The days following the massacre seemed to blend into one endless stretch of night.Raizen barely noticed the passage of time. The island, once vibrant with life, now lay in ruin, and his mind — like the ashes drifting through the air — seemed scattered and lost.
He had buried Kael, his last living family, beneath the withered branches of a gnarled tree that stood against the hills.The grave was crude, hastily dug, for there was no one left to mourn but him. No one to carry the torch of hope. Only Raizen stood as a witness to the destruction of his world.
And yet, within him, something was stirring. Something as cold and sharp as the blade that had killed his brother.
The night was thick with smoke, the fires from the docks still smoldering like the dying embers of an inferno.Raizen wandered through the remnants of Noctis Island, his silver hair now streaked with ash, his face gaunt, eyes hollow with grief. But that grief had become something else — something darker, harder.
His body ached from the battle, from the chaos, but it was nothing compared to the gnawing emptiness inside him.
Noctis Island was silent now, the screams of the dying replaced by an oppressive quiet that felt like the world itself was holding its breath.
Raizen knew that something had changed.The boy who had been dragged through the mud, whose heart had been broken by the cruelty of pirates and marines alike, no longer existed.
In his place stood a new being, someone whose soul had been forged in the flames of vengeance.
Hours later, Raizen stood at the crest of the island, overlooking the sea that had taken so much from him.The ocean stretched before him, its waves crashing violently against the rocks below, as though mocking the very idea of peace.
It was there, atop the cliff, that he made his decision.
He drew a jagged knife from his belt, the blade dull but still sharp enough to draw blood.Raizen didn't hesitate. He pressed the edge against his palm, feeling the cold steel bite into his skin.
His blood seeped into the ground, warm and thick, mingling with the soil.
In that moment, something powerful surged within him. It was as if the island itself had been waiting for this — this oath, this promise — for someone to finally rise above the chaos.
Raizen's voice was steady, his words carrying a weight they had never held before.
"I swear... by the blood that runs through my veins, by the ashes of Noctis that remain in the air...I will conquer this world. I will bring it to its knees.I will crush the ones who feast on the weak, the ones who devour the helpless.No kingdom, no pirate, no god will stand above me. I will rise.This world will be bound by chains, chains forged by my hands."
The wind howled, the dark clouds above swirling in response, as though the universe itself had heard his vow.
Raizen stood there for what felt like an eternity, his hand still pressed to the earth, the blood drying in the wind.But the air around him seemed to hum with a new energy — something dark and ancient. Something that had been awakened.
The night was deepening, and the island's shadows grew longer. Raizen made his way through the ruins, feeling the cold weight of the world pressing against him.He was alone, truly alone, but the feeling was no longer one of despair.
His path led him to the heart of the island, to the ruins of the mayor's house. There, amidst the rubble and broken walls, he found what he was searching for.
A chest, half-buried beneath fallen beams, cracked open like a tomb.
Inside it was a fruit — unlike any fruit he had ever seen before.It was black, as dark as the night itself, swirling with patterns of violet that seemed to move and shift with a life of their own.The air around it seemed to hum, a strange vibration that sent a chill down Raizen's spine.
It was a Devil Fruit.
Raizen's heart skipped a beat. He had heard the stories — the legends whispered by the old sailors about fruits that granted unimaginable power at a price.Power to change the world, to bend the seas to your will.
But there was no going back now. He had made his oath, and power was the only thing that would allow him to fulfill it.
Without hesitation, Raizen picked up the fruit and sank his teeth into its dark, pulsing flesh.
The taste was foul — like dirt and metal, like the very essence of death itself.A surge of energy exploded through his body, searing through his veins as the fruit's power took hold of him.His vision blurred, and his breath caught in his chest.
Raizen screamed in agony, his body writhing as black mist erupted from his skin.It twisted and coiled around him, swirling with unnatural speed, until it consumed him entirely.
The pain felt as though it would tear him apart, but Raizen gritted his teeth and forced his mind to focus.
He wasn't dying. He was changing.
Minutes passed, or maybe hours — it didn't matter.Finally, the darkness receded, leaving Raizen on the ground, gasping for air. His skin was slick with sweat, and his heart hammered in his chest.
He looked down at his hands.
The black mist still lingered in the air around him, curling around his fingers like a living thing.
Raizen flexed his fingers, and the mist responded — swirling around him, moving at his command.He grinned, a dark, twisted smile. This power... it was his now.
He could feel it — the pull of the world, the chains of destiny tightening around him. He had the power now, the power to control the seas, to control the pirates, the kingdoms, the Marines.
No one would stop him.No one would stand in his way.
With the Devil Fruit coursing through his veins, Raizen was reborn.He wasn't a boy anymore. He was a force.
And soon, the world would learn to fear the name of Raizen D. Crow.
End of Chapter 2: The Blood Oath