Kara was resting peacefully, using Hancock's legs as a pillow while the latter fed her grapes with a gentle smile. Meanwhile, Momousagi only threw them annoyed glances, visibly irritated by the scene.
"Sister Kara, where are we going now?" asked Uta calmly, observing with curiosity the strange triangle of mist in front of her.
"Hmm?" Kara touched her chin thoughtfully. "I think that idiot Gecko Moria is somewhere around here... but I'm not sure how to find him."
"We have his Vivre Card," replied Momousagi with a sigh, knowing it was time to reveal the truth.
"Wait, WHAT?!" Kara shot up, eyes wide open. "The Marines always had that loser's Vivre Card and never told me?!" she snapped as she approached Momousagi indignantly.
Now it was Hancock who shot a look full of pure annoyance at Momousagi, upset that she had taken Kara from her lap.
"It's because we didn't want you bothering the other Shichibukai. We already get enough complaints from the ones you do know... imagine if you knew where the others lived," Momousagi quickly explained, trying to justify herself.
"Give it to me!" Kara exclaimed, completely ignoring the explanation, her eyes sparkling with excitement.
"Sigh... here. We were heading that way anyway," said Momousagi as she pulled out a small transparent sphere with a piece of paper inside that slightly moved, pointing in one direction.
"Awesome! I'm going ahead," Kara said, disappearing in a leap as soon as she got the sphere.
Momousagi thought about following her but couldn't leave the ship unattended. So she quickly looked at Uta, who immediately understood.
Without wasting time, Uta turned to Zoro and Chopper, grabbed them by the neck, and jumped after Kara.
"Why us?!" Chopper cried out, flailing in the air.
"Do you really think I could stop Sister Kara alone if she goes out of control?" Uta said without stopping.
Meanwhile, Hancock, who clearly also wanted to follow Kara but didn't get the chance, shot a look full of fury at Momousagi.
"You did that on purpose," she spat, clenching her fists.
"I don't know what you're talking about... pirate bitch," Momousagi replied with a mocking smile.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
"Sister Kara, wait!" shouted Uta, carrying the other two as she caught up to her sister.
Kara stopped for just a second and looked at them with a smile.
"Oh, Uta! And you brought the slaves too? Want to come have some fun?"
Without waiting for an answer, she grabbed Zoro like a sack, while he closed his eyes, holding back his anger.
"Uh... something like that," Uta said, adjusting Chopper as they continued after Kara.
After several minutes, they entered a dense fog that made it impossible to see more than a few meters ahead. Uta stuck close to Kara to avoid losing sight of her, while Chopper, now on her shoulder, looked around nervously.
"What is this place?" asked Chopper, clearly uncomfortable.
"This is the Florian Triangle. They say it's a haunted sea where hundreds of ships vanish every year," Kara replied, eyes still on the Vivre Card.
"W-What?!" Chopper trembled in fear upon hearing that.
"Don't worry, Doctor Chopper. We're not on a ship," Uta said with a reassuring smile.
"I don't think that matters if it's a haunted sea…" Chopper muttered, hugging Uta tightly.
Zoro, on the other hand, remained with arms crossed and eyes closed, being carried by Kara. He thought silently: Maybe it's time I learn at least Geppō...
"Oh, there it is!" Kara said excitedly, spotting through the mist the silhouette of a nearby island.
They sped up and soon landed on the island's solid ground, curiously observing the landscape.
"W-Why are there so many corpses lying around...?" asked Chopper, horrified at the sight of bodies with visible stitches all over them.
"Zombies?" Kara said, poking one with a stick, as if waiting for it to wake up.
"Z-Zombies?!" Chopper clung tightly to Uta's leg.
"Relax, Doctor Chopper. It's because of Gecko Moria's ability. He can create zombies," Uta explained kindly.
"An ability...? Ah! A Devil Fruit, of course," Chopper relaxed a bit as he understood.
"It's funny how people calm down so quickly when they hear it's just a Devil Fruit," Kara commented, eyeing Chopper with interest.
"Hey... there are signs of a battle here," said Zoro, pointing toward the forest where several trees were cut down as if struck by a swordsman.
"No... the fight is already over," Kara said with a smile, sensing a familiar presence. "I always end up running into them... it's like a sign of fate. Maybe I should arrest them already," she added with a mischievous grin.
"Let's go," she ordered simply, leading the group toward the center of the island. "Hmm...? Kuma?"
...…
"The World Government wants Straw Hat's head. If you hand him over… the rest will be forgiven," Kuma said in his deep voice as he revealed something between his massive palms.
Everyone froze.
A tense silence fell over the island.
"You're asking us to betray our nakama?" Usopp asked, his face dark and fists clenched.
All eyes were fixed on Kuma's hands, where a kind of air pad"translucent and floating"seemed to pulse as if it were breathing.
Fear crept onto every face.
"We refuse!" they all shouted in unison, their voices echoing loudly, even as their legs trembled.
Kuma sighed, almost with regret.
"What a shame…" he murmured.
Then he released the pad.
The compressed air sphere floated slowly toward the center of the island. Silence returned.
Everyone held their breath, watching as the "object" began to expand rapidly. But instead of exploding, it broke into multiple cubes that shot up into the sky.
The wind blast was so powerful it split the clouds in two, revealing the clear sky above them.
A moment later, a figure descended through the sunlight pouring in from the opening.
Hair flowing, Vice Admiral cape fluttering like wings of war.
Her shadow fell over everyone as if justice itself had landed.
"Wow, it's been so long since I've seen all of you together! I didn't think I'd find you like this… were you waiting for me?" said Kara with a confident smile as she landed exactly where Kuma's pad had been.
The Straw Hats shouted in relief.
"Kara!!" they exclaimed with excitement.
The weight of tension vanished from their bodies. Many dropped to their knees"not out of weakness, but pure relief.
"Hey… isn't this worse than before? She's a Marine!" said one of the pirates in the back, taking a step back.
"It's fine… we know her," Sanji replied, exhaling smoke from his cigarette with a calm expression. "She's on our side."
Kuma observed with his eternally expressionless face.
"Vice Admiral Shironeko…" he said in a neutral voice.
The air seemed to crackle.
"If you call me that again," said Kara, sharpening her gaze as her aura spread like a contained storm, "I'll rip off that metal arm and shove it where the sun doesn't shine."
The pirates nearby instinctively took a step back.
But Kuma didn't flinch.
"I'm following direct orders from the World Government. I'd prefer if you didn't interfere."
Kara let out a short laugh, crossing her arms and tilting her head mockingly.
"And I'm following direct orders from the Marines. To gather the Shichibukai for a meeting at Marineford.
So hereby," she added with an official tone but a cheeky grin, "you are formally summoned, you giant pillow-obsessed bear."
Kuma stayed silent for a moment.
His mechanical eyes analyzed Kara.
"Understood."
And with a barely audible sound, he disappeared without a trace"like he was never there.
The tension vanished completely.
Kara snapped her fingers and turned toward the Straw Hats with an amused smile.
"See? I got here just in time to save your asses. Again. What would you do without me?" Kara said with a confident grin, her cape fluttering dramatically in the sunlight. "Why don't you join the Marines as my slaves? I've only got two for now."
"Of course! Make me your slave, Kara-samaaa~!" Sanji exclaimed with hearts in his eyes, dropping to his knees like he was proposing.
"Ugh… I changed my mind. Better if you stay pirates," Kara replied with disgust, stepping back like Sanji was a contagious disease.
Then she noticed Gecko Moria lying nearby, covered in wounds and barely breathing. She calmly walked over and began poking him with the tip of her foot.
"Tsk. I was hoping he'd refuse the summons so I could beat the crap out of him… break a bone or two, you know, fun stuff. But it looks like you beat me to it," she said in a mocking tone, glancing at the Straw Hats"everyone injured and Luffy completely unconscious. "Although… it looks like it took you quite a bit. And this guy's one of the weaker Shichibukai. Him and Crocodile."
"What?!" Usopp and Franky shouted in unison, utterly shocked. Usopp trembled like a leaf.
"How weak is he compared to the others?" Usopp asked, pale.
"Mmm… he might last two or three…"
"Hours? Minutes?" Usopp interrupted, gulping.
"Hits," Kara said, unfazed.
The Straw Hats went blank, frozen from the emotional impact of that revelation.
"Hey!" came Chopper's voice, running toward them with Zoro… and a young woman they didn't recognize.
"What happened? Are you all okay?" Chopper asked, concerned by their injuries.
"Tsk… it's just moss-head…" Sanji muttered in annoyance"until his eyes landed on the girl walking beside Zoro. His demeanor instantly changed.
He knelt like a gentleman before her, taking her hand with exaggerated devotion.
"And who might this beautiful Marine be, joining us like a flower among the filth?" he said gallantly, making the young woman smile.
"Hi, I'm Uta," she answered with a sweet smile… though her eyes darted around, as if searching for something. "Ah, Luffy! I found you!"
And before anyone could react, Uta vanished from where she stood and appeared right over Luffy, chaining him up skillfully while he remained unconscious.
"Got you!" she said triumphantly, sitting on his back like it was nothing.
The Straw Hats stared in complete silence.
Two seconds passed.
Then they all slowly turned their heads toward Kara, who kept nudging Moria with her foot like nothing had happened.
"Can you… explain that?" Robin asked with her usual smile, though her eyes were narrowed.
Kara shrugged and nodded toward Uta.
"Oh, yeah. She's Luffy's childhood sweetheart. Wants to capture him so he'll join the Marines with her."
And she kicked Moria again like he was trash.
"What?!" they all shouted at once.
"Damn you, Luffy! That's not fair!" Sanji cried, collapsing with tears in his eyes.
"He's my childhood friend, not my boyfriend!" Uta quickly replied, cheeks red"though she didn't let go of the chains.
Meanwhile, Chopper was sharing medicine with Rab to treat the injured.
"Hey, where's that sword you mentioned?" Zoro quickly asked, catching Gin's attention not far away.
"You mean this one?" Gin said, pulling a sword from his back and tossing it to Zoro with a grin. "Some zombie swordsman had it. He was tough, but it's all yours."
Zoro caught the sword midair, inspecting it with interest.
"You sure? If you beat its owner, it's yours."
"I'm not a swordsman. Don't even use swords. Besides, your boss just saved our hides," Gin said casually.
"Hmph. Appreciated," Zoro said, sheathing it.
"Well, we've completed our mission to contact the Shichibukai. All that's left is to lift this thing," Kara commented, giving Moria one last kick before pulling her foot away indifferently.
"Got it!" Uta said cheerfully, hoisting the chained Luffy like a backpack.
"Hey! Let go of our captain!!" Usopp shouted, alarmed.
"It's okay, Uta. Let him go. I've got a mission for them," Kara said.
Uta pouted in annoyance but ended up setting Luffy down gently on the ground.
"A mission?" the Straw Hats asked, surprised.
"That's right. You need to look for Ace. He's usually in Dressrosa, but it seems like he's having fun around here. If I'm not mistaken, he gave Luffy a Vivre Card, right?"
"Vivre Card?" Nami repeated, intrigued.
"What? He didn't tell you?" Kara replied, pulling out a small sphere with a piece of paper inside. "It looks something like this."
"Oh, that paper! Yeah, he gave it to Luffy. What's it for?" Rab asked.
"It's a special paper that always points toward its owner. Use it to find Ace. Tell him the war is about to begin… and he should get ready."
"And you guys," she added, looking at the Straw Hats, "you'd better stay put for a while. The New World… is getting stormy."
At that moment, a Marine ship appeared on the horizon. Kara crouched down, grabbed one of Gecko Moria's legs, and started dragging him like a bag of trash.
"It was nice meeting you all. Too bad Luffy's asleep… tell him next time I will catch him and drag him into the Marines!" Uta shouted with a huge smile as she walked behind Kara.
"Thanks for the sword! I owe you one," Zoro said to Gin, walking in the opposite direction"only for Uta to come back, grab him by the arm, and drag him away by force.