The Five Elders' order to the Navy was simple and blunt.
Persuade Crocodile to join the Seven Warlords of the Sea.
On Sammi's side, the World Government delivered the very same line. "Our apologies, Miss Sammi. Crocodile cannot be released for now. Unless she agrees to enter the Seven Warlords program, we cannot approve her freedom. The World Government cannot allow its dignity to be trampled at will. Unless, of course, the party in question is one of our own."
Sammi froze for a beat when CP0 said this, then listened as the agent patiently outlined the Warlords plan from beginning to end. Even after the explanation, her confusion did not entirely lift.
When did the World Government grow a spine?
In the past, whenever Lord Ozz moved, the Government would yield if it could, and if it could not, it would invent new ways to yield anyway. Now, all of a sudden, they were talking about dignity.
It was out of character.
"Have you considered what happens if Lord Ozz learns you are holding one of his companions?" Sammi finally asked, forced to lean on the pressure of her patron. It was a lever that always worked. Until today.
The CP0 voice remained calm, as if briefed in advance. "The Elders have accounted for Lord Ozz's stance. We believe he will give the Government face in this matter."
Sammi fell silent. Her right to speak to the World Government at this level came from her position as Ozz's appointed representative while he roamed the world, uninterested in daily affairs. If that was their answer, then her duty was to pass it on.
A troubled season indeed.
At her side, Airi, trusted aide, one of the first to follow Ozz, was compiling reports. She could not help grumbling. "Relying on their cozy ties with Lord Ozz, the Government is getting bolder by the day. They even sent slave ships into our waters recently, and targeted only the three sisters."
"Tenryuubito whims," Airi snorted. "Perverts."
Sammi rubbed her temples. Her intelligent eyes narrowed as she shot her aide a warning look. "I cleared that operation."
Airi's eyes went wide. "You agreed to that? At our scale we hardly need their money. Why indulge those degenerate Celestial Dragons?"
"That order came from Lord Ozz himself, in his capacity as a Celestial Dragon, transmitted through CP0."
That ended it. Airi's righteous anger stalled in place.
"…If Lord Ozz chose it, he must have had his reasons," she said at last, backpedaling with impressive speed. "No wonder he dotes on Little Six and Little Seven. His taste is impeccable."
Sammi could only shake her head at this quick-change performance. Think it through for once. Without Lord Ozz's nod, would those traffickers have dared try anything at all?
Seeing Sammi let the matter pass, Airi turned ingratiating again and handed over a fresh cup of coffee. "Shall we contact Lord Ozz, then? We usually avoid interrupting his travels unless it is absolutely necessary."
Sammi accepted the cup, lifted the lid to let the steam out, then glanced over with her eyes gone serious. "Of course. This is not a call I will make on my own. If the World Government is this confident, there is nothing more for us to say. On Crocodile, we follow Lord Ozz's decision."
Airi nodded. "One more thing. Where has that brat Enel run off to? I feel like I have not seen him in ages."
Sammi had just reached for the transponder snail and paused, remembering. Airi tapped her chin, thinking. "He let the red-light district girls sweet-talk him out of his whole allowance. To make up for it, he goes bounty hunting after work. You will love this. The fool was almost conned into joining the Marines when he went to cash in."
Enel split his days between work for Sammi and training Haki per Ozz's instructions. Time was tight. The one time he went out to enjoy himself, the private room's worship and flattery hit him like a drug, and the money poured out like water.
Sammi gave him a generous stipend, but even that had limits. Poor child. She had him dancing in circles and he did not even know the most obvious truth.
As Ozz's junior, he could have walked into most places for free.
Once the Navy confirmed their failed recruitment and his association with the Black Gun, Dotor Ozz, they flipped their script at once. A bounty sheet went to print the same afternoon.
Wanted
Thunder God Enel
Companion of the Black Gun, Dotor Ozz. A Logia-class Goro Goro no Mi user. Extremely dangerous.
Bounty: 936,000,000 Berries.
Dead or alive. Heinous crimes.
Hearing he was out earning on the side again, Sammi decided not to meddle.
Let him have his fun.
…
New World.
Close to the point where the Red Line begins its climb.
Lightning stitched the sky. Wind drove rain in silver sheets. A luxury liner plowed steadily through the weather, its hull groaning, its windows beaded with water. Storms were nothing special in the New World. There were days when fireballs fell from the clouds. The passengers did not panic. They watched the bruise-dark heavens in silence.
It helped that the most expensive suite aboard belonged to a guest who prized his peace and quiet.
Through the floor-to-ceiling windows, a young man in a bathrobe and slippers lounged on a sofa, gaze lifted toward the ceiling of cloud. If he wanted, he could punch a hole in that sky and let the sun grin through. Why bother?
Clear blue was common enough. A good rain had its own flavor.
He exhaled.
"So this is what the fuss is about." He studied the cigar between his fingers. Twenty now, he had finally decided to see what Crocodile loved so much. The first puffs had been unremarkable. The rest had gone down suspiciously easy.
No wonder Crocodile liked to keep one clenched in her teeth. It did have a certain charm.
"I have seen enough of the New World for now," he murmured. "Might as well cut through the Holy Land and head back to Paradise."
He had heard that Shanks had made a name for himself. It might be worth sharing a cup for old times' sake.
Luffy and Uta should be surfacing around now as well.
His thoughts drifted along the timeline, then the transponder snail on the coffee table trilled, crisp as a chime.
Buru buru buru…
Click.
A small face with red lips and bright eyes bloomed across the snail's features, voice soft and respectful. "Forgive the interruption, my lord. It pains me to disturb your leisure…"
"Lord Ozz."
He smiled and took one last draw before setting the cigar in the ashtray. Outside, thunder strode from cloud to cloud. Inside, his voice was unhurried. "Go on."
Sammi inhaled to steady herself. "The Five Elders have instructed Marine Headquarters to persuade Crocodile to join the Seven Warlords. CP0 delivered the same message to us. They will not release her unless she agrees."
Ozz's eyes half-lidded, the glint within unreadable. "And if I mind?"
"They said the Elders have considered your opinion, and believe you will give the Government face." Sammi paused. "It is not their usual posture. I thought you should decide."
A beat of silence stretched, measured by the tap of rain against glass.
"Mm." Ozz rose and walked to the window, a shadow moving against a curtain of storm. "Paradise, then. I was heading that way regardless."
"Understood." Relief colored Sammi's tone. "There is one more matter. Enel's allowance…"
"Spent already?"
"All of it. He is hunting bounties to make ends meet. He was nearly duped into Marines recruitment at the exchange office. They issued a wanted poster the same afternoon. Nine hundred thirty-six million. Dead or alive."
Ozz's mouth curved. "If he gets himself caught, he can work it off in training."
Sammi could not help a small laugh. "Shall I arrange your passage through the Holy Land?"
"I will manage it." Ozz picked up the cigar again, then changed his mind and crushed it out. "Tell Crocodile I will speak to her myself. If she dislikes cages, we will find a ring that looks like one from the outside."
"I will pass it on."
The line fell quiet. The snail's eyes drooped as the connection closed. Ozz watched the rain for another long moment, then turned from the window. The New World roared beyond the glass. Within the suite, the air held the last hint of cigar smoke.
"Back to Paradise," he said, and the way he said it made it sound less like a destination, more like a stage being set.
Outside, the liner shouldered into the storm.