New World, Unknown Sea.
"So the legend is real… Zou Island!"
Standing on the battleship, Smoker looked up in shock at the colossal elephant whose body extended beyond the horizon. Even the cigar in his mouth had been snuffed out by the sea spray without him noticing.
"Smoker San, the Mink Tribe may be reclusive, but they're not some mythical beings, are they?" Kin'emon asked curiously.
The Mink Tribe wasn't like the people of Wano Country. While they detested the wickedness of humanity and disliked interacting with humans, outliers existed everywhere. Some would venture to sea in search of broader horizons.
Wano would hunt such people to extinction, but the Mink Tribe? At most, they'd vent a little and then wave farewell.
To put it harshly, even now, Mink Tribe slaves were still a common sight on the black market.
"No, I've seen the Mink Tribe before. What I mean is…" Shaking his head, Smoker collected his thoughts and smiled, "Let's not talk about that. What do we do next? Climb up?"
Kin'emon still looked puzzled but nodded anyway.
"The Mink Tribe has been a close ally of the Kozuki Clan for generations. Their people are strong; even their infants can defend themselves. We must ask for their help."
With that, Kin'emon turned and shouted, "I'll leave it to you, Kanjuro!"
"Understood!" Kanjuro replied, pulling out his calligraphy sword-brush. He calmed his breathing and prepared to draw on a large sheet of white paper provided by the Marines.
As everyone's attention shifted to Kanjuro, Smoker silently replaced his cigar with two fresh ones, lit them, and amidst the swirling smoke, pulled out a crumpled piece of paper.
To others, it looked like trash. But only Smoker knew, this was a secret mission given to him by Rowen.
"If I'm not mistaken, this is the 'right time' you mentioned… Admiral Soryu (Azure Dragon)."
There was no need to question how Rowen knew where they'd be heading, Smoker wasn't one for overthinking.
Leaning against the ship's railing, he bit down on the cigar and unfolded the wrinkled note.
A second later, his pupils shrank sharply!
"So it's… like this?!!"
[There's a red Poneglyph on Zou Island, hidden deep within the nation's Whale Forest, heavily guarded by the Mink Tribe. Find a way to bring it back, or at least a rubbing of it.]
[Don't ask why. I just want them to vanish from this world.]
[Oh right, act natural. That brat with you will buy you a bit of time before the Minks get too wary. But because of the Poneglyph, they'll never truly drop their guard against Marines, so… keep it up. bracket-smile]
"Bracket-smile"?
Why not just draw the damn emoji?!
Like this , :) Got it?!
Smoker's mouth twitched. After thinking for a second, he held the note beside his cigar and took a long drag.
Watching the glowing red ember devour the words, Smoker flicked the ashes into the sea.
Rowen was definitely not after the great treasure "One Piece". That much Smoker was sure of. After all, when they'd found a Poneglyph at BIG MOM's place, Rowen hadn't even given it a second glance.
"Scattering uncertain variables, never putting all your eggs in one basket… That's so like you, Admiral Soryu (Azure Dragon)."
Smoker grinned.
Without a doubt, what he saw through that note was Rowen's mistrust of the World Government. In his eyes, whether Raftel was found by pirates or by the government, neither outcome was acceptable.
And funny enough, Smoker agreed with that sentiment!
Exhale…
Releasing a long puff of smoke, Smoker lifted his head with determination, watching as a weirdly cute and ugly creature, a "dragon", leapt out of the paper Kanjuro had drawn.
"Don't worry, Admiral! This mission… even if it costs me my life, I'll complete it!!"
Meanwhile...
"Until Fleet Admiral cools off, I won't be allowed to leave Headquarters… So you'll have to take the lead, Dante!"
"How else do you want me to take the lead?! Lately, I only sleep three hours a day! I go to bed at 4 a.m., sometimes wake up at 5, and carry all that fatigue into the next day. Even the doctor says I'm messed up." Dante complained with a tired sigh.
"I used to think that following you would be easy, especially with so many allies on our side... but now, I seriously regret it."
Tesoro was a very important member of their team, not just financially, but also in terms of influence.
As the man who owned 20% of the world's Belly, his business spanned the Four Seas, with countless spies and informants, both legal and illegal. With one operating in the light and the other in the shadows, he and Rowen together had built the most tightly knit intelligence network.
Now that Tesoro was dead, though Rowen had already secretly taken control of his assets, and even the Gorōsei (Five Elder Stars) were turning a blind eye to it, all the intelligence work had fallen onto Dante's shoulders.
"Being 007 is a blessing."
Rowen said righteously, "Many people want to work hard but can't even find a way to start. You're lucky. And me? I won't abandon any brother who fights and struggles alongside me."
Dante: "…Read my lips, ￥%@#!"
Rowen: "…"
"Anyway, enough small talk. No one's had it easy lately. You, me, Fujitora, Law, it's the same for all of us."
"This time, with Garp defeated by my hand, whether it's Fleet Admiral Akainu or the Gorōsei, I'm sure they've started to suspect something… The Fleet Admiral is fine; I've already given him countless 'precautionary shots'. But the Gorōsei, and that person, are barriers we cannot avoid."
Talking business, Dante put away his sarcasm and asked seriously: "What do you need me to do?"
In response, Rowen calmly took out a cigar, lit it, and took a long drag.
"I've already had a Vivre Card sent to you. Take it and find Dragon. Everything else is written in the file I sent along. Just make sure to clean up the loose ends."
Dante: "…Oh, so it's a fetch quest, huh? With a Vivre Card for navigation? Sounds easy… LIKE HELL IT DOES!"
Rowen: "What did you say?!"
"Don't shout, man. You forgetting? I worked part-time as a Warden at Impel Down for three months, remember?" Rowen grumbled as he moved the receiver further away, then chuckled.
"With my Heavenly Network abilities, you really think Level 5.5 could stay hidden from me?"
"Hissss…"
Hearing this, Dante gasped.
He'd already revised his opinion of this man upwards more than once, but every single time, Rowen managed to exceed expectations again.
Dante couldn't help but wonder, was everything he knew right now really all that this man had prepared?
As expected of someone who, just with political maneuvering alone, could send tremors through the entire world!
"So you're saying… Dragon's escape from prison was actually coordinated with you? No wonder they took control of the Gates of Justice so easily!"
"No, Dragon only figured out why I took his fingernails and hair. Our connection is only that of mutual respect, nothing openly discussed or agreed upon."
"So the jailbreak was purely their own doing. At most, my only crime is 'failing to report what I knew.'"
Rowen shook his head slowly, a wry grin on his face.
"But even so… it's enough."
The enemy of my enemy is my friend. As the former leader of the Revolutionary Army, Smoker understood better than anyone what needed to be done.
He hadn't wanted to go down that path before. Let's not forget why he was imprisoned in the first place… But Garp's death made him realize: if you just sit and wait to die, nothing can ever be salvaged.
A man always has one or two things that stand above even his dreams.
"Heh… so you've reached an understanding without even exchanging a single word?" Dante sighed deeply.
This kind of high-level leadership communication… was completely beyond him.
"So… be careful. I'm not sure whether or not he'll kill you out of spite. From the way he refused to retake his role as leader and let Sabo step forward instead, you can tell, he doesn't want to tarnish the Revolutionary Army."
You only avoid your cherished things when what you have to do… isn't clean.
Because you love it, you stay away.
Dante was stunned for a moment, then laughed.
"Hurricane-Hurricane Fruit ability user… a top-level powerhouse whose strength rivals an Admiral… Monkey D. Dragon…"
"I really want to see what his blood tastes like!"
Rowen blinked. "You found the Seven Star Sword?"
"Uh, not yet. Why?"
"Oh, nothing. Just curious."
Dante: "…"
(End of Chapter)
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