The battle between the Bellamy Pirates and the Flying Pirates lasted until sunset. As darkness fell, the sounds of fighting on the sea finally faded away. After this battle, the once-mighty Flying Pirates were completely annihilated, with no survivors. The floating island, once held aloft by the Golden Lion, sank silently to the bottom of the sea, disappearing from the world forever. Apart from Bellamy and his allies, no one would ever know that such an island lay submerged in these waters. As for the ferocious animals on the island, they sank with it into the eternal depths.
After helping the island's residents, Drake personally escorted Fujitora aboard the Redwood Treasure Ship. Bellamy, dragging his heavily injured body, entered the operating room with Law, followed by Mansherry and the ship's doctor, Muret. There, they would work together to give Bellamy a comprehensive treatment. With their combined abilities, he would soon be back to his peak condition. In fact, after such a grueling battle, his strength was likely to grow immensely during his recovery.
Unlike the Golden Lion, Bellamy was still far from his peak—the point where further progress was impossible. His physical skills, his Devil Fruit ability, and even his combat techniques all had plenty of room for improvement. The greatest trial he had endured in this battle was the intense pressure of the high-magnification gravity field. The first time Fujitora had used Hell's Journey on him, many of his bones had been crushed, and his internal organs had been squeezed until they bled. But afterward, Bellamy had used Life Return and his stored life force to constantly heal himself. Then, in the subsequent fighting, he was repeatedly subjected to the immense gravitational pressure.
This process had forced his body to adapt to the high-gravity field, which in turn had led to a massive improvement in his physical constitution. A gravity field was the perfect tool for training the body, even superior to the deep-sea pressure. The invisible force of gravity could bypass physical defenses and act directly on every cell in the body. Even when not used for combat, the Gravity-Gravity Fruit was one of the world's top-tier support abilities.
Nearly ten hours later, the door to the operating room finally opened. The crew members who had been waiting outside for a long time stood on their toes, eager to see what was going on inside.
"Everyone's tired. Go get some rest," Bellamy said, walking out with a relaxed expression. He looked at the nervous faces of his crew and offered some reassurance. "I hereby declare this operation officially over. The entire crew will now enter a period of rest and recovery."
"YEAH!" everyone cheered loudly. Although they had only joined the battle later for cleanup duty, the three days and nights of anxious waiting had left everyone mentally exhausted. The moment Bellamy announced a break, the tension that had gripped them immediately dissipated. In the blink of an eye, everyone had scattered.
Law walked out of the operating room and couldn't help but shake his head as he looked at Bellamy. "Bellamy, your body still needs a period of recuperation. Don't do any strenuous exercise for a while."
"I know, I know."
Muret followed Law out. Hearing Bellamy's completely perfunctory reply, she couldn't help but roll her eyes. "He's not going to listen to you." As if she didn't know Bellamy's personality by now.
"Alright, I'll keep a close eye on him and make sure he doesn't do anything reckless," she said. "You don't need to be so tense. With Mansherry here, these injuries will heal sooner or later." As long as Mansherry continued to treat Bellamy, even the most severe wounds could be healed. Bellamy even suspected that if one were constantly under the effect of the Heal-Heal Fruit, they might achieve a different kind of immortality. Aging was, after all, caused by cells reaching their division limit. Mansherry's ability could undoubtedly heal the effects of aging.
"As a doctor, I really want to say that's the wrong way to think about it," Law began, "but..." He glanced at Mansherry, the little girl with magical healing powers, and gave a wry smile. The existence of the Heal-Heal Fruit was unfair to every doctor in the world. But while any other doctor could complain, Law couldn't. The existence of the Op-Op Fruit was just as unfair to other doctors.
"Bellamy, the target, Fujitora, has been successfully captured. If there's nothing else, I'm going to travel the Grand Line for a while." Law had now fulfilled one of the three things he had promised Bellamy. It didn't seem like Bellamy intended to use the remaining two promises anytime soon.
"Go ahead, Law," Bellamy said. "Be careful out there." Law was not his subordinate, and Bellamy had no reason to force him to stay. Although he was a little worried about the Op-Op Fruit user, as long as he was careful on the Grand Line, Law's strength should keep him out of trouble.
"Oh, wait a minute," Bellamy said suddenly, as if remembering something. "Muret, go get a mirror."
"A mirror?" Muret was confused. Why would the captain suddenly want a mirror at a time like this?
"Just go." Although she didn't understand, she did as her captain ordered and brought a mirror from her room.
After getting the mirror, Bellamy used his finger to draw a very distinct "X" on its surface.
"Take this mirror with you, Law."
"Bellamy, what is this?" Now, it wasn't just Muret; Law was also completely bewildered. It was obviously just an ordinary mirror. But after Bellamy drew an X on it, he wanted Law to take it with him. What did it mean? Was it some kind of ancient tradition? None of them could understand.
"Keep it on your ship or carry it with you. Don't lose it, and don't break it," Bellamy instructed. "When the time comes, I'll come find you." He didn't explain what the mirror was for; he only demanded that Law keep it on his ship or on his person.
"Alright, if you insist." Though he was baffled, Law did as Bellamy asked and carefully put the mirror away.
"Then, take care, Law."
"You too," Law replied with a casual wave. "Take care, Bellamy." He slung his longsword over his shoulder and strode onto his submarine. As they watched, the Heart Pirates slowly disappeared beneath the waves.
We'll meet again soon, Trafalgar Law.