Gum-Gum Fallacy!

New World - Nameless Island Coast

As the live broadcast from the Execution Plaza began, a hilariously absurd "battle" was unfolding on the Deserted Island coast of the other side of the world.

A fierce wind whipped up sand and dust, and waves crashed against the rocky shore.

On the beach, a group of Pirates lay sprawled out, their limbs twitching and groaning, as if they had just been swept away by a storm.

Their captain—a short, pink-haired boy—still gritted his teeth and supported his scarred body.

Blood mixed with sweat streamed down his face. He staggered, raising his small fist, his throat hoarse and torn, yet he still roared:

"Effort... can defeat everything!!"

"Rubber--Fist!!"

"Smack!"

The weak, feeble fist slammed into Roy's rock-hard abs, the rebound force sending Koby flying.

"Thump--!"

He fell flat on his back into the sandpit, blood streaming from his nose, tears mingling with the blood.

Roy sighed deeply, his face filled with speechlessness, disdain, and confusion.

--The Effort Pirates " are the same "troublemakers" who have been chased by Smoker for months since setting sail from the East Blue, and are now in a sorry state.

And their captain was... Koby.

"Hey, hey, hey..." Roy cursed inwardly, veins throbbing on his forehead.

"Nika... no matter how thirsty you are, you wouldn't choose this kind of trash as a container, would you?!"

His gaze was fixed on the desperate yet ridiculously short figure, and he sighed inwardly, "No wonder I've never heard of the so-called 'King of the Deserters' in the East Blue... He was deliberately avoiding me? Ha..."

He originally planned to head straight to Onigashima, but en route he received Den Den Mushi from Staff Officer Tsuru: intelligence indicated that Devil Fruit User had been discovered on this Unnamed Island.

At first, Roy just sneered, but when the name "Effort Pirates" appeared in the intelligence report, he was completely stunned.

"No way?"

When he saw this scene with his own eyes, his "absurd premonition" was completely confirmed: it really was that kid Koby!

Koby struggled to his feet again, his face bruised and swollen, his teeth chattering, but his eyes still red as he shouted, "You're not allowed to laugh at my dream!!"

"I will definitely become the Pirate King!!"

The next second, an oppressive force like a tsunami suddenly descended!

Roy walked slowly forward, his footsteps heavy on the sand, each step like a drumbeat, making Koby's heart pound wildly.

A massive burst of Conqueror's Haki erupted, instantly silencing the entire coastline!

Koby's pupils contracted sharply, and snot and tears streamed down his face. His body felt as if it were being crushed by an invisible boulder, and he collapsed to his knees with a thud.

His crotch was soaked, and a pungent smell filled the sand.

He braced himself with his hands, his teeth chattering, but only able to utter broken syllables. "I... I..."

Roy lowered his eyes, his cold shadow enveloping Koby, whose fists clenched and who trembled all over.

But faced with Haki presence, he didn't even have the courage to raise his head.

Roy's eyelids twitched, his lips twitched, and finally he let out a helpless sigh:

"No way... that's it? Wasn't it said that the fruit picks who gets to eat it???"

In the distance, a skeleton with an afro lay motionless on the beach, feigning unconsciousness.

But he couldn't hold it in any longer. Brook covered his eye sockets with both hands and let out a heart-wrenching howl:

"Oh dear!! This is so embarrassing!! Yohohoho!! Why did I have to go out to sea with these guys?!"

The sound echoed across the desolate coastline, sounding particularly mournful.

Brook's heart was practically overflowing with tears (if he still had tear ducts): "If I had known it would turn out like this, I would have preferred to have stayed rotting in the Florian Triangle Sail!!"

-- Half a month ago.

Unable to bear the endless loneliness any longer, and also out of curiosity about these ridiculously stupid guys, Brook secretly sneaked into Moria's territory.

There, he unexpectedly learned that this "Effort Pirates" had been easily captured by Moria.

But because they were so weak, so weak that they didn't even qualify as shadows of the "Zombie Army," Moria casually tossed them aside, hastily imprisoned them, and then ignored them.

Brook, intrigued, secretly approached the group of Pirates, only to be so shocked that his jaw nearly dropped:

These people actually set sail from "Twin Capes " and even met with Laboon!!

The enormous whale crying out in front of the lighthouse, its unwavering devotion for half a century, sent a shiver down Brook's spine.

So he made a choice that he still thinks is "probably the second stupidest decision he ever made":

--Join them.

"As long as I can see Laboon again... even if he's with a bunch of idiots, I'll accept it..."

This was his true feeling at the time.

But now--

Brook looked at Koby, who had been kicked over into the sand by Roy, and then at the group of crew members on the ground who were crying and wailing.

He froze completely, his skull cracking as if it had nearly shattered. "Yohohoho... Laboon..."

"It seems... you'll have to wait a little longer..."

Accompanied by bitter murmurs, deep within his empty eye sockets, it seemed as if the image of a lonely whale looking up at the sea was reflected.

It was desolate and laughable, yet it carried a trace of unwavering determination.

Roy looked down at Koby in front of him—snot and tears streaming down his face, his crotch already soaked; his so-called "dream" and dignity had vanished at this moment.

He frowned slightly, his eyes filled with disappointment and boredom. "Tsk... Is that all? Nika, are you blind?"

Before he could finish speaking, Conqueror's Haki suddenly erupted!

"Boom--!"

A blast of air swept across the beach, and for a moment, the world seemed to stand still.

Koby's pupils dilated, and his body felt as if it had been struck by an invisible giant hammer. Before he could even scream, his eyes rolled back, and he collapsed to the ground, unconscious.

Roy suppressed his Haki, his expression turning cold, and turned to walk towards the skeleton lying in the sand "playing dead" not far away.

Brook's heart skipped a beat, his bones trembling like a leaf. "Oh no! Could it be... he's found out I'm faking my death?!"

The next instant, a cold voice descended from above. "Stop pretending, Brook."

"Thump--!"

Brook's joints trembled as if they were about to fall apart. He immediately sat up, knelt on the ground, clasped his hands together, and his voice trembled like a string about to snap.

"I've heard so much about Vice Admiral Roy! I really didn't do anything! Please, have mercy and spare my life! Yohohoho...!"

Roy stared at him, his brows furrowed slightly, and said in a cold tone, "Actually, I'm quite puzzled... Given your personality, how could you possibly get on the ship of such an idiot?"

Brook paused, scratching his chin with his knuckles, and chuckled dryly, "Uh... it's a long story, actually—"

"That's enough."

Roy raised his hand, interrupting him directly, his voice cold and hard. "I'm not interested in hearing this."

"Do me a favor. After you've done it, you can leave, or you can go to Twin Capes."

Brook's heart skipped a beat.

--Twin Capes?! Laboon?!

Instantly, his eyes lit up as if they were spitting fire. Without even Roy how Roy knew about this, he shouted with wild joy, "What are your orders?!"

Roy glanced casually, then pointed to Koby lay unconscious on the beach. "I'll teleport you to the vicinity of Punk Hazard. You hand him over to Vegapunk."

"You'll be free after you complete the mission."

Brook opened his mouth, about to nod, when he saw Roy slowly raise his Right Hand.

"Buzz--"

A dark Spiral that devours everything suddenly appeared in his palm!

The pitch-black vortex distorted the air, as if the abyss had opened its gaping maw, swallowing even the light bit by bit!

That force penetrated to the bone, directly attacking the soul!

Brook was suddenly gripped by extreme terror, her scream tearing through the waves, "Ugh--! What, what is this?!"

"Why do I feel the presence of 'death'?! I've already died once before!!"

The entire skeleton trembled so badly it almost crumbled into a heap, then collapsed to the ground with a thud, shouting wildly, "I will complete the mission!! I swear!!"

Roy's eyes were cold as he slowly withdrew his hand. "Very good."

He snapped his fingers lightly.

"Snap."

In an instant, the spatial Spiral engulfed Brook and Koby, their figures distorting in the air before vanishing without a trace!