Chapter 134 CP0 (1)
"Ugh!" Just after receiving a report from one of his secret informants, Doflamingo's forehead veins bulged with rage as he slammed the Den Den Mushi receiver down.
"E-R-I-K!" He pronounced the name one syllable at a time, showing just how furious he was.
"That bastard came to steal from me on purpose again?! This is the second time!"
Diamante, who had just entered through the door, asked, "Doffy, what happened?"
"I just got word—one of our secret auction houses was attacked by a group of pirates."
Trebol explained on Doflamingo's behalf, "And among them was our old nemesis—Darren Eric!"
"What?!" Diamante flew into a rage. "That guy again?! Doffy! Let me go kill him!"
Doflamingo fell silent. Though his subordinates were wildly arrogant, he was well aware that his family didn't have a 100% chance of eliminating the entire Eric Pirate Crew.
"Doffy, say something!" Diamante pressed, eager to show his loyalty.
"It's fine, Diamante. I know you care about me," Doflamingo said, forcing down his anger. "But I don't want my precious family to get hurt."
"You don't think I can beat them?" Diamante asked, clearly displeased at being underestimated.
"No, Diamante, you're strong," Doflamingo reassured him. "But the time to retake Dressrosa is coming. We don't need to provoke another powerful enemy right now."
"Once I reclaim my throne, rule all of Dressrosa, strengthen my forces by trading arms with Kaido of the Beasts and the World Government—then we'll settle things with that bastard!"
"Well, if you say so, Doffy." Diamante reluctantly obeyed, retracting his long legs and slumping into a chair.
...
The sea train "Puffing Tom" roared down its ocean tracks.
"Woooooo!" The whistle blared, signaling that the train was nearing its destination. It was the first time the sea train had arrived in Carnival Town—this trip made under a compulsory order by CP0.
Aside from the three engineers—Tom and his two apprentices—there were only three passengers onboard, all cloaked in white sheets: the three CP0 agents tasked with tracking the Eric crew.
The sea tracks connected four islands: Carnival Town "Saint Falt," Gourmet City "Buchi," Spring Queen's City "Saint Poplar," and Water 7. Travel between islands had become faster and much safer.
The leader of the CP0 trio had initially assumed they wouldn't make it in time for the auction, and even attempted to postpone the event. But because Doflamingo was behind it, that effort failed.
Unexpectedly, they later learned from another informant that the sea train track had been fully completed—only lacking a trial run.
They seized the opportunity and forced shipwright Tom to transport them to Carnival Town.
Just after 10 p.m., "Puffing Tom" finally arrived at its destination.
The fourth CP0 agent, who had been waiting for them, let out a sigh of relief. "Finally. If anything had gone wrong with the train, I'd have been forced to face the Eric crew alone—and likely die in the process."
"Are you sure it's Eric's crew?"
"Yes. According to Navy Colonel Moss, they've confirmed the presence of Captain Darren Eric, 'Ice Queen' Esdeath, 'Twin Guns' Kurumi Tokisaki, 'Hunter' Akame, and 'Sagittarius' Chiron. Five in total. We're unsure about the rest, but they're all believed to be on the island."
"Good. As long as Eric and Esdeath are here, we have what we need. Our main targets are those two. The others can wait."
"I used Observation Haki in the auction house earlier. At that time, there was no sign of Eric's group. But after I left, the navy reported they had emerged from the building in full view."
"Must've used disguises or some kind of ability to sneak in."
"First time the auction's ever been hit by pirates. Doflamingo must be fuming right now."
As CP0, directly under the Celestial Dragons, they were well aware of Doflamingo's true identity. Though he had been stripped of his Celestial Dragon title, he still possessed many of their secrets. The remaining Dragons hated him deeply—but were forced to tolerate and even cover for him.
They'd tried to delay the auction, but Doflamingo's underlings had flatly refused, never even reporting the request to their boss. So now that Doflamingo had taken a blow, CP0 was naturally quite pleased.
"Enough chatter. Let's go catch Eric."
As the four CP0 agents left, the impulsive Franky finally couldn't hold it in. He shoved aside Iceburg's hand that had been covering his mouth.
"Mr. Tom! Those three are here to capture Mr. Eric!"
"What?" Tom exclaimed.
"Keep it down!" Iceburg smacked Franky in the back. "I knew you'd blab. Shouldn't have told you."
Iceburg turned to Tom. "I overheard their conversation. Their mission is to capture Eric and Esdeath for killing a Celestial Dragon."
Tom grew anxious. "If I'd known that, I wouldn't have rushed here! Now what? There's no way to contact Eric right now…"
Iceburg slapped his forehead. "Wait! I've got his number!"
...
Brrr brrr
"Hmm?" Eric's Den Den Mushi suddenly rang. "That's weird. Who's calling me?"
The Eric crew usually relied on communicators built by Da Vinci—easy to carry and only audible to the user, unlike Den Den Mushi which broadcasted every word out loud.
Eric answered. "Moshi moshi. Who is it?"
"Eric-! They're coming to catch you!" Franky's instantly recognizable voice blared from the receiver. "They just arrived in Carnival Town—from the east side!"
"Oh, thanks a lot, Franky."
"And Eric-," Iceburg now took over, calm and composed, "they seem pretty high up. I saw government agents bowing to them and following their orders. Master and I were forced to help them."
"They're dressed in white cloaks or suits, all wearing different masks—you can't see their faces."
"Oh, I know who they are. They're CP0. Direct subordinates of the Celestial Dragons."
"CP0?" All three on the other end were confused.
"They're called the 'Strongest Shield of the Celestial Dragons,' and 'the World's Strongest Intelligence Agency.' Don't worry if you haven't heard of them. Whenever they show up, nothing good ever happens."
"Probably because I killed a Celestial Dragon in front of the whole world. Guess they're a bit pissed now. Anyway, Mr. Tom, you and Iceburg and Franky need to get out of here."
"Huh?"
"My Observation Haki just picked up their presence. Leave Carnival Town. The faster, the better."
"Got it."
"Eric-, please be careful…!" Franky tried to say more, but Iceburg hung up the call.
"Well, Esdeath. Want to go meet the so-called Strongest Shield of the Celestial Dragons?"
"Of course! Eric, you're getting better and better at understanding me~" she said, hugging him tightly and burying his face in her generous chest.
"Ehehehe…"
...
"Yo, I heard you guys were looking for me?"
Eric and his crew stood before the four CP0 agents.
(END CHAPTER)
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