"Sentomaru, oh Sentomaru, of all the people you could've picked a fight with, you just had to provoke Vice Admiral Crocodile!"
The Marines around Sentomaru quickly grabbed the thick-headed, overconfident man and dragged him away without looking back.
As for where they were retreating to...
Of course—to the location Vice Admiral Crocodile had just designated!
Actually, this kind of evacuation drill had been done in previous years too. When Dr. Vegapunk needed to be relocated, the troops would split into several groups and flee toward different islands to buy time.
But ever since a few years ago, when Dr. Vegapunk created his six distinct personality clones, that exercise had gradually lost its purpose.
So, it was perfectly normal that the newcomer Sentomaru didn't know about such drills…
Still, to question and talk back to a direct superior like that—he really had some nerve.
"Hmph. Does he think I wouldn't dare lay hands on my own men? That fat fool!" Crocodile let out a cold snort.
"If Borsalino hadn't personally asked me to look after that guy, I would've sent him straight to the hospital today!"
"Crocodile, that last attack of yours was more than enough to make him ache for several days."
Stella's expression was as gentle and elegant as ever, but there was still a faint trace of dissatisfaction in her eyes.
"But I'll be reporting this to Fleet Admiral Sengoku… You can't just shove people around wherever you please just because you're a high-ranking officer in the Navy."
"Eh, if we're talking about being 'shoved around,' weren't we both sent here by Michael too?"
"How can you compare that? The two of us are the chief military officers of Egghead Island, and we're perfectly capable of fulfilling our duties as Egghead's guardians, aren't we?"
"Tsk, tsk, tsk… you're even more full of yourself than I thought, Stella."
Crocodile raised an eyebrow and bit down on a slim, elegant ladies' cigarette.
"But I'm surprised Michael's actually coming to Egghead in person this time. Back when he was still in the Navy, he always communicated with Dr. Vegapunk through the two of us. Now that he's no longer with the Navy, he's actually showing up himself."
"Times are different now. And both the 'Seraphim' and 'Mother Flame' projects have reached a critical stage…"
Stella's gaze shifted toward Crocodile as she smiled.
"I'm sure Dr. Vegapunk's been eager to meet Michael face to face, too. By the way, when did you start smoking ladies' cigarettes? Weren't you smoking cigars not long ago?"
"Can I say it has its own… unique charm?"
Crocodile's long, slender fingers held the delicate cigarette, and through the swirl of smoke, there really was something strangely bewitching about him—almost like a witch's allure.
"Too bad I'm not much of a fan of smoke," Stella said softly, turning away. "It's been ages since we last saw Michael… Don't you dare sneak off."
"You should be saving that line for yourself, you serial runaway!"
...
Under Stella and Crocodile's command, all the Marines stationed on Egghead Island were sent to the surrounding islands.
Dr. Vegapunk and Michael would have two full days to meet in private.
"He should be arriving soon, shouldn't he?"
Vegapunk stood on the shore, his tongue—far too long to retract—dangling loosely from his mouth.
"According to the navigation calculations… he should've arrived by now, right?"
"Dr. Vegapunk, since Michael isn't officially with the Navy anymore, he must be using a different route to avoid the Navy's designated sea lanes. That'll make his arrival a little later."
"Ah, yes, that makes sense. His current status is rather sensitive."
Vegapunk nodded in understanding at Stella's explanation.
"Now that I think about it, Michael and I actually crossed paths more than ten years ago… I never thought it would take all this time before we'd truly meet in person."
His voice carried a deep note of emotion.
Before long, a steel ship with no flag appeared on the horizon.
From afar, Vegapunk immediately recognized the vessel—it was the Seraphim.
Though it had been built over a decade ago, its performance still far surpassed that of any battleship or pirate ship sailing today.
"The Seraphim… what a nostalgic sight," Vegapunk said with a wistful smile. "I built that ship just for fun while researching bloodline factors, but it was still one of my proudest works."
"Of course—it's Michael's favorite ship. Even after leaving the Navy, he couldn't bear to part with it."
"That's quite the honor for me."
As they spoke, the Seraphim grew larger in their view.
And then, they could clearly see the man standing at its bow.
Michael—dressed not in a Navy uniform, but in a long, white robe.
Both Crocodile and Stella froze for a moment.
Even for them, it was rare to see Michael out of uniform.
For a second, they were both caught off guard, unsure what to say.
"Yo, Stella, Crocodile—it's been years! How've you two been?"
Michael didn't bother spreading his wings; he simply leapt down directly from the ship's bow.
Jack and Yamato followed after the Seraphim docked, stepping onto Egghead Island behind him.
"Michael, we finally meet."
"Dr. Vegapunk, for me, this is truly a meeting of historical significance."
Though neither of them appeared outwardly excited, when Michael and Vegapunk clasped hands, neither man let go for a long time.
After all, as the most steadfast of allies, meeting face to face for the first time in more than ten years was something close to miraculous.
Michael trusted Vegapunk because of his foresight as a transmigrator—his knowledge of things yet to come made cooperation easy.
But for Vegapunk, it was entirely a matter of fate.
Had Vegapunk ever wavered? Of course he had.
But after creating his six satellites, he once took them to Mary Geoise to witness firsthand the debauchery of the Celestial Dragons.
The most outrageous part? During that visit, several Celestial Dragons insisted on taking Lilith and York away to keep as slaves.
That was the moment Vegapunk truly understood—
No matter what Michael's stance might be, opposing the World Government was absolutely the right choice.
Not to mention, Vegapunk already had connections with Monkey D. Dragon.
"Let's not waste any time. We should head inside Egghead."
Vegapunk slowly released Michael's hand.
"Our time together is very limited."
With that, he turned and began walking toward the interior of Egghead Island.
There were many questions he wanted to discuss with Michael—
Especially about the "Seraphim," creations modeled after Michael himself.
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