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...
Beneath the shredded fabric of his clothes, wounds were visible everywhere.
The black-red Conqueror's Haki around Rocks flickered like a candle in the wind.
On the verge of extinction.
Yet the flame burning in his eyes—
The flame called battle spirit—
Had not weakened in the slightest.
If anything, the extreme injuries and pain only made it burn hotter.
Wilder.
The rage inside him was about to become the trumpet of another charge.
And then—
A voice appeared.
A voice that did not belong to the physical world.
It seemed to emerge directly from the depths of his soul.
Malicious.
Clear.
Echoing deep inside his mind.
The voice belonged to Im.
And only Rocks could hear it.
"Rocks… your family hasn't gone very far yet, have they?"
Im's tone was calm.
But it sounded like the soft whisper of a devil.
Every word turned into a poisoned needle stabbing into the deepest and most forbidden place in Rocks' heart.
"What do you think would happen…"
"…if you were forced to kill them with your own hands?"
"That would be… quite an interesting sight."
The moment those words reached him—
The final thread of reason inside Rocks' mind snapped.
The raging fire in his eyes was swallowed by something darker.
Something more primal.
Something purely insane.
Family.
Father.
Mother.
Alice.[^1]
Teach.
The family he had risked everything to send away—
They were his bottom line.
"You… dare… touch… my… family?!"
The words came out slowly.
Like a roar dragged from the deepest pits of hell.
Rocks raised his head.
The eyes that once burned with battle intent were now replaced by a bottomless crimson.
Fear for his family's safety—
And the fury of someone whose sacred boundary had been violated—
Completely drowned his reason.
Defense?
Strategy?
Stamina?
All of it—
To hell with it.
"AAAAAAARGH—!!!"
He turned into a beast driven purely by destruction.
Abandoning everything.
Charging recklessly toward Im once again.
This time—
He was faster.
More frenzied.
More terrifying.
And Im—
Possessing Saturn's body—
Had been waiting for exactly this moment.
Waiting for the instant when Rocks' mind finally collapsed.
When his will cracked.
Watching the mad figure rushing toward him—
A faint look of satisfaction appeared on Im's face.
Just before Rocks reached him—
Im extended his hand.
Five fingers spread open.
In his palm—
A miniature magic circle formed.
Countless black runes rotated and contracted within it.
"Taste the blessing of a god…"
Im's voice spread through the warped air.
Filled with condescending arrogance.
"Become my puppet."
"Domi Reversi."
The moment the words were spoken—
A massive magic circle ignited beneath his feet.
It was formed entirely from darkness.
Twisted runes flowed across it.
Blasphemous.
Evil.
Rocks charged directly into the circle before he could react.
"What… is this?!"
He looked down in disbelief at his chest.
A black mark was spreading rapidly.
Twisted runes crawled across his body at terrifying speed.
"AAAAAAAHHHHH—!!!"
Rocks screamed.
The most agonizing scream of his life.
The sound echoed across the entire God Valley battlefield.
Even Whitebeard and the others in distant battles paused when they heard it.
Rocks' body convulsed violently in midair.
It felt as if billions of ants were devouring his flesh—
And even his soul.
His Conqueror's Haki sensed the invasion and erupted instinctively.
Trying to expel the black energy invading his body.
Black and red energy clashed violently inside him.
Each collision tore through his body like a blade.
With the last fragments of his will—
He resisted the corruption.
"What is happening to Rocks?!"
In the distance, Garp, who had just climbed out of the rubble, saw the horrifying change and shouted in shock.
Roger also stopped moving.
His eyes turned grave.
Rocks' overwhelming Conqueror's Haki—
Was being polluted by something far older.
Something darker.
It was collapsing.
Inside the endless pain—
Inside the creeping darkness—
Rocks forced his fading consciousness to focus.
With all his strength, he twisted his head and looked toward Roger and Garp.
One of his eyes—
Was already consumed by crimson demonic light.
The other—
Barely retained a trace of the man called Rocks.
With tremendous effort, he forced a few words out.
"Roger…"
"…Garp…"
Using the last strength left in his body—
He made his final request.
"Kill… me."
"NOW!!!"
In that single remaining eye—
Roger and Garp saw the last dignity of a king.
He would rather die by the hands of the Clan of D—
Than become someone else's puppet.
A monster who might harm his own family.
At that moment—
Allegiances.
Justice.
Enemies.
None of it mattered anymore.
Roger and Garp—
Two men bearing the name D—
Understood the final words of another.
Neither hesitated.
They exchanged a glance.
Respect.
Resolution.
Then both erupted with their full power.
"Damn you, Rocks… I'll grant your wish!!!"
Garp roared.
His injured right arm exploded with strength again under the forceful activation of Armament Haki.
His black iron fist condensed all his Haki and fury.
And he struck.
"This slash… is in honor of you, Rocks."
Roger lowered the brim of his straw hat.
The blade Ace exploded with brilliant crimson-gold light.
Conqueror's Haki wrapped around it completely.
The slash that followed looked like divine punishment splitting the heavens.
The iron fist.
The sword strike.
Both carrying the solemn farewell of two warriors—
Shot toward the figure being devoured by darkness.
But just before the attacks landed—
An arm appeared.
A grotesque arm covered in dense black energy.
Its fingers twisted and thick.
Its claws sharp like blades.
Moving faster than thought—
It blocked the attacks.
Garp's mountain-shattering punch.
Roger's mountain-cleaving slash.
Both were stopped simultaneously by that single demonic claw.
The shockwave exploded outward—
But the arm did not move even slightly.
In that moment—
Rocks' transformation was complete.
His already tall body grew even larger—
More than four meters in height.
Black bone spikes burst through his back.
His eyes—
Were now empty crimson voids.
His hands—
Had fully become monstrous claws.
Im, still controlling Saturn's body, looked at his creation with satisfaction.
He raised his hand—
And gave the command.
"Kill… everyone here."
The demonized Rocks slowly lifted his head.
Those emotionless crimson eyes turned—
Toward the other side of the battlefield.
Toward Whitebeard, Shiki, Kaido, and Charlotte Linlin.
They had become—
His first prey.