Impel Down, Level 6.
The air was thick with the stench of rust and despair. Doflamingo sat cross-legged on the cold stone floor of his cell, wrists bound in seastone cuffs that bit into his skin like old lovers. Chains rattled softly with every breath. A fresh newspaper smuggled in by a bribed guard lay open across his lap.
The headline screamed in bold black:
"EMPERORS CLASH OVER SAND ISLAND FRUIT MUGIWARA & CROSS GUILD IN SIGHT OF NAVY!"
Doflamingo's sunglasses glinted under the dim torchlight. His lips split into a wide, toothy grin.
"Fufufufu… fufufufufu!"
The laugh echoed off the walls low at first, then rising, manic, delighted. Heads turned in nearby cells; prisoners shifted uncomfortably. Even the guards outside flinched.
He tapped the paper with one long nail.
"Mugiwara… still playing hero, huh? Still dragging the world into your little games. Fufufu… look at you now. Emperors. Fruits worth a billion berries. And here I sit, rotting in paradise, while you chase toys in the sand."
He leaned back against the wall, grin widening until it hurt.
"But don't worry, Straw Hat. When I get out and I will get out I'll make sure your party ends with strings. Nice, tight ones. Around that rubber neck of yours. Fufufufu…"
He folded the paper carefully, tucking it under his thigh like a treasured secret.
The laugh faded to a soft, satisfied hum.
"Keep dancing, little bird. The strings are waiting."
Nanimonai Island a forgotten speck of green in the New World's endless blue. No Emperor claimed it. No Marine bothered to patrol it. Just sand, sparse palms, and one small oasis that barely deserved the name.
Law lay face-down in the shallows, blood clouding the water around him. His coat was shredded. His hat floated nearby like a discarded promise. Blackbeard's darkness had torn through him literally leaving gashes that wouldn't close, ribs cracked, Haki-drained body refusing to obey.
Bepo's massive paws hauled him onto the beach with desperate gentleness.
"Captain! Captain stay with me!"
The polar bear's fur was matted red. He dragged Law toward the oasis, paws sinking into hot sand, tears cutting tracks through the blood on his muzzle.
Law coughed once wet, ragged and forced his eyes open.
"Room."
A faint blue sphere flickered to life around him. Weak. Flickering. But enough.
He lifted trembling hands. Scalpel of light danced across his own torn flesh sealing arteries, knitting muscle, forcing broken bones back into alignment. Pain lanced through every nerve. He bit down on his own tongue to stay conscious.
Bepo knelt beside him, paws hovering helplessly. "Captain… you're going to be okay. We're safe here. No Emperors. No Navy. Just… just rest."
Law's voice came out hoarse. "Blackbeard… took everything. Again."
He finished the last suture internal, invisible and collapsed back onto the sand, breathing shallow.
A shadow fell over them.
Sabo stepped out from behind a cluster of palms, coat fluttering in the hot wind, pipe already lit. His eyes sharp, assessing flicked from the bloody surgeon to the trembling Mink.
"Law. You look like hell."
Law's gaze snapped up. Recognition. Then wariness.
"Revolutionary… what are you doing on a dead island?"
Sabo crouched, casual but alert. "Scouting mission. Dragon caught wind the Marines were moving hard toward a 'dead island.' Fujitora himself. We figured they weren't after scenery. Secret weapon. Devil Fruit. Something big enough to shift the board."
He glanced at Law's wounds.
Sabo exhaled smoke. Then without asking he extended a hand. Flame flickered at his fingertips, controlled, precise. He pressed it gently to the worst of Law's gashes cauterizing, sealing, stopping the bleed that Room couldn't fully handle yet.
Law hissed through clenched teeth but didn't pull away.
Sabo spoke quietly. "He took Ace from me. Destroyed our base. Took everything we'd built. I want him gone. And Luffy… my little brother… he's out there chasing the same fruit. I want to help him. Keep him alive. Keep him from becoming another name on Teach's list."
Law stared at the flame blue-white, steady. Then at Sabo's face.
"Common enemy," Law rasped.
Sabo nodded. "Common enemy."
Law pushed himself up on shaking arms. Blood still trickled from his mouth, but his eyes burned.
"I'm getting revenge. On Blackbeard. For Corazon. For everything. And I'm getting back on track. Whatever it takes."
Sabo offered a hand. Law took it grip weak but stubborn.
Sabo pulled him to his feet. "Then let's move. Fujitora's coming. The fruit's still in play. And if Blackbeard's circling… we don't have time to bleed out on a beach."
Bepo sniffled once, then straightened, wiping his eyes. "I'll carry you, Captain! Wherever we need to go!"
Law managed a faint smirk. "Don't drop me, bear."
Sabo flicked ash from his pipe. "We'll find Mugiwara. Stop Teach. And maybe just maybe end this before the whole sea burns."
The three of them wounded surgeon, grieving revolutionary, loyal Mink turned toward the horizon.
Somewhere far away, the Whispering Dunes waited.
And the fruit that bent sight pulsed once more.