Chapter 42

The port town of Acacia was a riot of colors. Music drifted through the air, mingled with the scent of spicy pasta and perfume. To the casual observer, Dressrosa was a paradise.

"It's so cute!" Perona squealed, hugging a living toy soldier that was marching past. "Look at him! He's marching! Can I keep him?"

"Put it down, Perona," Kurumi ordered, adjusting her sun hat. She wore a simple white sundress to blend in, but the twin black muskets strapped to her thighs ruined the illusion of innocence. "That toy used to be a person. You're hugging someone's father."

Perona dropped the soldier immediately, wiping her hands on her dress with a look of horror. "Gross! Why didn't you say so?!"

"Because this island is built on lies," Kurumi scanned the crowd. Her Clock Eye was hidden behind an eyepatch today, leaving only her red eye visible. "And we are here to burn the truth out of it."

The Restaurant of Cheaters

They followed the noise to a local restaurant-casino. It was packed. In the center, a crowd had gathered around a roulette table.

"Place your bets!" the dealer shouted, sweating nervously.

Sitting at the table was a massive old man in a purple yukata. He had scars across his closed eyes and held a shikomizue (cane sword).

"I'll bet… on white," the blind man said, his voice deep and rumbly.

The ball clattered. It landed on white.

"Black!" the dealer lied instantly. "You lose again, old man! That’s everything you have!"

The thugs around the table snickered. "Easy money. Stupid blind fool."

Luffy, who had wandered in with Zoro and Sanji, was watching with a mouthful of food. "Hey! That guy is cheating!"

Before Luffy could swallow his meat and start a fight, a black leather boot slammed onto the roulette table, shattering the wood.

CRASH.

The music stopped. The thugs froze.

Standing on the table, towering over the dealer, was Carmen. Her leg was smoking.

"You call that a spin?" Carmen sneered, blowing a smoke ring. "My soufflés have better rotation than your scams."

"Who are you?!" the dealer shrieked. "You broke the table!"

"White," Kurumi said, walking calmly out from behind Carmen. She picked up the roulette ball and held it up. "The ball landed on white. You owe this gentleman his winnings. Multiplied by ten for the insult."

The thugs drew their swords. "Get them! They're wrecking the house!"

Gravity

"Oh dear," the blind man sighed. He stood up slowly. "It seems the world is full of impurities… Perhaps it is better that I cannot see them."

He drew his cane sword an inch.

Click.

Suddenly, the gravity in the room shifted.

Kurumi felt it instantly—a crushing weight pressing down on her shoulders. But thanks to her SAD-Serum boosted metabolism, her muscles fired back, resisting the pressure. She remained standing.

The thugs weren't so lucky.

"GUAH!"

They were flattened instantly, pressed into the floorboards until the wood splintered and a massive crater formed beneath them. The floor gave way, plunging the cheaters into a hole in the earth.

"Hell… Hole?" Zoro muttered, impressed. "That old man is strong."

The blind man sheathed his sword. The gravity lifted.

"Thank you for the assistance, young ladies," the man bowed slightly toward Kurumi. "And for confirming the color. I am indebted to you."

"No debt needed, Issho-san," Kurumi said softly, using his real name.

The old man froze. His hand hovered over his cane.

"Hoh? You know my name? I am but a wandering gambler."

"You are a monster recruited by the World Military Draft," Kurumi stepped closer, lowering her voice so only he could hear. "Admiral Fujitora. The Purple Tiger."

The air in the restaurant grew heavy again. Zoro’s hand went to Shusui. Luffy stopped chewing.

Fujitora turned his scarred face toward Kurumi.

"You have a dangerous aura, miss. It feels like… time is leaking out of you."

"I am Kurumi Tokisaki," she introduced herself boldly. "Former Marine Commander. Currently… a concerned citizen."

"Former Marine?" Fujitora hummed. "I heard a rumor. A Commander who died at Marineford, yet whose body was never recovered. Akainu-san was quite… displeased."

"Akainu believes in Absolute Justice," Kurumi said, her red eye piercing him. "He would burn a village to kill one pirate. You… you believe in Moral Justice. You want to abolish the Warlord system because you see the pain it causes."

Fujitora’s eyebrows raised. "You speak of dangerous things in a public place."

"This island, Dressrosa," Kurumi gestured to the window. "It is the Warlord system's greatest failure. Beneath the toys and the flowers, there is a factory. There are slaves. There is a King who rules by strings."

She leaned in.

"I am going to cut those strings, Admiral. The question is… will the Marines stop me? Or will you roll the dice and let the chips fall?"

The Wager

Fujitora stood silent for a long moment. The tension was thick enough to cut.

Then, he chuckled.

"A bold girl. You ask a Marine to overlook a pirate's actions?"

"I ask a man of justice to protect the people, not the system," Kurumi corrected.

Fujitora tapped his cane on the floor.

"Very well. I am currently… assessing the situation. If what you say is true, and the darkness here is as deep as you claim… then my blade may find itself pointing elsewhere."

He turned to leave.

"But be warned, Time Witch. If you harm the innocent… gravity will not be so kind next time."

He walked out of the ruined restaurant, tapping his way through the stunned crowd.

"Whoa," Luffy swallowed his food. "That old guy is strong! Is he an Admiral?"

"Yes," Kurumi let out a breath she had been holding. Her hands were trembling slightly. Confronting an Admiral verbally was almost as draining as fighting one physically. "And he is the only Marine in the world who might actually help us."

"Help us?" Zoro scowled. "Marines don't help pirates."

"This one might," Kurumi adjusted her eyepatch. "If we show him the truth."

The Split

Outside the restaurant, the groups reconvened.

"Alright!" Luffy cheered. "I'm gonna enter the tournament and get Ace's fruit!"

"Wait, Luffy!" Sanji shouted. "You can't just—oh, he's gone."

"Let him go," Kurumi said. "He needs to make a scene at the Coliseum. It draws Doflamingo's attention."

She turned to her own crew.

"Law is heading to Green Bit to trade Caesar. That’s a trap. Doflamingo won't play fair. Fujitora is heading there too."

"So we go to Green Bit?" Laki asked, checking her rifle.

"No," Kurumi shook her head. "Law can handle the bridge. We have a different job."

She pulled out a map of Dressrosa. She pointed to a hidden underground port.

"While everyone is looking at the Coliseum and Green Bit… we are going to infiltrate the SMILE Factory directly. But to get in, we need a key."

"A key?" Carmen asked.

"A person," Kurumi grinned. "A little princess from the Tontatta Tribe. She’s being held in the Factory."

"Mansherry?" Perona asked, recalling the intel.

"No," Kurumi’s finger slid to the Toy House. "We need to find Sugar."

The crew went cold. They knew the briefing. Sugar. The Hobby-Hobby Fruit user. One touch, and you become a toy. Forgotten by the world. Eternal slavery.

"She is the linchpin," Kurumi said grimly. "If Sugar falls, the toys revert. The chaos will be instant. The Marines, the pirates, the citizens… everyone will remember the last ten years of horror all at once."

"That sounds… loud," Laki noted.

"It will be the loudest scream in history," Kurumi agreed. "Carmen, Laki. You're on Sugar duty. Don't let her touch you. Sniping only. Fire only."

"And you?" Perona asked.

Kurumi looked toward the Royal Palace, looming high on the plateau.

"I'm going to wait for the birdcage. Because when the strings come down… I need to be ready to rewind a massacre."