Lizard No. 1… (T/N: It's Hanafuda's ship.)
Bazel jumped off Hanafuda's back, grabbed a towel, and without stopping, hurried towards the washroom.
Soon, the sound of running water could be heard from far away.
Toki emerged from the laboratory and asked curiously, "I think I heard Bazel's voice. Where is he?"
Hanafuda found a place to sit and spread his hands.
"Toki-san, you almost gained a sister. Good thing Bazel ran fast, otherwise I'd be in trouble too."
'Gained a sister!?'
Toki's expression tightened, and she hurriedly asked what happened.
After hearing the whole story, her initially nervous expression suddenly turned strange.
"I don't oppose Bazel finding a few more girls. After all, the strong have privileges~"
"If that sister's personality is decent, marrying Bazel doesn't seem too bad?"
"Sister?! Decent personality?!"
Hanafuda looked as if he had heard something unbelievable, his expression one of utter shock.
"What new sea-faring joke are you talking about? That woman is not the good sister you're talking about!"
"She's a remnant of the Rocks Pirates, a formidable woman who has taken over a dozen husbands!"
"And it's not Bazel marrying her… it's Bazel marrying into her family as a husband!"
"That absolutely won't do!!"
Coming to her senses, Toki quickly shook her head, crossing her arms in an 'X' shape in front of her chest.
"I don't oppose her marrying into our family, but Bazel absolutely cannot marry out!!"
"Stop talking nonsense!"
Bazel's furious roar came from the direction of the washroom.
"Hanafuda, I told you, if I become Charlotte Linlin's husband, I will definitely arrange for you to get on the bed too!"
"You bastard, don't fill Toki's head with strange ideas!"
"By the seas above…" Hanafuda knelt in prayer, shouting with an expression of wronged innocence, "It has nothing to do with me, Bazel! You can't repay kindness with enmity!"
"It was Toki-san herself who thought that, saying things like 'if Charlotte Linlin's personality is decent'! It wasn't me!"
Before personally seeing Linlin today, Hanafuda had actually held onto a sliver of fantasy.
After all, they were all people from the old era.
Although he hadn't experienced it firsthand, he remembered some famous characters.
For example, the young Linlin, who was famous across the seas for her beauty at the age of 18.
Skin as tender as milk, a tall figure, delicate features, coupled with formidable strength and a bold personality.
Which fine young man of that era hadn't considered Linlin their goddess?
But after seeing her this time,
Hanafuda silently moved her off the pedestal of 'goddess'.
Let the heaven and earth be his witness.
He had no idea that Linlin at 39 would differ so much from her 18-year-old self.
Although her figure hadn't completely gone yet, under the influence of mermaid ladies, Hanafuda had already noticed a somewhat... concerning trend.
Walking out of the washroom wearing pants, Bazel looked displeased.
"I'll take care of watching the ship from now on. Hanafuda, you go support Kaido over there."
Hanafuda initially wanted to refuse.
But ten serpent spirits suddenly crawled out from behind Bazel.
A total of eleven pairs of eyes stared fixedly at the target.
Their fangs bared, as if venom would be injected into his body the moment he refused.
"I... I'll go…"
Hanafuda slowly stood up, his body hunched as he disembarked, dragging his feet reluctantly in the direction they came from.
He dared swear that if he didn't go, Bazel would definitely use snake venom to paralyze him, then have King deliver him to Linlin's room.
Just thinking about that future, even someone as tough as Hanafuda couldn't help but tremble with fear.
After sending Hanafuda away, Bazel finally relaxed a bit.
He found a lounger, sat down, and pulled Toki into his arms.
"Mmm~ Toki, you're the best. Smelling nice, soft, and slim~"
Toki's face flushed slightly, but she didn't refuse. Instead, she took the towel, sat on Bazel's lap, and began drying his wet hair.
Half an hour later…
"Bazel, you… Pardon me."
The moment he flew over, King instantly retreated, also tactfully dispersing the other pirates on the Lizard No. 1.
"Don't disturb Bazel. Little Bazel might be born next year!"
"Arber, don't talk nonsense."
Seeing Toki's head start steaming and her eyes turn into swirls, Bazel had to call out to stop him.
"Everything is fine on Kaido's end. Don't worry."
"I just had a fight with Charlotte Linlin and came back to rest."
Only then did King slowly land, his suspicious gaze shifting back and forth between Bazel and Toki.
"You really didn't…"
"We didn't!"
Bazel picked up a wine bottle from the table and threw it.
"Do I look like someone with an exhibitionist fetish!?"
"You do!" King nodded openly in admission.
But seeing Bazel's 'Mind-Clearing Fist' light up, he quickly changed the subject.
"I sensed a very powerful aura earlier. Was it Charlotte Linlin?"
Bazel nodded. Just as he was about to explain what happened, a Den Den Mushi suddenly rang.
Buru buru buru…
Kacha…
"Hey, hey, this is bad, Bazel!"
The Den Den Mushi was sweating profusely, and Hanafuda's panicked voice came through.
"This Tea Party is not good! Do you know who Charlotte Linlin invited?!"
"Who could she invite? Just some bosses from the underworld, right?" Bazel asked curiously.
"It's not just them!!"
With the tentacles covering its mouth, the Den Den Mushi lowered its voice.
"I've been following Kaido-sama, right? I heard some unbelievable news!"
"Because this is the first Tea Party, aside from the underworld bosses, Charlotte Linlin also invited Shiki the Golden Lion, the West Blue's mafia, Marlon, Ochoku from Hachinosu, the Pirate Smuggler, Ganzui, and the former Rocks Pirates' gunner, Gill Bastar!"
"Plus Kaido-sama, they're all remnants of the Rocks Pirates!!"
Hearing this, Bazel's expression changed. He sat up straight in disbelief.
'Marlon?'
'No wonder that guy suddenly came from the West Blue to the New World!'
'So it was because of the Tea Party.'
"Hey, hey, this is really bad. What does that woman want to do?!"
Others might not know, but Bazel, as a transmigrator, did.
Linlin's Tea Party, on the surface, was an ordinary banquet.
But hidden beneath was the distribution of underworld interests!
The Big Mom Pirates themselves were a family-based pirate crew. The Captain, Charlotte Linlin used her children's marriages to pull in strong individuals from different races and factions, tying them to the Big Mom Pirates' ship.
Then, through these outsiders who married in or out, she formed an invisible web!
And the Tea Party was how she used this web to send out invitations.
Based on the sincerity of the gifts brought by the guests and their past actions, she determined the direction of most future interests.
The reason Bazel's expression changed was, naturally, the gathering of Rocks Pirates' remnants.
This was absolutely a scenario the World Government did not want to see.
'Although the leader was gone, these Rocks Pirates' remnants were still in their prime.'
'If they gathered recklessly…'
'The World Government would definitely think these Rocks Pirates' remnants were planning to join forces to overthrow the world.'
'Even if they weren't, the Five Elders would never allow the Rocks Pirates' remnants to gather freely.'
'It was possible those ubiquitous CP agents had already infiltrated Whole Cake Island, and the Marine Headquarters' top fighters and the God's Knights were also on their way to the waters of Totto Land!'
"Hanafuda, where's Kaido?"
"Still in the banquet hall, but he's not in a position to take a call right now."
Bazel immediately understood the implication of Hanafuda's words.
"Notify Kaido later. Our Beasts Pirates won't get involved in this mess."
"Tell him to come back. We set sail immediately!"
The Den Den Mushi paused, "...Is it that serious?"
"It's more than just serious."
Bazel smiled wryly, 'I didn't remember this scene in the original anime. Was it the butterfly effect again?'
"If you were one of the Five Elders, and you learned that the Rocks remnants were gathering together again after 9 years, what would you think?"
As soon as he said this, the Den Den Mushi's expression quickly changed drastically.
"Buster Call!?"
"Exactly. Although I can't be sure how many will come, it's definitely not something our Beasts Pirates can handle right now."
"Don't forget, Hanafuda. Arber is a special race with a 100 million Beri bounty from the World Government."
King, who was listening, frowned slightly.
"If the World Government's forces are also mixed into the Buster Call, Arber's identity will probably be exposed."
"It's almost the critical period for our assault on Wano. If we lose some combat power here, it would be a severe blow to our future plans!"
"Get Kaido back now. We retreat!"
"While their attention is still focused here, we charge into Wano at full speed!!!"