One Piece: Lightning's Heir

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Arthur was completely unaware of the chaos brewing on the seas. He remained peacefully on Skypiea, training his God's Army.

In a month, only two or three of the hundred-strong guard had successfully manifested Armament Haki. Their aptitude could only be described as abysmal.

On the seas below, any reasonably strong person had the potential to learn Armament Haki. With proper guidance, the success rate was incredibly high... but in the hands of the Skypieans, it seemed impossible.

Conversely, a great many of them had awakened Observation Haki. It was as if the people of Skypiea were born with a natural talent for it, needing only a slight nudge to activate it.

This strange phenomenon surprised Arthur, and he couldn't quite figure out the reason.

Could it be that one day all of Skypiea will be masters of Observation, just like how the Amazons of the Calm Belt are all masters of Armament??

He was briefly taken aback, but then dismissed the thought. He had his own matters to attend to.

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One day, on Upper Yard, at the temple.

"Constance, I may be gone for a very long time on this trip to the Blue Sea. I'm giving you full authority to manage all of Skypiea's affairs, but I don't want to return to an island in chaos. Do you understand?" Arthur commanded from his golden throne, his voice calm.

"Thunder God..."

Constance's temples were already graying. He wasn't a young man. Perhaps the next time Arthur returned, he would be a stooped old man.

However, Arthur had no better choice. He was the only one on the entire island capable of managing its affairs.

"As long as you don't let Skypiea fall into utter chaos, I can tolerate anything you do." Arthur had given him immense power.

After delegating all responsibilities, he boarded the [Thor] under the escort of the God's Army. He powered up the electric Breath Dials and shot towards the edge of the White-White Sea.

Sitting in the golden pavilion at the bow, feeling the strong wind on his face, Arthur's mood was jubilant.

The [Thor]'s powerful propulsion system allowed the ship to sail through the sky at a speed more than ten times that of a normal vessel on the sea.

(PS: Thor is very similar to Marvel's Helicarrier)

Under the brilliant sun, it emitted a dazzling, golden light that was almost blinding.

"BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!!"

The [Thor] burst out of the sea of clouds and descended rapidly, dropping from an altitude of ten thousand meters to just a hundred or two above the ocean before coming to a stop.

"The first island on the route from Skypiea to the New World should be Long Ring Long Land. I'll head there first and gather some intel."

Having made his decision, Arthur piloted the [Thor] and sped towards Long Ring Long Land.

He had been on Skypiea for a month, cut off from any source of information from the seas below. He had no idea what had been happening.

It was now Sea Calendar 1498. Arthur calculated the time.

Roger's surrender was likely not far off.

A man like that... someone has to see him off before he dies!

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Long Ring Long Land was shaped like a necklace, with smaller islands encircling a central one. It was one of the rarer island formations on the seas.

At this moment, Long Ring Long Land was occupied by a newly formed pirate crew.

"Fyehfyehfyeh!" A man with a split-ended pompadour, a red nose, downward-slanting eyebrows, and triangular eyes—looking very much like a fox—let out a strange laugh similar to Doflamingo's.

This bizarre-looking man had thick sideburns, and his hair stood straight up. He wore a purple fur coat and was making a strange gesture with his hand, tucking in his thumb, middle, and ring fingers, leaving his index and pinky fingers extended.

A pinkish ring of light emanated from his fingertips.

Silver Fox Foxy—a freshly minted, small-time pirate with no bounty to his name yet.

Foxy was currently in the middle of a game called the Davy Back Fight on Long Ring Long Land, and he had just won through his usual despicable means.

"Fyehfyehfyeh, as long as I keep absorbing outside pirate crews, I'll be able to advance into the New World!"

"The Pirate King Roger is about to be executed! The great Foxy Pirates will rule the seas!!" He laughed maniacally, his hands on his hips, while the crew members he had acquired were forced to cheer along with him.

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Dozens of kilometers away, aboard the [Thor] in the sky, Arthur's wide-open Observation Haki picked up this shocking news.

WHAT?? ROGER HAS ALREADY SURRENDERED??

He was startled, terrified that he had missed the battle where the Golden Lion rampaged through Marine Headquarters.

Arthur had made a promise to Vegapunk of the Marine Science Division: the day Marine Headquarters was in chaos would be the day he escaped.

But what excited him even more was... the signal that the new era was about to begin!

"Hahahaha, the boring era is finally coming to an end! I hope the new one is more exciting, more thrilling!"

Arthur lay on the recliner in the golden pavilion, laughing uncontrollably.

"It seems the news of Roger's public execution has already been announced. In that case, the Golden Lion, who sees Roger as his greatest rival, will have undoubtedly gone berserk. If a great pirate like that was captured, the Marines would never have kept it a secret!"

With this thought, Arthur piloted the [Thor] down toward Long Ring Long Land.

The dazzling, all-gold vessel streaking across the sky was, of course, spotted by the Foxy Pirates.

"What is that thing?!"

"It's... a ship!"

When someone finally got a clear look at the golden light, their face turned pale with horror.

"A ship that can fly!!"

It wasn't their fault they were so ignorant. The first half of the Grand Line was nowhere near as exciting as the New World.

These small-time pirates couldn't possibly imagine how a ship could fly in the sky. Was it a Devil Fruit ability?

"Whoosh~"

Whipping up a strong gust of wind, the [Thor] came to a halt right above their heads.

Arthur slowly rose from his chair, walked to the bow, and looked down at them.

"You just said that Roger is going to be publicly executed in Loguetown. In that case, has the Pirate Admiral, Golden Lion, been captured by the Marines?"

As if they hadn't heard his question, the group of small-time pirates all stared with feverish eyes at the golden ship.

Many pirates went to sea for the sole purpose of finding gold, silver, and treasure. Seeing a ship where every single part was made of gold, they were naturally consumed by greed, desperately wanting to claim it for themselves.

"Hm?" Arthur's brow furrowed. "ANSWER MY QUESTION, YOU PATHETIC THIEVES PLAYING MAKE-BELIEVE PIRATES!"

"BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!!!"

His Conqueror's Haki instantly washed over them.

On the island below, a huge swath of people collapsed in an instant, like wheat being harvested.

The number of people left standing could be counted on one hand.

"It's Thunder God Arthur!!"

"No, it's the Thunder Emperor!"

Silver Fox Foxy and the others who were still on their feet were utterly horrified, their faces drained of all color.

The war between Arthur and Whitebeard had been broadcast to the entire world. The monstrous, terrifying power they displayed was enough to make anyone's heart tremble at the mere sight of them.

"Golden Lion... who's that?" one of the pirates asked, his voice trembling with fear.

"What?" Arthur was genuinely stunned by this pirate's stupidity.

How can you be a pirate on the Grand Line and not know who the Golden Lion is??

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