Chapter 12: Chapter 12- god valley 1
Third person POV
[A few days later]
The ship's hull groaned and creaked as it came to rest against the dock, waves hitting against the hull of the ship. When the vessel finally settled, the sound of heavy footsteps echoed above, accompanied by the jingle and rattle of keys. The guards descended into the cramped, dirty, and dimly lit lower levels of the ship.
A few moments later, they were barking orders at the sleepy slaves. Their shouts reverberated off the damp, rotting wooden walls, making the already small space feel even smaller.
"Wake up, you filthy rats! On your feet!" one guard bellowed, slamming his baton against the iron bars of the cells. "Move it! You're not here to relax, you are to entertain our gods, move it, they're getting impatient!"
Yami's bright red eyes opened slowly, his body stiff from the cold and the hard floor beneath him. He didn't flinch at the guard's shouting or the sharp clang of batons striking bars. He had heard it all before. His body moved automatically as he stood, towering above most of the other slaves in his cell.
Chains rattled as the guards secured them to the slaves in a long line, binding their wrists and necks with cold iron. Yami's expression was blank, though his eyes darted around, taking in every detail of their surroundings as the guards took them out of the ship's hold.
The cold morning air hit him like a slap on the face, as they emerged onto the dock. His breath misted in front of him, and he felt the icy bite of the shackles digging into his skin. Around him, hundreds of slaves shuffled forward in chains, multiple faces mixed of fear, despair, and exhaustion.
Yami's eyes scanned the crowd, his gaze drawn to the rows of ships docked along the coast. Celestial dragons were arriving in extravagant vessels. Behind them, more slaves were being herded off other ships, forming a mass, ranging from children to the elderly.
Although One child, in particular, caught Yami's attention. A boy, no older than nine or 10, with a stocky build and skinny legs and a quiet determination in his eyes. His curly hair stood out, as did the faint markings of exhaustion on his young face.
'Kuma'.
Yami's heart tightened and quickened. The future warlord of the sea and one of the founding members of the Revolutionary Army stood just 3 meters(9 feet) ahead of him. Seeing Kuma stirred something in Yami—hope. Not for immediate freedom, but for the ripple effect Kuma's actions would create.
'If Kuma meets Ginny and Ivankov here,' Yami thought, his mind racing, 'Ginny will leak the location of the devil fruits to the pirates, and that will be the time to get the fuck out of this island before it goes to shit'
A faint flicker of eagerness began to take root in Yami's mind. It was almost perfect timing, but Yami didn't want them to just use them for his escape and be done with them, no if he could, he wanted to avert their fates from the canon timeline, especially Ginny and Kuma, poor souls.
After two grueling hours, The guards pushed the slaves forward, guiding them down a beaten path toward an open area after a while, the guards began to unchain all of the slaves except for their explosion collars. The terrain was flat and barren, surrounded by dense, jungle that stretched almost infinitely. The air was tense, yami could physically feel the bad vibe that the island is radiating and his spidey sense was going haywire because of it.
Suddenly, a massive screen flickered to life in the center of the clearing, powered by visual transponder snails. The crowd of nobles roared in excitement, their bloodlust coming through, as the image of a man appeared on the screen. His features were weird, his golden hair was weird, and his armor shined bright.
'Figarland Garling'.
The God Knight member, surveyed the gathered slaves and nobles with cold disdain before his voice boomed over the clearing.
"Welcome, lords and ladies, to the God Valley tournament!" Garling announced, his tone dripping with superiority. "This year's games are a spectacle like no other, brought to you by the gracious will of the celestial dragons & the world government!"
The nobles erupted in applause, their cheers echoing across the clearing.
Garling continued, "Now For the uninitiated, allow me to explain the rules: The native population has been captured and caged, awaiting their release into the wild. They, along with problematic slaves and criminals, will serve the game's purpose. Each participant is marked with a target on their back and referred to as [Rabbits]."
The screen shifted, displaying terrified civilians, slaves, and criminals locked in cages, their backs adorned with red targets.
"The tournament features 100,000 civilians, slaves, and criminals who are named as [Rabbits], with [150 Rare Rabbits] and [13 Super Rare Rabbits]. For our esteemed hunters, these are your goal, your prey, your entertainment, and those lucky few who managed to get the most points, get one of two devil fruits of your choosing, one of them being [UO UO NO MI, MODEL: SEIRYU]and the other devil fruit being [NIKYU NIKYU NO MI]and those who had been marked as a [rabbit] who survived the tournament, you will have your freedom back and may leave this island. . .!"
Garling's grin widened, his eyes gleaming with sadistic glee.
"But, of course, this is no ordinary hunt. As always, there is one final event to mark the beginning of the games."
The screen shifted again, focusing on a trembling man in royal attire. His face was pale, his crown moving side to side slightly as he stood before Garling. It was the king of God Valley.
"Let us begin the festivities," Garling declared.
In one swift motion, Garling drew his blade and decapitated the king, his headless body crumpling to the ground as the nobles cheered wildly.
"The games begin now!" Garling shouted, raising his bloodied sword to the sky.
Then a massive screen above the arena flickered, displaying a scoreboard with names and point totals. At the very top, Figarland Garling's name appeared with an initial score of 10,000 points. But before the crowd could cheer, a sharp chime echoed across the field.
[PENALTY: -10,000 points deducted from Figarland Garling for prematurely initiating the match.]
Garling smirk was a brief second before he waved it off, his ego too large to allow a public embarrassment to faze him. The crowd murmured but quickly turned their attention back to the chaos unfolding on the battlefield.
The slaves & the rabbits were scattered in all directions. Some bolted toward the nearby jungle, desperate to escape. Others turned on each other, rocks and fists flying, as they scrambled to claim dominance or secure the devil fruits.
Yami stood still for a moment, his red eyes scanning around the area looking for signs of kuma. He had no interest in the petty squabbles breaking bad. His focus was singular: find Kuma.
The boy was supposed to be here somewhere, and finding him was Yami's top priority. Kuma would be the key to connecting with Ginny and Ivankov, and possibly even triggering the critical events early than what happens in canon.
Yami moved fast, his height and scars making him an imposing figure among the area. His Spidey Senses kept him alert, guiding him away from potential threats as he searched for Kuma.
But then, his senses flared, a sharp warning jolting through his body. Yami instinctively ducked, narrowly avoiding a rock aimed at the back of his head. Spinning around, he saw a slave standing a few feet away, shaking as he clutched another rock in his hand. The man's face was pale, and his eyes were filled with desperation, bloodlust, and greed, a whole bunch of Greed.
"Out of my way, you giant freak those devil fruit are mine!" the man yelled, his voice trembling and cracking as he is preparing to throw a rock at him again.
Yami seeing this canon fodder threatening him, didn't hesitate to use His Explosion Quirk, yami ignited in his palm, a small, controlled burst that sent the man flying backward. The slave hit the ground hard, half of his body had been burnt to a crisp but after a few seconds, the slave died.
Yami lowered his hand, his expression neutral. Three years of fighting and killing had hardened him and the killing doesn't affect him anymore. People trying to kill him was just another day in paradise and it's only right for Yami to take their lives in return.
He took a deep breath, forcing himself to focus. The sooner he found Kuma, the sooner he could move forward with his plan. Yami turned and continued searching, weaving through the scattered slaves avoiding unnecessary confrontations, and getting away from watchful eyes.
'But since I'm here might as well use all of my QP, let's see what I can get'
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[notice: increased the required amount of QP needed for spins]
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To be continued. . . .
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AN:if you guys have any questions either for me or for the book please ask away and I will try my best to answer your question.
[Q&A right here👈]