Even before he arrived,
he had already heard part of the story.
A poor nobody had turned around and transformed into the man who controlled twenty percent of the world's Berry circulation, to the point that even the World Government often had to give him face.
Tesoro had gotten cocky.
Wearing splendid golden ornaments, inside Gran Tesoro, this ship-island made of gold, Tesoro was the god who controlled everything.
If anyone laughed before he did, he would even treat it as a challenge.
Being able to decide life and death at will, receiving flattery from the so-called upper class, all of it had gradually made Tesoro capricious and violent.
A casually tossed golden ring could become a murder weapon. He liked using gold to suffocate people alive.
And afterward, he would even find it amusing.
Stella was a gentle woman. She had noticed the change in Tesoro's state of mind too.
But although Tesoro still treated her very well, he clearly no longer listened to what she said.
Ozz could help sober him up.
On this island-ship made of gold, Tesoro was used to acting like a god, controlling gold however he pleased.
In this kind of environment, Tesoro himself was not weak. At the very least, he had the strength of a Sweet Commander or a Lead Performer.
It was just that he relied far too much on his Devil Fruit.
Once there was no gold around for him to control, even an ordinary Vice Admiral could probably kill him alone.
Tap.
Tap.
In that strange yet cheerful atmosphere, streams of gold flowed over and transformed into a golden cane, which Ozz took into his hand.
Under his feet, gold spread into a road that stretched all the way to the center of the stage.
That man walked forward like an emperor, striding down a grand avenue while the masses knelt.
"So this is walking the Gaia path."
Ozz had long been interested in this legendary style he had heard about. At once, he felt like trying it out for himself.
An endless sea of gold poured forth, turning into golden flowers and auspicious signs that surrounded Ozz.
Black-red lightning began to rage around him.
Leaning on the golden cane, the man walked forward in no hurry at all.
"That figure is..."
"No way!!!"
"Could it be the one from the Summit War?!"
Among the crowd, a few sharp-eyed people forced themselves to look up and caught sight of that godlike, demonic figure.
Boom boom boom!!!
Crack crack!!!
The black-red storm spread from beneath his feet, tearing through the sky.
Golden gods, Buddhas, demons, and monsters all bowed in worship, as if welcoming the arrival of a king.
This breathtaking scene was burned deep into the mind of everyone present. Gold light intertwined with black-red lightning, making it impossible to see his face clearly.
"Is this..."
"A god?"
Only Tesoro, who was being controlled, knew that the only man capable of something like this was him.
"Mr. Ozz..."
His eyes bloodshot, the ever-arrogant Tesoro went blank for a moment at the sight, and then came resentment.
Why was he so powerless...
I am the richest man in the world!!!
"Tesoro..."
That figure finally walked up before Tesoro. And as he advanced, every person in the venue had already fainted in extreme terror.
"Do you feel unwilling?"
"If you are pinning your hopes on those people, give up now."
With a snap of his fingers, rows of corpses appeared where they stood.
Every one of them had once been a famous powerhouse on the seas. The strongest among them had even reached first commander level.
And now they had died without even making a sound.
Tesoro's pupils contracted.
Looking at those bodyguards he had hired with enormous sums of money, now dead without a trace, fear rose in his heart.
Then it was magnified without limit.
"Mr. Ozz, I'm sorry..."
Blood leaked from the corner of his mouth. Under that overwhelming pressure, Tesoro wanted to submit.
But he could not even kneel.
The gold he had once controlled as easily as his own limbs now behaved like a faithless little wife, freely manipulated by Ozz and binding him tightly in place.
"You have always respected me, and you have never refused to hand over money. That makes me very happy."
"But you got too arrogant and wanted to stand on your own. That makes me very unhappy."
Ozz patted him on the shoulder.
"Still, I gave Doffy a chance, and he satisfied me. So I'll give you one too, Tesoro..."
Ozz's gaze darkened.
"If you disappoint me again, then not just Stella, but your Gold-Gold Fruit, your wealth, your status, your protection, everything I gave you, I can naturally take back as well."
"You're a smart man. Once you calm down, I trust you'll understand."
Tesoro's confidence was completely shattered.
He could only stand there blankly, watching Ozz leave.
...
Ozz spent a stretch of time in the Golden City living a life of utter indulgence.
At the same time,
an unexpected guest arrived at Douramos Island.
"What a pleasantly scenic little island..."
On the shore, a drenched old man with white hair stepped onto land.
Then he headed straight for the royal palace.
"Stop right there!!!"
Before he could approach the palace proper, a number of men suddenly emerged from the corners and blocked his path.
"You are..."
One of the guards found Rayleigh strangely familiar. Rayleigh only gave a bright laugh.
"You're Ozz's men, right? Specially sent here to protect Gick?"
"I'm Rayleigh. Ozz and I go way back too."
"It's Mr. Rayleigh..."
The guards, all in black suits and all Haki experts, hesitated for a moment, but in the end they let him pass.
They did know that Rayleigh was the one keeping order at Sabaody, that he had a good relationship with Mr. Ozz, and that he was one of their own.
So the guards had no choice but to lead Rayleigh inward, while asking,
"By the way, Mr. Rayleigh, how did you end up like this?"
"Well... my boat got destroyed in a storm halfway here, so I had no choice but to swim the rest of the way."
Rayleigh wrung the water from his clothes, speaking lightly, as if swimming freely through the New World were nothing special at all.
"This..."
The guards were speechless. Once they had escorted Rayleigh into the palace, they went back into hiding to continue their security work.
At that moment, in the palace's back courtyard,
Luffy was in the middle of receiving Old Gick's teaching.
The old man was trying to teach him how to learn Haki.
Rayleigh curled his lips into a grin and hid in the shadows to watch.
Interrupting a lesson would be a little rude. He would wait until the lecture was over before making his appearance.
Folding his arms, Rayleigh also wanted to hear what kind of theory Gick, an old relic from the previous era who was not actually that strong, could come up with.
Could he possibly teach better than Rayleigh himself?
He heard the little old man standing in front of Luffy, hands behind his back, face extremely serious.
"Kid, the training of Haki is absolutely not about gentle drills, reaction exercises, or body conditioning. It is something you gradually develop by drawing out the potential of your body through constant battles on the edge of life and death..."
"Judging from Ozz's own experience growing stronger through fighting,"
"those who make people spend one year or even two years just to build a basic foundation in Haki are the ones truly misleading their students!!!"
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The tides are shifting, and secrets linger in the dark... Step into the shadows early on P@treon, where the next chapter awaits before the world sees it.
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