Under the arrangements of maid Baby 5, a few days later a grand group wedding was held on Sky Island's Barong Island.
The groom, Souta Kiryuu, stood in the center of five women dressed in white bridal gowns.
Yamato, wrapped in her wedding dress, shifted uncomfortably, her whole expression twisted with awkwardness. She hated how the layered fabric restricted her, and she looked ready to tear off the extra lace and skirts on the spot.
Because the four Charlotte sisters and Yamato were newcomers from outside factions, this wedding wasn't as extravagant or lively as the previous ceremony with Hancock, Robin, and the others.
Still, with Souta Kiryuu himself presiding, the event didn't feel lacking. After all, these five women were princesses of two Emperors.
After a full round of ceremonial procedures, the wedding that left the Pirate Empress and the other wives slightly dissatisfied finally concluded.
Amid enthusiastic congratulations from subordinates, Souta Kiryuu took another five wives.
On the first night, Souta decisively chose to help Yamato "reconstruct her worldview as a woman."
Through a bloody lesson and a fierce battle that decided dominance, he made her understand that from now on she could only be called Higashino Yamato, not that broken name "Kozuki Oden."
"Unfair! Unfair! Why won't you take off my Sea-Stone cuffs!"
In this brutal clash, Yamato struggled and resisted stubbornly.
But under Souta's overwhelming strength, she could only be pinned and beaten back repeatedly. Blow after blow landed, leaving her injured, blood spilling from her wounds.
Yet after the sharp sting faded, a strange sensation began to rise within those wounds.
Yamato became increasingly excited the more she fought. It was a thrill she had never experienced before.
With the powerful recovery of her Mythical Zoan abilities, the two of them battled through the entire night before finally stopping.
On the second night, the opponent was the famed "Leg Goddess Sweet Commander," Charlotte Smoothie.
That night taught Souta that what lay on his shoulders wasn't always responsibility… sometimes it was something else entirely.
The following two nights belonged to Custard and Carrot.
Souta had not expected Carrot's Paramecia-type Yellowfruit to possess such combat potential and… unique functions.
Apparently, the warmth on one's face in the morning wasn't always sunrise. Sometimes it was—
Charlotte Brulee, however, was still immature, so she would need a few more years before her turn came.
In the days that followed, Souta also showered attention upon the Pirate Empress, Robin, and the rest of his wives.
After working so hard for so long, he figured he deserved some enjoyment.
…
During Souta's carefree days, the underground dark world had erupted into pure chaos.
After the World Government and the Kiryuu Pirates jointly struck the Shadowgold Family, every faction began circling the underground banking industry like starving wolves. Each wanted to bite off a piece of the rich profits.
Yet the dark underworld forces led by the Black Emperor Dragku Pekuro chose to support Du Polgate, son of the Loan-Shark King.
Their goal was to help him become the new Shadowgold King and stabilize the collapsing dark finance industry.
They did want to lean toward Souta Kiryuu, but they still wanted their own faction to grow stronger.
Of course, this meant taking on greater risks.
After discussions with the Golden Emperor Tesoro, they agreed to strike at Du Gurontai, the candidate supported by the World Government. Their aim was to drive back the CP0 agents under government command.
As for the market share and business the Shadowgold Family had lost to the Golden Emperor, that was something their own family would have to shoulder.
They had only themselves to blame for falling into internal conflict, which caused massive upheaval in the underground banking world.
Whether the Shadowgold Family declined because of it was none of their concern.
The other underworld emperors suffered little loss anyway.
The Storage King Giberson and the Shipping King Umit were both waiting eagerly for their chance to rise, hoping to replace the Shadowgold Family and become one of the ancient legacy clans.
…
During this time, Dr. Vegapunk descended from the moon to Barong Island for a short vacation, bringing Brûlée's blood samples with him to continue researching the Memory-Memory Fruit's powers.
This ability was even more mysterious than Kuma's Paw-Paw Fruit.
Vegapunk's memory-alteration machine would undergo further refinement and upgrading.
In the future, the modified Pacifistas would be able to display even greater strength.
This included the Logia-type Pacifistas modeled after Sakazuki the Red Dog and Crocodile, as well as the navy prisoners who needed… permanent solutions.
…
Inside the palace at the Kiryuu Pirates' headquarters on Barong Island—
Souta Kiryuu sat reading the latest intelligence from the seas, his expression dark and hard to read.
"I can't believe a single moment of oversight made me lose such a massive pile of treasure."
He stared at the recently released new Shichibukai list from the World Government, pain tightening his features.
Back when he defeated Isaac at the G1 battlefield, he rushed straight to the G18 fortress to battle the Five Elders and Whitebeard.
He had no time to care about the New World Prison Island Isaac had in his memories.
After the G18 War, he had to chase down Aokiji Kuzan and Iron-Fist Garp, invade the Kingdom of Adams and the G9 base, and later wipe out the territories of the Whitebeard Pirates and the Red-Haired Pirates.
Only after all that, when he had a brief moment to breathe, did he remember the prison island and want to attack it.
But by then, the World Government had already mobilized huge forces to retake G1 Headquarters and rebuild it into a war fortress.
They had cleared out the prison island in record time.
This left Souta empty-handed, feeling as though he had lost hundreds of billions of Berries. His heart ached.
"Hanafza, that useless waste, is actually still alive. He even survived Isaac's experiments?"
"And those Four Elder Stars… they actually reinstated a pirate who'd been stripped of his Shichibukai status. They're really devolving."
This chapter is not finished. Please click the next page to continue reading!
Souta chuckled lightly. Among the names the World Government announced for the new Shichibukai list, besides the Whitebeard clone Weibull—
There was also Hanafza, the former Shichibukai.
He was the loser who got beaten down by Fire Fist Ace.
His title was the Lizard King, and he loved collecting Ancient Zoan Devil Fruits.
After his defeat by Ace, the government stripped him of his Shichibukai title and threw him into Impel Down's Infinite Hell.
Later, Isaac requisitioned him for experiments on the New World Prison Island.
Rarely, Saint Saturn did not refuse Isaac's request—likely because he looked down on Hanafza, who had lost to a newcomer like Ace.
If Isaac had requested Redfield or Barrett, Saint Saturn would never have agreed. He needed powerful prisoners for his own experiments.
After Hanafza's defeat, the World Government immediately invited Fire Fist Ace to become a Shichibukai, but Ace rejected them without hesitation.
If Souta Kiryuu had not appeared as a transmigrator, Saint Saturn would have forced the ailing Kuma on Egghead Island to become the next Shichibukai.
"Jinbe is still on the Shichibukai list? The World Government's eyesight gets worse every year."
Souta smirked. Jinbe had not participated in the New World War, yet somehow retained his Shichibukai title.
He had been close to the Kiryuu Pirates lately without consequences.
Then again, this wasn't too strange. Jinbe had once walked closely with the Whitebeard Pirates and still kept his position.
His Shichibukai status mainly existed to mediate between the World Government and Fishman Island.
...
Hey everyone! Want to read ahead and unlock up to 100 early-access chapters? 📖Plus, enjoy even more exclusive novels! Join my Patreon now and dive into the adventure!
patreon.com/Rawink00