"Flying Pirates? The Flying Pirates I know?"
"Yes — the Golden Lion's Flying Pirates." Rossinandy took a deep breath and continued, "Ever since he broke out of prison he's gone completely off the grid, vanished from the seas. The only piece of news about him after his escape was that when he first got out of Impel Down, he headed to the New World to meet Whitebeard."
"Of course I knew about that." Michael frowned. "But after that he never showed up on the seas again. Not in the East Blue, not in Paradise, not in the New World — there was no trace of him… I actually thought that old lion had died… After all, that rudder stuck to his head must have been crushing his brain; if he didn't pull it out, he'd wither away, and if he pulled it out he'd drop dead right away."
"That's true as far as it goes… but don't forget, his Devil Fruit power is still active…" Rossinandy sighed. "So, he must've heard some suggestion from somewhere and went back into Impel Down again…"
"Wait — you mean…"
"Exactly. The bastard pulled off a prison break!" Rossinandy nodded decisively. "It was hands down the bloodiest breakout in Impel Down's history. Countless prisoners died from Impel Down itself and from the Golden Lion's powers."
"But he succeeded, and he rebuilt the Flying Pirates… Who did he rescue from Impel Down?"
Rossinandy didn't answer. He pulled a stack of files from his chest pocket.
Michael's eye twitched.
That many…
This old lion still has the heart of a youth.
Taking the documents from Rossinandy, Michael began to flip through them.
The more he read, the more dumbfounded he became.
Since crossing into this world, especially since the Burning Slave Ship incident, most major events had been running inside Michael's calculations.
But this matter… this truly exceeded his expectations.
Shiryu — formerly Impel Down's chief warden; because of his bloodlust and inability to distinguish friend from foe, he was finally sentenced to death with reprieve and thrown into Impel Down's Sixth Level, the Infinite Hell.
Katerine, nicknamed the Crescent-Month Hunter, is a user of the Inu Inu Fruit, Mythical Zoan: Nine-Tailed Fox form.
San Juan Wolf, nicknamed "The Great Warship", a Paramecia-type user of the Huge-Huge Fruit; sentenced to life imprisonment and, because of the brutality of his crimes, ordered to be erased from history.
Vasco Shot, nicknamed "Heavy Drinker", a Paramecia-type user of the Glug-Glug Fruit — notably, the Glug-Glug Fruit's power is actually connected with combustion.
Avalo Pizarro, nicknamed "Tyrant King", a Paramecia-type user of the Isle-Isle Fruit; he has a pair of horns and looks somewhat similar in race to Jack or Kaido.
Redfield — a one-man force who once rivaled the great pirate crews of old… but after seeing the heights of Whitebeard and Roger, he gave up the dream of becoming Pirate King and retreated into Impel Down's Sixth Level to end his days.
Byrnndi World, nicknamed "World Destroyer", bounty 500 million, a Paramecia-type user of the More-More Fruit, able to increase the speed and volume of any object he touches by one to one hundred times.
Douglas Bullet, "Demon Heir," masterful in all three types of Haki and a Zoan-type user of the Clank-Clank Fruit, with a record of individually summoning a Demon-Slaying Order…
Michael drew in a sharp breath as he read the roster.
To be honest, the first few names weren't that surprising — basically half the former Blackbeard Pirates' roster.
But the other three were different.
Redfield and Bullet need no introduction — both are top-tier powerhouses.
And although "World Destroyer" isn't as famous as the others, the ability to amplify others' speed and size… for fighters who are already powerful, that's the perfect support power.
On top of these, many other pirates from the first five levels had also followed the Golden Lion in his escape.
Under the Golden Lion's leadership, they reformed the Flying Pirates.
"After the Golden Lion made a scene in Impel Down, he broke everyone out and formed a new Flying Pirates crew…" Rossinandy sighed. "The Navy was about to issue new bounties, but the World Government wanted to suppress this matter for the time being, so aside from certain parts of the New World, the rest of the world didn't receive the news."
When Michael heard that it was a World Government decision, he relaxed instantly.
That… makes sense.
But what he couldn't understand was this: Impel Down had Magellan, the ultimate deterrent in that sealed prison, stationed there. For the Golden Lion to single-handedly break out should already be the ultimate move.
But he attacked head-on and then brought people out…
Ridiculous.
Did they treat Magellan like a mere ornament?
Unless…
"Could it be that when the Golden Lion attacked Impel Down, Magellan happened to be on a bathroom break?"
"That's exactly what happened."
"Damn it!"
Michael slapped his forehead.
For crying out loud!
So someone inside the World Government colluded with the Golden Lion!
...
...
New World
"Our deal is done, Golden Lion?" Spandine rubbed his hands together and asked with a fawning smile.
The Golden Lion sat on the captain's throne and fixed a sharp gaze on the man before him.
Sleazy, useless, obsequious…
The World Government actually sent a man like this to negotiate terms with him.
How laughable.
"Deal? What deal are you talking about? I don't remember any deal."
"You're so important you forget things… Didn't we agree to give you Impel Down's timetable so you'd raid Impel Down, take who you wanted, form a new crew… and in return deal with the Navy traitor Michael?"
"I already told you I don't remember agreeing to any such deal." The Golden Lion's body floated up and moved in front of Spandine, looking down on him. "But… I do have unfinished business with that Michael fellow, so… yes, I'll go back and kill him."
"But you… leave the ships outside intact, and then you can get lost."
"Yes, yes, I'll leave. I'm leaving now."
Spandine nodded frantically and scurried away in terror.
"Are we really going to face Michael?" Shiryu asked from the side. "He's the one who, under the assault of two Admirals and all the Vice Admirals, still managed to escape and severely injure an Admiral… I may be bloodthirsty, but I'm not stupid."
"I do intend to kill Michael." The Golden Lion chewed on a cigar and smiled. "But… did I ever say when?"
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