Paper Paper Fruit In One Piece

Grand Line, 

White Land of Earth, Baltigo. 

This was the headquarters of the Revolutionary Army, a place that made the World Government grit its teeth in anger. In the original timeline, Burgess, who was severely injured, managed to sneak onto Sabo's ship, leading Blackbeard to track them down and launch an attack here. With the World Government also intervening, the Revolutionary Army had no choice but to abandon this base. But now— 

"Dragon! Our comrades across the world are making great progress! In just a few days, we've liberated three countries and driven their corrupt royal families out to sea." 

Hearing the report, Monkey D. Dragon—Luffy's father—nodded as he flipped through some documents. 

"It's unbelievable how many countries were involved in arms deals with Doflamingo… But with him out of the picture, these nations, now cut off from their weapons supply, were bound to fall to our comrades." 

Not every king was a strategic genius who knew the importance of developing their own weapons. For most spoiled royal families drowning in luxury, manufacturing weapons was a hassle—why bother when they could just buy them? Why 'waste' money on research and development? 

Live for today, worry about tomorrow when it comes. 

"But remind everyone not to get overconfident. The World Government's CP agents won't just stand by and watch." 

The Marines handled pirates on the seas, while the CP organizations had most of their attention focused on the Revolutionary Army. When you really thought about it, the existence of the Revolutionary Army had actually given the Marines plenty of room to grow. And since the Marines had never truly interfered with the Revolutionary Army's affairs, one had to wonder if there was some kind of unspoken agreement between the two sides. Who was spying on whom? That was anyone's guess. 

"By the way, Dragon" 

Koala continued her report, "We also found 'Liquor Iron Ore' in the weapons warehouse at Dressrosa. Since this mineral is extremely rare, following this lead might take us straight to the source of the arms trade." 

That's right—Dressrosa's weapons weren't actually made by Doflamingo himself. Strictly speaking, he was just a middleman who operated between the underworld and the legal world. So even though he had fallen, it was only a matter of time before someone else stepped in to take his place. 

"Liquor Iron Ore, huh…" 

Dragon already had a rough idea, and judging by their current path… 

Glancing at the map of the New World on his desk, Dragon—his left cheek marked with a red tattoo, black hair slicked back, expression stern, and eyebrows absent—gave an order. 

"Call in all Revolutionary Army leaders from around the world." 

He had a feeling that a historic moment was fast approaching. 

——— 

Near the waters of Dressrosa, aboard a pirate ship with massive logs tied to its sides and black sails bearing a three-skull emblem, Blackbeard's Second Fleet Captain, Shiryu of the Rain, was wiping his sword as he cast a cold glance at the life paper inside a glass case. 

It was dry, cracked, and curling at the edges. 

"Tch. Is this guy ever going to just drop dead already?" 

"Don't be so heartless. We're 'crewmates' after all." 

Laffitte, the 'Demon Sheriff,' adjusted his top hat as he spun his cane, but his expression was full of mockery. The word 'crewmate' in the Blackbeard Pirates was nothing more than a joke. 

"No idea where that idiot Burgess ran off to, but judging by the state of his life paper…" 

Being half-dead was already lucky. It wouldn't be surprising if he died outright and his life paper burned to nothing at any moment. 

"Well, let's keep searching in this direction." 

"After all, he is our 'First Fleet Captain,' hihihihi~~" 

——— 

"You guys…" 

Law turned to look at the Sunny, drifting along with the waves below, hesitating for a moment before speaking. 

"Don't panic,"

Roman noticed his confusion and swung his sword forward. Two slashes of energy formed an "X" and left deep marks on the giant elephant's leg, which was as massive as a towering pillar. The cuts were several meters deep, but to "Zou," it was nothing more than a mosquito bite. 

Laws' eyes widened in shock. Even though this world didn't have the phrase "carving a boat to seek a sword," there were similar proverbs... 

What was this? "Carving an elephant to find a ship"? 

"Our Sunny Go is already a mature ship. It can keep up with us on its own." 

"Huh?! I haven't read that many books, don't try to fool me..." 

As one of the few "intellectuals" among pirates, Law rubbed his forehead, suddenly realizing a possibility. 

"Wait... don't tell me... it's a ship spirit?" 

"Hehehe, both Merry and Sunny are our companions! They're just a little shy, so they don't show up often~~" 

Seeing Luffy's proud expression, Roman added, 

"It's not that they don't want to appear. Communicating with us takes a lot of their energy. Also, if someone isn't familiar with and doesn't care for the ship, they won't be able to see their spirit forms." 

Currently, only Usopp, Luffy, Roman, and Nami could see Merry. It wasn't that the others didn't care about the ship, but they simply didn't understand its structure well enough. 

As for Franky, he was likely to be the first to see Sunny. 

Technically, if Brook left his skeleton body and was in his soul form, he should be able to see the ship spirit as well—but that would be more of a loophole than a proper method. 

"I see," Law nodded. Nothing the Straw Hat crew did could surprise him anymore, as long as there was a reasonable explanation. 

"Merry, take care of Sunny!" 

"Got it, Mr. Roman." 

On the deck of the Sunny Go below, a small child in a golden-yellow raincoat, holding a wooden mallet, waved at the Straw Hat crew, waiting for his companions to return. 

"Let's go!" 

As Roman's hot air balloon started rising into the sky, everyone gasped. 

"Wow, this is so high!" 

"It's said that this giant elephant has lived for 1,000 years and constantly moves across the ocean. It's like a wandering island with no fixed location. Since it's not land, you can't find it using a Log Pose." 

Roman explained to Luffy and the others. The reason they came here was— 

"Our alliance… No, I dragged you all into this war. I won't leave until Kaido is dealt with." 

Law looked at Luffy seriously, his eyes filled with a determination to fight together till the end. But to Luffy— 

"Hehehe, we should be thanking you, Traguy" 

"If you hadn't led us here, we wouldn't have come across such an awesome adventure! Zou, here we come~~!" 

Hanging onto the hot air balloon's rope like a monkey, Luffy shaded his eyes with his hand as he excitedly looked around. Roman had to remind him— 

"Technically, when we say 'Zou,' we're referring to the country on this giant elephant's back. The people living there are called the 'Mink Tribe,' and that white bear from Trafalgar's crew was born here." 

"There's a rumor that the Mink Tribe hates humans, but that's a misunderstanding. However, they don't show mercy to intruders. Luffy, don't cause trouble—" 

"Ohhh, you mean that talking bear? I wanna keep one too~~" 

Luffy's focus was always in the wrong place. 

Chopper: ?! 

"They told you already, he's a *person*, not an animal! And what do you mean by 'one'...?" 

Roman rolled his eyes. 

"Besides, to the Mink Tribe, you're just a hairless monkey!" 

"Hehehe, I'm not that impressive~~" 

...Was that supposed to be a compliment?

Instead of worrying about this, it's better to think about whether we should fight the Mink Tribe first… or fight them first. 

And with Luffy's talent for causing trouble, Roman never had any hope for a "peaceful encounter" anyway. 

Since the ship was drawn to Dressrosa ahead of time by Doflamingo, the Mink Tribe should be— 

Whoosh— 

Thud!! 

Just as everyone was chatting, a sharp metallic sound rang out from above, snapping Roman out of his thoughts. At the same time, the hot air balloon started leaking, deflating, and swaying— 

"Well, looks like I don't have to worry about that anymore." 

Rustle— The hot air balloon, pierced by a javelin, broke apart into countless sheets of white paper, quickly forming a bridge that stretched forward and connected to the back of the giant elephant now coming into view. 

"Hehehe! A big adventure!!" 

Luffy took off running, leading the charge. Zoro and Sanji weren't about to fall behind either. 

As for the others— 

"An attack the moment we arrive? What bad luck." 

"Shouldn't you be saying, 'I suddenly have an illness that stops me from going ashore' right about now?" 

Hearing Nami's sarcastic remark, Usopp thumped his chest proudly. 

"What are you talking about?! I'm a man worth 200 million—" 

Danger! 

A pair of large hands grabbed Usopp from behind and lifted him up. 

Franky took a throwing stance. 

"Then go, Mr. 200 Million!" 

"AAAAAHHHHHHHHH—!!!" 

… 

"You guys are having way too much fun." 

Roman clapped his hands, and the "bridge" behind him scattered into countless white doves that flew into the sky. Up ahead, on a fortress-like structure— 

"Hurry up! It's not safe here!" 

? 

The group quickly picked up their pace and reached the massive building, towering over ten meters tall. 

Of course, for the Straw Hats—who could jump that high with ease—plus Law's teleportation ability and Roman's flight support, a "defensive structure" was no different from flat ground. 

"These guys are…" 

"You're dead! How dare you go against the Beasts Pirates?!" 

No need for interrogation. The captured grunts, already wrapped in Usopp's plant vines, blurted everything out themselves. 

"We're subordinates of Lord Jack! We are 'Gifters'! You guys are—" 

"Shut up already." 

A few sheets of white paper flew around, wrapping up the half-human, half-porcupine grunt's mouth, forcing him into silence. 

Roman looked up at the massive buildings behind the fortress walls. 

The architecture was made of heavy, ancient stone, but signs of battle damage were everywhere. More importantly, a layer of white mist lingered in the air. 

It looked just like— 

"Poison gas?" 

Having just gone through Punk Hazard, the Straw Hats wouldn't forget how much Caesar loved using these dirty tricks. 

"It's the poison gas weapon 'KORO.'" 

Though Caesar himself had already been turned into a one-time-use "poison gas bomb" and blown to bits on Big Mom's ship, the weapons he created wouldn't disappear just because he was gone. 

"The good news is we don't have to worry about being unwelcome by the locals." 

Roman waved his hand, and a flock of white doves landed, transforming into gas masks that fitted onto everyone's faces. 

"The bad news? Our adventure's ruined. Someone's already—" 

"Damn it!" 

Luffy leaped forward, diving straight into the poison gas. 

"I don't care who it is! If they ruin our adventure, I'll punch them into the sky!!" 

… 

"Let's go, Law." 

Roman glanced back at Law, who looked worried. 

"Your crew is on this island too. Let's find them first."

… 

"You guys are having way too much fun." 

Roman clapped his hands, and the "bridge" behind him scattered into countless white doves that flew into the sky. Up ahead, on a fortress-like structure— 

"Hurry up! It's not safe here!" 

? 

The group quickly picked up their pace and reached the massive building, towering over ten meters tall. 

Of course, for the Straw Hats—who could jump that high with ease—plus Law's teleportation ability and Roman's flight support, a "defensive structure" was no different from flat ground. 

"These guys are…" 

"You're dead! How dare you go against the Beasts Pirates?!" 

No need for interrogation. The captured grunts, already wrapped in Usopp's plant vines, blurted everything out themselves. 

"We're subordinates of Lord Jack! We are 'Gifters'! You guys are—" 

"Shut up already." 

A few sheets of white paper flew around, wrapping up the half-human, half-porcupine grunt's mouth, forcing him into silence. 

Roman looked up at the massive buildings behind the fortress walls. 

The architecture was made of heavy, ancient stone, but signs of battle damage were everywhere. More importantly, a layer of white mist lingered in the air. 

It looked just like— 

"Poison gas?" 

Having just gone through Punk Hazard, the Straw Hats wouldn't forget how much Caesar loved using these dirty tricks. 

"It's the poison gas weapon 'KORO.'" 

Though Caesar himself had already been turned into a one-time-use "poison gas bomb" and blown to bits on Big Mom's ship, the weapons he created wouldn't disappear just because he was gone. 

"The good news is we don't have to worry about being unwelcome by the locals." 

Roman waved his hand, and a flock of white doves landed, transforming into gas masks that fitted onto everyone's faces. 

"The bad news? Our adventure's ruined. Someone's already—" 

"Damn it!" 

Luffy leaped forward, diving straight into the poison gas. 

"I don't care who it is! If they ruin our adventure, I'll punch them into the sky!!" 

… 

"Let's go, Law." 

Roman glanced back at Law, who looked worried. 

"Your crew is on this island too. Let's find them first."

(End of chapter)

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