The mission was to defeat Katakuri.
The reward: A one-day full-power trial card of Yonko Luffy.
At first glance, it didn't seem worth it.
Katakuri's strength was unquestionably formidable.
With Selo's current strength, he'd probably be evenly matched, 50/50.
Even if he did manage to defeat Katakuri, Selo was certain he'd be seriously injured in the process.
And that would mean he might not be able to rescue Ace during the Summit War in 15 days.
To trade a one-day trial of Luffy's full Yonko-level power for the permanent reward of the Mythical Zoan Human-Human Fruit: Drunken Sword Immortal Form, not worth it.
But then, Selo looked around at Hancock, Sabo, and the Vermilion Bird-form Little Sparrow beneath his feet.
Suddenly, his confidence surged.
Right! He wasn't fighting alone anymore.
Four people with Warlord-level strength, surely they could defeat a Yonko commander like Katakuri!
"Let's do this!"
His sudden shout startled the others.
Hancock's legs went weak at his bold declaration.
Sabo and Koala just looked at him, completely confused.
"I think… we can take Katakuri along with us to rescue Ace!"
Selo had come up with a bold new plan.
Hancock let out a sigh of relief.
Sabo and Koala, on the other hand, were still lost.
"Wait… wait a minute. Don't tell me Ace also had some special relationship with Katakuri?"
"Not at all. I doubt Ace has even met him more than once. What I mean is, we capture Katakuri."
As he spoke, Selo somehow pulled out a bundle of sturdy rope.
Then he explained his idea to the others in detail:
In short: Defeat Katakuri, tie him up, and throw him into the Summit War.
That way, Katakuri would be forced to fight against the Marines at Marineford.
Which, in a roundabout way, would make it look like he was helping to rescue Ace.
But that was just the surface.
Selo's real plan was to use Katakuri to drag the entire Big Mom Pirates into the war.
This island was currently contested between the Big Mom Pirates and the Red-Haired Pirates.
So if they defeated Katakuri and tied him up, they could frame the Red-Haired Pirates for it.
That would escalate tensions between the Big Mom Pirates and the Red-Haired Pirates into all-out war.
And in turn, that would help Selo complete the mission to prevent Shanks and his crew from interfering in the Summit War.
As for the mission to get Big Mom involved in the war, Selo had no intention of doing that one.
Seriously, which isekai protagonist would want Big Mom to have his baby?
"Is this… feasible?" Koala asked cautiously.
She had a nagging feeling things weren't as simple as Selo made them sound.
"Whatever Selo decides, I follow!" Hancock declared with unwavering confidence.
And she meant it to the extreme.
Because right after she said that, she leapt off Little Sparrow's back and launched a devastating aerial kick straight at Katakuri hundreds of meters below.
"Uh… what the, "
Even Selo was stunned by this scene.
Without waiting for Sabo's approval, Selo quickly signaled Little Sparrow to dive in after her.
He hadn't expected Hancock to be this loyal after just one night.
Truly, never ask a woman if she loves you, go all the way, and she'll love you to death.
"Hm? Something big seems to be falling from the sky…"
Katakuri had just withdrawn his trident from Rockstar's gut and hadn't even checked if the guy was dead.
But his Observation Haki, sharp enough to glimpse into the future, gave him a flash of the incoming danger.
He quickly dodged several hundred meters away.
A split second later, BOOM, Hancock's powerful kick landed where he had just been, blasting a crater nearly 10 meters deep and dozens of meters wide.
The entire surrounding terrain cracked apart.
Still barely alive, Rockstar thought this was divine mercy and that the crater was his grave.
Tears streamed down his face; he didn't want to die.
"Do you hear it?! The sound of the sea crying?!" Sabo said dramatically.
"Idiot Sabo, the sea isn't a person, it doesn't cry!" Koala snapped.
Even if they hadn't fully decided to fight, Sabo and Koala had already ended up standing opposite Katakuri.
Meanwhile, Selo and Little Sparrow were already diving down alongside Hancock, joining the assault.
To help rescue Ace, Sabo couldn't let them get seriously hurt; he braced himself and joined the attack.
"Koala, stay here."
He twirled his pipe like a pro. Whoever he met, he'd bonk.
With a powerful step, Sabo launched himself into the fray.
Katakuri was now clearly surrounded by three warriors and one very big bird.
And his face was full of bewilderment.
He was just fighting over an island. Why was he being ambushed from the sky?
Katakuri wanted to ask them what the hell was going on.
"Don't even think about it. Red-Haired Shanks is my cousin!"
Selo said it loud and proud.
Framing complete. Scapegoat designated.
As long as the blame landed on the Red-Haired Pirates, it worked.
That one sentence left not only Katakuri dumbfounded, but also Hancock and Sabo paused.
They started to wonder if Selo was Shanks' cousin.
Maybe it was because of Selo's insane strength… or his way of knowing everything.
"So you're all here under orders from Red-Hair to take this island? Then all of you, DIE! Mocha Thrust!!"
Katakuri didn't care if Selo was Shanks' cousin.
To him, it was clear—they were with the Red-Haired Pirates.
So it didn't matter who they were, as long as they were dead.
And with that, Katakuri launched a fierce counterattack.
Using his Mochi-Mochi Fruit, he transformed his arms into mochi and wrapped them around his trident, spinning them rapidly and thrusting toward Selo.
The attack came so fast that Selo could only raise his katana to block.
BANG! The powerful impact of the Mocha Thrust knocked both his sword and his body dozens of meters away.
Seeing her beloved Selo sent flying, Hancock immediately entered a berserk rage.
Her Conqueror's Haki exploded like a monstrous ancient beast, flooding toward Katakuri.
"Warlord of the Sea… Boa Hancock?!"
Katakuri had thought this woman looked familiar, but now, feeling her overwhelming Haki, he finally remembered.
She was Boa Hancock, the Pirate Empress.
So she had joined the Red-Haired Pirates now?!
"Die, you bastard! Perfume Femur!!!"
Furious beyond reason, Hancock launched her Perfume Femur attack, imbued with Conqueror's Haki, aiming directly at Katakuri's head.
"Mochi Spear!"
Katakuri countered with his attack, turning his hand into a hardened mochi spear, completely covered in Armament Haki.
BOOM!!!
Their attacks collided, causing a deafening shockwave.
Even Sabo, wielding his pipe, was knocked over by the sheer force.
He couldn't help but click his tongue.
Never mess with a furious woman.
Even someone as powerful as Katakuri was barely holding his ground.
He was forced back several steps by Hancock's enraged Perfume Femur.
If Selo had died from that earlier hit, Katakuri probably would've been kicked to death right then and there.
It seemed that Hancock's combat power scaled with how badly Selo was hurt.
"Wait! I think I just came up with a 100% way to save Ace!"
…Too unethical, Sabo thought.
He forcibly suppressed the idea and threw it out of his mind.
Instead, he coated his pipe in Armament Haki and charged at Katakuri from the side.
At the same time, Selo, who'd just been knocked flying, launched himself back into the fray, his katana now crackling with Haki as well.
"Screech!!!"
Still circling above, Little Sparrow, now feeling a bit guilty about slacking, decided to contribute.
It dove down and blasted Katakuri with a wave of searing flames.
Katakuri was now under attack from all sides.
Yet he remained eerily calm. His eyes were still brimming with confidence.
"Flowing Mochi!!"
With his command, everything within hundreds of meters around him was converted into mochi using his awakened Devil Fruit ability.
An entire flowing mochi field emerged.
The terrain began to surge violently.
Sabo and Selo were forced to retreat, unable to get close.
Hancock also had to cancel her attack and back away to safety.
As for Little Sparrow, who thought it would remain unaffected in the sky, it was wrong.
The flowing mochi piled up in monstrous waves, extinguishing the fiery blast it had just unleashed.
And it still wasn't done; it surged upward, charging toward the airborne Vermilion Bird.
"A pet bird that ate a Devil Fruit?"
"Mirror Mochi!!
.