Paper Paper Fruit In One Piece

Night. 

In the Holy Land, Mary Geoise. 

Inside the room belonging to the future "King of the World"—Roman. The entire space was covered in countless sheets of ability-infused paper, making it look like a spider's nest. 

There was no other way. Without these layers of defense, Roman wouldn't be able to sleep at all. After all, waking up in the middle of the night only to find someone lying next to him? He'd probably panic so hard that his ability would go out of control on the spot! 

Even if it was a stunning beauty... 

Roman admitted that Imu's looks were undoubtedly world-class, but— 

Sleeping next to someone stronger than him? No way he could feel at ease. 

And so, wrapped in layers of defensive papers, Roman drifted into sleep. 

——— 

"Mehahaha! Thanks for saving me!" 

A shirtless young boy with white wings flew from a deserted island onto a ship in the middle of the ocean. If he hadn't found a boat soon, he would've had to make clothes with his ability. And if you think about it... that'd basically mean he was running around naked! 

"Helping those in distress is a duty for any sailor." 

The sunlit boy on the deck smiled as he replied. Just by standing there, he gave off a sense of maturity and reliability, which made the boy with white wings breathe a sigh of relief. At least they weren't pirates. And luckily, the language he had picked up on his own really was the common language of this world—otherwise, they'd be talking past each other. 

"Either way, you really helped me out. I just got transported— *ahem* —I've been stuck on this deserted island so long I was starting to turn into a wild man." 

"Oh yeah, sorry to ask, but… what year is it in the Sea Calendar?" 

Besides the sunlit boy in front of him, there was also a blue-haired girl peeking out from behind the cabin, only half her head showing. Seeing this, the shirtless boy nodded to himself. 

Yep, only in this world would two people dare to set sail like this. That kind of crew setup makes no sense anywhere else. 

As for why the boy stranded on the island knew that history here was recorded using the "Sea Calendar," that was thanks to the strange fruit he had eaten—the one with a taste so awful it was hard to put into words. That fruit had given him the power of paper. 

No doubt about it, this was the world of *One Piece*! Ha! Pirates, the Marines, the Seven Warlords, the Four Emperors—now that I'm here, they'd all better get ready to kneel before me, the great traveler from another world! 

"The current year is 623 in the Sea Calendar." 

Hmm, let me think... 

"Oh, right," the sunlit boy suddenly interrupted the castaway's thoughts. "My name is Joy Boy." 

…? 

"And this is Imu." 

?! 

The castaway's head shot up in shock as he stared at the two people in front of him. His finger rudely pointed at the sunlit boy, then shifted toward the blue-haired girl still hiding in the cabin. 

"You're Joy Boy?" 

"That's right." 

"And you're Imu?" 

"Uh-huh…" 

... 

"Mehahaha~~~ If you two are Joy Boy and Imu, then I must be the great savior Neo!" 

As the castaway stood there, laughing with his hands on his hips, the sunlit boy simply extended a hand with a serious expression. 

"Nice to meet you, Neo." 

...??? 

"You just now…?" 

The castaway's laughter slowly faded as he saw the completely sincere look on the other boy's face. 

"You said it's the year 623? Not 1623 or something?" 

"That's right." 

As the one who called himself "Neo" grew more and more uneasy, the sunlit boy seemed to catch on to something and offered a few words of comfort. 

"Tensions between different kingdoms have been getting worse lately. If you've been through… anything bad, you have to stay strong!" 

The blue-haired girl, Imu, looked at "Neo" with the same pitying gaze one might give a lunatic. Seeing this, Neo rolled his eyes and gave up trying to explain. 

Whatever. His origins were already a mess anyway, so let them come up with their own theories. 

But still—ha! Even if pirates, the Marines, the Seven Warlords, and the Four Emperors didn't exist yet, as a traveler from another world, I was still going to make a name for myself! 

History? I'll be the one to create it. 

"Mehahaha!!!" 

As Neo stood there laughing like a maniac, hands on his hips, the sunlit boy, Joy Boy, and the blue-haired girl, Imu, exchanged glances. The girl tapped her temple. 

Yeah… this guy's got something wrong with his head. 

… 

But as their journey continued, it turned out that aside from his occasional weirdness and over-the-top personality, Neo was actually incredibly reliable. In both battle and intelligence, he was top-tier. 

"So… how about we build a nation where everyone can live in peace together?" 

Looking at Joy Boy and Imu—two people who, in theory, should be at each other's throats—Neo stroked his chin in thought. 

"Alright. Sounds fun! Let's do it together!" 

The timeline might be a bit early, but that's fine.

Let's settle this chaotic world with those two first! Heh, heh, heh... Once we succeed, what kind of "Great Treasure" should we leave behind for people to search for hundreds of years later? Well, as long as I'm around... 

Speaking of which, how could someone as weak as Imu possibly beat Joy Boy? Oda doesn't know a thing about One Piece! 

Roman opened his eyes. 

"This is..." 

He rubbed his temples. As he fully woke up, the dream faded away like a receding tide. But traces of it still lingered. 

"It felt like... my past memories? If that's the case... then I really did travel to One Piece's world eight hundred years ago?" 

And back then... I was actually friends with Joy Boy and Imu? 

Then how the hell did I end up getting beaten so badly that I had to 'start over from scratch'? 

Wait... don't tell me—this was my own fault?! 

"No way!" 

"I am who I am. I'm Roman." 

Whatever trouble Neo caused has nothing to do with me, Roman! 

"Forget it. I should focus on awakening my Devil Fruit. Strength is the only thing that truly solves problems." 

When in doubt, start training! 

Whole Cake Island. 

"The Straw Hat Crew's ship is back!" 

"Huh? Already? So that means Laugh Tale isn't actually that far from here?" 

After all, the Straw Hats had just saved the Charlotte Family, so most of them were grateful. When the sea slugs scouting the waters detected the Thousand Sunny, the Charlotte Family—led by their new 'head,' Charlotte Katakuri—gathered at the dock. 

"Incredible... the end of the world, huh? I really want to know what's on Laugh Tale..." 

"So now Captain Luffy is officially the 'Pirate King,' right?" 

"Hey, if we ask, do you think Usopp will—" 

"Don't joke around." 

Katakuri glanced at his younger siblings and shook his head seriously. 

"Some things... are better left unknown." 

As everyone was caught between admiration, awe, and deep thought about the Pirate King— 

"Pudding~~~" 

"Help us~~~" 

Just as the Thousand Sunny entered the port, two figures suddenly jumped off! 

Racing toward them at full speed, tears and snot streaming down their faces, were none other than the "Pirate King" and "Usopp the Great." 

What the—?! 

This completely shattered their expectations! 

BAM! BAM! 

Sanji shot forward, kicking both Luffy and Usopp straight into the dirt! 

Landing right in front of Pudding with an emergency "head brake," he suddenly felt so awkward that he even picked up one of Roman's habits—rubbing his temples without thinking. 

"Uh... Miss Pudding, we need your help with something." 

"Huh?" 

·········· 

Soft Island, newly built meeting hall. 

"This actually happened?" 

Katakuri pressed his fingers against his forehead, deep in thought. 

"Now that you mention it... there were some odd inconsistencies in my memories of how you helped us defeat Blackbeard!" 

The Memory-Memory Fruit wasn't all-powerful—modifications always left subtle traces behind. 

If someone was highly perceptive or had Haki so strong that it became a part of them, they could still sense that something felt off. 

"So you're saying... we were all manipulated without even realizing it?" 

Katakuri's face darkened. 

Even he, the head of the Charlotte Family, had been unknowingly affected. The others? It was even worse. 

What kind of terrifying enemy could do something like this? 

If they could just alter someone's memories of "food" and "poison" at will, then the entire Charlotte Family could be wiped out in an instant... 

"Who did this?" 

Hearing his question, the Straw Hat Crew, who had just regained their memories thanks to Pudding, exchanged glances. 

"The God of the Celestial Dragons... Imu!" 

?! "So it really is her… Then how did you all…?" 

Katakuri didn't finish his sentence, but the meaning was clear—how did you all come back unharmed? 

"Big Brother Katakuri," 

Pudding walked behind Katakuri, who was leaning back on the sofa in a relaxed, boss-like posture. A soft pink glow appeared in her hands. 

"I'm going to restore your memories." 

"Hmm." 

As Pudding placed her hands on Katakuri's temples, in the next second— 

"I see… So your strategist, Roman—" 

Used a *pretty-boy trick* to make the unbeatable Im retreat?! 

"Damn it!!" 

Luffy clenched his fists so tightly they made a cracking sound, then punched himself hard on the head. 

"I actually forgot about Roman—unforgivable!" 

And that Im! 

The memories he shared with his crew were the most precious thing to Luffy, and now they had been messed with like some kind of joke? *Unforgivable!* 

"Luffy, it's not your fault." 

Nami flipped open *The Thief's Secret Art* in her hands. As she recalled everything about Roman, she also remembered how to use the book again. 

"Even I forgot about Roman…" 

"You? Please, your memories of Roman are nothing compared to mine! I was the *first* to meet him! I have way more—" 

??? 

"*Ahem,* let's focus on the situation at hand first." 

Zoro cut off the conversation before it could go off track. 

"Luffy, you mean—?" 

"Isn't it obvious? I'm going to take Roman back!!" 

Luffy shouted at the sky. 

Zoro nodded, as if that answer was expected. 

"But… this won't be easy…" 

"Everyone," 

Katakuri spoke up, 

"If it's information about Roman you want—" 

With a flick of his hand, a beautifully designed invitation landed in his palm. 

"This is an invitation from the World Government—for the wedding of Im and Neo… or rather, Roman." 

"WHAT?!" 

"Every country and race in the world has received an invitation—including Whole Cake Island. Everyone who received it *must* attend the wedding at the Holy Land of Mary Geoise in five days. Anyone who dares to skip it—" 

"Their cities will be burned to the ground, their people wiped out, not a single soul spared!" 

This is… 

*Boom!* 

Luffy stood still, his entire body radiating Haki, black lightning crackling around him. Compared to Im's overwhelming authority, even Big Mom's threat of sending severed heads for missing her tea party seemed like child's play. 

*Clap.* 

As Luffy clenched his fists together, his voice was firm and unwavering. 

"This wedding… I'm *going*!" 

(End of Chapter)