When they arrived at the last town in West Blue before Reverse Mountain, El and the four girls did not search everywhere for traces of Robin.
It was January, Year 1515.
Robin's birthday was in February—just like El's—and in one more month, she would turn twenty-three.
She had been fleeing since the age of eight. Over fifteen years, the little girl who once hid like a mouse in a stinking ditch had grown into a seasoned survivor. A "big mouse," no longer forced to run from the pursuit of ordinary people with nothing but knowledge and housework skills to rely on.
Those fifteen years of escape had refined Robin's ability to hide herself to perfection—so much so that even CP agents found it difficult to track her down.
The Flower-Flower Fruit granted her not only combat strength, but also an unparalleled ability to gather information.
In truth, Robin had already possessed the ability to leave West Blue for years. In the original timeline, she departed the West Sea and entered the Grand Line five years before the main story began.
Even if El had never come to West Blue, Robin would still enter the Grand Line sometime this year.
The problem was that El did not know which month.
And he had no intention of wasting time waiting for her to appear in this town.
So the moment he stepped onto shore, El seized a vicious pirate who made him feel uncomfortable, forcefully read his memories, and quickly gathered all local intelligence.
This West Blue town was as bustling as Loguetown.
The difference was that, unlike Loguetown—which housed a Marine branch—this island was sheltered by gangs.
Outside the so-called "peace" of the weakest sea, the independent forces of the other three seas were far stronger.
In West Blue, aside from pirates, there existed another extremely famous profession—
Gangsters.
A profession deeply rooted in the dark world, no less significant than piracy itself.
Some large gangs possessed the ability to manufacture weapons on their own. With enough manpower and firepower, they could conquer or loot entire cities.
They sold weapons to pirate crews that lacked production capabilities, and when Marines ran short on supplies during long voyages, even they would secretly purchase arms from these gangs to resupply.
Some gang leaders walked freely between the black and white worlds. Others had official bounties issued by the Navy.
This was the reality of West Blue.
In practice, its gangs were equivalent to half a black market.
A place sheltered by a gang was no different from a place sheltered by the black market itself.
Unless a pirate crew was ignorant of the importance of weapons, no one dared to cause trouble in a gang-protected area.
This town—located right before Reverse Mountain—was one of the few truly peaceful islands.
"Because of its extremely special location, many forces have established branches here… and some have even placed their headquarters on this island."
Coincidentally, the West Blue branch of the News Agency was also located here.
Although the World Economy News Paper was the largest newspaper organization in the world, Morgans only truly monopolized the news business in the first and second halves of the Grand Line.
The four Blues still had room to breathe.
After all, the world was vast. If Morgans wanted to completely monopolize global news, the number of News Coos under his command would need to at least double.
Moreover, news from the four seas was simply too insignificant compared to the chaos of the Grand Line. There were few headlines dramatic enough to generate massive profits.
Thus, Morgans never bothered to seize every slice of the cake.
As long as the "big brother," the World Economy News Paper, didn't publish earth-shattering news, the smaller news agencies of the four seas could still survive—drinking a little soup from the sidelines.
These agencies either reported curious sea stories or spread gossip to make a living.
That day, El met with the president of the West Blue News Agency.
Whether the man recognized him or was simply overwhelmed by the twenty stacks of Belly, each worth 100,000, placed neatly in front of him—
No one knew.
What was certain was that the president's posture became exceedingly humble.
The next day, the newspapers of West Blue published a headline unlike anything seen in years.
A front-page story that most people couldn't understand.
The article contained mostly pictures, with very little accompanying text.
The images depicted stone steles, their inscriptions so blurred that the words were impossible to read clearly. The report claimed that the agency had accidentally discovered a cave containing mysterious writing no one could decipher.
To the average reader, it meant nothing.
But to anyone with knowledge—
It was unmistakable.
Ancient text.
Yes.
This was El's method.
A fisherman casting bait.
Robin's lifelong goal was to uncover the truth of the Poneglyphs. In the original story, she was even willing to help Crocodile overthrow a kingdom just to see one hidden beneath Alabasta.
Before she found her nakama, the Poneglyphs were the meaning of her existence.
And now, El had deliberately blurred the text and placed it in the headlines.
With Robin's obsession, she would certainly come.
The moment she set foot on the island—
El would find her.
A week later, a lone figure arrived.
Clad in a black cloak, a hood pulled low, their gender impossible to discern, they quietly landed on a remote coast in a small boat.
Just as their feet touched the sand—
"Finally."
"I've been waiting for you, Nico Robin."
Along with the voice, a figure slowly descended from the sky.
El landed lightly behind her.
Standing at nearly the same height, he casually patted her shoulder, grinning.
Robin's body went completely stiff.
"I… I don't know what you're talking about," she said quickly."Nico Robin? Who is that? You must have mistaken me for someone else."
She forced herself to remain calm.
Robin didn't panic. She didn't attack.
Though her voice trembled for a moment, it soon steadied.
For fifteen years, her mastery of hiding had improved not only because of age and her Devil Fruit—
But also because her appearance had changed dramatically.
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