Sweet Island, Totto Land.

"What did you say? Several more pirate crews have gone missing? Are you certain it wasn't the Marines?"

Katakuri's expression was grave as he reviewed the information in his hands.

Standing before him was Buffalo, an executive of the Donquixote Family.

"Yes, Katakuri-sama. Our informants haven't detected any Marine presence in the nearby waters." Buffalo's ability allowed him to fly and though his combat skills were lacking, this power enabled him to move relatively safely between various seas.

Katakuri flipped through all the reports, and a certain faction's name gradually surfaced in his mind.

"Every pirate crew that's disappeared on this list—their captains were all Devil Fruit users. Currently, in the New World, only the Blackbeard Pirates have been hunting Devil Fruit users across various locations. Their captain, Marshall D. Teach, seems to possess the ability to strip powers from others and transfer them to his own crew."

Katakuri stood up and headed towards the hall where Caesar was.

He felt this news needed to be relayed to Caesar.

The Blackbeard Pirates appeared to be treating Caesar's Tea Party as their hunting ground, ambushing isolated Devil Fruit-using pirates everywhere.

If left unchecked, Caesar's Tea Party wouldn't just fail to yield the anticipated benefits—it might even tarnish the reputation of the Beast God Pirates, earning them an undeserved label of indiscriminate slaughter among those unaware of the truth.

*****

Hachinosu Island, New World.

"Zehahaha! We really owe Caesar a debt of gratitude. His Tea Party has flushed out so many pirates. The number of abilities we've harvested in these past few days surpasses what we've gathered in the last two years combined. If we seize this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, his Tea Party will have been nothing but a bridal gift for us. After this, we'll add dozens of new Devil Fruit users to our ranks! Zehahaha!"

On his golden throne, Blackbeard laughed so hard his legs couldn't stay together.

Several petite girls fluttered around him, feeding him peeled grapes with their mouths.

"Shiryu, did you find any good abilities this time?"

Shiryu strode into the hall, clad in dark combat attire, a thick cigar clamped between his teeth.

Its ember flickered in the dimly lit chamber.

"It's the Paramecia-type Oil-Oil Fruit. Could be useful for large-scale battles."

In his hand, Shiryu held a corpse with a gaping hole in the back of its skull, clearly lifeless.

Blackbeard's expression showed slight disappointment, but he still grinned.

"Not a bad ability. By the way, where's Pizarro? Haven't heard from him in days. Didn't I send him out to hunt Devil Fruit users too?"

Shiryu casually tossed the corpse aside and pulled out a sheet of paper to wipe his longsword.

"Pizarro said he's been tracking a lone pirate and discovered that the other party might possess a powerful ability. If we can obtain it, our combat strength will achieve an unprecedented leap."

Upon hearing this, Blackbeard sat up straight in surprise.

"Oh? That guy might be a bit unreliable, but his judgment is decent. Who is this person? Any concrete information?"

Shiryu shook his head, "Not sure. Pizarro said the person looks very old but can transform into a bat. Oh, and he seems to be heading towards the Totto Land waters."

Blackbeard was taken aback, "Transform into a bat? Like Moria? Never mind, forget about him for now. How are Vasco and Lafitte doing?"

"They went hunting near the entrance waters of the New World. They should have quite the haul by now. Teach, if I may say so, we should start preparing to deal with those with formidable abilities. The renowned Devil Fruits have already been mostly divided among them—like the Marine's Logia types or the Beast God Pirates' Mythical Zoans. Even if we find more abilities from these small-time pirates, it won't significantly boost our combat strength."

Shiryu methodically wiped his bloodstained longsword, his eyes brimming with surging killing intent.

He craved slaughter, true, but massacring those weakling pirates hardly stirred his spirit.

"Zehahaha! Shiryu, I know you're itching for action, but let's wait until this operation is over. As long as this hunt gives us a substantial power boost, we'll be able to sweep through the New World without fear of any faction. Too bad we couldn't capture Gecko Moria—his Shadow-Shadow Fruit was quite something."

Darkness once again enveloped the hall.

Shiryu nodded, gripping his sword as he turned to leave.

*****

Totto Land waters, Banana Island.

This was a sparsely populated island.

Due to its proximity to Blackbeard's territory, most of the original inhabitants had relocated to other islands in Totto Land, leaving behind only the disabled, elderly and some orphans.

Walking past the beach, a stretch of forest lay ahead.

The residents of Banana Island lived in the valley beyond the trees.

"Meow~."

A small orange kitten nimbly leaped between the trees, its movements light and graceful—clearly no ordinary cat, as it effortlessly bounded from one towering tree to another, spanning dozens of meters with each jump.

The little orange cat strolled along the high branches, its bright eyes peering through the leaves to clearly observe the scene in the valley below.

"A Mythical Zoan, definitely a Mythical Zoan Fruit, meow. After over two years, I have finally found a good one, meow. If Teach can replace my current ability with this one, my strength will soar again, meow. That old man—everywhere he's passed through, he's drained the people dry. Such an evil ability, meow."

Through the kitten's eyes, a horrifying, inhumane spectacle was unfolding in the valley.

A noble-looking old man clad in a crimson cloak weaved through the valley, seizing every person he encountered by the throat before sinking his sharp fangs into them with brutal force.

As the old man's throat convulsed, his victims' bodies withered visibly like dehydrated plants.

Meanwhile, the old man's wrinkled skin gradually smoothed out and his pale, aged face regained a healthy flush of color.

No matter how desperately the valley's residents struggled, the old man's grip remained as unyielding as iron pincers.

In less than a few minutes, dozens of civilians remaining in Banana Island's valley had all lost their life force, their lifeblood completely drained by the old man.

Closing his eyes, the old man let out a satisfied moan.

His aged appearance seemed significantly rejuvenated, growing visibly younger by the moment.

From the woods, the little orange cat's eyes flickered with realization.

"Just as I thought. This wicked old man restores his youth by consuming human blood. His aura seems to have strengthened too. Can't let him continue—I'll take him down right on this island, meow."

In the valley, the old man wiped a drop of blood from his lips with a finger, his indifferent gaze turning toward the woods as if locking eyes directly with the little orange cat.

The cat startled—in its vision, the old man had vanished instantly.

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