I planted a sacred tree in Tokyo.

Chapter 719 Metamorphosis and Rebirth

"it's over?"

"Suzuka is returning to the Libyan waters, it seems neither side wants to fight to the death."

Under the watchful eyes of satellites, reconnaissance aircraft, and drones from various countries, the massive flying island 'Suzuka Mountain' flew towards the non-respectable sea area: all the extraordinary beings, sea people, and even sea kings from the sea kingdoms returned aboard the island.

Except for a few relatively sturdy ones, the ground effect vehicles of the superhumans are all unusable.

Meanwhile, the sea creatures and sea kings were charred black by a certain 'electric fish' guy; they are currently receiving treatment on the island from support monsters like the carp spirit and the Jiao Tu.

In the grand hall of the island's tallest and most magnificent building, Ōtakemaru sat on his throne; outwardly he appeared unharmed, but everyone knew that his heart had been pierced by that 'Raichu' in a sneak attack. It was only because Ōtakemaru was so powerful that his body would have been cold long ago.

thud,

His forehead slammed heavily against the white jade floor.
"I'm sorry, young master!"

"sorry"

Aside from repeatedly saying "I'm sorry," Ah Long didn't know what else to say.

Even though Ōtakemaru claimed that he sent Arlong to teach Teach a lesson, Arlong himself knew very well that he had gone to attack Teach's subordinates on his own initiative; as a result, he was easily captured and used as bait to lure the Sea Kingdom, which led to the young master being seriously injured and almost dying on the spot.

"No need to apologize,"

Ootakemaru, seated on the throne, spoke calmly.
"I am your young master, it is only natural for me to protect you."

"But other people don't have this responsibility—you should thank them."

The "others" that Ōtakemaru mentioned were, of course, the extraordinary individuals from the non-Libertian Sea: they were not from the Sea Kingdom, but they had also contributed greatly this time. In particular, Roman and Luffy, one rescued Arlong and the other kicked 'Raichu' to death, were key figures in influencing the course of the battle.

"Yes, young master!"

After kowtowing heavily once more, Ah Long got up and walked out of the hall.

"Now that the battle is over, then—"

In the hall, Tenma wished to remove the 'Yasakani no Magatama' from his chest.

"No need, Miss Tenma."

Ōtakemaru raised his hand, stopping Tenma from returning the divine artifact.

"This divine artifact is of little use in the hands of the Sea Kingdom."

"Now, let's return it to its rightful owner—or, as a symbol of our friendship, please accept it."

This divine artifact was lost to the sea when the young Emperor Antoku jumped into the ocean during the Genpei War a thousand years ago, and eventually ended up in the hands of a sea kingdom.

For the Sea Kingdom, the Yasakani no Magatama is nothing more than a 'spiritual power suppressor', and it can only be effective against superhumans below the Demon level, making it utterly useless; however, for Pegasus Hope, it is a 'God's Eye' that can elevate him to a higher level, truly deserving of the name of a divine artifact.

?

"That's it,"

Pegasus withdrew his hand, hoping not to be pretentious.

"Then I'll go back. Let me know if anything comes up."

After saying that, he put the 'Yasakani no Magatama' back around his neck, waved his hand behind him, and left with a clean and elegant air.

Pegasus hopes to have a neutral personality. The two sides have fought side by side, and given the character of the people of the Sea Kingdom, they are not bad allies: much better than those two cunning 'Great Yin-Yang Masters'.

"Pegasus, this—?!"

As Yi Hua walked out of the hall and leaned against the wall to wait, he noticed the three divine artifacts on Tianma's chest, and was first surprised and then delighted.

"Hurry up, hurry up!"

As he spoke, he grabbed Pegasus and tried to slip away.

"No need to act like a thief, Ōtakemaru has already given it to me."

Tenma waved to Kyo Kusanagi, Iori Yagami, and Chizuru Kagura standing nearby.

"How about it? Want to have a spar with me, who carries this divine artifact?"

"Great, that's more interesting!"

Iori Yagami's lips curled slightly, his fighting spirit clearly boiling.

While Pegasus, without the Eight-Span Curved Jewel, is certainly not weak, he is only not weak: his Rejuvenation Technique is briefly invincible, and his Eight Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms are difficult to defend against. However, through frequent sparring, I have already experienced these two moves quite a bit.

Now, Tenma hopes to obtain the 'Yasakani no Magatama', and his strength completely overwhelms the three of them, making him a good target for Iori Yagami to challenge.

"Then we'll accept it without being impolite."

Kyo Kusanagi spoke politely, but his eyes were actually gleaming with excitement.

Sigh, those two.

Chizuru wasn't as 'warlike' as they were.
However, being able to spar and train with a dragon-level expert is a great opportunity that shouldn't be missed.

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

"Brother Aaron!"

"Big brother is here—"

As soon as Ah Long left the hall, he was surrounded by a group of people from the Sea Kingdom.

"you."

Looking at these 'Sea Kingdom' people, their faces blackened and wounded, yet grinning foolishly, A-Long had a thousand words stuck in his throat.

"sorry."

Ah Long, who used to love roaring and fighting, is now left with only the weak words "I'm sorry".

"Big brother, what are you saying?"

"We are all one family in the Sea Kingdom, and we have all received your help. It's too formal to say such things!"

"That guy Teach killed a lot of our comrades. Even without Brother Long's involvement, we would have sought revenge. Too bad—"

Now that Teach has flown off the planet, the Sea Kingdom's people, though skilled in naval warfare, lack the ability to traverse the 'sea of ​​stars,' and can mostly only watch helplessly.

"Thank you, thank you."

Suppressing his surging emotions, Alon patted the shoulders of the people from the Sea Kingdom in front of him.

Because of the influence from top to bottom from Ōtakemaru, Kyuumei, and Kani-hime, and because the members of the Sea Kingdom had only been "enlightened" for a few years, they could all be considered "pure-hearted." If he hadn't been tricked by Teach, Arlong would have been a sunny, cheerful young man.

After leaving the Sea Kingdom's group, Alon descended the steps on the mountain peak and arrived at the place where the extraordinary individuals were resting.

"Lady Anne, my hand."

click,

With a swift movement,

Half of a charred arm, emitting wisps of smoke, fell to the ground.

"Don't even think about it, it's completely carbonized, there's no way to save it."

While expertly performing the amputation surgery and helping the victim stop the bleeding and recover, the blonde, drill-wielding gothic girl, Annie, calmly made her judgment:
“Go to Cervantes’ house and buy a mechanical arm, or go to Tokyo and ask the Kakaiin family to take the lead in finding a puppeteer to customize a puppet arm.”

Mechanical prosthetics existed before the resurgence of superhuman abilities, but the demand was low then, resulting in little incentive for research. However, with superhumans constantly engaged in battles, losing limbs became commonplace, and their lavish spending quickly fueled the booming market for prosthetics.

Combining it with various high-tech weapons is also a way to enhance combat effectiveness.

However, as their strength increases, these metal artifacts will gradually become unable to keep up with the power of the superhumans.

As for traditional puppeteers, the puppet arms they create have another advantage: they allow spiritual energy to flow within them.

Moreover, this era has no shortage of high-strength 'wood', and the strength of a wooden puppet arm is much higher than that of a metal arm.

"All right,"

The superhuman lying on the hospital bed sighed helplessly and turned his head to see:

"Aaron?"

"What are you doing here!"

This area is full of injured superhumans, with severed limbs and bandages all over their bodies being commonplace, but they are still better off than those who have already become corpses.

Facing the superhumans, some lying down and some sitting, all with displeased expressions, Alon opened his mouth.

"right"

"alright, alright!"

The superhuman, who had just lost an arm, raised his other hand.

"We know that furious Ah Long better, and don't get me wrong, we're not fighting for you!"

"That's right, we all came because of Lord Ōtakemaru."

"Lord Ōtakemaru protected the entire Iberian people, our families, and our subordinates."

So, here they come.

Even though countless people were injured and many died in this great battle, they had no regrets.

As for Ah Long?

"If you feel bad about it, go to Luffy's Adventurers' Guild!"

A captain, his body wrapped in bandages and one arm in a sling, pointed to the other side:
"Their navigator all fainted from crying."

Luffy?

To be honest, Luffy and Arlong were old acquaintances. In fact, due to a conflict in their families' hometowns, they had fought several times: although Arlong was defeated each time, he was never convinced of his defeat.

Until Teach caught him and humiliated him, and Luffy kicked Raichu to ashes, turning the tide of the battle;
It was too late to completely convince Ah Long.

A few minutes later,

thud,

"sorry,"

It's unclear how many times he's said this, but Aaron knelt down and apologized to the members of Luffy's adventure team.

"What's the use of being sorry?"

The female navigator, who had already regained consciousness, had a blank expression.

"If it weren't for you, you bastard, so many people wouldn't have died, Luffy too."

"No, we will eventually have to fight against the forces of Yamata no Orochi."

Zorro with green hair,
He calmly interrupted the navigator girl's angry words.

"Everyone dies eventually—Loof left with a smile, so we don't need to cry for him."

That's what they say, but judging from Zorro's cold and hard face, how could he possibly let go of Luffy's first partner?
"I--"

His lips moved, but Ah Long stood frozen in place. Until:
"Are you guys playing some kind of 'Statues' game?"

A clear, crisp sound rang out, causing everyone immersed in grief to turn their heads:
"Lord Crab Princess,"

"Is there anything I can help you with?"

The blonde chef mustered his spirits and stepped forward to greet the visitor, who was none other than the Crab Princess from the Sea Kingdom. She was considered the 'benefactor' of all the non-concierge superhumans: don't forget, the superhuman pearl was originally provided by the Crab Princess.

"I'll let you speak with Luffy,"

? ? ! !
Suddenly looking up, everyone turned to look at Crab Princess.

"Don't look so gloomy. Luffy is dead, but our Sea Kingdom is in the underworld—"

There are people there.

Saying,

Kani-hime raised her hand and gently blew, and a giant bubble appeared out of thin air.

"I've got it! I've got it!"

A familiar voice emerged from the distorted bubble.

"Luffy?!" ×6
To everyone's astonishment, the constantly twisting bubble gradually calmed down, revealing a familiar, sunny smile.

"Hehe, is everyone alright?"

A series of clattering sounds as seats overturned, and the female navigator, who was covering her mouth, and the long-nosed sniper, who looked like he'd seen a ghost, stood up.

"Luffy~~"

"Captain, what's going on?"

As they talked, they unconsciously reached out their hands.

"Kid over there, don't touch the magic. Maintaining communication between the two worlds is not easy."

An old but powerful voice came from the bubble.

"Old Haiming?!"

This voice may be unfamiliar to others.

But how could the elderly people outside the Libin Sea area, especially Ah Long, not be familiar with it?

Ah Long had previously attended Hai Ming's classes, where he taught them, the people of the Sea Kingdom, the methods of cultivation.

"It is indeed this old man,"

Another figure emerged from the bubble, with white beard and eyebrows, wearing a tattered robe, and surrounded by water.

The world's 'first' Dragon-level powerhouse:
Hai Guojia Lao 'Hai Ming'.

"I have established a base in the Yellow Springs to collect the souls of the people of the Sea Kingdom, and Brother Luffy is naturally among them."

Ah this
The members of Luffy's adventure team, who were originally immersed in grief, suddenly had a mix of sadness and joy on their faces.

The bad news is that their captain is dead; the good news is that they can speak with the deceased.

"Elder Haiming, can Captain and Luffy be resurrected?"

While the others were experiencing mixed feelings of joy and sorrow, Zorro immediately inquired about their situation.

Gods and demons from all walks of life return, great Yin-Yang masters secretly plot, ancient Egyptian priests resurrect their lovers, and Yama, the King of Hell, sends over 80 million people back to the human world in one fell swoop. In this extraordinary era, the boundary between life and death is no longer so insurmountable.

"Can,"

as predicted,

Haiming's affirmation came from within the bubbles;
And Luffy muttered under his breath, "Isn't this unfair to the others?"

"Great!"

"Luffy can be resurrected—"

"Don't be too happy yet, there is a price to pay for resurrecting a person."

Within the bubbles, Haiming's voice abruptly interrupted the crowd's jubilation; the old man of the Hai family who had replaced Suzuka Gozen explained from the underworld:
"Becoming a Ghost-level being granted the opportunity to resurrect a person is a 'benevolent' gesture left by the Underworld for the strong."

Of course, one must not be someone who has died of old age; moreover, a wild demon must undergo various trials.

But the Sea Kingdom is a powerful force, so we'll skip the tests.

"give it to me!"

Zorro's eyes sharpened, and his spiritual power surged, distorting the air around him.

"I will personally go to the underworld and bring Luffy back!"

"No,"

Ah Long stepped forward from the side.
"Please let me do it!"

"Everyone, please give me a chance to make amends!"

As Alon bowed his head in sincere admiration, Luffy's cheerful voice echoed from within the bubble.

"Whoever reaches the Ghost level first, that's fine, isn't it?"

"Besides, I'm quite happy here, except that Grandpa Haiming likes to lecture—"

stare!
In a flash,

Just moments ago, Alon was overcome with grief, but now Zorro glared at him, his fighting spirit soaring.

"Okay, then—"

The man and the entire Haiguo group turned around, seemingly preparing to seek a breakthrough immediately.

"Those two guys, phew~~"

With a long sigh, the female navigator slowly slumped to the side.

"Great"

Snapped,
The blonde chef moved silently and at high speed, helped the sleeping navigator girl with her eyes closed, picked her up, and took her to rest.

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

at the same time,

An island nation, Akita Prefecture in the north.

Further north of this prefecture is Aomori Prefecture, which faces Hokkaido across the sea and is a rare snowy region in the island nation.

There is almost no industry, but agriculture is very developed and there are very rich forest resources. In addition, it is located in the north and is sparsely populated. Historically, almost no one lived there, so naturally there were not many 'evil spirits'. Instead, it became a relatively peaceful place.

This prefecture is also famous for another thing: Akita dogs.

This breed of dog lives in the snowy mountains of northern Akita Prefecture and is known for its bravery, cold resistance, and loyalty.

The famous 'Hachiko' was an Akita Inu: because of its loyalty, it was historically the exclusive breed of the royal family and nobility.

call out----

A beam of light streaked across the sky and crashed into the forest with a thud.

"Pikachu, you almost really died!"

The 'mouse' with yellow fur all over its body and a round, plump body stood up;
It has two brown stripes on its back, a tail that looks like a serrated lightning bolt, long ears with black tips, short and thick front paws with five toes, and only three toes on its hind paws.

"This is unbelievable! How could a human possibly unleash such immense power?"

Shaking its head, this adorable, upright mouse, only 40 centimeters tall, stood up and looked around.

"Where did that kick send me?"

brush----

Before the yellow-skinned mouse could figure out what was going on, the sound of a folding fan opening rang out.

Good afternoon, Lord Raicho.

? !
(End of this chapter)