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Is he here for Spandam??
Franky was about to speak—but Iceburg tugged on the corner of his shirt and gave a subtle shake of his head.
"Then... we'll be on our way."
They watched Kuma walk away. Only then did the two of them finally exhale, the crushing pressure lifting.
"The Tyrant... Kuma," Franky breathed, his expression a mixture of disbelief and frustration. "Hey! Why'd you stop me? If he was going to kill that bastard—"
"We can't!" Iceburg's face was grim. "If Spandam dies here, in Water 7, Cipher Pol will come down on us with their full force. It would bring disaster to this city!"
He wanted Spandam dead as much as anyone—but not here. Not like this.
Franky fell silent, sighing. They were powerless, facing a monolithic entity they couldn't possibly fight. All they could do was try to protect their own.
—————————
Iceburg rushed back to the Galley-La headquarters, his face a mask of panic.
Kalifa looked up, confused. "Mr. Iceburg? What's wrong?"
"Quickly! Contact Marine Headquarters! It's Kuma!"
Kalifa was baffled. A bear? What was so alarming about a—
Her train of thought screeched to a halt. The realization hit her like a physical blow. "You don't mean... Kuma the Tyrant??"
"Yes," Iceburg said grimly. "I saw him when I was meeting with the other shipwrights. Kuma has made landfall at the scrapyard. His target is the commander of CP9, Spandam. Contact Marine Headquarters and the hotel at once—No, I'm going to the hotel myself. We have to protect Commander Spandam, no matter what!"
Iceburg sprinted out the door.
Kalifa's blood ran cold. 'Kuma the Tyrant is here?? He slipped past two Admirals, Kuzan and Sakazuki, and came to Water 7 without anyone knowing?'
Or... maybe he was hiding here all along. In the scrapyard.
Water 7 was practically under the nose of Marineford and Enies Lobby, connected by the Sea Train. No one would ever think to look.
The perfect blind spot.
Shaking herself from her shock, she immediately dialed the direct line to the Marines to report Kuma's presence.
Next, she contacted Blueno, telling him to use his Door-Door Fruit to get to Spandam and move him to safety.
Having done that, Kalifa hesitated for a moment, then contacted Lucci and the other foremen, ordering them to the hotel to "protect" Iceburg—a pretext to get the information to Lucci and Kaku so they could provide backup.
—————————
Marineford.
Sengoku received the report. He was dumbfounded.
"What do you mean, Kuma is in Water 7? How did he get into the Grand Line? How did he infiltrate the city without anyone noticing? What the hell is our intelligence division even doing?"
Vice Admiral Tsuru sighed. "The most dangerous place is often the safest. Kuzan went to the South Blue. Sakazuki followed, even making a trip to the East Blue and the Calm Belt. Everyone assumed he was hiding out there. It left Headquarters undermanned and the patrols in our immediate vicinity... complacent. And then there's his Paw-Paw Fruit. That ability is far too powerful. It comes from that place."
Sengoku took a breath. "Get Borsalino. Give him ten Vice Admirals and ten thousand troops. Deploy immediately. Capture him at all costs!"
The alarm bells shrieked, jolting the sleeping marines from their bunks.
—————————
Inside the hotel.
Spandam, enjoying a rare break from Enies Lobby, was relaxing with a beautiful woman, a massage easing the tension from his shoulders.
BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!
The wall, the windows, the glass—everything exploded inward, shattered into dust by a terrifying shockwave. The blast hurled Spandam from the bed.
The terrified woman wrapped herself in a sheet and fled.
"Who is it??" Spandam scrambled to his feet, the pain from his fall fueling his rage. "Which bastard is firing cannons??"
He cursed as he grabbed his sword from the table and looked toward the shattered window.
The moonlight silhouetted a massive dark shape. Vaguely... it looked like a bear.
Crack.
Kuma stepped inside, the sound of crunching glass echoing in the sudden silence. As Spandam's eyes adjusted, he saw him clearly.
His eyes widened. Sweat poured from his brow. His body began to tremble—whether from the cold or from pure terror, he couldn't tell.
"The... The Tyrant... Kuma?" he stammered, scrambling backward. "What... what are you doing here?? Help! SOMEBODY HELP ME!"
"Sir!"
"Commander Spandam!"
His guards burst in.
Kuma casually backhanded the air. A concussive blast erupted from his palm, sending the guards—along with the door and the rest of the wall—flying into the night.
"Ivory Rush!" Spandam shrieked, seizing the opportunity for a sneak attack.
The sword in his hand suddenly transformed into a full-sized elephant—a Zoan-type Elephant-Elephant Fruit weapon—its long trunk and ivory tusks lunging forward.
Kuma simply pressed his palm down against the elephant's head. A bubble of compressed air, shaped like a paw print, formed in his palm.
BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!
The elephant collapsed, knocked out cold in a single blow.
Kuma grabbed Spandam as he tried to escape through the window and slammed him against the wall. The wall shattered. Spandam, embedded in the plaster, went limp, blood streaming down his face.
Kuma pulled him from the wreckage and, using his Paw-Paw Fruit, "pushed" all the pain and injury out of Spandam's body, leaving him feeling refreshed and whole.
Then, he made him take it all back.
"AGGGHHHHH...!"
He pushed it out again.
And then back in.
After the third time, Spandam's mind broke.
"Wait! Wait, what do you want to know??" he sobbed, tears and snot streaming down his face. "Just ask! Please, stop torturing me!"
'For the love of god, just say something! Who bursts in and just starts torturing someone without a word? Is this how you interrogate people?'
"Spandam, Commander of CP9," Kuma's voice was a low, cold rumble. "I have been waiting for you."
"Where is the Tequila Wolf? What is it? And who else was involved in the Sorbet slave trade?"
Spandam froze.
The realization dawned.
So that's what this is about... Kuma must have learned about Cipher Pol's involvement in the slave trade from King Bekori and had been investigating in the shadows. And because he, Spandam, had been the public face of the Tom's Workers incident years ago, Kuma had been lying in wait for him here.
'It's because I'm too famous! Dammit! The Marines are useless! Water 7 is right next to Marineford, and they didn't even notice him??'
An idea sparked in Spandam's mind. 'If I can just stall for time... Headquarters is so close. If I can help them capture Kuma, it'll be a huge promotion...'
Kuma didn't know what he was planning, but he sensed the malice. He pushed the bubble of pain back into Spandam's body.
"AAAAAAAAAAGGGHHHHHH!"
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