One piece : Celestial Rose

Two days—that was how long it took for the navy to build a brand new pirate ship for Mark.

That's right, Mark made the navy build a pirate ship for him with their own hands using their latest technology. And there wasn't a thing they could do about it.

"Hey Kujaku, what do you think about this? Our situation."

Smoker asked in an absentminded way. A few days ago, he was still burning with a sense of justice, but his plans had crashed and burned entirely.

Not only was he kicked out of the navy, he was now directly serving the celestial dragon saint Mark. If this wasn't enough to break Smoker, Saint Mark was trying to become a pirate.

And he, Smoker, will have to become a pirate with him.

Smoker had no idea why Saint Mark wanted to do this. But this was completely against Smoker's code of conduct! 

He wanted to punish evil, not become it.

"Smoker, I think we made it out okay all things considered. Without Saint Mark we would be dead."

"I don't particularly like becoming a pirate, but I think it might be fun. We should not question the captain's decision."

Kujaku flipped her hair like a whip; she had a small smile on her face while speaking. Which was a big difference, compared to her big ever-present smile.

Knowing her well, Smoker could see behind her facade pretty easily. Kujaku did not want to become a pirate, either. She was trying to hide her true feelings.

Kujaku twitched a bit, she seemed to notice Smoker's thoughts; she then finally dropped her smile and sighed.

"Don't think about it, Smoker. I heard celestial dragons have all kinds of messed-up hobbies."

"We are lucky Saint Mark only wants to become a pirate. We simply need to fight some bloody battles."

"At most we might need to destroy some islands. Saint Mark would probably get bored of the pirate life by then."

Kujaku muttered the last part; she tried not to think about the horrors she and Smoker would have to see.

Smoker was in the same boat as her. He also tried to clear his head and think about something else.

"They have terrible emotions brewing within them. Hate, anger, and helplessness. And it's all directed towards me."

"How fascinating."

A voice gently commented far away from Smoker and Kujaku's positions. Yet it seemed as if the voice was talking about them.

Another voice quickly replied to the first voice, but compared to the first voice's calmness, this second voice was full of anger.

"They actually feel hate and anger towards you, my lord?! How dare they? You practically saved their lives."

"Allow me to act, Saint Mark; I will kill those two for this treason."

Who's who was fuming, but Mark just chuckled. Waving Who's Who down, he took a sip of top-quality tea.

"No, there is no need to kill them. They are probably upset about me becoming a pirate."

"They don't know erasing my identity is necessary if I want to get any kind of practical experience. They are simply fools jumping to wrong conclusions."

"Ignore them for now."

Mark clarified to Who's Who, but Who's Who was still unsure about this. It was risky to hang out with people who hated you.

And eliminating this kind of risk was his job. Especially now that Saint Mark had no CP agents protecting him. Having them around would give away his identity, so Mark had let them go.

Who's who wanted to tell Mark about this, but Mark somehow beat him to it.

"You still think they should be killed?"

Mark asked curiously, although his tone was not one of questioning; rather, it was concluding.

He then looked up at the surprised Who's Who and shook his head. Mark gently looked back down and spoke while sipping his tea.

"You look surprised Who's who. Don't be. While I was fighting against Sengoku, I unlocked emotional resonance observation haki."

"I can feel and connect with people's emotions. I can sense your killing intent, Smoker's desperation, and Kujaku's resignation."

"It's all clear to me. I know everything. Akin to a god Who's who."

Mark had a glint in his eyes. He turned towards Who's Who again and whispered.

"The previous user of this observation Haki was Otohime. The fishman queen."

"She used to forcibly influence people using this ability. She once used this technique on a celestial dragon named Donquixote Mjosgard, actually."

"But that's a story for another time. The point I am trying to make is that I know how people think."

Mark rubbed the fine porcelain tea cup, feeling its remaining heat.

"I know those two can be convinced to join me. I just need to break their trust in the navy and the world government first."

"Then build their trust in me and me alone. In this sea, partners are essential for survival. That's why I am going to give them a chance."

"Although it's just one chance, if they don't join us and continue to hate me even after this, you can eliminate them."

Mark calmly decided the fate of Smoker and Kujaku. Mark might be a pirate now, but his pride as a celestial dragon had never vanished. Not even pirates keep a non-loyal crew around, much less him.

Who's who relaxed, he seemed happy enough with this decision. He now wanted to know more about his lord's plan.

"So, what are we going to do Lord Mark?"

Mark smiled happily at the question of his subordinate, and he got up from his exquisite seat.

"We will go to Minion Island. It is a small island in the North Blue, but its importance has skyrocketed recently."

"It's the home base of pirate captain Diez Barrels. He is a navy traitor who has turned to piracy. And this guy has the op-op-no mi in his hands right now!"

"This moron actually announced this publicly, in hopes of selling the fruit. I think you can imagine the bloodshed that is about to happen on this island."

Mark said calmly but who's who shivered. The op op no mi was priced at 5 billon berries and was known as the ultimate devil fruit by many. 

Minion Island was now going to be attacked by way too many forces for this fruit. Pirates, Navy, bounty hunters—you name it, they would be there. 

"Doesn't this sound fun? Who's who?? This is our destination."

"Not only will I get to fight in an all-out battle, Smoker and Kujaku will see the world's darkness firsthand."

"The navy traitor Diez Barrels alone is enough to shake their faith. And he isn't the only heavy hitter who's going to be there."

Mark laughed in anticipation. The sale of Op Op No Mi was a major event in the original story; this is the moment where Law ate his devil fruit.

The next user of the op op no mi was about to be born soon. And that means Doflamingo will be there as well.

Mark couldn't wait to meet this banished celestial dragon. This crazy guy should be willing to give Mark the challenge he desires.