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The moon began to bathe Dressrosa in its light. At Acacia's port, the cries of nighttime flower merchants mingled with the laughter of cou
The moon began to bathe Dressrosa in its light.
At Acacia's port, the cries of nighttime flower merchants mingled with the laughter of couples. The heady scents of roses and bars hung thick and comforting. Nothing betrayed the storm raging in the hearts of those who had just disembarked.
The Sisyphe, flagship of the Donquixote fleet, docked in mournful silence. The surviving sailors, their faces ashen and uniforms torn, avoided the curious stares of the dockworkers.
At the top of the gangplank, Doflamingo stood tall. His usual smile, that sinister curve of the lips, was gone, replaced by a marble-like tension. Beside him, Gladius swayed slightly, his shattered goggles revealing bloodshot eyes ringed with deep exhaustion. His explosive suit was in tatters, exposing purplish burns on his arms.
The weight of the absent—Diamante, Trebol, Lao G—hung like a thick fog around them.
The citizens greeted their "King" with their usual enthusiasm, blind to the cold rage radiating from him. Every laugh, every note of music, grated on Doflamingo's ears like an insult.
*These blissful idiots.*
In the grand throne room, Sugar, perched on her miniature throne and playing with a transformed toy soldier, briefly raised her wide, innocent eyes toward the newcomers, an imperceptible shiver running through her small frame. Baby 5's hands trembled on the handle of a heavy mortar. Buffalo, sprawled on a couch, stopped snoring abruptly, his bovine face etched with sudden worry. Dellinger fidgeted nervously. Only Pica, hidden within the stone walls, let out a low rumble that shook the floor, betraying his presence.
"Master Doflamingo!" Baby 5 cried, unable to contain her anguish. "Gladius! Where… where are Diamante, Trebol, and Lao G?"
Doflamingo ignored her. He crossed the room with heavy steps, his coat dragging across the marble, and sank into his imposing obsidian-carved throne. The wood creaked under his weight. He rested his chin on his clasped fists, his pink sunglasses reflecting the stained-glass light, concealing his gaze.
Gladius stepped forward, stumbling slightly. His voice, usually brimming with explosive confidence, was hoarse with fatigue and lingering adrenaline. "Hawkeye… Mihawk… He took them out. Diamante first, then Trebol. Lao G… Lao G gave his life to give us a chance to escape." He bowed his head, unable to meet Baby 5's horrified stare or Sugar's icy silence. "Their ship is damaged, but it's holding. Mihawk… he's trapped in the Birdcage."
A murmur of terror rippled through the room. Buffalo stood abruptly, pale. Baby 5 clapped a hand over her mouth. Even Sugar stopped playing, clutching her toy soldier to her chest. Pica's growl grew louder, a brief crack appearing in the wall.
"And the Marines?" Doflamingo asked, without a flicker, as if the deaths of his most loyal lieutenants were a mere administrative detail. "Kaido? Where are they?"
Baby 5 answered, straightening with visible effort. She pulled a transceiver snail from her pocket. "The Marines, Master! They're taking the threat seriously. A fleet's been assigned, led by Admiral Fujitora. But…" She hesitated, sensing the danger in the air. "Their closest position is a day's sail away. They won't arrive before tomorrow at the earliest."
A muscle twitched in Doflamingo's jaw.
A day. An eternity with a monster like Mihawk caged just off his kingdom's shores.
A dull rage began to simmer within him.
"And Kaido?" he repeated, his voice lower, more dangerous.
"Kaido…" Baby 5 swallowed hard. "His deputy, King, responded. They know about the incident. Kaido said…" She read from a scribbled note: "'Doffy can handle it. My SMILEs arrive on time. End of story.'"
The silence that followed was heavier than the palace's marble.
*Handle it.* As if this were a petty squabble among minor pirates. As if the loss of three pillars of his empire, the caging of his deadliest enemy at his doorstep, warranted only a beastly shrug.
The rage Doflamingo had been holding back erupted.
"HANDLE IT?!" His voice thundered, rattling the windows. He shot to his feet, toppling his throne with a deafening crash. His hands were outstretched, fingers curled like talons. "HE DARES SAY THAT TO ME? AFTER EVERYTHING I'VE DONE FOR HIM? AFTER WHAT I'VE JUST LOST?" He pointed a trembling finger at Gladius, at the others. "THIS CAGE WON'T HOLD HIM FOREVER! MIHAWK ISN'T AN OPPONENT—HE'S A PLAGUE! AND IF THAT PLAGUE BREAKS FREE, DRESSROSA WILL BURN, AND HIS PRECIOUS SMILEs WITH IT!"
Baby 5 shrank back, terrified. "Master, please calm down! The Marines arrive tomorrow…"
"THE MARINES?" Doflamingo roared, a hysterical laugh tearing from his throat. "DOGS WHO SHOW UP TO PICK UP THE SCRAPS AFTER THE FIGHT! I NEED KAIDO! NOW!" He turned to the main transceiver, a golden snail on a pedestal. "Connect to Wano. Directly to Kaido. Now. I speak to no one else."
"But Master…" Buffalo tried, his voice quivering. "Kaido doesn't like being disturbed for…"
A sharp gesture from Doflamingo. A cutting string whipped out, slicing deeply into Buffalo's arm. The man screamed and collapsed, clutching his wound.
"I DON'T CARE!" roared the Pirate King. "DO AS I SAY!"
Under the threat, Baby 5 and Dellinger frantically worked the transceiver. The golden snail slowly took on a bestial, scowling face, marked by deep scars and massive horns. Its half-lidded eyes betrayed crushing weariness and overwhelming power.
Before Doflamingo could speak, the snail spoke in a different voice—colder, more controlled.
It was Vergo, his spy embedded at the highest levels of the Marines, using a secure line from Punk Hazard.
"Doffy. Vergo here. The situation at Punk Hazard is stable. Caesar's SAD project is on schedule. The next SMILE shipment will be ready in…"
"Vergo," Doflamingo cut in, forcing a semblance of calm, though his voice remained taut. "Punk Hazard and Caesar are the top priority. Ensure nothing—absolutely nothing—disrupts production or transport. We have… a neighborhood issue here, but I'm handling it personally. Focus on your mission."
"Understood, Joker," Vergo replied, asking no questions. The line cut off, the snail reverting to its dormant, bestial features.
A moment later, the snail groaned, its features hardening further into an expression of drunken brutality and cosmic boredom. A cavernous voice, laden with power that seemed to defy physics, rumbled through the room, vibrating the very air.
"…Doffy?" Kaido growled. The single word carried immeasurable menace. "You dare disturb me over your little problems? You know what happens to those who bother me when I'm drinking?"
Doflamingo straightened, projecting his Conqueror's aura, an invisible wave of pressure that made even Gladius falter. He knew he was gambling his life, but fear was a luxury he could no longer afford. Mihawk had changed the game. He had to strike harder, higher.
"Little problem, Kaido?" Doflamingo shot back, a forced laugh in his voice. "You call it a little problem when Hawkeye himself comes to plant his sword at my kingdom's door? When he's already torn three of my best to pieces? When he's locked in my cage, just off Dressrosa's coast, but that cage, strong as it is, is just a toy to a man who slices mountains?"
He paused for dramatic effect.
"You're aiming at the wrong target, Kaido. It's not really me he's after. He's seen your weakness. He's seen how you rely on others for your SMILEs, how you ignore the threats growing at your doorstep. He doesn't want Dressrosa…" Doflamingo lowered his voice, lacing each word with manipulative venom. "He wants your throne. Your Emperor's throne. And if you don't move your massive hide to crush this fly now, before he breaks his cage and turns toward Wano… well, get ready to be stripped bare. By the world's greatest swordsman."
Absolute silence followed. You could've heard a pin drop in the vast throne room. Baby 5 held her breath. Gladius clenched his fists, bracing for the unthinkable. Sugar buried her face in her toy. Even Pica's rumble fell silent.
Then the snail laughed.
It wasn't a mocking or scornful laugh. It was a deep, bestial roar that shook the transceiver as if it might explode. A laugh like distant thunder from a cataclysm. A laugh that chilled the blood of everyone who heard it.
"WORORORORORO! MY THRONE?" Kaido's voice boomed, the laughter shifting into a growl of terrifying intensity. "THIS FLY WANTS MY THRONE? WORORORORORO! FINE, DOFFY. FINE."
The laughter stopped abruptly. The voice that followed was low.
"THIS SWORDSMAN'S MAKING TOO MUCH NOISE… LET'S SEE IF HIS FEAT AGAINST WHITEBEARD WAS JUST LUCK… WORORORORO. PREPARE YOUR BEST SAKE, DOFFY."
Doflamingo stood motionless for a moment, his face still taut, but a flash of savage triumph flickered in his eyes behind his sunglasses.
"…Because I've decided," Kaido's voice rumbled in the sudden silence, final and echoing, "to pay you a visit."
The line cut off for good.
Doflamingo slowly raised his head. A cruel, satisfied smile stretched across his lips.
"Good. Very good." His voice returned to a controlled murmur, crackling with electric tension. "Buffalo, Baby 5. Prepare everything. Our… guest… demands the finest welcome." His smile widened to the extreme. "Let the show begin."