"Ginny! Are you alright?"
Although Michael had hung Ginny from the ceiling of the room, Kuma's height allowed him to easily reach up and take her down.
"Of course I'm fine!" Ginny slumped on Kuma's shoulder, still refusing to admit defeat. "It's only because Michael stopped in time. Otherwise, once I'd recovered, he'd be the one pounded into the ground!"
Everyone looked at the battered floor, then at the battered Ginny, and finally at Michael, who had little more than a bit of dust on him...
Ginny, no one can match your stubbornness!
However, as comrades who had fought through life and death together, no one continued to mock her. Instead, they turned to look at Michael, who had been absent for quite some time.
"You haven't been to Baltigo in almost a year." Monkey D. Dragon stepped forward and shook Michael's hand firmly. "Why show up all of a sudden? Something urgent?"
"No choice. Ever since I sent Rosinante undercover, I've been implementing plans on the Navy's side." Michael nodded. "Your liberation operations across the Four Seas have been progressing smoothly, even faster than I expected. At this stage, the Secret Special Force needs me more than the Revolutionary Army does."
Dragon had anticipated this response from Michael.
Once the Revolutionary Army's strategic direction had been laid out for the next few years, it came down to execution by the respective forces.
Michael didn't need to handle every matter personally.
"As for this visit," Michael continued, "aside from checking whether Ginny's been slacking off, I also need Ivankov's help with a small matter."
Naturally, Michael wouldn't hide his purpose from his Revolutionary comrades.
At that moment, the room Ivankov had been using as a surgical ward was fully opened.
The first to emerge, of course, was Ivankov's oversized head.
"Michael, the operation's done... Dragon, you're all back? What a coincidence, fufufufu—hah!"
Michael ignored the noisy Ivankov and instead looked behind him.
From the doorway emerged a blue-haired lady clad in a Revolutionary Army uniform and a fur-lined cloak.
The moment her face was revealed, even Michael couldn't help but shiver slightly.
Too similar.
In terms of facial features and outline, she was nearly 80% identical to the original Vivi from the source material.
However, her aura was far more mature and dignified. The scar across her nose didn't ruin her appearance but rather added a fierce, yandere-like edge.
It had to be said—compared to this restored version of Crocodile in her original gender, the Vivi from the original work was completely overshadowed.
The gap in aura was too vast.
After all, when Crocodile had still been the princess of Alabasta, it was the nation's most prosperous era.
By the time Vivi had grown up, Alabasta had already declined.
"Wow, Crocodile... No, should I even call you that anymore?"
"The old name is no longer necessary." Crocodile shook her head. "From now on, there is only Crocodile."
Michael nodded and noticed that Crocodile didn't seem the least bit uncomfortable.
On the contrary, she had instantly reverted to her former regal demeanor as a princess. Every gesture exuded nobility.
Then...
She lit a cigar.
"Hiss—hah! Even with a female body again, I just can't quit this habit."
"Wait a second, Crocodile..." Michael suddenly spoke up. "Are you sure that getting the gender reassignment surgery again would make your face look different from before?"
"Don't worry about that, Michael." Ivankov chimed in from the side. "As someone who saw Crocodile's original appearance, I can guarantee that the similarity is no more than 30%... Back then, Crocodile had the classic delicate-featured beauty. Now this is a strong-featured face."
"...You really do know a lot about women."
"Of course! I'm the perfect being who possesses the beauty of both men and women!"
"Stop glorifying being a drag queen, you giant-faced freak!"
...
"So that's how it is... The Princess of Alabasta?"
Inside the meeting hall in Baltigo, all the Revolutionary Army's officers had gathered.
Michael had just revealed Crocodile's identity to them.
He had only disclosed the identity, without elaborating further.
It wasn't that he didn't trust the Revolutionary Army's commanders, but rather because unlocking Pluton in the future was a task more suited for the Navy.
After all, Wano was already designated as another of his recruitment sources.
"Monkey D. Dragon, the infamous criminal gaining notoriety across the seas... At least, according to the World Government." Crocodile had changed into a set of Ginny's clothes and was still puffing on her cigar. "I must say, I admire you revolutionaries. You're far braver than those pirates."
"Aren't you a pirate yourself? And you look down on pirates?" Ginny gave Crocodile a strange look. She couldn't believe the person in her clothes was the same slicked-back pirate from earlier. "Also, don't lump us Revolutionaries together with pirates!"
She slammed the table, sending a stream of fire from her nostrils.
"A Logia-type Flame-Flame Fruit?" Crocodile hadn't witnessed the training battle between Michael and Ginny, so she was surprised to see Ginny's fruit powers. "There's a Logia user among the Revolutionary Army?"
"Likely more than one." Dragon shook his head and nodded toward Karasu.
Karasu took the hint and immediately brought out the Devil Fruit recovered from the North Blue and placed it in front of Michael.
"Chief of Staff, I paid for this with a shoulder injury. Here's the Devil Fruit!"
"But none of us can tell what kind it is, so we hope you can identify it."
Michael looked down. At first glance, this Devil Fruit looked like an irregular lump of coal.
And considering who found it...
"Dragon was right. The Revolutionary Army now has more than just Ginny as a Logia user." Michael placed the fruit in Karasu's hand. "Congratulations, Karasu. You are now the user of the Logia-type Soot-Soot Fruit."
Michael wasn't surprised by this outcome.
After all, this fruit was his in the original storyline.
But Crocodile, who had been observing, looked at Michael with renewed shock.
That meant he now had four Logia users under his command?
No, including himself, that made five!
"Michael, what exactly are you trying to do?"
Crocodile muttered quietly.