Grand Line – Karakuri Island
As a winter island, this small landmass was covered in snow all year round. Many animals had thick fur to survive the freezing temperatures, and the islanders wore various leather clothes to keep warm.
Due to the harsh environment, the island was not very developed yet, and its nickname as a "Mechanical Island" had not become famous—until a young genius named Vegapunk appeared.
This prodigy loved studying all kinds of things. In an effort to boost the island's defenses and labor capabilities, he invented semi-mechanized transformed animals.
These animals, controlled by Vegapunk, could not only defend against pirates but also serve as powerful laborers—clearing mountains, cultivating land, and aiding in hunting.
To improve the lives of the islanders and develop Karakuri Island, Vegapunk began designing massive island-wide heating furnaces, intending to use geothermal energy to alleviate the severe cold.
However, because of funding issues, many rare materials and parts could not be gathered. No matter how brilliant he was, Vegapunk couldn't create something out of nothing. The project was eventually suspended and halted by the island's leaders.
It was simply too expensive—the island's finances couldn't support it.
Only Vegapunk dared to dream of using technology to change the Grand Line's special weather.
If it weren't his hometown, Vegapunk would've long abandoned this resource-starved, hardware-poor winter island. But deep down, he still wanted to make his birthplace a better place.
The invention of various mechanisms and weapons had already boosted trade, bringing more income to Karakuri Island. In turn, the leader invested in building a special research and invention laboratory for Vegapunk, the young scientific genius.
Still, Vegapunk hadn't given up on the plan to restart the massive island furnace. Without it, true development would be impossible.
But the island's leaders didn't want to risk undertaking such a money-burning, uncertain project. Instead, they instructed Vegapunk to focus on researching profitable mechanical weapons.
Inside his research institute, Vegapunk glanced at the assistants assigned by the leaders.
Each one of them was timid, unimaginative, and had no talent for invention.
They could only follow his designs, helping him turn blueprints into practical products that could be mass-produced for the kingdom.
"I really want to recruit some smarter members... preferably scientists with wild ideas and unconstrained research skills!"
Vegapunk yearned for companions he could exchange ideas with, brainstorming together to spark true inspiration. He felt that his current horizons were still too narrow.
Ever since he ate that strange-patterned fruit, his life had become incredibly simple.
He could absorb knowledge at an extraordinary speed. After consulting various materials, Vegapunk realized he had eaten a Devil Fruit—the Nomi-Nomi Fruit.
Thanks to its power, he had devoured every book he could get his hands on, mastering a wide range of subjects.
He had become a jack-of-all-trades.
But funding and creativity were still constraints. At only 13 years old, no matter how gifted he was, Vegapunk couldn't yet create world-shaking inventions.
Maybe it was also because his foundation knowledge hadn't reached enough depth yet.
Genius was said to be 99% hard work and 1% inspiration—but that 1% was the spark that led from nothing to something.
Before light bulbs were invented, who could've imagined that certain materials could glow when electricity passed through them?
Vegapunk planned to travel and study at sea when he got a bit older.
He wanted to read every book in the world, acquire endless knowledge, and recruit like-minded geniuses to create new inventions that would change the world.
And most importantly, he still dreamed of transforming Karakuri Island into a warm spring island instead of a frozen wasteland.
Currently, he relied on a steady stream of books brought in by trade caravans from the outside world.
But it wasn't nearly fast enough to match his learning speed.
At this stage, the Future Kingdom rarely had much contact with the Four Seas.
According to rumors, the legendary O'Hara in the West Blue had the most scholars and the world's largest library—the Tree of Omniscience.
Vegapunk decided: once he came of age, he would find a way to return to the West Blue and immerse himself in that endless sea of knowledge.
He was also highly curious about the Devil Fruits that granted people supernatural powers.
Unfortunately, he didn't have any extra fruits to study, and the island's leaders weren't about to throw away a treasure worth over 100 million berries just for his experiments!
This frustrated Vegapunk.
No matter how smart he was, without resources, funds, or support, he was still helpless.
Currently, Vegapunk was only somewhat famous in the Future Kingdom and Karakuri Island—not enough to alarm the World Government yet.
Perhaps only if he managed to uncover the 'blueprint of life' would the World Government become truly shocked and arrest him, dragging this boy who was 500 years ahead of the world into their control!
---
Meanwhile, Karakuri Island, now recognized as a mechanical island in the Grand Line, had become an easy target for the Economic News Agency's intelligence operatives.
They had already sent back a permanent pointer!
Brook's Golden Island was now following the guidance of that permanent pointer, sailing straight toward Karakuri Island—hoping to recruit this little-known scientist before anyone else!
"Brother Brook, is this Vegapunk really as amazing as you say? Will he really become the number one scientist in the future?"
The sniper Hiruba and the shipwright Tom, both passionate about inventions, were extremely excited about the prospect of meeting Vegapunk.
As for the Four Great Fighters, they didn't care much for scientific matters.
Their focus was solely on combat power.
Previously, Brook had tried but failed to get training in the Conqueror's Haki Entanglement technique from Diger.
Now, all they could do was continue practicing Ryuo Haki (Flowing Haki) and developing their Devil Fruit abilities.
Based on current information, only three top dogs—Rocks, Diger, and the Old Ice Demon—had demonstrated Conqueror's Haki Entanglement.
At the moment, Brook didn't even know where to look for the practice method, nor was he sure if any of the Four Great Fighters had Conqueror's Haki strong enough to entangle.
"Vegapunk is really that amazing," Brook said seriously. "Even if we have to kidnap him, we have to get him on board!"
Brook both admired and feared Vegapunk.
This man could single-handedly propel the world's technology forward.
If Vegapunk ended up in enemy hands, especially the World Government's, the consequences would be disastrous.
If they couldn't recruit Vegapunk...
Brook would have no choice but to destroy him.
After all, once the Hell Pirates seized control of the seas, their resources would rival even those of the World Government—and they couldn't afford to let such a genius be used against them!
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With the dominant position of the Hell Pirates and the support of two underground dark world forces, there should be enough resources to support Vegapunk's research!
Sooner or later, he would be able to develop the Peacekeepers, the cyborgs of Germa 66, and other war machines, and even artificial Devil Fruits. After all, the first artificial Devil Fruit was created by him.
Speaking of this, it seemed Brook would have to pass through Dressrosa when he returned to the Grand Line this time. Should he conquer the dwarves on Green Bit Island?
These dwarves were natural managers, claiming they could grow any plant. In the future, Doflamingo would use them to cultivate artificial Devil Fruits.
Currently, the dwarves in Dressrosa were seen as fairies who could "borrow" things. Some people liked them, while others hated them. Moreover, the dwarves couldn't lie and were easily deceived, so the king of the dwarves wouldn't let his people appear in front of humans!
Brook had already set the dwarf tribe as his target. When the time came, and Shiki the Golden Lion's Float-Float Fruit (Fuwa Fuwa no Mi) became stronger, he would simply move Green Bit Island back to Sky Island!
But first, they had to find Vegapunk. Vegapunk's wisdom only grew stronger with age. Brook had to conquer him as soon as possible!
He even thought of a method. Since Vegapunk had always wanted to transform his hometown, Karakuri Island, Brook would simply ask Golden Lion Shiki to help move their hometown to a new location—or move it back to the New World!
It would all depend on Vegapunk's decision. As for the future king of the kingdom, Brook said the Hell Pirates wouldn't take him seriously.
The Golden Island flew southeast, passing by Sheep Island, which Charlotte Linlin (Big Mom) had always dreamed of. With Brook's comfort, they didn't land and continued moving forward.
They passed Broccoli Island, Dressrosa... and other islands until they saw the towering Red Line.
Brook and the others certainly wouldn't dare cross the Holy Land of Mary Geoise in such a high-profile manner.
Instead, they chose to cross the Red Line near the Calm Belt. Brook told his crew the stories and legends about this place. He had heard that the Holy Land Mary Geoise was built by the Celestial Dragons after they conquered the Lunarian race's Kingdom of God.
Now, the Lunarians had been almost exterminated by the Celestial Dragons, with only a few surviving, trapped in the research laboratories of the World Government to be studied and have their bloodlines extracted.
The Lunarians were known not only for their wings but also for the flames they could generate on their bodies. They were a rare race said to survive any harsh natural environment.
Because of this, even the Celestial Dragons coveted their natural gifts. After overthrowing the Lunarians, the Celestial Dragons crowned themselves as the "Gods" and stripped the Lunarians of that title. Thus, the Celestial Dragons decided they must eradicate the Lunarians.
Now, Lunarians were nothing but experimental subjects for the World Government's scientists.
Hearing these hidden truths, Redfield clenched his fists tightly. It was those damned Celestial Dragons again—truly disgusting!
"Brother Brook, if we ever have the chance, we must rescue the Lunarian tribe and let this race survive!!"
Redfield said through gritted teeth. His hatred for the Celestial Dragons was immense. Beside him, Tom the Fishman and Fisher Tiger also glared toward the direction of Mary Geoise.
Many of their fellow Fishmen had been captured by the Celestial Dragons and turned into slaves!
One day, they would storm the Holy Land of Mary Geoise and liberate their people. Fisher Tiger had already quietly started training. Only by becoming strong enough would he have the right to save them!
The atmosphere suddenly grew heavy. The notoriety of the Celestial Dragons was truly world-famous—the entire world hated these damn oppressors!
"As long as I find their laboratories, I will definitely rescue the Lunarians. This race should not go extinct at the hands of the Celestial Dragons!"
Brook vowed. If given the chance, he would never miss out on recruiting such a powerful race. Lunarians were born natural warriors—capable of land, sea, and aerial combat—perfect hexagonal monsters!
After passing the Red Line, Brook thought about it and decided he should transport the two Poneglyphs from Fishman Island later.
They weren't going anywhere anyway.
Besides, coating the ship with soap bubbles would expose their location, and being detected while searching the Grand Line could easily draw Navy attention!
So, they didn't stop; the Golden Island flew directly toward Karakuri Island.
In Brook's mind, finding Vegapunk was even more important than confronting Kaido, so their priority was visiting the Mechanical Island first before the Vodka Kingdom.
Currently, the Vodka Kingdom had become a member of the World Government and had to pay a massive amount of "Heavenly Tribute" every year through warfare.
Yet despite that, they weren't qualified to attend the Reverie (World Conference).
Thus, the king decided to sell Kaido to the Marines in exchange for qualification to attend the next Reverie!
After several days of flying, Brook and his companions finally reached the waters near the Future Kingdom—Karakuri Island—making Brook even more excited to meet this genius scientist for the first time!
At this moment, Vegapunk was still researching the possibility of implanting abilities into machines or modifying animals, but due to a lack of Devil Fruits as materials, this idea was temporarily shelved.
He continued his research on animal modifications and robot invention projects.
At the same time, he was simplifying the construction process of massive island heating furnaces, trying to save more costs.
He had restarted this massive project to improve people's lives and boost the kingdom's development.
Suddenly, one of his upgraded astronomical telescopes, used to observe weather and meteorology, detected a strange phenomenon in the sky.
What did he see?
An island looming above the clouds—and shimmering with gold?!
From his professional perspective, this was none other than the legendary Golden Island!
Vegapunk's mind raced. His photographic memory instantly recalled a report from the World Economic News Agency:
The Golden Island of the Hell Pirates, one of the four new overlords of the New World!
The images from the wanted posters of the Hell Pirates' crew members flashed in his mind.
At this moment, his face turned pale.
If the Hell Pirates attacked Karakuri Island, this place wouldn't stand a chance—it would be destroyed!
He was smart, but not smart enough to withstand a direct assault from such a terrifying pirate crew.
His semi-mechanized animals were simply no match for them.
Immediately, Vegapunk sounded the island's alarms, dashed out of his laboratory, and started up the alloy-modified submarine he had invented—ready to flee the island at any moment!
But... this was his hometown—the land where he was born and raised. His parents were still living here.
How could he abandon them and the townspeople?
Rationality screamed at him to run, but his emotions demanded he stay and protect them.
Would he gamble everything on a slim chance?
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