The skies were clear, yet the waves raged high. A powerful wind battered the ship, causing it to rock violently.

They had departed for Kano Country as planned, sailing smoothly without any issues along the way so far.

No interferences arose as anticipated, but there was one problem...

"Where's Kanata?"

"Over there..."

"Hmm, she's certainly endeared herself by painstakingly sewing together thick cloths into makeshift cold weather gear out of whatever was available."

"Well, can't be helped, can it? I heard she'd never had anyone be kind to her until now."

Junshi let out a sigh at his subordinate's comment about how it was a tale you couldn't recount without tears. Kanata had scoured the town buying up fabric to cobble together an ungainly coat for the giant girl Feiyun. Apparently Feiyun took quite a liking to it, or perhaps she was simply delighted that Kanata had made it for her, as she seemed to constantly remain by Kanata's side. It was merely something hastily put together in a day or so with materials on hand, yet Feiyun didn't seem to mind in the slightest.

While Feiyun could certainly fit aboard the ship Kanata's group normally used, Kanata had been staying on Feiyun and Zen's commandeered ship to avoid increasing their cargo load.

As far as acting as their escort, Junshi mused that it didn't really matter which ship he was on. But then George chimed in:

"Still, was it really necessary for us to tag along too? The office is completely empty now."

"It couldn't be helped. She judged that leaving them behind would only lead to more troublesome incidents."

"Yeah, we'd just become targets again, real pain in the ass...And Kuro can't be counted on for guarding duty."

"It would have been better if he could utilize Haki, but the fool has no talent for it." Junshi sighed.

Despite Kanata training Kuro in the same way after taking him in, he had never managed to awaken Haki. He simply seemed to lack any innate ability for it.

As a Devil Fruit user, he was certainly stronger than the average grunt, which did make him suitable as a guard in that sense. But his fundamental role was acting as George's escort.

Allowing him aboard the ships would only stimulate his curiosity, likely leading him to wander off, so he was prohibited from boarding.

"Makes you wonder just how far our total fighting force can go, eh?"

"Kanata alone would suffice for the most part. With Kuro's abilities too, we'd be fully prepared."

"So basically just Kanata by herself, huh. These natural Logia-type ability users sure are something..."

Unlike the Paramecia superpowers or Zoan animal transformations that greatly altered one's physiology, Logia elemental powers tended to suit natural Logia users more towards battling large groups rather than one-on-one combat.

Of course, there were Paramecia abilities that could cause disaster-level devastation too, but they were few in number.

While Junshi himself ranked among the powerful elites individually, against large groups he was still outmatched by ability users.

"What did the leader Don Chinjao say?"

"As long as no harm comes to the country, he doesn't care..."

"Did you figure out why he's in such a rush?"

"Ah, it's a pretty major deal - a Celestial Dragon is coming..."

Celestial Dragons.

The descendants of the bloodline referred to as the World Nobles, the most noble lineage in existence across the globe.

They resided in the "Holy Land of Mariejoa" atop the Red Line continental summit, but occasionally made inspection tours of various nations. This time, Kano Country was the target.

Wielding unimaginable authority, even a fleet admiral would be dispatched if anyone so much as raised a hand against a Celestial Dragon.

"A Celestial Dragon, I see...No wonder Chinjao is in a panic."

"Screw up bad enough, and he could get his whole family paraded around in collars. No surprise the guy's sweating bullets."

Before the authority of the Celestial Dragons, even a king would be blown away like a twig. Cases of royalty being enslaved were far from unheard of. Utmost caution in handling the situation was mandatory.

"Still, I didn't expect a Celestial Dragon to come all the way out to this sea."

"That level of detail is unnecessary. Simply knowing a Celestial Dragon is arriving is enough."

They also had to watch out for any Marine escorts or Cipher Pol government agents that would likely accompany the Celestial Dragon.

If they caused any undue incident and drew unwanted attention, it could make life difficult for them moving forward.

Junshi and George could only pray that no unnecessary commotion arose on Kano Country.

***

Kano Country.

The nation that served as the Happo Navy's base, rumored to house a vast fortune hidden beneath its colossal glaciers - treasures that inevitably ensnared any brigands lured by greed into the Happo's clutches. The veracity of such tales remained uncertain.

While the island had several harbors, possibly anticipating future unrest, they were guided to a harbor not normally used. They were warned any damages would result in repair fees, so ideally they hoped to avoid causing any if possible - though luring suspicious ships there could prove challenging.

Shortly before arriving on the island, Kanata had sunk two or three warships, yet stood on the dock with a refreshed expression as if merely finishing some routine exercise. In contrast, George - who seldom ventured out to sea - had a pale, sickly look from the ambush.

Beside them, Zen maintained an ever-vigilant stance, arguably the most tense of them all.

"Those were just a bunch of small fries from earlier, but were they from whatever organization previously employed you two?" Kanata asked.

"No, hihihin. They lacked that level of cohesion as mere brigands," said Zen.

"Then they must be groups who caught wind of the information."

The boss of the Larsh Family, Drevan, had also incessantly contacted them via Den Den Mushi, but Kanata ignored his incessant calls finding them a nuisance. While making an enemy of him could prove dangerous, the recent turmoil left his side in a precarious situation too. He likely assumed instigating further conflicts would be unwise, especially since they hadn't formed any pact with his faction to begin with.

If they truly recognized Feiyun the giantess as a pivotal asset, there was also the possibility they judged attempting to reclaim her from Kanata's group as futile.

"Did I miscalculate slightly?"

Well, it could serve to flaunt their enhanced military strength to the George Family at any rate.

Whichever way it went, no real harm would come of it. They would simply draw the attention of slightly larger organizations.

"In any case, we should unload the cargo first and contact Chinjao -"

Boom!

In that instant, the thunderous roar of an explosion rang out.

Immediately judging the source as the sea, Kanata conjured an ice wall which shattered moments later as fragments scattered in every direction from the blast.

"Cannons? But from where?" Kanata was puzzled.

Junshi roared, "Stay alert! If the cannons can reach this far, the enemy must be close by!"

Though they scanned the surroundings through spyglasses, not a single ship could be seen nearby.

It made no sense - hitting them from a distance too far to even glimpse a ship's silhouette should have been impossible unless the cannonballs possessed Garp-level firepower, which they clearly lacked. Unless the enemy could somehow turn invisible...

"Invisible, of course!" Without hesitation, Kanata leapt from the harbor into the sea below.

George reflexively shouted after her, "Hey! What are you planning!?"

"I'll freeze the entire area! Even if I can't see them, covering the surroundings in ice will reveal them...!"

Fwoosh!

Unhesitatingly, she froze every portion of the sea within her field of vision.

While the winter seas were already frigid, enveloping the whole area in ice caused the temperature to plummet further as their breaths turned white - unveiling the enemy ship's location.

"They were this close by, but how...?!" Junshi was shocked.

"They must have someone who ate a Devil Fruit allowing them to turn invisible. I'll sink that ship. As for the rest -" Kanata was interrupted by Zen.

"Allow me to join you. We sowed these seeds ourselves, bahihihn."

"Very well, the two of us should suffice then. Junshi, stay alert in case there are any other ambushes."

Nodding at Zen's words to "get on my back," Kanata mounted him as they dashed across the icy surface toward the ship whose invisibility had worn off.

Galop! Galop! Galop!

Despite the frozen waves creating an uneven terrain difficult to traverse, Kanata grinned, musing how swiftly they moved.

"My lady, how do you assess our foes?"

The enemy possessed the ability to turn invisible at minimum - likely a Suke Suke no Mi clear-clear human.

They should count themselves fortunate to avoid an assassination attempt, as Kanata - the de facto leader - was a natural Logia ability user herself. Perhaps they deemed opposing her futile.

While Observation Haki could potentially counter the foe's transparency, Kanata hadn't mastered it to an unconscious level yet. But focusing her senses allowed her to detect them clearly enough.

"I can pinpoint their locations. No need to prolong this - I'll single them out with Conqueror’s Haki."

"Oh? Young miss, you can utilize the King's Haki then...very well. If any soldiers remain standing afterward, I shall lend my aid."

"Much appreciated."

Frozen in place on the icy sea, the ship could no longer move as its invisibility dissipated, unveiling the agitated crew.

Sensing with Observation Haki, two or three powerful auras seemed mixed among them.

"Incoming cannon fire!" Yelled Kanata.

"Hihihn, no issue here!" Zen deflected the incoming cannonballs one after another with his spear without slowing his pace. Once they neared the ship, he leapt aboard in a single bound.

Whoosh!

The crew aboard reacted with surprise as they readied guns and swords. However, Kanata didn't give them a chance to act.

"No need for small fry." With only a moment's pause, her Conqueror’s Haki struck them down one by one.

Boom!

Among them, a few managed to remain standing and glare defiantly despite being exposed to her Haki. Clearly startled to see their comrades collapse around them, their fighting spirit didn't waver.

"What the hell?! What's going on here?!"

"They just suddenly passed out...?"

"Never mind that! Kill that bitch and... the horse!"

After a momentary head tilt toward Zen, they turned their blades and guns on Kanata.

Someone had surely consumed the Suke Suke no Mi, but Kanata narrowed her eyes, unsure which one.

Three foes directly ahead. Her Observation Haki detected two more lurking out of sight.

"My lady, shall I engage those three?"

"Go ahead, Zen. There seem to be two more hidden from view." She tilted her head, casually avoiding the gunfire aimed her way. Knowing it was coming made evading trivially easy.

“Nihihi!” As Zen closed the distance to strike with his spear, one foe parried with his sword, allowing another to slip past and attempt a flank.

"Die!"

"Hihihn, amateur!"

Evading the paper-thin gap between their crossed blades, Zen slipped inside the foe's guard. Retracting the hand grasping his spear, he thrust his empty palm toward the enemy's chest - sending him flying back despite never making contact.

Kanata's eyes widened briefly in surprise at the unexpected technique before an amused smile graced her lips. Quite the fortuitous acquisition, it seemed.

"Die, woman!"

She nonchalantly avoided the repeated gunfire from her frontal foes. While the bullets contained no Haki and wouldn't injure even on a direct hit, she had no desire to willingly subject herself to such attacks either.

This sporadic firing likely aimed to mask their footsteps rather than actually hit her...

Without missing a beat, Kanata coated her arm in Haki to deflect the knife thrust toward her back by the now-unveiled invisibility user attempting to ambush her flank.

Clang!

"A Haki user, and the Clear-Clear Fruit to boot. Quite the troublesome combination."

However, closing to melee range against Kanata constituted folly.

Granting her foe no opportunity to speak further, she instantly froze both the knife-wielder and the concealed Fruit user behind them in a block of ice encompassing their entire bodies.

While recruiting ability users as allies would prove beneficial, opposing her left no alternative but their demise.

"Damn it, damn it! What the hell is happening!?"

"You're still mere fledglings. Did you truly think you could defeat me so easily? How laughable!" She boasted.

Considering their Haki mastery, they likely belonged to one of the remnant Five Great Families decimated when their previous leaders perished in that earlier conflict. From Kanata's perspective, their strength proved formidable yet paled in comparison to Zen's might.

Having frequently clashed with the Beast Pirates under Shiki the Golden Lion, he managed to escort even Feiyun all the way to these seas. Achieving any less would render his efforts meaningless.

"Hahaha! Defeating us changes nothing! Our boss has already started moving - there, see? Our boss is on the move!"

He pointed toward the depths of the harbor's interior.

At Kano Country's outer edge, a mountain shifted shape, transforming into a gargantuan humanoid figure dwarfing even the giants' stature.

The icy seas quaked with each thunderous footstep as the colossal silhouette advanced, leaving Kanata and Zen speechless at the sight of a mountain seemingly coming to life.

"What...is that...?" Her eyes peeled.

"Hahaha!” Her foe responded, “Don't underestimate our boss! An Ishi Ishi no Mi rock-human! That ability is invincible!"

 

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