One Piece: Reborn in God's Valley

At Gyoncorde Plaza, as the clash between Ashen and Roger grew increasingly intense, Neptune could no longer hold back and finally stepped in.

"Hmph! We're leaving."

Knowing that continuing the fight any further would truly push Fish-Man Island past its limits, Ashen withdrew his powers. 

He cast a glance at the Roger Pirates, then turned and left without a word, leading his crew away.

The Minister of the Left, who had been shielded behind the Roger Pirates and thus escaped serious harm, exchanged a look with Neptune. 

Receiving a subtle nod, he quickly set off in pursuit.

"Sorry to trouble you, Neptune. Wahahaha…. I didn't expect Ashen to have such power. What an interesting one. Wahahaha…."

Watching Ashen walk away, Roger turned back toward Neptune. Seeing the many fish-men lying unconscious in the distance due to his outburst, he gave Neptune an apologetic look.

"Let's leave it at that. I'll take you all to the Sea Forest right away. But you'd better not cause any more trouble."

Neptune sighed at Roger's usual grin, helpless. He ordered the still conscious Royal Guards to tend to the fallen as quickly as possible, then led the Roger Pirates toward the Sea Forest.

Meanwhile, Ashen and his crew had returned to Ryugu Palace. 

The crew gathered in the palace's dining hall for a brief rest. A group of palace attendants laid out a variety of snacks and discreetly withdrew.

"Captain, you were amazing just now. You actually fought Roger to a standstill."

Lafitte, who had grown up in the West Blue, naturally knew Roger's name, who didn't? 

That his captain had managed to go head to head with such a powerful pirate without falling behind only made Ashen shine even brighter in his eyes.

"You flatter me too much. To be honest Roger didn't go all out."

Ashen gave a half laugh, half sigh at Lafitte's admiration. Having witnessed the legendary battle over a decade ago firsthand, Ashen knew exactly how powerful Roger had been at his peak.

"By the way, Captain, when you were fighting that samurai from Wano earlier, why didn't you use your ability?"

Walton was puzzled. To him, a fight should always be met head on, using one's full power.

"Because it was never going to become a real fight. Neither Roger nor Neptune would stand by and watch me and Oden go all out, if we had, Fish-Man Island would've been destroyed.

Since we couldn't truly fight, there was no need for me to reveal my cards. I wanted to test Wano swordsmanship anyway, so I met him blade to blade.

As for the showdown with Roger, it started because he didn't want me provoking Oden any further, so he used Conqueror's Haki. 

Later, I had to push him further, so I used my ability to force him into going all out."

Seeing that both Kyros and Lafitte were equally curious, Ashen decided to explain it fully.

"Wait.."

Tesla, who had been sipping tea, suddenly paused as if something had dawned on him. He looked at Ashen, stunned.

"That's right. At first, I was a bit angry. But the moment Roger unleashed his Conqueror's Haki, I snapped out of it.

And then… the Haki I had never awakened before, it actually began to stir."

Ashen didn't hide anything now that Tesla had figured it out.

"So… the rest of the confrontation, you purposely used your ability to push Roger, to help awaken your own Conqueror's Haki." 

Tesla continued Ashen's thought with growing excitement.

"Bahahaha…. If Roger finds out the captain used him as a training dummy, he'll be furious." Walton chuckled, clearly enjoying the idea.

"He already knows, Walton."

In the Sea Forest, Neptune had led the Roger Pirates to where two Poneglyphs were hidden. A couple of crewmates were currently using special tools to make rubbings of the ancient text.

"I didn't expect you to be able to read this ancient writing, Oden," Neptune remarked, surprised by how fluently Oden translated the Poneglyphs.

"Rahahaha, of course. Oden is from Wano, after all. These Poneglyphs were created by the people of Wano." 

Roger proudly introduced Oden, then asked.

"Speaking of the Poneglyphs, your island supposedly holds a weapon that can command the Sea Kings, right? The one mentioned in the Sky Island Poneglyph?"

"Yes. Every few centuries, a mermaid is born here with the power to communicate with Sea Kings. That is Poseidon.

And… she is most likely going to be my daughter."

Recalling the message Ashen had passed on to him earlier, Neptune could only smile bitterly.

"By the way, why is Fish-Man Island flying the flag of the Helgrave Pirates?" Rayleigh had noticed this detail when they first arrived, and only now had the chance to ask.

"It's because of a prophecy. A young mermaid named Shyarly, only three years old, predicted that Fish-Man Island would soon be overwhelmed by pirates, suffering terrible losses.

But in her vision, Ashen was the one who could change everything. I also see great potential in the Helgrave Pirates. Aligning with them benefits Fish-Man Island's future."

Neptune treated Roger and Rayleigh as true friends, so he didn't hesitate to explain their alliance with the Helgrave Pirates.

Hearing Neptune's reasoning, Roger and Rayleigh exchanged a glance, falling into quiet thought.

"Ugh… Oden… Where am I?" Nearby, Toki slowly opened her eyes, finding herself in a strange, lush forest. She called out for Oden, confused.

"Oden-sama, the lady's awake!" Nekomamushi, who'd been standing guard, immediately alerted the others.

"You're awake, Toki. Are you feeling better? You really scared me back there."

Oden, who had been overseeing the rubbing process, rushed to her side and helped her sit up, holding her gently.

"I'm fine. But… where is that man?"

Now more lucid, Toki remembered what had happened before and asked after him.

"Don't worry, Toki. That bastard's been injured by me. He won't be hurting you again." Mistaking her concern for fear, Oden tried to comfort her.

"What? You injured him? Oh no, you've misunderstood, Oden. He didn't hurt me."

Toki's expression turned anxious the moment she heard Oden say that. 

"I fainted because… when I saw Ashen, all the visions of the future in my mind started to unravel. My brain couldn't handle the chaos, it wasn't his doing at all."

"Looks like Helgrave is a true anomaly," Rayleigh, who had followed Roger to visit Toki, sighed in awe. 

"First he defies prophecy, now he's disrupting visions of the future itself."

"What should I do, Captain? I wrongly accused Helgrave…" Oden looked flustered, unsure what to do next.

"As long as you understand, that's what matters. As for Ashen, I've already returned the favor on your behalf."

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