Chapter 186: Chapter 186: Marking "Sun and Moon" on Charlotte Linlin
"92 minutes."
Shakky muttered the time to herself.
It took only 92 minutes to finish the fight.
Twenty-eight minutes faster than two hours.
"Can a human being really achieve this?"
Shakky stared at the clock, unable to return to her senses for a long time.
"Linlin's performance just now wasn't weaker than Kaido's."
It wasn't because the opponent had become weaker.
"The Captain has gotten stronger again."
Shakky looked towards the distant battlefield where fierce winds still howled, her gaze filled with astonishment.
She realized her mindset was becoming more and more unstable.
She had once thought that, having sailed with the Rocks Pirates and followed the most powerful ruler, alongside monstrous crewmates, there wouldn't be anything that could shake her mental state anymore.
This was her second voyage at sea.
She had believed that no matter what she witnessed or encountered, nothing could significantly affect her emotions or mindset.
But now she realized,
She had been too naive.
Too ignorant.
"The Captain has already surpassed Captain Rocks."
In that moment, Shakky firmly believed in her own judgment.
She was sure of it.
"Shakky, you're sighing too soon. Don't forget, our Captain has just turned twenty," Stussy reminded Shakky.
Who said our Captain has reached his limit now?
Shakky was stunned.
By the railing on the deck,
Stussy, Smoothie, Amande, and Custard stood together.
They hadn't fully blended into the Sun and Moon Pirates yet. All four were sisters, and they had once belonged to the Big Mom Pirates.
Naturally, the four of them had unknowingly gathered together.
Their mother and their new Captain Kuke were fighting.
They didn't know who to support.
So, they waited in silence for the outcome.
Internally, they were filled with the most intense shock.
Smoothie, the proud one, Amande, the melancholic one, and Custard, the calm one—no matter their personalities, their reaction was the same.
They were all dumbfounded.
"Who won?" Galette asked dumbly.
They were too far away,
Unable to see the final result.
"Captain Kuke has been pressing Mother the entire time. It's unlikely she was defeated instantly," Custard analyzed hesitantly.
Most likely, the new Captain, Kuke, had won.
"Kuke is that much stronger than Mother?" Smoothie bit her lip.
She distinctly remembered the battle at Sabaody Archipelago.
Back then, Kuke hadn't shown strength beyond Mother's.
An hour and a half?
Smoothie felt that if she faced Mother, she might also last that long.
Whoosh—
Beside her, Amande,
Suddenly drew her sword.
Amid Smoothie and the others' startled gazes, Amande carved two words onto her own arm with the blade.
Sun and Moon.
Pirates usually tattooed themselves with symbols of their crew.
It was a matter of pride.
And a mark of lifelong identity.
In the past, the Big Mom Pirates' flag was too garish and cumbersome, not to mention unattractive, so Amande had only adorned her clothing with the family symbol.
But this time,
She directly carved "Sun" onto her left arm.
And "Moon" onto her right arm.
"I said that if Captain Kuke won, I'd be a member of the Sun and Moon Pirates for the rest of my life."
Amande looked calmly at the dumbfounded Smoothie, Galette, and Custard.
They stared at the blood-covered letters Amande had carved.
Very surprised.
They had never expected Amande, the most rational one among them, to be the first to make such a crazy move.
"Then I'll..."
Galette seemed eager to join in.
She began searching her body for the best place to carve.
Eventually, Galette decided on her snow-white thigh.
Borrowing Amande's blade, she suddenly paused, hesitantly saying, "Isn't it the Captain's duty to leave unique marks on his crewmembers?"
"Aren't you all too hasty? Mother's not necessarily lost; what if—"
"Look, they're coming out," Custard interrupted Smoothie, pointing into the distance.
...
"Mother might not have lost."
"Yes, we have to believe in Mother. Mother is the strongest."
"Mother will be the one to sit on the Empty Throne. How could she lose here?"
All the Big Mom Pirates members,
Kept repeating words like these.
Trying to convince themselves, to comfort themselves.
"Look, there!"
Their discussion suddenly ceased.
A burly figure appeared in the dust cloud, faintly visible.
"Is it Mother?"
The body shapes of Big Mom and Kuke were vastly different.
Kuke was tall, over two meters.
He had a lean, well-proportioned build—not scrawny, but not overly muscular either—just the perfect physique.
But Big Mom,
Was over six meters tall, with a very distinct obese build.
From the silhouette visible through the dust,
They could roughly determine who it was.
The silhouette was not Kuke's; it was wide and rounded.
"It must be Mother! Mother won!" Perospero and the others expressed their delight.
"Something seems off. Why does Mother seem shorter?" Cracker asked, staring at the shadow with doubt.
They didn't dare use their Observation Haki to perceive the area.
On the seas, using Observation Haki without permission was an act of disrespect towards strong individuals. With those who were even slightly temperamental, it could easily lead to a massacre.
"Mother should be injured, heavily wounded, and depleted from her life force; that's why she's hunched over, right?" Perospero speculated.
"Yes, definitely. As long as she won, it's worth it."
"Haha, soon the Yonko Kuke will belong to Mother, and the Sun and Moon Pirates will have no choice but to join us—our family will be unstoppable."
"It will be easy for Mother to become the Pirate King."
"Quick, go help Mother."
They cheered in excitement.
Leaping towards the shadow in elation.
They had felt suppressed for the past two or three days, but finally, they received great news.
Onboard the Radiant Eclipse, apart from Smoothie and the other three, the rest of the crew remained composed.
Did Big Mom win?
Did Kuke lose?
Such an idea never crossed their minds. Even Makino and the weaker members felt no concern.
Amande blinked her bewildered eyes, staring at the still bleeding words "Sun and Moon."
"Did I carve it too soon?"
...
"Mother..."
"Mother..."
A large group of children ran excitedly towards "Big Mom."
Just as they reached the edge of the dust cloud,
A figure emerged from the haze.
Everyone's expression froze, their mouths still calling out for their mother, but no sound came out.
"K-Kuke!!"
They struggled to stay on their feet, collapsing in heaps.
Those lying on the ground forgot to get up; all stared at the sight ahead as if they had seen a ghost.
Kuke was dragging Big Mom behind him,
Emerging from the dust.
The result was entirely different from what they had anticipated.
Regardless of strength—whether it was a high-ranking officer like Cracker or a three-year-old like Flampe—all felt like helpless blades of grass in a storm.
Being mercilessly pounded and tossed about by the raging tempest.
Their fur stood on end, and their minds went blank, filled with helpless confusion.
Kuke continued dragging Big Mom forward.
They dumbly made way for him.
Perospero, suppressing his fear, asked, "Wait, where are you taking Mother?"
Kuke turned to them. "She's your mother, but now she's also my crewmember, my subordinate. Naturally, she goes with me."
On the backs of Big Mom's hands, two crimson characters, "Sun" and "Moon," had already been branded.
Her identity had changed.
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DONT FORGET POWER STONE
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