White Shell and the Young Shadow Warrior

Above the harbor.

Wisps of black smoke rose, streaking the clear sky.

"Big news! This is absolutely big news! I'm going to be rich!"

A man carrying a box camera rushed out of the crowd.

He ran while waving his arms about, nearly tripping over a rope on the ground. But he did not care and quickly vanished down the road.

The nearby fishermen gathered again, pointing at the smoldering ship as they discussed it heatedly.

"God, did you see that? Those wings, that fire..."

"These bastards got what they deserved."

"But what race was that, exactly?"

Their voices abruptly died when they saw Hans approaching with his remaining men.

The crowd backed away, clearing an open space.

Yet Hans and his group did not even look at them. They went straight to an empty corner and began counting heads.

Hans swept his gaze across his men's faces, then suddenly raised his hoarse voice. "One's missing! Where's that black bastard?"

"Who saw him?!"

The men looked at one another and shook their heads blankly.

Hans cursed under his breath.

"Fuck it, forget it."

He squatted down with his hands over his head, and the others hurriedly followed suit.

At that moment, hurried footsteps sounded.

The mayor of White Shell Town arrived at the harbor, panting heavily alongside a group of guards.

When he saw Hans's group crouching in the corner, he froze. Then he hurriedly pulled over a fisherman and asked, "What happened?"

The old fisherman described what he had just witnessed.

As the mayor listened, the concern on his face gradually faded and was replaced by a sigh.

"Mayor, why are you here?" a voice sounded beside him.

The mayor turned and saw Lin Nuo walking over. He quickly composed himself and gave a bitter smile. "I heard there had been such a huge commotion at the harbor."

"As the mayor, I had to come take another look, even if I had to force myself."

"I never expected you to have already resolved everything. I don't even know how to thank you."

"It was nothing." Lin Nuo shook his head and looked toward Hans. "What do you plan to do with these people, Mayor?"

The mayor steadied himself. "If my calculations are right, the naval patrol ship from the 78th Branch in West Blue should arrive within the next couple of days."

"Then we'll hand them over along with the evidence of their abductions and their illegal occupation of the harbor."

Lin Nuo nodded, quietly considering things.

Although he had failed to pry the identity of the mastermind from Hans's mouth—

The other party had casually offered a Devil Fruit as payment, and their target had been recent refugees.

That level of resources and precision likely came from Cipher Pol, the intelligence agency directly under the Celestial Dragons.

After causing such a huge disturbance, he could not remain in the Rossini Archipelago any longer.

Besides, clues regarding Ginny and Ivankov had already appeared. He had to act as soon as possible.

"Mayor," Lin Nuo said seriously.

"There's something I'd like to ask of you. I need a ship. It doesn't have to be large, just enough to carry a few people for a voyage."

"To be honest, I don't have a single coin on me right now."

He paused, then made a solemn promise. "But I, Lin Nuo, will definitely return and repay this debt in the future, principal and interest included."

The mayor fell into thought.

Before he could speak, several fishermen nearby who had been listening in shouted first.

"Hero, I have a spare fishing boat at home! It's a little small, but it's sturdy!"

"If you don't mind, take it and use it!" shouted a dark-skinned man, thumping his chest.

"I have one too! Mine was just repaired, and the sails are brand new."

"My family has spare rigging and a compass!"

"I've got dried fish and water barrels!"

For a moment, the dock echoed with eager voices.

Teach, who was holding Alice's hand, looked up blankly at the adults around him, who had suddenly become so excited. Instinctively, he pressed closer to his mother.

This kind of noise was a little different from what he had seen before.

"Alright, alright, everyone quiet down." The mayor raised his voice and pressed both hands downward.

Once the clamor subsided.

He looked at Lin Nuo, nostalgia appearing in his eyes.

"Mr. Lin, everyone means well. But I happen to have a more suitable ship."

He pointed toward the other end of the dock.

A medium-sized two-masted sailing ship was moored beside a small pier.

Its wooden hull showed its age, but it had been maintained remarkably well.

"That was the ship I used in my youth. I named it the White Shell, after this town."

The mayor spoke proudly. "It accompanied me to many places throughout West Blue. Later, after I became mayor, it was left unused."

"The ship still has all the basic tools, rigging, and detailed charts for these waters."

"It may be old, but it's absolutely reliable."

He looked at Lin Nuo and said earnestly, "From here to Reverse Mountain, where you enter the Grand Line, there are quite a few islands along the way."

"The magnetic fields in this region are stable. An ordinary Log Pose will be more than enough."

"This White Shell is yours. I hope it can carry you and your companions wherever you wish to go."

Lin Nuo looked at the sailboat basking in the sunlight, warmth rising in his heart.

He turned to Alice. "What do you think?"

Alice's gaze was resolute. "Teach and I have no objections."

"Lin Nuo, we can leave whenever you're ready."

"Good!" the mayor said readily. "The ship hasn't moved in a long time. I'll have someone inspect it thoroughly and stock it with enough fresh water and food."

"Please wait a moment."

He gave several instructions to the captain of the guards beside him, who immediately led people at a jog toward the White Shell.

The matters at the harbor had temporarily come to an end.

Lin Nuo was just about to find somewhere to rest briefly and sort through his plans.

But the crowd gathered around again.

The children especially had completely forgotten their earlier fear.

They eagerly tried to reach out and touch Lin Nuo's black wings folded behind his back.

"Mister, are your wings real?"

"Are you from Sky Island?"

"Does Sky Island really exist?!"

Lin Nuo was overwhelmed and could only answer as best he could with a wry smile.

Just then.

Thud... thud... scrape...

A familiar strange sound flooded into his mind through his ears.

Lin Nuo paused.

Had Voice of All Things activated on its own again?

He immediately closed his eyes and immersed his mind in his senses.

He heard the scraping sound of something heavy being dragged.

And the muttering of a young voice filled with viciousness:

Power... I need it... I can't keep...

Lin Nuo opened his eyes and looked in the direction of the sound.

Near where cargo was piled at the harbor, a small skiff came into view.

Just as he looked over, a pair of human feet was dragged over the edge of the skiff and disappeared into the shadowed cabin.

"Alice, wait here for me."

Before his words had even faded, Lin Nuo's figure shot out.

Amid the crowd's cries of alarm, he hovered precisely above the skiff.

Inside the skiff, a boy abruptly raised his head, his gaze colliding directly with Lin Nuo's.

He looked around eleven or twelve years old, with a sturdy build for his age.

His face was pale, and his hair was shaped strangely like a flame-colored onion.

He gripped a corpse by the ankle and glared at Lin Nuo fiercely.

West Blue... barely a teenager... onion-shaped hair... a vicious temperament...

Several keywords linked together in Lin Nuo's mind.

Combined with what the boy was doing, one name nearly leaped out.

Gecko Moria?!

The boy before him.

He was the future Shichibukai who had dared to challenge Kaido, only to have his fighting spirit shattered by one blow and retreat into the Florian Triangle as a shut-in.

A man whose heart had been twisted by failure.

Still, while he was cruel and cunning toward outsiders, he treated the subordinates he acknowledged quite well.

That could be seen through Perona and Absalom.

Lin Nuo looked at the fierce boy, and an idea arose.

If... he could intervene before Moria wasted away.

Perhaps in the future, he could train him into a master of shadows, proficient in Haki and powerful in hand-to-hand combat, while using the Shadow-Shadow Fruit for top-tier assassinations and battlefield control.

Lin Nuo slowly descended and landed at the other end of the skiff, maintaining a safe distance from Moria.

"What are you doing?"

Moria did not answer.

He gripped the corpse in his hand more tightly while his other hand quietly reached behind his back.

"Don't be nervous." Lin Nuo softened his tone.

"Who was this person? Why did you kill him?"

"He tried to take my things." Moria finally spoke, his voice hoarse.

"So I killed him."

"What's your name? Have you been working with Hans all this time?"

"Moria." The boy gave his name, his eyes flickering.

"I'm not one of them. I just do odd jobs."

Lin Nuo nodded, roughly understanding.

The young Moria had ended up here, perhaps for survival or some other purpose.

"Then, Moria," Lin Nuo said, getting straight to the point, his gaze sharp.

"If I give you an opportunity to leave behind this unstable life."

"Would you be willing to follow me, see a broader world, and obtain the strength you desire?"

Moria's pupils contracted sharply at those words.

But he slowly shook his head.

"No..."

"I won't leave here until I get what I want."

"What you want?" Lin Nuo's heart stirred as a guess surfaced.

He suddenly asked, "Are you a Devil Fruit user now?"

The question caused a clear change in Moria's expression.

But he still did not answer.

Seeing this, Lin Nuo seemed to recall something and turned to look at Hans in the harbor.

He extended his right hand. Blue flames rose from his palm and shot through the air.

They precisely wrapped around Hans and yanked him flying over from the corner.

"Waaah!" Hans crashed onto the wooden deck.

When he raised his head, he saw the corpse in the skiff.

Hans was first stunned, then shouted, "Black bastard! You were hiding here, you—"

Before he could finish, he realized Lin Nuo was staring at him and immediately jolted.

Remembering Lin Nuo's earlier order to "gather everyone," he began trembling all over in terror.

"B-Boss! I didn't deliberately leave him out!"

"I looked for him, I really couldn't find him! I..."

"Quiet." Lin Nuo cut him off.

He crouched down, meeting the terrified Hans's gaze, and asked word by word.

"You said earlier that someone paid you with a Devil Fruit to capture people."

"What was that fruit called?"

Hans froze, stammering.

"I-I've never seen an illustrated guide, boss. How would I know what it's called?"

"Describe what it looked like." Lin Nuo's voice brooked no doubt.

"Every detail."

Hans racked his brains, struggling to remember.

"Th-that fruit was deep black, with dense brownish patterns on its surface."

"Oh, right, it was wrapped in lots of tender green leaves. I remember that clearly."

He recalled as hard as he could, and the traits he described made Lin Nuo's gaze grow sharper and sharper.

Deep black, spiral-patterned, wrapped in flower buds...

Lin Nuo looked at Moria, who sat in the skiff pretending to be calm, his fingers clenched tightly together.

At last, his gaze returned to Hans's face.

He already had the answer.

The Shadow-Shadow Fruit.