30 Years in Whitebeard’s Crew, I Became Invincible

"Big Bro, it's a message from Loxus," Izo said with a smile.

"That kid's spying for you now?" Roy chuckled.

"He's now the Fourth Calamity of the Beast Pirates," Izo replied.

"Him? A Calamity?" Roy shook his head in amusement.

A lot had happened in the past year. Though the Whitebeard Pirates had gone into hiding, they hadn't disappeared entirely. Everyone knew they were still out there, and no other pirate crew dared make a move against their territories.

The Whitebeard Pirates had already proven their strength; no one wanted to provoke them, and no one was foolish enough to test them.

Izo couldn't help but laugh at Roy's reaction. Despite his tough exterior, Roy was still a father who cared about his son. Though it was obvious he doted far more on his newborn daughter.

When Loxus was born, Roy hadn't been like this. But with his baby girl, Roy wouldn't let anyone even touch her. Even other Whitebeard Pirates were shooed away if they tried to reach for her, even Whitebeard himself. The favoritism was painfully obvious. 

Despite claiming he'd let Loxus forge his own path, Roy had still secretly supported him, sending over a Fish-Fish Fruit through intermediaries.

With the same power as Kaido and two years of training under the Beast Pirates' leader, Loxus had risen to become the crew's second-in-command, earning the title "Calamity Loxus."

"You're just too hard on him," Izo sighed.

"He's a man. He should be able to handle it," Roy said dismissively. "Anyway, what did his message say?"

"He mentioned that a samurai who disappeared twenty years ago has reappeared in Wano. It might be Momonosuke," Izo said seriously.

"So you're going to look for him?" Roy asked.

"Yes, Big Bro. Lord Oden has been gone for twenty years… It's time for me to go back. Thank you, and Pops, for everything."

"No need for formalities. If you want to go, then go. You're from Wano, I wouldn't stop you even if I tried. Just make sure you come back alive," Roy said.

"Understood!"

Izo nodded and turned to leave.

Roy gently rocked his daughter in his arms until she fell asleep, then handed her to Whitey Bay before heading to the lab.

"Out of ten trees, only one bore fruit… and it's not what I expected."

A year ago, Roy had sought out Luffy, taking a sample of his blood in an attempt to cultivate the Nika Fruit. But despite planting ten trees, only one succeeded, and the result was nothing like he imagined.

The Nika Fruit had been disguised as the Gomu Gomu no Mi (Rubber-Rubber Fruit), but the fruit in the lab looked nothing like a rubber fruit.

Other Mythical Zoan fruits, like the Phoenix, the Azure Dragon, or the Nine-Tailed Fox, still resembled their original forms, with only minor color variations.

But this one?

It had morphed into something entirely different, a black, grenade-like abomination that radiated an unsettling aura.

From the moment it appeared, Roy had kept a close eye on it.

The other trees had either withered or produced rotten fruit. Only this one had undergone such a bizarre transformation.

And after a full year of observation, Roy still hadn't dared to touch it.

Especially after Shyarly's prophecy.

But now…

"It's time to test it."

Roy carefully picked up the fruit and stepped out of the lab, just as Atmos walked by.

"Atmos."

"Big Bro! Need something?"

"I'm heading out. You free?"

"Always!" Atmos nodded eagerly.

"Then let's go."

"Got it!"

Atmos' body began to shift, transforming into a gray-scaled dragon with long whiskers. Roy hopped onto his head, settling in.

"Where's Roy going?"

Two years had aged Whitebeard further, his body weakening with time. Still, thanks to Roy and the others' care, he remained active.

"Probably just stepping out," Marco chuckled.

"If he's gone, then Rein is…" Whitebeard's eyes gleamed.

"Hah! Want to go see her, Pops? Big Bro's been guarding her like a hawk, won't even let us hold her," Marco laughed.

"Let's go. That brat's finally gone. I haven't held little Rein nearly enough."

Rein was Roy's daughter, a baby he barely let anyone near. Only when he was absent could they sneak in some time with her.

"Big Bro, wait up!"

Atmos had barely taken off when a voice called from behind.

'Izo?'

Roy glanced back. "He hasn't left yet?"

"Atmos, go get him."

"On it!"

Atmos circled back, letting Izo climb aboard.

"Big Bro, you could've told me you were leaving," Izo huffed.

"Thought you were already gone," Roy smirked.

"We're in the Calm Belt. Even if I were leaving, I'd need a ship. If I'd known you were heading out, I'd have tagged along!"

"Didn't realize you were still on the island. Would've waited if I knew," Roy said.

"Big Bro's decisions are always sudden. One second he's asking if I'm free, the next we're flying off, and I don't even know where we're going," Atmos grumbled.

"Anywhere's fine. Just need to find a guinea pig for an experiment," Roy said.

"An experiment?" Izo and Atmos blinked.

"Yeah. Testing a Devil Fruit. There's one I'm not sure about, need to see how it works."

"That one that kept failing?" Izo asked.

They'd all heard about it. Over the past year, Roy had cultivated several Zoan fruits, but one had repeatedly failed, only producing a single, untested specimen.

Several crewmates had volunteered to eat it, but Roy, wary of potential side effects, had refused.

"Yep. Only one succeeded, but I'm not sure if it's stable. Something about it feels… off. Time to find a test subject."

"In that case, let's grab a Marine," Atmos suggested.

"Sure, why not?" Roy grinned.

The three of them soared out of the Calm Belt. The New World was never short of people, especially pirates. Atmos' suggestion of targeting Marines was mostly a joke. Showing up at a Marine base now would be too risky.

After a moment's thought, Roy made a decision.

"Let's go to Egghead."

"Egghead? Seriously?"

"Yeah. Time to pay Vegapunk a visit."

.....

If you enjoy the story, my p@treon is 30 chapters ahead.

[email protected]/DaoistJinzu