"A temporary notice? Strange."
Paula, the coffee shop owner, pondered briefly, then looked up at Mr. 5 and smiled politely. "I'm sorry, Mr. 5, I didn't receive any such notice, so I wasn't aware of your arrival or able to prepare your usual drink in advance. What would you like today?"
Mr. 5 replied coolly, "Tea with gunpowder."
Paula chuckled, "As expected. Still the same! Please wait a moment."
Mr. 5 turned and sat by the bar, silently observing the others in the room.
Miss Merry Christmas, enjoying a back massage from Mr. 4, yelled impatiently, "Useless! Useless! Harder, my back still hurts! What are you doing?!"
Mr. 2 Bon Clay eyed Mr. 5 with curiosity, then suddenly burst into laughter. "Explosive Man! Your fashion sense has improved! Want to practice Swan Ballet with me?"
"Not interested," Mr. 5 responded coldly.
Mr. 2 twirled on his toes, spinning across the floor. "Don't be so icy! My Human-Demon Fist is top-tier!"
Heh, if I used the advanced version of that Human-Demon Fist for real, I'd scare him silly, Shirogai thought with a smirk.
It was ironic. Mr. 2 Bon Clay had no idea someone was using his Imitation Fruit right in front of him—and successfully, no less.
Paula returned with a steaming cup of green tea laced with gunpowder. She set it down in front of Shirogai with a smile. "Mr. 5, your gunpowder tea. Please enjoy."
Shirogai took a sip, looking mildly satisfied.
"Gunpowder tea? That looks disgusting!" Mr. 2 Bon Clay grimaced, then leaned toward Pola with a mischievous grin. "By the way, I heard Mr. 1's partner will be showing up. Haven't met her yet, but I hear she's an intense assassin. I'm so excited!"
Paula smiled faintly. "Seems like this mission is more complicated than usual."
Mr. 2 glanced around, saw no one paying attention, and whispered to Paula, "Rumor is, we might even meet the Boss directly. My little heart is thumping!"
The room fell silent. All eyes turned to him.
Paula tilted her head, still smiling. "Really? Who told you that?"
Realizing his blunder, Mr. 2 chuckled nervously. "Just a wild guess!"
Shirogai's gaze shifted subtly to Paula. Despite her composed demeanor, he noticed her hands subtly poised to strike. If Mr. 2 had said anything more suspicious, she likely would've pierced his skull with a thorn attack on the spot.
Well, that worked in my favor, Shirogai mused. Now she's suspicious of him instead.
Suspicion is dangerous when focused on one person—but meaningless when everyone seems suspicious.
The chief officers remained in the Spider Cafe, background music playing, waiting as the hour approached eight in the evening.
Mr. 1 and his mysterious partner still hadn't shown up.
Outside, the desert moon cast a silver glow. Without the sun, the temperature dropped rapidly. The harsh wind made the cold almost unbearable for anyone not used to desert nights.
Shirogai, still disguised as Mr. 5, leaned back with his eyes closed, using the system to process combat knowledge.
[System Analysis in Progress…]
"Oh, is it almost eight already?" Mr. 2 Bon Clay glanced at the clock. "Two more minutes!"
Bored, he resumed spinning in circles on tiptoes. "Spin, spin, spin!"
Mr. 4 suddenly burst into laughter, finally getting a joke Mr. 2 had told him half an hour ago. "Ha… ha… ha…"
Mr. 2, thinking the applause was for his dance, twirled even faster.
"Quit spinning, you damn human-demon!" Miss Merry Christmas snapped. "You're making me dizzy!"
Suddenly, outside in the desert, a tall, bald figure dragged something heavy toward the cafe, leaving a trail in the sand.
Bang!
A loud crash startled everyone as the front door exploded inward.
Crash!
Dust filled the air as debris rained down.
All eyes turned to the doorway, bodies tense and ready.
Shirogai opened his eyes.
[System Detection: Devil Fruit User – Blade-Blade Fruit. Comprehended Ability: allows body parts to transform into blades. Skin reinforced to steel-like durability.]
That's a handy ability, Shirogai noted. Got it.
"Huh? You?!" Mr. 2 Bon Clay gasped.
The figure at the door had thrown someone—one of Mr. 2's subordinates.
The wounded subordinate groaned and pointed at the man behind him. "It's… him…"
Mr. 1 stepped forward. Over two meters tall, the kanji for "one" tattooed on his chest, dressed like a monk, his thin eyebrows furrowed.
"I saw your men sneaking around the desert. I brought them back. Don't worry, I didn't kill them. But your emotional attachment to weaklings is pointless."
"You bastard!" Mr. 2 snapped.
He struck a pose, launching into his Human-Demon Fist, and kicked at Mr. 1. "They're my precious subordinates!"
Mr. 1 dodged easily and retaliated with a punch, narrowly missed. The clash intensified until Mr. 2 kicked Mr. 1 straight through a wall.
"You're dead, human-demon!" Mr. 1 growled, ready to retaliate—but Paula raised a hand.
"Enough. Stop fighting."
Mr. 1 sneered, held back only by her words. "If Miss Doublefinger hadn't stopped me, I'd have killed you!"
Everyone was stunned.
Miss Doublefinger?
Paula—the seemingly ordinary cafe owner—pulled off her headscarf and let down her hair. She removed her glasses, peeled off her camisole, revealing a sleek, black tube top and midriff-baring outfit beneath.
She slipped on a fur-collared leather jacket. Her sharp eyes and striking presence now radiated dominance.
"I am Miss Doublefinger," she declared. "Now that all chief officers are present, we move to Rainbase, the City of Dreams. The Boss awaits."
"Wait." Mr. 1 frowned and pointed at Shirogai. "Why is someone like Mr. 5 here?"
Miss Doublefinger shrugged. "According to him, the Boss ordered him to gather here at eight. I didn't receive anything about that."
Mr. 1's eyes narrowed. "Someone this weak isn't qualified to meet the Boss."
Without warning, he formed blades from his hands and lunged at Shirogai.
But Shirogai didn't flinch. He raised his fists and met the attack head-on.
Boom!
The impact sent Mr. 1 flying through the ceiling like a launched missile.
The room went silent.
Shock spread across every face.
Mr. 5… just sent Mr. 1 flying?!
What happened to their power rankings?!
---
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