Trafalgar D. Water Law

Time slipped away quietly. With each passing day, my body grew stronger, turning even the most tedious days into something incredibly fulfilling.

A month had passed since our return to the family base, and the situation in Flevance was unfolding exactly as it had in the original story.

The royalty and nobility of Flevance had gathered their treasures and, under the escort of the Navy, abandoned the country destined for destruction.

Corazon's expression had been grim for days upon hearing the news. He had reported the situation to Sengoku long ago, but Sengoku's only response was that the World Government would not allow intervention.

That single sentence plunged the hot-blooded Corazon into a winter of despair.

For the first time, his faith in his own sense of justice began to waver.

The remaining civilians of Flevance were consumed by the flames of war as the four surrounding nations opened fire.

Corazon had secretly gone to witness the tragedy himself.

This meant that Buffalo finally caught a break, as Corazon was too preoccupied to beat him up at every turn.

As for Gray, he was practically begging for a beating, hoping it would give him a reason to fight back and settle the score with Corazon.

As an undercover agent, Corazon's strength was at most that of a Navy Headquarters Captain. In the original story, when he stole the Op-Op Fruit, he hadn't displayed skills like the Six Powers, relying instead on his fruit ability and external tools like grenades.

Not only that, but he had actually been injured!

Gray estimated his strength generously at the level of a Headquarters Captain—roughly the same physical caliber as Arlong when he first appeared.

If Gray were to fight Corazon, even if he possessed techniques like the Six Powers, he wouldn't dare reveal them within the family base.

Beyond pure martial arts or swordsmanship, he couldn't show off his fruit abilities, and he possessed no Haki whatsoever.

Simple physical and sword attacks were useless against Gray. After all, Gray's typical combat style was air-to-ground.

A swordsman who couldn't use flying slashes and a martial artist without Moonwalk couldn't even touch him.

Inherently standing in an invincible position, Gray's fruit-based offensive capabilities were at least on par with Smoker at his debut.

Given his age, Gray was essentially a glass-cannon mage with high attack and low health. Yet, one thing had to be admitted: within the Donquixote Family, aside from Doflamingo, none of the current executives posed a significant threat to him.

Even if he couldn't defeat them, he could retreat with ease.

If that was the case for the executives, what chance did a mere Corazon have?

It was precisely because he had deduced this that Gray was itching to take Corazon down a peg.

Even if his calculations were wrong, the worst-case scenario was just getting a beating.

Moreover, perhaps due to Gray's previous injury, Corazon seemed to have developed a psychological shadow, feeling that Gray was too fragile and thus reluctant to hit him.

Coupled with the fact that Gray didn't care for him, Corazon wasn't about to go out of his way to be rebuffed. With Baby-5 constantly by Gray's side, he was also spared from being a target.

This led to a world where only Buffalo got hurt—a goal achieved.

That day, after emerging from the family training grounds, Gray saw Trebol and Diamante teasing a young boy.

The boy looked to be about ten years old, wearing a spotted hat with a ring of grenades draped around his neck. He was brandishing a sword, locked in a skirmish with Diamante.

"Hey, hey! Kid, is that all you've got?" Diamante parried the attacks casually, his voice dripping with mockery. "At this level, you can't join the Donquixote Family."

"After all, our family isn't a junkyard. We don't take in just any stray cat or dog."

"Damn you!" The boy's eyes were filled with murderous intent—not directed at Diamante, but at the world itself. "I won't lose! I will... destroy this world!"

"?" Diamante was instantly filled with confusion. "Destroy the world?"

The boy's arrogant words caused Diamante to lose interest immediately. With a flick of his wrist, he sent the boy and his sword flying.

"Ah!"

Thud.

The impact looked massive, kicking up a cloud of dust. Unfortunately, the "no-damage-from-smoke" law applied everywhere.

Diamante had perfectly controlled the force of the blow; the boy was unhurt, though the abandoned building he crashed into was completely demolished.

"Damn you!" With a fierce glare, the boy grabbed a wooden stick and charged at Diamante again. "Let me join you, or I'll kill you!"

"Ugh..." Gray covered his forehead, unable to watch. He had finally witnessed Law's childhood "chuunibyou" phase. Just hearing it made Gray feel like he could dig a three-bedroom apartment out of the ground with his toes.

"Fufufu..." Doflamingo, who had appeared on the balcony at some point, let out an enigmatic laugh that drew everyone's attention.

"Kid! You want to join us?"

"Do you even know that we are gangsters? Pirates?"

"I don't care about that. I just want to join you, get stronger, and destroy this world!" Though Law's declaration was full of spirit, the growl from his stomach ruined the atmosphere. "Grrr..."

Doflamingo paused. "Fufufu..."

"Whether you want to destroy the world or whatever else, you at least need to fill your stomach first."

"Kid, dare to come inside and have a meal with us?"

"Hmph! Why wouldn't I!"

Law's gaze and tone were exactly what Doflamingo had appreciated at first sight. At that moment, he had already decided to recruit Law into the Donquixote Family.

"Trebol, Diamante, take him to the mess hall."

"Yes, Young Master!"

"Follow if you have the guts, brat!"

Ignoring the scene, Doflamingo looked toward Gray, who had been watching the show for a long time: "Time to eat, Gray!"

"Hai, hai!"

Gray's voice made Law unable to help but look at him.

Can a disabled person really join this organization? Gray's figure sitting in a wheelchair left Law feeling very puzzled.

However, Law, who hadn't officially joined yet, had no time to dwell on such minor doubts. Right now, his heart was filled with only one thing: join this organization, grow stronger, and drag the world down with him as much as possible within three years.

But soon, he discovered that Gray's operations completely shattered his worldview.

Gray, sitting in the wheelchair, didn't seem to operate it at all, yet the chair moved forward automatically. Furthermore, when they encountered a threshold, the wheelchair simply carried him right over it.

"What is this?"

Hearing this, Diamante answered his confusion: "A Devil Fruit!"

"Never heard of it, right?" Faced with Law's puzzled gaze, Diamante's penchant for playing the mentor began to surface: "Devil Fruits~ the treasures of the sea. Those who eat them can gain all sorts of abilities."

"Flight, controlling various elements of nature, magical skeletons, legendary mythical beasts, and so on."

"As long as you eat a Devil Fruit, you can possess these powers."

"What's the matter~ jealous, aren't you?"

Although he was very envious in his heart, Law could only turn his head away on the surface: "Tch!"