Sea Circle Calendar, Year 1476.
A warship flying the World Government's flag drifted slowly across the bright blue sea as soldiers of the Vodka Kingdom lined up along the shore, bowing with such exaggerated reverence it was practically groveling.
Deep in the ship's hull, inside a cell soaked in the stench of blood and iron—
Dan felt a fever burning through his skull. Countless fragmented memories churned violently inside his mind, smashing together, rearranging.
When the storm finally settled, he understood at last — he'd been reincarnated into the world of pirates sixteen years ago. And only now had his past-life memories fully awakened.
In those years, he'd gone from a war-torn orphan wandering the ruins of battlefields… to fighting shoulder-to-shoulder with Kaido — the "Strongest Creature" — crawling through blood and mud until he climbed his way up to become the kingdom's "strongest general."
But once the war ended, the kingdom cast them aside like broken tools.
The moment peace arrived… they sold both of them to Mary Geoise.
And right now—
The warship escorting them was carrying them straight toward a turning point in their fate.
"How ironic…" Dan murmured under his breath.
"Big bro, you're finally awake!" The chained boy with two horns rushed closer, desperation in his voice. "You're not seriously planning to go to Mary Geoise and become their lapdog, right?"
Going to Mary Geoise meant one of two endings: brainwashed into CP0, or enslaved under Imu as part of God's Knights.
Is that the future you accept?
"No." Dan shook his head without the slightest hesitation.
Kaido finally relaxed, eager enough to snap his chains right then. "Heh, then I'll break out now!"
"You're rushing again." Dan stopped him with a calm voice. "We move when the ship's canteen starts serving food."
"Uh…?"
Kaido stared for a few seconds before it clicked. "Big bro, what the hell is your brain made of? It works way better than mine!"
Dan narrowed his eyes as his thoughts spun at full speed.
If events followed the original path, Kaido would rampage through the ship and escape, beginning his life as a drifter at sea.
Two years later, he'd reach Hachinosu… and at fifteen, he'd become a trainee for the Rocks Pirates.
But what about me?
I'm three years older, but my body isn't nearly as tough as his.
In a fight, a stray bullet will send me straight to the credits.
Roll the ending! Game over!
Dan sighed inwardly. If only my memories had returned earlier… I could've planned ahead instead of being dragged into this mess.
Time slipped quietly through the darkness.
Before long, the sound of metal scraping echoed down the corridor. Footsteps approached.
A Marine stopped at their cell, carrying a wooden bucket. He dumped an entire bucket of fruit inside.
The air reeked of rust — now layered with sour, rotting stench.
"So that's your 'strongest general' and 'strongest creature'… tch. Boring. Just two smelly brats."
The soldier walked away in disappointment.
Kaido closed his eyes, waiting for the canteen to open. He didn't bother looking up again.
The cramped cell fell into silence.
Then—
Dan's gaze swept across the floor and suddenly froze.
Because one of the rotten apples in front of him was changing color — yellow turning to purple, its skin twisting upward as fresh green shoots unfurled from its surface.
Within seconds, it morphed into a strange fruit covered in swirling patterns, like spirals stacked atop one another.
"A Devil Fruit!"
A memory flashed through Dan's mind, an answer rising instantly.
The Logia Dark-Dark Fruit — the one Blackbeard would chase for half his life.
He forced himself to clear his mind. No thinking about strengths, drawbacks, or compatibility.
There was only one image in his head:
Zeheheheh! This power chose me!
Without hesitation, Dan bent down and bit into the fruit, choking down the indescribably foul taste with sheer willpower.
In that instant—
A violent surge ripped through his body. His cells felt like they were being scorched by lightning, burning, roaring out of control.
At the same time, his consciousness was yanked out of his body.
When his thoughts cleared again, Dan hovered above a swirling abyss of darkness.
A massive white palace was rising slowly from the center of the vortex beneath him.
He plummeted downward, pierced through the roof, and landed inside.
Gray mist drifted across the floor. The palace was vast, towering, and impossibly grand — like a temple built by giants.
Before he could fully take it in, a thunderous voice echoed through the space.
---
"Detection complete. You have consumed the Sea's Greatest Treasure. The Shikigami Temple now opens for you."
"You will receive three authorities!"
"One — you will gain greater freedom in controlling the power of darkness!"
"Two — the Shikigami Temple can subdue Zoan-type Devil Fruits and convert their cores into Shikigami! If the target is a Mythical Zoan, the Temple will grant you an additional reward!"
"Three — storage!"
"You currently possess no Shikigami. The Shikigami Temple will gift you a perfectly subdued, innate Shikigami!"
"Congratulations."
"You have obtained: Mahoraga!"
---
As the words faded, a white figure materialized within the temple.
Its pale body resembled polished marble. Four fleshy wings extended from empty eye sockets. A segmented tail hung behind it, while a wheel hovered above its head, turning slowly — the shape of a divine executioner.
It was Mahoraga.
"Mahoraga… the strongest Shikigami born from the Ten Shadows Technique of the Zenin Clan in Jujutsu Kaisen. No one has ever successfully tamed it. It's usually a last resort — a mutual destruction weapon."
Dan quickly pieced together the nature of his cheat. "So the Shikigami Temple is a crossover system between the pirate world and the jujutsu world?"
"But it's not identical… for example—"
"The Dark-Dark Fruit replaces the shadow technique. Zoan Devil Fruit cores replace curse spirit Shikigami."
His lips curled as the realization solidified. "So this system wants me to gather Mythical Zoan powers… and build my own black domain — the Domain Expansion: Chimera Shadow Garden — in this pirate world."
Azure Dragon, Yamata no Orochi…
Reality proved one truth: Zoan Mythical species were the real meta.
And the future of the Domain Expansion: Chimera Shadow Garden was limitless.