"Wait, that's not right!"
Meiser suddenly came to his senses. After a commotion like this, there was no way the Donquixote Family wouldn't know Luffy was here.
After all, quite a few staff members around here belonged to the Donquixote Family!
Thinking of this gave Meiser a slight headache.
It seems sneaking in covertly is pretty much out of the question, Meiser thought resignedly.
Oh well. Before things completely broke down between them, he might as well see if he could locate the Diamond-Diamond Fruit.
He just didn't know whether his clone had gathered any useful intel yet.
Right at that moment, Meiser received the information from his Shadow Clone, which caused him to subconsciously furrow his brows.
According to the report, the area where the contestants stayed was completely cordoned off.
There was no sign of any officer activity around here.
"In other words, the officers aren't here," Meiser murmured to himself.
Were they not showing up until the finals, or were they lurking in some special restricted area of the Colosseum?
Either way, finding the Diamond-Diamond Fruit right now was practically impossible.
After all, his clone hadn't caught the slightest trace of it either.
Having realized this, Meiser rubbed the bridge of his nose with a sense of helplessness.
"Whatever. Let's just stick to the plan and keep competing in the tournament," Meiser said, sweeping his gaze across the ring.
If they brought the Devil Fruit out, fine. If not... he would just have to capture those few officers entering the tournament and use them to get to Doflamingo.
Having figured things out, Meiser relaxed completely.
He then turned his head to look at Luffy, who was still confronting Chinjao, and asked, "Need a hand, Lucy?"
"No need," Luffy replied without turning his head.
Though he didn't quite understand what was going on, he still didn't want Meiser to blow his cover as well.
Understanding Luffy's intention, Meiser nodded to show he got it.
Hearing this, Cavendish glanced at Meiser again. Seeing that he didn't look like any Supernova he recognized, his interest immediately waned.
He then turned a chilling gaze toward Luffy and said, "Today, I'm going to—"
Before he could finish his sentence, the nearby Chinjao launched an attack directly at the two of them.
Boom!
Dodging the massive fist, Cavendish was instantly enraged.
"You are so annoying!" Cavendish snapped. "Don Chinjao, he is my prey! Don't you dare get in my way!"
Unfortunately for him, Chinjao was past listening to reason.
Right now, his only desire was to headbutt this Straw Hat Boy to death!
With a cold snort, Chinjao's body launched into the air, hurtling violently toward the two of them.
"Headbutt: Martial Head!"
"Damn it...!"
Seeing that the old man was beyond reasoning, Cavendish wasted no more words and decisively met the attack head-on with his personal sword.
"Beautiful Sword: Blue Bird!"
Clang!
"Wha—?!"
Looking at the two locked in a stalemate, the surrounding gladiators were entirely dumbfounded.
"How could Cavendish block Chinjao's massive body with such a slender rapier?!" one contestant gasped in shock.
That was a terrifying powerhouse standing several meters tall!
"Forget that! Isn't Chinjao's head the real shocker?!" another person cried out in astonishment. "That's a Famous Sword renowned across the world!"
"His head didn't even get pierced?!"
Just what kind of skull did that man have?
"Stopping an attack from a Sword Master without even using Haki..." Meiser scrutinized Chinjao's head with intrigue and murmured, "Just how hard is this guy's head?"
Was it harder than solid steel?
Now that was interesting.
"It couldn't even pierce my Durandal..." Cavendish looked at Chinjao's head in disbelief. "This bastard..."
Before he could finish his sentence, he noticed Chinjao throwing a punch right in midair, forcing Cavendish to abandon his assault and leap back.
Beside him, Luffy was also forced to retreat swiftly alongside Cavendish due to Chinjao's attack.
"Impressive," Cavendish said, glaring at Chinjao. "Looks like I won't be able to take him down without going all out."
"Take me down?"
"Arrogant brat! You dare speak so boldly?!"
Did they think an old monster who had lived for decades was some kind of pushover?
Sneering coldly, Chinjao resumed his onslaught against the two of them.
"Damn it! Will you give it a rest already?!" Luffy snapped in frustration.
With that, his body vanished from the spot.
By the time he reappeared, he was right in front of Chinjao's face.
"I told you to stop! Didn't you hear me?!"
As he spoke, Luffy's heavy fist slammed directly into Chinjao's head.
Wham!
With a single strike, he smashed him straight down into the floor.
BOOM!!
"??!!"
Seeing Luffy knock Chinjao flat to the ground in a single blow, the eyes of the surrounding gladiators practically popped out of their sockets.
"That guy sent Chinjao flying!"
"Just who on earth is that bearded shorty?!"
Were these really just ordinary contestants entering the tournament?
This was terrifying!
Right then, Chinjao, who was lying flat on the floor, slowly pushed himself up—without a single scratch on him.
"?!"
"He's completely unscathed!"
Seeing Chinjao without a scratch, the crowd wore expressions of sheer disbelief once again.
Was this old man really that monstrous?
"Could that legend actually be true?"
"What legend?"
"The legend from decades ago!" someone said excitedly. "Rumor has it his head could split the Jewel Ice Sheet right in two!"
"The Jewel Ice Sheet?"
Those who understood what the Jewel Ice Sheet was were overcome with horror.
You could split something like that with a headbutt?
Are you kidding me?!
"Another legendary figure, huh?"
Meiser examined Chinjao's head with curiosity and muttered, "Speaking of which, why does that guy's head look a bit unnatural?"
Was it just his imagination?
"It had no effect at all?" Luffy frowned at Chinjao and muttered, "That is ridiculously hard."
He had put a good amount of strength into that strike just now, yet the man was completely fine... As expected of someone who used to clash with his grandfather.
"Yahahaha! You two have decent foundations," Chinjao sneered coldly at Luffy and Cavendish. "However... it's not enough!"
Before a powerhouse like him, having mere potential and a decent foundation fell laughably short!
"Whether it's enough isn't up to you to decide."
Cavendish scoffed first, then turned his gaze back to Luffy, adding, "You're the real Straw Hat Boy, aren't you?"
"No, I'm—"
"Denying it is useless," Cavendish scoffed. "With such formidable strength, you are definitely the real Straw Hat Boy beyond a shadow of a doubt."
Luffy: "..."
Why did these guys always love jumping to their own conclusions?
Furrowing his brows in annoyance, Luffy said, "Can't you just leave me alone?"
"Hmph, not a chance~" Cavendish shook his head.
He dreamed day and night of slaughtering all these bastards who had stolen his spotlight. How could he ever let it go?
Then, as if remembering something, Cavendish grinned wickedly. "Speaking of which... not only do you love stealing people's thunder, but you're also the grandson of that demon."
"You truly are loathsome~"
"What does any of that have to do with me?!" Luffy clenched his fists and shouted, "I... I'm Lucy!"
Cavendish merely gave a cold snort this time, choosing not to argue further.
Lucy?
Did he still take him for a fool at this point?
What an utterly infuriating bastard.
"Hey, kid over there," Chinjao called out, glaring coldly at Cavendish. "If you get in my way again, don't blame this old man for sending you to the grave along with him!"
"ROAR!"
By the end of his sentence, Chinjao erupted into a roar, his aura turning unimaginably terrifying.
Seeing this, Cavendish's expression shifted slightly.
Even if he didn't know the exact extent of the old man's strength, judging by this aura alone, he was certainly no lightweight.
Right at this moment, Abu and Sai came rushing over from the distance, looking thoroughly panicked.
"Hey, wait a minute, Grandpa!" Sai called out. "Know when to stop!"
"That's right, Grandpa!" Abu added. "Going wild here will get you disqualified from the tournament!"
With that, the two rushed forward and grabbed hold of Chinjao.
"Don't stop me, my beloved grandsons!"
Looking at the two grandsons restraining him, Chinjao barked, "I must crush this grandson of evil!"
"No way."
"Whatever happens, you can't throw a fit here," Sai said.
One of their goals this time was the Diamond-Diamond Fruit, which was crucial to whether they could reopen the Jewel Ice Sheet. Therefore... they absolutely could not afford to be disqualified beforehand!
"This old man finally managed to find the bloodline of my sworn enemy Garp! How could I possibly let this go?!" Chinjao struggled.
"Don't forget why we came here, Grandpa!" Abu urged. "So you have to stay calm!"
Unfortunately, such words could not dissuade the present Chinjao in the slightest.
"Hey, you lot!"
Staff members running in from the distance shouted angrily, "What are you causing a ruckus for?!"
"Private brawls outside the matches are strictly forbidden! Do you all want to be expelled?!"
"Expelled?"
Glancing at the armed staff members, Cavendish sneered with disdain. "I couldn't care less about competing! All I care about is killing the Straw Hat Boy!"
"Right now, I will personally—"
Before he could finish, he froze. Luffy, who had been standing right next to him a moment ago, was gone.
Cavendish: "???"
Where did he go?!
"Hey?!"
"Where the hell did that bastard go?!" Cavendish roared furiously.
He had merely turned his head for a second! How could he just vanish into thin air?!
"Damn it! I will find you!"
After an enraged roar, Cavendish sprinted off into the distance, clearly intent on tracking Luffy down and finishing him off.
Watching Cavendish leave, Sai said, "Grandpa, that kid with the fake beard is in Block C just like us. If you want to kill him, do it in the ring."
"Block C, huh?"
Seeing that Luffy had completely vanished from sight, Chinjao's temper gradually stabilized. He then said coldly, "Fine. I understand."
"I will slaughter him in Block C."
That wretched grandson of evil had to be executed by his own hands!
With a snort, Chinjao departed with his two grandsons.
"They finally left..." Hiding just outside the window ledge, Luffy let out a massive sigh of relief, then muttered helplessly, "I promised Franky and Merry that I wouldn't blow my cover, yet something like this had to happen. What rotten luck..."
By now, quite a few people probably knew who he was. It really was awful luck.
Fortunately, Doflamingo's men hadn't caught on to his identity, or they might not even be allowed to compete in the tournament. Thinking of this, Luffy let out a resigned sigh.
"Pretty clever, aren't you, kid?" Meiser came over and hopped onto the windowsill, speaking with a chuckle. "To think you'd know to hide here."
"I was backed into a corner, okay?" Luffy replied in exasperation.
If those two hadn't been so completely unhinged, he wouldn't have wanted to hide out here either.
Meiser just nodded this time, offering no further critique.
Then, Meiser cast a glance behind him. Seeing that no one was paying attention to this spot, he said in a low voice, "Luffy, after this commotion, there's a good chance the Donquixote Family will sniff us out. So be ready for an early clash."
"Is that so..." Luffy screwed up his face and said, "Got it."
Damn it, what rotten luck.
"Right, one more thing."
As if recalling something, Meiser added, "I talked with Law not too long ago. He has a grudge against Doflamingo, which is most likely why he chose to ally with us."
Meiser paused briefly before continuing, "In a sense, he probably wants to use our strength to bring Doflamingo down."
Based on the analysis from his earlier clone, Law mostly aimed to take out Doflamingo.
That was likely his primary motive for forming an alliance with them.
"So he has a grudge against Doflamingo, huh," Luffy remarked, coming to a sudden realization.
"You're not mad?"
Meiser glanced at Luffy with a hint of curiosity. Did this guy not feel like Law had deceived him?
"Why should I be mad?"
Luffy looked at Meiser with genuine confusion. "Isn't everything we're doing right now meant to deal with Kaido anyway?"
"Besides... we're in an alliance with Torao!"
"Under these circumstances, there's nothing wrong with helping him take down Doflamingo, right?"
In Luffy's eyes, an alliance was just like a friendship. He didn't mind helping Torao deal with Doflamingo at all.
After all... his friend's problems were his problems!
Meiser fell silent for a moment upon hearing that, then chuckled softly. "Your reaction was pretty much what I expected."
He had previously wondered how Luffy would react upon hearing this truth, and his thought at the time was that Luffy probably wouldn't be mad at all.
Now, it seemed his hunch was spot on.
For a moment, Meiser couldn't help but feel a wave of emotion.
That's just Luffy for you~
When someone he considered a friend used his strength, he wouldn't get angry at all.
Just like... back in Alabasta.
"Looks like you know me pretty well~" Luffy bared his teeth in a grin.
It felt wonderful to be understood so well by his crewmates.
Meiser merely smiled in response, saying nothing more.
In a sense, he truly did understand this idiot thoroughly.
Actually, the moment we decided to capture Caesar, we already became Doflamingo's mortal enemies, Meiser mused internally.
There was no point in fretting over it now. It was better to just focus on carrying out the plan.
With a slight smile, Meiser said, "In any case... there's an extremely high chance we'll end up clashing with Doflamingo this time, so be mentally prepared."
Either way, he doubted that flamingo would ever let them off the hook.
"If it really comes down to a fight, I'll send him flying!"
"Sounds like a plan."