“The Senju Clan?!” Pirate-World Ethan stared at his counterpart with unconcealed envy.
“You seriously hit the jackpot.” Same soul.
Same person.
Completely different luck.
Senju Ethan let out a weary sigh and spread his hands.
“Brother, this is the Warring States Era—not the peaceful beginning of Naruto canon.
The Senju and Uchiha are out there cracking each other’s skulls open every other week.” He gave a helpless laugh.
“Do you have any idea how dangerous that is?” “Still better than slavery,” Pirate-World Ethan shot back instantly.
Then curiosity lit up his face.
“So who’s leading the clan right now?
Have you met Hashirama Senju yet?” At that, Senju Ethan visibly brightened.
“The future First Hokage officially became clan head not long ago.” “And recently, he personally selected several younger clan members to train in Wood Release.” He pointed at himself proudly.
“I’m one of them.” Pirate-World Ethan nearly stopped breathing from jealousy.
Wood Release.
Hashirama Senju’s legendary Kekkei Genkai.
Even among the Senju Clan, almost nobody could master it.
In theory, Wood Release was merely the fusion of Earth and Water Chakra natures.
Simple in concept.
Monstrous in execution.
Forcing two Chakra natures together carried enormous risks.
A failed fusion could damage Chakra pathways permanently—or kill the user outright.
Only those with extraordinary compatibility had any chance of success.
Senju Ethan continued casually: “And among everyone Hashirama personally trained…” A smug grin spread across his face.
“I’m the only one who succeeded.” Pirate-World Ethan stared.
“Seriously?” Senju Ethan nodded.
“I had just mastered it before I got dragged into the Soul Palace.” Pirate-World Ethan hesitated only briefly before blurting out: “Can I see it?” Some Kekkei Genkai techniques required no hand seals at all.
Senju Ethan chuckled and brought his palms together.
The instant he did, Chakra surged through his body.
Branches erupted from his shoulders.
Vines spiraled down his arms.
Living wood spread across his skin with explosive vitality, pulsing like a living organism.
“How’s that?” he asked proudly.
Pirate-World Ethan could only stare.
“That’s insane…” But before he could finish— something inside him stirred.
A strange energy awakened deep within his body.
Almost instinctively, he mirrored the same motion and slammed his palms together.
Then— wood burst violently from his arms.
Thick branches exploded outward, twisting around him in an instant.
Pirate-World Ethan froze.
Senju Ethan froze even harder.
“…What?” The two stared at the spreading vines in stunned silence.
Pirate-World Ethan was using Wood Release.
Senju Ethan’s eyes widened abruptly.
“You can use my abilities?” Then realization struck him.
“If that’s true…” He looked up sharply.
“Then I should be able to use yours too.” Pirate-World Ethan slowly nodded.
“That’s probably how the Soul Palace works.” Then his expression twisted awkwardly.
“Unfortunately, I don’t actually have anything useful yet.” “No…” Senju Ethan suddenly frowned.
He placed a hand against his chest as though sensing something internally.
Then his expression changed.
“My Chakra…” For the first time, genuine shock appeared on his face.
“It’s become far more active.” His eyes widened slightly.
“Almost double what it was before.” Pirate-World Ethan blinked.
“The more counterparts we connect with… the faster all of us grow stronger?” “That has to be it.” Excitement ignited in Senju Ethan’s eyes.
“If every version of us eventually synchronizes…” A grin spread slowly across his face.
“We’re going to become absolute monsters.” The two immediately began imagining increasingly ridiculous possibilities.
Shared bloodlines.
Shared powers.
Shared growth across the Infinite Worlds.
The potential was terrifying.
But before either could continue, pale mist began pouring through the Soul Palace.
The vast hall blurred around them.
Both instantly sensed the same thing.
They were being forced out.
Senju Ethan reacted immediately.
“No clue when we’ll meet again,” he said quickly.
“Get stronger as fast as possible.” Pirate-World Ethan nodded.
Then the world shattered apart.
Pain.
Blinding agony tore through Ethan’s chest.
He jolted awake just as the guard pulled away the branding iron.
Inside the Soul Palace, it had felt like hours.
In reality— barely a second had passed.
The guard noticed Ethan waking and let out a mocking laugh.
“Heh.
Tougher than I thought.” He lifted the branding iron again.
“Let’s see how long you last this time.” But he failed to notice something horrifying.
The branded flesh on Ethan’s chest was already healing.
Rapidly.
Far beyond what any normal human body should have been capable of.
Chakra coursed through Ethan’s limbs.
Strength flooded every muscle.
Then— “RAAAAH!” With a furious roar, Ethan tore the chains apart.
The guard’s eyes widened in horror.
Before he could react, Ethan lunged forward and seized him by the throat.
Wood Release activated instantly.
Vines exploded from Ethan’s body, wrapping around the guard like living serpents.
Crack.
Crack-crack.
Bones shattered one after another as the vines constricted mercilessly.
The guard stared at Ethan in absolute terror.
“A… Devil Fruit user…” Regret flashed across his face.
Then the light vanished from his eyes.
Dead.
Ethan released the corpse and drew a sharp breath.
There was no turning back anymore.
Killing a guard inside Mary Geoise was a direct challenge to the authority of the Celestial Dragons.
If he stayed here, death was inevitable.
But escaping blindly would be suicide too.
Mary Geoise was guarded year-round by a Marine Admiral.
Not to mention elite Marines stationed everywhere.
And Cipher Pol.
Especially CP0.
The monsters among monsters.
Ethan understood the situation perfectly.
With his current strength, fighting his way out head-on was impossible.
“So I need chaos.” As much chaos as possible.
Then suddenly, a memory surfaced.
Fisher Tiger.
The legendary slave uprising.
The man who once set the Holy Land itself ablaze.
Ethan’s eyes sharpened.
“…Fine.” If he was going to escape— he might as well make history while doing it.
He sprinted from the torture chamber and raced back through the underground prison.
Soon, the slave cells came back into view.
The moment Hancock and her sisters saw him return alive, relief flashed across their faces.
Then confusion.
Then shock.
Then fear.
Because no guards accompanied him.
Ethan had returned alone.
Sandalonia’s eyes widened first.
“You…!” Her voice shook.
“Did you kill the guard?!” Ethan nodded calmly.
Marigold immediately went pale.
The sisters had imagined killing their captors countless times— but never once dared act on it.
Even Hancock stood frozen.
From the moment she met Ethan, she’d sensed something unusual about him.
But this… This was insanity.
Dangerous insanity.
And yet— deep inside her chest— it felt unbelievably satisfying.
Because Ethan had done what she herself had dreamed of doing countless times.
Hancock recovered first.
“You need to run,” she urged urgently.
“Now.
Before they discover what happened.” “If the Celestial Dragons catch you…” Her face darkened.
“You’ll wish they killed you immediately.” “I know,” Ethan replied calmly.
Then he looked down the endless prison corridors.
“But before I leave…” His eyes narrowed slightly.
“I’m getting everyone out.” “What?!” Sandalonia and Marigold cried out together.
At a time like this— he still wanted to save people?
Hancock stared at him as if he’d lost his mind.
“Don’t be stupid!” Her voice rose sharply.
“There are countless slaves imprisoned underground!
Even if you opened every cell yourself, how long would that take?!” For the first time, genuine worry filled her voice.
An incident like this had never happened in Mary Geoise.
If Ethan were captured now, his fate would become worse than death.
But what Hancock didn’t realize— was that Ethan’s goal had never been simple heroism.
The more slaves escaped… the more the Marines and World Government forces would be forced to split their attention.
And the greater Ethan’s chances of surviving became.
Without another word, Ethan crouched in the middle of the prison corridor.
Then he pressed both palms against the stone floor.