"Captain Roger... threw himself one hell of a funeral."
The three walked down the street. Their obvious pirate getup made civilians step aside left and right.
But Loguetown's congestion had reached insane levels. No matter how much people tried to avoid them, someone inevitably got pushed into their path.
"Ow!"
Aus, walking point, suddenly felt something slam into his leg.
Looking down—a kid.
White-haired brat.
Kind of familiar...
Aus squinted, stroking his chin.
The kid who'd crashed into Aus sat on the ground clutching his head, tears welling up. A bright red bump on his forehead looked painful as hell.
He felt like he'd just rammed into a steel wall, not a person!
"Hey, kid. What's your name?"
Aus slowly bent down, eyeing this clumsy little guy.
"Why should I tell you, pirate!"
Unexpectedly stubborn. Even with a bump on his head, facing this towering figure, the brat still had the balls to talk back.
"Just some kid. Let's go, Aus!" Buggy felt talking to such an annoying child was wasting time.
"Yeah, yeah." Aus replied softly.
Then he smiled, looking at the kid who was on guard, gritting his teeth and glaring. Aus reached out one hand...
And flicked the big bump on his forehead.
"AHHH!!! IT HURTS!!!"
The little guy instantly burst into tears, hugging his head and rolling on the ground.
Aus laughed even harder, following the other two forward.
"Well then, see you around, Smoker."
"You bastard... how do you know my name... Damn it, it hurts so much!"
Watching Aus's cruel behavior and young Smoker with his massive head bump, Shanks adjusted his straw hat.
Something flickered in his eyes. For just a moment, he seemed to see his younger self.
"Aus, you really haven't changed after all these years..."
"Just messing around."
Aus grinned wickedly.
Meanwhile, at Loguetown's execution square, people from everywhere had gathered. Pirate rookies famous in the New World, budding revolutionaries, local residents drawn by the spectacle—everyone formed a massive circle facing the giant platform in the square's center, waiting together for this historic moment.
At that moment, in a corner of the square:
"Buru buru buru..."
"Report. As expected, we've spotted Black Gun in Loguetown. Traveling with him are also—"
The suited figure holding the Den Den Mushi suddenly stopped mid-sentence, his face going rigid.
This confused the person on the other end.
"Also who?"
The Den Den Mushi displayed a very serious face, demanding answers.
But the suited man had no time to respond—he'd noticed a very tall shadow now covering him. Cold sweat instantly drenched his body.
"Hey, were you just calling me?"
Turning around, a handsome smiling face bent down to look at him.
The smile was so gentle, yet the man felt ice-cold, like he couldn't sense the temperature around him.
"Sorry. My Observation Haki's a bit too sharp. If you call my name, I'll pick it up."
One casual kick slammed into the guy's stomach. The suited man who'd tried drawing a weapon rolled his eyes back, puked bile, and passed out.
Aus ignored him, picking up the Den Den Mushi instead.
"Hello there. Mind telling me why you're investigating me?"
Looking at the obvious features the Den Den Mushi mimicked—big beard, scarred forehead—Aus's mouth curved into an interested angle.
"Saint Warcury of the Five Elders."
Red Line. Holy Land Mary Geoise. Room of Authority.
In this room symbolizing the World Government's ultimate power, five figures sat or stood, all wearing serious expressions as they stared at the Den Den Mushi on the center table.
Suddenly, the respectful, nervous expression the Den Den Mushi had been mimicking changed completely.
The Den Den Mushi's eyes flashed red, replaced by a cynical smiling face.
"Black Gun Doctor Aus... how did you learn our identities?"
After a moment of shock, Saint Warcury spoke first.
"Well... maybe I used Future Sight and heard your introduction."
Aus bullshitted casually.
When you can't explain something clearly, just blame Observation Haki.
After brief surprise, the five exchanged glances.
"Observation Haki... what a distant future! Let's speak directly then. Our time is precious too. The World Government investigated your whereabouts intending to recruit you as one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea. What's your answer?"
Seven Warlords?
Holding the Den Den Mushi, Aus was stunned.
He'd figured the World Government wanted to capture him, maybe set a trap.
Never expected that he—half the bastard who destroyed Marineford—would get this kind of invitation.
Just thinking about it cracked him up.
"Really? Is that okay? I just invaded Marineford recently. I'm the Marines' mortal enemy right now. If you bring me into the World Government system, what about the Marines' reputation..."
"The Marines' reputation can go fuck itself."
Before Aus finished, Saint Saturn cut him off. The Den Den Mushi immediately switched to show an elderly man in a flat hat.
His expression was dead serious.
"We've conducted thorough investigation and analysis on you, Black Gun. Your abilities and talent pose enormous threats to the World Government. Devil Fruit powers making you nearly impossible to capture, plus monstrous Haki talent—the World Government can't create such a threat just for the Marines' face."
No choice in the matter.
When they first heard Aus's reputation and deeds, the Five Elders had considered sending CP0 for assassination and capture.
But after analyzing all his data and battle records, they realized this was basically impossible.
And as his age and strength grew, that possibility would only get closer to zero.
Once they pissed him off, even just using teleportation for continuous attacks on member nations and Marine branches would devastate the World Government's rule.
So despite feeling frustrated and bitter, they had to appease this monster they simply couldn't handle—even if it meant letting bygones be bygones and extending an olive branch.
~~~~❃❃~~~~~~~~❃❃~~~~
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