Check out advanced chapters on P@treon: [email protected]/CosmicKaminari
----------
In just half a month, more than a dozen Marine officers were assassinated, most of them by civilians.
Open spears are easy to dodge, but hidden arrows are hard to guard against.
The more righteous the officer, the more susceptible he was to assassination; he would never have imagined that civilians would plunge blades into his heart.
When the murderers received their bounties, and they were published in the newspapers, Cross Guild was immediately pushed into the eye of the storm!
"Genius Jester" Buggy, bounty of 3,189,000,000 Berry!
"Mr. 3" Galdino, bounty of 2,123,000,000 Berry.
"Crocodile" Crocodile, bounty of 1,965,000,000 Berry.
"Surgeon of Death" Trafalgar Law, bounty of 500,000,000 Berry!
The bounties of the four core members soared!
At the same time, "Whitebeard Jr." Edward Weevil was captured by the Hoenn government, and Buggy was stripped of his Warlord title.
In a short period, the Warlords lost two members in succession.
There was also a rumor circulating that Gecko Moria, one of the Warlords, had once been defeated by Straw Hat.
This made the world question the purpose of the Warlords' existence and gave the World Government a huge headache; they needed to prove that the Warlords were not useless.
A mandatory summons was issued again!
On the Other Side, Wano Country
"Hehehe, transform!"
The Priestess performed her transformation talent, turning into Hancock's appearance, even mimicking Hancock flipping her long hair.
"I am the most beautiful!"
"Oh, oh, oh, that's right!"
Daichi's eyes turned into hearts, but he quickly reacted.
The tone and demeanor were identical!
"Can you transform into a Giant?"
"Giant? I'll try!"
The Priestess thought of Gerd.
"Thump!"
"Ouch!"
The Priestess (Gerd) clutched her head, tears welling up from the pain.
She hit the ceiling.
But she had indeed transformed into a Giant.
The Priestess flexed her arm and said in surprise, "Daichi-sama, I feel so strong right now!"
Daichi was a little surprised.
Could she possess corresponding strength after transforming?
If so, the Nine-Tailed Fruit was stronger than he imagined.
"Let's test it."
Daichi took the Priestess to the gym, setting up barbells and everything else, and soon the woman was drenched in sweat from exhaustion.
The Priestess held the barbell, her face full of resentment.
"Daichi-sama!"
"Try transforming into Yamato next!"
Daichi urged.
The Priestess put down the extra-large barbell and instantly transformed into Yamato with a "whoosh," feeling her strength increase significantly.
She picked up the barbell and spun it in her hands.
"Wahahaha, I'm so amazing!"
The Priestess's eyes widened, unable to believe she possessed such great strength, but the next moment her head spun, and her body fell straight to the ground.
"Thud!"
Face-first.
The girl turned into a small fox, lying limply on the ground like a dumpling, unable to lift even a single paw, her entire body aching.
"Is her endurance poor?"
Daichi grabbed the little fox by the scruff of her neck, lifted her up, and shook her a few times; the little fox was like a noodle, completely limp.
She could transform into others and possess their physical strength, but unfortunately, her endurance was quite lacking, only lasting for a short while.
But this wasn't a problem with the ability itself, but rather the Priestess's own poor stamina.
Even so, allowing someone not skilled in combat to have a brief burst of power was still quite impressive.
The Priestess weakly resisted.
"Daichi-sama, please don't poke my face."
"And don't touch my waist."
"And don't rub my butt!"
"Eh? Why are you lifting my tail?!"
"WuwuwuXX~~"
After playing for a while, Daichi was satisfied.
The ability was quite interesting, and it hadn't been developed much; according to the legend of the Nine-Tails, there should be other aspects of power, such as charm and illusion techniques.
Most importantly, the feeling of stroking her was quite good!
Kikara arrived at the gym.
"Daichi-sama, the World Government has summoned the Warlords; it's likely they're going to target Cross Guild."
"Hmm."
Daichi rubbed the little fox, thinking about Cross Guild.
It was inevitable that the Marines would want to eliminate Cross Guild; the bounty orders would only have an increasingly severe impact on the Marines, and once trust collapsed, it would be fatal to the Marines.
Marines were fighting on the front lines, but they were being backstabbed from behind; no one could stand it, especially the low-ranking Marines.
Their belief in justice would waver.
Once an organization lost its conviction, the consequence was disintegration.
Furthermore, with the strength of Crocodile and Law, it would be difficult to resist the Marines' offensive; they needed reinforcements.
The question was who to send.
Cross Guild was a pirate organization, and it was a Yonko crew; the Beast Pirates found it inconvenient to intervene, and the Hoenn government was not suitable to offer help.
If Buggy truly had the power of a Yonko, it would be much simpler.
Daichi pondered for a long time.
"Kikara, contact Hancock and Jinbe and ask them to go to Cross Guild. If Hancock is unwilling, tell her it's my request."
"Understood."
Kikara hesitated for a moment.
"Daichi-sama, Jinbe, he..."
"Have him withdraw from the Hoenn Navy."
Now that Hoenn's combat strength was no longer scarce, and Jinbe was once a pirate, even with a good reputation, he was not entirely suitable to stay in Hoenn.
He needed to shine.
With Hancock added, Cross Guild would have four Warlord-level combatants, capable of fighting even if the Marines dispatched an Admiral.
If he could recruit other Warlords, especially Hawkeye, Cross Guild would be complete with him.
Grand Line, Kuraigana Island
In the Castle
"It's ready!"
Perona flew into Hawkeye's room, holding a freshly made hamburger, and upon seeing Hawkeye's furrowed brows, she couldn't help but pause.
Curiously, she leaned closer.
"What's this?"
"A summons from the World Government."
Hawkeye closed the letter.
He had heard about Cross Guild but didn't want to get involved; however, this was a mandatory summons.
If he refused, his title would be revoked.
There was another issue: now, only he, Gecko Moria, Doflamingo, and Kuma remained among the Warlords.
Not many left.
Except for Kuma, they generally didn't obey the World Government's orders; if it weren't for a mandatory summons, probably no one would go.
Cross Guild's act of putting bounties on Marines was too peculiar, and it was hard to say there wasn't a mastermind behind it; he didn't want to get caught up in political struggles.
Hawkeye looked at Perona.
"Gecko Moria will also go; you can return to his side."
"Moria-sama!"
Perona was overjoyed.
She had been sent here by Kuma and temporarily stayed; only later did she learn this was Hawkeye's residence. After the Summit War, she also wanted to return to the Thriller Bark to find Moria, but there was only Hawkeye's small boat on the island, and no Log Pose.
She couldn't go back for now.
Now, she could finally go find Moria-sama.
Perona suddenly thought of something and pointed out the window: "If we both leave, what about that idiot?"
"Don't worry about him."
Hawkeye shook his head.
He had taught him everything he could; future training would be up to him.
"Get ready to depart."
"Eh? So fast!"
"By the way, do you want a hamburger?"
"No."
"What! You're as unlikable as ever!"