When Diarmuid followed the old man into the Orphanage, he found the CP agents in a courtyard, talking to the boy, Lucci. What surprised Diarmuid was that he recognized one of the agents: the infamous Stussy!
Stussy appeared to be in her early twenties, very beautiful with a fantastic figure. More importantly, she had a truly alluring and elegant aura. It was clear that she was the type of person who used her beauty as a weapon.
At this time, it seemed she hadn't yet become the "Queen of the Pleasure District," as the CP agencies hadn't begun that project yet. As for her age, Diarmuid was skeptical. Although she looked young, he recalled that she was born around the same time as Charlotte Linlin. It was said that she, too, was sold to the World Government by the nun.
Thinking about it now, if Elbaf hadn't held its ritual, causing Charlotte Linlin to get hungry and go insane, she might not have killed the nun. Who knows, Charlotte Linlin could have been a Vice Admiral or even an Admiral in the Marines by now, and Diarmuid would have had to call her his senior. What a shame.
Seemingly hearing footsteps, Stussy turned her head toward Diarmuid, a hint of surprise in her eyes.
The Marines and the CP agencies have never gotten along. They wouldn't even greet each other if there wasn't a reason, but it seemed like this person was coming for them. Also, the Marines rarely came to the Orphanage to recruit. What was going on today?
Diarmuid walked forward. The old man was about to speak, but Diarmuid interrupted him with a wave of his hand. "Rear Admiral of Marine Headquarters, Rodriguez Diarmuid," he stated directly.
Stussy frowned slightly, wondering what this Marine was up to. But she quickly smiled, a hint of charm in her expression. "CP9 Chief, Stussy."
Diarmuid was a little surprised. He remembered that Spandine, the father of the incompetent Spandam, was the current chief of CP9. It was Spandine who handled the Ohara incident. But after a moment's thought, he accepted it.
The Ohara incident was still a few years away. By then, Stussy might have already been promoted to CP0 and taken over the Pleasure District. It wasn't so strange for her to be the chief of CP9 now.
He also recalled how, after the Enies Lobby incident, Lucci and the other CP9 members were hunted by the World Government, only to inexplicably join CP0 two years later. Diarmuid didn't believe there was nothing to that.
Now, seeing this scene, he had a guess: maybe the connection between Stussy and Lucci started here. And later, when Lucci was in trouble, Stussy likely helped them out of goodwill and brought them into CP0.
From an administrative standpoint, as a CP9 Chief, Stussy's rank was a little higher than a Marine Headquarters Rear Admiral.
However, Diarmuid showed no signs of giving her face. He nodded and said, "I apologize for the interruption. The Marines are recruiting the boy named Rob Lucci. I would appreciate it if you would give me a little face, Stussy-san."
Stussy frowned. "Since when have the Marines started taking people from the Orphanage?"
Diarmuid smiled. "You must have forgotten, Stussy-san. Since when have the Marines not had the authority to take people from the Orphanage?"
"You…" Stussy was taken aback by Diarmuid's retort. After a moment, she continued, "There's a rule of first come, first served, isn't there? We in CP9 have already taken an interest in Lucci and are preparing to take him back to be trained as a CP agent. You Marines are too late."
"Oh, really?" Diarmuid was surprised. He turned to the old man and asked, "Has the transfer process been completed? Has the conscription document been signed?"
The old man, too afraid to get involved, quickly shook his head. "Rear Admiral sir, it has not."
"Hehehe, you heard him, Stussy-san. Neither the process nor the document is complete. In theory, Lucci is still a person of the Orphanage, so there is no such thing as 'first come, first served,'" Diarmuid said with a smile, giving her no face at all.
"What if I refuse?" Stussy said, her tone a little colder.
Diarmuid tapped the Nagasone Kotetsu on his hip, a smile on his face. "I am here on a mission from Headquarters. As a soldier, my duty is to the mission above all else. No one can stop me from completing my mission!"
"Are you threatening me? With you being just a minor Marine Rear Admiral?" Stussy said, a hint of anger in her eyes.
She had no idea who Rodriguez Diarmuid was. Although CP9 was also an intelligence agency, their relationship with the Marines was always strained, so they had a hard time getting information about the Marines.
Diarmuid didn't have much of a reputation. He had only gone on two field missions, and both were top-secret. One was a Marine covert operation, and the other was an attack on G-1 Base, where the Fleet Admiral was ambushed.
These were highly classified, and even most Marines only knew that Diarmuid was involved, not the details. So how could the CP agencies know?
The only reputation he had was the nickname "Ferocious Tiger" from rumors. But it was clear that the CP agencies weren't so bored as to listen to gossip from the Marines. They didn't know much about him.
"I'm just stating a fact," Diarmuid said, his gaze turning cold.
As soon as he said that, Stussy moved. With a single step, she appeared in front of Diarmuid and aimed a Shigan at his shoulder.
Diarmuid wasn't surprised. The conflict between the CP agencies and the Marines was well-known, and an occasional brawl was completely normal. He could see that Stussy wasn't trying to kill him, just teach him a lesson. Otherwise, she would have aimed for his throat.
Clang.
A look of seriousness appeared in Stussy's eyes. In that instant, Diarmuid reacted with incredible speed, raising his sword in its sheath and blocking her Shigan. The sheath was wrapped in a faint layer of Armament Haki.
"Attacking a Marine Rear Admiral on a mission without provocation, Stussy-san… You're not going to get away with that," Diarmuid said, his mouth curling into a smirk. As he spoke, a powerful gravitational force was applied to Stussy.
Stussy's face changed, and she pushed off the ground, moving back to escape the gravity. Her expression became even more serious.
"Who exactly are you?" Stussy asked in a low voice.
"I told you, Rear Admiral of Marine Headquarters, Rodriguez Diarmuid," he repeated.
"I had no idea the Marines had a person like you," Stussy said with a serious tone.
"Oh, I've been around for about three years," Diarmuid said calmly. At the same time, he slowly drew his Nagasone Kotetsu. As one of the 21 Great Grade Swords, its blade was chilling, and its murderous aura was palpable.
Stussy also wrapped her hands in Haki. Now, she was not just fighting Diarmuid for the boy; she wanted to see how strong this mysterious Rear Admiral was. Was he a threat to the CP agencies? If so, she would have to remember him.
As a member of the CP agencies, she had a duty to understand the situation of her old rivals.
The old man was startled. They were about to fight? He grabbed the bewildered boy, Lucci, and quickly retreated without daring to stop them.
"Tobu Shigan!" Stussy whispered. She pointed her finger and launched a projectile at Diarmuid from a distance.
The cold light of Diarmuid's Nagasone Kotetsu flashed as he cut the Tobu Shigan in half.
"Rankyaku: Hummingbird!" Stussy was unsure what ability Diarmuid had used to stop her, so she didn't dare to get close. She only used long-range attacks to test him.
"Rankyaku: Flying Bird!" Diarmuid also raised his leg and kicked, creating a flying slash that blocked Stussy's Rankyaku. To be honest, he was holding back. If he went all out and destroyed the Orphanage, it would be bad.
"Stussy-san, are you sure you want to fight me here?" Diarmuid asked. As he spoke, a powerful aura emanated from him. The power of his Devil Fruit flowed out, making the gravel on the ground float up and down, looking very strange.
Stussy said in a low voice, "You're not an ordinary Marine Rear Admiral, are you? If every Marine Rear Admiral was like you, you would have already taken over the New World…"
"Ah, I forgot to mention it before. I was the top graduate of the sixth Marine Officer Training Camp," Diarmuid said with a smile.
Stussy's heart sank. Sure enough, he's in the same league as monsters like Sakazuki and Kuzan?
The Marines were so lucky. After a few years, they had found another person like that! But the more she thought about it, the more she wanted to test how powerful this Diarmuid really was.
Stussy's face became serious. "You want to take Lucci, and I want to take Lucci. In that case, let's have a little match. Whoever wins gets the boy."
By saying this, she had defined the incident as a "friendly competition." If they fought for real and she couldn't stop, since she attacked first, she would definitely get arrested.
Diarmuid didn't care about her little trick. He smiled and said, "In that case, I won't hold back. I hope the CP agencies will be in charge of the cleanup…"
As soon as he said that, Diarmuid swung his Nagasone Kotetsu toward Stussy.
"Gravity Blade: Raging Tiger!" Diarmuid roared. The flying slash carried an immense gravitational force, destroying the ground as it passed. The power was incredible.
Stussy didn't expect him to be so brutal. She wrapped her arms in Haki and crossed them in front of her to block the attack. But the impact was too great, and the slash sent her flying.
She somersaulted in the air and used a few Geppo to regain her balance. Stussy looked at Diarmuid in shock. The courtyard wall was now completely destroyed.
At the same time, Diarmuid raised his Nagasone Kotetsu, its tip pointing at the airborne Stussy. "It's best not to fly in front of me, Stussy-san."
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