"Great!!!"
"Orin-sama is coming back!!!"
After hanging up the phone, Sammi's face was full of excitement. She completely dismissed what Orin said about the Sabaody Archipelago possibly getting lively soon.
After all, Orin himself was coming back. So what if it gets lively?
Could they even send a Buster Call?
And even if a Buster Call really came… so what…
As long as Orin, the backbone, was here, nothing would be a problem.
Very soon, Orin's two little maids also received the news.
One wore white stockings, the other wore black stockings. Even after all these years, the two little maids were still the same cute, slender young girls as before.
"Orin-sama is finally coming back~"
"Let's tell everyone the news!!!"
Watching the two stunningly beautiful girls busy spreading the word, the equally happy Sammi could only smile helplessly.
Because they were Orin-sama's exclusive maids, the two little girls never needed to do any work, so they'd always maintained their innocent and adorable personalities.
In the Sabaody Archipelago, they were considered quite the special existence.
"Well… since Orin-sama is coming back, we should welcome him. How about…"
"The Red-Light District shuts down for a day and hosts a special party?"
Sammi secretly planned in her heart.
...
On the other side, the two little maids bounced around telling everyone the news. The Red-Light District instantly buzzed with excitement— even some customers could feel the clear change in atmosphere.
Even Rayleigh, who was drinking for free in a bar, was informed by the two girls.
"Rayleigh-san! Orin-sama is coming back!!!"
"Hmm???"
Taking a swig of alcohol, Rayleigh froze for a moment, then reacted.
"Is that so… it really has been a long time. About ten years, I suppose."
Looking at the joyful scene outside, Rayleigh's lips curved slightly. He took another swig of alcohol and shifted his gaze back to the wanted poster in his hand.
It was a rookie's wanted poster.
[Hades]
[Bounty: 412,000,000 Belly]
[Extremely dangerous. Dead or alive.]
"Hades…???"
Rayleigh frowned, staring at the spiky long hair, sunglasses, and the big grin of the strong man in the photo.
This…
He looked exactly like Gaban, didn't he???
Especially those twin axes— even Gaban's own son wouldn't resemble him this much.
Or perhaps… this was Gaban's biological son…
"So young, yet already worth four hundred million. The rookies nowadays really are full of energy…"
...
The newest wanted poster photo was taken in Mock Town by an unknown seagull braving a violent storm.
So it captured Hades' handsomeness extremely well.
While Orin headed toward the Sabaody Archipelago—
Mock Town.
"Zehahahaha… Lafitte has already secured a chance at Marine Headquarters. Now all we need is a head worth over a hundred million!!!"
"Straw Hat Luffy— you're the one!!!"
"Zehahahaha!!!"
Riding a wooden raft made from several tree trunks tied together, the Blackbeard Pirates headed toward the distant Going Merry. But before they could catch up—
A towering column of seawater surged from below.
"Sky Island!!! We're going up!!!"
Wang Luffy shouted excitedly.
Meanwhile, the crudely-made raft of the Blackbeard crew was instantly torn into scraps by the rising current.
A strange force erupted. The Blackbeard crew members, standing on broken planks, suddenly floated in midair instead of falling.
Everyone stared wide-eyed at the levitating wood.
"Zehahaha… this mysterious power is just like Golden Lion Shiki!!!"
"Hey!! Hades!! Let's fly up like this and take down Straw Hat Luffy's whole crew!!!"
Teach grinned wickedly— but then noticed the plank beneath his feet wasn't moving at all.
Turning his head—
Hades had zoned out again, drifting into a half-asleep state.
"Hades, you bastard!!!"
...
And the reason Hades zoned out— was because Orin called.
"Moshi moshi?"
Riding on the back of the Seagull King, Orin was eating some freshly bought specialty snacks. In front of him sat a Den Den Mushi.
Its gaze was cold, and its eyes rippled with layered circles.
On the other end, Mihawk sat on his coffin-like boat, having rejected Doflamingo's offer to sail together and leaving Marineford immediately.
After departing, the first thing he did was call Orin.
"The Marine Headquarters meeting has ended. As you expected, a man named Lafitte came."
Speaking of this, Mihawk felt a bit curious.
"This Teach… a name no one has ever heard before, yet you seem to know everything about them?"
Orin merely smiled.
"My Observation Haki is enough to let me see through fate and the future. The future will be quite exciting!!!"
"…"
Seeing the red glow in the Den Den Mushi's eyes and the sinister grin on Orin's face, Mihawk couldn't help a drop of cold sweat.
He couldn't quite explain the feeling…
But it seemed like this man was grasping everything happening on the sea.
But wasn't he retired— no longer the emperor who controlled half the world?
Could such control truly come from Observation Haki?
With complicated thoughts swirling, Mihawk stopped dwelling on it and instead brought up another matter that needed reporting.
...
"Also… about the laboratory…"
...
New World, an unknown sea region.
Howling winds. Furious waves. Torrential rain.
A secret World Government vessel struggled forward across the stormy waters.
On the deck, several figures dressed in white braved the storm, scouting ahead.
"No… the pointer's magnetic field has become completely unstable, as if something is interfering!!!"
Guernika listened to the report and his expression grew heavy.
"What's going on? The records from the CP0 members who died shouldn't be wrong. But how could the ocean's magnetic field become chaotic?"
"Unless…"
As if realizing something, Guernika suddenly looked toward the sky. Lightning and thunder churned overhead.
"Could there be an enemy… in the sky…?"
"Boom—!!!"
A violent tremor struck the ship, nearly capsizing it.
"No!!! There's something under the ship too!!!"
"What is this impact!!!"
"Is it a Sea King attacking us!???"
Among the CP members, only Guernika had strong enough Observation Haki and sharp eyesight to vaguely identify their attacker.
"Everyone on alert— a terrifying monster is coming!"
Guernika rarely broke a sweat, yet now a few droplets slid down his face as he assumed a combat stance.
Two terrifying forces surged, faintly forming the shape of a combination attack:
"One Billion Volts · Thunder Greeting!!!"
"Fishman Karate!!!"
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Pls Drop some Power Stones
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