Waking Up Alone

Main Mast Mansion

"Master, Master, something terrible has happened!!"

Three small zombies, carrying katanas, bows and arrows, and hammers, rushed into a huge room. Inside was a Meat Mountain that rose and fell slowly with each breath!

This is a genuine behemoth, seven meters tall and with a seven-meter waist! As the archer zombie pierced the bubble on the tip of the Meat Mountain's nose with an arrow, the 'Meat Mountain' was awakened and slowly sat up.

"I had a nightmare..."

In the dream, the giant figure's loyal, strong, and intelligent subordinates fell one by one at his feet, and no matter how wide he opened his eyes, he could not see their faces!

Boundless fear forced him to keep running away! Behind him was a demon with an iron rod and bull horns, whom he could never escape.

"Master! Now is not the time to talk about dreams..."

Um?

"A group of pirates has broken in!"

The tall figure waved to the three panicked little zombies.

"Let Absalom deal with them—"

"Lord Absalom has been captured!"

"My Zombie Army..."

"They're all wiped out! Including the zombie generals!"

"Perona..."

"Lady Perona has also fainted!"

·······

Hehehehe~~~

The sound of laughter born of extreme anger echoed in the room, and a dark, murderous aura permeated the air like black mist!

"Very good, very good—"

"How dare you challenge the prestige of Gecko Moria, Shichibukai?"

The moonlight shone into the room, revealing a sinister face.

"Unforgivable!"

In the corridor of the Main Mast Mansion,

"Hmm, when faced with all sorts of strange and unusual abilities, it's best to use Observation Haki to dodge in advance..."

Roman stroked his chin, summarizing his experience. Just now, on the one hand, the corridor environment didn't allow for enough time to dodge, and on the other hand, Roman was unwilling to accept defeat and wanted to see if the entire server could concentrate and withstand the attack.

As it turns out, just like with the Tekkai, the result of confidently relying on Armament Haki to withstand attacks was...

Even the 'Armament Haki' Vergo was cut in two with a single stroke, so it's normal that Roman's basic Haki was defeated.

"But it's alright..."

Roman had already instructed Nami to activate the book's lightning in a crisis and unleash a screen-wide barrage! Anyway, the Straw Hat crew are all tough and resilient... and there are two 'White Knight' with pre-set trigger mechanisms roaming nearby, so there's no way to make a mistake.

However, those were all backup plans. Of course, it would be best if Usopp easily took care of Perona.

"This time, we owe it all to Usopp."

Roman's affirmation was echoed by the others, who nodded in agreement.

"That's right, if it weren't for Usopp..."

"I have to admit that being negative is also a talent?"

"Hehehe, of course! Usopp is our partner!"

"Don't praise him like that, hahaha~~" Seeing Usopp twisting and turning, everyone's eyes subconsciously drifted towards Chopper.

"... You're being very rude! Why are you looking at me like that?!"

"It's alright, it's alright," Robin, crouching down to touch Chopper's antlers as he looked at the enraged Chopper.

"Maybe it's because our little doctor boat is so cute."

"Hey bastards, stop praising her like that, hahaha~"

"Was that how I looked just now?" Everyone nodded in agreement as they looked at Usopp, who seemed to be deep in thought as he looked at Chopper.

"Alright, that's enough with the lightening-up—"

As soon as Roman finished speaking, a patch of blackness suddenly tore through the adjacent corridor and rushed towards the Straw Hat crew! At the same time, an exasperated voice rang out:

"Shadow Angle Spear!"

"Get out of the way—"

Pfft

Rumble!

A flash of black 'light' streaked past, and half of the massive Main Mast Mansion was silently sliced open! Then, under the force of gravity, it slid down with a crash, revealing the smooth cut and:

The Straw Hat crew leaped out!

"Who exactly is it—"

Following closely behind the Straw Hat crew was a huge, round figure! The massive body, two stories high, crashed to the ground, causing a violent tremor beneath everyone's feet.

"Destroyed my army that was vying for the King of the Pirates's throne?!"

·········

Are you still half asleep?

Roman couldn't help but retort, "With your zombie army, any officer from one of the Four Emperors could wipe them out in a minute, right?"

You think you can rely on 'them' to fight for the King of the Pirates's throne? You might as well go back to sleep...

Roman's words startled Moria, who had just appeared. The "Four Emperors" that Roman mentioned were Moria's lifelong nightmare! Moreover, judging from the familiar tone with which Roman mentioned the Four Emperors, he didn't seem like an ignorant pirate... Could he be a junior from some family?

For a moment, Moria, who had already lost all enthusiasm, hesitated. —Although he had indeed stumbled upon the perfect solution.

"Why... why did you break into my home and injure my soldiers and men?"

"You don't take me, Gecko Moria, Shichibukai, seriously?!"

"You must give me an explanation today..."

Although the towering Moria still tried his best to maintain the image of a 'master,' his increasingly weak words betrayed his frail heart! If these young men and women before him were truly the juniors of the Four Emperors, then perhaps Lord Moria, in his magnanimity, could spare them...

"Oh, is that so?"

Luffy rubbed his hair. "So we were the bad guys after all!"

Satori what had happened, Luffy sincerely bowed his head and apologized to Moria.

"I'm sorry, I injured your subordinate."

···········

"Hey, Luffy."

Seeing that the other Straw Hat crew members looked speechless and didn't want to say anything, Roman had no choice but to rub his temples and step forward.

Because Roman skipped the plot, he now seems to have the air of a "hero" who storms into the Demon King's house and wreaks havoc without a second thought, but:

"Don't forget, it was this guy's giant island ship that trapped us here."

Roman pointed at Moria.

"And his goal is to seize our shadows and turn us into soldiers under his control."

"Think about Brook, and that 'seriously injured old man' from before..."

"Ah! So you were the bad guy!"

Faced with Luffy roaring Luffy the sky, Moria couldn't continue to be subservient. After all, he was a dignified 'Shichibukai'!

Even if it's just the weakest one among them.

Hehehehe~~~

"I'll show you what kind of being you've messed with!"

Moria, who was two stories tall, spread his arms wide and suddenly pulled upwards in response to the Straw Hat crew's provocation.

"The Shadow Maze!"

Moonlight filtered through the mist, illuminating the island's forests and buildings. Shadows crisscrossed, light and shadow intertwined, creating an eerie scene.

Now, these shadows suddenly transformed from two-dimensional to three-dimensional, like black curtains and walls rising from the ground! Dividing the space, it was as if a giant, rapidly unfolding three-dimensional Shadow Maze was abruptly separating everyone present!

Watch your step—

"Hey everyone..."

"What's this!?"

Trapped in the Shadow Maze, the Straw Hat crew felt a sudden darkness engulf their vision.

Aside from Nami, who was pulled over by Roman, everyone else instantly felt isolated, unable to sense the presence of their companions who were right next to them. All around them were surging black currents, deep and unfathomable, as if some monster or eeriness lurked within; in the eerie darkness, it felt as if any spot could become a point of attack at any moment!

The Shadow Maze instantly covered the area within a hundred meters of the Main Mast Mansion! At the same time, it continued to spread in all directions, showing a tendency to encompass all the nearby buildings! Wherever it went, all colors dimmed, turning into black and white like ink paintings, and the black was constantly getting thicker, as if it would overflow the picture at any moment, flowing everywhere and polluting everything.

"Hmm, that's interesting."

I knew it! No matter how dejected he is, a dignified Shichibukai wouldn't stoop so low as to almost be instantly killed by Robin. Judging from Moria's performance in the original manga, Kuma could easily have slapped him to death!

It seems Moria was quite adept at developing his Devil Fruit ability. Unfortunately...

"A1 High Flash, please!"

As Roman shouted, a bullet suddenly flew out from the shadows beside him and shot straight into the sky! As it exploded, the blinding light illuminated the entire battlefield, instantly pausing the spreading shadows.

With the help of this light, the Straw Hat crew could see each other's positions and Moria's bewildered expression on his face.

"Good,"

Usopp fired a flare, and then—

Second Gear!

Speeding up!!

As the Straw Hat crew's undisputed number one tank Luffy immediately activated Second Gear, instantly appearing in front of Moria, and then:

"Gomu Gomu no Jet Bullet!"

Thump!

With a dull thud, Moria's enormous belly suddenly caved in, creating a deep crater! His gaze fell upon Luffy, who was Luffy steam.

"You brat!! I'll never forgive you—"

"Very good,"

The main tank has already 'held' the boss's aggro, now:

"Don't bother with these naval lackeys! Let's all charge in!"

As Roman, clad in his White Knight armor, charged forward, Zoro, Sanji, and the others followed. However:

"... It feels like we're ganging up on the weak..."

Despite Sanji's sarcastic remark, Roman, who had just slashed Moria with his sword and dodged Moria's "Shadow Angle Spear," didn't even turn his head.

Be confident—

"Get rid of the feeling!"

Taking turns dying to defeat the boss? That's not being a pirate, it's playing house! Losing for the sake of some vague 'face,' and then regretting it when facing your fallen comrades?

It does not exist, therefore:

"Beat him up!!"