The Swordsgirl had requested Robin to let her deal with Gasparade, but now that the Logia User was filling up the Icy Dome with salt, she was deeply frowning.
"We need to help her..."
"No." Sin shook his head, much to Ain's dismay, and then frowned and worriedly looked at the Swordsgirl. "She wanted a battle where her life would be on the line, and now she has to prove herself."
Unbeknownst to them, he was constantly peeking into the future and knew things that were going to happen that they could not even imagine.
Kuina sheathed her Wado Ichimonji and closed her eyes, and her enemy took this opportunity to surround her with Salt from all sides, hurling hundreds of small spikes at her.
Just when their hearts dropped, she opened her eyes and swung her blade around, intercepting all the spikes, and then kept spinning and hurting Air Blades in all directions, not stopping until Gasparade was forced to materialise again.
She then charged at him using Soru, which she had just learned, and then swung her sword at him, unleashing all the residual Haki from her body, which made her sword appear to have Shadow Blades.
Sin smiled when moments later, all of the four limbs of Gasparade had been cut, and blood sprayed out of them.
Robin quickly froze his body, preventing him from losing his life there, and Kuina panted as she straightened her back back returned her sword to the scabbard.
She glanced his way, and when he nodded to her, she smiled and walked over through the opening that the younger Black created for her.
"That was awesome, Kuina!" Brepo excitedly approached her and hugged her, and she laughed at his antics.
Hours later, a few hours later, when Tsuru's Ship and two more Marine Vessels arrived at the scene, they found dozens of Pirates bound and bundled up on the Island.
Those Marines, who were being controlled by Jigra, were standing next to captured Pirates and Smugglers, keeping their heads lowered in shame.
Robin explained things to the Vice Admiral, but Tsuru still used her powers to test their hearts before accepting her words.
Hundreds of prisoners were transported to the Marine Vessels, and also the frozen organs that they had collected from Gasparade's ship, which was now inside a wine bottle, making up a beautiful decoration piece.
"The Mink?" Kujaku asked she looked at the gigantic Wolf Mink, who was standing behind Bepo in the distance.
"He's with us." Robin smiled.
"Gasparade?"
"Dead and at the bottom of the sea."
"You sure?"
"Yes." She assured the Rear Admiral. "And that guy with dark green x-crossed sabres tattoo on his face was also being controlled by the powers of Pet Pet Fruit. He's with us now."
"What's his name?"
"He calls himself Needless."
Robin stayed with them until all the criminals and the rescued people were transported onboard the Marine Vessels.
"Where's your Captain?" Hina walked over to her side and asked, taking a puff of her cigarette.
"One of the girls he had rescued was the younger sister of a Palace Guard in Arabasta, he has gone to drop her off to her brother."
"Her name?"
"Adele Bascud. Her brother's name is Shuraiya Bascud."
Hina nodded to her and then walked away, boarding her Vessel.
The Blackstar Crew stayed on the shore of the Cave Island until late in the afternoon when Sin returned.
"Was he happy?" Robin lightly asked, he chuckled at her words.
"He cried his heart out at seeing her."
Sin glanced towards Wolff, who was a Wolf Mink, and then towards Needless, who was standing alone on the side, keeping his head lowered.
"So, where are we heading?"
"We have no information about which natural fruit the Salt Salt Fruit manifests into."
He sighed at her words and shook his head.
"How long does he have?"
"A few days?" She guessed.
They could take him to Law and save him, keep him alive until they finish their research about the Salt Salt Fruit, but there was no guarantee that they would find anything.
He sighed again.
"Tell Gad to drop him in the sea. We are heading to Water 7."
Robin smiled at him and nodded her head before walking inside the ship.
"Needless."
At his words, the man rushed to him and silently awaited his order.
Sin met his eyes, and sighed in his heart.
The things that Jigra had made him do would forever haunt him all his life, and he pledged his life to him because he had saved him from that hell.
"Go, ask Bepo to show you your new room and get some sleep."
The man bowed to him and silently walked towards the Bear Mink, who glanced in Sin's direction before he led the man inside the Vessel.
Wolff nervously lowered his head when he started walking towards him.
"How did you end up in Paradise?"
"I... wanted to explore the sea and joined a Pirate Crew which was wiped out in a storm. When I woke up, I was already a slave..."
Sin listened to everything, and when Wolff met his cold grey eyes and saw the light smile on his face, his body trembled.
"Lie to me again, and I will kill you."
As soon as his words fell, everyone who was listening to the story surrounded them.
"I didn't..."
"You lied when you said that you wanted to explore the seas. That was not the reason why you left Zou." He lightly said and narrowed his eyes. "Tell me why you left Zou."
Wolff lowered his head and his body kept shaking.
"I want to avenge my brother." He said.
"Is he dead?"
"Yes."
"Who killed him?" Bonney frowned.
"Big Mom Pirates."
Bepo, who was listening to everything, quickly rushed out of the ship and looked at Wolff in disbelief.
"You are Loup's brother?!"
The Wolf Mink nodded his head and felt ashamed that he had hidden it from the Polar Bear Mink, who had requested to Robin to not hand him over to the Marines.
"Who's Loup?"
Bepo's body started trembling, and seeing the other Mink shying her eyes away, a bad premonition gripped his heart.
"Nox Pirates..."
"Were disbanded after suffering a loss against Big Mom Pirates four years ago. Only Pedro, Zepo, and Loup continued their search... they... they sneaked into Totto Land and were quickly discovered." He topped and clenched his fists, digging his claws in his palms. "They failed to get out and were captured. Big Mom... she forced Zepo to spin the roulette, and it landed on 100. He only had 30 years of life left..."
Tears streamed out of Bepo's eyes, and he dropped to his knees. He now knew that he would never see his brother again.
"She killed Zepo and wanted to extract the remaining 70 years from my brother and Pedro, but Loup... he convinced her to let Pedro go and take away all his life instead... she killed my brother."
His rage bubbled up, but he instantly froze when Robin used her Conqueror's Haki to intimidate him.
Vivi, Nojiko, and Nami were heartbroken as they heard Bepo's wails, and everyone else stayed silent as their hearts felt heavy as well.
He had two older brothers, and now, both of them were gone.
Bepo was inconsolable, and as Bonney turned him into a kid and picked her up in her arms, he cried even harder.
It took him a good hour before he quietened down, and as Bonney put him down, he quietly walked towards his room.
"Bepo." He stopped when Sin called out to him.
"Yes, Captain?"
"Shall we set sail to Zou?"
The Bear Mink sadly shook his head and clenched his fist.
"Not yet, Captain."
Sin walked over and patted his head, and then hugged him.
"We will take Big Mom down one day." He promised.
Bepo's body trembled at his words, and he nodded his head obediently.
"Go, get some rest."
After the Bear Mink left, Sin turned to look at his crew.
"Nami, we are heading where the Log Pose will take us. Get to work."
"Sin..."
"It's an order."
She nodded her head and flew away to Cave Island to set the Log Pose that was on her wrist.
Everyone else dispersed as well, but Wolff stayed in his place.
"You are too weak to avenge anyone against someone like Big Mom. So, do not be reckless. You will only throw your life away."
The Wolf Mink nodded his head in sadness.
"Welcome to the crew." He drew his hand forward, much to Wolff's shock.
Instead of shaking his hand, he dropped to his knee and lowered his head.
"Thank you, Captain."
Sin smiled and stepped forward to tap his shoulder.
"Go, ask Bonney if you can help out with something."
The Wolf Mink obediently stood up and walked towards the Forecastle Deck, where Bonney was standing, holding Vivi's hand.
It was just a sad day.
Nami returned to the ship an hour later as the Log Pose settled on their next destination.
Bonney ordered Wolff to act as the Helmsman in Bepo's place, and he was told to strictly follow all of Nami's instructions.
As they set their sail, Sin jumped up on the second Crow's Nest and sat down, hanging his legs, resting his back and hugging his swords.
A smile crossed his face when he sensed Hit trying to cheer up Bepo, playing with his Devil Fruit Powers, and as much as she Mink wanted to ask him to leave him alone, he could not bring himself to tell off someone as innocent as their Crowned Monkey.
Sin was half-expecting their Log Pose to take them to the Boin Archipelago, but instead, the journey took them the rest of the day and then the night before they finally reached their destination.
And it was a strange island.