June 5, 1503, Age of the Sea Circle
At last, on the morning of the following day, the great Marine vessel reached the location where the transaction would take place. Orion, who had been paying close attention to the movements of the Named Characters displayed on the system map, saw that only one of the three markers was actually present: Vergo.
As for Catarina Devon and Whitey Bay, they were lingering nearby, seemingly advancing toward the island where he and his people currently were. Considering Whitey Bay's status, it was likely that she had learned about the transaction happening here and was planning to intervene in some way—most likely in a hostile manner.
Six years had already passed since the last time Orion had seen Whitey Bay, and he was quite excited at the thought of seeing this woman again, the very one he had fallen for at first sight. Perhaps this time, he could finally make some progress in his relationship with the famous pirate, although he was far from certain he would be able to pull it off.
After all, Whitey Bay was one of the most prominent pirates in the world, and she carried a sense of dignity and pride that made it impossible for her to accept Orion's advances easily.
On the other hand, he had never interacted with Catarina Devon, although he certainly knew who she was. The young woman, originally from the South Blue, was one of the most famous pirates of this era, recognized as one of the most dangerous rookies alongside other figures of Shanks' caliber.
Fortunately for Orion, he had not encountered her during the period she spent in the South Blue, because this woman's power was anything but normal, and he was not entirely sure he could defeat her with his current level of strength.
Just like Shanks, Catarina had recently entered the New World, and her name was already renowned across the world. Unlike Whitey Bay, with whom Orion had a friendly relationship, an encounter with Catarina would almost certainly lead to a fight to the death, since the pirate's reputation marked her as exactly the kind of pirate Orion wished to annihilate without hesitation.
Luckily, both Whitey Bay and Catarina were still a considerable distance from his current location, so they likely would not arrive in time to interfere in the transaction between Black Panther and Vergo, Doflamingo's subordinate.
This time, Orion wished to take advantage of the opportunity to dispose of Vergo and weaken Doflamingo's forces—Doflamingo being someone Orion had already identified as an enemy who needed to be destroyed—although this would probably not be easy with Vice Admiral Vidar Lund present.
"Daz, stay alert; a battle might break out any moment now," Orion whispered.
Daz Bonez simply nodded, adjusting his mindset for combat. Ever since he had decided to follow Orion as his subordinate, he had prepared himself to carry out any order, and if his master was telling him a fight was imminent, then his duty was to work as efficiently as possible to prove his worth.
Aside from warning Daz Bonez of the impending conflict, Orion did not bother warning Gloriosa, because the carefree girl—who was unable to act properly in any serious way—would have started behaving oddly, potentially raising suspicion among their enemies.
It was better to wait for the conflict to erupt and only then give the hyperactive pink-haired girl the directive to act. After all, Gloriosa was a competent fighter, and she didn't need to mentally prepare herself to enter battle and perform well.
The only reason Orion had warned Daz Bonez about the upcoming clash was because the young man did not yet have the level required to participate actively, and he would need to be careful not to get injured in the process.
As for his other subordinate, Kat, Orion had simply decided to keep her away; thus, before arriving on the island, he had used his Space Gate to send her to Pacific Kingdom.
The young mercenary had left cheerfully, declaring that she was going to become the queen of the pirates, and she had even said goodbye to her father Kiko, who didn't quite understand what was happening.
Orion had instructed Olive to take Kat into her pirate crew and train her, so the days of piracy the young mercenary had long awaited were finally about to begin.
Walking across the sandy beach on this New World island, Orion scanned his surroundings, inspecting the terrain. The beach where they stood was narrow, its flatness offering no concealment, and though large cliffs loomed in the far distance, their extreme separation from the shoreline rendered them useless for cover or precision fire.
They had chosen this spot precisely for its isolation and its geometry: the narrow strip of sand forced both parties into the open, making it impossible to prepare an effective ambush
In the distance, Orion spotted Vergo, who for some reason had half a pizza stuck to his face. Doflamingo's subordinate looked as serious as ever, standing with a rigid posture that made him seem more imposing than he actually was, though the image was completely ruined by the half-pizza on his cheek.
Vergo was obviously not alone; he had brought several subordinates with him to assist. Although the strength of these soldiers was not particularly impressive, they were extremely useful for carrying out all kinds of logistical and navigational tasks.
On the other hand, Orion was not standing at the front of his group; instead, he was walking among the crowd of mercenaries escorting the prisoner. At the head of the formation were the two mercenary leaders, along with Vice Admiral Lund, who was carrying on top of his head a cage containing the prisoner they had transported here.
Finally, the group reached the place where Vergo and his men were waiting, and Vice Admiral Lund set the cage down on the ground before them. He then stepped aside after giving a faint nod, crossing his arms as he silently waited for the transaction to conclude.
On this occasion, the vice admiral had come only to ensure that there were no issues with the delivery, having been requested explicitly by Doflamingo to escort the mercenaries. Even so, his role was essentially that of a luxurious bodyguard, and now that he had brought them safely to the transaction site, his task was complete.
As for the transaction itself, that was something the mercenaries—more specifically Mark—and Vergo were supposed to handle.
"You've brought the merchandise as stipulated. Here is the agreed payment," Vergo said with his characteristic seriousness, signaling with his hand to his subordinates, who immediately stepped forward carrying large chests filled with Berries.
"I see you're a straightforward man. I like that! Let me check to make sure the amount is correct, and once that's done, we can each go our separate ways," Mark said with a wide grin as he looked at the massive quantity of money in front of him.
However, before Mark could place his hands on one of the chests to inspect its contents, Vergo stepped forward, intercepting him, and said firmly:
"The payment will be carried out after we obtain the Ope Ope no Mi."
Mark's expression instantly darkened, and with a tense look he responded:
"That's not what we agreed. I stated clearly that what I would bring to this exchange was the user of the Ope Ope no Mi, not the fruit."
The mercenaries present immediately picked up on the tension in their leader's voice, and they began to grow uneasy. Some placed their hands on the weapons at their waists, prepared to leap into action should a sudden conflict break out with the pirates.
They vastly outnumbered their opponents, but they knew that fighting someone of Vergo's caliber would be a disaster.
"It doesn't matter. Unless you can prove this is the user of the Ope Ope no Mi, there will be no deal," Vergo said without altering his expression.
In his eyes, the mercenaries who had come here could be wiped out with ease, although it was true that Doflamingo had instructed him not to act too violently, since his increasingly bad reputation in the Underworld had been causing problems for conducting business lately.
"It's impossible to confirm his powers! His mind has been completely destroyed!" Mark replied, clenching his fists and gritting his teeth.
He had personally destroyed the mind of the Ope Ope no Mi user in order to avoid any incident that might jeopardize the transaction—such as the man taking his own life before the exchange—yet now, the very measure he had taken to prevent problems had turned into a problem itself!
"There's no need to get so agitated. We have prepared a large number of fruits for the Ope Ope no Mi transfer process, so if this man truly is the user of that Devil Fruit, there will be no issue, and you will receive your payment immediately," Vergo said, signaling once more to his subordinates. This time, they stepped forward carrying a great variety of fruits of all kinds.
Hearing Vergo's words, Mark calmed down somewhat, thinking that although the deal was not progressing exactly as agreed, it was still within acceptable boundaries. Seeing the sheer number of fruits surrounding them, it seemed impossible for the Ope Ope no Mi not to respawn right here, so he let out a bitter sigh, relaxed his muscles, and accepted Vergo's terms.
If he truly wanted to avoid a conflict and receive the promised money, he had no choice but to give in at this moment. Otherwise, things could turn ugly very quickly.
Seeing that Mark had agreed to his request, Vergo simply approached the prisoner sitting inside the cage with a blank stare and extended his hand, intending to snap the unfortunate man's neck and conclude the matter as swiftly as possible.
However, at that exact moment, a figure appeared before him like a specter, launching a sudden attack.
"Kamusari!" Orion shouted as he struck with his strongest technique, although he still could not use Conqueror's Haki to unleash it at full power and instead relied solely on his Armament Haki.
Bang!
A tremendous collision exploded across the area, but Vergo was not the one struck by Orion's sudden attack; instead, a massive grove of trees materialized out of nowhere, shielding the stern pirate.
Countless trees appeared instantly, attempting to ensnare Orion, who had no choice but to retreat before he could seize the Ope Ope no Mi user.
Looking toward the direction from which the trees had emerged, Orion saw Vice Admiral Vidar Lund, who had launched his attack the instant Orion attempted to eliminate Vergo.
In an instant, the situation became wildly chaotic, with both sides reacting with intense violence. Vergo's subordinates saw one of the mercenaries attack and assumed that all of the mercenaries present were initiating hostile actions, so they immediately grabbed their weapons and launched an assault before the mercenaries could react.
Consequently, the mercenaries had no choice but to draw their weapons to defend themselves, and a battle erupted in an instant!
Daz Bonez, who had been warned by Orion beforehand, immediately transformed his hands and legs into blades and rushed toward the center of the battle to take down the subordinates of the Donquixote Family. He didn't fully understand what was happening, but if his new boss was at odds with these people, then it was his duty as a subordinate to step forward and fight.
As for Gloriosa, she opened her mouth in surprise, as she had not expected Orion to launch an attack so suddenly. However, her astonishment lasted only a moment, and in the next second her eyes lit up and a wide smile stretched across her face. The hyperactive girl instantly woke up her snake companion Yara, who had been sleeping peacefully on her shoulders, and used her like a spring to propel herself toward Vergo.
Orion was tangled in combat with Vice Admiral Vidar Lund, so it fell to her, as his wife, to handle the other powerful enemy present.
Swish
Moving at full speed, Gloriosa appeared before Vergo and unleashed a kick coated in Armament Haki, which he blocked with some difficulty due to the girl's tremendous strength.
Vergo showed a slightly surprised expression, which, coming from someone as expressionless as he was, was quite rare. The power Gloriosa had demonstrated in that attack was something he had not expected to encounter during this trip to meet supposedly weak mercenaries from the West Blue.
Even so, Vergo would not allow surprise to control him, and he immediately began a violent exchange of blows with Gloriosa, using his own Armament Haki, which was of the highest level.
Vergo's arms seemed to vanish, leaving afterimages behind due to the speed of his attacks. However, Gloriosa was able to keep up with his rhythm, fighting on equal footing with one of the strongest pirates in Doflamingo's crew.
Gloriosa's smile never faded, and she was finally able to enjoy a battle where she could use her full strength. She had been trained as a warrior her entire life and it was all she knew, so now that she could finally demonstrate her abilities before Orion, her moment to shine before her beloved had arrived!
Bang!
Another clash erupted between Vergo and Gloriosa, and both stepped back. However, before the pirate could regain his balance, Gloriosa performed a backward somersault and launched two Tempest Kicks in the process.
Then, while Vergo was struck by the two Haki-coated attacks, she transformed her snake into a bow and began firing a rain of arrows at the pirate's body.
Vergo had no opportunity to escape and could only grit his teeth and coat his body in Armament Haki to protect himself. Although he was a prodigy in the use of Armament Haki, his skills were not yet fully developed at this point in his life, so Gloriosa's arrow barrage inflicted heavy damage on his body.
He focused on protecting his vital areas, leaving other parts of his body exposed, which were pierced by Gloriosa's arrows. Once she emptied her quiver, she used Soru to appear before Vergo once again and continued her assault with Tempest Kicks and Shigans.
In the distance, Orion was engaged in combat with Vice Admiral Vidar Lund, the user of the Mori Mori no Mi, a Logia fruit that granted him the ability to control and transform into vegetation.
Since Gloriosa had begun her violent assault on Vergo, not much time had passed, and Orion had been fighting this vice admiral who had come to ensure the success of the transaction between the mercenaries and the Donquixote Family.
Even so, there was something strange about this vice admiral. Not only was his morality rated as positive according to the analysis of Orion's Prism Eyes, but he was also holding back his attacks while fighting him!
Clearly, he had every intention of helping Vergo in this situation, yet he was avoiding launching lethal attacks against Orion, which was significantly limiting his combat power. After exchanging blows with him for several minutes, Orion concluded that his initial suspicion had been correct: Vidar Lund was stronger than him at this moment!
Even so, Orion estimated that the difference between their combat levels was not enormous, and in a true fight to the death, either one of them could come out the victor.
"You should stop while you still can. There's still time for you to escape," the vice admiral suddenly said, looking at Orion with seriousness.
"What do you mean? Why would we stop now when we're so close to our objective?" Orion replied with a smile, using his sword to destroy the thick trees growing around him and attacking him.
Vidar Lund halted his movements and, shaking his head, spoke with a solemn voice.
"No, I can feel it—something dangerous is approaching."
Orion raised his eyebrows upon hearing the vice admiral's words, and when he looked toward Gloriosa, he saw that she was still fighting Vergo fiercely, matching him in strength.
Even so, the pink-haired girl clearly held the advantage, since the wounds she had inflicted on the pirate earlier were limiting his movements and giving her the chance to pressure Vergo more and more. It was undeniably satisfying to see Gloriosa fighting so freely against such a powerful pirate and actually winning, yet Orion couldn't help but think back to Vidar Lund's words, and a sudden chill ran down his spine.
Lifting his gaze toward the sky, he activated his Prism Eyes, channeling his Observation Haki to strengthen the ability, and then he saw it: an almost transparent string was descending from the clouds at high speed, and a person was swinging down along that string!
Immediately, Orion opened the system screen and saw a new marker that hadn't been there before: Donquixote Doflamingo.
Without wasting a single second, Orion abandoned his fight with Vice Admiral Lund, not even sparing a thought for the Ope Ope no Mi user for the moment.
Using Soru, he rushed at full speed toward the center of the battlefield where Daz Bonez was, and grabbing him by the arm, he threw him into his Space Gate, sending him directly to Pacific Kingdom without the slightest hesitation. Then he moved toward Green Kamakiri Kiko, the mercenary leader, and tossed him into his Pocket Dimension before the man even had time to react.
Once he finished securing those two individuals, he sprinted toward the area where Vergo and Gloriosa were fighting, and unsheathing his cutlass Ace, he unleashed an attack with his sword.
"Kamusari!"
Bang!!
His attack collided head-on with the Haki-infused strings that had been descending toward Gloriosa's head without her noticing, and Orion felt a powerful pressure crash against his body, forcing a bit of blood up his throat.
With Soru, he seized the beautiful pink-haired warrior by the waist and moved as far away as possible from Vergo's position, finally giving the pirate a breath from Gloriosa's brutal barrage.
"Orion! Why did you interrupt me? If you had given me a few more minutes I would've finished pounding that guy into the ground!" Gloriosa said with clear reluctance after being dragged away from the battlefield.
However, Orion had no intention of explaining much of anything, because he had absolutely no time to waste.
Tilting his head, he pressed a brief kiss to Gloriosa's lips, making her eyes widen in surprise as her cheeks flushed faintly, since this was the first time Orion had ever initiated a kiss between them on his own.
Unfortunately for her, she didn't get to enjoy the moment at all, because Orion immediately tossed her into the Space Gate, sending her to Pacific Kingdom just as he had done with Daz Bonez moments earlier.
Several more strings cascaded down from the sky, trying to destroy the not-yet-closed Space Gate, and Orion stepped forward with a frown, launching another sword attack to block them and ensure Gloriosa's safe escape.
The Space Gate closed without leaving a trace, and Orion let out a sigh of relief, knowing he had at least managed to evacuate his loved ones before the monster descending at full speed from the heavens arrived.
For a moment, Orion considered simply fleeing himself. If he used his Space Gate now, he might be able to escape—even if he would have to endure the rebound effect of the portal being destroyed mid-travel by Doflamingo.
However, when he glanced toward the Ope Ope no Mi user in the distance, still under the supervision of Vice Admiral Vidar Lund, he dismissed that idea entirely.
It was true that facing Doflamingo right now was not advisable, given the enormous gap in their combat levels, but he simply couldn't throw away the chance to obtain the Ope Ope no Mi he had been searching for for so long.
At the very least, Gloriosa and Daz Bonez were out of the picture, so Doflamingo wouldn't be able to use them as weaknesses against him. Even if he failed to secure custody of the Ope Ope no Mi user, Orion believed he could at least escape from the degenerate Warlord alive.
However, just as he was thinking that, a cluster of strings descended once again from the sky and decapitated the Ope Ope no Mi user before Orion could do anything to stop it.
"Hahahahaha! Look who we have here! This must be my lucky day!" Doflamingo exclaimed, descending from the sky with his tongue out, laughing like a maniac as he stared directly at Orion.
After their last encounter, Doflamingo had been searching relentlessly for Orion without success, so being able to finally find him in this place was an incredibly gratifying surprise. At last he would be able to torture him until he begged for his life!
On the other hand, Orion—who had been prepared to retreat at full speed once his kidnapping target was gone—froze in place, because a new notification had appeared on the system screen.
*Ding*
*A source of energy has been detected nearby: Ope Ope no Mi*