They say: shoot the horse to stop the rider; seize the king to break the army.
Defeat Gecko Moria and his zombies will be rendered powerless. Once the powers of the Shadow-Shadow Fruit have been dispelled, the corpses will be nothing more than empty shells.
Using information from his blood bats, Rokuya led Sadi and the others directly to Moria's location.
Most of the minions here were just zombies — no blood, no soul, no use.
They couldn't feed his Death River, so Rokuya wasn't interested.
A few minutes later, they reached the central hall.
Seated on the throne was the towering form of Gecko Moria, and nearby stood Hogback, the ship's twisted doctor, in a surgical coat.
Moria immediately noticed their arrival.
"Huh?"
"Who dares intrude on my castle?!"
He rose, visibly startled.
In all his years of ruling this fog-shrouded ship, no living person had ever just walked into his hall like this — at least, not without an invitation.
'Wait a minute... You're the intruder Absalom reported, aren't you?!'
"Where is he?! What did you do to Absalom?!'
Rokuya's presence made things clear, and Moria's face twisted with fury.
He had ordered Absalom to deal with any intruders, and now the enemy was here, alive and well, while Absalom was nowhere to be seen.
'Answer me, you bastard!'
Moria's voice boomed across the hall.
Despite his eccentricities, he cared deeply for his subordinates.
Even in the original timeline, he had stormed Blackbeard's territory to rescue Absalom, despite the danger.
'Haha… He made the first move. Can't blame me for that.'
'But don't worry — you'll be seeing him again soon.'
Rokuya grinned darkly.
When it came to male opponents, he never held back. They were nothing but fuel for his Death River — and, if needed, potential summoned pawns.
Two birds. One bullet.
Moria's zombie army relied on strong shadows. But Rokuya had something far better: the ability to create loyal vampiric familiars with free will and unwavering obedience.
Why settle for rotting corpses when he could build a living army?
He had no intention of working with Moria. No point.
"You bastard! Then I'll just take your shadow!"
Moria pulled out his massive pair of shears, ready to strike.
If this man had killed Absalom, he would pay. His shadow would serve the zombie legion.
"Shadow?" Rokuya raised an eyebrow. "What's that?"
He smirked, amused.
"...?!?"
'...?!'
Moria suddenly froze.
He saw it.
The man standing in front of him cast no shadow.
His eyes widened in shock.
'You... you don't have a shadow?!'
What the hell are you?"
The atmosphere grew tense.
In all his years, Moria had never encountered anything like this. A living man with no shadow?
"Want to find out?"
Come visit the Death River."
Rokuya's voice turned cold.
"Insolent worm!"
'If you have no shadow, you're useless to me! Die!"
Join Absalom in the afterlife!"
Moria's temper exploded.
He'd hoped to capture Rokuya's shadow and enlist him in his army.
But this? A man with no shadow was worthless.
"Shadow Box: Yagitsune Coffin!"
Dozens of black bats shot forth from Moria's own shadow, encircling Rokuya.
A giant cube of darkness formed around him, sealing off all escape routes.
Moria's eerie laughter echoed through the chamber.
Rokuya, familiar with this move from the original story, remained unfazed.
"Is that your best shot, washed-up Warlord?"
You think you can restrain me with this?"
With the power of the Vampire King Alucard, Rokuya could ignore any restraints and pass through barriers at will.
This cube meant nothing to him.
"Let me show you what real darkness looks like."
"Veil of Eternal Night!"
Suddenly, dark mist poured out from beneath Rokuya's feet and from behind him.
From within the black fog emerged swarms of blood bats, flapping into the sky.
Dozens. Then hundreds.
Within seconds, the entire castle was enshrouded in a living vortex of wings and screeches.
'...?!'
"What the hell are you?"
'Can you summon bats too?'
Moria was stunned.
First no shadow, and now this?
The bat swarm mirrored his own abilities, yet was somehow even more refined.
He was dumbfounded.
He had roamed the Grand Line for decades. From the moment Gol D. Roger was executed to his final battle with Kaido, he had witnessed a great deal.
But this?
This was the first time he had encountered someone whose abilities overlapped with his own — and possibly surpassed them.
"Hahaha!"
"You're getting more and more interesting!"
'No shadow... and powers like mine...'
'If you won't talk, then I'll just beat the answers out of you!'
His expression shifted.
Curiosity overtook caution.
Moria grinned widely, preparing for battle.