Shiki:
Nicknamed the Golden Lion.
He is the captain of the Golden Lion Pirates and admiral of the Golden Lion Pirate Fleet.
He once stood shoulder-to-shoulder with the Pirate King, Gol D. Roger, and Whitebeard, Edward Newgate. He was the first pirate in history to escape Impel Down.
A true Great Pirate, he was ruthless and cold-blooded and would not hesitate to strike down his own subordinates. He possessed merciless methods capable of destroying an entire sea.
After Roger's capture, his audacity was astonishing when he dared to storm Marine Headquarters alone.
He placed his trust in overwhelming power and respected opponents who matched his strength.
Driven by colossal ambition, he had the relentless drive to realize his deepest desires.
It can be said that he truly deserved his title as one of the three legendary pirates of his era.
…
West Blue.
The turbulent sea gradually calmed, leaving splintered wood, shipwreck debris, and other flotsam scattered across the surface.
The lightning that had crackled across the sky slowly faded away.
Kojin's face was pale as he silently gazed at the Golden Lion before him. The man's eyes had rolled back in his head, and his body was riddled with sword wounds and scorch marks, indicating that he had lost consciousness.
A gruesome hole gaped in the Golden Lion's abdomen, and a similar scorched cavity marked his right shoulder.
Beneath his tattered robes, his body was covered in scars.
These scars spoke volumes about the brutal, intense, and frequent battles he had endured throughout his life.
Naturally, a man like him could never have lived an ordinary life.
Slowly raising his right hand, Kojin murmured, "Though it may seem disrespectful to the deceased... It's not your time to die yet."
An arc of electricity erupted from his fingertips and slammed into the Golden Lion's body.
Zzzt! Zzzt! Zzzt!
An electrical current coursed through Golden Lion's body, causing him to shudder violently. Then, amidst the crackling current, his heart began beating again.
Thump-thump! Thump-thump!
Kojin remained calm.
After all, electrotherapy was a method capable of returning life to the dead.
Naturally, it wasn't perfect.
For example, even though the Golden Lion's heart had resumed beating, his consciousness remained in a complete void. In other words, he had entered a half-dead state: his body was functioning, but his soul was long gone.
Suddenly, his field of perception expanded.
He took in everything within a ten-kilometer radius, and a gloomy look appeared in his eyes once more.
Bullet, Buggy, Smoker, and the others were relatively unharmed.
However, the G-18 Fortress had suffered devastating losses. Nearly half of its twenty thousand elite soldiers perished in the battle, and countless others were wounded.
The original G-18 Fortress had been completely obliterated, leaving only scattered, shattered fragments.
His eyes flashed, and Kojin seized Golden Lion's corpse. In a flicker of thunderous light, he vanished from the scene.
Time was of the essence. He needed to reach Skypiea quickly, find Vegapunk, and devise a way to get the Float-Float Fruit.
In his normal state, Kojin's lightning speed fell short of its absolute limit.
Yet just three to four seconds later, infused with lightning-enhanced Haoshoku Haki, he stood before Vegapunk.
"What's this?!"
"Golden Lion Shiki!"
Vegapunk exclaimed in shock upon seeing the man before him.
"Is there a way to extract his Devil Fruit ability?" Kojin demanded.
"Yes!" Vegapunk replied without hesitation.
"You must give me his body for research. I might be able to create a new artificial human!"
As he spoke, Vegapunk grew visibly excited.
"Agreed!" Kojin replied without hesitation. "I just need the Float-Float Fruit from his body!"
"Also, he's practically half-dead now. I'm only just keeping his physical functions going with my abilities."
Vegapunk nodded and meticulously examined Golden Lion's body before adding, "Go fetch some fruit. A lot of it!"
This was a simple task. Kojin quickly transformed into a lightning bolt and scoured Skypiea until he returned with a basket overflowing with fruit. He placed it beside Golden Lion.
"There's something you should know," Vegapunk cautioned.
"This method relies heavily on chance. It's based solely on the principles of Devil Fruit transference. I can't guarantee its success with absolute certainty."
After a pause, he continued.
"After all, your request is too urgent. Creating tools capable of containing Devil Fruit factors takes time. By then, the Float-Float Fruit might already have been transferred."
Kojin nodded. "Let's proceed directly!"
Life is inherently a gamble. If he couldn't obtain the Float-Float Fruit, there was nothing he could do.
He watched Vegapunk hesitate briefly before retrieving a test tube from the nearby laboratory and pouring its contents over the fruit.
"Wait and see!"
Roughly fifteen minutes later, Golden Lion Shiki's heart stopped beating.
Kojin radiated his domain outward, carefully monitoring everything in the room.
But nothing happened.
Vegapunk seemed unconcerned, continuing to tinker with his test tubes.
"Did it fail?" Kojin murmured.
The fruits remained unchanged, piled quietly.
Suddenly, Kojin's eyes narrowed.
He noticed that the electromagnetic fluctuations around Golden Lion's body were flickering violently as if disrupted by something.
Moments later, the fluctuations rose into the air and began to drift. At a certain point, as if drawn by an invisible force, they converged toward the basket of fruit in the distance.
After a few moments, Kojin's eyes widened in astonishment.
He clearly saw the skin of one of the fruits change color instantly, and cloud-like patterns form rapidly on its surface.
"It worked!" Kojin exclaimed, a triumphant grin spreading across his face.
After waiting silently for another fifteen minutes, during which the fruit showed no further changes, he summoned it with a wave of his hand. Under the influence of the electromagnetic force field, the newly reborn devil fruit flew into his palm.
"Oh? It worked, did it?" Vegapunk chuckled. "Your luck is quite good."
He paused, then stepped closer.
"However, if you truly intend to eat this fruit and become a dual Devil Fruit ability user... I strongly advise you to reconsider."
As he spoke, Kojin opened his mouth and took a bite of the newly born Fuwa Fuwa no Mi.
"What do you suggest?" Kojin swallowed the mouthful of fruit.
"Never mind! Now I'm more curious about what will happen to you." Vegapunk squinted.
Had there ever been a powerhouse in history who had consumed two Devil Fruits? He didn't know.
But right before him stood a daring soul willing to take the plunge.
Soon, Vegapunk noticed a change in Kojin's expression; a flicker of pain crossed his face.
Then, without warning—
BANG!
Vegapunk was caught completely off guard as he watched the 3.3-meter-tall, powerfully built man, whose strength rivaled the world's elite, explode into pieces.
So, the legends about bodies exploding after eating two Devil Fruits weren't just myths! Vegapunk thought.
"Wait! Kojin?!"
Vegapunk's eyes widened.
In an extraordinary twist, the exploded fragments of Kojin's body twisted and vanished completely.
Countless blurry particles began to reassemble, and within a few breaths, an intact Kojin reappeared before Vegapunk.
"It seems ordinary people really can't eat two Devil Fruits after all," Kojin muttered.
Looking at the great scientist before him, Kojin saw that Vegapunk's eyes were wide with shock and disbelief.
"You...you truly possess the Undying Body!" Vegapunk exclaimed in astonishment.
"Naturally," Kojin replied with a nod and a smile.
Ever since consuming the Goro Goro no Mi (Thunder Thunder Fruit), experiencing death and retaining the fruit's power, Kojin had pondered the possibility of possessing multiple Devil Fruit abilities.
The power boost from consuming multiple fruits, however, wasn't as dramatic as one might expect, especially for someone like Kojin, who had already maxed out all his stats.
Rather, it granted him an additional offensive method and a unique ability.
True strength relies on oneself.
This also explains why Sensei Kai declared that Haki transcends all else, surpassing everything.
Immediately after uttering those words, Sensei Kai began his Zoan Mythological Beast Awakening.
Kojin primarily ate the Fuwa Fuwa no Mi (Float-Float Fruit) to create a floating Skypiea. This would greatly enhance his secrecy and concealment.
With a flash of movement, he arrived above Upper Yard in two breaths.
"Let's test the capabilities of the Float-Float Fruit!"
With a thought, Kojin materialized on the ground.
As his hands touched the earth, an indescribable sensation surged through his entire being.
In an instant, he grasped the true secrets of the Float-Float Fruit.
"Zero gravity!"
"Control!"
A faint smile played on Kojin's lips as he marveled, "So the true power of this fruit lies not in zero gravity, but in control!"
With a slight gesture of his right hand, the entire island of Upper Yard shuddered, buzzing and trembling violently.
Moments later, everything returned to normal.
But Kojin knew perfectly well that, in that brief instant, Upper Yard had shifted a centimeter.
He could accomplish this effortlessly with his fruit's ability.
With a flick of his finger, the dust and debris below swirled upward immediately, rapidly forming a towering, spire-like structure.
"Near-perfect control!"
Afterward, he returned to the base to say goodbye to Vegapunk.
"Hurry up and leave!" Vegapunk snapped. "I've got far too much work to do! I'm transforming the Golden Lion into a powerful cyborg. And once Zeus returns, I'll need to update his firmware."
Vegapunk waved his hand impatiently.
Kojin smiled and turned to leave.
Four or five breaths later, he arrived on the battleship where Eveya and the others were gathered.
"Total casualties: eleven thousand, three hundred, and twenty-three. The survivors are all injured to varying degrees," Eveya said while tears streamed down her face.
The others wore solemn expressions, their heads bowed in grim silence.
"The scholars and civilians of Ohara were evacuated a month ago at Capone Bege's suggestion," Bullet added. "They managed to escape this disaster."
Kojin nodded, sighed, and patted Eveya's shoulder.
"The base is gone, but we'll rebuild it!" he declared. "See to it that the fallen soldiers are properly compensated."
He slowly turned, his gaze sweeping across the scattered archipelago ahead. His eyes were filled with deep contemplation. In a world where individual combat power reigns supreme, the strong can easily take the lives of the weak.
A single war could obliterate an entire base.
"We will start anew on that land!" Kojin murmured, his eyes heavy with solemnity.
"Having endured such hardship," he continued, "you must strive even harder from now on. Only then can you survive the increasingly fierce wars to come!"
(End of Chapter)
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