High in the sky, a massive floating fortress known as the Golden Isle Ship swept across the sea, its colossal shadow blotting out the sun.
Two airborne fleets followed behind, their formation tight and seamless like migrating geese.
Wherever the fleet passed, both the ocean surface and nearby islands fell into deep darkness.
New World – Center Region – Hive Island (Hachinosu).
"Ahahaha! Lord Dragon God is unbelievable! He actually subdued the Golden Emperor! That means we can go play at the Golden Entertainment City from now on!"
"The Arashi Dragon Crew will never worry about money again!"
"I heard Tezoro is already moving on the underground banks. Pretty soon the Golden Emperor might end up with a brand-new title: the King of Black Finance."
"Good news, good news! Lord Dragon God has now married the daughters of both Emperor Kaido and Big Mom. He's completed the New World's ultimate political marriage!"
"From now on, the New World is basically the territory of one god and two emperors! Newcomers can't even make a ripple."
"Too bad Red-Haired Shanks doesn't have a daughter. If he did, Lord Dragon God might rope that wandering emperor into the fun too."
…
As the Golden Entertainment City fleet entered the waters around Hive Island, the entire island—pirates and civilians alike—erupted in explosive excitement.
Big News Morgans had already blasted yesterday's chaos across the world: the Cake Island marriages, the assassinations, and even the report about Yamato, the Dragon God's newest young wife.
Most pirates didn't even know Kaido had a powerful daughter, let alone that she was now married to the Arashi Dragon.
Under Morgans' shameless hype machine, Pirate Empress Boa Hancock, the Beast Princess Yamato, and the Sweet Commander Charlotte Smoothie had all been crowned as the Arashi Dragon's Three Empresses.
Their status was already considered on par with the Three Calamities of the Beasts Pirates, the Three Sweet Commanders of Big Mom's crew, and the three senior officers of the Red-Hair Pirates.
Some bored troublemakers even claimed that if Souta Kiryuu marched out with just his wives, he'd already be comparable to a Yonko crew.
And that wasn't even counting the terrifying highest officers like the Red Earl, the Devil's Progeny, Bartholomew Kuma, Shiryu of the Rain, Enel the Thunder God…
As gossip circles continued digging, lists began appearing online showcasing all the women connected to the Dragon God, Souta Kiryuu:
Nico Robin the Devil Child.
Perona the Ghost Princess.
Baby 5 the Weapon Maid.
Monet the Snow Woman.
Violet.
Custard.
Carrot.
Even the Sky Island maids Laki and Conis.
Worse, another list emerged containing five "Loli Princesses": Jewelry Bonney, Princess Mansherry, Sugar, Aisa the Angel Princess, and Pudding the Three-Eyed Girl.
With this kind of unit, Souta Kiryuu could lead an all-female army and battle a Yonko crew on equal footing.
And because people are insane, they made an even more ridiculous "possible candidates" list.
Such as Catarina Devon the Nine-Tailed Fox, infamous and horrifying.
And captured marine elites like Admiral-candidate Momousagi (Gion), Vice Admiral Doll, and Rear Admiral Peacock.
If Souta Kiryuu managed to tame all these marine captives…
He could march out with a battalion of women and obliterate the Red-Hair Pirates.
No need to even call out the Six Paths of Arashi Dragon.
…
After the Arashi Dragon Crew escorted the Golden Entertainment City back to Hive Island, most officers stayed behind to help Tezoro implement his various plans.
Meanwhile, the Ark Prophecy carried Souta Kiryuu and his many women back to Barlon Island in the sky.
A quiet wedding ceremony took place there.
Even Boa Hancock and Nico Robin hadn't received grand weddings, so the four Charlotte sisters and Yamato couldn't go overboard either.
Souta promised them all that once the enormous threat of the World Government had been dealt with, he would give them a magnificent wedding seen across the world.
"Wahaha! It really is an island in the sky! The cloud ground is so soft!"
Little-girl-form Yamato rolled around excitedly on the island cloud. She had read about Sky Islands in Kozuki Oden's journals.
She remembered names: Angel Island, and the ancient golden city of Shandora.
Smoothie and the other women stared at Yamato with a mixture of disdain and disbelief.
They seriously could not understand how this clueless country bumpkin possessed Conqueror's Haki, or how she had mastered the advanced Conqueror's coating that even Katakuri hadn't reached.
Reality was unfair.
"Souta-sama is having another wedding…"
Jewelry Bonney's eyes darted restlessly. Last time, her little scheme had been blocked by Kuma, leaving her extremely annoyed.
Even Pudding, the three-eyed girl, managed to get engaged to Souta. Why couldn't she have some fun too?
Souta walked over, grabbed the loli-Yamato, and unlocked the seastone ankle cuff with a key.
"If you behave, I'll take off the seastone wristband too. Bonney, undo her ability."
He squeezed Yamato's chubby cheeks, then turned to Bonney with the command.
Since he planned to marry Yamato, it made no sense for her to stay in child form.
And given how disobedient she could be, it was time to teach her properly, let her understand—deeply—that she was a woman, not a man.
"…Fine."
Bonney pouted, clearly unhappy, but released the power of the Age-Age Fruit placed on Yamato.
Yamato's original height returned—towering at 2.6 meters, easily overshadowing even Bonney's adult form.
Now Yamato was the one looking down at Bonney like a child.
"T-thank you… Thank you for avenging Ace. What you've done now… it's greater than anything Lord Oden achieved."
For the first time, a fully restored Yamato thanked Souta sincerely. After days of watching Souta Kiryuu's documented exploits…
She finally realized it was he who avenged Ace, who killed Ace's murderer.
And that the forces Souta was now confronting—the World Government and the Celestial Dragons—were far more terrifying than the Beasts Pirates.
With Robin's refined storytelling and Bonney's exaggerated praise, Yamato had begun to admire Souta deeply.
If Oden's journal hadn't brainwashed her while she was young, Souta's legend would have already converted her into a hopeless fangirl.
"Don't compare me to that fool Oden."
Souta spoke calmly.
Through Bonney, he had already told Yamato the many humiliating stories of Kozuki Oden: sneaking into red-light districts as a teen, boiling bones of friends for hotpot in his youth, getting tricked by Orochi later in life, and dancing naked in the Flower Capital for five years like a complete idiot.
He wanted her to truly see what kind of person her so-called idol really was.
Kozuki Oden was an incompetent weakling who couldn't even protect his own people, his wife, or his children. Instead he placed all hope on some vague "savior" twenty years in the future.
Utterly ridiculous.
Robin even subtly suggested that Oden's journal could easily be exaggerated self-praise, while Souta's widely documented stories were far more reliable.
Therefore Yamato had every reason to admire Souta Kiryuu, not blindly worship Kozuki Oden, who might not even be who she thought.
"Is… Kozuki Oden really that pathetic?"
For the first time, Yamato bit her lip, her confidence wavering. Her childhood idol had just been dismissed by the world's new "greatest hero" as someone not even worthy of comparison.