New Age

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The chapter proper begins in the Flower Capital on the party's following night, with the title "Chapter 1055: New Age." While the city continues to celebrate, the battle against Admiral Ryokugyu rages outside. Yamato tries to charge in, asking, "Why?! Why won't you let me fight?!" but Momonosuke shouts, "Stop, Yamato!" and insists, "You mustn't lay a hand on him!" Ryokugyu is still in his monstrous tree form and reacts with "Ngh!" as Momonosuke, in dragon form, forces himself into the fight. The page sets the emotional rule for the conflict: Momo is no longer letting Wano's strongest guests fight in his place.

Raizo attacks Ryokugyu with fire, shouting, "Ninpo: Scroll-Scroll Jutsu!! Fire Release!!" Flames crash into the admiral's forest body and Ryokugyu screams "Guwah!" before revealing it was a bluff. He laughs, "Just kidding!" and counters with "Fireproof Forest!!" Ryokugyu mocks the idea that fire would defeat him so easily, saying, "You're up against a Navy admiral! You think I wouldn't be able to guard against such an obvious weakness?!" Vines surge forward and catch Raizo, who cries out "Ugh!" as the admiral's power begins draining him. The page shows that even a seemingly natural weakness has been covered by Ryokugyu's advanced control over his plant body.

The samurai panic as Raizo is seized. They shout "Raizo?!" and "Raizo-san!!" while Ryokugyu's vines pierce and drain him. The others slash at the growth, but one says, "No matter how much we cut, it just keeps growing back!" Another curses, "Damn you!!" and someone asks, "He must have some weakness, right?!" The group realizes that simple weed-whacking may be all they can do, but it is not enough. The bottom panels show more fighters caught and suffering: "Ngh!" "Ugh!" and "Agh!!" The page emphasizes the admiral's oppressive regeneration and how quickly the local defenders are being overwhelmed.

The scene cuts to the castle basement, then to Kozuki Sukiyaki's secret room and even farther down. Sukiyaki leads Robin and Law through a hidden passage, saying, "You did well to sniff us out." Law complains, "You make it sound like I'm a hyena!" Robin explains that she simply noticed the two of them were not with the others. Sukiyaki warns them to be careful where they step because the ground is covered with mold. He says he never told Orochi or Kaido about this passage, but they were still able to find the poneglyph in no time because they had a fishman on their crew: the All-Star Jack. The page connects Wano's hidden history with the Beast Pirates' earlier access to it.

Law asks, "How would being a fishman help?" and Sukiyaki says that will be clear when they see it. Law wonders how far down the passage goes; Sukiyaki estimates a few hundred years deep. Robin notices light and asks where it is coming from. Sukiyaki explains that there is a glass-block window at the end of the crawl space and that they can climb inside to take a peek, but by then they should already be below sea level. Law pops in first and objects, "No fair..." then he and Robin are stunned by what they see. The page builds the reveal by turning the castle's hidden stairs into a descent through Wano's actual buried history.

Through the window, Law and Robin see an underwater city and ask, "Is that Wano... underwater?!" Sukiyaki confirms that it is an older Wano from about 800 years ago. He says that, long ago, Wano was much larger and located at sea level on the land around the base of Mount Fuji. At some point, walls were erected all around the island, enclosing it. As a result, rainwater had nowhere to escape, and whole towns were eventually submerged and abandoned. Settlers moved farther up the mountain, and that higher land became the country known today as the current Wano. Robin realizes the place is preserved too well to be ordinary seawater, while Sukiyaki admits he does not know exactly why it ended up this way. The page delivers one of Wano's core historical secrets.

The group arrives before a massive stone, and Sukiyaki announces, "We have arrived. This is the lode poneglyph." Robin recognizes the importance immediately, saying, "It's really here...!! This is our third. We just need one more to travel to Laugh Tale...!!" Sukiyaki explains that they are in a cavern near the foot of Mount Fuji, with Old Wano below them and their current location marked partway above it. He says that if they continued to trek a little deeper, it is said they would find the sleeping ancient weapon, Pluton. However, Sukiyaki has never seen it himself and cannot show it to them. The page links the Straw Hats' route to Laugh Tale with Wano's hidden weapon and buried city.

Sukiyaki clarifies that retrieving Pluton would require the removal of the walls that surround Wano. In his words, "Opening the country is quite a literal act. We would lose our greatest defense... and set loose one of the ancient weapons." Robin asks why Kozuki Oden would want that when opening the country unleashes Pluton. Sukiyaki says everything he has told them was passed down through generations of shogunate rule, but he cannot speak for what Oden may have learned during his voyages in the outside world. The scene then cuts back to the Flower Capital, where Ryokugyu argues that no man can hope to stand against the forces of nature alone. He says Kaido's rule was miserable, but the order he imposed deterred other predators from targeting Wano.

Ryokugyu explains his view of Wano's protection through Kaido's tyranny, saying he is sure living under that regime was miserable but that its imposed order kept other predators away. He shouts, "Just bring me 'Straw Hat' Luffy already!" and promises to leave them alone after he takes Luffy's head. Yamato says they should call Luffy and the gang to show this guy who's boss, but Momonosuke rejects it as unacceptable. Panting and still tangled in his dragon body, Momo reminds Yamato that after all that time chained up on Onigashima, Yamato finally has a chance to be free. He also says the same goes for Yamato: do not touch Ryokugyu. The page makes Momo's stance explicit: the people who fought for Wano must not be forced to remain its permanent shield.

Momonosuke explains why he refuses Yamato's help. He says that up until now he continued to rely on Luffy, Zoro, and the others, but it is imperative to prove that those staying in Wano can repel any enemy on their own. If they still depend on the people who wish to leave, he asks, how can they look them in the eyes and say Wano is safe with them? Momonosuke roars at Ryokugyu, "Now begone, you demon tree! Get out of here!" and repeats, "I said leave!!" Ryokugyu calls him a spoiled kid and says, "I guess even dragons can be pathetic..." Tama watches in tears, crying "Momonosuke-kun!!" The page turns Momo's clumsy resistance into a declaration of responsibility as shogun.

Momonosuke finally produces a proper blast. As the defenders shout that it was a spitting image of Kaido's attack, Momo strains with "Nghh!!" and then roars, "Begone!!" again and again. Yamato watches, amazed that he is managing to control his dragon form, even though his aim still leaves much to be desired. A huge blast of flame slams into Ryokugyu's giant tree body, making the admiral scream "Aggghhh!!" and forcing him back. The others call out to Momonosuke-sama as smoke and fire fill the battlefield. The page marks a breakthrough: Momo is not yet polished, but he has begun to wield the power that once terrified Wano under Kaido.

Momonosuke's flame blast continues roaring across the battlefield with the SFX of fire and impact. Ryokugyu burns, then sprouts back up in smaller form, grumbling, "What a pain..." and "Easy now..." The defenders wonder whether Momo is trying to burn down the whole town, but the attack has clearly rattled the admiral. Ryokugyu reforms into another plant body and snarls that since Momo is so hell-bent on playing hardball, he will have it his way. He threatens, "I'll skewer you and your wannabe Kaido routine from mouth to tail!" The page shows Momo's success is real but incomplete: he can hurt the admiral, yet Ryokugyu's regeneration keeps the threat alive.

Before Ryokugyu can press the attack, a massive wave of Conqueror's Haki crashes over him. He freezes, shouting, "That conqueror's haki!! Who the hell...?!" and then realizes, "The Red Hair Pirates...? You're here too?" On a ship offshore, Shanks' crew reacts to the intensity, warning their boss not to go all out with his haki like that because the newbies are foaming at the mouth. Ryokugyu says he will not call Marines cowardly or underhanded for retreating here, but argues it would be bad form to go after worn-out saplings after they are exhausted from making pirate history. The page abruptly turns the battle with Wano's defenders into a confrontation with Shanks' unseen presence.

Shanks' haki continues to dominate the scene from offshore. With images of Luffy, Kid, Law, Robin, and other figures from the new generation in mind, Shanks asks, "Does the new age... frighten you that much?" The pressure is enough that Ryokugyu gives up, saying, "I get it already! It's not like I want to pick a fight... with you guys... Not today anyway." He retreats rather than challenging the Red Hair Pirates while Wano's defenders remain stunned. The page directly ties the chapter title to Shanks' protection of the rising era: the old powers may fear the new age, but Shanks chooses to back its emergence rather than crush it.

The chapter returns to the celebration. Hiyori smiles with children, the Flower Capital keeps singing and dancing, and Luffy, Zoro, Sanji, and Jinbe sit outside observing the aftermath. Luffy laughs, "He's gone! Shishishishi! Guess we don't need to lend a hand after all." Sanji says, "Check Momo out!" Zoro agrees that the haki just now was really something, while Jinbe asks, "Yeah! Who was that?" At sea, the Red Hair Pirates' ship drifts in the vast ocean. Luffy smiles and says, "A familiar face just popped into my head." The page confirms that the Straw Hats were aware of the danger but let Momo prove himself, while Shanks' unseen intervention leaves Luffy with a warm, knowing recognition.

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