A feverish grin curled across Gern Reginald Sigmar's lips as he gave his newly awakened Devil Fruit a name worthy of its power.
"Natural-Type — Heavenquake Fruit."
Lowering his gaze, he slowly spread his fingers.
Bzzzz—
In an instant, countless microscopic vibration particles gathered in his palm, compressing into a sphere of pure white energy. The surface of the sphere warped the air itself, rippling outward like a miniature seismic core compressed to its absolute limit.
"Whitebeard's Tremor-Tremor Fruit is a Paramecia," Gern muttered coldly. "It relies on the body as a medium to generate vibrations—at the cost of damaging the user as well…"
He clenched his fist.
The light sphere collapsed instantly, dissolving into countless vibrating particles that wrapped themselves around his arm like flowing energy.
"But my Heavenquake Fruit—""—is the very source of vibration itself."
He raised his left fist, instinctively mirroring the stance etched deep into his memory—Whitebeard's legendary posture. Instantly, the vibrating particles surged, coating his fist as the air around it distorted violently, as if reality itself were about to shatter.
Yet Gern did not throw the punch.
Instead, he slowly withdrew the power.
He didn't need to imitate anyone.
Because his ability surpassed the Tremor-Tremor Fruit itself.
"Anything Whitebeard can do…" Gern muttered, eyes sharp as blades,"...I can do too."
"And the things he can't—I can do those as well."
Among all known Devil Fruits, the Tremor-Tremor Fruit possessed the greatest destructive power and range, hailed as the strongest Paramecia in history.
Now, fused with the traits of a Logia, Gern's power didn't merely shake the world—
It ruled vibration itself.
The sky.The atmosphere.The ocean.
Not merely causing destruction—but wielding vibration as a weapon.
As this realization settled, chaos raged in the distance. On the western edge of God Valley, the remnants of the Rocks Pirates were in full retreat. Whitebeard, Shiki, and others flickered in and out of view amid smoke and ruin.
Gern glanced over briefly—then turned away.
His gaze shifted toward the very center of the island.
The place where Rocks D. Xebec had clashed with Roger and Garp.
"Now…"A faint smile curved across his lips as invisible vibrations began to shimmer around his body."It's time to claim some real loot."
God Valley — Central Zone
The luxurious platform once used by the Celestial Dragons to observe their grotesque "hunt" had long since collapsed into ruin.
At the center of a massive crater lay Rocks D. Xebec.
Blood pooled beneath him, dark and thick, as the former king of the seas struggled to breathe. Every inhale dragged fragments of shattered organs into his throat.
After Roger and Garp defeated him, the Holy Knights had escorted the Celestial Dragons away.
The World Government left him behind—abandoned to die beneath an incoming Buster Call.
"Pirates and Marines… fighting side by side…"Rocks let out a bitter, bloodstained laugh."How utterly… ridiculous…"
Just as he was about to close his eyes—
Boom.
The ground trembled.
Pebbles bounced violently as a familiar vibration rolled through the battlefield.
Rocks' pupils shrank.
That vibration…
Footsteps approached.
A young Marine in uniform emerged from the smoke, sunlight casting a long shadow behind him.
"…Newgate?" Rocks muttered. "No… that idiot wouldn't come here."
Activating his Observation Haki, he focused—then froze.
The boy was no older than fourteen.
Short black hair. Calm eyes.
Yet surrounding him was a strange, unfamiliar vibration—
Not Whitebeard's power.
At the same time, Gern was busy smashing apart nearby ruins, hoping to find something valuable.
Nothing.
"Seriously? That's it?" he muttered."The Celestial Dragons' hunting game can't be this stingy, right?"
He sighed.
"And damn… Roger and Garp's Conqueror's Haki was insane.I wouldn't have passed out over fifty times if it weren't for that…"
Down in the crater, Rocks' pupils shrank to needle points.
Fifty times?
This child had been knocked unconscious over fifty times by their Conqueror's clash… and stood back up each time?
Even a Vice Admiral would've been unconscious for a full day.
What kind of monster was this?
"…A mindless aberration?" Rocks thought.
Then he spoke, mustering the last of his strength.
"Hey… Marine brat!"
The voice echoed faintly.
"No point searching. What you're looking for isn't here. Hahaha—!"
Gern swallowed and slowly turned toward the sound.
Step by step, he approached the crater, stopping three meters away.
"…You're still alive."
He stared down at the man who once ruled the seas.
Rocks D. Xebec.
"…Rocks," Gern murmured.
Their eyes met.
Rocks studied him carefully.
There was no pity in those eyes.No awe.No fear.
Only the detached gaze of someone observing a museum exhibit.
Gern, meanwhile, felt nothing special.
To him, Rocks was no different from a figure from history—real, yet distant.
"Hey… Marine brat…" Rocks rasped. "Did you come… to witness the turning of an era?"
"I'm just here to grab something valuable," Gern replied flatly.
Rocks burst into laughter, blood spilling from his mouth.
"Valuable, huh… you're interesting, kid."
His gaze sharpened.
"That power of yours… it's not Newgate's."
"It's Heavenquake," Gern said calmly, raising his palm.
The air twisted violently as a purer, more fundamental vibration gathered in his hand—different from the Tremor-Tremor Fruit, closer to the origin of all oscillation itself.
Rocks' eyes widened slightly.
"So that's it… Heavenquake…""Terrifying… even more than Newgate's."
He coughed again.
"Since you want something valuable… how about making a deal with a dying man?"
"A deal?" Gern frowned.
Rocks shifted his gaze.
"There."
Embedded in scorched earth lay a pitch-black blade.
Gern walked over and pulled it free.
It wasn't a katana—but a double-edged straight sword, about one and a half meters long. The blade was obsidian-black, etched with dark crimson fissures that faintly glowed.
"This sword…" Gern murmured.
"One of the Twelve Supreme Grade Blades," Rocks said weakly.
"Give me a proper burial—with your power.I don't want to die beneath the World Government's filthy bombardment."
"…And in return," he continued faintly,"the blade is yours."
"…Its name?"
"You'll give it one."
Gern studied the sword for a moment, then nodded.
"Very well. I accept."
Vibrational particles surged into his palm, compressing violently.
Rocks let out a hoarse laugh.
"Ha… ha… fascinating… What's your name, boy?"
"Gern," he replied calmly."Gern Reginald Sigmar."
Rocks paused.
No "D."
A strange light flickered in his eyes.
"…Not a D, huh."
Memories of Roger and Garp flashed through his mind.
Pirates and Marines…
Heh. Then I'll be selfish one last time.
"Go on… make my blade famous again…"
"A terrifying, ignorant monster…"
"…Gern Reginald Sigmar."
The vibration sphere descended.
With a thunderous hum, both Rocks' body and the surrounding air shattered into nothingness—
Erased completely within the heart of God Valley.