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Chapter 140 Mera-mera Fruit
Inside the headquarters room of G5 base, Rogge was reviewing documents, the afterglow of the setting sun outside the window gilded his profile.
The scratching sound of the pen on the paper was suddenly interrupted by a knock on the door.
"Come in."
Ain pushed the door open and walked in, holding an intelligence document with a gold-stamped cover in his hand.
"Lord Rogge, the latest information on Dressrosa."
Her voice was solemn. "Doflamingo has announced that they will be holding a fighting tournament next week. The prize for the champion is..."
Rogge paused slightly with the pen in his hand, and the ink spread out as a small dot on the document.
"My fruit."
Ian placed the information on the table. "This is news that just came out from the underground world."
The office suddenly became quiet, and even the ticking of the clock could be heard clearly.
Rogge put down his pen, tapped the table lightly with his fingertips, and a meaningful smile appeared on the corner of his mouth.
"My fruit is mine"
There was a hint of amusement in his voice. "It saves me the trouble of looking for a straw hat."
He stood up and walked to the French window. The setting sun stretched his figure very long. "Rayleigh has really ruined the straw hat over the past year or so."
Ion stepped forward. "Do we need to send troops to seize the fruit immediately? We can..."
"No need."
Rogge raised his hand to interrupt, a sharp glint in his eyes as he turned around. "I know exactly what that flamingo is planning."
He walked over to the tactical sand table and ran his finger over Dressrosa's model. "The arena is just a cover. His real purpose is..."
The finger suddenly stopped at the arena in the center of the model.
"Test the reactions of various factions, draw the strong into fighting each other, and weaken the resistance."
Rogge sneered, "That's a good plan."
Ian pondered: "Then we..."
"Give him a hand."
Rogge walked back to his desk and pressed the communicator, "Intelligence Department."
His voice was filled with undeniable authority. "I want this news to reach every corner of the underworld."
After hanging up the phone, Rogge's eyes grew darker. "Let those rats hiding in the shadows come out."
He picked up the teacup on the table, the tea reflecting his stern face. "When the time comes..."
The teacup was gently placed back on the tray with a crisp sound.
"Catch them all in one swoop."
Outside the window, a news bird flew by, holding in its claws the headline of a newspaper: the announcement of the "Dressrosa Athletic Conference."
And farther out at sea, one pirate ship after another had changed course and was heading towards Dressrosa.
On an unknown island in East Blue, the surging waves constantly hit the dark reefs, and the splashing waves glow blood-red in the sunset.
This island carefully selected by Rayleigh for training is now witnessing the transformation of a group of Pirates.
Zoro's naked upper body was covered with new scars, and his three swords gleamed coldly in the sunlight.
He was performing his daily routine of swinging his sword thousands of times, each stroke precisely slicing through the oncoming waves.
Not far away, Chopper was experimenting with a new formula for the Rumble Balls, and his animal form transformation time had been extended from three minutes to ten.
Nami stood on the edge of the cliff, gently waving the weather stick in her hand, and the clouds within a radius of 100 meters immediately responded to her call.
Usopp was practicing new sniping techniques on the beach. Although he lost an arm, the mechanical arm he bought on the underground black market made his accuracy even more amazing.
With the help of Observation Haki, every bullet can accurately hit the falling leaves a thousand meters away.
Suddenly, everyone stopped.
Because their captain, Monkey D. Luffy, was coming out of the cave.
The sunlight shone on his new left hand, and mysterious spiral patterns were faintly visible on the skin of that hand.
"Luffy, your hand..."
Chopper couldn't help but speak, but was silenced by a look from Zoro.
Over the past year, they all knew that some things were better left unasked.
Luffy didn't answer, but just looked up into the distance.
His eyes were no longer as innocent as before, but instead held a suffocating sense of oppression.
In the shadows beneath the straw hat, those eyes would occasionally flash an unnatural black light.
Robin walked out of the woods, holding a recent newspaper in his hand.
Her expression was extremely serious. "The latest news about Dressrosa..."
When the words "Mera-mera Fruit" were spoken, the entire beach instantly became quiet.
Even the sound of the waves seemed to disappear.
Nami stood up suddenly, dropping her weather stick onto the beach. "This is definitely a trap! Doflamingo is trying to lure us out!"
Zoro unsheathed his three swords at the same time, gleaming coldly in the sunlight: "That b*****d is provoking us!"
"I'm going."
Luffy's voice was not loud, but it made everyone quiet down.
He raised his head, an unfamiliar sneer on his lips: "Ace's things must be taken back."
Surprisingly, the usually cautious Usopp also stood up.
His remaining right arm tightly grasped his father's legacy, the sniper rifle, his eyes uncharacteristically firm. "I agree. We've been training so hard for over a year, waiting for this moment!"
"That b*****d Rogge will definitely go!"
Rayleigh walked out of the woods and looked at this group of young people who had been reborn, especially Luffy's new left hand.
A trace of worry flashed in the old Pirates' eyes. "Are you sure? Dressrosa now..."
"Rayleigh," Luffy interrupted, his eyes suddenly flashing an eerie black light from the shadows beneath his straw hat. "We are no longer the lost dogs that have escaped."
As the sun sets, everyone's shadows are stretched very long.
Rayleigh looked at the increasingly obvious black lines on Luffy's hand and finally nodded. "Let's go, then. But remember, some powers... once fully awakened, there's no going back."
Luffy didn't answer, but simply pushed his straw hat lower.
In the shadows, the five fingers of his left hand slowly tightened, leaving five deep grooves on the beach.
G5 base, inside the office.
Ion stood before Rogge, his brow furrowed slightly. "Admiral, if we are heading to Dressrosa, what about Buggy?"
She paused, her tone slightly serious, "After all, red hair..."
Rogge didn't answer immediately. Instead, he picked up the teacup and took a sip. Then he looked up at Ian with a slight smile on his face. "Ian, do we need to be afraid of red hair?"
These words hit Ain's heart like a heavy hammer.
She was stunned.
——Yeah, G5...should we be afraid of red hair?
Her eyes unconsciously turned to the window——
On the training ground, Lei Te and Bullet were fiercely fighting, the collision of Taijutsu and Haki set off a huge wave of energy;
On the other side, Zephyr spread his Phoenix wings and engaged Garp's Seraph at high speed, blue-green flames streaking through the sky.
Farther away, Shiryu's sword flashed like lightning, Aramaki's vines covered the sky, and Enel's thunder roared...
Such combat power...
Ain's pupils contracted slightly, and then a sharp light emerged from his eyes.
She slowly tightened her grip on the "Autumn Water" at her waist. The cold touch of the scabbard made her heart even hotter.
"Oh..."
She suddenly chuckled and shook her head. "I was just worrying too much."
Rogge put down his teacup, his eyes deep: "If the red-haired man dares to come, let him see it for himself."
"What is true 'absolute justice'?"
Ai En took a deep breath, straightened his back, and there was no hesitation in his eyes: "Yes!"
She turned and walked towards the door. When her hand was on the door handle, she suddenly stopped and asked, "What about Buggy..."
Rogge said calmly, "Just keep it locked up. It's just a prelude."
"If he dares to escape, just chop him down."
Ain's mouth curled up slightly: "I understand."
The door closed gently, and Rogge was the only one left in the office.
He stood up, walked to the window, and looked down at the entire G5 base—
This place is no longer the Marine branch that once had to fear the Four Emperors.