"Uh… sorry~"
Sensing that Robin's mood was clearly off, Stussy immediately put on a tactful apologetic smile and smoothly steered the conversation away.
Don't let her current leisurely appearance fool you—sitting here drinking tea and eating pastries with Robin.
In truth, not a single second inside Stussy's heart had been calm!
She had originally thought that Robin being able to detect her connection to the World Government through her Six Powers techniques already counted as exceptional intelligence-gathering instincts.
Yet she never expected that this Devil Child would, from the very first moment, directly expose a secret she had hidden for decades…
That she was a clone.
And that the one truly controlling her from behind the scenes was the very man who created her—Vegapunk!
"Just who exactly are these people…?!"
Watching Robin's expression soften once more after hearing her apology, her face returning to calm as she smiled again, Stussy's thoughts immediately became active.
As a professional intelligence operative, she was naturally well-versed in the many exploits of the Straw Hat Pirates.
Especially after their intrusion into Mary Geoise, there wasn't a single active member of the World Government who didn't know of them!
As a senior CP0 agent, Stussy knew even more inside information than most.
For example—the death of Emilagon, vice-commander of the God's Knights, and how the Five Elders, for some unknown reason, seemed to have suffered an enormous shock that day, each of them wearing expressions darker than ever before.
Even the commander of the God's Knights, Figarland Garling Saint, had been severely punished for dereliction of duty.
Ordinary people might not yet understand…
But in the eyes of the World Government, the threat posed by the Straw Hat Pirates had long since surpassed that of the Four Emperors—second only to the former Pirate King, Roger himself!
Otherwise, such an outrageous bounty would never have been issued for Monkey D. Luffy.
Speaking of Monkey D. Luffy…
Stussy slightly tilted her head, shifting her gaze away from Chopper, whose battle was already decided.
Chopper, having entered his gigantic beast form and even wielding blades, was nothing short of dimensional suppression against Peclo.
Especially considering that just a moment ago Piekelo had been chasing Chopper all over the battlefield—only for the roles to reverse completely in the next instant, with Chopper becoming such a colossal monster…
All one could hope was that Piekelo's heart was strong enough not to completely lose his will to fight.
Otherwise, little Chopper wouldn't gain anything from this battle at all.
Because they were positioned at the vast upper levels of Whole Cake Island, Stussy only needed to slightly shift her gaze to see a battlefield that seemed utterly severed from this world—as though it didn't belong to the same dimension.
Compared to that fight…
Even Chopper's giant form could only be considered child's play.
…
…
BOOOOM!!!
Blazing flames howled down like meteors from the heavens, smashing into the venue in an instant and tearing open a massive fissure in the ground.
The boiling fire scorched the thick earth itself, burning a pitch-black crater straight through it.
Yet the one who unleashed this overwhelming attack—Big Mom—furrowed her brows, the same confusion appearing on the faces of her three Homies.
"It missed?!"
Big Mom withdrew her arm along with the flame-spewing Homie Prometheus, only to immediately notice something strange—
At some unknown moment, a tiny pitch-black hole had appeared at the bottom of the massive crater she had created.
The hole was extremely narrow. If Big Mom's eyesight hadn't been so sharp, she might not have noticed it at all.
"He escaped underground?!" Big Mom frowned.
But at that very moment, her eldest son Perospero, standing in the distance, suddenly shouted:
"Mother!!! Watch your back!!!"
"What?!"
Big Mom froze for an instant at the warning.
The next second, a fist coated in the glossy sheen of hardened earth suddenly shot up from the ground behind her, spinning rapidly three full rotations—
And just as Big Mom turned around, it smashed mercilessly into her face without a shred of honor.
In an instant, her face caved inward like a cushion struck by a heavy blow, her features literally punched into her skull.
Immediately after, Big Mom's massive body was sent flying like a gigantic baseball, hurtling toward the lower regions of Whole Cake Island.
"Mother!!!"
Witnessing this scene, the children of Big Mom who were still qualified to stand at the outskirts of the battlefield couldn't help but cry out in shock.
None of them could have imagined that their invincible mother would one day be blown away by a single punch!
"He actually sent Linlin flying…" Stussy's expression drastically changed as she observed from afar.
She had considered the possibility that Luffy, with such overwhelming presence, might possess combat power rivaling that of an Emperor.
But watching him casually punch Big Mom away as if it were child's play still caused her mind to freeze for a brief moment.
At that moment, the ground of the venue—where the massive fist had just attacked Big Mom—began to shake violently again.
Under the terrified gazes of the Big Mom Pirates, the protruding giant fist suddenly spewed forth a mass of white substance.
And that white mass was none other than Luffy in his Nika form, emerging from underground after landing a decisive blow on Big Mom!
Bathed once more in daylight, Luffy spread his arms wide, took a deep breath toward the blazing sun above, and burst into laughter:
"This power is seriously so much fun!!!"
Although Luffy had already tested and used the power of Nika multiple times back on Fish-Man Island, the power of Nika was never something that followed rigid rules.
Only in real combat could Nika's power truly grant Luffy fresh inspiration on how to use it.
And this was the first time Luffy had been so deeply captivated by that power.
"So anything I want to do can come true… Figures—it really is the most free power of all!"
White-haired Luffy grinned.
Only now did he finally comprehend the true essence of this power.
A brilliant gleam flashed through his eyes.
In the very next moment, Luffy's body transformed again—becoming a rocket engulfed in white flames, blasting off in pursuit of Big Mom's flying figure.
Left behind were Big Mom's children, standing frozen around the venue, staring at one another in utter disbelief.
The Sweet Commanders were either defeated or missing.
Big Mom herself had been sent flying by a single punch…
This unprecedented situation instantly threw everyone into panic.
A dreadful thought surfaced in their minds all at once:
Could it be that the Big Mom Pirates were about to be defeated by a rookie pirate crew that had only been at sea for a single year?!
"Put those ridiculous thoughts away!"
At that moment, a sharp voice suddenly rang out, cutting off their spiraling fear.
As if reading their minds, Perospero narrowed his eyes, cast a warning glance at the crowd below, and spoke sternly:
"Mother won't be defeated so easily."
"After all… she is one of the emperors of this sea!!!"
…
…
"Damn that Straw Hat brat!!!"
Elsewhere, Big Mom—who had been blasted away—steadied herself with the help of her Homies.
Despite taking Luffy's heavy blow head-on, not a single scratch appeared on her body.
Clearly, the title Steel Balloon was no exaggeration!
A monster who, at the age of five, had already left the mighty giants of Elbaf utterly helpless—how could she possibly be injured so easily?
However…
"What exactly was that power?!"
After spitting out a curse, deep confusion overtook Big Mom's expression.
For some reason, at the very instant Luffy transformed into that Nika form, a long-buried memory seemed to stir within her.
A story she had once seen—or heard—back in Elbaf…
But due to how long ago it was, and because she had been extremely young at the time—her mind filled with nothing but eating—that memory was far from clear.
Still, faintly, she seemed to recall a scene of giants gazing upon a certain figure with reverence, shouting that figure's name in worship.
And that name seemed to be—
NIKA!!!
(End of Chapter)