Darkness.
A void so deep and suffocating that even sound felt swallowed by its endless hunger. Hiro fell through it, weightless, yet fully aware that something was watching him.
His instincts screamed at him to move, but there was nowhere to move.
He had fought powerful enemies before. Admirals, Warlords, monsters of the sea. But this?
This was different.
This darkness wasn't just an absence of light—it was alive.
A voice echoed through the abyss, smooth as silk yet carrying an edge sharp enough to cut.
"Tell me, Monkey D. Hiro... Do you fear the dark?"
Hiro's body tensed. He knew that voice.
Kryos D. Noctis.
That bastard.
Hiro grit his teeth, forcing his Haki outward in an attempt to ground himself. "No."
The abyss shifted.
A chuckle rang out, distant yet everywhere. "Good. Because you're about to become part of it."
Then, the darkness attacked.
It was subtle at first. Whispers slithering past his ears, memories he didn't recall experiencing flashing before his eyes. Faces blurred together—his crew, his past, his little brother.
Luffy.
Then came the hands.
Shadowed figures reached for him, their fingers cold, grasping, pulling him deeper.
For the first time in a long time, Hiro felt something foreign.
His heartbeat quickened. His breathing turned sharp.
Not fear.
But something close.
Noctis' voice returned, amused. "You wear the mask of a ruthless captain, but deep down, you're just like him, aren't you? The same reckless spirit, the same stubborn will."
The abyss squeezed tighter, crushing around him.
"But unlike your brother, you don't believe in yourself, do you?"
Hiro's vision flickered. The hands tightened their grip.
He couldn't breathe.
"You act strong, but deep down, you're afraid. Afraid that no matter how much you fight, no matter how much you build..."
The darkness pulsed.
"You'll always be in his shadow."
The words hit harder than any punch.
Hiro's eyes widened as memories surfaced against his will—glimpses of a world where Luffy's name was everywhere. The future Pirate King. The one who defied emperors.
And here he was, the "Night Terror," a shadow whispered in the New World, feared but unknown.
Just another pirate sailing behind the storm his brother had already created.
The abyss tightened.
"Just let go."
For a single, fleeting second—Hiro almost did.
Then—
"CAPTAIN!"
A voice exploded through the void.
Hikari.
A silver flash cut through the darkness, shattering the abyssal hands gripping him.
And suddenly—
Hiro was falling.
But this time, toward something.
Light.
He landed hard on something solid, the impact sending a shock through his entire body. His breath was ragged, his muscles screaming from the strain.
As his vision cleared, he saw her.
Hikari stood before him, her silver eyes burning with an intensity that cut through the remaining shadows. Her sword dripped with darkness, as if she had sliced through the very abyss itself.
Behind her, the rest of his crew.
Demetrius, blade drawn.
Celeste, gripping her spear.
Soruto, gun aimed.
Musica, silent but ready.
And 130 more, standing at his back.
Hiro exhaled sharply.
They were all here.
Noctis' voice echoed again, but this time, there was something new in it.
Amusement.
"Interesting."
Hiro slowly got to his feet, cracking his neck. The weight pressing against his chest eased. The doubt faded.
His crew was here.
His people.
His family.
And if Noctis wanted to test his resolve?
Then Hiro would show him why the Night Guild ruled the dark.
He grinned, wiping a stray drop of blood from his lip. "That was cute, Noctis. You done?"
Silence. Then—
A laugh.
A real, genuine laugh from Noctis.
"No... Now, we begin."
The abyss shattered.
The darkness broke apart like fragile glass, and in its place, a battlefield unfolded. A twisted, endless ocean stretched beneath Hiro's feet, the water as black as ink, yet disturbingly clear. The sky above was a swirling void of deep purples and blues, streaked with silver lightning.
And standing in front of him—
Kryos D. Noctis.
The so-called Phantom Emperor of the New World.
He wasn't a massive, towering brute like Kaido, nor did he carry the regal presence of Shanks. Noctis was lean, his long black coat flowing like liquid shadow, and his golden eyes gleaming with eerie amusement. His presence alone was suffocating—an unnatural pressure that bent reality itself.
But Hiro didn't flinch.
Not when his entire crew was behind him.
Not when the abyss had failed to consume him.
Not when he had everything to prove.
Noctis smirked. "Still standing? You really are a D."
Hiro rolled his shoulders, his Night Night no Mi power swirling around him in deep violet mist. "And you talk too much."
A heartbeat passed—
And then they moved.
BOOM!
The air cracked as their Haki collided. Hiro's fist met Noctis' open palm, the shockwave splitting the ocean beneath them. Water rose, forming jagged pillars before being swallowed by the abyss once more.
Noctis' smirk widened. "Not bad."
A shadowy blade formed in his hand, slashing down in an arc. Hiro barely had time to react before he was forced to counter, his own night-forged saber clashing against it. The impact sent him skidding back.
Before Hiro could recover, Noctis vanished.
Damn it—!
Hiro twisted his body just in time as a fist exploded into his ribs. He coughed, but his Armament Haki held strong. Noctis didn't give him a chance to breathe—another attack came from the right, then the left, then behind—
But Hiro wasn't alone.
A gunshot rang through the battlefield.
Noctis tilted his head slightly, avoiding a sniper round that warped through the air.
Soruto had already reloaded. "Stay still, you slippery bastard."
Noctis grinned. "Nice shot."
Then he vanished again.
Hikari was already moving. "He's behind us!"
A streak of silver light—her blade met Noctis' dark sword in a fierce clash, sparks flying as both warriors pushed against each other.
Hiro didn't waste time.
He knew Noctis was strong.
A Yonko-level monster hiding in the dark corners of the world.
But so was he.
His Conqueror's Haki erupted.
A deep, chilling wave of raw willpower crashed into the battlefield, sending weaker crewmates staggering. The ocean itself rippled from the sheer force of his spirit.
Noctis raised an eyebrow, amused. "So you're finally serious?"
Hiro wiped his mouth. "Shut up and fight."
The next instant—
The world exploded.
Hiro's Night Shroud consumed the battlefield, swallowing Noctis in an endless void of shifting illusions and darkness.
But Noctis only laughed.
Because inside the darkness—
His own abyss began to rise.
The real fight had just begun.