Gol D. Roger

Grand Line · Oro Jackson

The sea glittered under the sunlight like shattered scraps of gold leaf. The massive ship cleaved through the waves, its sails snapping in the wind.

The young Silvers Rayleigh strode steadily across the deck, his golden curls swaying gently in the sea breeze.

His purple coat hung open, exposing his toned chest. As he flipped through the intelligence he had just bought, he walked toward the front of the deck.

There, a burly man was slumped over the railing, wailing in a posture utterly unbefitting his reputation, cursing the heavens and the earth like a heartbroken boy in love.

A red cape fluttered in the wind. He had powerful abs and a valiant face, and the iconic curled nose hairs beneath his nose had yet to appear. Yet at this moment, he clutched his head in both hands, looking like a young man devastated by heartbreak.

The future Pirate King—Gol D. Roger—was currently trapped in a deep "emotional slump."

"Shakuyaku!! Where the hell did you go?! Why can't I find you anymore?! Waaaaah—"

Rayleigh adjusted his glasses, his expression already thoroughly accustomed to this.

—Three minutes ago, this man had declared that he would conquer the seas. Four minutes ago, he had said he would defeat Rocks.

Now, he looked like an ordinary man crushed by heartbreak.

Rayleigh walked over to Roger and cleared his throat. "Roger, I bought the latest news."

As if someone had pressed his "hope button," Roger instantly sprang back to life and turned around, his eyes sparkling. "What?! Is it news about Shakuyaku?!!"

"Where did she go?! Is she looking for me?! Does she miss me?!!"

Roger nearly crumpled the intelligence in Rayleigh's hand, and a vein throbbed on Rayleigh's forehead.

"...Idiot, I'm talking about Hachinosu being attacked. About that lightning kid."

Roger's expression snapped off like a switch had been cut, and he flopped straight onto the deck, returning to low spirits.

"Ah—who cares about that..."

"Shakuyaku... Shakuyaku, where the hell are you..."

"..."

Rayleigh rubbed his temple and could only continue. "Fine, since all you care about is Shakuyaku..."

Roger instantly sprang to his feet, his face once again full of anticipation. "Shakuyaku? You really have news about her?"

Rayleigh nodded. "I heard she opened a bar... on Hachinosu."

Before he could finish, he added, "But don't get too excited. Also..."

When Rayleigh looked up, Roger had completely changed.

Just moments ago, his eyes had been brimming with tears. Now, he had returned to full-on imposing captain mode!

His red-haired cape billowed wildly as he stood in the center of the deck like a king descending upon the world, one hand on his hip and the other pointing toward the helm.

He roared in a voice powerful enough to shatter the heavens, "All hands, listen up!!!"

"Turn the ship around immediately!!!"

"Destination—Hachinosu Island!!!"

The deck fell silent for half a second. Then, the pirates aboard the entire ship erupted:

"The captain's doing it again!!!"

"The power of love is way too ridiculous!!!"

"Hey, hey, hey! That's Hachinosu—the Rocks Pirates' lair!!!"

"Have you noticed... the captain's obsession with beautiful women is scarier than his obsession with treasure?!!!"

Rayleigh folded the intelligence and held it between his fingers, revealing a helpless yet indulgent smile. "Honestly, there's no helping you..."

The Oro Jackson turned its bow like a beast, its enormous red sails snapping in the wind.

Roger stood at the bow, his red cape rolling in the sea breeze. In his mind, he was already playing out a romantic reunion with Shakuyaku—followed by getting punched three times—and his grin stretched all the way to his ears.

—Just then.

"Bzz...!"

An invisible pressure suddenly descended from the sky.

A piercing red light flashed in Roger's eyes, and he instantly switched from lovestruck fool mode into battle mode.

He abruptly raised his head, as though he could see straight through the clouds and lock eyes with his enemy.

"Something's coming!"

Sensing the shift in Roger's aura, Rayleigh instantly switched from lazy mode into battle commander mode!

He shouted, "—All hands, prepare for battle!! Secure the deck!! Everyone watch out for the recoil!!!"

The Oro Jackson transformed from a cheerful sailing party into a top-tier battle formation!

The pirates sprinted across the deck in a frenzy, securing ropes and gripping the railings. The joyful atmosphere instantly tightened like iron.

But Roger smiled, the corner of his mouth curling upward. He was as excited as if he had encountered the opponent he had been waiting for.

"Light... ning...?"

He slowly placed a hand on the famed blade at his waist—"Ace."

The next instant—

"Clang—!!!"

At the sound of the blade leaving its sheath, even the sea breeze fell silent.

Red-and-black Conqueror's Haki erupted from Roger like tangible lightning!

The waves were instantly forced down several meters, and the entire sea seemed to be forcibly suppressed by the will of a king.

Roger took a step forward, gripping his sword in one hand. His shoulders and back relaxed into place, his movements as steady as a mountain and as deadly as a storm.

His voice was excited, blazing with passion, and filled with laughter. "You came at just the right time—!"

The next instant, the air was completely torn apart.

Roger unleashed the slash that would shake an era:

"Divine Departure—!!!"

With a thunderous boom, the Conqueror's Haki bursting from Roger's body was forcibly "seized," compressed, and condensed!

The colors of heaven and earth seemed to be swallowed away as an enormous slash woven from blood-red and black surged forth like a roaring heavenly dragon!

It tore through the air!

It tore through the sea wind!

It tore through the sky itself!

"Boom—!!!"

That strike carried enough power to cleave apart colossal islands and shatter ocean ridges.

And its target—

Was the silver-white bolt of lightning charging straight through the sky.

High above, Rock was wreathed in lightning as he dove down from the peak of the clouds, still thinking:

Let's see what Roger and the others are like—

Then, in the next second, he saw a bloody slash capable of splitting the sky in two flying straight at his face.

Rock: "???"

"Why do all the big shots of this era... like throwing out their ultimate moves the moment they meet?!!"

He only had time to complain once before lightning erupted across his entire body!

He raised his right hand, pressing his index finger and thumb together in a "gun" gesture as lightning frantically gathered at his fingertips.

Pure white energy compressed like countless stars, and the world darkened for an instant.

All light was drawn toward that single "point."

Rock's entire body transformed into a blinding lightning form, as though he were burning—or ascending.

"100 Million Volts: Divine Judgment—!!!"

The next second, he pulled the "trigger."

"Boom—!!!"

It was not thunder.

It was not lightning.

It was a tangible white energy cannon, a beam of destruction that seemed capable of piercing heaven and earth!

It did not spread. It gave no warning. The instant it appeared, it was already at its strongest!

Rock and Roger's attacks collided amid the Cloud Sea.

A point—

A tiny black point appeared, as though heaven and earth themselves were being sucked into it.

Then—

"Boom—!!!"

The black point instantly expanded into a massive white sphere hundreds of meters wide!

Light and lightning intertwined into violent electric dragons, while the bloody slash shattered yet bit back with a furious roar!

The next moment, a roaring circular shockwave swept in every direction!!!

The sea surface was crushed down several meters, blasting open an enormous trench!

The Oro Jackson shook violently at the edge of the trench, and the pirates across the ship clung to pillars as they screamed, "Wh... what kind of power is that?!!!"

"He actually clashed head-on with the captain's Divine Departure?!!"

"That's not something an ordinary person can do—!!!"

Rayleigh gripped the railing tightly, his pupils shrinking. "Roger's slash... was actually blocked head-on?!!"

The sea wind screamed.

The waves scattered.

The two forces tore open a vacuum between heaven and earth.

The shockwaves from the explosion lasted for more than ten seconds.

The lingering image of the white sphere gradually broke apart, leaving behind the scorched stench of high heat and blue sparks of ionized electricity.

As though mauled by a giant beast, the sea had opened into a bottomless trench. The waves were blasted into scattered fragments before gathering together again.

Finally—

The world regained its sound.

The howling sea wind rushed back into their ears, carrying shock, fear, and... countless gazes directed toward the sky.

"Pant... pant... Are we still alive?!"

The pirates aboard the Oro Jackson were all pale as ghosts, their legs weak as jelly. They clung desperately to masts, railings, or each other's thighs, nearly scared out of their wits.

Rayleigh adjusted his glasses with one hand and held his weapon in the other as he stared at the figure in the sky. "A lightning ability... could it be?"

He looked up into the sky, his pupils tightening.

As the explosion dispersed, lightning gathered once more high above, and a silver-white humanoid figure stepped out from the shockwaves.

Rock was wreathed in lightning, half his body seemingly fused with the light.

He stood in the air, looking down at the Oro Jackson.

At the bow, Roger held Ace in his hand, Haki swirling around him as his red cape danced wildly like flames.

Their gazes collided in the air like thunder smashing against a volcano.

The air trembled faintly between them, and even the sea wind was crushed into distortion.

Rock narrowed his eyes and smiled, his voice echoing through the air. "You are—Gol D. Roger?"

Roger threw back his head and laughed. "Hahahaha!!! Lightning brat... you're no ordinary man!!"

Two terrifying auras clashed between sky and sea. For a moment, the storms across the entire sea rolled backward toward the center between them.

This was between the future king and the future Pirate King—

Their first meeting.