(Sorry guys, a thief broke into my house and stole a lot of stuff, please be a little patient until i recover a bit. thank you)
Leno watched Hina tense up, her whole posture rigid with caution. Amused, he reached over, took the chips in front of her, and placed all of them on "Small."
"Why else would I be here? To play, of course."
"A man like you gambles? Hina doesn't believe it!"
Seeing that Leno made no further moves, Hina forced herself to calm down, though the sheen of sweat on her forehead betrayed her nerves.
Her mind churned with suspicion. What exactly was this man after? Was he really connected to that organization? Had he been scheming something all along?
"And you? Don't tell me you're here to play too. You know whose turf this is."
Leno didn't bother guessing what she was thinking. He just found her verbal tic interesting and couldn't resist teasing her.
"Hina has no obligation to—"
Bang!
"Dice: One-One-Two, Small!"
The clatter of the dice cup cut her off. Leno won a few hundred Berries, and the dealer slid the chips to him before starting the next round.
"You're investigating Baroque Works, right? If I tell you its boss is Crocodile, what will you do?"
With that, Leno once again pushed all his chips onto "Small" and looked at her with amusement.
Hina's eyes flew wide open. She stared at him in disbelief, so stunned she didn't even notice her cigarette fall from her mouth.
Moments later, she snapped out of it, murmuring, half-dazed, "So that's it. That explains everything…"
Before she could think further, Leno's next sentence jolted her clean out of her chair.
"And if I say the rebellion in Alabasta was started by him, then what?"
"A pirate officially recognized by the World Government is trying to overthrow a member nation. Don't you Marines… plan to do something?"
"Y-you…"
Hina, usually calm and composed, could only point at Leno, lips trembling, unable to speak.
She never imagined the civil war that had lasted more than a year was orchestrated by Crocodile. And she'd been investigating right under his nose this entire time.
After taking a long moment to steady herself, she looked at Leno's faintly mocking expression and asked with confusion:
"So you're here because of Crocodile? Why? Hina wants to know."
He'd originally wanted to see her reaction—he didn't expect her to toss the question back at him. Irritated, he rolled his eyes.
"I just handed you critical intel. As a Marine, don't you have anything to say?"
"If everything is as you said, Hina will report to Headquarters to revoke his Shichibukai title and arrest him!"
Her gaze firmed. Her sense of justice wouldn't allow a pirate like that to continue his crimes.
"Good. Then come with me. I'll show you the truth."
Satisfied, Leno stood and headed into the deeper part of the casino. Hina hesitated a moment, then followed.
They passed through the casino hall into a corridor guarded by two men, who stepped forward to block their path.
Leno didn't slow down—his Conqueror's Haki swept out. Once they walked past, the sound of bodies collapsing finally echoed behind them.
"Conqueror's Haki?! Hina is shocked!"
A faint fragrance drifted down the quiet corridor. Leno glanced at Hina's shapely figure and grinned wickedly.
"Miss Marine, there's no future in the Navy. Want to be an adventurer with me instead? We could travel the world together. What do you think?"
"Hina declines!"
Catching him eyeing her shamelessly, Hina grew irritated. As expected—this man was absolutely a lust-driven beast.
Seeing the disdain in her eyes, Leno bristled immediately.
"Hey hey—what's with that look? I invite you kindly and you stare at me like that?!"
"..."
Hina didn't even spare him a glance. Leno nearly lost it—if not for the situation, he'd have bent her over his knee for sure.
Following the trail of Crocodile's presence, they reached a tightly shut door. Leno kicked it open.
Boom!
The door shattered. Inside sat a man with slicked-back hair and a cigar clamped between his teeth, glaring at them furiously.
"Such a rude man. Hina dislikes it!"
Her cool remark instantly ruined Leno's attempt to look cool. Irritated, he shot her a look.
"I'm asking seriously—whose side are you on?"
"Hina belongs to the Marines!"
He shouldn't have asked. Turning to Crocodile, still seated behind his desk, Leno said arrogantly:
"Crocodile, you've been exposed."
"Come quietly and surrender. That way, you might at least keep a complete corpse!"
"You bastard—what are you trying to pull? And Marines?! Aren't you afraid of the World Government's backlash?!"
Crocodile's eyes blazed with fury. He'd been minding his own business in his office when these two barged in like lunatics.
He still thought his identity as Baroque Works' boss was perfectly hidden, so he tried to act self-righteous.
But Leno tore off his mask instantly.
"Drop the act, Mr. 0. I represent the World—ah, no. She represents the World Government and revokes your Shichibukai title."
"What you've done in Alabasta is exposed. You're finished."
Leno folded his arms, watching the beaten sand-dog Whitebeard had once crushed.
Hina almost choked. Since when did she represent the World Government? He didn't even think before lying!
Still, she didn't expose him. She disliked pirates—recognized or not. Including the man beside her.
Crocodile's pupils shrank violently. Never did he expect his secret identity to leak.
And now that trouble had come knocking, the situation was dire. Cold sweat soaked his back.
He knew all too well how strong this man was. Fighting him? Zero percent chance of winning.
But how did this guy end up working with a Marine? Had they struck some deal?
He didn't fear the man himself… but escaping now would be difficult.
Seeing Crocodile's face cycle through expressions, Leno grew impatient.
"Cut the face-changing tricks. Two options. One: surrender obediently."
"Two: I beat you senseless, then you surrender obediently."
"..."