Whether it was via the Azure Dragon Fruit or the Float-Float Fruit, Shin was an expert in aerial combat. Not to mention, he also could control gravitational forces with the Rinnegan.
While Imu could float in the air, her agility was nowhere near Shin's. Why would she deliberately engage in a battle where her opponent had the advantage?
'Unless her true weakness lies within the Red Line itself!'
She was instinctively guarding something.
Realizing this, Shin abandoned his immediate battle with Imu and descended toward the Red Line.
For the first time, Imu hesitated. Then, in a blur, she followed him without hesitation.
Shin smirked as he landed on the ruins of Mary Geoise and turned to face her. "So it's true… Your true weakness is here!"
Imu's expression stiffened.
With a burst of energy, Shin clasped his hands together, forming a black sphere pulsating with dark smoke.
"Black Hole - Planetary Devastation!"
Having consumed the Chakra Fruit and incorporated countless Zoan-type Devil Fruits, Shin's chakra reserves were vast—far surpassing even Kaguya Otsutsuki. This version of Planetary Devastation was nothing short of a miniature black hole.
A gravitational force of terrifying magnitude erupted from the sphere, pulling everything in its path toward the growing mass. Imu struggled against the force, but even she was dragged upward like a mere leaf caught in a storm.
The destruction spread exponentially. One kilometer, ten kilometers, one hundred kilometers… The Red Line itself fractured as the gravitational pull hollowed out the land beneath Mary Geoise.
Then, suddenly, the black hole imploded.
A deafening explosion shook the world as the compressed mass violently expanded outward, reducing everything caught in its wake to rubble. The Red Line, once an indomitable wall dividing the seas, now bore a massive, gaping hole.
Shin stared in astonishment. Thick golden roots, pulsating with luminous energy, were exposed within the Red Line.
"Is that… the legendary Sunlight Tree Eve?"
The Sunlight Tree Eve—is said to illuminate Fishman Island, providing it with light from above. But if its roots reached this deep, then...
Could it be something even more than that?
For years, the legend stated that the tree's roots extended for tens of thousands of meters. But now, Shin could see it firsthand. The Sunlight Tree Eve wasn't just growing near the Red Line—it was part of it.
He muttered to himself, "The tree and the Red Line… They're one and the same?"
His mind raced. If the Sunlight Tree Eve was the foundation of the Red Line, then it had likely been altered—or even manipulated—to serve some deeper purpose.
His eyes narrowed. "And if Imu is connected to it… then that means—"
Before he could finish his thought, Imu reappeared. But this time, her energy had weakened.
She gazed at him coldly. "I see. You've figured it out."
Shin's expression turned sharp. "You're the tree."
A cruel smirk formed on Imu's lips. "More than that. I am the soul of the Sunlight Tree Eve."
[T/N: Remember this is fanfic! The author took some creative liberty to fill in the gaps. As of writing, Imu's identity is not revealed yet.]
"For the past 800 years, no one has ever come close to discovering my secret. But you… you are the first."
Shin's smirk mirrored hers. "You're talking like you still have a future."
For the first time, Imu's eyes darkened.
"I hope you understand the consequences," she said icily. "If I die, the world's climate will descend into chaos. The weather you know now—the very balance that sustains the seas—will collapse."
Shin frowned, his mind processing her words.
Imu continued, "I was created to regulate the world after the war 800 years ago. Without me, the oceans will rage, the skies will blacken, and the world will fall into disorder once more."
For a moment, silence stretched between them.
Then Shin let out a long sigh. "So that's your trump card?"
Imu met his gaze with an eerie calm. "Unlike the Celestial Dragons, I had no desire to rule. My only purpose was to maintain balance. But they… they twisted my existence into a tool for their own selfish reign."
Shin studied her carefully. "If that's true, then how did you come into existence?"
Imu's gaze flickered, but she answered, "The twenty kings who founded the World Government sacrificed their souls to merge with the Sunlight Tree Eve. I am their collective will."
Shin's smirk widened. "No. That's not quite right."
Imu's expression faltered slightly.
"You weren't created to serve the world," Shin said. "You were their desperate attempt at immortality. But something went wrong, didn't it?"
Shin took a step forward, his voice firm. "They didn't give birth to you. They tried to take over the Sunlight Tree Eve for themselves. Instead of preserving their own will, their souls were absorbed, leaving only you behind."
Imu's cold facade cracked ever so slightly. "...Interesting theory."
Shin chuckled. "You can't deny it, can you? You're nothing more than the remnants of those kings, fused together and parasitic on this world's greatest tree."
The tension in the air thickened.
For the first time in centuries… Imu had nothing to say.
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P.S. Can anybody help me create a new cover fic? I don't know where to create a fire cover. Just drop it in the comments. Shin will travel to the multiverse after this One Piece Arc.