Ability Testing, Puppet Possession

Deep within the castle, a rumbling sound echoed as the massive cold storage unit was opened. Corpses appeared before William Obask and Perona. 

"Hiss~ Hiss~ Hiss~ Shocked, are you?" Unlike the grotesque, horrifying skeletons and mummies on the left, the corpses on the right were neatly arranged. So lifelike, not nearly as decayed as one might expect. It was as if they had just died and been frozen in time. 

The towering corpse of Gecko Moria stood at the head. Even the devastating wounds from William's Finger Pistol attack had been repaired, leaving his body in pristine condition.

"Lord Moria..." Perona's eyes widened, brimming with excitement as she leapt forward. Tears threatened to spill forth.

"Sir William, apart from Moria's body, I have only restored these zombie generals - the swordsman Ryoma, Captain John, and the others," Dr. Hogback proclaimed proudly, gesturing to the assembled corpses. "We haven't had time to deal with the remaining bodies yet!"

After heeding William's earlier suggestion, Hogback had abandoned his obsession with destroying Sindry's physical form. Instead, he looked to the future with great anticipation, believing his recent diligent efforts would earn Mr. William's complete trust. Then he could request an advance on ten or twenty years' worth of "salary" to purchase a skilled singing and dancing female slave from the human auction house on Sabaody Archipelago. With some modifications and training, she could become the perfect new Sindry.

"You've done excellent work, true perfection..." William nodded approvingly. Examining Ryoma's corpse, no longer a shriveled skeleton but bearing a weathered, resolute countenance, he noted the complete absence of decay - as though Ryoma had only just perished.

Zombies created by implanting shadows in this manner would undoubtedly retain far greater combat ability. William felt a flicker of anticipation imagining the restored form of the demonic giant Oz.

"Then, are you prepared to resurrect them?" Dr. Hogback asked eagerly. 

"Lord William, please, help me revive Kumashi..." Perona's eyes shone as she wasted no time pleading with William. Turning her head, she gestured pointedly at Hogback and declared loudly, "And you, Hogback - be sure to modify Kumashi for me, make him kawaii!"

Her treasured zombie toy Kumashi had been immobilized by the loss of his shadow. Naturally, she hoped William could "recover" him.

"Hiss~hiss~hiss~ I won't help you, you brat!" Hogback scoffed arrogantly, pinching Perona.

"Damn you, you third-rate, fat otaku quack!" Perona snarled, baring her teeth as she glared daggers at the man. 

"What was that?!"

"You heard me - third-rate doctor! Fatso!"

"You little brat..."

"Enough noise, be quiet..." William raised a hand, halting their squabble. 

He approached Moria's body. "I'm going to conduct an interesting experiment." 

To the astonished Perona and Hogback, he announced, "You want to see?"

In a blur of motion, only William's own shadow was visible as it seemed to detach with a mind of its own, flying upwards. At an eye-catching speed, it plunged into Moria's corpse.

Without warning, the frozen, deceased Moria suddenly opened his eyes.

Perona and Hogback recoiled in shock, instinctively retreating behind William to observe.

With resounding steps, "Moria" rose, stretching his body, clenching his fists and kicking out his legs, generating powerful gusts of wind. 

In a blink, "Moria" planted his foot forcefully, disappearing from his spot like a thunderbolt only to rematerialize at the far end of the cold storage.

"By controlling it directly, Moria's body can exert considerable fighting power!" William's brow furrowed as he stared at the possessed "Moria." "But without true consciousness, it would be better to plunder others' shadows and transform them into zombies."

Through the power of the Shadow Fruit, one could implant harvested shadows into corpses, creating zombies with independent personalities. Logically, the shadow of the Devil Fruit's wielder itself should prove even more potent. Perhaps it could forge the ultimate Homies, like those of BIG MOM who used her Soul Soul Fruit.

"It's futile, Lord William..." Hogback cautioned. "Master Moria tried this before, but he had to inject his own shadow into the corpse, constantly concentrating to control it. This kind of unaware puppet is no true zombie!"

"Ah, so this was how Oz's body was reanimated." William nodded, unsurprised that Moria would have experimented likewise, attaching his shadow to the ancient giant Oz's centuries-dead body to manipulate its colossal form within the castle.

With a mental command, William made "Moria" sit back down, the dark shadow separating from the corpse as it returned to its original, unmoving state. 

"So you wish to transform Moria into a conscious zombie?" Hogback stated. "With the Shadow Fruit's power, only by implanting others' shadows into a corpse can you create self-aware zombies!"

"That may not necessarily be true..." William's tone was noncommittal. He believed the Shadow Fruit's capabilities extended far beyond that limited scope. Just as BIG MOM's Soul Soul Fruit allowed her to generate supremely advanced Homies from her own soul, could not the Shadow Fruit likewise enable the creation of ultimate zombies? It might simply require deeper mastery of the ability over time - everything was possible.

"Dead bodies I can control, but what about the living?" A fevered glint entered William's eyes as he turned his gaze towards Hogback and Perona. Selecting Perona as his test subject, he commanded, "Perona, stand still and do not move!"

"Lord William...?" Perona's eyes widened in shock, but she had no chance to evade.

In the space of a heartbeat, under William's direction, his swift shadow clone had already materialized before her.

"Puppet possession!" Like a viscous fluid, the shadow poured itself into Perona's mouth.

"Ah! Ugh..." Perona cried out, her whole body going rigid with shock and paling. "My body..." 

As if she had lost control, Perona moved against her will, propelled towards William.

"Negative Hollow!" Her right arm raised of its own accord, a translucent, eerie specter emerging from her palm to hover menacingly. 

"Gah! You actually mastered Lord Moria's abilities so swiftly!" Perona's stunned expression betrayed her disbelief that William could wield such fine command over the Shadow Fruit's powers in so little time. She had witnessed Moria manipulating the shadows of corpses and living people alike, but for William to demonstrate this level of skill...?

"Sir William, you are truly formidable, worthy of being chosen by the Shadow Fruit..." Even Hogback looked somewhat taken aback, though a fawning smile played across his features as he continued flattering William while offering a cautionary note: "Controlling living people through the Shadow Fruit's power, accessing their own abilities... It is indeed possible, but requires immense skill. Furthermore, if the target's willpower proves too strong, they may well break free. Even if not, resisting during combat could severely hamper you!"

"I see..." William inclined his head, retracting the shadow clone and releasing his hold over Perona. 

For a depleted husk like Moria who had lost his conviction, there was little need to manipulate others through such effortful shadow puppetry. Even the strongest Grand Line pirates could rarely match Moria's own might - he had no need to divide his focus controlling them just to crush his foes. A blunt, straightforward application of the Shadow Fruit's power sufficed. 

Moreover, holing up year-round in the perilous Florian Triangle, Moria seldom encountered particularly powerful Devil Fruit users. He remained ignorant of the fuller potential his abilities held.

"An unexpected revelation..." A wolfish grin tugged at the corners of William's mouth, his eyes gleaming.

While the rare Devil Fruit abilities found in these seas held niche utility, even if he could only briefly manipulate them, they could still play an unexpected role in combat.

More importantly, once his own strength increased and he developed a deeper mastery of the Shadow Fruit, it may not be impossible to permanently subjugate others, turning them into obedient puppets - just as he could manipulate the zombies created by implanting harvested shadows.

(end of chapter)