This is the 32nd chapter. I don't own the series of One Piece.
Profound Mystery!
'Last time on One Piece, while trying to chase down their lost comrades, Luffy, Sanji, Usopp, and Caius stumbled into the Lost Forest where they faced a brutal priest, Satori. Meanwhile, the Sky Knight ready's his mount to save Chopper and Ventus, who stands guard at the Going Merry and is next on the sacrificial vocative of the devilish priest, Shura. However, it became too much for Shura after Ventus finishes him off and won the battle.'
Upper Yard
While at the Ordeal of Spheres, Satori has tricks under his sleeve considering he's been outmatched by the Reaper in his Enshrouded form. They're watching the fat priest laughing and dancing around at the top of the spheres, gathering the number of spheres, forming together into a long a form of a dragon. Caius however, narrowed his eyes underneath the mask and seeing that something is wrong.
"What the-?!" Usopp exclaims.
"Introducing the Sphere Dragon" Satori said, showing the dragon made out of spheres, making Usopp dropped his jaws with pale face in dread.
"It looks all you did is string a bunch of Surprise Clouds together!" Luffy grunts with a heavy pant, gritting his teeth. "Is that the best you can do? I have to say, I'm disappointed."
"Don't let the appearance fool you! It may not surprise us, but they still have hidden surprise for us. We need to stay vigilant!" Caius warned him.
"Huh? What are you talking about?" Luffy asks, raising his eyebrow.
"You should listen to the Reaper!" Satori shouts, agreeing with him. "You see, the dragon is loaded with explosive surprises and all kinds of delightful shrapnel!"
Usopp gasped while dropping his jaws in horror, realizing what he meant.
"But then that means..."
"If you even touch the firebombs somewhere around its body, it'll be over for you and your friends." Satori finishes his sentence. "You'll be blown into bits and assuming inferno! Hope you like fireworks!? Go Sphere Dragon!?"
And with that, the Sphere Dragon charges after the Straw Hats which made Usopp flinched in fright.
"Everyone avoid it!" Caius shouted, using his shadow magic to teleport away from the dragon.
Luffy winds up his fist, about to get ready to punch it which made the Reaper skid to a stop as he turned and saw him prepared to land a punch.
"No, Luffy! Wait!" Usopp shouts when he ran and stops Luffy from getting himself killed, letting the Sphere Dragon flying upward as it then flew in circle form while Satori laughs in mockery. "You idiot! Didn't you hear that freak and Caius said?! They just told us if we touch that thing, it'll explode! Do you want to die a fiery death?!"
Luffy then pushes Usopp away in irritation.
"Will how are we gonna fight it if we can't touch it?!" Luffy demands.
"This is not the to be fighting that thing, Luffy! Our only option is to run!" Caius warned them.
"He's right, we can't fight this thing! I think now is the time to run!" Usopp agrees as Caius looked back and saw the Sphere Dragon coming after them.
"It's coming!" Caius shouts, causing Usopp and Luffy to make a run for it while the Sphere Dragon pursues after them.
"So what do we do now?!" Luffy asks in panic.
"I don't know! You're the Captain!?" Usopp retorted.
"Hell's Ingress" Caius casts a magic to open a portal as both Luffy and Usopp entered, dodging the incoming Sphere Dragon.
Caius then opens the portal to let Luffy and Usopp out, but an explosion was heard and the two were knocked out, slightly burnt.
"Well, you are quite the survivors, aren't you?" Satori said with a laugh, flowing down and viewing the knocked out Luffy and Usopp as sat up with a glare.
"Okay, now you're just toying with us!?" Usopp snapped.
"Correct! It wouldn't be as much fun if you didn't experience the full power of the Sphere Dragon!" Satori admits as the Sphere Dragon flies next to him. "Shall we continue?!"
Somewhere in Skypiea
Meanwhile elsewhere in Skypiea, a Shandorian girl is hopping a few steps in the clouds. She then stops as she turns her head around, making sure that no one is following her before jumping down one spot on the cloud. And when she gets out of the cloud and lands on the cloudy ground, she arrived at the hidden village that has mostly tipi's while the road was dominated by totem poles and the beanstalks. But when she's about to head home, a voice was heard.
"Aisa!" A male Shandorian called her out, causing her to trip and fall with a yelp. "Where have you been child?"
A Shandorian is a muscular, tan-skinned man with Mohawk hairstyle and a pair of big, round sunglasses with red lenses and white frame. He also has two big and colored earrings hanging from his ears. On his back he has a pair of Shandoria wings. He wears a grass skirt, but with a red and green elaborate belt around the waist. He also sports a light red fur vest and a necklace that seem to be made of some either claws or teeth.
"Kamakiri?!" Aisa exclaims with a scoff.
"The Upper Yard again, right? And that's probably Verth in your bag?" Kamakiri guessed, causing Aisa to hide the bag behind her. "Stay away from that place, Aisa! Or you will die!"
That got Aisa responded by sticking her tongue out at him.
"You can't tell me what to do! You haven't even been able to beat Eneru yet!" Aisa retorted she then ran off, causing him to stop polishing his knives as Kamakiri watches her.
"What a brat!" Kamakiri snarls.
While inside of the tipi, the Shandorians are having a discussion with their leader of the tribe, after what he have learned recently.
"An opportunity?" A man named Braham asks.
He's a muscular man with the upper-half of his face always hidden by his hat. He was seen wearing this head covering even during childhood, when hair sprouted on the back of his neck from under the hat. He wears a grass skirt, with a decorated, long light-red sash around his waist and a light-blue veil appearing from under the skirt and reaching down his feet. He also sports a fur-lined, dark-green jacket, and dark gloves on his hands.
"That's right. For some reason, Gan Fall entered the Upper Yard, which of course, drew the attention of the priests." A Shandorian named Wyper explains. "You see, that old bag of bones thinks it's his responsibility to protect the people of Skypiea. And that will only make him weak. We would be wise to strike while our enemies were occupied with each other. The great warrior, Kalgara, said 'Light the fire of Shandora'! Our people will do just that, no one could deny us our destiny, be it Gan Fall or Eneru, and now is the time to take action! They've had the audacity to reign as God and that is unforgivable! No matter how different from one another they may seem, I assure you, they are the same and they must be eliminated!"
Wyper then placed his weapon away when the Shandorian spoke.
"Wyper." The female Shandorian named as Raki called him, earned his attention.
Raki is a tall, black-haired woman with two large bangs parted to either side of her face on the front, and a long and elaborate ponytail on the back. She has dark green eyes, and her lips are apparently covered with pink lipstick. She has two small wings on her back. She wears a light purple cleavage revealing tunic with a darker pattern that exposes her stomach, and light-red pants, reminiscent of the ones worn by Native Americans, that are open on the inside of her legs.
"It has been 6 years since Eneru began his reign and first time since he took power, a rebel has appeared on Angel Island. A young woman I hear." Raki informed him.
"Get to the point, Raki!" Wyper said impatiently, glances at her.
"Because the Sky Knight and the Reaper rescued the young rebel from Judgement. Eneru now has reason to directly confront Gan Fall in order to judge him." Raki explains. "A battle like between the former God and the current God has never happened. And strategically, this could be most advantageous to us. We must remember that Gan Fall has never harmed any of us, not as the Sky Knight, and not during his reign as God."
Even though, Raki made a valid point about Gan Fall which Wyper isn't convinced.
"The fact that he never hurt any of us doesn't change that he rules with absolute authority as God, and although he is our enemy's enemy, that does not make him our ally. If he had one of the priests killing in battle, that will serve our purposes just fine! Otherwise, he's of no use to us!" Wyper points out as Raki started to sweat a little, stands up from his seat with a glare. "If you have any doubts at all about this fight, stay out! You'll just be in the way!"
Aisa kept running until she reached a tent. Before she could sneak in, Braham walked out.
"Aisa." Braham called her, surprising her enough for her to fall on her ass.
"Upper Yard?! What Upper Yard?! I didn't go to the Upper Yard, I promise you! I didn't!" Aisa quickly assumed, scoots away.
"You can't go into the tent yet." Braham told her with an amused smirk, eating his jerky. "Wyper, descendent of the great warrior, Kalgara is angry right now. Careful.
Aisa saw his point, calmed herself as she stood up.
"Oh, he's scary when he gets mad." Aisa said, glances at the stature nearby that was a Shandorian, a warrior named Kalgara. "Scarier than God."
Somewhere in Skypiea
Meanwhile at Gan Fall's home, Pagaya continued working on the waver which he was able to repair the small boat while telling his daughter that they need to help them escape from Eneru. It got Conis shocked.
"Us?!" Conis exclaims. "How?"
"Conis, my dear child, it's only right that you and I should try to create some way for them to escape." Pagaya points out, making a valid point.
Conis widen her eyes and knows that her father is right about it, but smiles a little while watching Pagaya working on the waver.
Upper Yard, Sacrificial Altar
While at the Sacrificial Altar, Gan Fall places Chopper on the ground since the Going Merry won't be going anywhere until the rest of the Straw Hats arrived while Ventus throws the dead priest into the cloud river for the sky-sharks to eat it and cooking the buzzard with his flames, after he plucked those feathers out. Though, Chopper watches the sky-sharks eating the dead priest with horror.
"Is that really necessary to do that, young man?" Gan Fall questions, looking at the young Dragoon. "I mean, Shura did try to kill you both, but this? It's a bit extreme..."
"Even so, it goes to show to never mess with me or my crew. And with him out of the way, it's one less priest to worry about." Ventus points out, then lets the roast buzzard cool. "But...you've got some explaining to do, Gan Fall."
Gan Fall is starting to feel intense and same could be said to Pierre.
"What are you talking about, Ven?" Chopper asks, confused.
"Shura knows our Sky Knight friend along with Eneru, and from what I can tell, they were never on good terms nor they're allies." Ventus told him, then glances back at Gan Fall. "And same could be said about that man who's able to glide through those clouds with those wavers and the Dials. Now, tell us! What are you? And why?"
Gan Fall can tell that the young Dragoon wanted answers after what has been happening back in Sky Island and the Upper Yard, which both he and Chopper were able to learn about the Sacrificial Altar and Ventus was able to kill Shura with his overwhelming power and aerial combat. Gan Fall took off his helmet as he sighs, decided to tell him the truth.
"I suppose you have a right to know after you manage to defeat Shura, and enraged Eneru...No, I'm not a Sky Knight...I was a God here on Sky Island." Gan Fall confesses, leaving Chopper shocked and Ventus narrowed his eyes. "And the guerilla you fought earlier was a Shandorian named Wyper, the leader of his tribe."
"But why did he come after us? We didn't do anything to him?!" Chopper exclaims. "And this Eneru and his priests?!"
"Wyper considered you and your crew along with those pirates before any of you outsiders. So, he destroys every outsiders that he sees, but after what I have witnessed back on White-White Sea, you were able to fend off Wyper and leaving him heavily wounded." Gan Fall explains. "I will admit, I was overwhelmed of your powers by watching you fight. I thought I could help, but after this, it's best keeping my distance."
Ventus then tosses a piece of meat to Pierre, who caught it and ate it.
"And what about Eneru? We don't understand why he became God and you, a former God." Ventus said.
"I've been trying to make a peace treaty and co-exist between my people of the Sky Island and Shandorians ever since the war between us 100 years ago." Gan Fall said. "Even before trying to solidify a peace treaty, Eneru dethrone me along with my priests with his own."
"But the one we met earlier was Shura, he's the priest and uses the Ordeal of String." Chopper states.
"Yes, and your friends are fighting against Satori, the priest who uses the Ordeal of Sphere." Gan Fall told the reindeer when Ventus extends the meat to him. "Ah, thank you."
Ventus then passes the meat to Chopper as he sighed, now understands why Gan Fall became a Sky Knight and a former God after trying to convince his people and the Shandorians to stop the war and bloodshed. However, everything was wasted because of Eneru and his four priests.
"But as for your other friends who left the altar, well they were able to survive from danger." Gan Fall continued.
"Yes, but what we don't know is why this island is made of dirt instead of clouds like this river that was filled with sky-sharks." Ventus points out, tearing the meat and eats it.
"Hmm...well, that I am not sure, but a legend passed down through the generations in the Skypiea about its beginnings." Gan Fall states. "It is said that the day the Upper Yard, the sacred ground was created. The voice of the island sung for a beautiful song that echoed through the skies. It was after the that moment that the tragedy between the people of the Sky and the Shandorians began. As if on cue, and so the legend says when we next hear the singing voice of the island, this war will finally come to an end."
Ventus and Chopper can tell that Gan Fall didn't know how the island became dirt and not the clouds, but the Upper Yard has quite a history for 100 years ago. However, they hope that their crew made it and survive from the fight against Satori while the others were able to get some information about the island. Then, the sky-shark merged out of the clouds and is about to open its mouth when Ventus and Gan Fall kills it and slams the dead shark down to the ground.
"I guess we should fish those sharks in case my crew made it alive." Ventus said with a sigh.
Upper Yard
While somewhile in the jungle area of the Upper Yard, Robin was digging up information from the well as one of her limbs brough up a vial of small amount of muddy water while Leon was watching her.
"Could this well be that strange?" Leon inquires, earned her attention.
"Yes. Don't you think it's odd that a well would be stuck under a tree." Robin explains, showing the vial to the Gunbreaker. "The balance between civilization and nature here is off."
"Well, unless we find a way to cross this cloud river, we'll be stuck in this forest." Zoro said, glances at the cloud river that's filled with sky-sharks. "And we're still nowhere near where we wanna be."
"It's like the people who built this didn't know the tree would grow to be so large." Robin said. "I've never seen anything like it."
"Hey, Nami! Can you see anything up here?!" Zoro called her out, who sat far high up on a tree branch, looking around the current location with the binoculars.
"The island where God lives...Upper Yard..." Nami muttered.
"Nami!? Say something, would you! What do you see?!" Zoro called her again when both Robin and Leon looked up. "Hey! Can you hear me?!"
"What do you think she sees up there?" Robin questions.
"Who knows." Leon muttered.
Nami lets down her binoculars with her face full of shock.
"This island...can't be..."
Upper Yard
Back at Luffy's group at the Ordeal of Spheres, Satori laughs at the crew who are having a hard time with the Dragon Surprise along with the Suprise Spheres. Luffy, Usopp, and Sanji were practically down from either the explosions or an exhaustion, but Caius couldn't hold the Enshrouded form for much long because he's almost out of mana. Satori then twirls around on the top of the sphere with a laugh.
"There's no way you could win! After all, I'm a priest and you all look so tired!" Satori claimed. "Why don't you just end this now and die?!"
"My heart can't take any more of this!" Usopp said, hyperventilating. "Too many surprises...how. it. hurts!"
"You'll be out of options quite soon." Satori told them. "It's sad, really. Your little boat has nearly reached the forest exit. And when that happens, it's all over for you! You'll have nowhere to go, unless of course, you suddenly learned to fly!"
Luffy barely stands up, looked at him with a heavily pant.
"You'll wander around in this terribly unfamiliar forest and die of exhaustion!" Satori continued with a laugh as he was floating up with his sphere.
"That won't...HAPPEN!" Luffy shouting, launching his fist at him which Satori smoothly avoided it.
"Nice try! My turn now, Fear Dragon Attack" Satori then swings his cane, making the dragon chased Luffy again. "You know you can't run forever! And wherever you flop, the fire-bomb ball will be waiting to incinerate you!"
While Satori kept Luffy distracted, Caius noticed something was off about the dragon and it made him realize that it was the priest who's controlling it the entire time. Usopp quietly sneaks away from the fight while hiding behind the tree.
'Good, looks like we can still make it.' Usopp mentally thought as he began to run. "I'll just leave things with you, Luffy!"
While Luffy kept running from the Surprise Dragon, he noticed a tree in front of him.
"That tree...will not give you any shelter!" Satori said, using his 'Mantra' and making Luffy's face pale.
"It's like he's reading my mind! Stay out of my head and quit following me!?" Luffy shouts, running up to the tree and was about to go over the Surprise Dragon, but felt himself cling on to some kind of wire.
"What are you doing?!" Satori demands, being pulled.
"Something you shouldn't have use your cheap parlor tricks of yours...Dark Fog" Caius then casts magic to blind Satori with the fog. "Luffy, hurry and snap the wire in order to use that dragon against him!? He's the one who controls the dragon the entire fight!"
"Well, in that case...I'll just do this!" Luffy grunts as he ripped the wire into two, ceasing the priests control.
"You ruined my Sphere Dragon, you impudent little brat!" Satori shouts with his jaws dropped, now is really mad after sensing his 'Mantra'. "Now you die! Get over here this instant!?"
But once Satori pulls Luffy closer to him, which it made him fail to realize that the rubber captain is still holding the other string and dragging the Surprise Dragon to his way.
"Let of the dragon you fool!?" Satori yelled in panic which it's too late for him and the Reaper vanished him, next thing they knew, the huge explosion occurred.
While at the top of the tree, Usopp was able to climb up to see the view of the Upper Yard and seeing a path that will lead to the Sacrificial Altar.
"There it is! Yeah, I was right! I knew I can find a way out of this place!" Usopp grunts as he looks at the cloudy path. "Of course, this makes perfect sense, why didn't I think of this sooner? When we fell before, it was from the very high altitude! So, it's only natural that the exit be at the same height. And now I know where the exit is, the boat doesn't really matter anymore. Alright, that huge explosion worries me, I better hurry. Game time!"
And with that, Usopp begins climbing down which landed on a branch.
Meanwhile back at the Ordeal of Spheres, variety of weapons were embedded in between the trees and the ground right where the crater was found. Above it, Satori was able to escape from the Suprise Dragon but barely, covered in soot and dirt with a heavy pant, didn't even think of Luffy's crazy idea that would end up like this.
"That was close...those maniacs must have a death wish! This isn't good!" Satori grunts, but unknown to him, Luffy is holding on his back with a goofy grin on his face. "I've got to intensify my training! I can't let those weaklings like them...get the upper hand in a fight, not even for a second! That might block me from using my 'Mantra'..."
"You're right." Luffy said, making him spook with shock and surprise. "That was close."
Satori then looks around and noticed Luffy holding on his wings.
"It's you?! How are you still alive?!" Satori exclaims. "Get off me...you horrible little man! I'll get you for this! Let go of me right now!?"
"Do not let him go, Luffy!" The voice of Sanji warned him, floating on the top of the sphere.
"Keep a good hold on him, so we can finish this fool." Caius adds, floating in the air with his dark magic which it got their attention.
"You too-"
"Hey, Sanji, Caius, where have you two been?" Luffy cuts him off by holding his head down.
"I WAS OUT COLD ON THE FOREST FLOOR! WHERE ELSE WOULD I HAVE BEEN, YOU IDIOT!?" Sanji yelled with white eyes and shark-like teeth.
"I USED WHAT WAS LEFT OF MY MAGIC TO VANISH MYSELF BEFORE THE EXPLOSION! PAY MORE ATTENTION TO YOUR SURROUNDINGS, YOU IMBECILE!?" Caius adds as he and both calming themselves down.
"But, that's beside the point." Sanji said, lights up his cigarette and breathed the smoke out of his mouth as he turns to Satori. "See, the point is that you keep saying challenge this, and challenge that, which normally wouldn't interest me. However, there are two helpless ladies waiting for me to come to their rescue and I refuse to let them down. So, I'm proposing this, and I think you'll like it...Ordeal of Love!"
'This guy is an idiot, too!?' Satori mentally shouts with his face pale, trying to escape. "Unhand me this instant, you maggot!?"
But Luffy wraps his body around with his legs, preventing him from escaping.
"It's just not fair! You have no honor ganging up! It's 3 against 1!" Satori shouts.
"We have no honor?!" Caius snarls angrily, points his scythe at him. "You're the ones who started all of this, kidnapping our crew and try to use this altar as an excuse for Eneru's twisted entertainment! You have no right to accuse us! And...you and your friends can't escape 'Death' itself!"
"I've been thinking, it's pretty amazing that you can predict our movements, but what good is that if you can't do anything to avoid them, huh?" Luffy adds, making Satori sweating as he yelled in panic.
"I wouldn't bother of begging for mercy, the boat is over there." Caius told him, pointing at the cloud river nearby and they noticed it was tied into a vine near it. "And you have also forgotten something about us. We're pirates, we never play fair in the first place."
"STOP! STOP I SAID! ARE YOU LISTENING?! HOW DARE YOU DISOBEYED ME?!" Satori yelled as Sanji and Caius floats closer to the priest. "I'M A PRIEST IN GOD'S SERVICE, NOT BEING JUDGED BY ME!? THAT'S A FIRST-DEGREE CRIME IN SKYPIEA! LET ME GO! NOW LISTEN HERE, ATTACKING ME MEANS YOU DECLARE WAR THE ALMIGHT GOD, ENERU!?"
"I got a question, do you ever cook?" Sanji rhetorically asks, not caring about the war or Eneru. "Well, you don't have to be a chef to know which dish best serve cold. You know, this dish is really quite simple. Step one: Season the main course with the smattering of defeat!"
Sanji and Caius the leaps into the air.
"Then, you must brutally and without hesitation tenderize the meat!" Sanji continued as he and Caius descends when the chef flips rapidly to gain speed and then, brings his heel down on his head. "Concasse"
That attack was strong enough to break Satori's glasses and forced a couple of teeth out when Caius finishes him of.
"Your heart shall be judged! Reaper's Zone" Caius then casts his dark fog to cover the area and then delivers a multiple slash combo, then decapitates Satori in the head, leaving him bloodied and dead.
That's it for the 32nd chapter.
