Former Udon Prison, now the ironworks.
Early in the morning, Sabo had carried a blushing Koala on his back all the way back from the Amigasa Village.
Along the way, he'd hunted some game, using his Flame-Flame Fruit abilities to carefully roast them before having Kuma carry the food to the factory entrance.
"Betty and Morley must be starving by now, right? Especially Morley—being a giant, his appetite was huge to begin with. He gets hungry easily. This much food probably isn't even enough for him alone."
Sabo wore a faint smile on his face, but the hand supporting Koala's ass was mischievously fidgeting.
Thump!
Koala's face darkened as she smacked Sabo's head hard, instantly raising a small bump.
"Put me down!"
She struggled fiercely, and Sabo, unable to resist her, had no choice but to obediently set her down.
The moment Sabo released her, Koala hurriedly ran far away, her small face flushed red with embarrassment, making Sabo's heart race.
"Koala, you're so beautiful..."
"Stop it! Betty and Morley might hear you!" Koala covered her face, shaking her head like a rattle drum.
Sabo could only chuckle awkwardly.
As he passed by the small mound near the factory entrance, Sabo paused briefly before quickly realizing it was the dinosaur-man from the Flying Six who had been beheaded by Karasu the day before.
Someone must have buried him there.
Sabo sighed inwardly and shook his head slightly, about to follow Koala into the factory.
Suddenly!
His body tensed, and with a swift motion, he unleashed a burst of flames from his palm, striking the small mound and instantly blasting it apart.
"ROAR!"
A deafening roar erupted as Page One leaped out from the shattered mound, his body rapidly expanding into a massive tyrannosaurus, lunging at Sabo with jaws wide.
"Ah!" Koala yelped in fright, scrambling backward.
The commotion startled Betty and Morley, who had been sleeping inside the factory, and they rushed out to investigate.
Black Maria, who had been lying on the ground in deep slumber, quickly rolled to her feet and silently approached Ulti, checking her breathing.
"Phew, thank goodness. Ulti's badly hurt, but as long as she's still breathing, there's hope for recovery. Hang in there, Ulti. Wait—that roar? It's Page One! How did he get exposed?"
Black Maria's expression darkened as she followed Betty and Morley outside.
There, in the open space before the factory entrance, Sabo waved his hand, conjuring a ring of scorching flames to trap the dinosaur-transformed Page One.
The intense heat of the fire forced Page One to roar in pain.
Gathering his meager Armament Haki, he charged headfirst through the fiery barrier, enduring the searing flames that blistered his skin.
"Stop! You're no match for me!"
Sabo's body dissolved into flickering embers, evading Page One's charge before calmly reforming a short distance away.
"Page One of the Flying Six, tell me—how did you come back to life after being decapitated? Even with the incredible regenerative abilities of an Ancient Zoan, how could you recover from losing your head?"
Sabo was stunned.
He had never encountered anything like this.
Though he hadn't seen it with his own eyes, Karasu decisive strike had been unmistakably clear in his Observation Haki's perception—there was no way it could have been faked!
At the factory entrance, Betty and Morley were equally shocked and bewildered by the resurrected Page One.
Meanwhile, Black Maria, standing behind them, grew increasingly frantic.
"No choice now! If the Revolutionary Army intends to kill him, Page One won't survive this time. In that case, I might as well wake Ulti—we'll fight with everything we've got!"
Her gaze hardened as she swiftly pulled a small vial from her robes and tipped its contents into Ulti's mouth.
"What are you doing, spider-woman?"
At that moment, Betty noticed Black Maria's unusual movements and quickly turned around with a shout.
Simultaneously, she raised the black steel pipe in her hand, coating it with Armament Haki, and swung it toward Black Maria's back.
Influenced by Sabo, many high-ranking officers in the Revolutionary Army had adopted similar combat styles.
Just as nothing seemed amiss with Ulti, their gazes shifted to Black Maria, whose forehead was bruised and lips stained with blood.
And the moment Betty looked up at Black Maria—
Ulti, who had been lying unconscious on the ground all night, suddenly snapped her eyes open.
Her forehead rapidly darkened like ink, and her body swiftly transformed, sprouting scales and a tail.
"Armament Headbutt!"
With a fierce roar, Ulti's petite figure sprang up like a coiled spring, slamming her head directly into Betty's exposed chest.
Caught off guard, Betty coughed up a mist of blood as she was sent flying like a cannonball, crashing into the giant Morley at the entrance and knocking even his massive frame to the ground.
Ulti wiped her lips and frowned slightly, turning to Black Maria.
"What you just made me drink—was that Caesar's blood?"
"Correct. That was something Caesar-sama specifically entrusted to me when he left Wano Country," Black Maria replied, wiping the blood from her lips with a charming smile.
Ulti snorted.
"Favoritism! To give you something so precious and not even spare me a bottle. That bastard Caesar—he promised to make me a God-level Member. Was he just lying to me?"
Black Maria gave a bitter smile and shook her head without responding.
'Give you a bottle?'
'With your temperament, you'd probably chug it down like a drink the moment you got it.'
'The restorative power of Caesar-sama blood is truly miraculous.'
'Ulti, who had been gravely injured, recovered in an instant—just like I did back then.'
At this thought, a faint blush crept onto Black Maria's beautiful face.
"Seems like Caesar-sama body isn't just limited to his blood having such potent healing abilities... Hehe."
Suddenly, Ulti froze and smacked her own forehead.
"Why am I worrying about this now? Little brother!"
Outside the factory, Page One had once again been knocked to the ground by Sabo.
His massive dinosaur form was effortlessly pinned into the earth by Sabo's Armament Haki-coated Dragon Claw, unable to move an inch.
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