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Chapter 38 - Chapter 38 – Blood on the Moonless Reef

Location: Grand Line – Border of the South Blue

The sea turned glassy again.

But unlike the Frost Domain, it wasn't stillness that haunted the crew.

It was absence.

No gulls. No current. Not even waves brushing the hull.

Just miles of pale water under a black sky—the Moonless Reef, a death zone whispered about in old pirate tales.

Makino stood beside the helm, rifle slung across her back, mouth tight.

Benn Beckman chewed a cigarette to the stub.

Even Shanks narrowed his eyes. "We're here too early."

Ankit watched the horizon. "No. We're exactly on time."

System Alert – Fourth Stormmark Location Confirmed

Stormmark Fragment 4 Detected: Oceanic Vault

Reef Seal: Requires Bloodline Catalyst to unlock

Catalyst Type: Ancestral Link or Soul Burn Offer

Warning: Memory Interference Present – Mental Stability May Falter

Estimated Trial Risk: Very High

Ankit exhaled slowly. "So it's a blood trial."

He turned to Shanks. "Can you feel anything?"

The red-haired captain nodded. "This sea is older than the Grand Line. It remembers things that shouldn't exist."

Landing the Ship – Entering the Reef

The Red Blade coasted slowly through the fogged reef. Coral towers jutted out like broken fangs, glowing faintly with soul-light.

Every few minutes, the ship passed wreckage—Galleons, Marine scout vessels, even a CP9 carrier vessel impaled on the coral.

Makino counted eight in total.

They hadn't aged.

"Time doesn't flow here," she muttered.

"No," said Benn. "It waits."

Then the ship jerked.

A splash below deck. Movement in the reef.

Ankit leapt to the rail and stared down—

A silhouette, pale and gliding beneath the waves, circled them.

Then another.

Then another.

The Sea of Reflections

The moment Ankit's blood hit the reef—cut from a single nick to his palm—the coral lit up.

Ghostlights danced over the sea.

A path formed, glowing like veins across the water's surface, leading to a sunken ruin shaped like a sideways crescent moon.

The crew stared at it in silence.

Ankit looked to Shanks.

"Do I go alone?"

But Benn answered, "We're not letting you walk into a place like that alone. If it's a trap, we spring it together."

Shanks added, "But once you reach the inner vault, we won't be able to follow. That's your fight."

Ankit nodded.

And stepped onto the path.

Cipher Pol View – The Eye Sets Her Trap

Far above, within a cloaked ship hovering through satellite-den-den mushi stealth, the Eye knelt over a water-mirror, her red pupil flickering.

She saw him cross the reef.

She saw the light touch his blood.

And she smiled.

"It's almost beautiful," she whispered, dragging a finger across the surface.

The Cipher Pol agent behind her trembled. "When will you move?"

She glanced back. "Now."

Then stepped onto the sea, barefoot.

Inside the Ruins – The Drowned Court

The temple submerged beneath the reef was dry inside.

Walls of black coral. Mosaics of weeping fish-people, sirens, and chained humans. Light filtered from veins in the stone.

Ankit walked alone.

Until he wasn't.

"Welcome," a voice said.

He turned. A woman stood in front of him—his mother. From Earth.

His blood froze.

It wasn't her. It couldn't be. But she smiled like she remembered him. Spoke like she knew him.

"You were always late, Ankit."

He stepped back.

System Warning: Memory Distortion Initiated

Enemy Presence Detected – External Memory Manipulation Engaged

He activated Memory Guard.

The image flickered—his mother melted into a Hollow mimic.

And behind it—

The Trial Gate pulsed.

Trial of the Fourth Stormmark – Vault of Blood Memory

To pass, you must shed what binds you most.

The gate opened.

Memory Trial – Vault of Blood Memory

Ankit walked through and found himself not in a room, but in scenes.

One after the other. Faster. More vivid.

—His childhood on Earth.

—The day he was hit by the truck.

—The night he woke up aboard the Red Blade, disoriented.

—The first time he held his swords.

—Makino bleeding on the floor.

—Shanks dying.

—Him standing on a mountain of corpses, alone.

None of it real. Not yet.

But each vision cut him. Demanded he let go of something. A regret. A bond. A promise.

Storm Trial Stage 1: Release the Regret of the Past

He stood before a version of himself—young, powerless, afraid.

The boy begged him to stop. To go back. To return to comfort.

"I can't," Ankit whispered.

He cut the boy down.

Trial Stage 2 – Forsake the Future

This time, he stood before an older version of himself.

Taller. Harsher. Crowned in gold and bones.

A version of Ankit who had grown too strong. Too distant. Alone.

"Is this what you want?" the old self asked. "To become me?"

Ankit stepped forward.

"No," he said. "But I have to walk through you to change that."

And he did.

Final Trial – Confronting the Present

This time, there was no enemy.

Only a mirror.

Ankit stared into it—and saw himself as he was now.

Afraid.

Angry.

Hopeful.

He dropped both blades.

And hugged himself.

The mirror cracked.

And the gate ahead opened.

Outside – The Eye Descends

Makino raised her rifle as the water churned.

Benn activated his Haki, gun drawn.

Shanks placed a hand on his sword, aura flaring faintly.

The sea split—

And the Eye walked across the surface like it was glass.

She wore white and black ribbons. No shoes. A single pupil in one eye. The other—burned and sewn shut.

"I am not here for you," she said to Shanks. "But stand in my way…"

She smiled. "And I'll burn your names from the sea itself."

Shanks stepped forward anyway.

Makino fired.

The Eye vanished.

Ankit's Awakening – The Fourth Stormmark

In the final chamber, Ankit stood before a pulsing pearl-shaped relic embedded in coral thorns.

Stormmark Fragment 4 Acquired – Blood Memory Core

Soul Trial Passed

Emotional Sync +5.2%

Total Sync: 63.9%

New Skill Gained: Memory Cleave

Slash that cuts through illusions, dreams, or future projections. Also damages time-altering abilities.

Cooldown: 30 min.

Trait Gained: Emotional Anchor (Passive)

Immune to fear-based mind control or identity loss once per day.

System Note: The Eye is present. Danger Level: A-Rank Threat.

Ankit sheathed his blades and stepped out of the chamber—

Just as the temple shook.

Final Scene – Shanks vs. The Eye (Part 1)

Above, Shanks moved faster than light—sword drawn in one clean arc.

The Eye danced backward, weaving ribbons like blades.

Makino and Benn joined the fray—Haki flaring, gunfire ringing, but nothing touched her.

She laughed.

"I see you all. I see everything you will be."

Then Ankit arrived—soulflame erupting from his body.

Her smile faded.

"You," she said softly, eyes narrowing. "You're wrong. You're off."

He raised his blades.

"No. I'm me. And I've had enough of watchers."

They clashed.

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