One Piece: Crown of Darkness

"D-D-Doffy! Please! Please! Don't provoke her! That's Big Mom, the most terrifying and unreasonable monster in the world!!!" Trebol wailed, his old face crumpled, desperately clinging to Doflamingo's arm, pleading and dissuading him. It was as if losing his grip meant losing hope, and indeed, Doflamingo truly embodied the dreams he couldn't achieve due to his own limitations.

Diamante's expression was no better than Trebol's, cold sweat beading on his brow as he said, "Doffy? Please reconsider? Big Mom is a lunatic! She'll sink islands and destroy nations for a single piece of candy! There's no reasoning with her..."

"Doffy? You..."

"Doffy!"

"Young Master~"

"..."

They had been constantly collecting rare races and exotic animals, even kidnapping master pastry chefs and renowned architectural designers. At first, the family members weren't sure what Doflamingo intended, but now they understood—Doflamingo had told them he was setting off to find Big Mom.

"I had 'my friend' investigate Big Mom's movements, and I've been planning for over two months, fufufufu~ I've made my decision," Doflamingo peeled Trebol's fingers off his arm one by one, a smile playing on his lips. "Don't be so pathetic, Trebol! And the rest of you."

Trebol, like a slimy slug, slumped onto the deck, looking up at Doflamingo. He earnestly said, "Doffy~ Give up this dangerous idea!" He forced a smile, which unfortunately looked worse than crying. "Nyeh, nyehh, Doffy, maybe one day we'll deal with Big Mom, but not now, wait until you..."

"I understand," Doflamingo patted Trebol's head, which was covered by his green bowl-cut hat, as if patting a pet dog. "You want to say I'm too weak, and you want me to grow and mature until I'm strong enough to talk to Big Mom as an equal, right? Fufufufu~"

Trebol nodded frantically.

"You don't understand, Trebol," Doflamingo said meaningfully, no longer bothering to explain. His tone hardened. "Enough talk. You guys keep an eye on Arinland."

Whoosh.

With a light leap, Doflamingo jumped onto another cargo ship that Peclo had prepared for him, filled with "gifts." He decisively hoisted the sails and set off.

Trebol lay sprawled on the deck, utterly despondent as if life held no more meaning, completely devoid of his usual cheerfulness.

"Doffy... disappointed?" Vergo muttered in confusion, unsure of his assessment.

Pica remained as silent as ever, quietly honing his body. If Doflamingo had shot up like a weed in the past year or two, Pica had practically mutated; at just ten years old, he stood at a towering 2.2 to 2.3 meters, with muscles far surpassing a bodybuilder's.

"I hope Doffy comes back safe," Diamante said, rubbing his forehead in distress.

Even Giolla was unusually quiet; clearly, they all saw Doflamingo's willful decision as a disaster.

But at this moment, Doflamingo was brimming with confidence. In the eyes of others, Big Mom was the most terrifying and unreasonable monster in the world. But in his eyes, she was...

A tiger-skin banner to display before his strength was sufficient.

A pass to access "high-end business."

A highly productive... golden goose.

Riding the wind and waves, about a week passed.

A certain island in the South Blue.

"I'm a ship~~~ I'm a ship~~~"

The bizarre singing genuinely came from a ship's mouth. Its figurehead was alive, a cartoon face of a sun with a crown, extremely large and flashy, like a fantastical amusement park children dreamed of, with a hull, railings, and cabins shaped like various candies and pastries.

These were secondary; what was important were the words "Big Mom" written on the sails, and the jolly roger featuring a skull wearing a pirate hat, smeared with vibrant lipstick, and holding a small tree.

The singing ship, the Big Mom Pirates!

One of the major powers at the pinnacle of the pirate world!

"Alarm~~~ Alarm~~~"

"Someone's approaching, someone's approaching!"

From the crow's nest, chess piece-like figures clamored noisily.

"Is it an enemy?"

"Not another oblivious idiot trying to challenge us."

"So annoying."

"Perospero-nii, Katakuri-nii, Snack-nii, Cracker-nii, they're all out... What do we do?"

"Mama? Mama?"

"..."

Unbeknownst to them, the Big Mom Pirates, centered around Big Mom, had developed into a super-family. Its members included not only many powerful individuals who had submitted to Big Mom, but also many of her own biological children.

The biological children were generally young, as Big Mom herself was not yet forty. It was precisely because they were relatively vulnerable that Big Mom, who had accidentally provoked the supreme rulers of the New World, "Golden Lion" and "Whitebeard," had a rare opportunity to temporarily lie low and dared not act recklessly.

"Too noisy! Don't disturb me while I'm eating snacks!!!"

Inside the ship's cabin, a coarse roar suddenly erupted, chilling everyone to the bone, instantly silencing all other sounds.

"Mama's not happy. Fine, I'll go see. I'll send them away."

A tall, graceful figure stood up, her tone languid and calm.