Kaizo was right to assume the worst.
He did some mild preparations to his base before going back to Robin and Saul. As the giant built the raft Kaizo asked him about Giant fighting styles and techniques but most of them include weapons, and Kaizo's style is barehanded.
What truly made Kaizo smile was that despite knowing each other for less than a day, Robin and Saul became good friends, that eased Kaizo's mind since he was afraid Robin might become an antisocial.
Regardless, it seems that Saul does have loose ends to handle and it's imperative for him to leave. At Kaizo's side is a sad Robin, she didn't want her friend to leave.
"Why da long face?" Saul asked with a smile.
"She's sad you're leaving. Could you spare some minutes so that you two could talk a bit more?" Kaizo.
"Ah, that's all, ya should' ha said so!" Saul laughed.
He then sat near the cliff Robin and Kaizo were and they started to talk.
"I heard you two want to go to da sea, right?" Saul.
"Yeah, Robin wants to study things and I want to become stronger." Kaizo.
"When I was younger, my mom left the island to do some research, I couldn't go because how little I was but once she returns I'll tell her my dream and I'll set sail with Kaizo." Robin.
"Makin' that decision at such young age eh? You kids 'ave spunk." Saul.
"Saul, did you know that we have an entire century of history, unknown history, that's been forgotten by everyone?" Robin.
"Dat "Void Century"? yeah, I'd 'ave heard about it. Unfortunately, the Government doesn't allow anyone study it." Saul.
"Yup, my mom's been traveling the world researching all of it, please don't tell anyone. Apparently it IS a crime." Robin.
Saul's face darkened as if something struck him, Kaizo noticed his changed in expression and started to get a bad feeling about it.
"Da-Dat means she's lookin' for stones called Poneglyphs, ain't she?!" Saul asked, afraid of the answer.
"You know about Poneglyphs? They're studied here all the time." Robin said nonchalantly.
Saul's face darkened in despair.
"Listen' ere! You must neva Eva, talk about them in front of others!" Saul warned.
"I've been saying the same crap to her but she never listen." Kaizo.
"Never mind all that! Robin, what's ya mother's name?" Saul asked.
He looked as if he was begging God that his assumptions were just that.
"Olivia." Robin.
As if he had gotten a heart attack, Saul fell back as he looked at the sky in awe and shock.
'What the hell is wrong with him?' Kaizo wondered, not liking this in the slightest.
"Den, ya mean dis island is Ohara?!" Saul.
"Yup." Robin.
"Holy fricking crap! I can't believe that I drifted all the way ta Ohara!" Saul exclaimed again.
"Geez, stop yelling already. What's the deal with this place anyway." Kaizo.
"Dat doesn't matter no more! Listen up, marines warships are headin' dis way right now." Saul.
"Why?" Robin.
"To wipe out da scholars on dis island!" Saul stated.
Both Robin and Kaizo's eyes widen at the reveal. Robin couldn't believe that such a thing could happen, but Kaizo knew better.
He used to be part of the army he knows how dark secrets were looming down on the foundation of his country. If the World Government, which manages the whole world, is in any way similar to Earth's democracy, is that they are ruthless and merciless against their enemies.
"You're lying! There's no way that's true!" Robin.
"Don't argue Robin!" Kaizo.
Robin and Saul looked at him.
"This is an island of scholars if the Void Century, which only scholars are interested on, is such a taboo topic, who do you think the World Government would eliminate if they wanted the research to stop?" Kaizo analyzed.
"Ya better check da town if everything's right, ya mother might've come back!" Saul.
Gears clicked in Robin's head as she ran towards the town.
"Saul, get your raft ready and leave. I'll get my things to leave with Robin!" Kaizo yelled as he went towards his home.
Kaizo is naturally faster than many adults so he didn't took too much time, he went to the side of the treehouse and took two emergency bags filled with dried food in jars, water and other necessities for the sea.
He carried them and placed them on the raft that's on the side of the treehouse; with a chain he started to pull it towards the shore using a chain. As he made his way, Saul spotted him.
"Kid, let me help ya with dat." Saul took the raft.
"Take it near the coast, leave the chain." Kaizo.
Saul lowered the raft and Kaizo took the chain from it.
"Why da chain?" Saul.
"Robin's mother has been researching those stones, right? Meaning that bad stuff is about to happen. I need to help Robin before its too late." Kaizo.
He strapped the chains across his arms and hands before sprinting towards the town. Even though he's preferred fighting style is barehanded, Kaizo isn't against using other objects as weapons, and he's quite proficient in using them as well.
Meanwhile, Saul clutched his head in sadness.
"How did dis happened…? Sorry, Robin." Saul lamented as he went to hide the raft.
Kaizo ran through the forest, his mind racing about the current situation.
Truth to be told, the moment he was made aware about what the Poneglyphs are, he knew that the world government would eventually try to silence the scholars of Ohara, he could only pray that he would've learnt enough navigation by the time things get messy.
He's ready to leave the island but he can't just leave his friend behind, knowing Clover's stubbornness its almost certain that he and the rest of scholars will remain in Ohara, trying to preserve whatever knowledge remains.
Arriving at the town, Kaizo made his way to the tree of knowledge as he saw the townsfolk in panic. He assumed that the guys from the WG were already there, assumption that was proven right when he saw the agents entering the library.
Kaizo was too late and hid in an alleyway, a direct approach might make it hard to rescue Robin, worse scenario might include she losing her life. Fortunately, he didn't need to ask for an explanation, as the guys in black suits explained it.
"This island's archeologists are now to be considered "Devils who want to end the World" and will be charged as such!"
Kaizo could hear the townsfolk yelling in protest, a dumb move when the person you're protesting against carries a gun.
"This entire island will be under a large-scale investigation! During this period everyone with no connections with the archeologists must take proper identification to the western marine refugee ship for evacuation within the hour!"
Kaizo heard enough, this was probably the "humane" propaganda to give the news about when they tried "helping" the innocents. Anyone who doesn't comply will be killed.
Before long, Kaizo heard some ruckus coming from the tree and stealthily made his way there. The entrance was guarded but not the sides, using the robust bark from the tree, Kaizo climbed to one of the windows and saw what was going on.
Kaizo wanted to jump straight there and give these agents a piece of his metal chains, but they had other of their men aiming their guns at the other scholars. Before they could get the books from the upper levels, Kaizo took a boom he hasn't been able to memorize properly.
The first edition of the Devil Fruit Encyclopedia.
An edition written by Dr. Vegapunk but that was later discontinued by the WG due to some powerful fruits that it had.
Tucking it in his sleeves, Kaizo climbed down and hid on a bush nearby.
Once the soldiers started to escort the scholars, Robin followed and therefore Kaizo did as well, he blended in with the crowd and none noticed him.
'Top agents my ass, even Skyrim has harder stealth missions.' Kaizo thought.
Clover did noticed Kaizo's presence but decided to remain calm, at least with him here, Robin would be safe.
Clover knows about Kaizo's strength, it's an open secret how he's already stronger than adults and that all predators of the forest have been hunted by him to almost extinction.
The scholars arrived at a clearing near the tree of knowledge, were Clover started to whisper to Robin.
"Robin as you've heard there's a refugee boat, follow the rest and get there. I'm not sure what the government is planning to do, but you must get there quickly." Clover.
"Let's go, Robin." Kaizo grabbed Robin's hand.
Robin swatted it away.
"No… all the nice people I like are here; I don't want to leave you guys behind!" Robin.
"Oi, Robin!" Kaizo was cut off.
"I'm the same as them! I don't want to leave!" Robin's "tantrum" was stopped at the sound of a laugh that would haunt her for years to come.
"MHUWHAHAHAHA!!!"
They turn around to see a man arriving to the clearing alongside two other men.
The man laughing is tall, slim, middle-aged with a long, narrow face that gives him a somewhat rat-like appearance. He has a sharp chin, a prominent nose, and small, deep-set eyes that often carry a smug or condescending look. His hair is light-colored, slicked back, and receding, leaving a pronounced forehead, and he sports a thin, upward-curving mustache that accentuates his sly expression.
He wears a formal World Government suit consisting of a light-colored jacket over a collared shirt and tie, complemented by dark gloves and an armband bearing the CP insignia. Over his suit, he dons a long coat or cloak, and he carries a pistol at his side.
Kaizo didn't even need to know the man to know that he's a real piece of shit. Point that was proven as he laughed while throwing the body of a woman.
Silver hair and lean build, and those eyes that resemble Robin, Kaizo didn't had to be a genius to know who she is.
"How are you gentlemen?" Spandine.
"We're doing fine, chief!" Cipher Pol agents.
"This island's forest has some dreadful beast's within! Hell, this one almost killed me!" Spandine kicked Olivia in front of the scholars as they watched in tears.
Kaizo ignored what Spandine started saying due to Clover tugging his sleeve.
"Kaizo, take Robin to the refugee ship at once!" Clover whispered loudly.
Olivia heard Robin's name and raised her face, looking at her. Robin may not recognize her but Olivia was tearful at seeing her daughter grow this old.
Robin's trance was interrupted when Kaizo yanked her by the sleeve.
"Time to go, Robin." Kaizo.
None could say anything else when the tree of knowledge started to blow up, explosion after explosion started to burn the tree from the inside and outside.
"What the hell are you doing?!"
"That's our sacred Tree of Knowledge!"
"To think they went this far!" Clover could barely hold his anger.
Just then, a call came from a Transporter Snail.
[Chief, we've found something on the basement! There's a Poneglyph and notes about it here, the scholars have been researching it!]
Spandine reacted to those news with the most disgusting facial expression Kaizo has ever seen a human make.
"MUWHAHAHAA!! Well now, scholars… we have officially made the decision to execute you all!" Spandine laughed.
Everyone tensed at the inevitable demise, even Kaizo bit his lip as he processed the order. He didn't hate the scholars; their bond might not be as close as Robin's but he still care for them.
Unfortunately for him, this moment of shock made him lose his chance of taking Robin away.
"Professor, everyone is going to be killed?! That can't be true, you didn't read the letter did you?" Robin asked confused.
"Dumb kid, the whole point of research was to awaken powerful weapons, they're trying to kill lots of people!" Spandine.
"That's a lie! No one here is like that!" Robin tried to defend her people.
"Robin, that's enough. You can't simply talk to the government like that." Clover stood up, grabbing Kaizo's attention.
He dropped a folded piece of paper that Kaizo swiftly and stealthily grabbed as he tucked it in his pants' pockets.
"The Government's afraid… but not of the weapons. *Clover started talking* "Before my death, let me speak… with the heads of the world, The Gorosei. For a long time now, Ohara, the holy land of archaeology has continued it's research. The dream is halfway there, but I have created a hypothesis about the "Void Century" that I wish to report." Clover spoke firmly.
He hinted at Kaizo and he snapped from his trance and without a doubt left took Robin's hand and forcefully dragged her away from the ear-range of whatever Clover was about to say.
"Time to go, Robin." Kaizo ordered this time, there's no room for negotiations.
"Kaizo *Robin's tone changed* I know we have to leave but I can't just leave them like this, I need to know if Professor Clover will talk his way out of the death sentence." Robin.
"Robin, if we remain here, we don't know if we'll be able to escape safely." Kaizo stated.
"Please, just this once, accept my whim!" Robin literally got on her knees and begged Kaizo.
Knowing that he'll regret this later, Kaizo sat near a wall and Robin watched hiding behind another wall.
What no one knows here was that Kaizo's intensely sharp ear could still hear Clover's voice, and word after word about his Hypothesis reached Kaizo's mind as he started to connect the puzzle pieces.
'Enemies, 100-years of unrecorded history, Poneglyphs, World Government, Gorosei. All these assumptions make total sense! Wait, there was a shift!' Kaizo.
He immediately looked at Clover's tone when saying the last parts of his theory and he ran immediately towards him. Spandine was oozing of killing intent as he started to reach for his gun, but what surprised Kaizo was that the snail was oozing such a vicious killing intent that it was actually this one that Kaizo felt first.
A transporter snail is just a living being that mimics the voices and facial expressions of those around it, when trained they can be used as perfect phones, at the end of the day they're just a medium, so whoever was at the other end of that snail must be freaking strong to send his killing intent from that far.
[Eliminate him.] Spoke the voice from the other side of the snail.
Spandine raised his gun and pointed it at Clover and shot.
*BANG*
Time seemed to slow down as no one could see the bullet move, but at that moment, an 8-year-old kid made his way through the crowd and using his chains, deflected the bullet towards another agent.
Fortunately, Kaizo had a head start due to the killing intent giving their intentions away.
There was confusion amongst the agents but the Gorosei didn't stopped talking.
[Ohara knows too much! Give the signal to the attack.]
"Kaizo, you…!" Clover.
"Sorry Doc, I'm kind of an idiot myself." Kaizo smiled as he looked at the other agents.
"Professor!" Robin also ran towards the group.
"Tch! Damn brat, I'd kill you but orders are orders. *Spandine took out from his coat a golden snail* it's Buster Call time!"
"Buster call?" Kaizo wondered.
"Did he just say Buster Call!?" Another scholar asked.
"Professor, what's a Buster Call?" Robin asked as she hugged Clover.
"The end of an island. A powerful call that orders every marine in the area to direct all their resources into destroying a single island, Ohara is done for." Clover.
Robin and Kaizo's eyes widened as Olivia tried to must some strength.
The fire from the explosion of earlier started to consume the tree, startling the scholars.
"Hey, what's the big idea?!"
"Why are you destroying the sacred tree?!"
"How should I know? Perhaps the explosions did that?"
"Don't screw with us!"
The scholars, except for Clover, ran towards the tree to do some damage control.
"And take that woman as well, we can't let her die here, there's only she knows." Spandine ordered as he started to leave.
The agents seemed to have lost interest on detaining Kaizo so he was preparing to book it with Robin when he heard some of the most heartbreaking words a child could say.
"Are you my mommy?" Robin asked Olivia in tears.
Kaizo was struggling to decide. He could forcefully take Robin away, and try to save her life as he intended, but deny her the opportunity to speak to her mother.
Throughout the years, Robin's second dream was to spend as much time as she could with her mother before they had to part ways, Kaizo is many things but not a heartless person.
The other choice is letting them interact, but he knows that a scumbag as Spandine might use Robin as leverage to force Olivia to talk.
He made his choice.
The rifle was still near the dead agent and Kaizo loosened his chains as much as he could to extend the range.
Robin's mind flashed back at her childhood before meeting Kaizo and asked again.
"Are you my mommy!?" Robin asked, snot and tears running from her face.
"Ah? Is that brat yours?" Spandine ruined the moment.
Olivia didn't hesitate. "I'm sorry, you must've mistaken me for someone else."
Robin couldn't hold her feelings in line and let them out.
"I'm Robin! Even though I grew… you really don't remember me!? I always waited you to come back!" Robin.
Olivia fell on her knee, trying to hold back the tears that were sipping through her eyes.
"Are you really not my mother?! Someday, I'd like to just go for a walk, grabbing your hand as we smile together! I even became an archeologist and read the Poneglyphs all to be with you! Can we please be together, mother?!" Robin.
With that, her fate was sealed.
"I made an awesome friend that made my life better, he treats me well, he cares for me and even cheers for me and my dream! But I've always wanted to be with you no matter what! I want to be with you again, mommy!" Robin is now all out crying.
Just as Robin said those words, cannonballs started to rain on Ohara, many even affected their own CP Agents.
"They must've planned this from the beginning!"
"The whole island is getting destroyed!"
"Dammit! This is the power the world government holds?!" Clover.
"Chief, that kid, she said she's and archeologist."
"Yeah, she did said that, though I don't know whether that's true or not. When in doubt shoot her out, we just need to eliminate her regardless. Remember her face and don't let her leave the island." Spandine.
Kaizo took aim.
"Let's go!" Spandine ran way.
"What about Olivia?"
"It's okay! We don't have time to worry about her anyway, my life's top priority!" Spandine declared like a cowards.
*BANG*
A single bullet flew amongst the chaos and struck Spandine's spine, the awful marine falls over and shrieks in pain as he started to loose the feeling on his legs.
"AAAAAHHH! Who did that?! Who was the bastard?!" Spandine.
Everyone looked at the direction from which the bullet came from and they all saw Kaizo holding the musket from earlier with smoke coming out of it.
"Shame. I was aiming for the head." Kaizo said as he tried to shoot again but the musket didn't fired.
He didn't knew if it was the gun or something so he threw it away.
"Kill that kid, at least one of you kill him!" Spandine ordered.
Two agents from behind the scholars rushed at Kaizo, the kid swung his chains at their chins, making their head scramble so fast they were losing their consciousness.
One of the agents was about to fall when Kaizo grabbed his head and while looking at Spandine snapped his neck without flinching.
Everyone was shocked at that and Spandine saw Kaizo's blue eyes, his pupils becoming sharper as he looked at the corrupt marine.
"AHH! Forget the idiots, just get me out of here! They'll die from the Buster Call anyway!" Spandine ordered and was carried by his sitters.
Amidst the chaos, Robin ignored everything and sat besides her mother, grabbing her hand and cried.
"I've always wanted to do this." Robin said. "Always."
"Robin!" Olivia hugged Robin and cried.
"Mom!" Robin did the same.
Kaizo and Clover looked at the scene with tears on their eyes but the destruction around them was off-putting.
"Old man Clover, you planning to die here, aren't you?" Kaizo asked.
"I have to save the knowledge this place holds, no matter what knowledge something is never to be hidden." Clover.
"We might not always gotten along right but I'm grateful for everything you've done for me." Kaizo.
"Why are you getting all mushy? That doesn't fit your horrible personality." Clover.
"Wa~ talk about harsh, no wonder you have no girlfriend." Kaizo.
Clover laughed a little before getting serious again.
"Kaizo, I need you to leave this place with Robin." Clover.
"Done, what's in the paper that you gave me?" Kaizo asked.
"That? It was just an apology letter; it doesn't matter anymore since we've talked face to face." Clover.
Kaizo narrowed his eyes before taking the paper out and shredded it. Making Clover widen his eyes.
"Good, then I don't need it anymore." Kaizo said with a smirk, knowing he screwed Clover over.