"Teach, we've arrived!"
Oden's voice boomed from the other end of the Den Den Mushi, brimming with excitement he could barely contain. Beside him, Kozuki Toki held the infant Hiyori while young Momonosuke bounced around, unable to sit still.
On the Moby Dick, Whitebeard and his crew broke into hearty laughter. They were finally reaching Wano, a land Oden and Toki had longed for.
Teach chuckled softly, seated alone in a dense forest on the border of Hakumai. His Observation Haki stretched outward, covering everything it could touch.
Wano was vast, far too large to scan completely, but from here he could faintly sense the sea and the distant presence of the Moby Dick, approaching from the same direction Teach himself had first entered Wano.
After closing the line, Teach whistled sharply. A large exotic bird, native to Wano and resembling a fierce eagle, swooped down from the clouds to perch on his shoulder. Strapped to its chest was a small wooden barrel designed for carrying letters.
Teach slipped in a prepared message, patting the bird's wing. "Go."
The bird launched skyward, beating its wings as it soared toward Hakumai. It was one of Shimotsuki Yasuie's messenger birds, a secret lifeline Teach had relied on throughout his stay. Today's message was the most important yet: Oden's return. Yasuie would see that the news spread like wildfire across Wano.
Teach's gaze shifted east, toward the place where Mobius and his men were stationed, the same coast where he had first landed. It had been nearly half a month since then. He wondered how they were faring now.
For his part, Teach had spent the last ten days traveling across Wano, challenging every swordsman of note he could find.
Thirty duels in ten days. Three bouts a day, fought with nothing but pure swordsmanship.
The results? Humbling.
Out of all his challengers, he had only managed three victories. The rest ended in defeat. Yet every loss carved a lesson into him. He saw techniques born of fire, blades that danced with lightning, and countless styles passed down through the generations. With every clash, his own skills deepened, his vision of swordsmanship broadened.
Now, though, his thoughts turned to something else. His blades.
"My swords should be ready by now," he muttered with a grin, legs carrying him swiftly toward Tengu Mountain.
At the peak, within a shrine hollowed into the roots of an ancient tree, Tenguyama Hitetsu sat in seclusion. For two weeks, the master swordsmith had turned away all visitors, focused entirely on a single task.
Inside, three newly reborn blades gleamed under the lantern light.
Purgatory, Thunder Fang and Dragon Abyss.
Hitetsu sensed Teach's aura before the man even reached the doors. He rose, strapping the swords across his back, and opened the shrine's doors.
"They are finished," the masked smith declared with quiet pride.
Teach's eyes locked instantly on the weapons. He stepped inside, sitting across from Hitetsu. "How are they?"
"Excellent. On par with my peak work," Hitetsu replied. His voice carried both fatigue and triumph. "You know of my greatest creations—Oden's Ame no Habakiri and Enma. Forging those blades cost me dearly. To bring forth weapons of that caliber shortens the life of any smith."
There was pride in his tone, but also humility. "I never imagined I'd see such a thing again. Yet here they are. Two reforged masterpieces, and one royal sword restored to its glory."
Teach reached first for Purgatory. The scabbard was unchanged, but the moment he drew it, crimson light spilled out. The blade was heavier now, etched with deep red patterns, heat radiating from its edge as if it burned the very air.
"This blade will amplify your flames," Hitetsu explained. "It will drink your fire, magnify it, and unleash an inferno capable of incinerating the earth itself. That is why it is named Purgatory."
Teach's grin widened. The sword pulsed in his grip, alive with destructive heat.
Next came Thunder Fang. Its golden patterns blazed against a silver body, the new hilt bound in silver-white with a clover-shaped guard. Unlike its rougher former self, this was a true Wano-style masterpiece.
Teach let a current of electricity course through his arm, into the blade. To his surprise, it flowed perfectly, magnified by the Thunderstone reforged into its steel. Ten million volts surged to fourteen million without resistance.
"This sword channels the heavens themselves," Hitetsu said. "It will not only conduct your lightning, it will amplify it. I call renamed it Thunderclap, for with it, thunder will shake the sky."
Teach snorted at the naming flourish, though he secretly admired it. "You've got a way with words."
Finally, Hitetsu presented the Dragon Abyss. The deep-blue scabbard shimmered with silver-white accents. When Teach drew it, dazzling light spilled forth, forcing his eyes to narrow. The blade itself remained much the same, yet now its surface revealed mysterious runes that had been hidden beneath centuries of dust.
A map.
His eyes lingered on it, heart briefly stirred. It pointed to his birthplace, Arcas Island, hinting at a long-lost royal treasure. But Teach dismissed it with a quiet laugh. What use was treasure when he could seize kingdoms at will? The sword itself was the true prize.
Hitetsu's voice broke through his thoughts, reverent. "This is the most beautiful blade I have ever laid hands upon. It carries techniques alien to Wano, secrets I've learned much from. The scabbard materials were my gift to you. Compared to what I've gained, it is nothing."
Teach looked up at the masked smith, genuinely moved. "You'll have my thanks and my trust. If I need a sword in the future, you'll be the one I ask."
Hitetsu bowed slightly. "And I will not refuse."
Teach rose, strapping Purgatory and Thunderclap to his waist, slinging Dragon Abyss across his back. At the doorway, he turned, his voice low.
"Something important will happen today. Stay here. Watch, but don't step outside."
Hitetsu tilted his head, puzzled, but did not press. He knew Teach's warning was given in earnest.
And with that, Teach descended the mountain, his three reborn weapons gleaming at his side, each one a symbol of destruction, rebirth, and destiny.