People are sailing and synthesize the devil fruit of phantom beast sp

Kairos Flint glanced at Jinbei, then suddenly dove into the sea, disappearing into the depths without a trace. Jinbei was left stunned for a moment, blinking in confusion.

The one-month deadline was now fast approaching.

Kairos wasn't sure how many Devil Fruits Whitebeard had managed to collect by now—but there had to be at least five. For the Whitebeard Pirates, gathering five Devil Fruits shouldn't be too difficult.

"Kairos... what should we do now?" someone asked nervously.

While Kairos and Jinbei had been chatting, all the women had wisely stepped into the ship's cabin to give them space. Now that the conversation had ended and the men had departed, they came back out—only to freeze in shock when they saw what lay before them.

A coffin.

All the color drained from their faces.

Aside from Uta, the rest had all survived life-and-death encounters. Only Anne had never been in combat before.

The paler their faces became, the more dramatic their reactions grew. After all, everyone knew the superstition—dead bodies brought misfortune.

And now, the corpse of none other than the Pirate King, Gol D. Roger, was right in front of them. To say they weren't panicking would've been a blatant lie.

Kairos gave a helpless smile.

"Don't come up here yet," he said calmly. "I'll take him somewhere to bury him."

The real reason Kairos had stolen the Pirate King's corpse was to prevent anyone from discovering that the version of Roger he had previously shown to the world was a fake.

But now that part was done.

Roger's real body deserved a proper burial.

And so, carrying Roger's coffin with him, Kairos stepped into the sky and disappeared aboard the Mythic Sky.

After flying across the skies and weaving through cloud banks, Kairos arrived at an unknown island.

The island was bare—rocky cliffs jutted out in every direction, and not a single sign of life could be seen.

It was utterly desolate.

Kairos gently landed on the island.

"No one will disturb your rest here," he said, gently patting the coffin. "Eventually, I'll bring your friends to visit."

Though Kairos never fully understood why Roger had chosen to give up his title as Pirate King, surrender to the Navy, and face public execution—which triggered the Great Pirate Era—he did respect him.

It puzzled him deeply.

But one thing was clear: Roger was no fool.

Anyone who could reach the summit of the world through sheer physical ability alone would never make such a move unless there was an even greater plan at work.

Emotionally and logically, Roger was someone worthy of reverence.

Kairos then summoned the Life Slate.

The moment it appeared, the dry, cracked earth surrounding him burst to life. A lush explosion of grass, trees, and colorful flowers erupted in every direction.

Birds began to sing. The air turned fragrant with blossoms. Life rapidly covered the island like a wave.

In mere moments, a once-lifeless land became a lush paradise.

Kairos smiled with satisfaction.

Even without actively controlling the Life Slate's power, he had effortlessly revitalized the area.

"This slate truly is something incredible," he murmured.

He walked to the island's center.

There stood a massive stone cliff, towering above the island at its highest point. It offered a panoramic view of everything below.

Kairos nodded in approval.

He gently laid Roger's coffin at the foot of the cliff. He tried to use an earth rune to merge the coffin with the rock wall, but failed—so he placed it securely against the stone instead.

He erected a plain, unnamed monument beside it.

Then, Kairos pulled out a jar of aged wine from his spatial inventory and poured it over the grave.

"Roger," he said softly, "I'll carve your name onto this nameless stone later. For now, forgive me for the lack of ceremony."

"There's food and wine here. Enjoy them, my friend."

With that, Kairos vanished into the wind once more.

———

The day of Portgas D. Ace's public execution was drawing ever closer.

Over the past week, Jinbei had finally returned.

Aboard the Moby Dick, he rushed forward.

"Dad!"

Jinbei's voice rang out as he happily ran toward Whitebeard.

"Ah, Jinbei," Whitebeard greeted him warmly. "You look pleased. What news have you brought?"

Without hesitation, Jinbei knelt before Whitebeard.

"I have something amazing to share, Dad."

Whitebeard helped him up. "If it's that good, no need to kneel. Stand and speak."

Jinbei wasted no time recounting everything that had happened with Kairos Flint.

But when he mentioned the part about the Devil Fruits, the entire deck fell silent.

Everyone held their breath.

"Five Devil Fruits... in exchange for five hundred years of life?" someone repeated in disbelief. "Are you serious?"

Marco grabbed Jinbei by the shoulders, eyes wide. "Is this true?!"

"Absolutely," Jinbei confirmed. "Why would I lie about something like this? I didn't expect it either—after I helped Master Kairos, he gave me two life crystals."

"He knew I was planning to give them to you, Dad. But he told me those two crystals wouldn't do much for your condition."

"Then he said something else—if we could bring him five Devil Fruits, he could give you five hundred years of life. That would truly help."

Jinbei's words sent a wave of astonishment through the crew.

Five hundred years of life.

It wasn't true immortality, but it was close enough to dream of.

For most people, it was a fantasy—a miracle.

"Dad," Jinbei asked urgently, "how many Devil Fruits do we currently have?"

"Not many," Marco answered. "Just six."

"That's perfect!" Jinbei exclaimed. "That means you can gain six hundred years of life!"

Whitebeard was silent, overcome with emotion.

He had never expected Kairos Flint to possess such mystical abilities, let alone be willing to share them.

Some of the distrust he had once harbored toward Kairos began to fade.

"Set sail," he commanded. "We're going to find Kairos Flint."

The Moby Dick immediately changed course.

After contacting Kairos through a transponder snail, they set their sights on the Sabaody Archipelago to rendezvous with him.

At the same time, other powers across the world began to mobilize.

The Red-Haired Pirates.

The Whitebeard Pirates.

The Flying Pirates.

Kairos Flint's own God-Slayer Division.

And one more group—the Straw Hat Pirates.

When they heard that Ace was about to be executed, they set out immediately.

However, their strength in this grand-scale confrontation was still too weak. In this war, they were little more than a blip.

Yet even so, the gathering of all these forces caused a massive ripple across the seas.

The Navy Headquarters at Marineford felt an unprecedented sense of pressure.

It was suffocating.

There was no joy, no laughter, only tense patrols and strict formations.

The three admirals—Sakazuki (Akainu), Ryokugyu (Green Bull), and Garp—had all returned from their assignments.

A storm was brewing.

And the whole world was watching.