Diplomatic Plaza, Hall of Power

"This time it should be a forest, right?"

"... Yes, but they are just artificially planted ornamental trees. A normal forest is not this 'neat'."

"Saint Roman, King Riku, the Nefertari Royal Family, and distinguished guests from Fish-Man Island, please hold onto this handrail. The 'moving walkway' will take you to the venue."

Faced with the 'high-tech' automated walkway where one simply stands on it to move forward, some royal families were unfazed, some looked on with envy, while others:

"Father, why don't we walk over there?"

Hoshigaki was thinking of his younger sister on one hand.

"Shirahoshi, didn't you want to see the forest? You can take your time to appreciate such a beautiful view."

"Is it alright, Father?"

Faced with his children's request, Neptune first looked at Roman beside him.

"Lord Roman?"

"Yes, it doesn't matter how you choose to get to the venue."

In reality, the Celestial Dragons didn't like using this 'automatic walkway' either, preferring to leisurely while riding slaves to kill time.

"Then let's walk together."

Vivi's and Rebecca's families also stayed behind, strolling and enjoying the scenery along the way. Meanwhile, Hoshigaki, who had made the suggestion, looked deep in thought.

Something just doesn't feel right...

"Below this 'moving walkway'?"

Vivi also frowned.

"It gives me a bad feeling."

?

"It's a person,"

Rebecca gave the answer directly.

"And many of them are weak."

?!

"To be precise, they were slaves."

Roman, who was walking ahead, went a step further and revealed the darkness of this world. "This so-called 'automatic walkway' is actually just a conveyor belt driven by a large number of slaves below, and has absolutely nothing to do with 'technology'."

!!

"This... is really..."

"So, don't have any unrealistic expectations of the World Government."

"Damn it, is this the behavior of the so-called World Government and the so-called Celestial Dragons? What kind of descendants of gods are they...?"

Because Roman was present, and there were no guards from the Holy Land around, and because everyone here was royalty who had received great favors from the Straw Hat crew, they wouldn't spread Roman's words around. Furthermore:

"Excuse me for bothering you,"

Although Neptune's expression was unreadable, he was actually sweating profusely.

"Those guards just now... addressed Lord Roman as 'Saint Roman'?"

"Huh, huh, huh? How could this be—"

Vivi, who had just been angrily reprimanding him, looked surprised. The villain was right next to me!

"What's so strange about that? I can't choose where I'm born... Besides, being a 'Celestial Dragons' is just an identity. What does it have to do with my personality and behavior?"

"That's right, we all know Lord Roman's character; he's definitely not like those..."

"Yes, we absolutely trust Mr. Roman!"

Neptune and Cobra immediately made their statements, while also instructing everyone to keep the matter a secret.

From pirate to navy, from navy to Celestial Dragons—

Rebecca was both confused and impressed!

"Relax, my identity is actually a semi-public 'secret' among the Navy's high command. Speaking of which Vivi, aren't you Celestial Dragons yourself? It's just that your ancestors refused to move to the Holy Land."

In this world, every industry has its oddballs; there's nothing to be surprised about.

"The 'Social Square' is just ahead. You can get to know the royal families of other countries there."

And that's why Roman personally led the way:

Fish-Man Island, Alabasta, and Dressrosa —while none of these three nations are weak, they're definitely not among the top in the New World. They're inevitably underestimated by other countries. But if you add the friendship of a 'candidate Admiral,' it instantly elevates their status!

That's right. On one hand, Roman was ensuring that Shirahoshi wouldn't be harassed by clueless individuals. On the other hand, he was also using himself as a 'bargaining chip' to increase the three countries' influence in subsequent negotiations.

"Mr. Roman,"

"Your candidate Admiral,"

Throughout the journey, members of the royal family repeatedly nodded and raised their glasses to Roman in a friendly manner, and Roman introduced the countries he had dealt with in the past two years to Cobra, Neptune, and King Riku. In particular:

"Elder Gloriosa,"

Guarded by a group of valiant Amazon warriors stood Gloriosa, the former Queen of the Amazon Lily, who was less than 1.5 meters tall. There was no way around it; although the current queen of the Amazon Lily was "Empress" Boa Hancock, given Hancock's aversion to the Holy Land and the Celestial Dragons ...

It is absolutely impossible for me to attend the Reverie!

So Elder Gloriosa took over, but:

Just by looking at the smiling, obsequious royals surrounding them, it's clear that the Amazon Lily will have no trouble joining the World Government this year. And they'll immediately gain a powerful seat!

After all, the Amazon Lily, located in the Calm Belt, serves as both an important escort force and a crucial resting and anchoring point in the "United Sea Route." On this "Golden Route on the Sea," it has transformed from an isolated island where no man had ever seen anything before into a world-class power.

With even the navy, the only force capable of challenging the Amazon Lily's dominance, expressing its support, the rest of the world could only feel envy and jealousy...

"Hehe, it's little Roman."

Given Elder Gloriosa's age and the Straw Hat crew's relationship, only she dared to call him "Little Roman" here. And after Roman introduced the three royal families to the Amazon Lily, an "alliance" quickly formed, making other countries drool with envy.

The profits from United Shipping are enough to launch a war that destroys cities and annihilates nations!

Even with the Navy's backing, wasn't it still stolen from by Blackbeard, one of the 'Four Emperors', once...?

Just as Roman was introducing the Straw Hat crew's 'friendly' forces together, helping each other, someone was quietly looking at his photo.

Luffy, Vivi, Blackbeard, Roman, Nami...

Leaning against the 'Throne of Void,' a tall woman in a long robe silently gazed at the photographs in her hands. Beneath her high crown were a pair of cold, indifferent eyes.

Eight hundred years have passed.

Have 'you' finally arrived?

Unfortunately, with eight hundred years of accumulation, I'm no longer on the same level as you. Oh well—

Let me show you who truly deserves to be the 'King of the World'! Once you've faced reality, ruling this world with Yu Yitong might not be out of the question. Hopefully this time:

Don't be ungrateful!

In the Hall of Power, Shanks, the "Red-Haired" man draped in a black robe, sat on a sofa, facing the "Five Elders," who stood at the pinnacle of world power.

"Is there something you need?" "We only made time for you because it was you."

"From your perspective, you shouldn't be meddling in politics. —Aren't you only pursuing 'freedom'?"

Despite facing one of the Four Emperors, the Five Elders acted as if Shanks were an equal, as if he were one of their own!

"Indeed, I am grateful for that,"

After the Five Elders waved for the guards to leave, Shanks revealed his purpose.

"I'm here today because of a pirate."

·······

"Blackbeard?"

"That's right! You all should know that."

Shanks had every reason to persuade these five powerful elders before him.

"The Dark-Dark Fruit can nullify or even steal the abilities of other Devil Fruit user! It is definitely the most vicious Devil Fruit ability."

"Unfortunately, Teach is cunning and shrewd. He did not reveal his Devil Fruit ability before becoming Shichibukai. After becoming Shichibukai, he quickly gained a lot of fighting power from Impel Down! At the same time, he seized the 'Tremor-Tremor Fruit' ability to gain a foothold, and now he has become one of the 'Four Emperors'."

"We know all this, and we regret not discovering this wolf in sheep's clothing sooner, but—" The Five Elders, with long, straight white hair and a long beard, put down the documents in their hands.

"What's it to you, Shanks?"

"Of course it's because—"

The redhead raised his head, revealing three scars on his face.

"If Blackbeard's power continues to grow, he will threaten 'Uranus'! And then threaten that person."

?!

Do you know what you're saying?

"You mean, we Celestial Dragons, who have been 'gods' for eight hundred years, would be afraid of a mere pirate!"

"Countless Great Pirates who once dominated the entire Grand Line have confidently challenged that 'master,' and the results speak for themselves, don't I?"

·············

"I know, but that's precisely why—"

Shanks stared intently at the five old men before him. "The Dark-Dark Fruit is the only thing that can threaten 'Uranus.' I think Blackbeard already knows this world-class secret!"

?!

"You may not know this, but Blackbeard is an archaeologist, and he is very interested in the story of Rocks D. Xebec. After digging into the past of that crazy Great Pirates, Teach vowed that he would stay on Whitebeard's ship as a nobody for the rest of his life until he obtained the Dark-Dark Fruit."

"However, 'fate' granted him the 'Dark-Dark Fruit,' and from then on, his ambition became unstoppable, leading to... no, it should be said, the launch of a long-planned scheme:"

Shanks crossed his arms in front of him and leaned slightly forward while sitting on the sofa.

"Overthrow the Celestial Dragons' rule!"

·······

"How could this be—!"

"Is the Rocks Pirates about to be resurrected?"

"If that's the case, then it is indeed the most important event affecting the survival of the world!"

After a few seconds of silence, the Five Elders quickly exchanged opinions. The Dark-Dark Fruit alone wasn't scary, nor was a simple ambitious person, and even simple archaeology was insignificant. But when these three were combined, they created a major crisis: a threat daring to challenge the Celestial Dragons' eight-hundred-year rule!

"So, why are you telling us all this?"

Faced with the blond, golden-bearded old man's question, Shanks calmly offered his own suggestion.

"Join forces,"

"Let's join forces to relive the events of the 'God Valley' battle and bury this 'sprout of darkness' once again in the annals of history!"

"Very good, as expected of ours..."

"A good suggestion,"

The Five Elders' expressions softened as well.

"Tell me your detailed plan, Shanks."

P. S.: I can't just drag out the plot like Oda does. So I created my own original work. —Of course, it must be based on 'reasonableness'.