Just as Xia Te controlled the earth beneath his feet to form a massive lion head, preparing to withdraw with his crew—
he suddenly noticed the Heart Pirates, who were locked in a bitter struggle.
After capturing Luffy, Sentomaru handed him off to his subordinates.
Unable to deal with Rayleigh, he gave up chasing the Straw Hats and instead set his sights on the Heart Pirates.
And Law's group—who had yet to master Haki—
were struggling just to handle Sentomaru and a single Pacifista.
At this rate, they would definitely end up dragged into Impel Down as well.
No helping it.
Who told you you didn't have any backing?
"Hey, Trafalgar. Made up your mind yet? Want to be my ship's doctor? Or are you planning to keep Straw Hat company in Impel Down?"
Xia Te called out from above.
Barely dodging a Pacifista laser, Law glanced toward Xia Te, gritting his teeth.
"Forget it. If you really want to die here, that's your choice. But your goal will never be achieved."
Xia Te was already losing interest in recruiting him.
He did need a doctor—
but Law wasn't his only option.
Hearing those words, Law's heart jolted.
A name echoed in his mind:
Corazon…
If he were captured here, he'd be thrown into Level 6.
And he'd never get out.
Clenching his teeth, Law finally shouted:
"Fine! I'll join you as your ship's doctor!"
"Weevil."
Xia Te smiled in satisfaction.
Weevil immediately leapt down from the lion head, landing between the Heart Pirates and the Pacifista.
"Weevil! Bounty: 240 million Berries!"
Sentomaru's expression turned wary.
Pacifistas could suppress pirates below 300 million who didn't know Haki—
but Weevil was different.
His bounty was only that low because, despite being insane, he hadn't actively provoked the Marines.
Otherwise, it would easily exceed 400 million—maybe even 500 million.
"Hmph—!"
Weevil swung his naginata.
Like Rayleigh earlier—
a single slash cleanly cut the Pacifista in half.
"One move!?"
Bepo, Shachi, Penguin, and the others were completely dumbfounded.
Before they could recover—
Weevil grabbed all of them in one hand like a bunch of chicks.
With a single leap, he returned to the lion head.
"Big brother, I brought them back."
After landing, he casually tossed them down.
"That easy…?"
The Heart Pirates were utterly shaken.
They had struggled desperately just to escape—
yet Weevil rescued them as if it were nothing.
"Good work."
Xia Te patted Weevil's arm, then pointed at the unconscious Celestial Dragons.
"Your first task on the crew—study the body structure of these pieces of trash."
Law swallowed.
He had dissected countless corpses—
but never imagined he'd one day dissect Celestial Dragons.
"B-Big brother, about that…"
Weevil fidgeted, clearly wanting to say something.
Xia Te immediately saw through him and chuckled:
"Relax. The woman's yours first."
"Thank you, big brother! Thank you!"
Weevil shouted in delight.
"Tch. No taste. That woman's ugly as hell…"
Enel scoffed from the side.
…
…
"Hey! Borsalino, what are you doing!? If they get away, how are we supposed to answer to those old men in Mary Geoise!?"
Akainu roared angrily at Kizaru upon seeing Xia Te's group preparing to leave.
Though Akainu despised the Celestial Dragons—
he still had to obey them.
After all, the Government was the Navy's superior.
Kizaru shrugged helplessly.
If he had known things would escalate this badly, he wouldn't have taken the mission.
"Well… Sakazuki, it's too late now. Let's just leave it."
Kizaru spread his hands.
Enel's Rumble-Rumble Fruit alone was already comparable to his Glint-Glint Fruit—
not something that could be quickly decided.
Not to mention Xia Te and Weevil were monsters themselves.
Even if they caught up, they likely couldn't rescue anyone.
Meanwhile, Akainu, who had beaten Kid bloody, nearly wanted to smack Kizaru seeing his laid-back attitude.
But the lion head had already risen high into the sky, heading out to sea.
Even if both Admirals used Geppo to chase—
once the battlefield shifted to the ocean,
as Devil Fruit users, they'd be at a severe disadvantage.
With a snort, Akainu barked:
"Withdraw! All captured criminals—Straw Hat Luffy, the Kid Pirates, the Hawkins Pirates—send them all to Impel Down Level 6!"