The Dark Throne

What the darkness obliterated was not itself, but the light.

Shane gazed into the sky above God Valley.

At that moment, the Darkness Tentacles rapidly retracted.

As most of the shadows condensed.

Only nine tentacles, each as broad as a mountain, remained, tearing at the valley.

God Valley had originally resembled an abyss trapped between heaven and earth.

Now, however, the Darkness Tentacles dragged it over, tilting it.

Above the deep valley.

The tentacles piled upon one another to form a Dark Throne, as inky black as night.

Between heaven and earth.

Only the darkness struck terror into the heart.

This was Rocks's paradise, a paradise where demons and gods intertwined.

"If I win, all of you will be masters of the world!"

"If I lose? Then we'll all turn to ash together!"

Rocks sneered.

No.

It was the demon mocking them.

In truth, Rocks had long since conquered the demon. Not only had he awakened his fruit power, he was also the strongest ability user, having developed his power to perfection.

Even Blackbeard, who would ascend to the position of Emperor of the Sea thirty-eight years later, could not compare to his mastery of the Dark-Dark Fruit.

It was only because Teach chose so well that he forged himself a combination of fruit powers stronger than Rocks's.

Thus.

In this era.

Rocks was the undisputed King of the World.

Even the future Pirate King, Hero of the Navy, World's Strongest Man, and Strongest Creature could only look up to him.

An endless stream of enemies, the unexpected Roger, his subordinates' desperate betrayal.

Even Saint Saturn of the Five Elders, whose schemes never failed, had been defeated and had nearly died in God Valley.

Yet this was how it had all ended.

Rocks would not admit defeat. He had not lost to any single opponent.

Even if he had to sacrifice his will to the demon, destroying as much of this absurd world together as possible would do.

"The sea is too absurd, and you're an even bigger bunch of fools."

"A navy of justice? Pirates of freedom? Laughable!"

"One kneels as the Celestial Dragons' lapdog, while the other hides everywhere like a beaten dog."

"Kill me, and the real me will still remain-the Kings of the World who have ruled for eight hundred years, the Celestial Dragons!"

"Hahahahaha! Tremble, you fools!"

Rocks laughed aloud, like a stray dog with nowhere to go, crazily biting at everyone.

Darkness Tentacles extended from the throne.

Bang!

The tentacles pierced the sheer cliffs like steel, suspended above God Valley.

Until the Darkness Tentacles transformed into tiers of pitch-black steps.

At the top of those steps stood the final throne.

Rocks stepped onto the stairs and climbed them, one step at a time.

Everyone's attention was drawn to him. They felt their souls hanging in the air, their strength being drawn upon.

At that moment, Rocks released not a trace of Haki, yet he made them want only to kneel and submit.

"In the decades since I set sail, I've adventured, slaughtered, conquered, and schemed, using every means at my disposal."

"Sengoku, you'll understand. This entire world is waiting for the next king to arrive!

"You should all be afraid. Once I'm gone, the sea will never be peaceful!"

"Tell me, who besides me can keep these monsters in check? Just wait-the greatest chaos in the world."

"The war for the throne is about to begin!"

"This Dark Throne may take countless forms. No matter how you deny your true feelings, you cannot change the fact that ambition will swell."

"Even if all you want is to protect everything you already have, you will still have to contend with these monsters in the end. Otherwise, they will destroy everything you've so carefully cherished."

Rocks sat high upon the Dark Throne, raising his eyes to look down upon every living being below.

Within the narrow confines of God Valley.

Heart after heart beat with defiance, just as Rocks had said.

Golden Lion's and Linlin's ambitions, Kaido's conquest and destruction.

If they wanted to sit upon the throne, they would have to walk the same path as Rocks.

Even Roger, who only wanted to adventure freely, and Whitebeard, who only wished to protect his family.

Without enough strength, they would likewise be hindered and affected by them.

That was right.

This was a war they would inevitably be drawn into, whether they wanted to or not!

Roger refused to accept it. He knew he loathed the future Rocks described, yet he would inevitably be unable to escape it.

Many years later.

Roger stepped onto the Execution Platform in Loguetown in the East Blue.

He still could not forget everything he had experienced today.

Perhaps.

The moment he spoke of the One Piece.

Though kneeling on the Execution Platform, he had actually seated himself upon another invisible throne.

Whether Rocks still existed in the world no longer mattered.

What was frightening was that Rocks had existed.

From this day forward.

Every monster who emerged from the Rocks Pirates would know full well.

There were still greater positions, authority, and power for pirates to attain.

They would spare no effort in fighting to claim everything for themselves.

Until the era of Roger, Golden Lion, and Whitebeard gave way to the era of the Four Emperors.

The ambition to rule and dominate would inevitably eat away at everyone's heart.

The Shichibukai of later years would likewise be part of the struggle for the throne.

"Once ambition has been unleashed, it can't be contained again. That bastard Rocks is using his dying life to awaken the ambitions of every monster in his Pirate Crew. What a bastard!"

Sengoku the Buddha hated this sort of behavior most of all. It was nothing less than luring those men down an even more evil path.

Little did he know.

There would later be Roger's announcement of the Pirate King's One Piece before his death, and Whitebeard fanning the flames as he lay dying.

It would never end!

This was a perfect relay game!

"Then we'll just beat every last one of them and lock them up in Impel Down!"

Garp shattered an attacking tentacle with a punch.

He did not believe there was any opponent who could not be beaten.

Even someone as powerful as Rocks had reached the end of his life and become a dying man.

"But once they leave, they'll scatter in every direction. While we're hunting one of them, the others will be building their forces across the seas."

"In five years at most, I'm afraid even Apprentice Crew Members like Shane and Kaido will be terrorizing regions of their own."

"These men gathered because of Rocks. They seemed impossible to suppress, but in truth, they were confined to one place. Only now does the sea's real storm begin!"

"The Dark Throne has already been carved into the heart of everyone with a king's aptitude!"

Sengoku's scalp prickled. He dared not imagine how chaotic the seas would become.

And the culprit behind all of this was Rocks!

One could say.

At this moment, Rocks's influence on the powerful figures of his era.

Was no less than Roger's, just before his death, on the great pirates who witnessed his execution and had yet to become Shichibukai, as well as Red-Haired Shanks, Buggy the Clown, and Dragon.

Rocks only seemed less frightening because the Five Elders had erased all traces of his existence from history.

"Ambition will swell. Look at their eyes! Rocks's will won't die out!"

Gritting his teeth, Sengoku looked toward the battlefield.

The crew of the Rocks Pirates felt no sadness over their captain's fall. Quite the contrary, they even felt excitement and joy.

To them, this was the best possible ending!

Rocks was dead!

The King of Darkness, who could suppress all manner of bizarre fruit powers, was destroyed.

Then those reveling before his gravestone would be even more greedy souls.

Shane was one of them, his gaze burning ever brighter, impossible to extinguish.

"Rookie, that look in your eyes could devour someone."

John wiped away the blood he had spat out and stared into Shane's eyes.

"The tides turn in twenty years. Who will the next king be?"

Shane clenched his fists. The answer was beyond doubt.

"Me!"