Chapter 5: SHADOWS OF GOD VALLEY-2
God Valley had gone to hell in record time.
The moment the Rocks Pirates launched their attack, the elite soldiers and God Knights mobilized instantly, forming protective rings around the Celestial Dragons. Amid the chaos, two kids—a pink-haired girl and a wide-eyed, big-headed afro boy—were sprinting through the dust and screams, dodging death at every turn.
"Damn it all… who would've thought things would get this messy," the girl muttered, casting a sharp glance at the fleeing slaves around them.
"Weee… don't worry, Ginny, I got a mind-boggling plan!" the afro boy declared, grinning ear-to-ear. "With this plan, we're not just saving ourselves—we're saving everybody."
Ginny blinked. "Wait, you wanna go with that plan!?"
The afro boy smirked like a cartoon character up to no good. "Waaa… come on now, you're not gonna chicken out on me, are you?"
"Hmph, as if…" she huffed—and together, they dashed toward the campsite where the so-called "rewards" were stored.
As soon as they entered, their eyes ballooned comically at the sight of three figures standing tall inside: Robert, Rose, and Kuma.
"Waaahh! There are still people here! Ginny, run!" the boy shouted, already pivoting to bolt—only for an invisible force to slam into them.
Robert's Conqueror's Haki surged like a tidal wave, freezing both kids in place. Shivering, paralyzed, they couldn't move an inch.
And then, just as suddenly, it disappeared. The pressure lifted. The two collapsed forward, landing face-first on the ground. Groaning, they lifted their heads—only to find Robert raising both hands in the air in a peace gesture.
"It's okay. I'm not going to hurt you. I just didn't want you two to run away… I'm really sorry."
The kids exchanged a skeptical glance before eyeing Robert, Rose, and Kuma with deep suspicion.
"And why should we believe you?" Ginny snapped, her tone sharp and defensive. "You're dressed like one of them. A damn World Noble."
The afro boy nodded gravely, backing her up with a silent glare.
Then Kuma stepped forward, his towering frame carrying not an ounce of menace. His voice was soft, calm, gentle. "Please believe in Bob. He's not like the others. He's… different—"
A thunderous crash cut him off. The ground trembled. The cabin walls exploded inward.
BOOM.
"Mamamama~~~ Look who we have here. A bunch of little brats~~"
Dust swirled as a monstrous figure stepped through the wreckage, her presence filling the space like a nightmare come to life. As it cleared, the hulking, stunning form of Charlotte Linlin emerged. Her devilish grin widened as her eyes locked onto Robert. She licked her lips, clearly pleased by what she saw—completely oblivious to his real age.
"Mamamama~~~ Some of you noble kids really hit the genetic jackpot," she purred. Then she pointed at Robert. "Say, boy, wanna come with me? I'll show you the real world~~"
Robert recoiled. "Eww… hell no. You're a pedophile. I'm ten."
Silence. Dead silence.
Everyone blinked.
Even Linlin stumbled a step, caught completely off guard. Her wide eyes twitched. "What—" she began, but then fury overtook her features. "You little bastard! Who do you think you're calling a pedophile!? I was offering you a place in my kingdom and this is how you repay me?!"
Snarling, she drew her blade—Napoleon—and pointed it at his chest.
"Forget the Devil Fruits—I'll kill you first!"
She moved. A blur of muscle, steel, and raw Haki.
Kuma and Rose screamed.
Ginny and the afro boy ducked.
And then... everything stopped.
Not just the sword. Not just the air around them.
Time itself halted.
Not only inside the cabin.
Not just on God Valley.
Everywhere.
Robert looked down at himself—his body now radiating a blinding, golden aura. Then, knowledge surged into him—like an entire lifetime of memories compressed into a single breath. A nanosecond later, it ended.
He blinked.
Then clenched his fists.
He felt it—an unshakable, absolute command over the divine force running through him. Control down to the atom. No. Down to the idea of the atom.
He looked at Charlotte Linlin, suspended in time, her blade poised mid-strike.
The golden glow faded.
Time resumed.
Napoleon came crashing down—and stopped. Inches from his face. Completely frozen.
"What the—" Linlin croaked, her eyes wide with disbelief. She poured everything she had into breaking free—her strength, her soul, her Haki—but nothing budged.
She was stuck.
Staring into Robert's glowing, golden eyes, she asked, "What… are you?"
Robert whispered one word.
"Salvation."
He flicked his right hand.
Charlotte Linlin went flying—at the speed of light. She crashed across the entire island, landing somewhere far, far away in an earth-shattering explosion.
Inside the cabin, silence returned.
The others blinked. Rubbed their eyes. Looked at Robert like he'd just turned the sky upside down.
Robert looked back at them. "What?"
Slowly, Ginny and the afro boy raised trembling fingers, pointing at him. "H-H-How did you do that!?"
He shook his head. "It's not time for that."
Then he turned to Rose and Kuma. "Remember when I said one day I'd take us away from all this madness?"
They nodded.
Robert smiled. "That day is today."
He turned toward Ginny and the boy. "Tell me—do you want to leave this place? Somewhere safe. Far from chains, beatings, and screams. Toward… freedom."
The two kids stared at him with wide eyes. Ginny hesitated. "But… why? Why are you helping us? You're one of them. So why?"
Robert's smile didn't fade. "I'll tell you everything. Once we leave."
Then—time stopped again.
His presence stretched out across all of God Valley. And with the full force of his realized Sentry power, Robert bent reality itself.
He resurrected all those slain in the "Hunting Game"—but only the innocent, the kind, the pure-hearted. He could see them clearly. The evil ones, slave or not, stayed dead.
He replaced every saved person with a flawless clone—every scar, every whisper of breath, replicated to perfection.
He gathered every Devil Fruit from the storage vault—then teleported Rose, Kuma, Ginny, and the afro boy to a hidden island at the edge of the New World.
Before leaving, he walked to another cabin—where Shamrock and Shanks were kept. He placed Shanks gently inside a treasure chest with a letter addressed to Roger, then sent it onto the Roger Pirates' ship.
He picked up Shamrock.
Then vanished—to join the others.
Time resumed.
From that moment on, the rest of the incident at God Valley played out as history remembered it—with a few key exceptions:
Kaido never got his Azure Dragon fruit.
Big Mom was left battered and broken.
And in the aftermath, the Figarland family found the "bodies" of Rose and Kuma.
Robert's own "corpse" lay near the twin cribs—now empty, cold.
Garling's eyes darkened.
Maria collapsed, cradling her son's still form, weeping in silence.
Lisa held her breathless babies, mourning in quiet devastation.
Then Maria noticed something—Robert's clenched fist. She gently pried it open.
Inside were strands of pink hair.
She held them up to Garling, who looked down, face like thunder.
He growled one name.
"Charlotte Linlin."
Yup.
Before disappearing, Robert had made sure the world saw exactly what he wanted them to see.
He'd staged the perfect ending.
And tossed Charlotte Linlin straight into some very, very deep shit.