Everyone simply stared blankly at the metal box, ripped in two by Elburn, which contained no false bottom, no secret letters, absolutely nothing.
Where was the Devil Fruit? Where could it be?
"I don't think there's any point in continuing to fight."
Someone from either the Immortal Pirates or the Beasts Pirates suddenly spoke this sentence, which surprisingly gained immediate consensus. Weapons were lowered one after another.
That's right. We came here for the Devil Fruit. If the Fruit is gone, what the hell are we fighting for?
"Next time, I will definitely kill you." Fallon deactivated his Zoan form, returned to his human form, and left Elburn with a harsh threat. The Marines did not stop him.
"There's no point in fighting anymore, huh." Kuzan's layer of ice on his skin gradually faded, his fighting spirit vanishing without a trace. Borsalino was the same.
"Are you just going to let the enemy in front of you go?" Although Zephyr had also removed his Armament Haki, indicating his unwillingness to continue the fight, he couldn't help but nag his two former students, or perhaps it was a different kind of lesson.
"As the 'No-Killing' Zephyr, is it really appropriate for you to say that, ne~~" Borsalino chuckled, eyes squinting.
"Hmph. I knew I never got along with you, Borsalino." Zephyr waved a hand to Ain and his hundreds of subordinates, who, like him, now belonged to the Trash Disposal Unit, signaling them to retreat and disperse.
Although the Government personnel were tempted to pursue, they chose not to chase, partly because the Devil Fruit had "disappeared," and partly because the Marines, led by the two Admirals, were taking no action.
The Government agents, led by CP0, left without exchanging another word with Kuzan or Borsalino, heading through the World Nobles' channel to pursue Tesoro, determined to get an explanation.
The bat hanging upside down on the Yarukiman Mangrove also completely transformed into a dark shadow and vanished into the foliage.
…
In the high-class restaurant, Alucard, who had finished enjoying the "movie," set down his wine glass and muttered, "Something truly interesting has happened."
A waitress walked over, her face showing a mix of nervousness and fear, but also a hint of anticipation. "Your wine is finished, sir. Would you like me to bring you another bottle?"
Alucard, wearing sunglasses, glanced at the empty wine bottle and produced a massive gold ingot. "One last dish, and this is yours."
The young waitress's eyes widened at the large gold ingot, which far exceeded the cost of the meal. She quickly bowed. "Please let me know if you need anything..."
Before she could finish, Alucard suddenly twisted her wrist and, remaining seated, pulled her into his embrace, sinking his teeth into the left side of her neck.
The sudden turn of events shocked her into silence. The other dining customers and wait staff were so terrified they nearly screamed.
Alucard's final thought before leaving the restaurant was, "She's not a virgin..."
The waitress, who had been roughly dropped to the floor, rubbed her backside. Her colleagues quickly rushed over to comfort her. One of the women teased her, "What was with that tall man? He grabbed you, then let go. Did you smell bad or something?"
"What are you talking about!" the waitress who had been bitten by Alucard snapped angrily. She looked at the gold bar left on the table with wild joy. She was rich now.
She had no idea that she had just walked a circle around the gates of hell.
…
Beasts Pirates, Sabre-Tooth ship.
After hearing Elburn's report, Wind Calamity Queen barely opened one eye, drawing out his words. "Oh So, everyone was fooled, huh That Tesoro has some guts~~"
Although the fight had only lasted a few minutes, Elburn felt surprisingly exhausted. The Beasts Pirates, the Immortal Pirates, the Big Mom Pirates, and even the Admirals and CP0 were all involved. A large number of big figures gathered to snatch an item, and they expected an earth-shattering battle, only for it to end this way. A sense of weariness involuntarily washed over him.
Leaning against the ship's railing, Elburn looked up at Queen. "Wind Calamity-sama, I don't think Tesoro has the courage to deceive us. There must be another reason behind this."
…
Meanwhile, at the dock where the Immortal Pirates' battleship was moored, Zephyr, Fallon, and the others had just returned when they saw Ivalis and many of the former Red-Haired Pirates crewmates waiting patiently by the ship.
When Ivalis saw Fallon approaching, he raised a gray-and-white Devil Fruit, shaped like a pitaya, high in the air.
It was the very target of everyone's ambition: the Mythical Zoan, Titan Fruit, even rarer than a Logia.
Fallon and the others' gaze shifted to Beckman on Ivalis's left. That man was responsible for this.
"Now, do you still have anything to say, Fallon?" Ivalis tossed the Titan Fruit in his hand. Though his expression was a poker face, to Fallon, it looked like blatant showboating.
"You can't keep that thing for yourself. The Captain's orders are to hand it over," Fallon said coldly.
"What's the big deal? I wasn't planning on becoming a Devil Fruit user anyway," Ivalis scoffed, preparing to set sail.
Before leaving, Ivalis addressed Beckman. "You're not busy now, are you? How about you join us?"
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