Upon hearing Cross's words, Vergo's expression turned dark, but he remained silent, staring intently at the man in front of him. The moment he recognized Cross, he knew his undercover mission had failed. The only way to save it was to kill the person in front of him and prevent the information from getting out.
But he knew that would be difficult to do.
"So that lightning bolt wasn't a fluke of winter weather after all, but a signal guiding him here!" Vergo's gaze fell on Surtur behind Cross before looking up at the turbulent dark clouds in the sky. He muttered a guess to himself, "That means the entire Minion Island is under his control... What a dereliction of duty! I can't believe the Marines would send this guy. They obviously had an ambush planned. I wonder if Doflamingo has already arrived?"
Rumble—
Suddenly, a thunderous roar echoed, almost deafening, and the gloomy surroundings were lit up by a blinding flash of lightning. A bolt of lightning fell from the dark clouds above, but it was on the other side of Minion Island.
"Wait a minute... What does that lightning bolt mean?!" Vergo's expression changed slightly, and he exclaimed in surprise, "Damn it, has Doflamingo already arrived?!"
"Ah, you're right. Marduk is helping me monitor the entire Minion Island. I showed it a picture of Doflamingo, so it won't make a mistake, just like how it led me to Rosinante!" Cross's smile didn't fade as he confirmed Vergo's guess.
Meanwhile, on the other side of Minion Island, more than a dozen corpses lay scattered on the snowy shore. Blood stained the pristine white snow, and various firearms, swords, and other weapons lay on the ground, remnants of a recent battle.
"Doffy, are you okay?!"
"Young Master, are you hurt?"
"What's with the weather? The lightning struck so accurately!"
The Donquixote Family executives shouted in alarm, quickly surrounding Doflamingo.
"Get away!" Doflamingo, still shaken from the experience, pushed his 'family' members away and shouted, "There's something weird about this lightning. Don't crowd together!"
If he hadn't reacted quickly, he would've been hit by the lightning bolt that came from the sky.
Afterward, Doflamingo looked up at the pitch-black clouds and watched the lightning snakes weaving through the thick clouds. He suddenly thought of something and muttered a guess to himself, "Damn it, could that guy have also come to Minion Island?!"
"Doffy, are you talking about... him?!" The nearby Diamante seemed to have realized something and asked with a serious expression.
"That's right, Diamante. If this lightning isn't a coincidence, then it can only be him... Amphitrite Cross!" Doflamingo's expression was a mix of a smile and a sneer as he uttered a name that was familiar to everyone in the Donquixote Family.
Everyone in the Donquixote Family knew Cross's name. At just 15 years old, he could fight their Young Master for a long time without losing, and one of their top executives, Diamante, the 'Diamond,' was nearly defeated in one hit by him. Later, that person joined the Marines and, in just a few short years, achieved a series of impressive feats that shocked everyone.
Pere pere pere pere... Pere pere pere...
Suddenly, a Den Den Mushi rang out, the same one held by the small girl beside Doflamingo.
Click.
"Is that you, Vergo?" Doflamingo reached for the microphone on the Den Den Mushi shell and said in a low voice, "Are you here to tell me that Amphitrite Cross has come to Minion Island?"
"Sorry, Doffy. Amphitrite Cross is right in front of me," Vergo said into the Den Den Mushi, his expression grim as he looked at the man in front of him. "And I've been exposed!"
"What?!"
"I ran into Rosinante and Law on the way and found out that Rosinante is a traitor to the family, preparing to leak information to the Marines. I was in the middle of dealing with them when Amphitrite Cross showed up!" Vergo saw that Cross wasn't stopping his call, and his heart sank. He spoke quickly, "Doflamingo, be careful! The Marines have already set up an ambush. Amphitrite Cross's second Apostle, "Thunderstorm" Marduk, is monitoring the entire island from the sky. You've already been found!"
"I'm sorry, I didn't detect the Marines' trap beforehand. It's my fault!"
"Is that so? No wonder I felt like I was being watched as soon as I landed on the island... When I saw two battleships in the distance at our meeting point toward Swallow Island, I knew that my lovely brother had betrayed me!" Doflamingo's tone was filled with three parts anger and seven parts coldness.
"But since things have come to this, the only thing to do is to snatch the chestnuts out of the fire!"
"I've just arrived on Minion Island and found that Barrels's men are panicking because the Devil Fruit was stolen!"
"The culprit is Corazon! You absolutely cannot let him escape! He's carrying the Ope Ope no Mi!"
"As for that guy Cross... I'll be there soon. Until then, just stall him!" Doflamingo's voice was intense. He had already made up his mind.
But he didn't blame Vergo. He knew that Vergo was still a minor player and had no access to the plans of high-ranking Marines, so he couldn't have known about the specific plan and personnel involved. Naturally, he couldn't have given detailed information.
"Ah, understood!" Vergo calmed down and glared at Cross.
"Fuffuffuffu~ I know you're listening, Cross!" Doflamingo suddenly let out a laugh and said menacingly, "It's been a long time. You've gotten more arrogant. You're not even stopping Vergo from talking to me. Oh well, it doesn't matter. We can catch up when we meet. Anyway, no one is getting off this island today!"
Click.
On the other end, Doflamingo decisively hung up the phone. He looked up at the dark clouds in the sky, a cruel, sneering smile spreading across his lips. Then, he raised his right hand, and a thick net of strings appeared from his fingers.
"Birdcage."
Countless threads shot out from his hand like a volcanic eruption, spreading in all directions like a meteor shower or fireworks. The thousands of transparent strings landed in an orderly and dense fashion along the coast of Minion Island, quickly forming a massive dome-shaped cage that connected the sky to the ground. It almost completely covered the entire island.
At that moment, everyone on Minion Island became a bird in a cage!
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