The number of slaves on Mary Geoise far exceeded expectations.
Even though Shanks and his crew had prepared in advance, those hot air balloons were insufficient for the tens of thousands of slaves.
Especially those slaves sent to the manual elevator power rooms because of their poor 'appearance'.
They were not only larger in size than the ornamental slaves but also more numerous.
Fortunately, the Celestial Dragons had left behind some [Bubble Balls]. Although these weren't very large, there were enough of them. With enough trips back and forth, transport was almost manageable.
"Whew… Captain, this is quite a large-scale operation."
The Red Hair Pirates' newest member, Rockstar, wiped the sweat from his brow, fanning himself with his sleeve as he spoke.
Don't let this kid's afro and fierce appearance fool you… he wasn't a bad person.
Otherwise, Shanks wouldn't have acknowledged him and allowed him to join the Red Hair Pirates.
It's just that his somewhat intimidating appearance often led to misunderstandings, like with some timid slaves.
The fear in their eyes when he cut their chains wasn't much less than when they saw Celestial Dragons.
He wasn't alone in having such troubles. Combatant Gab, musician Bonk Punch, and navigator Building Snake shared similar issues.
Even the monkey [Monster], who is always perched on Bonk Punch's shoulder, looked quite fierce.
Yet few knew that this group, fearsome in both strength and appearance, loved getting drunk in a small tavern in Windmill Village in the East Blue.
They didn't even mind when their boss got his head smashed with a bottle by mountain bandits.
One truly has to marvel at the strength of the [Mountain Bandit King].
Only after seeing the last batch of slaves safely sent away from Mary Geoise did Shanks beckon to Benn Beckman.
After sensing for a while to confirm nothing was left behind, the crew prepared to board the hot air balloon to descend.
"Captain, are we really not going further in? Like dealing with the Five Elders or something in advance?"
Lucky Roux said while eating meat.
Despite his simple and honest appearance, this chubby guy was the one with the quickest and most ruthless hands among the crew.
Hearing this, Shanks simply shook his head.
"Let's not complicate things. Naruto's side is the key point now. We've already delayed here long enough."
With that, he ordered the balloon to begin descending.
While liberating the slaves, they hadn't forgotten their pirate 'occupation', casually taking some treasures from the Celestial Dragons' vaults.
The amount wasn't huge, but it was enough for several rounds of heavy drinking.
More of the treasures were distributed among the slaves.
After all, even after leaving this hellhole, returning to their original homes would be difficult for many.
Some had nothing left in their hometowns, and these people needed money for food, clothing, and shelter.
Compared to the Red Hair Pirates, they were the ones who truly needed the money.
Of course, considering the limited transport capacity, each slave couldn't carry much. Most took clothes and supplies.
As for the original owners of these treasures, those once 'noble' and overbearing individuals, most had died at the hands of the liberated slaves.
They weren't trained warriors like the God's Knights with strong talent. Sometimes, dealing with them just required a few bold slaves each taking a turn.
"Captain, where do you think they'll go afterwards?"
The ship's doctor, Hongo, asked Shanks.
"I don't know. But it certainly… won't be worse than staying here."
"This place full of sin."
…
Back to the present. Naruto's group found a few black-suited individuals amidst the thoroughly looted ruins who were still trying to grab gold and silver from storehouses.
These people had decisively chosen to abandon their masters during the slave uprising.
Seriously, they did possess some combat ability.
But that ability was utterly insufficient against those combat slaves freed from their Seastone restraints.
Not to mention the elite crew members of an Emperor pirate crew watching closely from the sidelines.
If not for the chaotic scene, they would have been dealt with by the Red Hair Pirates' crews long ago.
From these people's mouths, Naruto confirmed his suspicion.
It seemed Shanks's operation was very successful.
This time, they had essentially uprooted the Celestial Dragons entirely.
Even if a tiny number of Celestial Dragons were still fleeing overseas, without the World Government's protection, their extinction was only a matter of time.
"They deserved it! How can such people exist in the world!"
After learning the cause and effect, Konohamaru, who had initially felt queasy at the sight of the mutilated corpses, immediately swung his fists and shouted.
A child's sense of good and evil is very simple. Bad people should be punished.
And for someone from the Ninja World, death wasn't an unacceptable situation.
After casually dealing with those black-suited lackeys, the group hurried towards the direction of Pangaea Castle.
This was where Naruto had suffered a setback last time.
Back then, his clone, pursued by the Fengxi, Warcury, resolutely chose to release a self-destructing Conqueror's Bomb to achieve maximum destructive effect.
Now, the Fengxi was dead, and no other God's Knights appeared to block Naruto's path.
They hurried forward, crossing the vast urban area of Mary Geoise, which was practically a 'nation' itself, finally reaching Pangaea Castle, this 'city within a city'.
This was where the Five Elders usually struck their poses.
"Surprisingly plain in design."
Looking at the spacious hall with few decorations and a somewhat empty style, Sasuke couldn't help but comment.
His words echoed the others' thoughts.
Compared to the extravagantly wasteful residences of ordinary Celestial Dragons, the Five Elders' office, apart from its enormous size, lacked overly luxurious decorations.
Pushing open the door, the four found not a single enemy in sight.
This gave Naruto a sense of foreboding.
Enduring the side effects of Sage Mode, he expanded his Observation Haki, instantly scanning Pangaea Castle from top to bottom.
Besides an empty city, there was only one enormous straw hat.
"He got away..."
Leading Sasuke and the others down a secret passage, they passed through the [Room of Flowers], which was underground yet still bathed in sunshine with birds singing and flowers blooming, finally arriving before a secret room.
Using traditional methods to unlock the door, surrounded by chilling air, they clearly saw the enormous straw hat placed in the center of the room, large enough to hold several people.
"So huge-"
Konohamaru stood before the giant straw hat, measuring it. At his current height, he was still shorter than this hat.
Meanwhile, Karin sharply picked up a wanted poster scattered nearby. It also featured a face with a straw hat and a silly grin.
"It's that goofy kid."
Karin had some impression. From afar, she had seen Luffy and his crew breaking out of the ground on the Sunny to rescue Ace.
With her eyesight, she could clearly see Luffy's face.
Naruto took Luffy's wanted poster from her, feeling somewhat incredible.
'Why would Imu, the master behind the World Government, be interested in that kid Luffy?'
'Was it because of the straw hat he wore?'
Thinking of the hat's previous owner, Naruto thought that could somewhat make sense.
After all, Roger was no small character. Perhaps Imu was worried Luffy had inherited Roger's will.
But Naruto still felt some things didn't add up.
For example, who was the owner of this giant straw hat? And why did Imu treasure it enough to keep it in a secret room?
Of course, none of this was the most crucial point.
What truly puzzled Naruto was:
Where did Imu go?