Chapter 240: What are they doing? Nami: They're doing it! What else could they be doing?
"For now, we've managed to talk her into it." Nami sighed. She wasn't a killer by nature; if their ship hadn't been eaten by Thriller Bark and Moria's people hadn't come looking for trouble, Moria wouldn't have been killed.
Perona's relationship with Moria seemed to be like that of a father and daughter; killing her adoptive father and then inviting her along felt quite strange, no matter how one thought about it. Fortunately, after much persuasion, Perona's emotions finally stabilized, and they temporarily succeeded in getting her onto the ship.
For Ren's hint, Nami also went all out. She was a woman dedicated to helping Ren build his harem fleet! However, Perona was still feeling very lost and dejected. Nami and the others temporarily had no good solution, so they could only try to get along with her step by step. If it really didn't work out, they would just have to leave her somewhere and let her leave voluntarily.
"Ren, will we be okay after killing a Shichibukai?" Nami was a little worried about causing trouble. She herself was fine and feared no one. But Nojiko and Robin's strength was still far from enough.
Ren's lips curved slightly. "Your worry has already come true, Nami. You can't let your guard down for a moment. Come out, don't make me do it."
"Ah?" Nami was startled and immediately released her Mantra, quickly locking onto a direction, into that withered forest. "There's an enemy!" Robin, Nojiko, and the others also gathered around, looking warily at the deep forest.
After a period of silence, "Thump, thump!" Heavy footsteps appeared in the forest. A tall figure walked out of the darkness. A burly and strong man. He wore a trapezoidal white hat with scattered brown spots and two bear ears on top. This person wore rimless glasses, and a "PX-0" mark was tattooed on the left side of his neck. He had black curly hair and gave off an unsmiling impression. He wore a black jacket with a crosshair pattern printed on the front. He wore white pants with brown spots and brown boots. He wore brown gloves and held a book with "BIBLE" written on its cover.
This appearance was undoubtedly that of the Shichibukai, Bartholomew Kuma.
Ren didn't care about his identity or past. "Shichibukai, Bartholomew Kuma, how did you appear here?"
"A Shichibukai! He arrived so fast!" Robin and the others were startled. Moria had only just died, and a Shichibukai had already arrived. How did he do it? Not to mention the process of getting the news, how did he arrive here so quickly? Was he just nearby? Wasn't that too much of a coincidence?
Kuma's gaze swept over Ren and the others, and he also saw the corpse of Gecko Moria. But instinct told him not to act rashly, or he would die. After a moment of silence, under an invisible pressure he couldn't comprehend, Kuma chose to reveal the reason.
"In the World Government, Moria's Vivre Card burned to ashes, and I was dispatched to investigate."
"Vivre Card? You Shichibukai also hand over your Vivre Cards to the World Government?" Ren was surprised. A Vivre Card is neither afraid of water nor fire and is made by mixing one's fingernails into the material. It is a piece of paper that represents the owner's life force. People usually tear it and give it to relatives or friends who are about to separate. The torn pieces of paper will then jointly point towards the owner. When the owner dies, the Vivre Card turns to ashes. Giving your Vivre Card to someone else wouldn't make it easier for them to find you?
Kuma calmly said, "No, only my and Moria's Vivre Cards are with the World Government."
"Oh." Ren didn't want to delve into this point and instead asked Kuma, "Are you going to make a move now? If you do, I can give you a quick end."
... Kuma knew Ren wasn't joking. That invisible, terrifying pressure emanated from Ren. His aura had been completely locked on. Can't win. Can't escape. This was Kuma's most basic judgment based on instinct. He raised his hands.
Nami and the others initially thought he was about to attack when they saw his movements. Just as they became vigilant, they heard Kuma utter two words: "Surrender."
"Surr-surrender?" For the first time, Robin felt that the Shichibukai seemed... nothing special?
"You're a smart man. You may go." Ren didn't intend to kill this poor fellow either.
... Kuma lowered his arms, nodded, and warned, "Be careful of the Marines and the World Government." Then he activated his Paw-Paw Fruit ability, disappearing from the spot in a near-instantaneous manner, actually being repelled.
"Marines and the World Government..." Ren pinched his chin; those words were interesting.
"Ren, is it okay to just let him go?" Robin was still a little uneasy. Her impression of the Shichibukai remained that of a treacherous and malicious figure like Crocodile. She worried that Kuma was just pretending, being outwardly compliant but inwardly defiant.
"Don't worry, he's a smart man and knows what to say and what not to say." Ren looked at Nami. "I think you can try to observe the Marines or the World Government. You should understand what I mean."
Nami's eyes lit up. "Are you saying..." Abnormal Doomsday factors! Nami thought of this instantly.
"Yes." Ren nodded. Since there could be Abnormal Doomsday factors among pirates, then there might also be some within the Marines and the World Government. It's just unclear what form they take. This point still needs Nami and Vivi to investigate. Based on the current situation, he, as an outsider, cannot trigger Doom Companion in this world. Although it might be a bit unfair to Nami, Doom Companion offers the highest cost-effectiveness, and he needs those points.
"Well, it seems there's nothing else you need me for here." Moria was already dealt with, and Kuma had run off, so he really had nothing left to do.
"No, that's not true, Nojiko really needs you." His sister blinked her beautiful large eyes.
"Nojiko?" Ren's gaze shifted to Nojiko, who chuckled dryly while twirling a strand of hair, her eyes shimmering with a spring-like warmth. Understood. Ren scooped up Nojiko. "Nojiko and I will have a good talk; you all can do your own thing." With that, the two disappeared.
"What did they go to do?" Vivi asked Nami curiously.
Nami grinned. "Well, they probably just went to 'do'."
... Robin was speechless. Nami's words were quite direct. But Vivi didn't understand. "Do what?" Nami smiled sweetly, without further explanation, and pulled Vivi, saying, "Let's take a walk around here." Although Thriller Bark didn't have much to see, the only thing worth visiting was the old castle. Robin briefly spoke to Perona, asking the dejected Perona to give them a tour of the castle's interior. Whether they saw the castle or not didn't matter. The main purpose was to open up rooms and time for Ren and Nojiko.