomed across the square, but there was no response from him.
Instead, laughter echoed from the bow.
"Hehehe... let's play a game. Let's bet how many people on this island will still be alive in five hours."
It was Enel.
The moment his words fell, the entire Big Mom Pirates erupted in fury.
"Who the hell do you think you are!"
"Thunder God Enel, we'll crush you even if we're bones!"
"This is Big Mom's territory!"
Linlin's forehead veins bulged.
First, because Enel was just a subordinate, yet he dared to speak to her like this.
Second, because her Observation Haki confirmed it.
There were only five people on that ship.
To face the Big Mom Pirates with just five people was nothing short of contempt.
"Even if Rolan were here, he wouldn't dare speak like that. Who do you think you are?"
Enel chuckled, clearly uninterested in wasting words.
"There's no need for Rolan to deal with trash like you. I alone am enough."
In an instant, his body transformed into lightning and shot into the sky above the square.
He hovered there, arms spread wide, head tilted back.
"Two Hundred Million Volts: Amaru."
Thunder roared.
Blinding bolts of lightning burst outward from his body, crashing down across the entirety of Cake Island.
Boom!
Boom!
Boom!
Each strike shattered the ground, sending fragments of cake, bread, and cream flying everywhere. The once whimsical island turned into a scene of destruction.
Linlin's rage exploded.
"Zeus!"
She reached into the sky, and a dark thundercloud descended into her grasp.
But before she could act, a sudden presence appeared.
A pitch black claw, crackling with red and black lightning, tore through the air.
Advanced Conqueror's Haki.
Bang!
"Ahhh!"
The impact sent Linlin's massive body flying backward like a cannonball, crashing into the distance with terrifying force.
Her eyes widened in shock.
A voice followed.
"Kuro."