In the side hall of the shogun’s residence, Kozuki Sukiyaki stirred awake, his fury igniting like a spark to dry tinder. His eyes blazed red, teeth grinding in rage.

"Oden, I swear I’m disowning you as my son!"

He bolted upright and stormed toward the national treasury. Spotting the drugged-out guards—samurai slumped in heaps—his three inner demons thrashed in outrage. Bursting into the treasury and the hidden chamber beyond, his knees buckled.

How the hell had that bastard Oden found this secret room?!

The exquisite beauty doll lay in disarray, smashed trinkets scattered everywhere, the Devil Fruit chest gone, and both cursed blades vanished. He dashed to the ultra-secure passage—thank the gods Oden hadn’t uncovered it, or the ancient weapon Pluton’s secrets would’ve been lost forever!

But in this mess, blood surged to his head, his face flushing crimson, breath coming in ragged gasps.

"Ungrateful wretch! Ungrateful wretch! What have I done to deserve this?!"

Sukiyaki’s heart ached as he first scooped up his precious beauty doll, stashing it away before the Oniwabanshu or samurai could spot it. Social suicide didn’t bear thinking about—he’d never live it down!

After tidying the chamber and sealing the hidden door, he returned to the treasury, smashing a few things in a fit of rage to stage the scene. 𝕗𝐫𝐞𝕖𝕨𝐞𝗯𝚗𝕠𝘃𝐞𝚕.𝐜𝗼𝚖

Just then, the captain of the Oniwabanshu—the strongest among them—rushed in, taking in the chaos. He dropped to his knees, forehead pressed to the floor.

"My lord, this is my failure. I deserve death—punish me as you see fit!"

The captain’s face was ashen. They’d been knocked out by a ten-year-old boy? If the shogun had lost something irreplaceable, his crime was unforgivable!

"Enough! Issue an arrest warrant at once. Hunt down that disgrace of a son, Kozuki Oden, with everything we’ve got!"

Sukiyaki had no time to waste here. Two cursed Devil Fruits and two cursed blades—he had to get them back!

What sins had he committed to end up with a backstabbing pup like that? Should’ve left him out in the cold from the start!

"As you command!"

The Oniwabanshu captain bolted out the door, now harboring a grudge against the shogun’s heir too. What a way to screw over your own men!

...

Meanwhile, Kozuki Oden raced toward Ringo, dust kicking up in his wake. High above, the Golden Ark had already touched down at the Isshin Forge in Kuri Town.

"Same as always—have Redfield melt down the Gungnir steel first!"

This god-forged metal was a nightmare to work, taking days of nonstop effort. Even with the volcanic magma fires and Charlotte Linlin’s Sun Prometheus pitching in, they could barely keep up this pace!

"Brook-sama, I don’t have any rare metals to alloy with the Gungnir this time. Do you think we can forge something beyond a Supreme Grade blade?"

Shimotsuki Kozaburo had no confidence in crafting a divine weapon like this. Last time, nailing a Supreme Grade blade had been a miracle. Pushing for something even greater? He wasn’t sure he had it in him!

"Yohohoho, just use the Gungnir steel as is. I think the Shichiseiken could meld right in!"

Brook drew the eerie Shichiseiken, its metal unremarkable but its otherworldly aura unmatched. It had devoured a millennium of grudges and bloodshed, nourished by Brook’s endless soul-feeding.

Now, its soul-consciousness outshone the blade itself. It could even shed its physical form, possessing a host without losing its cursed edge!

In the canon, after shattering, the Shichiseiken latched onto Saga, its sword aura growing fiercer—casual swings cleaving half an island.

But with a stronger body? It’d be unstoppable!

Brook was leagues beyond Saga anyway, and he’d fed it countless souls, steeped it in underworld nether aura and yellow springs ghost energy. That’s what had elevated it to Supreme Grade on its own!

...

On the third day, Kozuki Oden arrived at the Isshin Forge, travel-worn but triumphant. Spotting the golden airship overhead, he knew he’d made it in time!

"I’m here! I brought the Fruit!"

Oden burst into the forge, eyes lighting up at his dream mentor—the cheapskate who’d haunt his thoughts day and night. This time, he was sailing out, no matter what!

Brook hadn’t expected Oden to actually pull it off. Had he given old Sukiyaki a heart attack?

Then he sensed two ominous auras clinging to Oden’s back. His Shichiseiken quivered with excitement, humming like it had spotted a feast!

"How’d you manage that? Your old man didn’t put up a fight?"

Brook chuckled. He hadn’t figured Oden for such a patricidal prankster. Felt like he was the villainous boss corrupting the plucky hero!

"Don’t get me started on him. Here—two Seastone crates. Oh, and I swiped a couple of named blades as a gift. Now you have to take me sailing!"

Oden dumped his haul on Brook, then eyed the water jug and snacks on the table, diving in like a starving man.

Brook sliced open the wooden parts of the Seastone crates with precision, lifting out the two Devil Fruits. One was a deep crimson, like a ripe apple begging to be bitten.

The other was odd—telescope-shaped? No, more like a pale green scroll, two cucumbers fused end to end.

So these were the Devil Fruits for Raizo and Shinobu in the future Oniwabanshu?

Ripe-Ripe Fruit and Scroll-Scroll Fruit?

"These are the second- and third-generation Nidai Kitetsu?!"

Shimotsuki Kozaburo felt the cursed vibes from the blades and rushed over, drawing the two swords Oden had stolen. His eyes widened in shock!

Weren’t these the Tenguyama’s cursed series?

How’d they end up here?

Had Tenguyama Hitetsu sold both Kitetsu to the Kozuki family?

Brook’s Shichiseiken thrummed harder, green light flickering as it eyed the Nidai Kitetsu with raw hunger.

The two cursed blades vibrated in response—but it was fear, not fight.

"They’re terrified!"

Kozaburo couldn’t believe it. Had these swords gained sentience?

Even the Enma and Ame no Habakiri at Oden’s waist trembled, as if echoing the clash of cursed legends!

"I think the Shichiseiken wants to devour them! And their rare metals would mesh perfectly with its aura!"

Brook’s eyes lit up. If his Shichiseiken absorbed the two Nidai Kitetsu, then fused their metals into the Gungnir steel for a reborn blade... it’d be unstoppable!

"You want to scrap two cursed blades for a near-divine weapon?"

Kozaburo balked. Cursed or not, those blades were the children of smiths and swordmasters—they shouldn’t meet such an end!

"Call it a power fusion! It’s settled!"

Brook sensed the Shichiseiken’s burning craving and slammed the decision home. He had to evolve it into a legendary sword beyond Supreme Grade!

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+400 Chapters on p@treon/tambeerg