Chapter Summaries

John and his crew crossed the Calm Belt and reached the island hiding his treasure, while Pete planned to exploit John's exhaustion to attack him. The pirates entered a cave filled with billions of Beli in treasure, and they looked to John for reassurance about possible traps.

• Alice watched the Treasure sail away with Teach, hoping Rocks and John would survive.
• Pete secretly planned to use John's prolonged Conqueror's Haki and declining condition to defeat him.
• After two days following the Eternal Pose, John and the pirates reached a desolate island in the Calm Belt.
• John ordered the ship around to the island's far side and guided it into a cave entrance beneath the cliffs.
• The pirates found heaps of gold and silver worth billions of Beli inside the cave, then looked to John when someone raised the possibility of traps.

Pete and the pirates betrayed John for his treasure, but John revealed his real trap and sent the Golden Ship and treasure flying out of the collapsing cave. The pirates scrambled to save their ship while John lay apparently dead and Pete feared being stranded in the Calm Belt.

• John claimed he had not set any traps, and Pete stabbed him while the pirates shot him with Haki-coated bullets.
• Pete released the Reaction Fruit's effect, and the injured John cursed the pirates for betraying him.
• John dodged Pete's next attack, unleashed electricity into the cave, and caused the mountain to shake and crack.
• John opened the cave ceiling and sent the Golden Ship and treasure flying outside, while the pirates abandoned the treasure and tried to climb after them.
• Pete shot a pirate and ordered the others back to retrieve the ship, then glanced at John's lifeless body before swimming toward the Treasure.

John survived his supposed death by faking his wounds and making his Vivre Card burn, leaving Pete and the crew blamed for his murder and the treasure theft. He contacted Morgans with footage and crew members’ fingernails, demanding one billion Beli for Vivre Cards.

• Pete escaped the collapsing cave with the surviving pirates and sent them diving for the treasure, believing John was dead.
• John revealed that he had faked his death, fooled Pete with a rigged Vivre Card, and hidden a Visual Den Den Mushi to record the scene.
• John edited the footage to make Pete appear to have killed him and taken the Golden Ship and treasure, then realized the Death Omen Star had vanished.
• John called Morgans and offered him footage proving Captain John’s death and betrayal by Pete.
• John offered Pete’s and other crew members’ fingernails as material for Vivre Cards and demanded one billion Beli.

John sold Pete and the others’ fingernails to several underworld organizations, then left the island with the Golden Ship and treasure suspended in the sky. Days later, he reached Lulusia Kingdom and located Morgans, who had arrived to complete their deal.

• John offered Pete and the others’ fingernails to Morgans and other organizations for one billion Beli, then raised the slave traders’ price to one and a half billion Beli.
• John explained that he used an artificial magnetic field to keep the Golden Ship and treasure floating above the clouds, where he could retrieve them later.
• John traveled to Lulusia Kingdom, disguised himself with short black hair and ordinary clothes, but still drew attention because of his looks.
• Morgans called John after arriving in Lulusia to arrange the fingernail trade, and John used Mantra to locate him in the forested mountains to the south.

John left Lulusia's upper city after saying goodbye to Adella and remotely sent a disguised steel mannequin to meet Morgans. The exchange ended with Morgans receiving evidence of Captain John's death, while the black suitcases of money remained with Morgans's men.

• John bluffed his way through the nobles' entrance and visited Marlo Adella, telling her he was leaving before departing with a black iron case.
• Adella begged John not to go, but he left the estate and headed toward the southern forest.
• John used electricity to activate a disguised female steel mannequin and remotely control it toward Morgans.
• Morgans waited beside his airship with men and suitcases of money, then asked the mannequin for the goods.
• The mannequin handed Morgans eight labeled bags of fingernails, a photograph of Captain John being stabbed in the back, and a roll of film.

Morgans publicized Captain John’s death, prompting Linlin, Newgate, and Shiki to react to the news in different ways. Shiki vowed to punish the traitors after learning John was dead.

• Morgans verified the footage of John’s death, accepted the payment, and rushed to write a headline for World Economic News.
• Linlin read the report and declared that she would find the traitors and take back John’s treasure.
• Newgate mourned John but chose to celebrate with his new Whitebeard Pirates rather than risk his family by seeking revenge.
• Shiki defeated Ochoku for control of Hachinosu, then read the newspaper and raged that John had died before Shiki could recruit him.
• Shiki blamed the traitors and vowed they would not be forgiven.

John tracked down a slave-trading deal in the Kingdom of Troy after earning six billion Beli from selling his fingernails across six countries. At Warehouse No. 3, Ouroboros’s Scott Parker and Misa prepared to trade kidnapped children and planned to capture John for the bounty on him.

• John overheard that three children were being held at the harbor warehouse and cursed the slave trader who called him a pirate.
• John reflected on his six billion Beli earnings and his rejection of trade requests from Shiki and Linlin, who had placed bounties on him.
• A masked woman in a black suit emerged from beneath the harbor bridge and walked away after drying her clothes with heat.
• Scott Parker threatened the children in their cages, while Misa used her Emotion-Emotion Fruit to calm them and put them to sleep.
• Misa told Parker to keep John alive because Big Mom and Golden Lion had placed a one-billion-Beli bounty on him.

John used the Steel Puppet to ambush the Ouroboros slave-catchers Parker and Misa, killing Misa and beating Parker. He spared Parker only to order him to use his connections to capture Pete and the other conspirators.

• Parker and Misa planned to use Misa's Emotion-Emotion Fruit to subdue the informant without paying for the information.
• The Steel Puppet blasted through the warehouse doors and confronted Parker and Misa, then crushed Parker's face with a stomp.
• Misa activated her Devil Fruit power, but John sensed its energy through Mantra and directed the Steel Puppet to stab her through the chest, killing her.
• Parker begged for his life, and the Steel Puppet told him that slave traders ranked at the bottom among criminals before declaring its own superiority.
• The Steel Puppet gave Parker sealed bags and ordered him to use his connections to capture Pete and the others, or die.

The Steel Puppet rescued the children from the warehouse and exposed the fake money, while John reflected on his growing arrogance and resolved to change. Meanwhile, Pete and the Rocks remnants escaped the Calm Belt only to meet five Marine warships led by Chaychitz Maffey and Somaz, who demanded everything John had.

• The Steel Puppet sent the caged children toward the crowded harbor, discovered that the Beli notes in the suitcases were blank paper, and left.
• John woke at an inn, recognized that power had made him arrogant, and decided to correct himself before he lost his drive to advance.
• Pete and the pirates finally sailed out of the Calm Belt after weeks of searching for treasure and fighting Sea Kings, but they were nearly out of food and water.
• The Treasure came under cannon fire from five Marine warships, and Pete rallied the pirates to fight for supplies despite their fear of the Marines.
• Chaychitz Maffey prepared a laser attack as Somaz demanded that the pirates hand over everything belonging to John, while Pete ordered the Treasure to dodge.

Pete’s pirates boarded a Marine warship and slaughtered its crew, but Somaz and Maffy survived Pete’s attacks thanks to their Immortal Bodies. Pete fled when he realized they could regenerate, while Somaz planned to capture him and Maffy warned him about the Reaction Fruit’s danger.

• Pete ordered his pirates to ram the Treasure into the lead warship and began the boarding battle.
• Pete’s Reaction Fruit froze everyone on the deck, allowing the pirates to kill the Marines and Cipher Pol agents; Pete beheaded the vice admiral, Somaz, and Maffy.
• Somaz and Maffy restored their heads and bodies, then Somaz attacked Pete with thorny vines.
• Pete froze the vines and shot Somaz and Maffy with Armament Haki bullets, but their wounds healed, so he fled into the cabin to find food and water.
• Somaz resolved to capture Pete and keep him as a slave, while Maffy warned him that Armament Haki could resist the Reaction Fruit and that the sea remained a threat.

John found Teach being bullied on Drum Island and tried to guide the boy toward kindness, despite first telling him to fight back. Teach led John toward Alice, and John found her visiting Dr. Kureha while hearing villagers gossip about them.

• Three boys pelted Teach with snowballs, and Teach forced himself to laugh so they would accept him as a friend.
• John appeared, asked Teach why he had not fought back, and told him the boys were bullies rather than friends.
• John reversed his advice and urged Teach to answer hatred with truth, kindness, beauty, and love.
• Teach led John toward their temporary home, but John followed Alice's Vivre Card and found her with Dr. Kureha.
• John heard village women gossiping about Alice and him as they watched from the road.

John visited Alice, Teach, and Dr. Kureha, hoping to learn about Teach’s ability to possess multiple Devil Fruits and Kureha’s extraordinary longevity. Kureha let him take some of her hair, and John left intent on studying powerful bloodlines and creating new ones.

• John dismissed the gossip about him and went with Teach to Dr. Kureha’s home to see Alice and Teach.
• Alice recognized John despite his changed appearance and welcomed him, while Kureha offered him liquor and discussed her longevity.
• Kureha said she had no explanation for staying young, though she guessed it might be due to her bloodline.
• John asked to study Kureha’s blood, then used his magnetic power to gather strands of her hair after she resisted.
• Kureha allowed John to keep the hair, and he planned to use it with others’ research to create new bloodlines.
• Alice asked John whether he had come to see her only to obtain Kureha’s hair.

John stayed on Drum Island for a few days, examining Teach and watching the children torment him before deciding to leave. He gave Alice a Den Den Mushi for emergencies and hinted to the village chief that a surprise was coming that night.

• John told Alice he had come to say goodbye and would lie low, but agreed to keep Teach company for a while.
• John rented a house near Alice's home, and rumors spread that he and Alice had fled the Pleasure District together.
• John examined Teach in the mountains and found no unusual traits beyond his excessive body hair.
• John watched children and adults bully Teach, then confronted the village chief, who had spread rumors about him and Alice.
• John visited Alice, left her a Den Den Mushi, and told her he was leaving but could be called if she faced a serious problem.

After leaving Alice, John reflected on the three stages of his life and resolved to break free from the role imposed on him. That night, he visited Vanessa, the village chief’s wife, and seduced her while the drunken village chief headed home and threatened Alice.

• Alice reassured John that she hoped he would take care of himself, and John left her cabin.
• John recalled his past as a freedom-seeking pirate, a justice-minded Marine, and a calculating World Government politician, then vowed to become the master of his fate.
• John visited Vanessa late at night, charmed her with stories about the outside world, and drank wine with her.
• Vanessa became intoxicated and leaned against John, who drew her close and began an intimate encounter with her.
• The village chief passed Alice’s cabin on his way home and vowed to get her into his bed.

John exposed the village chief’s wife, Vanessa, as a willing participant in their affair, then used his power to leave the chief mentally incapacitated. He comforted Vanessa before departing, and that day lightning killed Drum Island’s finance minister.

• The village chief returned home and found Vanessa with John, who made her admit she had chosen to be with him.
• John struck the village chief with purple lightning and left him helpless while he continued with Vanessa.
• Vanessa woke the next afternoon, and John told her he had given the village chief a prefrontal lobotomy.
• John refused to take Vanessa away, told her to seek Alice’s help if needed, and left after she asked him to visit.
• Lightning struck the palace atop Drum Mountain and blasted the finance minister into ashes.

John arrived in Shells Town and tried to enlist in the Marines at the 153rd Branch. Captain Gavin Reed initially rejected him for claiming to be from a non-affiliated kingdom, but accepted a bribe and registered him as a local before assigning him a role.

• John disembarked in Shells Town, a peaceful town that housed the Marine 153rd Branch.
• John entered the base to join the Marines, and Captain Gavin Reed took him to his office to register him.
• John told Reed that he came from the non-affiliated Feros Kingdom, so Reed claimed the Marines could not accept him due to security concerns.
• John offered Reed Beli, and Reed agreed to record Shells Town in the Leon Kingdom as his birthplace.
• John offered Reed more money, and Reed recommended that he start as a navigator on a warship.

After resigning from the Marines, Dragon arrived in Shells Town and noticed a shipment of alcohol being smuggled in defiance of Leon Kingdom’s Prohibition Order. At the Ideal Restaurant, John recognized Dragon, but their meal was interrupted when someone kicked over an empty table.

• Dragon recalled how Garp had secured his release from prison by promising to remain in the Marines, and Dragon had resigned after his punishment ended.
• In Shells Town, Dragon spotted smuggled alcohol in a broken crate but chose not to intervene, then followed the smell of food to the Ideal Restaurant.
• Reed treated John to a meal to celebrate his becoming a Marine, while John complained about the inflated alcohol prices caused by Leon Kingdom’s Prohibition Order.
• John recognized the eyebrowless Dragon as he entered the restaurant and watched him take a seat nearby.
• As John began eating, someone kicked over an unoccupied dining table, drawing the restaurant’s attention.

John and Reed witnessed a local gang pressure the Felose Chamber of Commerce, whose legal residency in Shells Town had not stopped Colonel Burns and the locals from trying to drive them out. Dragon left after the gang leader threatened him, then intervened outside when gang members attacked an unfamiliar newcomer.

• Black-suited gang members confronted the Felose Chamber of Commerce restaurant owner and demanded that the foreigners leave, despite their permanent residence permits.
• Reed explained to John that the locals wanted to drive out the Chamber of Commerce after using its members to build Shells Town, and the gang leader warned Reed that he had interfered with Colonel Burns's business.
• The gang leader turned on Dragon, who saw that John and Reed would not intervene and left the restaurant disappointed in the Marines.
• John used Mantra to observe a fight outside and saw Dragon helping an unfamiliar newcomer whom the gang members had attacked.

John left the restaurant to intervene after learning that the Navy’s 153rd Branch had law enforcement authority in Shells Town, despite Reed warning him that Colonel Burns had forbidden it. Meanwhile, Dragon and Felo Vincent fought the gang members attacking Vincent’s father’s restaurant, and the two young men recognized each other’s strength.

• John explained to Reed why the 153rd Branch could maintain order in Shells Town, but Reed said Colonel Burns had prohibited sailors from interfering in local conflicts.
• John declared that he would follow his sense of justice and rushed out, prompting Reed to chase after him.
• Felo Vincent hurried to his father’s restaurant after seeing gang members surround it and attacked them when they tried to block his way.
• Dragon charged in to help the civilians, dodged the gang members’ gunfire, and knocked down several attackers with his martial arts.
• Vincent used his strength to take down gang members, and he and Dragon grinned at each other with mutual admiration.

Dragon and Vincent fought Hughes’s gang in Shells Town until Marine Third Class John intervened and effortlessly defeated Hughes’s two hidden enforcers. John ordered Hughes and his men to surrender, while Hughes secretly planned to seek help from Colonel Burns.

• Dragon and Vincent joined forces against the gang, but Hughes shot at Vincent and wounded Dragon as he shielded him.
• Dragon and Vincent dodged Hughes’s second shot and charged him, only for two men with Armament Haki-coated kicks to threaten them.
• John appeared, caught the attackers’ legs, and hurled both men into a building across the street.
• Reed saw John’s strength and complained that John had concealed it from him.
• John ordered Hughes and the gang to squat with their hands over their heads, and Hughes complied while telling his men he would appeal to Colonel Burns.