The air froze.
Chrollo remained silent.
Instead, Dragon was the first to speak up. "About the Heavenly Tribute... we did that."
Kizaru turned his head, looked at him, and slowly pursed his lips.
(¬▂¬)
You did it?
The Revolutionary Army has talents who can steal the Heavenly Tribute right under the noses of the Navy and CP agents?
If you do, then why the hell do I need to be undercover in the Navy for so long?!!
Wait...
Kizaru first looked suspiciously at Chrollo, then shifted his gaze, glancing discreetly at Dragon.
When he saw the almost identical, frank expressions on their faces,
A hint of realization dawned on him.
So that's how it is...
So I was the only one kept in the dark...
You should have said so... Why didn't you say so earlier?
If you had told me earlier that you and Dragon had this kind of relationship... would I have fought so seriously?
"Tsk—"
"Well, alright then..."
Kizaru handed Bonney over to Chrollo.
Chrollo hurriedly put Bonney into the [Fourth-Dimensional Mansion], then signaled Kizaru with his eyes.
"Mr. Borsalino, why don't you leave first? Once you're gone, I will naturally return these islands to their original positions."
"Well~ No problem~"
Kizaru raised his hands high in a gesture of surrender, then turned around and stepped on the air, flying off into the distance...
Watching Kizaru's retreating figure, Chrollo let out a light breath.
It's finally over...
He returned all the floating islands to their original places.
The residents of Loguetown felt the massive crisis looming over the sky vanish instantly. They all looked confused, as if everything they had just experienced was merely an illusion.
Buggy, who had long since fled Loguetown, rubbed his eyes upon seeing this scene. "Am I seeing things... who won?"
But no matter who won, it was an existence he couldn't afford to provoke.
An unprecedented fear of Chrollo had been planted in his heart. He sighed with emotion:
"That man... is simply like a demon~"
Behind him, his subordinates watched this scene, naturally filling in the blanks with their imagination, and shed tears of emotion one by one:
"Did you see that! It was Captain Buggy! It must have been Captain Buggy's departure that changed the tide of the battle!"
"That's right! Captain Buggy understands righteousness deeply. He didn't want to conflict head-on with the Navy. His active withdrawal gave the Navy Admiral and that monster a way out!"
"It was Captain Buggy's invisible majesty that facilitated their ceasefire! He saved everyone from behind the scenes once again!"
"You said it—"
"Mighty... Mighty... Buggy! Buggy!"
---
Chrollo looked at Dragon.
"Mr. Dragon, thanks to you. Thank you for coming to rescue Bonney."
Dragon waved his hand nonchalantly.
"Mr. Chrollo, how could I not come when you are in trouble? There is no need for such formality."
Chrollo was puzzled. Didn't you come to save Bonney? What does it have to do with me...
However, he didn't dwell on it. After thinking for a moment, he spoke slowly:
"Mr. Dragon, I still need you to keep an eye on Borsalino here. I will leave immediately."
Dragon nodded. "Don't worry, leave Kizaru to me."
Then he asked,
"Where do you plan to go?"
"Well... the Grand Line, of course."
Chrollo waved his hand, and a white cloth flashed. Moments later, a ship shaped like a giant whale emerged in the sky.
Dragon looked at this unprecedentedly huge cruise ship and sighed:
"Is this the massive ship that caught the Navy's attention..."
"That's right. It's called the Black Whale."
Chrollo flew onto the deck, then released all the Phantom Troupe members.
"Then, Mr. Dragon, we'll take our leave~"
Dragon smiled and said, "Bon voyage."
The Black Whale drifted across the sky, flying towards the direction of the rising sun in the distance.
"Chrollo, I'm hungry~"
"Stop it—" Chrollo maintained his calm and composed posture, waving goodbye to Dragon again.
"I'm hungry, I'm hungry, I'm hungry—"
Bonk—
Under the mast, Chrollo dropped a heavy fist on her head, while maintaining a smile on his face.
Bonney clutched the large bump swelling on her head, teary-eyed, and stopped tugging at him.
If Dragon saw Bonney's treatment now, he would probably only sympathize for a second, then clap his hands and say Mr. Chrollo hit well.
Chrollo had returned everyone's abilities. Behind him, Uvogin, Nobunaga, and the others, stimulated by the recent events, were training hard to become stronger.
Pakunoda, Shizuku, and the others were escorting the precious collection item, Bartolomeo, to the dungeon.
Only Nami knelt alone on the deck in front of those empty chests, looking dazed, her face deathly pale...
"Broke again..."
"My money... my money..."
She revealed a ferocious expression and roared at the sky, her voice scattering the clouds,
"Where did my money go—"
The Troupe members on the deck joked and played around, as if the great crisis they just experienced was insignificant.
Dragon watched the Black Whale's silhouette gradually receding into the sunlight, the corners of his mouth lifting slightly.
He murmured:
"What a great team—"
"Is there any reason to stop a man from setting sail~"
"Go ask the world. The world is waiting for our answer, Mr. Chrollo..."
Then he thought of his own son and said with a slight headache,
"That worrisome brat Luffy, when will he set sail like Mr. Chrollo..."
---
On the other hand,
Kizaru had returned to Loguetown. He strolled in the town center, looking left and right with pursed lips, clearly in high spirits.
"Which cabaret should I choose~"
Kizaru's eyes lit up. An izakaya with a small pink neon sign and a picture of a woman in a kimono with her cleavage half-exposed pouring tea caught his eye.
"So full of vitality~ When you get old, you should spend more time with energetic young people~"
"How nice~"
He lifted his foot, intending to enter.
Just then, Smoker trotted over from a distance with Tashigi and called out to him.
"Admiral Borsalino!"
Kizaru stopped, discreetly changed direction, and then looked at Smoker as if nothing had happened:
"Oh, it's Major Smoker~ Is something the matter~"
"Admiral Borsalino, did you see those people from the Phantom Pirates?"
"Well, you're a bit late. Those people have already escaped~"
A look of remorse appeared on Smoker's face:
"Damn it! If I had come earlier, I definitely could have caught him!"
"I'm going to set sail and pursue him!"
Kizaru raised an eyebrow and glanced at him imperceptibly.
"Is something wrong, Admiral Borsalino?"
"No... nothing." Kizaru shook his head.
"Their final direction of escape should be Reverse Mountain. If you head there, you might be able to catch up."
"By the way." Kizaru seemed to remember something and raised a finger. "I just met Dragon and confirmed with him. About that batch of Heavenly Tribute... Dragon did it."
"The Revolutionary Army?" Smoker looked enlightened.
No wonder he couldn't find a single clue. If Dragon had appeared in the East Blue, then it made sense.
"In that case, are you still going to pursue those people?" Kizaru asked.
"Of course—"
"There are many secrets hidden on them. That nation called the Kakin Empire, and the technology that can resist Seastone."
"I absolutely must catch them!" Smoker said decisively.
The strange expression on Kizaru's face became more pronounced.
You? Catch that man from just now?
Don't make your Uncle Kizaru laugh, okay...
But he didn't tell Smoker anything. After all, nothing can stop a man from setting sail.
Even if he is a Marine.
Watching Smoker's retreating figure as he set sail again, Kizaru scratched his head.
"Wait... I seem to have forgotten something..."
"What was it again? Well... doesn't matter."
Kizaru turned and walked towards the izakaya.
In the distant mountains,
Amidst the ruins, a scarred Lucci slowly woke up.
Where did everyone go? Someone... save me—
...