Chapter 15

The wind screamed as a massive black box—Black Box—slammed shut around Kurumi.

"Gotcha, little rat!" Moria shrieked from Oars' shoulder. "Crush her!"

Inside the box of solidified shadows, Kurumi was in total darkness. The walls were closing in, designed to crush her into paste.

Calm down, she ordered herself. Panic is death.

She Holstered her flintlocks. She didn't have the leverage to shoot her way out. She needed speed.

Zafkiel: Aleph.

Her heart rate tripled. The world outside slowed to a crawl. She perceived the microscopic gaps in the shadow constructs where Moria's control faltered.

Soru: Razor.

She didn't just move; she vibrated. She became a living saw blade, her leg coated in Armament Haki. She kicked the corner of the box a hundred times in the span of a single second.

CRACK.

The shadow shattered like glass. Kurumi burst out, gasping for air, her dress torn at the shoulder and her stamina nearly zero. The caloric cost of the Time Fruit was staggering. She felt like she hadn't eaten in a week.

"She broke my Black Box?!" Moria’s jaw dropped. "Impossible! That’s hardened shadow!"

"I… am… annoying…" Kurumi wheezed, landing on a crumbling turret. She was shaking. That last escape had burned her reserves.

Oars turned his massive head. "Luffy is gonna be Pirate King! Gomu Gomu no… RIFLE!"

The giant arm twisted, winding up like a spring. It was aimed directly at Nami and Usopp, who were cowering near the mansion's entrance.

Kurumi looked at them. She looked at her trembling legs. I can't stop that. It's too heavy.

"USOPP! MOVE!" Sanji screamed from the rubble, unable to stand.

The giant fist launched forward.

BOOM.

The impact threw dust hundreds of feet into the air. The mansion groaned.

Kurumi shielded her eyes. Did they die? If Nami dies, who navigates to the New World?

As the dust settled, a silhouette stood in front of Nami and Usopp. It wasn't Kurumi. It was a monster.

A blue-skinned, hulking version of Luffy, carrying a massive sword on his back. He had stopped Oars' Rifle with a single hand.

"Luffy…?" Nami whispered, terrified.

The monster grunted, his voice distorted and deep. "No. I am the nightmare."

The Beatdown

Kurumi let out a breath she didn't know she was holding. "Nightmare Luffy. Just in time."

What followed wasn't a fight. It was an execution.

Nightmare Luffy didn't just fight Oars; he bullied him. He tossed the giant around like a ragdoll. He used the sword to slice through the mansion. He punched Moria so hard the Warlord’s eyes rolled back in his head.

Kurumi watched from her perch, fascinated. 100 shadows. The raw physical power is beyond a Vice Admiral. It rivals a giant.

"GOMU GOMU NO… STORM!"

Luffy unleashed a barrage of punches that lifted Oars off the ground and slammed him into the courtyard, shattering the spine of the island itself.

The giant fell silent. The Nightmare form left Luffy's body, the shadows fleeing into the forest. Luffy collapsed, unconscious.

Shadows Asgard

But it wasn't over.

Moria dragged himself out of Oars' stomach cockpit. He was bleeding, broken, and insane with rage.

"I won't lose! NOT AGAIN! NOT LIKE KAIDO!"

He used Shadows Asgard. He began sucking in every shadow on the island. Not just the 100 Luffy used, but all of them. 1000 shadows.

His body swelled. He became a grotesque, bloated lizard-thing, his size rivaling Oars. He stepped on the mansion, crushing it.

"DIE, STRAW HATS!" Moria roared, his voice a distorted bass that shook the sea.

The sun was rising. The shadows of the Straw Hats—Zoro, Sanji, Robin—were fading. If the sun hit them before they got their shadows back, they would dissolve.

"Luffy!" the crew screamed.

Luffy stood up one last time. Gear Second. Gear Third. Combined. Gigant Jet Shell.

Kurumi watched, her hand hovering over her pistol. If he fails, I have to intervene. I have one bullet left in the chamber. I can speed him up.

But she didn't need to.

Luffy launched himself into the sky. He slammed into Moria’s stomach, vomiting the force of a nuke. The shadows exploded out of Moria’s mouth, fleeing the host that couldn't contain them.

Moria deflated, crashing into the ruins of the mast.

The sun broke over the horizon.

The Tyrant

The shadows returned. The Straw Hats were safe. The thrill of victory washed over the survivors.

Kurumi sat on a piece of debris, finally allowing herself to relax. She pulled a chocolate bar from her pocket—standard Marine ration—and devoured it in two bites.

"That was too close," she muttered. "I need to train this fruit. Stamina is my enemy."

"Commander Kurumi."

The voice was soft, calm, and terrifying.

Kurumi froze. She knew that voice. She turned slowly.

Standing atop the rubble of the outer wall, towering over the battlefield, was a massive man. He held a Bible. He wore a bear-eared hat.

Bartholomew Kuma. The Tyrant.

"The World Government is worried," Kuma said, his glasses reflecting the morning light. "They sent me to ensure no witnesses remain."

Kurumi swallowed. She stood up, dusting off her ruined dress.

"Lord Kuma," she said, bowing slightly. "I have the situation under control. The Straw Hats are exhausted. Moria is defeated."

Kuma looked at her. "You are the Marine who was assigned to investigate. Your report?"

"Moria fell due to his own incompetence," Kurumi lied smoothly. "I was… unable to prevent it."

"I see." Kuma raised his hand. He pulled off his glove, revealing the paw pad. "Then I shall clean up the mess."

He vanished.

He appeared in the center of the Straw Hats.

Ursus Shock.

He compressed a bubble of air the size of the mansion into a tiny ball.

"Wait!" Kurumi shouted, leaping down.

But Kuma ignored her. He released it.

BOOM.

The shockwave leveled what little remained of Thriller Bark. Kurumi was blown backward, slamming into a rock. Her consciousness faded for a moment.

When she woke up, the scene was legendary.

Zoro was standing alone in a circle of blood. Luffy was unconscious behind him. Kuma was gone.

"Nothing… happened…" Zoro wheezed, blood pouring from every pore of his body.

Kurumi stared at him. She felt a chill that had nothing to do with the cold air.

The loyalty of a swordsman, she thought, respect warring with her calculating nature. Roronoa Zoro. You truly are a monster.

She struggled to her feet. She couldn't interfere. Kuma had spared them on a whim (and Dragon's orders), and Zoro had paid the price. Her job was done here.

She walked over to the unconscious Moria. She kicked his side. He groaned.

"You're lucky, Onion-Man," she whispered. "Doflamingo isn't here yet."

She looked at the horizon. The Thousand Sunny would sail on. But she had work to do. She had a Devil Fruit to master, a cover story to maintain, and a war to prepare for.

"Marineford is next," she said to the rising sun. "And I'm not ready."